Our tomorrows

Chapter 1

Hello everyone, this is my second fanfic ever !

First, I should say that English is not my mother langague so there might be spelling mistakes or weird phrasing. Please Don't hesitate to tell me if you spot mistakes ! It would help me very much !

Second, I have not yet done the S support of Ashe, sorry if this seems OOC or not as good as the S support.

I hope you will like this fanfic !

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Ashe was fidgeting with his hands. He was nervous, so very nervous. Why did he came to this decision again ? Was it a mistake? He was sure of his feelings, and wanted to express them, but … Everything had changed.

They had won the war against Edelgard, after many efforts and sacrifices. Everyone thought that Claude would become the king of the new united kingdom. But Claude decided to leave, leaving everything in the hands of Byleth. No one knew where he left, except Byleth, who didn't say much. Only that her friend had to go away to make peace last and realize his own dream.

So Byleth became queen. A commoner became ruler of the land. That was something unhearded of. But everyone welcomed it with great joy. After all, she was the war's heroine and had been blessed by the goddess herself. Some nobles grumbled against it but their protests were ignored by the people, who were glad that such a figure was going to guide them all.

That's why Ashe was feeling hesitant right now. He was in love, deeply, with Byleth, and he wanted to confess to her. But was he worthy of her, who was now the absolute leader of all ? Thinking about it, in truth, Ashe was already asking himself that a long time ago.

Byleth had always impressed him. Almost since the beginning. She was, at first, emotionless and killed her enemy without hesitation. He heard she was coldhearted and he was a little relieved that she didn't choose to teach the Blue Lions house.

But as time went on, he began to learn things about her. How she actually cared for her students and her friends, how she secretly cared for animals, how she worked hard for everyone. She liked to give gifts and having tea with people.

She took time to listen to people feeling bad, even him, when he lost the man he had considered as a father, a man he had looked upon for a very long time, Lonato. She was not that expressive but had a kind heart with a soul as pure as it was beautiful.

Ashe understood how wrong he was about her. And on top of that, she was a wonderful teacher. He could see it as the golden deers students were becoming excellent warriors or mages. And her students adored her.

That made Ashe even more curious about Byleth, and he thought that... Maybe she would be able to help him become a better archer and a better person. He took time to think about this. Choosing to join her class meant to leave his friends in the Blue Lions house. That was a difficult decision. He hesitated a long time. But he finally came to the decision that it was worth the try. After all, some other blue lions also joined her class, he would not be alone in this. If the ever-grumpy Felix did not hesitated to go to the golden deers, that meant that her teaching were really something.

So he asked to join her class, and the tiny smile she made when she accepted made his heart waver. After that, as he spent more and more time with her, his feelings grew and he had to admit to himself that he had a big crush on her.

That's why when she disappeared, his heart shattered.

He knew that she couldn't be dead and clung to the hope to find her alive, somewhere in the canyon. He searched for her for weeks, months. The thought that she could injured, waiting for help, kept him awake many nights. But time went on, and researches were unsuccessful. Ashe began to lost hope, little by little. He felt empty inside, every day without her were torturous. They finally came to the conclusion, after many patrols and researches that she was dead. Ashe's heart broke at the thought. He had lost another person precious to him. He couldn't forgive himself. If only he had fought by her side that day …

His duty to his kingdom called. Ashe left, heart heavy with grief. He became determined to not lose another friend so he threw himself into battle. The war hardened him, he fought day to day for his friends' survival. But things were going bad for the kingdom. They had lost a lot of territories, Dimitri had disappeared, rumors were saying he was dead. But Ashe still fought. And before he had known it, years had passed.

5 years in fact had passed since the fall of Garreg March when finally, he found her, alive. She was on the opposite side of the battlefield. He couldn't believed it. She was alive ! He felt his whole body tremble. Was it from joy ? He felt like crying and he wanted more than nothing that to run to her side and hug her tightly in his arms. To tell her how happy he was to see her again. And some questions plagued his mind : where was she all this time ? Why did she looked exactly the same as before ? Why didn't she reach out for him ? They were quite close back in the academy days after all. But questions and feelings had no place in the battlefield. His orders were clear, he had to fight against her and his former classmates. He wouldn't betray his comrades, even if Byleth was his enemy. Even if this broke his heart.

And as expected, his side lost the battle. But what he didn't expected was that she didn't kill him. She offered him her hand, giving him her lovely smile, oh so lovely. Only then did he realize how truly he had missed her, to the point he could have cried on the spot just by feeling the warmth of her hand in his. He accepted to join her cause without hesitation, still as madly in love with her as ever, even after 5 years had passed like nothing had changed. As if he was still the young and naive boy that wanted to become a knight to protect what mattered to him. Even tough he had failed to protect her...But now he had a chance to redeem himself. And he believed in her and Claude. And his gut feeling was proved right, they won the war.

And now, here he was, in the goddess' tower. Some time had passed since the coronation of Byleth. After her crowing, he had distanced himself from her. She was overworked by her new position as queen now. He didn't want to bother her on such a busy time.

But he was longing for her presence, her smile, her kindness, her warmth, her voice, her touch...Everything she was. So he had thought a long time, before coming to the conclusion that he wanted to confess to her. He needed to tell her what she truly meant to him.

But now that he had invited her to meet him at the goddess's tower, which is just not any place, he hesitated. She was a Queen now. If she were to accept his feelings, and that was not a given either, how would people react ? He was the adopted son of Lonato but he would remain a mere commoner for the nobles. They would probably mock his modest origin and try to influence Byleth to be with a true noble. Maybe they would mock her, and that, he wouldn't like that. Byleth had worked hard to be there and he wouldn't let anyone badmouth or try to hurt her. Not after all she had been through.

And there was the fact that Byleth had been close with other males, like Claude, Lorenz or Sylvain. They were nobles. They would fit with her much more than him. Maybe it would be better to silence his feelings and part with her once and for all. He had a territory to take care of, as the adopted son of Lonato, and brothers and sisters to take care of. He would be busy and maybe with time, he would forget about Byleth… But at the same time, his heart screamed how much he loved her. How much he needed her in his life. That he couldn't leave like that, without trying to tell her his feelings.

So here he was, lost in thoughts. Hesitating for the next course of action. To leave or not to leave ? To confess or not ? He was feeling lost. But soon, too soon, he heard footsteps. Someone was coming, and he knew that was Byleth. It could only be her. She was coming. Ashe began to panic, sweat starting to form on the top of his head as the same time as the urge of just running and hiding somewhere, far, far away from here. But he couldn't… No, he didn't want to escape.

There was no choice now, he had to think fast. He could always say he wanted to see her before he had to prepare to leave. But, he didn't like the idea of lying to her. Not when she was always so honest with him. So, he decided. He was going to tell her all of his feelings. He made a quick prayer to the goddess and to his father to receive some push forward and some courage, before feeling his reason almost crumbling as Byleth appeared in the room.

Oh goddess, it was going to be harder than he though. She smiled so lovingly at him, he could hear his heart beat in his ears. As she approached, he couldn't help but think she was looking divine. How can someone like her exist in this world ?

"Professor … No, Byleth… You came !" he said, hesitantly.

Her smile widened, almost blinding him. He couldn't help but think how unfair it was to be so beautiful, adorable and yet so strong and fierce...

"How could I ignore you, Ashe ! It has been quite some time since we last saw each other. I'm sorry I was so busy. But when I had time, I couldn't find you anywhere. I quite missed our tea parties… And, when you asked me to come here, you looked like you had something to say. So here I am."

He gulped. So she knew he had something to say. One again, he was amazed at her cleverness and her observation skills.

"Hum… y-yes ! I have something really important to say to you. I must admit, It makes me feel a little nervous" he laughed a little, clearly out of nervousness.

Byleth stayed silent, looking at him, curiosity shining in her eyes. But as considerate as ever, she patiently waited for him to begin.

"I… wanted to thank you, Byleth. For sparring me back then. Thanks to you, I am alive now, and I will be able to continue helping those in need… Remember that book thief ? I saw him again, you know? He told me his child was getting better and better. He was so happy that he was almost crying….

Making those people happy, that's always been my goal. So, I'm grateful to you. Thank you so much for sparing me, for caring and taking time to spend time with me, for giving me a chance to be beside you. You're helping me become a better person each passing day."

"You're the one who worked hard on becoming who you are today, Ashe." answered Byleth "You should be proud of yourself. But… Thank you for your kind words..."

He laughed.

"You don't know how much your teaching and your presence has helped me. When Lonato died … I was a mess. But you listened to me, you tried to search for answers with me. You helped me to remain myself, even when the war was raging. I will always be grateful for that.

You're kind, considerate, clever, courageous. You will be a wonderful queen, I know it."

Byleth stared at him, silent. But he could see she was really happy, her eyes shining.

"So...Hem...I-I know that it might come of as sudden, b-but… I can't just shake it off and act like nothing. I… I gotta try. I… I love you. I adore you. More than ever, I would like to stay by your side, if you would have me."

There, he said it ! He was feeling nervous, conflicted. But also relieved. He finally said it ! Ashe dared to look at Byleth's face.

She hadn't reacted. She was looking at him, blankly. Ashe began to panic. So that was a bad idea after all. He wanted to run away far from here and to hide in a small hole. He had another nervous laugh.

"You don't have to answer my feelings … I just wanted to be honest with you and my feelings. Don't worry, I won't be a burden for you."

His heart was crushed, he wanted to cry. But first, he had to leave. He didn't want to let Byleth see him like this. He slowly began to walk away.

But a hand grabbed him. A calloused yet soft hand took his in a firm grip.

"Wait ! Don't go !" said Byleth, sounding alarmed. That surprised Ashe, who took the courage to face her.

Byleth looked at him. She looked shocked and … Blushing ?

"Don't go ..." she repeated, imploring him.

They stayed like that for a while, Byleth refusing to let him go. Ashe had to hold back holding her in his arms and caressing her red cheeks. And the feeling of her hand in his … It felt so right.

She finally spoke up, looking at him in the eyes.

"I'm sorry, I was so surprised and… so happy that I didn't know what to do."

Ashe couldn't believed his ears. Did she said she was happy ? He felt hope rising in his chest, his heart pounding hard. He had to cover his own face in fear of feeling himself liquefying on the spot as he was feeling hot in the face.

"I'm happy, so happy right now, Ashe. I may be the happiest woman in Foldlan now. To tell you the truth, I didn't dare to think you felt like that … I hoped so much for it. But you distanced yourself from me since I became queen. I didn't know what to do… And now, you're telling me this. I… I'm so happy ..."

Ashe could see tears were threatening to fall from her eyes. It was true that he had distanced himself from her, as he didn't feel worthy of her. But ironically, that's what drove him to confess.

He brushed her eyes with his free hand.

"I didn't know you suffered … I'm sorry, Byleth. I … I just didn't feel worthy of you..."

Byleth shook her head.

" No one is more worthy than you, Ashe ! No one. You are the only one that I need by my side. I love you too, Ashe. I want to spend my life at your side …. I want no one else. And I don't care about what the others think …. That's why …."

She let go of Ashe's hand, and began to search for something in her pocket. She took out a little box, and opened it. A beautiful ring appeared in Ashe's vision.

"That's why I prepared this. My father gave me this ring. He told me to give it to the person I love. I want you to have it. Please, Ashe, spend your life with me !"

It was Ashe's turn to be surprised. Was all of this real ? Did Byleth just reverse propose to him ? He wanted to pinched himself to see if it was a dream. Byleth looked at him with so much love, he couldn't believed it. He reached for the ring while feeling himself tremble from the emotions, so much that he feared to let go of the precious jewel or worse, break it. It felt cold to the touch. It was real.

Ashe began to blush harder than ever. His heart was going to leap out of his chest at any moment now, he could feel it. He was so happy. How could he deny her request ? He wanted nothing more than to be with her for his whole life.

He took her trembling hands in his and smiled sweetly at her.

"I would be honored if I could spend the rest of my life at your side… I love you so much, Byleth. I promised to never leave you again."

Byleth's smile returned and, once again, Ashe was blinded by it. She threw herself in his arms, embracing him with all her might.

"I love you, Ashe ..." she murmured.

Ashe returned the hug. The woman he loved was in his arms, finally. It felt like breathing a bash of fresh air, as if he had never known how to breath before. The ashen demon was essential to him, to his life, it was evident now. He felt very light and joyous.

He knew that whatever the future holds for them, it will be fine. As long as they were together, they would overcome everything.