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“Haha, Grima, you’re so silly,” Chrom giggles as the puppy-sized dragon does a somersault midair and nearly loses the accessory they’re wearing. “Books don’t go on heads. They go in libraries.”
“Kiran said this one’s not a real book. It’s a hat,” Grima says. “And you don’t like libraries. But you like my book hat, don’t you? You're smiling…”
“Yeah. It’s great,” Chrom says. “Er… am I really smiling that much, though?”
“You are!” Grima closes their eyes and opens their mouth in what Chrom knows to be their own version of a grin. “That’s good. I like it when you smile. You looked so upset when we first met, I was afraid you didn’t like me.”
“Sorry. It wasn’t anything like that,” Chrom assures his friend. Actually, his first thought when he saw Grima was that they seemed really cool. He’s heard stories about the dragonkin, but Grima is the first one he’s met, and he didn’t know that dragons could be kids too. He wasn’t sure he would like it in Askr at first, especially when the purple-haired woman who gave him his weapon started laughing about having a “stronger child duo” than somebody named Thórr, but so far things have been really nice. He gets to have special training sessions, and Grima gets to go to them too, and even though there’s a lot going on, it’s all fun stuff, not like…
Well, not like what’s happening at home.
“You’re doing it again…” Grima’s tone turns sad. “I thought I was cheering you up, but… Um, sorry. I’m not very good at cheering humans up.”
“It’s not your fault,” Chrom says. “It’s just, before I came here… Something bad happened. And when I think about it I want to be serious. I want to get stronger so I can go back and help.”
“Something bad? Like what?” Grima flies to Chrom’s side and lands on his shoulder, their tail curling around his arm. “Maybe I can help, too.”
“Oh… N-No.” Chrom shakes his head. “It’s… my dad. He died, and now my big sister has to do a bunch of work because he’s gone. It’s really hard on her. And my little sister is just a baby, so I don’t think she gets what’s happening at all. She probably won’t even remember Dad when she grows up. So… yeah. If I get strong, I can help them, since Dad can’t be our dad anymore.”
“I see…” Grima dips their head in thought. “Your dad… is your family, right? My master also lost someone he called family… It was a long time ago, before he created me, but he still thinks of her. Do you think that’s why he never smiles, even when I come see him?”
“I… I dunno,” Chrom admits. “When you can’t see someone anymore, it’s sad, and it’s hard to smile. But… For me, it’s better with you around.”
Chrom puts a hand on one of Grima’s wings. His friend is really nice and helpful, but it seems like no one back at Grima’s home thinks so. They don’t talk about parents or siblings or friends like Chrom does, just a “master” who “created” them. It’s not fair at all. Grima deserves to have a big family who appreciates them.
“Hey, Chrom, I’ve got an idea,” Grima says. “I’ll help you get stronger here, and when you go back to your world, I’ll come with you and help your sisters, too. Then I can make you feel better if something makes you sad again.”
“You’d really do that for me?” Chrom asks. “Er, I… I’d show you around. You’d have fun… I think…”
He’s not usually shy, but for some reason the thought of Grima coming to live with him has him feeling a little embarrassed. He’s not sure why, because he can’t think of anything better than getting to bring his new friend home.
Maybe he’s just nervous because people at home know embarrassing stuff about him. Like how Emm had to save him from drowning in the bathtub one time. Yeah, Grima wouldn’t be very impressed if they heard that story. It was kind of funny, though. Maybe if Grima ever needs cheering up, Chrom will tell them about it.
“I wouldn't want to take up too much of your time with your family, but it would be nice to see where you live…” Grima says hopefully.
“You wouldn’t be taking up my time at all!” Chrom exclaims. “Actually, it works out perfect. Since you don’t have any sisters, you can just borrow mine, okay? And then we can all be together as one family.”
“Together… as one family…” Grima echoes slowly. After a moment, they give their wings a happy flap. “I like the sound of that.”
Chrom’s chest feels a little weird, but he thinks he likes the sound of it, too.