The two had fought together the previous day and the poor mage had outdone herself yet again, barely able to stay awake as they trudged back to the castle barracks with the rest of their team. Eirika walked her to her room, hoping she would turn herself in for an early night.

She didn't expect the girl to jump out of a corridor that evening to startle her on her way to dinner.

"Nino!" Eirika took a deep breath to calm herself. "What's wrong, couldn't you sleep?"

"No, I'm fine." Nino shook her head. "Say, Eirika..."

"Yes?"

"Um..." Nino dug into the floor with her foot as she twisted her hands behind her back. "D - do you have any time tomorrow?"

"I should, yes. Why?"

"Oh!" Nino perked up, then looked down again with pink cheeks. "Oh, I was...I was just wondering...if we could go to the field tomorrow morning."

"Oh, you want to practice magic again? That's fine by me, but are you sure we should go in the morning? Aren't you ti - "

"No, no, no!" she shook her head with vigour "It's not about practising magic!" she blushed. "I just...wanna show you something I've been working on."

"Oh? What is it?"

"I can't just tell you!" Nino pouted.

"I suppose so," Eirika laughed. "When you put it that way I can't possibly refuse! Now, when exactly do you want to meet?"

Curiosity had gotten the better of the Princess and she had arrived earlier than promised, only to find Nino already outside and staring at the sky.

"O - oh! Eirika!" Nino caught her in the corner of her eye and jumped. "There you are!" She struck a casual pose, but there was no hiding how tense she was.

"Here I am," Eirika echoed, grinning with a hand on her hip. "Am I early?"

"No, not at all!" Nino shook her head and her hands. "I mean, early for what? I mean, I just wanted to hang out with you today!"

Eirika raised an eyebrow. "Really? Well, I'm here. What are we doing?"

"Oh..." Nino patted the grass with the tip of her boot. "Er...first, good morning Eirika! Did you sleep well?"

"I slept great, thanks to you."

"Huh?"

""You dealt with those soldiers all by yourself, didn't you? The rest of us hardly did anything yesterday."

"...oh." Another blush. "Only because you were with me, Eirika."

"Really?"

"Yeah...it's strange, but...I feel like I can fight better when I'm with you."

"Really?" she asked again.

"Yeah," Nino thought for a moment. "I don't know how to describe it, but...I feel like I can do more when I'm around you. I feel so much stronger!"

"Wow..." Eirika placed a hand on her cheek. "You're making me blush!"

"But it's true! You're always supporting me in and out of battle, Eirika, and that's why I wanted to show you - " the girl froze with her mouth wide open. Eirika fought the urge to chuckle.

"Anyway, are you sure you slept well, Nino? It's morning but you're already dressed!"

In fact, not only was Nino dressed, she was wearing new armour. In addition to her usual robes, she now wore a purple breastplate and knee high boots. Her cape was longer too, now that Eirika looked closer. It was a bit worrying that the girl was already in such attire so early in the day.

"Oh, I'm fine," Nino yawned.

Eirika put her hands on her hips, but couldn't think of anything appropriate to say. She sighed, arms flopping to her sides. "If you're sure. But I want you to take it easy today, alright?"

"I will, don't worry." she looked at the sky again.

"What are you looking for?"

"N - nothing! I'm just...thinking!"

"About?"

"Um...about what I wanted to show you!"

Eirika looked around. "I don't see anything. Is it a new spell?"

"No, not a spell..." Nino took a quick glance at the sky again, hoping Eirika wouldn't notice (she did). "So...I've been working on something for a while now -with Florina's help of course - and she said I'm good enough that I could show other people if I wanted to, so I...I showed Jaffar and he said he was impressed too..." Nino rubbed her pink cheeks.

Eirika smiled. She'd seen Nino's armour on others before and knowing she'd been working with Florina gave her a good clue as to what this surprise could be. As for Jaffar, Eirika wasn't upset that he had been the first to see it; though Nino would never admit it, it was clear she felt something for the man - which was something she admired since Eirika herself always felt chills down her spine whenever he was near.

"Then I'm sure it'll be worth seeing," she smiled at Nino who looked horrified for some reason.

"Oh, I didn't mean it like that! Florina's too sweet to say something's bad right away and Jaffar always likes everything I do, so it's not that I - "

"I trust their judgement." Eirika just smiled. Nino took a few deep breaths and gave her a weak smile back.

"I think it'll still take a little while though..." she mumbled to herself.

"Really?" Eirika glanced at the sky too and saw nothing but pale blue. She looked down in time to see Nino hide a wince, but smiled instead of commenting on it. "Congratulations, by the way."

"What? No!" Nino paused. "...what for?"

"I met your Uncle Canas this morning and Florina said your Uncle Legault arrived last night. I'm happy for you." She patted her friend on the head. Nino beamed despite her previous nerves.

"Oh, yeah. I was so surprised when they showed up, y'know? I was waiting for them for so long and then they show up one after the other! And..." she swallowed. "And they both know who I am!"

"Of course they do!" Eirika knew all too well how Nino must have felt. "From what they tell me, you're too important for them to not know."

Nino gaped for a moment, then turned away. "You're embarrassing me!"

Eirika laughed. "Then you have to tell them off, not me!"

Nino opened her mouth but was cut off by a loud whinny.

From above.

She jumped and looked up, then laughed. "There you are!" She jumped on the spot and waved her arms like a child. "We're here! I'm here!"

The pegasus let out another whinny and made its spiralling descent, lazily flapping its wings until it trotted to a halt beside beside Nino who then ran her fingers through its mane. It wore a matching purple bridle and saddle of the same shade as Nino's new attire, with a pale blue banner hanging from its front.

"I've always wanted to ride a pegasus," Nino began, still stroking her new friend's head. "And when Florina and I were feeding the pegasi in the stables one of them really liked me! She says that happens sometimes, so..." she looked at Eirika with a shy smile "she said she'd teach me how to ride him and...she did?" she shrugged.

"That's wonderful! I'm sure you picked it up quickly too!"

"Not really..." she blushed. "I made a lot of mistakes..."

"Yet here you are."

"I - I guess..."

"Learning to ride a pegasus is huge! You should be proud of yourself, sweetie!" Eirika gave her a short round of applause. While Nino shied away from the sound, her pegasus stood tall and snorted.

"Th - thanks..." Nino adjusted her hairband. "So...I was wondering if you wanted to fly with me? I'm not good enough to fly as high or as long as Florina can, but she says I can help out with smaller fights and carry messages if anyone needs me too."

"That's plenty, I'd love to fly with you! And thank you so much for wanting to invite me!" Eirika pressed her own cheeks, "I'm just...I'm so..." she squealed and wrapped Nino up in a hug. The little girl yelped and let out an embarrassed giggle, but she also gave the older girl a few, tentative pats on the back.

"Of course I'd invite you, right? You're my sister after all!"

Eirika hummed and placed a kiss on her forehead. "And when we're done," she pulled back "we can race! Your pegasus against my horse. What d'ya say?"

"No!" Nino stepped out of the embrace, horrified. "Eirika! I told you I'm not that good yet!"

Eirika burst into laughter. "I'm just kidding, don't worry!" she winked and, still chuckling, wiped her tears away. "Now, do I need to do anything before I can sit on its back?"

Hmm... Eirika thought to herself once they took off, her arms around Nino's slim waist as she listened to the little girl's peals of laughter. Is this how Ephraim feels when he's with Myrrh? No wonder he always keeps her around.

She didn't want to leave Nino either. She knew they would part someday; they each had roles left to play in their home worlds after all.

But for now it was just the two of them, their pegasus, and a clear, blue sky.