Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

With an arm woven under his shoulders, Lucina led her father up the stairs. She kept her steps in pace with his. Whenever his body shuddered to give a cough, she stopped and held him steady.

After the third cough, Chrom huffed. "You don't have to do this, you know," he said.

"Nonsense," she replied. "It's always been my pleasure."

"I was talking about helping me up the stairs."

"As was I."

Chrom gave her a funny look. She returned it with a look of her own, her eyebrow raised.

"I'm sick, not old."

"I'm not taking chances, not when you're forty-four already."

"Forty-five. And it's not that old."

"Is my assistance unwelcome?" she asked.

"No no, not that. It's just a rather strange thing to say."

"Is it? As a civil servant, serving others should always be a pleasure." A smile wormed its way to her lips, and her mind wandered to the past. "You said it yourself when you visited the police academy."

"Yes, I remember."

"You also said it when you visited my high school. And when you visited my middle school as well. And–"

"I get it, I get it," he said, cutting her off. He shook his head. "Using my own words against me."

Lucina frowned. "Do you not like it?"

"No, it's... it's great that you can go out of your way to help people, but don't you have anything better to do?"

Lucina's frown deepened. In a way, that was his way of telling her that, yes, it did bother him.

"Why does it bother you so much?" she asked. "Do I speak too much? Is it how I'm supporting you?"

"None of that. I just think you spend too much time around me. Don't you have anything you want to do? Any goals of your own?"

"Right now, my only goal is getting you to bed."

Chrom huffed again, and his eyes strayed to the floor.

They climbed up in silence for a few seconds more. Their footsteps rang hollow in the stairwell, echoing off the tight walls, drowning out the faint sounds of chatter behind them. Shadows moved in the light from below as it nipped at their heels, growing weaker and weaker with each step.

Lucina felt her father stumble. She tightened her grip around him as he coughed again, and a smile tugged at her lips when he muttered his gratitude a second after.

"That party," he said, nodding downstairs, "sure was something, wasn't it?"

"It was, father."

"Quite the attendance list. Everyone showed up."

"Of course they would, father. They're your friends."

He looked up at her, and his brows drew down. "I know that. I'm sick. Not old. Remember?"

"You're forty-four, father. Er... forty-five."

"I'm no old man."

"I never said you were an old man."

"You implied it."

"You interpreted it, didn't you?"

Chrom chuckled. As he quieted down, a small smile remained on his lips.

They'd reached the top of the stairs now. Guiding her father along, Lucina led him to his bedroom just down the hall. She pushed the door open for him, and as he walked past her, he looked over.

"Forty-five, huh? Forty-five years of being alive. Forty-five birthdays. I'm sure I've said it before, but it's the birthdays I've spent with you that I treasure the most."

"Father..."

"Each year, some people come, some people don't. Sometimes they bring others with them. Boyfriends, girlfriends, husbands, wives. But you never fail to show up, and that's all any father could ask for." He frowned. "That said, you always show up alone. You never bring anyone with you."

"That's because I have no one to bring."

Chrom pouted. The expression looked rather strange on his face. "That's no fun. Won't you get lonely?"

"I have you, father. That is enough."

"That's what I'm worried about."

The bedsprings groaned as Chrom lay his body over the mattress. His smile seemed almost sad, sad enough to tug at Lucina's heartstrings. She wasn't heartless.

"Don't be so down, father," she said, kneeling down to look him in the eye. "I'll find someone someday."

He snorted. "You'd better. I'd like some grandchildren, you know."

"Yes, I know."

She turned on her heel. Silence was all that stayed between them as she headed for the door. As she placed her hand on the doorknob, moving to close it, Chrom held up a hand to stop her.

"Can I get you anything?" she asked.

He shook his head. "I'm fine. I just thought of something." The corners of his lips twitched. "Is it possible you've not found anyone because you don't want me to share those embarrassing baby photos with them?"

"Father. I burned that book," Lucina said, her expression the flattest she could manage.

"Is that so?"

The way he chuckled had her narrowing her eyes. When he turned his back, she knew something was up.

"What did you do?"

"Nothing." A pause. "Though, I thought, since you're so young, you'd know that everything is digital nowadays. I still have an electronic album of your baby photos I can show anytime I wish."

Lucina wanted to know where. She wanted to pester him until he gave in (because the gods knew he would) so she could get rid of that album as well.

But it was late, and she didn't have the patience for it tonight.

Silently cursing the gods for her impatience, she said, "Father. Go to bed."

"I love you, Luci."

The door stopped inches away from closing. A sigh escaped Lucina's lips. "I love you too," she said.

Then the door clicked shut.

When Lucina went back downstairs, she found it empty. Aside from a few chairs out of place, and one or two dishes laid haphazardly on the table she could just barely see from the stairwell.

Although he had a decent job, her father was not a wealthy man. His house, as a result, was fairly cramped, even without all the people he'd invited for his birthday.

And now, with all of them gone, it looked nice and cozy. It was a house she'd grown up in, and with the sound of chatter no longer hanging in the air, it felt familiar once more.

"I suppose everyone has already headed home," Lucina said. "There's nobody left here but me."

"Ouch."

Lucina glanced down. Draped over the couch like a lazy kitten, Robin met her gaze with a smirk, her coat spread out under her. One of her father's oldest friends, and one of the biggest nuisances in her life.

"Sticks and stones, Lucina. I thought your old man would've taught you better," she said.

"What are you still doing here?" Lucina said, plopping herself down on a nearby chair.

"I'm waiting for my ride. Something which, if I remember, you don't have."

"So I took a taxi here," Lucina said, frowning. "What is your point?"

"Unless you plan on staying here, I can have my driver drop you off at your apartment."

"And if I do plan on staying?"

Robin waved a hand over her head. "Then feel free to leech off your father's kindness as much as you want."

"I'm not leeching off anyone!" Lucina said, and she put a hand to her chest. "It's just for one day!"

"I don't know, Lucina. The last time you said that you didn't come back for a week."

"I got caught up in... police business here. I told you."

"Lucina. I visited that week. Your father said you had the week off."

Lucina coughed into her hand. "You were there? How come I never saw you?"

"It wasn't as if I sent you a hundred messages asking to meet up, didn't I? You didn't block me, did you?"

"No! I would never do such a thing!"

"Oh I'm sure you wouldn't."

Huffing, Lucina said, "You could try texting me right now. My phone will ring."

"It will now that I've unblocked myself," Robin said, and she tossed the phone to Lucina.

Lucina yelped. She fumbled with the device, tossing it from hand to hand before she finally snatched it out of the air. She unlocked it with a swipe of a finger, and sure enough, Robin had sent her a few dozen messages that she hadn't had the chance to see.

The most recent one read: "If you were going to try lying to me, at least you could've tried to cover your tracks."

"You left it on the coffee table when the food was ready," Robin said before she could ask where she'd found it. "Just like you did with this set of files. They're not important, are they?"

"Give me that!" Lucina said, and she snatched the stack of papers out of Robin's hand. "I thought I told you I come here to get away from the city!"

"I'm sorry? Do I look like a city to you?"

"You live in the city! I come here to get away from you!"

Now it was Robin's turn to huff, and she crossed her arms. "And I thought I told you that you need to put your work down every now and then. Spend some time to hang out with your friends." Robin paused. "You do have friends, don't you?"

"I do! I have Cynthia. I have Severa and–"

"And the last time you've stuck up a conversation with them was..." Robin hummed and looked away, though Lucina knew that she didn't really need the time to think and was just doing it for show. "You know, I don't believe you've ever stuck up a conversation with them. Not in your recent history, anyway. It's always been them checking up on you. Isn't that funny?"

"No, it's not. Why were you looking at my messages?"

"Is there anything wrong with me wanting to keep tabs on friends and family?"

"A little."

"Well, you weren't talking to me, so I just thought I'd do a little private catching-up. You certainly weren't going to tell me if you had any issues you needed dealing with."

Lucina groaned, though not without a smidgen of guilt. As annoying as she was, Robin was a friend, and all this could have been avoided if she hadn't tried to avoid her. "Look, is there anything you want from me before you go back to the city?"

Robin smiled, and the sudden light in her eyes promised mischief. "Well, if you'd like to make it up to me, why don't you join me for a trip down to the Exalt's Festival? I hear that they're returning to Ylisstol sometime this week. We used to go there all the time, remember?"

"I remember. I'm not as old and senile as you."

"At least I'm still young enough to have fun. Last I recall, you never wanted to take any of the rides because you thought they were too scary."

Lucina took offense to that. She'd grown out of that, surely.

"In any case, I can't go. I have work to do."

"Oh?" Robin's tone took on a playful edge. "Are you sure it's simply because you have no one to go with you?"

"You're one to talk. You're just as single as I."

Robin scoffed. "For your information, I do have a boyfriend. He's the one who's picking me up today. You wouldn't know, since you have yet to meet him."

"And I won't believe he exists until I meet him. You said it yourself: the day the matchmaker becomes the matched is the day I'd stop fretting over my father. And that has yet to happen, hasn't it?" Lucina gave Robin a lopsided smile. "Speaking of which, have you found someone to share my rent?"

"Actually," Robin said, brightening, "I did find you a roommate. An old friend of your father's, someone named Jody Summers."

"Truly?"

"Come on. Would I lie to you?"

Lucina snorted. She didn't respond, and for a minute, no one spoke. She was comfortable to keep it that way, at least until Robin left.

"You're not the only one who cares, you know."

"Hm?" Lucina glanced up at Robin.

"I actually told my boyfriend to pick me up late so I could help Chrom." Robin chuckled dryly. "Though I suppose with you here, I needn't have tried."

"I mean no offense to you," Lucina groaned, "or Uncle Lon'qu or Aunt Lissa, but he is my father. Am I not supposed to help him?"

Robin shook her head. "No. Just... you never take time to enjoy yourself, by yourself."

"Robin."

"Get yourself a day off to go there, and let some of us help in your stead."

"Robin." Lucina pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed, even as Robin fell silent. She should have seen this coming; it was an argument that always seemed to break out whenever her father was involved, and one that she never enjoyed.

"I have one case," she said. "One case left before I can get that promotion, and I can pay to have my father's illness treated. I don't have time for the festival or anything frivolous like that."

"Come on. It's not as if he only has a week left to live. The doctors say the illness won't take a turn for the worse for years. Your father wouldn't want you to put aside everything for him."

"What my father would want won't matter if he's dead!" Lucina snapped. "You can't say the illness won't suddenly accelerate without warning."

"Then let me help," Robin said. "I can pay for you."

And there it was. Every time, Robin would give her a way out.

It was an option she could not take.

"Robin, you have your cafe to take care of. I cannot ask you to stretch yourself thin for our sake."

Robin frowned, and she turned away. "Speak for yourself."

The silence that followed was more awkward than the last. Lucina could sense Robin's displeasure. It was never a pleasant thing to discuss, and they could never agree on how to handle it.

The cushions rustled as she pushed herself to her feet. "I will be heading out for some air," Lucina said. "Feel free to stay until your driver gets here. I shouldn't be gone for long."

"My boyfriend shouldn't be far off, either," Robin said. "I'll be out of your hair within half an hour."

"I'll see you tomorrow." Lucina turned and headed for the door.

"You'd better."

The cool night air washed over Lucina's face as she stepped outside. It felt nice just to let the cold caress her cheeks. Lucina pushed through the desire to simply bask in the breeze, and she walked down the steps and into the night.

Down the road, she saw a pair of headlights approach. As they drew closer, she was able to make out the shape of a car, painted a deep blue.

That must be the boyfriend Robin spoke about, she thought. It's either that, or her brother. It would not be unlike her to try to fool me like that.

Her eyes drifted away, and she swept them over her surroundings. Not a single window glowed with light, the neighborhood around her completely asleep. It was a nice, serene picture, one she could fondly remember running through late at night years ago.

She wasn't here to enjoy the sights, however.

From the stack of papers in her hand, she pulled out an index card. Ylisstol Field, it read.

Lucina glanced off into the distance. Over the sleeping neighborhood, Lucina saw lights flicker over a grassy plain, a tower keeping watch over it all. No planes flew overhead, not at this hour.

A sigh pushed itself through her lips. Keeping the piece of paper in front of her, Lucina pulled out her phone and put it to her ear.

"Hello? Yes, I'd like to take a taxi to Ylisstol Field." She paused to let the person on the other end speak.

"Yes. I'd like one now if it's convenient. And no, this isn't some ill-thought-out practical joke."

Chapter Text

The name Captain Falcon meant many things. To some, he was a hero. To some, he was an obstacle to overcome. To some, he was a name whispered beneath the dim lighting deep underground.

To Douglas Jay Falcon, he was a facade. And as he slowly crept back into the world from the depths of his sleep, he was reminded of it in the most painful way.

The back of his neck hurt like hell, from the back of his skull to his shoulders. Whenever he tried to move his head, pain would cut through the haze still settled over his mind. A pained hiss escaped his lips, and as he reached up to rub his neck, Falcon glanced over at the dials and buttons dotting the dashboard in front of him.

"Falcon Flyer" he mumbled, "what time is it?"

From a speaker to his right, a monotone voice replied, "10pm in the local time, sir."

A look outside the window proved it correct. Darkness covered the sky, broken only by the stars scattered throughout it and the blinking lights of the city below.

"You have been asleep for six hours," the voice droned on, "and at your current velocity, you will arrive at Ylisstol Airfield within five minutes."

"I only asked for the time, not a status report," Falcon said. "Why don't you give me the weather while you're at it?"

"The local weather forecast calls for clear skies for the next–"

"Falcon Flyer, please shut up."

The voice of the Falcon Flyer cut off with a click. Falcon leaned back in his seat and scowled, waiting for the throbbing in his neck to subside.

"What I wouldn't do to be back in my bed right now," he groaned, and he rubbed his neck again. "Why did I have to take this job, anyway?"

The voice was quick to respond. "You took the job for the payment, and the next F-Zero race is in three months."

"Yes, I know. No need to remind me." Falcon waved a hand behind him. "I just wish this bounty was a little closer to home."

Running a hand down his face, Falcon rolled his neck, finding satisfaction in the popping noise it made. As he rolled his shoulders back, he lamented all the wonderful amenities he'd left back home. His soft bed, his bathtub.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

A sharp noise shook him from his thoughts. Falcon leveled a glare at the flashing red light on the dashboard as if it were the cause of all his problems, and he briefly wished he had remained asleep.

"Who's calling?" he asked.

"Jody Summer, from the Galactic Space Federation."

"Tell her to call back later. I can't be bothered to deal with her this early in the morning."

"It's night."

Falcon narrowed his eyes. "Not at home, it isn't."

"Logistics dictate that would be an unwise decision," the voice said, its flat voice somehow carrying an admonishing tone. "She is your contractor, after all."

"Well, she can contact me later. If she has a problem with it, she can talk to you."

The voice fell silent. For a moment, Falcon relaxed, believing that problem dealt with, and he let himself settle into the calm that followed.

Reaching beneath the dashboard, he felt through the cold metal compartments beneath, brushing past sheets of paper that were probably important and a forgotten pack of gum until finally, his fingers closed around the familiar shape of his helmet.

He pulled it out and set it down in front of him. Setting his chin on his steepled hands, he stared down at the thing. His lips tugged down into a frown. Though the visor was dark, he could easily imagine two glowing blue eyes staring back at him.

He'd heard somewhere that all self-reflections took place in the dead of night, under the silver light of the stars.

Faintly, he was aware that the red light was still flashing. He didn't have the energy to answer it, still in the middle of hauling himself into the waking world. If he were Captain Falcon, though, maybe he would have been able to.

Captain Falcon didn't get a stiff neck. Captain Falcon didn't whine about having to stay away from home. Captain Falcon didn't take so long to wake up, even in the middle of the night.

The helmet, the very same one before him, was all that separated him from Captain Falcon. Yet they couldn't be more different.

At least Captain Falcon would have the courtesy to answer the damn phone.

"I am patching her through now."

Falcon's eyes widened, the calm shattering and falling to pieces around him.

"Wait, what?"

"Boss' orders."

"I am your boss."

"And she is yours. Therefore, her word overrides your own."

Falcon cursed. "Hold her for a minute!" he shouted, as he fumbled for his helmet.

The face of Jody Summer blipped onto the screen on the dashboard just as he finished slipping it over his head.

"Jody!" Falcon forced his lips into a smile he hoped didn't look too plastic.

Jody quirked an eyebrow. "Captain. I haven't disturbed you, have I? The flight over to Ylisstol is quite long, so you need all the rest you can get."

"Not at all," Falcon said, shaking his head. "If crime never sleeps, then neither shall I! Now," he leaned over the dashboard, "was there anything you needed to tell me?"

Jody looked like she wanted to ask something, but she shook it off. "As you know, we've received reports of Blood Falcon in the area. Since your task is to hunt him down and put a stop to whatever havoc he may cause, you'll need a place to stay."

"Well, that's not going to be a problem! The Falcon Flyer is good enough for me." Falcon slapped a hand over his seat, and he flashed a smile to reassure her.

"Surely the Falcon Flyer isn't the most comfortable place to sleep," Jody said. "Ylisstol is quite large. I expect it will take some time for you to hunt him down. As such, I've made a few arrangements with a friend of mine for you to stay somewhere within the city."

Falcon paused, and he had to hold back a grimace. Frankly, that sounded like a terrible idea. He'd have to go out of his ship and expose himself, not as Captain Falcon, with all the attention that would bring, but as Douglas Jay Walker.

Then he glanced back at his ship, to the giant blue car parked inside, and at all the hard, metal surfaces between. Just thinking about sleeping in here almost made him wince.

Before Jody could notice him falter, he returned his grin to his face. "You're too kind! Where can I find this place?"

"My friend set up an apartment room somewhere downtown." A message flashed across the screen. An address of some kind. "Head to the cafe located here, and the owner should be able to direct you there."

"Will do." Falcon gave her a salute. "Is that all you wished to speak about?"

Jody looked away. After a second's pause, her shoulders slumped, and she said, "If anything is bothering you, I'd be willing to listen."

"I'll let you know if I ever need it," Falcon chuckled. He pressed a button off to the side, and Jody's face faded into black.

Falcon collapsed back into his seat with a sigh. His eyes lingered on the blank screen, almost as if he was afraid she would appear again to try and wring out his life's story from him. Beside it, the red light showed no signs of life.

She'd be willing to listen? He laughed dryly. To Captain Falcon, maybe.

His eyes wandered to the window, watching the lights from the city below run past him, so small from his place high in the sky. A minute passed by as he just sat there idle, the gentle rumble of the engines keeping him company in the lonely silence.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

That is, until that infuriating sound barged back into the room. Why couldn't the world just let him have some peace?

"Who is it now?" Falcon growled.

The voice of the Falcon Flyer replied, "It's air traffic control."

"Oh. Well, I'll leave you to take care of it, like you always do."

A crackle of static was his only reply. The beeping had vanished, but the flickering red light meant that the Falcon Flyer's AI was doing its job, leaving Falcon to stare at it wordlessly, waiting for something to happen.

It wasn't as if he could do anything to help.

Eventually, the Falcon Flyer returned. "Air traffic control says we're clear to land at–bzzt."

A burst of static cut off the Falcon Flyer without warning. Worry creased Falcon's brow, and, leaning closer to the speaker, he said, "What's going on? Is something wrong?"

He received no response. A nervous tingle raced up his neck, and although he could see nothing wrong, a pit opened in his stomach.

He realized why a second later: everything had fallen deathly silent. The constant hum of machinery around him came to a grinding halt. Even the engines no longer made a peep.

Suddenly, Falcon was reminded of the fact that he was trapped inside a metal box, hovering thousands of feet above the ground.

"Hey! Is something wrong?" he asked again, trying to keep his rising panic from his voice.

This time, he got a response. One that didn't make him feel any better. "Error. Connection to the controls has been severed. Reinstating manual control."

"Manual control?" he almost screamed. "I don't know how to fly this thing!"

He could drive a flying car any day, but an aircraft? An aircraft was different. With how much the thing was automated anyway, he hadn't bothered learning how to pilot it.

Not that he had much time to regret his decision, not with how fast the ground was approaching.

"Thirty seconds left. Better hurry."

Falcon lunged for the steering wheel, the one thing he could make sense of. His fingers slipped over it on his first attempt. He caught it on his second try, but the ship shuddered, shaking it free. The third time, he managed to grab it.

"Twenty seconds left. Oh no."

The lights on the ground, so small in the distance, were a lot bigger now. He could make out the lights lining the runway, the lamps scattered over the pavement.

Falcon's first thought was to jerk the steering wheel up. When he tried it, the entire ship trembled. The lights flickered. Behind him, the engines gave a nasty cough. Something snapped.

He flinched. Slowly, he set the steering wheel back down. Maybe there was some other way to go about this?

Then, at the dead center of the windshield, he saw her. A woman. Flowing blue hair. Standing right in his path.

"Ten seconds left."

There wasn't any time to think of a better way. Mustering all the strength he had, Falcon pulled.

"Five."

A bolt beneath the wheel popped off. A few wires snapped.

"Four."

In front of him, the woman's eyes were wide with terror.

"Three."

Her blue hair trailed behind her as she disappeared from sight. Falcon could only hope she'd remembered to duck.

"Two."

The road before him drew back. Slowly, it began to level off.

"One."

His ship jolted. A loud, metal clang followed.

His ears resounded with a terrible screeching. Long and drawn out, like an awl dragged over his eardrums.

Thud!

Then, it all stopped, leaving Falcon dazed, hovering over the dashboard of his ship, his face inches away from the glass. The second his back hit his chair, he let out a gust of air. His helmet felt hot and stuffy, so he tore it off, letting the cool night air wrap around his face.

Sweeping his gaze over the inside of his ship as a few red lights flickered against the dark, he muttered, "I really need to learn how to fly this thing."

Chapter Text

"Lucina Lowell. YPD."

The uniformed green-haired young man squinted at the badge she held up. Lucina let him–scrutiny was to be expected, given that she was out of uniform, but identification and badge was genuine. She had nothing to hide.

"I'm not too sure about this..."

Lucina's eyes narrowed. "Excuse me?"

"Are you sure this is yours?" the man asked, and he gave her an unsure look. "You and this guy look like two different folks."

"I am aware that the picture is... a bit low quality. But it should be very obvious that it is a picture of me, small changes notwithstanding."

The man hummed. "His hair's shorter."

"I grew it out."

"His eyes are a little smaller."

"The light was too bright."

"And I think he's a guy."

Lucina choked. "W-what? What makes you say that?"

The young man waved a hand over himself. Confused, Lucina did the same.

"It's... aw gee, how do I say this... on your chest."

"On my–hey! You listen here–"

"I'm not trying to insult you or anything!" the man said, waving his hands in front of him as he stepped back. "It's just a little hard to believe when you've got them and the guy in the picture doesn't!"

"Rather hard to believe when it's my picture!" Lucina stopped herself. She sighed. "Look. I have the badge. Is that not enough?"

The man shook his head. "Maybe anywhere else, but this is a government airfield, miss. Security has to be tighter here. There's nothing I can do to help."

Behind her, Lucina heard a door open. She glanced over her shoulder, and in walked a pair of men wearing similar uniforms to the first, one with fiery red hair, the other with a bright blue mohawk. Upon seeing her, they gave her a flat stare.

"Is this lady giving you any trouble, Slippy?" asked the one with red hair.

"Oh, Fox! You're here!" The green-haired one, Slippy, looked over at her, before he shook his head. "Not at all! I'm just having a hard time identifying her, that's all."

"Well, no wonder!" the blue-haired one said, rolling his eyes. "You left your glasses at home, didn't you?"

"That doesn't mean I'm blind, Falco! I can still see," Slippy replied.

"Really? Then how many fingers am I holding up?"

"Sorry about those two," Fox, the red-haired one said as he walked up to Lucina. "They can be a handful when they want to be. Now, who are you?"

Standing a little straighter, Lucina showed him her badge. "I am Lucina Lowell, of the YPD. I've come here on the trail of Blood Falcon, the international criminal."

Falcon, the one with blue hair, scoffed. "Blood Falcon? In our airfield? I don't buy it."

"Whether you believe it or not is irrelevant. The whole reason I'm here is to find out if it's true or not."

"Then you won't mind if we see your ID, would you?" Fox asked.

"Not at all," Lucina replied, and she held out her badge for them to take.

"I'll see that, thank you very much," Falco said, and he took the badge from her hands, flashing her a cocky grin. "Sorry about Slippy here. His eyesight's shot."

"It is not!"

"Sure, sure. Tell yourself that if you want to sleep at night. I'll just make sure our guest gets out of here."

"I appreciate it," Lucina said.

Falco didn't hear her, too focused on the card she'd handed him. He squinted and brought it closer to his face. His eyes scrolled up and down the card, then to her, then back to the card.

Finally, he looked back at here and said, "I'm not too sure about this. Are you sure this is yours?"

"Naga dammit!"

It only took five more minutes to get that sorted out, and a few more minutes to set foot on the airfield. As Lucina wiped an arm over her forehead and scanned the empty lot with her flashlight, her beam carefully roaming over every inactive vehicle and crate scattered around the field, she couldn't help but be disappointed at how quiet it was. If her target wasn't here, then that would mean that at least he hadn't tried breaking into secure government locations, but it also meant that she'd have to try to dig up his trail all over again.

Another cold trail was just more wasted time. More wasted time meant she'd have to spend more time to finish the case. Every second she threw away was a second her father's health could take a turn for the worse, and Lucina hated to even consider the possibility that she wouldn't be able to make the payment in time.

The longer she walked, another problem soon emerged from the darkness to hang over her shoulder: boredom. It was boring, wandering around the airfield in the summer heat, looking for clues she wasn't even sure was there. A detective she might be, but with so much space to comb over, the search was bound to get dull eventually. Briefly, she considered going back to ask the airmen to help her search, before she decided that they probably had their own things to worry about. She didn't want to be a bother. She just wanted something to happen.

Again, she wiped an arm over her forehead to clean the sweat from her brow. That's when she noticed the shadow beneath her. A big one.

Lucina looked up to see a ship in the air. In the distance, it seemed small, but it would get bigger the closer it got.

Though she hoped it was a little slower than it looked right now.

Lucina blinked. She rubbed her eyes, then blinked again, before she decided that, no, her eyes were not deceiving her. The ship above her was growing at quite an alarming rate. And it was falling right on top of her.

Her eyes widened. "Oh shi–"

Lucina threw herself to the side. The ship, gold at the head and blue in the back, swerved upward seconds before it hit the ground. The bottom scraped over the top of an oil truck. A screech ripped the air in half as the ship skidded over the ground, leaving a trail of sparks in its path. The ship bounced. Metal pieces flew out behind it until, at last, the ship came to a stop between a cargo train and a bus.

Lucina had her gun and flashlight trained on the ship the moment it stopped moving, standing in the path of destruction left in its wake. Behind her, the oil truck crashed to the ground, spilling its contents all over the floor.

As she peered at the ship, watching it for movement, a nagging feeling at the back of her head told her it looked familiar. It only took her a second to realize why, the very same second the door burst open. Out stepped a face she'd only ever seen in the papers, smiling like he hadn't just torn up a hundred feet of pavement.

Hands on his hips, Captain Falcon scanned over the burning wreckage he'd left in his wake with a smile. When his eyes landed on her, the grin on his face stretched wider. "Ah, hello there citizen! Are you alright?"

Lucina frowned. His voice was every bit as loud as she'd have thought it would be.

"Citizen? I am an officer of the law," she said, and she pulled out a badge from her pocket. "To what does Ylisstol owe the pleasure?"

Captain Falcon's ever-present grin wavered. "Business, I'm afraid. I've come here to bring a criminal hiding out here back to my city so he can be judged for his crimes."

"One of your criminals? You're looking for Blood Falcon, am I correct?" she said.

"Yes, that's the one!" Captain Falcon paused. "Wait a minute. You're not looking for him too, are you?"

"He has committed crimes in my city. It is my duty to catch him and bring him to justice."

"I'm sorry, but I must recommend against it," Captain Falcon said, shaking his head. "Blood Falcon is far too dangerous for an ordinary person to face. Only I have the strength to match him in hand-to-hand combat. Someone like you would only be hurt in the process."

"I think I'll be fine. You won't have to worry about me."

"No, please. I must insist. As my clone, he has all my powers and all my intelligence. He is just as strong as I am and just as smart, and he is–"

"Right behind you."

"Huh?"

Captain Falcon's head snapped around. Lucina's gun and flashlight were already aimed over his shoulder at the figure slinking in the shadow of the Falcon Flyer, lighting him up like a convict on a stage.

The figure froze upon seeing her. The light glanced off his bright red and purple suit. It took Lucina a moment to realize he was wearing the exact same clothes as the man next to her, and that could only mean one thing.

"Hey officer," Blood Falcon said, flashing an innocent smile. "Is there a problem?"

"You are the problem." Lucina motioned down with her gun. "Raise your hands in the air and don't move."

"And what if I do? What are you going to do, shoot me?"

"Yes. That is the plan."

"That's no fun at all. Whatever happened to non-lethal force? You policemen have no tact nowadays."

"Your file marked you down for lethal force if necessary. I believe the blame falls on your crimes more than us."

"Blood Falcon," Captain Falcon growled. "I should have known you would be here to intercept me. What do you want?"

Blood Falcon turned to him and scoffed. "Intercept you? Our little meeting here was little more than a happy accident."

"Happy? I'm sure you'll be less than happy once I put you behind bars–"

"Can you not?" Lucina cut in. "There's a very specific procedure I need to follow here, and what you're doing isn't helping."

Captain Falcon brushed it aside with a huff. "Come on. This guy doesn't follow procedure. Stand aside, and let me take care of the rest."

"You should listen to the Captain," Blood Falcon said. "Like he said, I'm not a big follower of rules."

Lucina heard the click of his weapon almost a second too late. Cursing herself for getting distracted, Lucina dropped her flashlight and ducked behind a nearby crate.

A flurry of shots flew over her head. Splinters rained down on her from the cargo scattered around her. A few seconds after, she heard Blood Falcon fire a few more shots at Captain Falcon.

Which meant he was no longer focused on her.

Lucina peeked over the edge just in time to see Blood Falcon turn around and sprint away. His mistake. Lucina reached over the edge. She aimed her gun down at him. She squeezed out a shot.

The shot sailed over Blood Falcon's shoulder. Cursing, he whirled around, his gun pointed back at her.

Lucina fired off another shot. This shot flew a little closer, skidding off the side of his helmet.

Not even Blood Falcon was stupid enough to stay out and invite another shot like that. He ducked behind another crate.

Lucina took the opportunity to jump out of cover. She fired a third shot. Moved closer. A fourth shot impacted the side of the crate Blood Falcon was hiding behind. Lucina kept moving forward. A fifth and a sixth shot sailed over the top of the box. Halfway there now. Her seventh shot skimmed past the crate, sending splinters showering down, and her eighth shot hit the crate again.

Her gun clicked empty. Eight shots was all she had in that clip. She had been counting on that. Lucina dove behind a crate to reload.

Just in time too. As soon as she made herself scarce, she heard another volley of shots sail right where she'd been moments before. He couldn't have had much more ammo than her. As she let her empty magazine fall to the floor and fished out a fresh clip from her pocket, she couldn't help but think the steady stream of bullets flying past her was such a waste.

She peeked over the edge. Three more shots was Blood Falcon's reply. Lucina ducked back down. Waited a few more seconds. Then poked her head out again.

One last shot tore a hole through the crate behind Lucina. Blood Falcon pulled the trigger two more times. Nothing. Cursing, he reached down into his pocket for a fresh clip.

Lucina aimed at his hand and fired. Her bullet ripped the clip out of his hands. It landed a few feet away. Barely out of arm's reach.

Lucina put a hole in the ground between the clip and Blood Falcon to cut him off. Blood Falcon made the smart choice and hid behind cover again.

Again, Lucina advanced. With every foot she closed between them, she fired a shot overhead to keep him down. He wouldn't dare try to sneak out, not with the constant threat of fire.

Only three feet stood between them now. Lucina dove behind cover. Once again, she heard footsteps as Blood Falcon emerged to fire off another volley. Lucina brushed it off and took the opportunity to reload. As she slid another magazine into her weapon, she glanced around, and noted how far they had gotten from the Falcon Flyer. Blood Falcon was trying to head somewhere.

Was he trying to escape? That could be it, but a quick glance around told her that if he wanted to escape, the shortest path to the perimeter was in the opposite direction. If he was trying to get away, this was hardly the best way to do it. And why had he come here at all? She would have to ask him as soon as she caught him.

Her thoughts were interrupted as she heard Blood Falcon's gun click empty once again. Lucina jumped out immediately. This time, Blood Falcon had learned from his past mistakes. She barely caught a glimpse of his foot as he disappeared behind an idle cargo truck.

It wouldn't be enough to escape her. Lucina continued on, firing at steady intervals as she did. Conserving her bullets like this ensured that she would give him as little time as possible to break from his cover.

It also meant that she would still have ammo in her weapon when she confronted him. The thought crossed her just as she reached the cargo truck, and she quickly pressed herself against the side. Counting all the shots she had already taken, there were three bullets left in her gun. It had to be enough. The moment she turned the corner, she would have to start firing.

"This is your last chance to surrender!" she called over her shoulder. She hadn't heard him try to make a break for it, so he had to still be here. "If you agree to come peacefully, then I will not harm you."

Lucina waited a few seconds for him to respond. All she received was silence. That was as good as a no. She took a deep breath. With her hands on the trigger, Lucina jumped out from the corner and raised her gun.

A purple glove shot out and grabbed her wrist. Lucina's eyes widened. She squeezed the trigger. Blood Falcon wrenched her arms to the side before the bullet could leave the barrel, and her shot disappeared into the night sky.

He was fast. Faster than she had expected. Tearing her arm away and stepping back, Lucina tried to shoot him again. Blood Falcon chased her and knocked her gun away. Trying to get away was no use. She would have to resort to hand-to-hand combat.

Lucina grit her teeth and swung. Blood Falcon caught it on the side of his arm. Lucina drew back. She jabbed at his gut.

Her fist met nothing but air. Lucina turned her head just in time to catch an elbow to the face. She stumbled back. Blood Falcon followed. His fist buried into her gut. His arm smashed into her chin. His foot caught her side.

Lucina's head exploded in pain as the back of her skull slammed into a truck She tried to step away to catch her breath. Blood Falcon refused to let up. He punched her to the left. He punched her to the right. His arms blurred as he hammered into her chest. His fist smashed into her chin. As she staggered, his foot struck her chest.

Lucina's back hit the side of a crate. Hard. A gasp of pain escaped her. Her legs gave out beneath her, and she caught herself before she hit the ground.

Everything hurt. Her arms felt weak. A sharp pain shot through her chest every time she tried to draw breath. Had he bruised a rib? Maybe two? Getting in close had been a mistake.

Shakily, she pushed herself to her feet and raised her head. Blood Falcon was only five yards away from her, and getting closer at a leisurely pace. He didn't even seem phased. As he saw her looking, he pretended to brush off his shoulder to mock her.

Lucina's face pulled into a scowl. She raised her gun and fired. Blood Falcon ducked. Her shot sailed over him. She fired again. Blood Falcon rolled out of the way. She fired a third shot.

A hollow click was all she got. Empty.

"Dammit!" Lucina jumped to the side and fumbled for her next clip.

Blood Falcon's hand tore through where her head had been. Splinters hailed down on her face. Lucina raised her arm to block.

Blood Falcon's leg smashed into her arm. She could feel her bones snap. His other fist struck her shoulder. She refused to let up.

His hand ripped free from the crate and wrenched her arm aside. Lucina barely had time to gasp before his other arm grabbed her collar.

Her feet left the floor. Lucina grabbed onto his arm. She kicked him in the chest. Blood Falcon caught it. He drew his arm back and threw.

Lucina's arms were ripped away from the force of his throw. She felt the wind rush past her as she hurled through the air. Then, something hard crashed into her back. The metal behind her groaned and gave out. Gravity took its hold and forced her to the ground.

Immediately, something wet splashed over her face. A strong scent crammed itself into her nose, and as her hands fumbled around the liquid she'd suddenly found herself in, it dawned on her with a sense of horror that she'd landed in a puddle of oil.

Her head snapped up. Her blue eyes flew wide. Blood Falcon returned it with a smirk. He raised his gun. Pulled the trigger.

The oil caught fire. Everything went up around her in a great big bloom of red. Metal ripped apart with an ear-splitting groan.

Something red and blue swooped in from the corner of her eye. Arms wrapped around her and pushed. Lucina blinked, and as the oil truck exploded behind her, she suddenly found herself on dry ground.

Captain Falcon shot her a smile from above, the flickering orange light of the fire beside them glinting off his perfectly white teeth. "You okay, miss?"

The searing heat from the blast washed over her, warming her face an uncomfortable degree.

With a groan, Lucina pushed him away. "I'm unharmed. Just focus on the task at hand," she replied over the crackling flames, and she pointed back at Blood Falcon's retreating form.

Captain Falcon followed her gaze, then gave her a nod. "You wait right here. I'll be back in just a moment!"

Lucina watched him take off after Blood Falcon, and as he grew smaller in the distance, she let her face fall to the floor with a pained hiss.

Of all the assignments, she had to pick this one. She hadn't expected it to be easy, but as much as she hated to admit it, Captain Falcon had been right in telling her she was outclassed.

That didn't mean she was going to stay down. She could still fight. This was her assignment. She would be the one to bring Blood Falcon in.

As soon as she found something to wipe all this oil off her face, that was.

Chapter Text

Douglas Falcon liked to consider himself a professional. As cocky as he made Captain Falcon to be, a public figure still had to be friendly to everyone, and he had kept away from tarring that image so far.

Right now, though? He felt like he could use a good curse or two.

Just my luck Blood Falcon is here to meet me the day I get here, he thought. Of all the places he could've come, he had to be here. What does he want with this place?

If there was any silver lining to this cloudless summer night, it was that Lucina girl had emptied Blood Falcon's clip. Falcon watched as his clone fumbled with a clip, and knew now was the perfect time to close the distance.

His boots clicked loudly over the runway. Wind rushed past his face, the orange tinted pavement and long shadows cast by the flames behind him rushing past in a blur as he sprinted forward.

Blood Falcon turned. He cursed. Raised his gun.

Falcon wasn't worried. If he was as perfect a copy as Blood Falcon liked to say, then his skill with a firearm would be just as bad as Falcon's.

The clip, only halfway in, clattered to the ground.

Falcon clocked him in the jaw before he could pick it up. As Blood Falcon reeled back, Falcon grabbed his arm and twisted it around. Blood Falcon's grip loosened. Falcon pried the gun from his fingers, and pushed his clone away. Drawing back his arm, Falcon hurled the gun as far as he could.

When he turned back, Blood Falcon was already running away again.

"Just where do you think you're going?" Captain Falcon boomed. Even as he spoke, he broke into a run after Blood Falcon. "Hey! Stop, in the name of the law!"

Not that Blood Falcon would listen to that. Of course, people expected Captain Falcon to say those things, and who was he to deny them? Not that he would let Blood Falcon get away either.

"Falcon kick!"

Blood Falcon's head snapped around just in time to see Falcon's burning foot streak toward his face. Blood Falcon stepped aside. Falcon soared past.

Which now meant Falcon was standing between him, and whatever goal he had.

"Hey, now," Blood Falcon said. He tried to smile, but Falcon could see the frustration in his narrowed eyes. A mannerism he shared. "It's been a long night. I'm sure you're quite tired. Step aside, and no one has to get hurt."

"You know I'd love that more than anything else, but I'm afraid standing aside for evil is just not the way of justice," Falcon replied.

"Well," Blood Falcon said, his eyes narrowing even more, "you can't say I tried."

And he lunged. Falcon raised his arms to meet Blood Falcon's attack. Blood Falcon's fist smashed against Falcon's guard. Falcon refused to budge. Blood Falcon hammered again, then a third time.

Falcon's leg came up and drove into Blood Falcon's gut. Blood Falcon stumbled back with a gasp. Falcon rushed forward and swung for Blood Falcon's face.

Blood Falcon ducked back, then back again from Falcon's follow-up blow. His fist shot out again, Falcon shoved it to the side. His own blow rushed for Blood Falcon's chest. Blood Falcon kicked him away.

"Well, don't you seem in a hurry today," Blood Falcon hissed out. "Why the rush? Do you have somewhere to be?"

"I could say the same to you," Falcon replied. "Come now. You didn't think I'd have figured out where you were going?"

"What difference do you think that will make? Captain Falcon or no, you will not stop me!"

Blood Falcon rushed him. He swung at Falcon, then swung again. Falcon held his arms up to take them with a grunt. He pushed Blood Falcon back. Blood Falcon's boots skidded on the ground. Undeterred, Blood Falcon kicked off. Falcon raised his guard to block.

Nothing could have prepared him for the force of Blood Falcon's full weight bearing down on him. His arms buckled. He stumbled back. Blood Falcon took the chance to force him aside, and in an instant, he left Falcon in the dust.

"Dammit!"

Falcon slammed a fist into the ground, leaving a scorch mark in the pavement. The impact was enough to force him into the air. Without a second thought, he thrust another burning fist forward, launching himself at Blood Falcon's back.

"Raptor Boost!"

Blood Falcon turned around, surprised. He raised his arms to block. Falcon reached out and tackled him around the waist instead. Blood Falcon stumbled back. Falcon pushed away. As his feet reached the ground, Falcon grabbed the stunned Blood Falcon by the scruff of his neck, hauled him over his shoulder, and hurled him to the ground.

Blood Falcon caught himself. With a graceful flip, he pushed himself back to his feet and fell into a stance.

Tauntingly, Falcon beckoned him on. "Come on!"

"Don't mind if I do!" Blood Falcon's leg snapped out in a fiery kick that launched him forward. "Falcon kick!"

Falcon caught it on his arm and diverted it to the side. Blood Falcon jumped away from a counter punch, before he kicked back down.

"Falcon kick!"

This time, Falcon ducked away. Blood Falcon's attack crashed into the ground. Pieces of pavement blew into the air. Falcon pushed through and smashed his elbow into Blood Falcon's face.

Blood Falcon staggered back, clutching his nose. Falcon pressed on, kicking twice before delivering a roundhouse kick to the side of Blood Falcon's arms.

Blood Falcon's guard held strong. He tanked the hits, grit his teeth. He pushed aside Falcon's third kick and swung.

Falcon leapt away. Blood Falcon followed. He jabbed once, twice, and hooked into Falcon's side. Falcon wove away from the first two blows. He held up an arm to block the third, then snapped out a kick in return.

Blood Falcon retreated. Snarling, he drew back a fist. Flames leapt to life around his fingers, wild and lively as they were hot. With a forward swing, he launched himself forward.

"Raptor boost!"

Falcon braced his arms to block. Only a second too late did he realize his mistake.

Like he had done before, Blood Falcon's arms rammed into his guard. The impact pushed Falcon back. Blood Falcon followed through by grabbing hold of Falcon's arms. He shoved Falcon down. His boots kicked off the ground. Blood Falcon flew up, over, and around Falcon, landing just behind him in a crouch.

Falcon whirled around, stunned. Blood Falcon barely spared him a glance, already sprinting for the hangar just ahead.

Snarling, Falcon crouched down. Sparks crackled over him. He let them run, building energy for one last attack.

Then he took off. Concrete shattered beneath him. Power surged through his body, leaving a trail of smoke as the world blurred around him, launching him at incredible speed.

From the surprised noise Blood Falcon had made as Falcon crashed into him, he hadn't been expecting this at all. Falcon's arms gripped him tightly. As Falcon's feet skidded over the ground, he dragged him up and away to throw him back.

Blood Falcon's hands reached for his belt. Falcon heard something snap. His gun clicked, ready to fire.

Falcon's eyes widened.

"Shit!" Falcon shoved Blood Falcon away. Not a moment too soon, too. Blood Falcon spun around, Falcon's weapon in hand.

Blood Falcon's gun was empty. His was not. Falcon only had a second to curse his preparedness before Blood Falcon started to fire away.

Bullets came down on him in a frenzy. Many sailed past him, sprayed in his direction at random, but a few flew to hit him dead on. Falcon's fists became a burning blur, reaching out and punching away every bullet that came his way. It was barely an inconvenience to pluck them out of the air, but by the time they stopped, Blood Falcon had already disappeared into the hangar.

Falcon cursed, clenching his fists. "Dammit. Of all the ways I could've handled that..."

The sound of footsteps echoed from behind him. Falcon glanced over his shoulder to see the policewoman from before, running up to catch up to him, flashlight back in her hands. She certainly looked better than she had before, though not any drier. Her damp clothes barely reflected the dimly lit airfield, and her hair was wet enough to cling to her face.

"Oh, hello!" Falcon said, wiping all the anger from his face in an instant. "What happened to you? Are you alright?"

"It's summer. I didn't have to look far to find water to wash all the oil off me." She frowned, looking him up and down. "What about you? You took quite the beating there."

Forcing a laugh, Falcon said, "It'll take more than that to keep me down!"

"I'll take your word for it." Eyeing the hangar Blood Falcon had disappeared into, she said, "What should we do about him?"

"Him? You leave it to me."

"Should I? From what I saw, you were barely holding him off on your own."

"I–" Falcon paused. Could he accept her help?

On one hand, he was sure Blood Falcon was much too strong for this policewoman to handle. The best thing to do, undoubtedly, would be to force her to stay behind. But when he looked into her eyes, he saw in her a fiery determination that threatened to burn his soul. He couldn't stop her if he tried. Why try to keep her away when she would run off anyway?

"Alright," Falcon said with a sigh. "Let's take him down, but don't go rushing in to take him on by yourself. He's far too powerful for you to take on your own. Leave the fighting to me."

"Yeah," Lucina replied. "I think I've figured that out already. Just be careful not to get yourself shot, okay?"

Chapter Text

Lucina was not looking forward to fighting Blood Falcon again. It was the one thought that hung at the back of her mind as she moved closer to the hangar door. Her encounter with him was short, but she could still feel the bruises all over her skin.

At least this time, I probably won't be the one taking the hits, she thought, pressing herself to the side of the hangar. Her eyes flicked to Captain Falcon standing in front of her, his face set in a cocky grin.

Lucina frowned. She'd have thought someone like him would have taken this a little more seriously, but in the end, what did it matter? He probably wasn't a world-class bounty hunter for nothing, and as long as he got the job done, she would keep her complaints to herself.

Captain Falcon took a brief look inside the hangar, before he signaled her forward. Lucina stepped out, gun raised. The only sound she heard was the low hum of the lights outside and the flickering flames not too far behind.

Lucina stepped inside. The sound echoed through the hollow space. She flinched.

No response. That meant he was either hiding, or he hadn't heard her.

She glanced up at the cargo plane looming over her.

Was this what he had been after? What was he trying to do? Was he trying to steal it? If he needed to steal a plane, he could have picked a smaller one, and he had no reason to come to such a heavily guarded place. Then was he trying to steal something inside?

A government airfield would have an assortment of illegal things. If Blood Falcon needed anything off the charts, this would be the place.

Lucina made a mental note to ask what was on that plane later. But first, she needed to make sure Blood Falcon didn't get away with whatever he was stealing first.

She scanned left and right. Equipment was scattered over an array of cabinets pressed to the walls, and a few exits were scattered about, all of them closed. Her eyes roamed over every shape in the dark. Nothing seemed out of place.

Carefully, she approached the plane. Its front was closed, but there was no mistaking the massive smoldering hole ripped straight through the nose.

Behind her, she could hear Captain Falcon's footsteps. Though not particularly loud, in the dead air they swelled into a painfully obvious presence in her ears.

Would it hurt him to be a little quieter? Lucina thought, but kept it to herself.

Reaching the cargo plane, Lucina stepped to the side. She beckoned for him to go first. Captain Falcon flashed her a smile. Before Lucina could process whatever that was, he disappeared inside.

"Was he winking at me?" she muttered to herself. She shook her head. "No, I think he was probably doing a weird sideways blink or something like that."

Following him inside, Lucina raised her head to look over his shoulder. Massive crates lay scattered around the inside of the plane, all of them held in place to a set of tracks running over the floor by bright red straps. The tangle of boxes only became more cluttered the deeper they went inside, and the cramped space did little to mask their presence. Every step they took echoed within the confines of the plane. Further ahead, she could hear Blood Falcon's footsteps as well, quick and frantic.

He was searching for something. Once he had it, Lucina guessed he would bolt instead of taking his chances with the two of them.

Captain Falcon stopped. So did Lucina. She shot him a confused look. Captain Falcon motioned to the right.

It took her a moment to realize he was motioning for her to go right.

"Splitting up?" she murmured. "That hardly seems like the smartest idea."

Captain Falcon shot her a smirk. "Trust me, miss. You take him from the other side. I'll take him from this one. He won't even see it coming."

"If he sees me coming this time, I'll be suffering a bit more than a few bruises. Sticking together is our best bet."

"Don't worry, don't worry. I'll be here to make sure you're still in one piece. What could be the worst that could happen?"

"What could be the worst that could–" Lucina cut herself off. She frowned. Something was off. But what?

The footsteps had ceased. Blood Falcon had either found what he was looking for, or...

"Move!" Lucina yelled.

"Wha–"

A train of boxes snapped free of its constraints and flew toward them. Lucina ducked to the left. Captain Falcon was not nearly as lucky. The boxes rammed into him and crushed him against the wall with a loud crack.

Lucina glanced back. Blood Falcon stood at the end of the line, his foot still smoking. His eyes met hers. He smirked.

Lucina hissed. That couldn't be good.

His gun came up. Hers was faster.

Bang!

Her shot pinged off the empty wall. Blood Falcon disappeared behind a crate. Lucina fired again. A hole ripped through the crate behind.

Wood creaked. Blood Falcon tore the crate out of its strappings and, with it in front of him, he charged. Lucina unloaded her gun into the crate to slow it. No such luck.

Dammit. Where's Captain Falcon when you need him? Lucina glanced behind. The pile of wood scraps was the same as it was before.

The crate was almost upon her. Cursing, Lucina threw herself to the side. Blood Falcon hurled the crate away and lunged after him.

Lucina aimed at him. Fired. Blood Falcon wrenched her arm away. The shot pinged off the ceiling. Blood Falcon smirked in her face.

Lucina replied with a kick to his chest. Blood Falcon stumbled back with a gasp. Lucina raised her gun at him again and fired.

A blur streaked across her vision. Lucina cursed again and swung her gun to the floor. Her shot dove into the ground as Captain Falcon swooped in to bat Blood Falcon away at the worst possible time.

What are you doing? I almost shot you! Lucina almost said, but she trapped her words behind clenched teeth.

The two of them intertwined together in a streak of blue and red. Punches and kicks flew across her vision so quickly she could hardly keep track of them. All the fire flying around wasn't helping either. The heat warped her vision and scorched her skin just from standing so close to it. Lucina stepped away, gun still raised.

An opening. She needed an opening to land a shot. Rather hard to do when she couldn't even tell what was happening.

Captain Falcon's head snapped back in the air from a hit she couldn't see. Blood Falcon slammed into the side from a strike she only registered a second after the impact. A kick crashed to the floor. By the time Lucina realized that Captain Falcon had deflected that there, he was already rearing back for another punch.

His fist smashed into Blood Falcon's chest. Blood Falcon staggered away. Lucina's gun snapped onto him. Falcon rushed in before she could take the shot. Lucina groaned.

Dammit. Why can't they just stand still?

At that second, Captain Falcon missed. Lucina could tell this time because of how much he'd extended his arm over Blood Falcon. How long it took for him to move again.

Blood Falcon took the chance and seized it with both hands. He slammed his elbow into Captain Falcon's gut. He drove his knee into Captain Falcon's chin. He grabbed Captain Falcon's collar and hurled him into a crate, splattering the walls with wooden shrapnel.

Lucina fired down at him. A bullet tore into his shoulder. Blood Falcon's grin faltered. Anyone else would have stopped.

Blood Falcon threw himself at her.

Caught off guard by such a reckless tactic, Lucina didn't have enough time to pull the trigger a second time before he was upon her. Blood Falcon grabbed her wrist and slammed it into the wall. The metal of the plane warped around her and punctured her skin. Blood pooled in the gaps between the twisted steel.

Lucina barely noticed. Blood Falcon punched her twice in the gut. He smashed a fist into her chin. Lucina's head jerked back and slammed into the wall. He kicked the side of her head.

Lucina caught it on the side of her arm. Blood Falcon's eyes widened in surprise. Lucina didn't give him the chance to recover and smashed the hilt of her gun into his temple.

Blood Falcon staggered back into a crate. He clutched his helmet and groaned. Lucina aimed her gun up at him again. Two more holes appeared where his leg would have been. Blood Falcon ducked under her shots and tackled her.

Lucina raised her arm and came down hard. Blood Falcon's head slammed into the floor. Lucina drew closer to the wall and raised her gun to shoot. Blood Falcon was back on his feet already. Flames leaped to life around his arms, streaking behind him as he charged.

He swung. Lucina blocked it with her arm. The flames bit into her flesh and clawed through her sleeves like red hot razors. Lucina pushed through it and pushed him back. Blood Falcon reversed the momentum and came at her with a spinning kick.

Lucina leaned back. His foot ripped into a crate beside her. Lucina swung to force him away.

A hook came from over her shoulder. Lucina was only fast enough to register it as yellow before it clocked her in the face and sent her tumbling into a nearby crate. Bits of wood stabbed into her back and her head rang like a bell. Through the muddled mess that was her head, she heard Captain Falcon yell "I'm sorry!" as a red shape reached over her head.

The blob she assumed to be Blood Falcon and Captain Falcon disappeared behind the crates again, and Lucina reached for the throbbing at the back of her head. When her hand came away with a vaguely red-shaped splotch, she could only sigh. This really was not her day.

Slowly, she pulled herself out of the crate.

Slowly, her vision straightened out.

She dragged herself along the nearby crates and back out into the middle of the cargo bay. Just in time to see Blood Falcon shoot Captain Falcon in the foot.

"Gah!" Captain Falcon cried out.

Blood Falcon didn't give him the chance to add to that. He grabbed Captain Falcon by the neck and slammed him into a nearby crate. Then he grabbed the crate above him and wrenched it out, sending the rest of the crates tumbling down around him and burying him under a pile of planks.

Lucina's gaze met his. Her gun snapped to him.

Blood Falcon just grinned.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," he said.

Lucina's eyes narrowed. "Give me one reason not to."

"Well, for one, if you shoot me, how are you going to save our lucky man this explosion?"

"Explosion? What explosion?"

Blood Falcon's smile widened. Then, he moved. Lucina fired. The bullet disappeared, engulfed by Blood Falcon's flames as he swung for the bottom of the plane. His blow tore through the steel plating.

"This one, of course," he said, and he stepped away. "That, miss, was the fuel tank. In a minute or so, it's going to blow. You take me out, and I'll guarantee you won't have enough time to save the good Captain. So," he said, tapping the side of his helmet, "what'll it be?"

With that, he spun on his heel and broke into a sprint. Lucina's eyes trailed after him. Her finger brushed against the trigger.

One shot. She could cripple him. Bring him in for questioning. It was what she should do, as an officer of the law.

Her eyes flicked down to the pile of crates.

Captain Falcon didn't need her to save him. He was the world's finest bounty hunter. He had probably survived scuffles worse than this, and if he died–well, he was an independent bounty hunter, wasn't he? He had to know the risks, going into a job as dangerous as this. He wasn't his responsibility.

Lucina glanced back at Blood Falcon. He'd disappeared already. She could chase after him. Or she could save Captain Falcon.

"He punched me in the jaw," she muttered.

Like that was a good basis for negligence. Already regretting her choice, Lucina bent down and started tearing away bits and pieces of wood.

Falcon awoke to the ear-piercing wails of alarms. With a groan, he forced his eyes open.

He awoke to the sight of the officer from before standing over him with a frown on her face. The bright wisps of orange and red reflected in her eyes as she watched it from afar.

"What–ugh." Falcon rubbed the top of his head. "What happened?"

The officer's eyes snapped to him, and they narrowed. "He got away."

"Who?"

"Blood Falcon."

"Oh." Falcon punched the ground. "Dammit."

The officer didn't reply. Her brows pulled down. She was probably as displeased as him, if not moreso.

Falcon chuckled. One of the benefits of being an independent bounty hunter, he supposed, was that he didn't have to deal with all the bureaucratic nonsense involved with property damage and all that. He did not envy her in the slightest.

"What am I going to do now?" he asked himself.

"Aren't you the world's greatest bounty hunter or something? You should know how to track a criminal yourself."

"I do. I just... think I'll need to sleep on this."

"Sure. You do that." The officer turned around. "I shall get started on cleaning up this mess."

As she walked away, Falcon heard someone yell over his head, "Goddammit Fox! I told you letting strangers into the field was a bad idea."

Chapter Text

When Falcon awoke, it was to the glass cockpit of the Blue Falcon. As he yawned and stretched, his hands knocked over a can of soda he had left on the dashboard behind him, and a pain shot up his neck where his headrest had been stabbing into him.

The joys of being me, he thought as he ran a hand through his disheveled brown hair. What I wouldn't do to be back home again.

Dimly, he was aware that the whole point of this was so he'd have a home to get back to in the first place. That didn't help much, but it was the thought that finally forced his muscles to act and push him out of sleep and into a more comfortable, upright position.

"Falcon Flyer, what time is it?" he mumbled.

All the vehicle's lights instantly came to life, flickering like little dots in his vision. "Seven AM in the local time, sir. You've been asleep for seven hours," the Falcon Flyer's artificial voice chimed in, connected to the Blue Falcon over a private network.

"Seven hours? It sure didn't feel like it." Falcon groaned, and he reached back to rub his sore neck. He tried to roll his head back, only for his chest to bump against the steering wheel. The inside of his vehicle was a lot more cramped than his ship, and he began to wonder why he wasn't in his ship in the first place when the events of last night hit him like a high-speed crash.

The fight with Blood Falcon. The explosion.

He'd ditched his ship just like he ditched that policewoman to clean up his mess.

Again, Falcon groaned as he palmed his face. His elbow hit the dashboard as he did so, and a bunch of new lights started flashing. Apparently he'd hit some stuff he wasn't supposed to hit and caused problems for the Blue Falcon–not that he could be bothered to deal with all that incessant ringing when his head was still full of fuzz.

"Falcon Flyer, take care of this," he said, bringing his hand up to cover his eyes from all the buzzing and bright lights.

"Yes sir." Something in the vehicle clicked. "Sir, Jody Summer from the Galactic Space Federation is calling."

Falcon's eyes bulged. "She is?" He cursed and grabbed his helmet on the dashboard. His fingers fumbled as he turned it around. "Why is she calling now?"

"She just asked for you to pick up immediately."

"That doesn't sound very–" Falcon hissed as his elbow hit the edge of a door handle. His fingers tensed, and his helmet dropped onto a blue lever, forcing it back.

"Activating Boost Fire."

"No! Don't activate Boost Fire!" Falcon cried out, and he reached under the dashboard for his fallen helmet. "Dammit. I thought artificial intelligence was supposed to be intelligent."

"You pulled the activation lever."

"I didn't! That was my helmet!" As his fingers grabbed the top of his helmet, his arm slammed against a crank beside his seat. Immediately, the seat flung back, taking Falcon with it. He was only able to hold onto the helmet for a few seconds before it slipped from his grasp and crashed into the back of his vehicle.

"But that was you," the AI said.

Falcon groaned up at the top of his vehicle. "That's not helping things. Do you remember who owns you?"

"You do, sir."

"Falcon Flyer, please mute yourself."

From the corner of his eye, he saw a mute icon appear on the dashboard. He sighed, then returned to reaching for his helmet. As soon as he wrapped his fingers around the rim, Falcon dragged it back over and slid it back onto his head. He reached back for the crank, pushed down, and hauled himself back up.

And who else did he find staring at him through the front screen but Jody Summer.

Falcon yelped. "Jody! When did you get there?"

On the other end, Jody raised an eyebrow. "You didn't notice? Don't you have an AI for this sort of thing?"

"I do, but I–" He'd muted it. Oh, the irony.

Captain Falcon wasn't supposed to make mistakes like that. Captain Falcon wasn't supposed to look stupid in front of his allies.

"Nevermind that," Captain Falcon said, quickly straightening out his clothes and putting on a smile. "Jody. What do you need?"

"Don't "what do you need" me, Captain Falcon. The second I leave you alone, I get a call from the Ylisstol suburbs telling me that you've apparently blown up an airfield. Is that true?"

Captain Falcon allowed a wince to show through his face. "Yes, that is true. Rest assured, I still have everything under control."

"Do you now?"

"Yes."

"Then why were you going around, blowing up government property?"

"First off, that wasn't me. Blood Falcon blew up a plane to cover his tracks."

"And erasing any lead you could have found from there."

Captain Falcon winked at her. "Not quite." He reached under a compartment on his side door, plucked out a small vial, and held it before the screen. "Don't tell Blood Falcon," he said, tossing it up and catching it, "but I took this off him while we were fighting. I figured when he'd ambushed me, he'd already found what he was looking for and needed to knock me out to make his escape."

Jody hummed. "Impressive."

"I'm sure it is." Captain Falcon tapped a label on the side of the vial. "It says here that this is filled with "Subspace matter", whatever that means. I should send it over to you, right? Or do you think it'll be easier to have the department here take a look at it?"

"I think you should send it over to the YPD and–" Jody shook her head and scowled. "You're distracting me."

"That I am."

"Captain Falcon, you punched an officer of the YPD in the face."

Falcon winced again. "Did I?"

"You did, and I think you should be sure to apologize to them for it. Remember, you're supposed to work with the local police department, not smack them upside the head."

Captain Falcon waved her aside. "Apologize to them. Got it. I'll make sure to go down to the station later today, hand in the vial and say I'm sorry."

"Don't put it off Captain Falcon. You'll forget."

Captain Falcon blew air out through his teeth. "As much as I'd love to, I have another appointment today, remember? I've got someone I need to meet at eight thirty. An old friend of yours. Chrom, I think?"

"Oh. Right." Jody frowned, but she gave a dismissive wave of her hand. "Go do that, but after, you're going straight to the station."

"Don't worry. I won't forget it. Captain Falcon out." Captain Falcon reached over and pressed a button on the dashboard, and the screen in front of him blinked out.

As soon as Jody disappeared, the smile fell from his face and he sighed. Falcon lifted the helmet off his head with the heel of his palm and combed his fingers through his hair.

"What a bother," he muttered.

Apologizing had never been his strong suit, and now he was supposed to find some policewoman and make sure she didn't hold a grudge? Surely there were more important things he needed to do.

Did he feel bad about punching her in the face? Yes, he did. Falcon knew more than anyone that he hit quite hard, and a blow like that probably deserved an apology.

Did he have time for it? Again, yes. An apology, as awkward as it could be, would be short. He could just get it over with as soon as possible, but hunting down that policewoman would still be a waste of time. The more time he spent here, the longer it would take to get home, and that really was all he was here for.

Letting out a long breath of air, Falcon leaned his hands up against the steering wheel. If I ever do meet her, I'll be sure to say sorry, but right now, that isn't my top priority. That would be making sure I get this subspace stuff looked at.

Falcon paused to wave the vial in front of his face, watching the dark purple liquid inside slosh around. If I get this case solved within the week, hopefully I'll be out of their hair before I'll even need to meet her. Besides, what are the chances I'll ever run into her again? I might meet her when I go down to the station today, but she's probably too tired from managing the aftermath of the mess we caused to go anywhere.

When Lucina's alarm jolted her awake at seven in the morning, she wanted nothing more than to hurl it out of her window. That it was her old alarm clock, playing a high-pitched pop song from ten years ago that she'd only liked when she was twelve, did not help at all.

Lucina reached over and grabbed her clock off the shelf. She aimed it at her window, considered what she was about to do, then decided it wasn't worth having to pay for repairs. Instead, she settled for pressing the big snooze button on the top and dropping it back down.

Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, Lucina peeled off her blankets and dragged herself out of bed. She stumbled over to her closet and hauled out a bright leopard print shirt and pair of polka-dot jeans, but when she tried to fit her head through the top, she was confused to find that the collar squeezed her neck uncomfortably tight.

It took a moment for it to get through her sleep-addled mind that she hadn't worn these clothes since high school, and that her actual clothes were hanging over the chair in the corner.

Of course, that meant Lucina had to go through the pain-staking process of squeezing out of her shirt, arranging it back in her closet, and picking up the clothes on her chair and putting them on. By the time she was fully dressed, her neck still ached and she was already finished with the day, even though it had only begun.

Lucina started for the door with a sigh. And this likely won't be the worst I have to deal with today. I still have plenty of work to do when I get back home, and–

Before she could even reach the door, her alarm was going off again. Lucina stiffened, and her eyes snapped back to her desk.

This again? I could have sworn I turned it off!

Her gaze traveled upward to the buttons on top, and with a groan, she realized that she'd pressed the snooze button instead of the off button. Lucina stormed back over to her bedside, slammed the off button with the side of her hand, and fumbled out of her room before she could change her mind about throwing the alarm clock away.

Thankfully, the empty hallway was a little quieter. The lights were off, but the faint yellow glow coming from below lit it enough for her to navigate to the stairs. She could already hear her father moving in the kitchen, and the smell of breakfast soothed her and settled her nerves as she headed down to meet him.

Almost as soon as she walked into the kitchen, Lucina was greeted with a loud popping sound. She ducked, startled, and a streak of silver shot over her head and buried itself in the wall.

"Sorry!" her father said.

Lucina glanced back with a huff. The kitchen... surprisingly enough, the kitchen was still intact. Mostly. The walls were still the same bright shade of yellow and orange. Five cabinets still had their doors on–make that four. Only one of the burners was on fire, and–

"Is that my pan?" Lucina choked out.

Her father looked at her, then at the half-burned pan dripping with some yellow substance and replied, "No. It's mine."

"That's my pan! That's the one I gave you yesterday. Have you already damaged it?"

"It's still intact."

"Like the rest of our pots and pans?" Lucina motioned to the rack by the sink, where a row of burnt and ruined cookware sat on display. "Father, couldn't you have used one of our older pans for... whatever this is?"

"If you hadn't intended for me to use it, you shouldn't have given it to me."

"It's not that, it's just..." Lucina frowned and made a helpless flailing motion. "I had simply hoped you would take better care of this one."

"It still works," her father replied. "Besides, I made you scrambled eggs and toast without burning it for once. I believe that earns me some credit."

Her father tilted the pan, sliding the yellow substance onto the plate waiting below, and he plucked a piece of toast from the toaster with his bare hands and placed it beside the eggs. As he handed it over to Lucina, she gave it a quick sniff.

"This is... good. That's a surprise," she muttered. Lucina glanced back at her father, who returned her look with a grin.

"I've had a lot of practice. I've already made myself a plate. Now let's sit down. I'm starving!"

"But the kitchen–"

"I'll clean it up later." Her father pulled a chair out from the table and pushed her into it. "Now eat. I'm sure you have quite the busy day ahead of you."

As much as Lucina wanted to protest, she knew it would be a fruitless endeavor. Sighing, she stabbed her eggs with a fork and shoved it into her mouth. She hummed happily, closing her eyes as she chewed.

And chewed.

And chewed.

And chewed.

"It tastes fine," she mumbled around a mouthful of egg, "but it's a little tough."

Her father chuckled from his side of the table, and he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I know. It's not as light as your mother used to make it, but I think I'm slowly figuring out how to replicate it."

"Oh." Lucina swallowed her eggs with a wince. Suddenly, the food didn't smell quite as enticing as it had before. She stared at her plate with a frown, and she poked at her eggs with her fork, but made no attempt to eat it.

Her father noticed–because of course he would–and with a sigh, he reached over the table and pushed her plate toward her. "Come on. Eat. You look like you could use the energy." His lips pulled down. "Speaking of which, did anything happen last night? You look more tired than usual."

She'd been punched in the face. She'd been forced to stay up all night, telling the men in the air base what had happened as soon as Captain Falcon had left her to clean up his mess. She had come home at three in the morning, and she had only been able to sleep for four hours.

"Nothing happened," Lucina said, rolling her eyes. "I'm not sixteen, father. You don't have to worry about me anymore."

"I'm your father. What else can I do but worry about you?"

"I'll be fine. If anything, I should be worrying about you." Lucina motioned around them. "You can't make breakfast without burning down the kitchen."

Her father laughed. "I guess so. But just because I may need a little advice in the kitchen doesn't mean you have to get me new pots and pans for my birthday every year." He lifted the burned pan for emphasis. "It's useful, yes, but I'd like something new next time."

"If I could afford anything else, you would have it."

"Something other than kitchenware, perhaps?"

Lucina excused herself from replying by shoveling another forkful of eggs into her mouth.

Her father huffed, and he started to chew on his own toast. Lucina knew that he did not appreciate being ignored, but with his kitchen in constant disrepair, she could not, in good conscience, buy him anything else.

Behind her father, another cabinet door popped off its hinges and dropped to the floor.

"On the topic of money," he said over the resulting crash, "how's that promotion coming along? You've been part of the force long enough, haven't you?"

Lucina nodded. "I have. They assigned me one last case to finish as part of my examination."

"I see. That sounds fun." Her father smiled. "Care to spare me any details?"

"Father. You know I can't." When her father reached for the case files she'd left on the coffee table next to them, Lucina nudged it away with her foot. "I know you were a former member of the YPD. That doesn't mean I can give you classified information."

"Come on, Lucina. There's nothing that says you can't receive help, is there? I'm sure I could give you advice on how to handle whatever you're dealing with."

Lucina hummed and closed her eyes. She picked at her eggs for a bit, then set down her fork with a sigh. "Don't tell anyone I said this, but Blood Falcon is here in Ylisstol, and I've been tasked with apprehending him."

"Blood Falcon? Isn't he an international criminal from Mute City?" When she nodded, a concerned frown crossed her father's face. "That seems like a tough case for a detective. Are you sure this is a case you want to take?"

"I'll be fine. Someone needed to take the job."

"And someone will." Her father changed into a grin. "Robin told me this morning that someone was coming here to hunt him down. You've heard of Captain Falcon, haven't you?"

Lucina groaned, and the memories of last night replayed in her head. "Know him? I met him last night."

"You did?"

"Yes." Lucina scowled. "He seemed like an arrogant fop, but he isn't a world-renowned bounty hunter for nothing, so I suppose it isn't exactly unearned."

"It sounds like he could have made a better first impression. Still," her father said around a mouthful of eggs, "he is pursuing the same target as you." He paused, and a speck of yellow fell from his mouth. "Hey, here's an idea. Why don't you work with him to make the task a little easier?"

"Work with him? If I do, I fear he may take all the credit."

Her father reached over to tap her on the head with a fork. "Don't sound so jealous. I'm sure he would appreciate the assistance. You and him might not be as different as you believe."

"I don't see how we could have anything in common. I'm a police lieutenant. He's a world-famous bounty hunter. I live by myself in an apartment that I pay Robin for. He probably lives in an extravagant mansion out in the middle of nowhere."

"Of course. Whatever happened to the little girl I raised? You were always happy to ask for my help. Why can't you accept any other help with your case?"

Lucina scoffed. "Well, it's my case, and I need to finish it on my own if I am going to get that–" By chance, her eyes drifted over her father's shoulder, and when she saw the clock somehow still hanging on the wall by a half-burned down cabinet, she almost choked on her eggs. "Naga's teeth, it's ten past eight already?"

Her father glanced over his shoulder and followed her gaze. "What time did you think it was?"

"I thought it was seven!"

Her father's face scrunched. "That's odd. You didn't get that from your old alarm clock, did you?"

"Is there something wrong with my alarm clock?"

"Yes. It's an hour early. I've been meaning to adjust it for months, but I've never gotten around to doing so."

"Father!"

"What's the matter? Is something wrong?"

"Is something wrong?" Lucina paused for a moment to raise her plate to her mouth, tilt it up, and scoop the rest of her eggs in her mouth. She snatched the toast from her plate and stuffed it into her pocket, before she turned to her father and said, "Robin messaged me last night. She said I was supposed to meet my new roommate at eight thirty. I can't be late!"

"You needed a roommate? When did you–" But Lucina wasn't listening. She jumped out of her chair and bolted for the door, grabbing her blue coat from the rack by the entrance and shrugging it on as she did so.

Her car, a small blue thing that her father had gotten for her on her eighteenth birthday, was waiting for her by the house when she burst outside. Lucina threw the door open and hurled herself in. When she fumbled in the middle compartment for her keys, however, all she found was a few old receipts and a box of chocolates she'd stuffed in there a week ago and had completely forgotten about. She patted her coat pockets, but there was nothing in them as well. She could feel her panic beginning to rise when she heard a knock on the window

Lucina glanced to her left. Her father stood outside, one hand pressed to the glass, the other dangling her keys behind him.

With a scowl, Lucina stepped back out of the car and held out her hand. "Father. Could you hand me my keys?"

"Not until you tell me what is happening." Her father gave her a curious look. "I was under the impression that you were handling your rent just fine."

"I am!"

"You're not going through any financial troubles?"

"No, father, none at all. I just thought having someone else share the rent would let me save more money for your treatment."

"My treatment? What treat–" Her father blinked. "Oh. That treatment."

"Yes. Now, father, could you please hand me my keys?" Lucina said, and she reached to grab her keys out from her father's hand.

Her father stopped her with a hand on her shoulder. "Lucina. You don't have to keep worrying about me. You don't need to put yourself through all this for my sake. We'll be fine."

"But you're my father. What else can I do but worry about you?"

That got her father to pause. He frowned, and he looked away. After a moment, he sighed and dropped her keys into her waiting hands.

"I don't think you need to do this–"

"But I want to, father."

Her father nodded. "Yes, I can see that. Promise me you'll take care of yourself."

"I will, father. I will."

Lucina stepped back into the car and closed the door behind her. She turned the key in the ignition, but as she pulled it into gear, she heard her father knock on her window again.

Lucina frowned. She wanted to leave, but she still pulled down her window to hear what her father had to say.

"Do you know who it is?" he asked.

"No. But Robin said that you knew her."

"I did?" His eyes narrowed. "Wait. Don't tell me. You're the person Robin needed to find a roommate for?"

"I am."

Her father groaned, but his face held the faintest hints of a smile. "Naga dammit. I should have known. Well," he said, leaning over to tussle Lucina's hair, "I do know her, and I know you'll be in good hands. Tell Jody I said hi."

"I will, father."

"Now go out there and solve that case, won't you?"

Chapter Text

Robin's cafe was nestled snugly between an Italian restaurant and a bookstore on Fell Street. The Barracks, she'd named it, and had marked it with a sign hanging above in big bold letters. Lucina thought the name rather silly, but it wasn't as if she could go back in time to convince Robin to change it.

The name wasn't the only thing she found annoying. As soon as she pushed the glass door open and walked in, she was greeted with an annoying jingle. It was some generic summer-themed pop song–probably the same one as last year. Robin was cheap like that.

At least everything else was notable calmer. Even though it was relatively early, the clock on the back wall reading eight twenty am, there weren't too many people here. The Barracks was quiet, even on the best of days, with only about four to six customers seated at the round tables scattered around the room. Some clutched steaming cups of coffee, while others busied themselves digging into their breakfast. Lucina would have to consider buying one for herself later, but right now, she was here for a different reason.

Pulling back a wooden chair by the intricately designed pattern on the back, Lucina plopped herself down, propped her leg up on the table, and waited.

She didn't have to wait long. Half a minute had barely passed before a short boy with curly pink hair and a pink shirt that looked way too big for him walked up to her with a notepad in hand.

"Hi, miss!" the boy said, a cheerful smile on his face. "What do you want?"

Lucina gave the boy a flat look. "Do you work here? I didn't know Robin had any employees."

The boy glanced back at the counter, and worry briefly flashed across his face. "I don't know. I think so," he replied.

Lucina frowned. "You think so? That's... not really something I'd want to hear. Did Robin hire you?"

"Miss Robin told me to ask what you wanted."

"Is she paying you, at least?"

When the boy shook his head, Lucina only sighed. If she was being honest, it was just like Robin to do this. Waving the boy away, Lucina said, "Can you get Robin? There are some things I would like to speak to her about."

The boy hummed. "Okay!" he chirped, and with that sunny grin on his face, he skipped back toward the back door. He slipped through, and a few seconds later, Robin came back up. When she saw Lucina, her face lit up, and she sauntered over.

"Lucina! So glad you could make it." As she threw herself down on the chair across Lucina, she gave Robin that obnoxious look that Lucina had never liked. "I see you've already met Kirby. What do you think?"

"What do I think?" Lucina huffed. "I think it's against the law to hire children and pay them nothing."

"Children? Oh, no, don't worry," Robin said, shaking her head and giving her a reassuring smile that was anything but. "He's my kid."

It was at that moment that Lucina was glad she hadn't ordered any coffee earlier, because if she had, it would have all gone to waste right there. She still choked on the air, however, and it took her a moment to stop gagging.

"Your kid?" Lucina hissed. "When did you have a kid?"

Robin made a so-so gesture. "He's not mine, really, but I am dating his father, so that makes me his guardian as well."

"You're dating someone?" Lucina blinked. "When did that happen?"

"I told you that last night. Were you not listening?"

Lucina shook her head and groaned. "No, I was, I'm simply dealing with a lot," she said, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"You are now?" Robin propped her head against one of her arms and smiled in that way that always rubbed Lucina the wrong way. "Would you like me to help?"

"You're not going to leave me alone if I say no, would you?"

Robin's smile widened, as if it hadn't already been wide enough, and she spread her arms. "Come on, Lucina. You know me."

Lucina looked her dead in the eyes. "Yes, I do."

A moment of silence passed. Slowly, Robin's smile fell, as did her arms.

"It's police work," Lucina said. "That is all I can tell you."

"Ah. Police work." Robin nodded, and she gave Lucina an understanding look that said she really didn't understand it at all. "Then maybe we should talk about something else?"

Lucina's eyes narrowed. "Yes. We should speak of something entirely unrelated, and something that you won't try to turn into a discussion about my work."

"Yes, yes." Robin tapped the table and craned her head over her shoulder. "Kirby! Remember that cup of espresso I had you make this morning? Pour us two of that, will you? And..." She turned back to Lucina and leaned across to whisper, "You had breakfast this morning, right? Ah, you stayed with Chrom last night, who am I kidding."

"I had eggs and toast," Lucina murmured.

"Lucina, we both know that isn't real food."

Lucina raised her eyes to glare at Robin. "Is there something wrong with the way my father cooks?"

"I don't know," Robin said, shrugging. "Is there something wrong with free breakfast?"

"Surely you can't afford that." Lucina motioned to the room around them and its sparse furnishings and almost bare wooden walls, save for a few photographs hanging on the wall that Lucina was fairly sure still had watermarks on them.

"I can't, but," she said, reaching across to pat Lucina on the shoulders, "I am your friend, and as your friend, I want to make sure you look refreshed and ready when we meet your new roommate." Robin clapped her hands and pointed at Lucina. "That is something we can talk about, isn't it?"

Lucina huffed, but she let herself fall back into her seat. "I suppose so."

"That's great!" Turning back to the boy kicking the ground near the counter, Robin pointed at Lucina and nodded. "Get us two slices of blueberry pie, too. Do you think you can do that?"

The boy nodded, and as Robin waved him away, he disappeared behind the counter.

"So," Lucina said when Robin turned back to her, "this... Jody Summers, what is she like?"

"What, you didn't ask your father?" Robin asked, frowning.

Lucina shook her head. "I didn't have time to. You've spoken with her, though. What was your impression?"

"Eh. She was friends with your father back when they served in the same unit, and I can certainly see why they hit it off. They're both strict, law-abiding, and all business. If your father was able to get along with her, I'm sure you'll do just fine."

"I should hope so. I can't afford to have any distractions right now."

"Of course. I'm sure she'll understand not to distract you from–"

"Miss Robin," the boy, Kirby, interrupted as he stopped right next to their table, a tray in his hands. "I got you your drinks."

Robin glanced up and smiled. "Thank you. Now, could you set down the tray on the table–slowly, I might add–and give both me and Miss Lucina our drinks?" As Kirby followed through, Robin motioned toward Lucina and said, "Speaking of, I haven't formally introduced you, have I? Kirby, this is Miss Lucina. She's the daughter of one of my friends. Also, she's a cop. Did I mention that before? I don't know if I have, but now I have, so." Robin shrugged.

At that, Kirby's eyes lit up, and he turned to Lucina with the biggest grin she'd ever seen. "Wow, you're a cop, Miss Lucina? That's amazing!"

"Detective, actually," Lucina said.

"Really? That's even more amazing! Have you caught any bad guys yet? Who are they? Can you tell me about them?"

Lucina shot Robin a look, before she replied, "I'm afraid I can't. It's secret police stuff. But." She paused, and she lowered her head and pretended to scan the room. "I can tell you when there are less people around. Once you're finished with working, that is."

Kirby's eyes widened, and he stood a little straighter, looking between her and Robin. "Oh, that's right! Is there anything else you want to eat?"

Robin clicked her tongue, and she pointed back at the counter. "Some blueberry pie would be nice, wouldn't it?"

"Huh?" Kirby followed her gaze to the two slices still sitting in the back, and he squeaked. "Oh no, I forgot! I'm going to go get them now!"

Robin chuckled as Kirby scrambled back to fetch them their pies. Lucina didn't share her humor. "Couldn't you be a little kinder?" she asked.

"Don't worry," Robin said, brushing her off. "He knows I mean no harm. It's his first time helping around the shop, and he's doing quite well." Robin paused. "Actually, perhaps I should be the one asking you to be kind to him."

"Why?" Lucina asked, taking a sip of the espresso. At once, the brittle and bitter flavor of the coffee splashed over her face like a bucket of cold water, biting down on her tongue and leaving the entire inside of her mouth feeling like a raisin. It took all that she had not to gag at how strong it was, and when she glared back at Robin, she found the other woman had left her cup completely untouched.

"Because," Robin said, picking up the coffee and swirling it in her hands, "it's his first time making coffee too. I'll admit, it's not amazing, but he's got the spirit."

Lucina hummed. "I'm hardly surprised. You get your hands on a young, impressionable child, and the first thing you do is try to mold him into your image. That is so very much like you."

"Hey, you can't say it's a bad thing, can you?" Robin grinned. Lucina wanted to tell her that she was wrong, but opted to take another sip from her horribly bitter coffee. "Besides, he's already plenty independent. There isn't much I could do to "mold him in my image" anyway. In fact, if you took a look at him and his father, you could hardly tell they were related."

"Is that so?" Lucina gave Robin a curious glance. "What is his father like?"

"What is there to say? He's quiet, he keeps to himself. He's smart, too. Incredibly smart. You wouldn't believe how smart he is."

"I think I can imagine."

"Don't get smart with me," Robin huffed. "If I were to have a partner, I would like them to be able to match wits with me. It's no fun knowing every trick they could pull. Sometimes, a few surprises can be nice." Robin paused, and she checked the clock on the wall. "Speaking of, what would you look for in a romantic partner? Your father has probably asked you that before, but I can't help but be curious as well."

"What do I want in a partner?" Lucina sighed. "I've never really thought about it before; it's never been important to me. I have my father. I don't need anyone else."

"Yes, you have told me that before, but if you had to date someone, what would you want them to be like?"

"I don't know. I suppose I would just want them to work well with me. There's not much point in living together with someone if they just get in your way. Speaking of which, do you mind setting the terms for me? I'm much too tired to think straight."

"Don't worry, Lucina. Consider it done."

Falcon was just about done when he finally found his way to the cafe.

Not only had he run completely late, but he'd also gotten completely lost on his way here. The Falcon Flyer's GPS has told him that he needed to turn through Valm Street, but when he reached the intersection he was supposed to cross, he'd found the road completely blocked off by the police. When he'd asked why, they only told him that someone had trashed an antique store. Maybe it would have been a good idea to question him, but Falcon was in a hurry, so he had turned onto Awakening Avenue to get past.

As it turned out, Ylisse's streets were a lot more complicated than that. They twisted and turned in the most confusing ways, suddenly changing direction when you thought they would go straight and lead you back, and it had taken Falcon twelve minutes and fifty dollars to find his way to Fell Street.

For what had to be the sixth time today, Falcon glanced down at the note in his hand. "Meet up at The Barracks," it said. He looked up at the cafe in front of him.

"The Baron," it read in bright, yellow letters.

"Excuse me," he said, waving down a pale-skinned man on the street. "Do you know where the Barracks cafe is?"

"The Barracks cafe?" The man jabbed a thumb over his shoulder. "Stop at the intersection and take a left. The cafe will be three blocks down."

Falcon followed his gaze. "Which intersection?" he asked, but the man had already begun to jog away. "Hey! Which intersection is it?"

As it turned out, he had meant the first intersection. Falcon supposed that made sense, but a little clarification wouldn't have hurt.

Pushing down his frustration as he pushed open the door, Falcon scanned the room and everyone in it. Everyone here looked completely normal, so perhaps he would have been able to let his guard down, but Falcon took no chances, keeping his hand clenched tight and his teeth clenched tighter.

There was a couple sitting by the window, a young man snapping photos of his chocolate muffin, and near the back of the cafe, there was–

Falcon narrowed his eyes. Wait, is that the policewoman from last night?

She looked different in broad daylight. Her skin was just a little more pink, and her hair was a little more blue, as was her jacket, though when he looked a little closer, he could see that it was the same jacket as last night. Her face looked a little softer, and without darkness to hide it, he could make out the rings under her eyes. She must have been up all night, some of which was probably his fault.

The policewoman was also sitting with another woman, one with white hair fastened into pigtails in a dark purple sweatshirt. They were discussing something animatedly over two cups of coffee and two slices of blueberry pie, and now that he thought about it, he'd been staring for a while now, hadn't he?

Quickly tearing his eyes away, Falcon finished his scan and searched for the owner of the cafe. Jody had given him little to go off, other than the fact that her name was Robin. Or was it his? He might have had less trouble remembering if he'd slept better last night, but such was his life.

He looked around again, and this time, he spotted a blue-haired man coming out of the back room and sliding behind the counter. That must have been Robin, then. He could have sworn Jody said it was a woman, but his memory was hardly intact after the fuss last night.

"So," he said, strolling up to counter, "you must be Robin."

Robin briefly tore his eyes from the plate, and wow, he did not know someone's eyes could be that shade of yellow.

Falcon tried not to let that distract him, quickly setting his mind back on track. "I'm here for the room you put up the offer for. Is that still up? If it is, I'm afraid I can only pay half the rent right now, but–"

The man put up a hand, silencing Falcon immediately. Falcon frowned, confused, until the man pointed over his shoulder and said, "You're looking for her."

Falcon glanced over his shoulder, following his gaze to the table at the back. The one with the policewoman and the white-haired woman, sipping away at their coffee as they conversed with hushed voices.

"You've got to be kidding me," Falcon mumbled under his breath.

The man at the counter made an inquisitive sound and gave him a sideways look. Falcon waved dismissively at him. "It's nothing. I'm terribly sorry for interrupting you."

The man gave a grunt in what might have been either acceptance or annoyance. Falcon didn't bother to ask. Instead, he began to carefully make his way over to the back table.

"Excuse me."

As soon as he spoke, the two women fell silent and turned to look at him. Normally, Falcon was not a very nervous person, but as soon as the policewoman laid her eyes on him, he started to wonder if she recognized him.

No, that would be impossible, he thought to himself. I don't have my helmet, I'm wearing the same clothes, not to mention I act completely different. I'm not Captain Falcon here, I'm Douglas J. Falcon.

"Is something the matter?" The policewoman's voice shook him out of his thoughts.

Falcon blinked, before he looked between the two of them. "Is one of you Robin?"

The white-haired woman stood up and smiled. "That would be me. What do you need?"

"I'm here for the room you put the offer for. Is it still up?"

Robin exchanged a look with the policewoman. For a moment, he thought he'd done something wrong. Maybe they'd mistaken him for Blood Falcon? That had happened once back at home, though now Jody knew not to mix them up.

Then again, this wasn't home, and when neither woman said anything for the longest time, Falcon couldn't help but feel like he was about to be arrested.

"Sorry, but..." Robin glanced at him, then back at the policewoman. "We were under the impression that someone named Jody Summer was going to rent the room."

Falcon paused. "She never told you that she was renting a room for me?"

"No."

"I see." Falcon took in a deep breath, then turned to the policewoman. "And your name wouldn't happen to be Chrom, would it?"

"No, it's not. He's my father." Falcon breathed a sigh of relief. "Though... I am the one who put the room up for rent. Not him."

I should have known, Falcon groaned internally.

"Ms. Robin, you wouldn't happen to have any other rooms up for rent, would you?"

Robin shook her head, her pigtails swinging by her face as she did. "I'm afraid not. Lucina here is the only one who lives upstairs."

Beside her, Lucina bowed her head. "I'm terribly sorry, but I'm sure you could find somewhere else to rent, could you?"

Sure, it's no problem, was what Falcon would have loved to say, but as he fingered through his almost empty wallet, he came to the sinking realization that, no, he couldn't just search for another room, since this was the only one he could afford.

Falcon let out a slow, long breath. Let the past be in the past. She got in my way, but I can let that go if I have no other option.

"I'm sorry, but I don't think I can," Falcon said, wincing. "I'm a little strapped for cash, and this is the only place within my budget."

The policewoman looked conflicted about that. She frowned, peering into her cup and humming, before she said, "I'm sorry, but I can't–"

"Okay then."

The policewoman's eyes snapped to Robin. "What are you doing?" she hissed.

Robin rolled her eyes, and she whispered back, "Come on, have a heart, Lucina. You need the money, and he needs a cheap place to stay." She turned back to Falcon and grinned in a way that Falcon wasn't quite sure what to make of. "You can stay here for as long as it takes for you to find a cheaper place. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a cafe to run, so Lucina here will give you the rundown on what the terms are."

Robin's chair scraped back as she shot to her feet. For some odd reason, Robin turned to wink at Lucina, but before Falcon could think too hard about it, she scurried toward the counter.

"Robin, wait! You said you would explain the–" But Robin had already gone through the back doors, leaving Falcon alone with Lucina

After an awkward pause, Lucina sighed. "Or, she could force me to do it anyway. That figures, the jerk." She hesitated, then nodded at Falcon. "Why don't you take a seat. It feels awkward if I'm the only one sitting. And help yourself, too. Robin hasn't touched any of it, and now I realize why."

Falcon did as he was told, sitting down in Robin's unoccupied seat. As he took the coffee cup and raised it to his lips, however, Lucina said, "I wouldn't do that if I were you. It's–"

Whatever she had been about to say, Falcon didn't hear it. He couldn't hear anything over the sound of blood pounding in his ears, or feel anything when he felt the bitter flavor smack him in the face. Falcon grimaced, and he looked down into his cup, horrified.

"What is this?" he asked.

"Poorly made coffee," Lucina replied. "Robin's been teaching someone else how to make coffee, and, being her, she seems to have nothing better to do than to make us her test subjects."

"That's fantastic. I suppose I didn't need to sleep tonight, anyway," Falcon mumbled, clutching at his head.

"I can sympathize with that."

As soon as the taste dulled, he decided it would be best to get this over with as quickly as possible. "So then," he clasped his hands on the table, "what are your terms?"

Chapter Text

The thing about living alone was that you got to set your own rules. It was why Falcon's base was located out in the middle of nowhere. The only way anyone reached him was through the Falcon Flyer, and he only went out to buy groceries and to race. Living alone, he had no one to set the rules for him.

It wasn't that he hated rules. He was a bounty hunter, after all, broken laws were the only reason he had a job. It was just that, when he got home, there were a great many things he liked to have the freedom to do. He was a world-famous bounty hunter, he deserved to relax. Who cared if he didn't do the dishes today?

Apparently, Lucina did. She cared a whole lot.

"The dishes must be washed by nine pm every night. If it is your turn to wash the dishes, please let me know, and I will do it for you. The laundry will also have to be shared between us, though since it's only once a week, you will have to do that less often." Lucina paused. "You will be eating here, right? I assume you lack the sufficient funds to eat out for the duration of your stay, mister..."

"Walker. Douglas Jay Walker. And yes, I will be eating here, yes," Falcon said.

"Then you may be required to cook whenever Robin oversleeps. She'll be cooking breakfast and supper, but sometimes running the Barracks keeps her busy. You do not need to bring any food. That would be covered by your rent. Plus, it doesn't cost much to eat the leftovers from the Barracks."

Falcon hummed and nodded, if only to show that he was keeping up. "You've sure thought this through, haven't you?"

Lucina knocked against the wall, drawing Falcon's gaze to a list of things pinned there that he hadn't noticed before. "It's the system my father had when he was enrolled in the academy. I used it too. You must have had a similar system when you were in the academy, right?"

"I did," he lied. He'd never so much as set foot inside of any police academy. His whole Captain Falcon gig had let him skip that sort of thing, but he couldn't quite let her know that.

In hindsight, he should have expected this. Cops always tended to be very by-the-book types. Of course, if this was Jody's friend–or rather, Jody's friend's daughter–she would be much the same. She had been like this back when they had faced Blood Falcon, and it seemed like she was no different at home.

Falcon wouldn't have minded that so much, but as he eyed the many, many other items on the list that Lucina had yet to talk about, he realized that he would be here for quite a while. That was a problem, considering the vial of "subspace matter" still in the suitcase he had on him right now.

"Say, have we ever met before?" Lucina asked, narrowing her eyes. "I can't quite put my finger on it, but you seem familiar."

Falcon clamped his mouth shut. "No, I don't believe we've ever met. I've never seen you before in my life, and I'm sure I would've remembered a face like yours."

Perhaps that was laying it a bit thick. He probably could have gotten away with much less, but then again, he had left quite an impact on her, both metaphorically and quite literally. It should have come as no surprise that maybe, just maybe, she might remember some of his face from last night.

Oddly enough, Lucina didn't seem to care about what he'd said. She briefly frowned, but just as quickly brushed it off with a wave of her hand. "If the shower starts emitting lead from the pipes, don't tell Robin. We know about the problem, but we don't have the money to get it fixed, just use the downstairs shower and–"

"I'm sure that's nice, Miss Lucina," Falcon said, cutting her off, "but I'm in a bit of a hurry right now. Important business to attend to." He motioned to her list. "I don't mean to rush you along, but do you think you could just show me where I'll be staying, and I'll be out of your hair in a moment."

Lucina stared at him. She blinked, and her eyebrows drew down. Falcon had the sinking feeling she would have rejected it even before she opened her mouth.

"Pardon?"

Falcon sighed, and, slowly, he said, "I'm a busy man. I don't have time to deal with this." He tapped against the sheet. "If you're not going to show me my room, I'll head down to the station myself."

"You don't think I'm busy too?"

"I don't believe I said that."

"You didn't need to say it." Lucina huffed. "I'm busy too, you know. I have a very important case I'm working on."

"So do I. It's rather urgent that I finish this case as soon as possible, so if you don't mind, I really must be going."

"I would say my case is much of the same. Do you think I want to be here doing dishes when I have a dangerous criminal to catch?"

"For the both of us, I really think I should go. What's in my suitcase could help you catch Blood Falcon a lot faster."

Lucina paused. She narrowed her eyes. "I don't believe I ever told you I was trying to catch Blood Falcon."

She had. Last night, when they had fought Blood Falcon together. Except she didn't know that, because he was a regular cop to her who she had never met before.

"It said on the case file," Falcon quickly blurted out. "I'm working on the Blood Falcon case, too. Jody said I would be working with you."

"Then why didn't you say anything earlier?"

Because he hadn't thought of that earlier. He didn't even mean for her to know that they were working on the same case. Less awkward conversations, especially because now he felt he had to apologize for punching her in the face.

"I would have brought it up later. Getting this business out of the way first was more important, wouldn't you say?"

"But not important enough for you to wait before I finished talking to send in your evidence." When Falcon opened his mouth to protest, Lucina held up a hand to stop him. "You're worried about the case. I can tell. You must care a lot about catching Blood Falcon, don't you?"

"It sure is! He must be stopped. You don't know what he's capable of."

"I don't, I'll admit that. I understand the urgency for this."

"Then, if you'll excuse me, I need to head down to–"

"But," Lucina cut him off with a frown, "you still need to know what living here will be like for you. You'll be staying here, after all. It won't do for you to get burned if you don't work the stove properly." She held out a hand. Her eyes were, Falcon noted nervously, on the suitcase in his hands. "Robin can fill you in while I bring this down to the station. Like she promised to do before," she yelled over her shoulder.

"Lucina, I'm busy."

"This is police business, Robin! Please, could you help me out here?"

There was a pause. Falcon hoped that meant Robin was too busy. Falcon hoped that meant Lucina would let this silly rules business go. He didn't live by anyone else's rules, anyway. He was Captain Falcon, and he was in a hurry.

Apparently, the world didn't quite understand that, because Robin replied, "Oh, fine. You better get this police business done quickly, though."

"I'll make sure it takes no longer than it has to." She looked back at Falcon, and when she noticed that he was still holding onto his suitcase, she beckoned for him to hand it over.

"That won't be necessary, miss," Falcon said, trying to stand a little straighter. "I am quite capable of handing it over on my own."

"Don't worry. I will handle it with the utmost caution, and I will ensure it goes through all the proper channels. It'll be much faster if I do it, anyway, so you have nothing to worry about."

That wasn't what worried him. There was no one in the police database under his name. Captain Falcon was supposed to be anonymous, and if he didn't hand it over as Captain Falcon, people would get suspicious. They trusted Captain Falcon. They didn't trust Douglas Jay Walker, on account of the fact that he did not exist.

"I must insist," Falcon said, and he stepped to the side and slid right past her. "I'll be back as soon as I drop this off. You don't worry about a thing."

He tried to head for the door. A hand fell on his shoulder. Slowly, Falcon looked back. Lucina stared up at him with narrowed eyes.

"What's in the suitcase, Mister Walker," she said calmly.

"Vital evidence, Miss Lucina," Falcon replied.

"If it's vital, you wouldn't mind if I took it to the station for you, would you? It'll be much faster that way."

She was suspicious. That was understandable, but right now, he couldn't help but feel annoyed. Of course, leave it to Miss Law to get in his way.

"It's not about that, it's that I need to make sure the other people down at the force know what to do with it. Now, if you'll excuse me–"

"If it's so important, why can't you tell me? Hey, where do you think you're going?"

Falcon ignored her. He could talk later because right now, he had the sinking feeling that he needed to get this to the station as quickly as possible. He tried to brush past her, but when her arm brushed against his, his muscles twitched, and the suitcase dropped to the floor.

For a moment, Falcon could do nothing but stare at the fallen suitcase in horror. He didn't even know what "Subspace Matter" was supposed to do, but it had probably been a bad idea to drop it.

"I think you should back away from that," he muttered, holding out a hand in front of Lucina.

"What? Why?"

"Because–"

The suitcase cracked. Falcon tensed, and he clenched his fists. Piece by piece, the suitcase fell apart like an insect shedding its shell. An arm emerged from within, then a body, until a creature pulled itself out, staring down at the two of them with a pair of glowing red eyes.

Falcon grit his teeth, and he ignited his hands. "Because of that."

Chapter Text

Lucina stared into the pair of glowing red eyes that looked eerily similar to her own. Looking at the thing that had emerged from the bag was like looking into a mirror, and it took her a moment to realize that was exactly what it was; her spitting image in purple, down to the folds in her shirt and the strands of her hair.

Turning to Jay, she frowned. "Walker, what am I looking at?"

"If I knew, you would be the first to know," he replied. That did little to reassure her.

Lucina took a step towards... whatever it was, watching for any sign of hostility. She could feel its gaze on her, but it did not seem likely to attack her. She raised her hands, and slowly, she said, "Who are you, and what do you want with–"

Suddenly, her clone lunged for her. Lucina yelped and stumbled back, watching as it stumbled to the floor. Its red eyes locked on her, and it hissed.

"I don't think it's friendly, ma'am," Jay yelled from a few feet away.

"Did you think I was about to invite it for tea?" Lucina replied. "I believe I've figured that out for myself, thank you."

Her clone stumbled to its feet, dragging itself up by holding onto a nearby shelf. As soon as it locked eyes with her, it tried to lunge again.

Lucina threw herself behind a table. The clone hurled past her and tumbled into the nearby wall. A portrait hanging above shook loose from the impact and broke over the clone's head.

A portrait could be replaced. The apartment? Not so much.

Lucina needed to find a way to end it, and fast. She reached for the taser in her pocket, before she realized she had left it on her uniform. The uniform that she wasn't currently wearing. She would have to improvise.

Her eyes scanned the room for anything heavy and blunt. They landed on a book laid on the standing desk. Some kind of novel Robin had given her for her birthday that she'd never intended to read. She stepped toward it. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw movement.

Lucina ducked, and the clone dove over her head. As it crashed into the desk, Lucina took a moment to put some distance between her and the clone. She would need to take this slow and steady if she wanted to escape this unharmed.

And then Jay stepped in and swung for its face.

The clone twisted its head at an odd angle, and Falcon's fist sailed right over it. His eyes widened, and he only had enough time for a curse before the clone tackled him and grasped his throat.

Now, as much as Lucina didn't like this Walker guy, she couldn't let him die. That was not how her father had raised her. Clenching her teeth, she ran over to drag the clone off him.

Then the clone came flying back without warning. It slammed into her, and that was the last thing she saw before she felt her back drive through the top of a table.

Falcon winced as he watched Lucina tumble through the remains of what had been a very nice table, the subspace thing flailing on top of her.

It wasn't alive, and yet its eyes held an unnatural cunning. It was unnaturally strong, too. Not as strong as him, obviously, but much stronger than what he would have expected from a normal human.

A big problem, because now it was on top of Lucina, delivering blow after blow onto her raised guard. He could hear her grunt in pain. However hard it must have been for him, it must have been much harder for her.

Dammit. I shouldn't have held back, he thought, tightening his fist. I had a clear shot. Why'd I have to mess it up like that? If I hadn't held back, I could've ended it in one clean blow.

But then again, if he had, it would have certainly raised Lucina's suspicions. There was just no simple solution to this, was there?

Putting the issue of his identity aside, he needed to act, and fast. He could feel the clone's blows grow stronger with each hit, saw dust rain from the ceiling. Dashing forward, he grabbed the clone by the shoulders and yanked it away.

An elbow to his face was his only reply. Falcon grunted and staggered back. The clone spun around to kick him in the face. Falcon put his arms up to block it, but the force slammed him into a nearby bookshelf, sending books crashing down on him.

Falcon jumped back to his feet. For a moment, he had pulled the clone off Lucina. That was good. That meant the clone's attention was focused on him.

The clone dropped into a fighting stance. That was fine with him. He could overpower it quickly and be done with it. Falcon jumped forward into a flying kick.

Then the clone ducked to the side, and Falcon was just in time to see Lucina swing a table leg for his face.

Lucina heard something crack as the table leg slammed into Jay, and he crashed into her couch. She winced, and moved to help him up. A flash of movement caught her eye.

Subspace Lucina dashed to her left, to where the kitchen was. To where the knives were.

She cursed and sprinted after her.

"Dodge!" Jay yelled.

Dodge? Dodge what?

Then she looked, and was shocked to see her couch come sliding across the room. She jumped back. The clone dove forward, and the couch slammed into the wall.

That would've been fine, except now the clone was within reach of the knives. It reached up and drew the long one–unfortunate, because Lucina remembered sharpening that one the night before.

Before, it had been a two-on-one situation. This, however, made things a little more complicated.

Lucina raised a hand, stopping Jay before he could recklessly charge in again.

"That's not going to work. If we keep like this, we'll only keep hitting each other." she said, and she gave him a stern glare.

Jay huffed. "Then do you have any bright ideas?"

"You brought it in here. What do you know about it?"

"Not much, I'm afraid. I picked this up because it was what Blood Falcon was after."

And how would he know that? The Federation Police had given her little to go off for the Blood Falcon case, so she had assumed they knew just as much as she did on what Blood Falcon was after. She narrowed her eyes. "How can you be so sure?"

"It was on the plane he was trying to steal from."

As far as she knew, she had been the only one who had been on that plane. Well, her, and Captain Falcon.

She shook her head. There was time to worry about that later.

"There are two of us, but only one of it. If I distract it, you can go behind to knock it out."

"That sounds like a stellar plan," Jay said in a way that rubbed Lucina the wrong way. She could ask about that later, though, and she nodded for him to move to the side as she stepped toward her clone.

As soon as she moved, it lunged for her. The knife raised above its head and plunged. The blade bit into wood, Lucina raising the table leg to block it before she twisted it to the side.

Her clone snarled and ripped its knife free. Lucina swept the table leg low to catch a slash aimed for her leg. Her clone thrust for her ribs, but Lucina blocked that too with a twist of her wrist.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Jay edge around the remains of her bookshelf. He knew how to keep quiet, that was for sure. The clone hadn't seemed to notice him just yet. A moment was all she needed to buy him.

A moment more was all she could adore. Her clone lunged again. She raised the table leg to block it, but at the last minute, the clone pulled away and aimed a stab at her stomach.

Lucina stepped back. The blade traced a line over her abdomen. Her foot caught on a piece of her table scattered over the floor. With a cry, she tumbled to the ground.

Her clone did not hesitate. It did not change. Its face completely emotionless, it stepped over her and raised its knife for the finishing blow.

Jay jumped in from behind. He raised his hands to catch it.

Her clone stepped aside, almost casually. Jay's arms caught nothing but air. His eyes widened, headed straight for the ground.

Lucina reached out and caught him by the arms.

Jay glanced up at her. He opened his mouth, presumably to thank her.

He did not see the knife aimed for his back.

"Look out!" Lucina shouted, and she shoved him to the side.

Jay landed onto the floor. The knife, however, continued past him, drawing a silver line straight through her stomach.

Her clone twisted its arm, pushing the knife deeper. Lucina gasped. It was like something was burning a hole straight through her stomach. Her clone pushed it deeper still. Lucina's feet buckled beneath her, and she collapsed into the couch behind her.

The wooden floor creaked behind them. Jay jumped to his feet and lunged for her clone. Without missing a beat, her clone tore the knife from her body.

And Lucina grabbed it and pulled it back in. Her hands were slick with her own blood, and she could feel her strength fading. But as the clone's red gaze snapped onto her, she forced out a triumphant smile.

"Falcon punch!"

She was surprised when, instead of Jay tackling it aside, the clone screamed and exploded into a wisp of fire and smoke.

Falcon had done it on impulse. He had held back from using his full speed, and the clone had slipped from his grasp. Slipped a knife between Lucina's ribs.

As much as he had tried to distance himself from the people around him, he could not stand by and let that happen.

One punch was all it took to save her life.

One punch was all it took to reveal his secrets.

Lucina stared up at him with wide eyes, eyes that Falcon refused to meet.

No one spoke, and for a minute, Falcon hoped she would let it go. Maybe she would convince herself she had simply been seeing things.

Then, she opened her mouth and said, almost breathlessly, "You're Captain Falcon."

Chapter Text

"Please don't tell Robin."

Lucina lowered her mug to give Captain Falcon a very long look. "She needs to know what happened,"

"Not everything," Captain Falcon grumbled, and he peeled a layer off the scone on his plate. "You don't tell her everything about your cases, do you?"

"No, I don't because she is a civilian."

"Then tell her it's police business."

Lucina gripped the side of her face and sighed. "She won't buy that."

"You know her the best. Tell her something she will believe."

"I know her well enough that she will know when I'm lying, and–" Lucina planted a finger on the table and glared at Captain Falcon. "You are living here. She needs to know if you are going to blow something up. She can't afford any more surprises right now."

"Well, she can't know I'm Captain Falcon, either."

Lucina scowled. A second passed between them, and the wound in her stomach throbbed.

When Robin had heard the commotion, she'd asked them to stay downstairs while she inspected the damage. Naturally, Captain Falcon had wanted to bail. She should have figured, with him being a vigilante.

Lucina was going to make sure he stayed to hear what Robin had to say.

"Does Jody know?" she asked. "If she is your friend, your answer to that question is yes."

"I'm not around enough for it to matter," Captain Falcon said, waving a hand behind him.

"Oh, right. You're a recluse."

"And that makes this very different from that. If things get hot here, I can't simply leave, which is why you cannot tell Robin."

Lucina drowned a second sigh with another sip of tea from her mug. Captain Falcon eyed her drink, and when she set it down, he said, "You're not a coffee person?"

"My father always had a cup of elderberry tea somewhere in the house. Wouldn't you know it, after eighteen years living with him, I've picked up the habit."

"It's also harder to ruin a cup of tea than it is a cup of coffee."

Lucina winced, the cup she'd had this morning coming back like a flash flood. "Yes. That too." She gave a look at her reflection in the cup, watching as her brows pulled down. "Harder, but far from impossible."

Robin chose that moment to burst through the doors, her brown eyes scanning the empty cafe before they landed on them.

"Well," she said with a huff, "I sure hope you two had fun doing whatever it was up there because half my furniture is going to have to be replaced."

"I'm sorry," Lucina said. "We'll be more careful next time."

"You better. That was my favorite shelf, too!" Robin huffed and crossed her arms. "That was a pretty old table, though. I don't really miss it."

"Yes. I'll replace it as soon as I can."

"You ruined the couch too. Apparently, if you stick a knife in just the right place, the springs will move out of place, and now the fold-out bed no longer folds out. It's going to be a real hassle to fix that. Not impossible, it's just going to take a while, so you'll just have a single bed between the two of you." Robin stopped, and she tapped a finger against her chin. "Actually... that might not be so bad."

"Robin."

"Yes?"

"Please calm yourself."

Robin grinned, and she nudged Lucina's side. "Hey, I'm just kidding. Don't you worry about trying to pay me back–just keep Kirby entertained tonight, and we'll call it even."

"But I insist–"

"Trust me. Right now, I need a babysitter more than I need a place to hold my cookbooks because I've got a date tonight."

Lucina really didn't want to feel like she was taking advantage of Robin. She already owed the woman so much, but really, what could she do when she was already struggling to keep up with rent as she was?

"Fine. I'll swing by the station and see if I can take the evening off."

"You're a real lifesaver, Lucina. Kirby is the sweetest little kid. You won't regret it." Robin turned around to head back upstairs. She hadn't gone three steps before she turned back to add, "Oh, and if you get into police stories, be sure not to leave out that time I helped catch that cultist!"

Lucina rolled her eyes. "How could I? You've likely told him the story yourself."

"Won't kill him to hear it from you! Be sure to tell him I helped!" Robin winked, and she turned to leave.

"Robin, wait!" Lucina called.

Robin paused to give them a flat look. "Hey. I'm already taking time off work to make sure the roof doesn't fall through in your room. Can this wait?"

"I've got to tell you something, first." Lucina shot a glance at Captain Falcon. He shook his head.

She turned back to Robin. "This man here is–"

She saw his foot move from the corner of her eye. A quick kick to shut her up. Lucina moved her leg out of the way.

The table leg behind her shattered, and Lucina, who had been leaning on it, tumbled over with a yelp. Her cup and Captain Falcon's plate clattered to the floor, and tea soaked the side of her jacket.

Robin gave the two of them a look. She opened her mouth, closed it, then pointed between the two of them. "Okay. That, you two can pay for."

As soon as Robin disappeared, Lucina's glare snapped to Captain Falcon. "I thought we were on the same side here."

"We are?"

"Yes. We're working on the same case!"

"I'm going to work on the case. Like I said at the airport, Blood Falcon is too dangerous for you."

"Is that why you were going to cripple me?"

"I wasn't trying to." Captain Falcon ran a hand down the back of his head. "It's not easy holding back when you've got abilities like mine."

"Well, don't let it happen again," Lucina grumbled, picking herself off the ground. She swept splinters off her coat, squeezed the water out of her hair, and huffed. "I'll pay for the table later. We've waited long enough. Let's go."

"Not so fast." Captain Falcon reached out and grabbed Lucina by the shoulder before she could leave. "I thought you said you didn't share police business."

"I don't share anything about my current cases."

"She could not have helped with a case you already solved, Lucina."

"Oh, that. I did not ask for her help with that one, she found out on her own." Lucina shrugged. "As I said, no lie escapes her. You can only hope she gives up."

Captain Falcon placed a hand on his forehead and sighed. "And what about the kid? It's much safer to keep him out of things like this, isn't it?"

"A story or two won't hurt him."

"I can never stand when people ask about my stories."

Lucina narrowed her eyes. "Is that why you remain so reclusive?"

"It's less of a bother."

"It seems lonely."

Captain Falcon huffed. "It's better that way for me. Anyway, you finished your tea. Let's get moving before this subspace stuff does anything else strange."

Falcon did not think he'd had such an uneventful car ride since he'd arrived in Ylisstol. The ride from The Barracks to the city's police was short as it was quiet. For that, Falcon was grateful.

That did little to stop the hard stares Lucina gave him every now and then.

He could understand where she was coming from. After all, he'd punched her in the face, destroyed her friend's furniture, gotten her stabbed, and nearly broken her legs...

And people wonder why I choose to live alone, he thought, his face pressed up against the palm of his hand.

"We're almost there," Lucina said. "Just a turn, and it's the second building on Sable Street. If you ever need to come here by yourself."

"Yes, I know," Falcon said, and he watched the road pass them by slowly.

Too much time on the race track, and every other car ride felt like molasses. It certainly didn't help that the woman was an extra cautious driver, triple checking every turn she took.

"You're not going to break my leg if I try to tell them, are you?" she said as she pulled into the parking spot by the sidewalk.

"I wasn't even trying in the first place," Falcon grumbled. "But I still think they shouldn't know."

"They are fellow officers of the law. Keeping this secret from them will hurt the case more than it helps."

Falcon opened his mouth to argue, but Lucina slipped out of the car and closed the door behind her. Falcon grumbled as he stumbled after her into the building. He tried to think of something he could say, but really, what could he say other than he just didn't want people to know?

Ylisstol's police headquarters was not as busy as he thought it'd be when he stepped inside. It was almost noon, now, but there was hardly anyone here, save for the man with the frizzy blond hair sitting behind the front desk.

Lucina walked up to the desk, her arms crossed. "Shulk," she said.

The man looked up, and he smiled. "Oh, Lucina! I thought you said you wouldn't be here until one."

"Something happened in my apartment, and Robin kicked us out."

"Ah. That's a shame." Shulk's gaze peered over her shoulder, and when he saw Falcon, he frowned. "And who would this fellow happen to be? Captain Falcon?"

Lucina's mouth clamped shut. She glanced over at Captain Falcon, for answers maybe, but he shook his head.

"Actually, funny you should say that," she said with a slow, drawn out breath, "but yes, this is Captain Falcon."

"Oh." Shulk blinked. Then, the smile returned to his face, and he shrugged. "Well, that's hardly a surprise."

Lucina frowned, confused. "It isn't?"

"Of course not. One of Mute City's greatest criminals shows up in our city. I would be more surprised if they didn't send Captain Falcon after him."

"I suppose it does make sense."

Captain Falcon huffed. "You're taking this surprisingly well. Usually, the reveal gets more of a reaction from people. Are you not a fan?"

"Oh, I am. I've got a few mates back home who would be over the moon if they met you, but there's a time for that, and there's a time for work."

The admission should have made things less awkward, but Falcon just felt more uncomfortable. If the officer here could push aside his feelings, however, he would have to as well. As he did, Lucina reached down to pick up his briefcase. Though it had been a bit damaged from the fight, it was still mostly intact, and as Lucina set it down on the table, she unlatched it and pulled out what remained of the subspace. Most of it was gone, but there was still a small amount of purple collected at the bottom.

"I did not come here just to tell you about him," she said, dropping the vial into Shulk's hands. "We have a lead on the Blood Falcon case. Last night, I caught him stealing some of these from a plane at Ylisstol Field."

"I suppose you'd like me to send this down to the lab, would you?" Shulk said, and he brought the vial up to inspect it.

"That would be great if you could. I asked the operators at Ylisstol Field where the shipment came from, but the flight logs are surprisingly sparse on details. All they could find was that an organization named 'Tabuu' ordered it from Flat Zone City. No one claiming to be from there has asked for any insurance claims."

"And you're hoping that the lab can help us narrow down where exactly this 'Tabuu' could have ordered this so you can figure out what Blood Falcon wants with it, is that it?" Shulk hummed. "I'll see if we can get our results back within the week. Perhaps four to five days, if that's not too long for you?"

"That sounds fine."

"Not to be a bother," Falcon said, stepping in, "but I think that may be too long. Blood Falcon moves fast, and four to five days might be enough time for him to finish what he's doing. Could you get it in by tomorrow?"

Lucina gave him a look. "Tomorrow? That's too much of a stretch. If Shulk says that it will take four to five days, how likely do you think he'll be able to shorten it that far?"

"No, it's fine," Shulk said. "I may be able to hasten the process if you have access to any more." He paused. "You wouldn't happen to have any more of this... subspace stuff, would you?"

"I'm afraid not," Lucina said. "Blood Falcon destroyed the rest before I could get my hands on it."

"And any more I might have had was destroyed in the fight we had in her apartment," Falcon added.

"You had a fight in her apartment?" Shulk's eyes flitted to her, then back to Falcon. He raised an eyebrow, before he said, "And what exactly happened there?"

"It's a bit of a story," Lucina said.

"I've no assignments until one. I have time."

Lucina sighed. "Well, the thing is, him and I are–"

Beside them, a door flew open. Falcon gagged as a foul smell washed over them, leaving a thick scent of ash and charcoal over everything in a ten foot radius. Lucina gagged with him, reaching up to clutch her nose as Shulk wrinkled his nose and took a step back.

Another man stumbled out in front of him, gasping for breath. "Guys," he hissed out, "I think we might have to keep the bathroom off limits for the near future."

"Link, what did you do?" Lucina said, a hand over her nose.

"I don't know! I just flushed, and all of a sudden this awful smell started coming out. Maybe the pipes got dirty, I don't know." Link turned to Shulk. "I think you might need to call a plumber to get this fixed."

Shulk sighed and shook the vial in his hands. "I'll get to that, as soon as I get this to the lab." He turned to Lucina. "You wouldn't mind showing the Captain around the base, would you? From the looks of it, you two are already familiar with each other, and it couldn't hurt to know where things are if he'll be staying to help with the case."

Falcon thought she would protest. Instead, she slumped and said, "I'll get to it."

Before Falcon could stop her, she began walking down a nearby hall. "Come on, Captain. Let's show you around."

What other choice did he have but to follow her lead?

The Ylisstol Police station was very similar to the one back in Mute City, albeit a bit bigger. It had much of the same compartments; an office space, a break room, and a few prison cells.

As they passed the interrogation rooms, however, Falcon noticed something off.

"Is something wrong?" she asked when he asked her to stop.

Falcon pointed to one of the doors, noting the light coming from behind. "Is someone being interrogated right now?"

"I think so."

"Why? Did something happen?"

Lucina frowned. "I believe there was another crime that happened this morning. A minor robbery on Valm Street. Nothing related to our case."

"You can't be sure."

"Does Blood Falcon go out of his way to rob antique stores?" Lucina asked, folding her arms.

Falcon paused to think about it. "No. That would be strange of him."

"I agree. Now, if you'll follow me–"

"I'd still like to see. Could you get us inside?"

Sighing, Lucina lead him over to a nearby window. "Not while an interrogation is going on, but you may observe from here."

Falcon peered inside. Looking in, he recognized the pale-skinned man on the other end of the table as the one who had given him directions this morning. The cop with him, however, was a new face, a rather large man with shaggy brown hair, and a red tie around his neck. Though he could not hear clearly through the window, he could faintly make out what they were talking about.

"So, you jog through Awakening Avenue every morning, right?" the cop asked.

"Yes, I do. It's far enough away from home to burn some serious calories," the pale-skinned man replied. "My doctor recommended that I jog six miles a day to stay in shape."

"Yeah, I know, I know. What I want to know is, did you see anyone suspicious pass by between seven and eight AM, did you?"

"I pass by plenty of people on my jogs. I can't remember everyone I see. Though... if I had to say, I did pass by a fellow who looked like that famous bounty hunter this morning. What was his name again? Captain Falcon?"

Falcon frowned. Lucina must have noticed, because she nudged him with her shoulder.

"Did you meet this guy earlier this morning?" she asked.

Falcon nodded. "I did. Though I never told him who I was, and I spoke with him at eight twenty. Either he knows who I am, and he's got his times wrong, or..."

The cop coughed into his hand. "You mean, you saw Captain Falcon this morning? The Captain Falcon?"

"Maybe? I don't know. He looked kind of weird." The man tapped his chin and hummed. "Like, everyone knows what Captain Falcon looks like, but he was wearing different colored clothes. Maybe he decided to change his wardrobe today. It's not like I can judge."

Falcon whirled around to face Lucina. "Where did you say this robbery took place?"

"Valm Street. But that was an antique store. You don't think..."

"It's as good a place to start," Falcon said, and he rushed past her.

Lucina was right. Robbing an antique store was very unlike Blood Falcon. Under his master, Black Shadow, Blood Falcon had performed many heinous acts to kill him. A simple robbery was so very unlike him that Falcon would have never considered it, but... if he had, what could he be planning?