Robin: 25th December

Chrom and I spent the rest of Divine Eve cuddled up together in our room. That was how I woke on the dawn of Divine Day -- captured in his embrace.

Lissa was knocking on the wall that separated our room from hers. "Chrom! Robin! Wake up!"

"We're awake!" Chrom groaned.

I jumped. "I didn't realise you were awake."

"I wasn't for long. I was watching you."

"Surely I'm not that interesting."

He smiled. "You look like an angel when you're sleeping."

I blushed.

"Not that you don't look beautiful when you're awake," he added. "You look beautiful all the time."

He brushed his lips against mine, then captured them firmly. I melted into the kiss.

Lissa knocked again, but this time it was on our door. "Are you two coming out or what? We need to go and open our presents!"

Chrom eased away from me with a sigh. "Could you give us a chance to get dressed?"

"Haven't you even started yet? What were you  -- actually, I don't want to know."

I laughed.

Chrom grinned and sat up. "The sooner we get going, the sooner we'll open these presents and have some peace and quiet."

"Indeed." I sat up with him and caught his hand. "It was nice to wake up with you this Divine Day."

"Likewise. Happy Divine Day." He gave me another fleeting kiss, then stood up and pulled me with him. "Come. We really should dress."

We decided it was time to be ourselves, so we dressed in some of our travelling clothes. It felt good to wear my old coat and some trousers, and even though I'd liked the way he'd looked as a villager, I enjoyed seeing Chrom in his usual clothing again.

We arrived at breakfast at the same time as most of the other Shepherds. The stragglers were being heckled by Lissa, who was still upstairs but shouting so loudly that we could all hear her. Torin was sitting in his chair by the fire, laughing at her. The other Shepherds were taking their seats at the table. Lyle and Nadia had already laid breakfast out, and so it looked like Lissa was going to have to wait a little bit longer to open the presents.

Chrom and I stopped next to Torin, who'd tied his hair back with a festive red ribbon rather than a scrap of leather today. He smiled at us. "Happy Divine Day, Your Grace. Happy Divine Day, milady."

"Happy Divine Day, Torin," Chrom said. "Please, join us for breakfast."

Torin grinned and stood up. "I would be honoured."

We sat down in the seats furthest from the window and closest to the fire, and Torin sat opposite us just as he had done a few days ago. The rest of the Shepherds filtered in, Lissa bringing up the rear. She looked slightly put out when she saw that we'd decided to eat breakfast before opening the presents, but the sight of Lyle bringing out plates of bacon seemed to placate her.

As we tucked in, Torin said to me, "You look much brighter than when you first arrived here, milady."

I smiled. "I feel it, today. I think Whiteholt has done me a world of good."

Torin smiled back. "I'm glad to hear it. I may have lived in this village all my life, but I've travelled far, and I've always thought that we're unique."

"You are."

Chrom leaned closer to me. "We've learned a lot while we've been here."

"So I've heard," Torin said. "Kai and Annika were singing your praises when I popped in to wish them the season's greetings yesterday, but I'll wager you took to their children just as much as they took to you."

I laughed. "That's right. I hope we can come back and visit them again someday."

"You picked very interesting names for yourselves, I have to say." Torin speared some bacon with his fork. "They referred to you as Christos and Romina. The name of the first exalt and the name of Prince Chrom's mother."

My stomach dropped. I stared at Chrom. "Your...mother?"

He looked down at his plate.

"Chrom, I'm sorry! I didn't know! I've only heard her being mentioned a handful of times -- by you!"

"It's all right." His cheeks were turning pink. "I knew that you would have no idea of its significance when I chose it. I just thought...I'm not the sort of man to want to name my children after my ancestors. I don't wish for them to feel as if they're standing in the shadow of someone else. So this was one of my few chances to honour my mother. And you, I think." He looked up and took my hand. "You know that she meant a lot to me, even though she died when I was young. Had the two of you met, you would have gotten along perfectly."

I squeezed his hand. "I'm sure we would have. Thank you for giving me her name."

He smiled. "I couldn't just call you something completely random."

"I thought you had!"

"I was a little embarrassed to admit who I'd named you after."

"Don't be. I'm touched."

He blushed again and turned back to his food. I smiled at him fondly before getting stuck into breakfast myself. If we took too long, Lissa would probably start force-feeding us so that we could get to the presents quicker.

Thankfully, we finished before she had the opportunity. Torin got to his feet. "Thank you, Your Grace. Happy Divine Day again."

"Wait!" I said. "Who will you be spending Divine Day with now?"

"A bottle of Lyle's ale," he said wryly.

"Why don't you just stay here with us? The other Shepherds would welcome you."

He hesitated. "Milady...are you certain?"

"Of course! I couldn't sit here and have a nice time knowing that you were on your own. I just have one condition."

He raised his eyebrows. "And what is that, milady?"

"You have to find Lyle and Nadia and make them come out here, too."

He laughed. "I'm certain they will also appreciate the invitation. I'll see what I can do."

While Torin went behind the bar in search of Lyle -- and possibly some ale -- the rest of us gathered around the Divine tree in the corner of the room. Yesterday, the Shepherds had put all of our presents underneath it. Despite the fact that there should have been less of them than usual, the pile seemed just as staggering as last year.

Some of us sat down on the floor while others pulled up chairs. Chrom and I left Torin's rocking chair vacant for him and sat down at a nearby couple's table instead, at the back of our little crowd. Everyone was so excited that neither of us could wipe the smiles from our faces.

Once Torin had emerged with Lyle and Nadia and we had assured them that they could sit with us, the present opening began. As Lissa performed her usual role of crawling about and distributing the gifts, Chrom placed his hand over mine. "It was very kind of you to invite Torin, Lyle, and Nadia to sit with us. I need no reminding of this, but it proves you are a true Shepherd through and through."

"It was nothing. You would have done the same."

He smiled. "I would. Actually, you only beat me to it by seconds."

At the front of our crowd, Lissa set two jar-shaped presents aside. "Here's one for me from Chrom...and one for me from Robin. Thank you."

I caught Chrom's eye and laughed.

"This one's for you, Robin." Lissa crawled over to us and placed a scrappily-wrapped box in my hands.

I didn't even need to look at the label to know who it was from.

I undid the binding and slid the paper off to reveal a large, wooden box. I set it down on the table, then flipped the latch and lifted the lid. Inside was a pair of tall boots, made of stiff leather and lined with sheepskin. When I picked one up and turned it upside down, I found that the soles had the finest grip I'd ever seen.

"I know you adore the boots you woke up in and that you'll never get rid of them," Chrom said. "But now you shouldn't fall over in winter battles."

"I love them." I kicked my old boots off under the table and slid my feet into my new ones. The instant they hit the sheepskin, I curled my toes and smiled. "Ah, bliss. These will keep me safe and warm! Thank you." I leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek.

Lissa appeared again. "Now I have one for you, Chrom! From Robin."

"Perfect timing," Chrom said. "Thank you."

I twisted the chain of my pendant in my hands as he tore the paper from my present. I'd been so certain the other day that he would like the gloves, but now I felt nervous.

The paper fell away from the mesh bag, and Chrom gently pulled the gloves out. "Aren't these Annika's? Weren't they one of the prizes at The Lucky Carrot?"

"Yes. I thought they would be perfect for you during the winter. And she wanted you to have them."

Chrom smiled. "Thank you. It seems that we were on the same wavelength this year with our winter gifts."

I shifted in my seat, anticipation rising. "Indeed. But I'm not finished."

He raised his eyebrows. "No?"

"I have another gift for you. Perhaps we could step outside for a moment and have some privacy? We haven't explored what's at the back of the tavern yet."

"All right." He stood up. "I'm sure Lissa will just leave the rest of our presents on the table for us."

He put his new gloves on, picked up his glass of juice, and then offered me his spare hand. I grabbed my own drink, and we excused ourselves and left the tavern together.

We circled around it until we were at the back. There was little but the stables and a small courtyard, at the edge of which a large swing had been tied to a tree. The branches of it had sheltered the seat, and so it was bare of any snow.

We walked to the swing and put our drinks on the floor. When Chrom had sat down, I arranged myself in his lap. "It's a...verbal present."

He looked bemused, but he put his arm around my waist and nodded. "Go on."

"Right. Okay." I took a deep breath. "I think I'll just...say it. Chrom...I'm pregnant."

He stared at me.

"Lissa told me I'm three months pregnant, in fact. Since late August or early September. That's why I haven't been myself."

"But..." Chrom looked like he was floundering for words. "I was convinced that you were unwell."

"I was, for a time at least. It just coincided perfectly with the moment when the symptoms of my pregnancy were starting to show." I looked up. "That's why I never seemed to recover. I had recovered, really."

"This is real, then?" Chrom took my hands, a slow smile spreading across his face. "We're having a baby?"

"Yes." I smiled. "We are, Chrom."

He crushed me against his chest. "I can't believe this! Truly?"

I laughed. "Yes!"

He suddenly drew away, frowning. "But do you think it was harmed when you were unwell?"

"Lissa and Maribelle think not. And 'it' is a 'she'."

"How can they tell?"

"They can't. I know this seems hard to believe when I couldn't even sense her within me until now, but this morning, I woke up and I was certain. I can feel her there, and I know that she's a girl."

He smiled. "Well, I've always put my faith in you. So we'd better think of some female names." He looked at my currently unremarkable stomach. "Can I...?"

I nodded.

He gingerly placed his hand against my stomach. I put mine over his. "I don't think we'll be able to feel anything yet. But it's nice to know that she's in there."

"Yes. Gods, everyone in the realm is going to be so delighted! As are the Shepherds. But no one will be more delighted than me."

"When are we going to announce it to the Shepherds?"

"Soon." He lifted his hand from my stomach and cupped my cheek. "But not quite yet. First..."

He drew us together and kissed me gently. I smiled against his mouth and parted my lips, flicking my tongue over his as an excited shiver raced through me. We stayed locked together for a long moment.

When we were ready, we slowly pulled away. I put my hand on my stomach again. I loved Chrom so much, and the thought that we were now starting a family -- creating something from both of us -- filled me with exhilaration.

I knew that it would be hard. But I felt that I was ready.

Chrom bent down and picked up our glasses, passing one to me. He raised his. "Here's to Divine Day. And here's to us. All three of us."

I clinked my glass against his. "Here's to us."