Her face had been strangely absent, in some ways that was a relief, in others it was torture. Dimitri stood in front of an unmarked grave, SHE was buried here, his friend, classmate, enemy, and sister, resting beneath a grave without a name. Both Dimitri and Byleth had thought it best after all Edelgard was widely hated for her deeds across all of Fodlan. So when it came time to bury her they chose a place no one would disturb and left the stone unmarked, as such hers and Hubert's names were left off of the Gronder memorial for the same reason. Only four people attended the funeral, Dimitri, his queen the Archbishop Byleth, their eighteen-month-old Sitri-Patricia and an unborn baby who would bear Edelgard's name. Dimitri had planned never to look back on this spot, but here he was, at a blank grave at midnight with a small handful of red flowers to lay at his step-sisters grave. And it seemed, he was not the only one compelled here on this night.

"King Dimitri," A kind but surprised voice spoke behind him, "I did not expect you would be here

.

Had the voice belonged to anyone else he'd have drawn his weapon, but he knew this voice well, the former Archbishop Rhea. "Lady Rhea. I could say the same about you. Why are you here?"

"I suppose for the same reason as you," She gestured to the grave. "Closure. Edelgard and I, neither of us would have liked to admit it, but, we had much in common. Both fettered by the past and refusing to see past our own pain. Both of us fools."

"Lady Rhea."

"You need not call me that anymore, dear king, and it's true. Both of us were fools. I could not see past my pain enough to see what was happening across Fodlan. The Knights of Seiros were supposed to protect the innocent. We failed in that task, the most vulnerable suffered under our very noses and we were oblivious."

"That's hardly your fault! Nobody knew what was happening, they had us all fooled!"

Rhea sighed deeply and gazed tensely at the grave. "I despised that girl… all I could see was her sin, in the days leading up to her final breaths her mask slipped, I saw the frightened damaged girl she tried so hard to conceal. Dimitri, I- she knew you would kill her."

"What!" Dimitri's voice was no more than a whisper.

"She came to me after your plea for peace, I still don't know why perhaps she felt I was the only one left to reach out to. She said it was the last time I'd see her. I believe she knew she would lose. Perhaps she saw what they'd turned her into and wanted it gone. But she knew, and she wanted it to be you." There was silence before Rhea spoke again. "Red flowers?"

"Crimson. Her favorite, my youngest's favorite too."

Rhea cracked a smile. "How are they? Your Queen and your children?"

"Sitri-Patricia has made a habit of disappearing. She scares everyone half to death until we find her asleep in the gardens. Edel has learned to crawl, but only a few feet at a time." Dimitri spoke about his daughters with the pride of a father. "Byleth and I clash on matters regarding church and state, but we never fight for long. You should be proud of her."

"I am." Rhea stared at the sky. "I set out to get my mother back, but instead I got so much more. Dimitri, take care of them, keep those girls safe. Give them all the love a parent can and never take a thing for granted. Please, dear king, promise me that much."

"I promise." Dimitri laid his flowers at his Step-Sister's grave, then turned to regard Rhea. "It's a long journey back to Zanado, you could stay with us for the night. Byleth would be delighted to see you again and the girls would love to meet you."

"I would be honored, Dimitri."

As the two of them left the gravesite Rhea found herself turning back for a stolen moment "Rest in peace," She said to the grave. "Dear lonely girl."

END