Just correcting a few mistakes. :)

Sorry I couldn't post this earlier. Moving out is tedious. Still I tried to use my evenings to write and not letting you too long in the last chapter's cliffhanger.

I hope you are not too mad at me and I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Disclaimer: I do not own FE3H or any of the characters.

Chapter 6)

The water was cold. No, the water was freezing. Byleth was not sure what sucked the air out of his lungs; the impact as he fell into it or its coldness.

The water was relentless. It had yanked him around enough that he did not know where up or down was anymore. He was not able to see anything. All he was able to register with his eyes was a blur of red, white, gray, and blue tones.

He needed to do something. Not for him, but for the future emperor in his arms. During the fall he had miraculously been able to sheath his sword and grab Edelgard by her waist pulling her close to him. He even managed to rotate their bodies to avoid lethal damage.

Edelgard's eyes were always calm and calculating, to see any other emotion in them was rare. To witness the panic and the desperation in her eyes as they were falling… It was something he was never going to forget; and it disturbed him greatly.

Byleth was out of his depths, he had never been in this kind of situation. Firstly, he needed to find the way to force some air into their lungs. Secondly, he needed to get out of this freezing water. One step before the next, just like Petra would say. I hope they are alright.

He pulled their bodies upwards, or at least he hoped so. The water current fought him for every inch. If felt like an eternity, but he managed to raise his head out of the water and gasp loudly for air, followed by a fit of coughing. A fraction of a second later he heard the princess gasp for air.

Without a warning, the current sucked them both again into the depths of the river. Byleth nearly lost his grip of Edelgard's waist. He used all his force to get out of the water again, gasping again for ice cold air.

This time he released one of his arms from his student's waist, to search something to hold on to. Byleth had not noticed before that Edelgard had also embraced him for dear life. She too was coughing and gasping for air.

They were sucked once more to the depths of the river. The current was still strong, but it had calmed down enough for Byleth to pull them upwards for a third time. He tried once more to reach for something to hold on to.

This time he found something. A log? He did not care; anything would be fine if it meant that they were not going to be pulled down again by the current. Edelgard still held on to him. She made no notion to detach herself from him.

He had time to assess their current situation and location. The river was wide on this part and the current was still strong, there were large rocks on each side of the river. It would be impossible to push them to them and afterwards climb them up.

The sound of the river was still thunderous. But there was an even louder sound approaching fast. He looked around for a way out of the cold water, feeling the current increase its speed once again. He could not see the river ahead of them. There were only splashes of white water. OH NO…

"EDELGARD! BRACE YOURSELF!" he shouted at the top of his lungs. She must have heard him because he felt her hold on him increase again. He released his hold of the log and wrapped his arm again around her waist.

A waterfall. They were airborne again. Falling fast into the waters below. This time, the pressure of the water did not allow him to move. The impact was painful. He felt a rib, maybe two break in his ribcage. The pain was so intense that he lost his hold on Edelgard.

They were submerged once again. The current near the waterfall was strong, but as the water carried them away it lost its strength. He kicked his legs upwards, using one arm to help them move faster. The other arm was again securing Edelgard around her waist. As they emerged, he looked around once more.

There was a river shore nearby that he could reach. He decided they did not need to be in cold water anymore. He kicked his legs pushing them both to the shore.

Once his feet could touch the sand, he was relieved. He was sure that he would have drowned if he stayed longer on that river. His muscles and lungs were burning, and he was exhausted.

He advanced a few steps before releasing his hold on Edelgard. She, however, was not releasing him. "W-wha -ttttsss w-wro-ng? He asked shivering. His jaw hurt. His muscles were contracting painfully.

"D-Do-n-t le-t m-me g-go." She managed to respond. "P-pl-ea-se." She pleaded. Her usually stoic face was full of panic. He grabbed her waist with one arm, nodding to her. "O-k." She released him partially. She still held on to him with an arm around his waist.

They slowly made their way out of the water. "W-we n-ne-ed t-to g-ge-t w-wa-r-m u-p f-fa-s-t." He tried to inform her. He grabbed some nearby branches and pieces of driftwood. They were all wet, but with a little bit of fire magic they would be able to light them up. Fire magic burned hotter than normal fire.

Edelgard was shivering uncontrollably. Her breath was labored. Regardless she picked up some wood mimicking his actions. "Wha-tt-ss t-the p-pla-n?" She asked.

"F-Fi-re m-ma-gi-c" Byleth answered. He advanced further into the woods near the shore and arranged the picked-up wood into a circle wide enough to sit inside it. He was not sure if it would work out. But he was too tired and way too cold to think of anything else.

Byleth started removing his wet cloak and armor. He placed the discarded pieces on some rocks near the wood that would soon be lit up. "P-pro-fe-ss-or?" Edelgard was looking away.

"N-ne-ed t-o g-ge-t th-em d-dry." He explained. He winced once he tried to take his chest plate off. The pain in his ribcage was bearable but some movements were just too much. He sucked on air stopping. "L-et m-e he-lp." Edelgard offered.

He nodded approaching her. She lifted the piece of armor over his head. He winced once more as he lifted his arms to get the piece off his torso. "Th-an-ks." He said to her looking her in the eyes.

The panic that he had seen in her eyes was mostly gone. Her eyes were calculating again, and he could not help to wonder why he felt such a relief seeing that. "Ne-ed h-hel-p?" He asked her.

She nodded. He unstrapped her chest plate from the sides. Once off, he placed both armor pieces near the prepared wood. With some effort he took the rest of his clothes off, leaving only his underwear on. He sat down in the middle of the circle.

He looked at Edelgard expectantly. She was hesitating. "I-I c-can c-clo-se m-my e-ye-s i-if y-ou l-li-ke." He offered.

They really did not have time for any of this, he knew that time was of the essence in this kind of situation. She nodded at him. He sighed but closed his eyes regardless and waited. He heard wet clothes being placed on the nearby rocks.

He then heard her approach. She sat down between his legs, her back pressing to his bare chest. Byleth would have been blushing if this was another situation. Focus! He thought.

He held out his right shivering hand and called as much energy that he could muster. A small flame manifested in his palm. His eyes were still closed, but he had a pretty good idea where the wood was.

It took a minute or two, but the wood and branches started to burn eventually. On his left side he heard the cracking of burning wood. Edelgard must have followed his lead. He felt the sweet sensation of heat warming his body up. Slowly the heat expanded on the circle they had arranged.

They sat there in silence, while their bodies warmed up. Sothis? He asked, checking if his companion was there. He could feel her presence, but as no answer was received, he sighed mentally. It happened again. Why? How?

His injuries started to hurt like hell. His muscles were relaxing. He was not shivering as violently as before. And he was tired, he needed to go to sleep. No. I need to focus. Do not fall asleep. "H-how a-re y-you f-faring, E-del-gard?" He asked his student concerned.

"C-al-mer, t-tha-nks t-to y-you." She answered. "T-Tha-ts g-good." He answered. "A-are y-you in-ju-red?" He continued. "D-don't t-thi-nk s-so." She told him. "M-mi-nor c-cuts, ma-y-be." She continued. "Y-you?" He noted the concern in her voice.

"B-bro-ken r-rib a-and l-le-ft w-wri-st. O-the-wi-se, I t-thi-nk I-I'm f-fine." He answered her. "L-let m-me s-see." She said grabbing his left wrist gingerly. He winced at the contact but tried not to move.

"I ne-ed t-to s-et i-it." She said. "O-odd a-an-gle." She said critically. "D-do i-it." He said. He breathed in slowly. He relaxed his muscles and breathed out. He felt her other hand rest on top of his injured wrist.

With a quick movement she flicked it in place. The pain shot through his whole arm and he even felt it at his ribcage. He was used to these kinds of treatments, as he had experienced them back in his mercenary days. But damn that hurt.

He let a grunt out and waited motionless for the pain to pass. "W-we ne-ed t-to sp-lin-t i-it la-ter." She said still holding his hand. After a moment she moved his arm to rest on her stomach, putting her own arm protectively on top of it.

"W-Wh-at…?" He tried to ask but was cut off by her. "T-try n-not t-to mo-ve it u-un-til w-we-c-an sp-lin-t i-it." She said. "I w-wi-l ho-ld i-it the-re t-to all-ow b-blo-od f-low." She told him in a tone warning him not to object.

Not that his subconscious would. Her skin was soft but not everywhere. There were little rough scars he could feel them with his fingertips. He noticed that this was true for the area of her skin he was touching with his palm.

He remembered what Sothis had said the morning at the infirmary. He had understood that Edelgard's body was scarred, but the amount of them he felt just under his palm was disturbing. He wanted to ask her about it but opted to stay silent for a while longer, for the moment.

How long they stayed like that, he was not sure. The fire was no longer burning as hot, he could only guess that the woods was consumed to embers. He had stopped shivering a while back but was still very tired.

It did not help that he still had his eyes closed. Why he had not opened them yet, he could not remember clearly. Maybe to give his student in front of him some privacy, or maybe he did it to avoid giving more wood to the fire of his fantasies.

Whoa! Where did that thought come from? Focus. It was hard to do so. His mind was slipping fast. "What time is it?" He asked. "Huh? Can you not tell from the position of the sun?" Edelgard responded confused.

"… I could, but my eyes are still closed." He answered sheepishly. "Why are your eyes closed…?" She said incredulously. Then he heard her gasp. "Have you opened you eyes at all?" She sounded annoyed.

He could not help but imagine how she was pinching her nose at that moment. "… No." He simply said feeling dumb. "You are mad, my teacher." She reproached him. "…You were uncomfortable with me looking at you." He explained.

She laughed at his explanation. The sound was so rare that he was genuinely surprised. He committed it to memory. It took her a moment to calm down. "… What's so funny?" He demanded indignantly.

He felt her move. She released his injured hand and moved forward. He instantly missed the feeling and the heat of her back against his chest. "Open your eyes." She said softly. He was confused at her request, so he frowned. "… Are you sure?" He asked her just as softly. "Yes." She answered.

He raised his head and slowly opened his eyes. The light blinded him for a moment, and he blinked a few times to adjust to it. It must have been little past noon. The sun was shining upon the various trees around them.

Once his sight adjusted, he lowered his head. Edelgard was sitting on her knees in front of him. Her hair was a mess but otherwise she seemed fine. He locked his eyes to hers but from the corner of his eye he could see that she had left her underwear on just like he had done.

She sighed. "You are certainly a strange mercenary." She said smiling at him. She extended her arm and nodded at him. He was not sure what to make out of the situation. It was certainly strange. He locked his eyes on her arm.

What he saw shocked him. Her whole arm including her hand was covered in scars. Some of them were thick others were very thin. The number of scars was staggering. He frowned and felt his blood boil.

"Do you remember what I told you the other night? About...my past? None of my siblings had a chance to lead the sort of life they deserved. An ordinary life." She was looking at him intently. "… I do". He answered unable to tear his gaze from her arm.

He raised his uninjured hand and traced his finger just above one thick scar from her bicep to her elbow. She shuddered at his touch; he quickly retracted his hand fearing he had hurt her.

"My siblings and I were... We were imprisoned underground, beneath the palace. The object was to endow our bodies with the power of a Major Crest." She started explaining.

"I have always possessed the Crest of Seiros, inherited through the Hresvelg bloodline. But it was only a Minor Crest, and most of my siblings bore no Crest at all." She continued while looking at him. She had dropped her arm to her side.

"In order to create a peerless emperor to rule Fódlan, they violated our bodies by cutting open our very flesh. Now here I stand, the fruit of that endeavor: Edelgard von Hresvelg!" She chuckled bitterly.

"But that came at too high a price... The others were sacrificed. Ours weren't the only lives devastated by that terrible process." She looked down to the ground. Her voice was starting to break.

"Innocents died as well, without even knowing what they were dying for. And there you have it, the truth of the Hresvelg's Empire." Angry tears fell from her face.

"Who is to blame?" He said angrily his voice raw. It sounded almost like a growl. Once she heard him, she looked up almost in surprise. He reached out to wipe a tear from her cheek but remembered how she had reacted earlier to his touch to her arm, so he retracted his hand.

"The prime minister and his gaggle of nobles." Ferdinand's father?! Could he be so heartless?!

"They had the Empire under their thumbs. My father, the emperor, tried to stop them, but...it was futile. My father was nothing but a puppet on a string by then. He was powerless to save us." A powerless emperor and father. It must have been horrible for him to learn what was done to his offspring.

She must have heard his thoughts because the next statement had perfect timing. "I know how it all sounds. But when you see my true strength, you will know I speak the truth. I have kept it hidden all this time, but..." She raised her arm once again, extending her palm to him.

"I will reveal to you the power of my second Crest." He looked down to her hand. A familiar Crest materialized.

"It is the same as yours...the Crest of Flames." But hers was static, it did not pulsate like his had. "When it manifested for me, I swore a silent oath. For the sake of my family and for all the poor souls whose lives were traded for my existence..." She was angry and she frowned.

"For their sake, I will build a world where such meaningless sacrifice is never again sanctioned. As emperor, I will change the world. I swear it." She sounded resolute. She will be a great emperor. He thought.

"Will you stand by me?" Edelgard's question disconcerted him. "Yes. As long as you need me." He answered immediately. It surprised him, but the more he thought about it, the more he found his statement to be true.

He raised his right hand and manifested his own Crest. The moment it appeared, beside Edelgard's both Crests started moving like real purple flames. They were reacting to each other.

The pull he felt to Edelgard was as strong as it never had been. Once he looked ovet to her, she was a lot closer than he remembered. Had she moved closer, or had he? He was now sitting on his knees like she was a few moments ago. He had not realized it before.

The Crests were calling each other, and their bearers were frozen in place. Byleth decided to break the silence before he lost himself in those beautiful purple eyes. "Do you feel it?" He whispered.

"I do." Edelgard answered just as softly. He closed his palm, in an attempt to control himself from doing something rash.

"Was this your theory?" He asked her. She nodded still holding his gaze. "We were fated to meet. I think that our Crest were always searching for each other." She said. "Fate?" Was fate also responsible for Sothis' sudden disappearance?

"… Is this all there is to it? To… us?" He asked pained. Why did he feel so rejected? Could it be that the root of his feelings for her were just the attraction of the Crests?

"… Us?" She asked surprised. "Is fate or are our Crests the only things that attract us?" He asked her, lowering his gaze to the ground. He was not sure why he was so ashamed of the question or why he was avoiding her gaze completely.

The only thing he knew at that moment was that he did want to hear her answer. And yet he dreaded it. He had never felt anything like this before. He was called the Ashen Demon for a reason. His reputation would crumble because he had fallen in love with her.

Yet he did not care about his reputation or if the Ashen Demon existed or not. He had never felt anything before. During his time as a mercenary he was on autopilot, never feeling anything or caring for anything.

Once he met her, he felt free for the first time. Free to feel, to laugh, free to be annoyed and free to love. He raised his head once more, ready to meet whatever reaction Edelgard would give him.

"No… I don't think it is." She said to him, giving him a small smile. "Huh?" He blinked. "You piked my interest back then, when you saved us from those bandits." She continued. "But that interest evolved." She continued carefully. Evolved? He felt hopeful.

"That is something I can relate to." He agreed. "If you do not mind me asking, why did I pike your interest?" Byleth was curious and could not stop himself to ask her.

"Honestly? It was the pull I felt to you." She said sighing. "It was a new sensation I could not put my finger on." She explained. "I do not think that anyone could relate to it either. It would be best to keep this between us." She continued. "Ah… So that is why you are always scrutinizing and analyzing me." He answered finally understanding.

"I should have known. Nothing gets past you." She shook her head smiling. He pushed himself off the ground and walked slowly to where his clothes and armor were. He checked if they were dry. Still damp. Damn.

She was also checking her clothes. She sighed. "Also damp?" He asked her turning to look at her. She nodded. "It is less than ideal, but we need to look something to eat and a shelter for the night." He said to her putting the damp clothes on.

"Shelter for the night?" She said raising an eyebrow. "How far did the river take us?" She asked. "Hard to say. Most of it was rapids afterwards that waterfall over there." He signaled in the general direction where the waterfall should be. It was not visible from the spot they were standing on, but the sound was thunderous. "I'd wager a day and a half walk back to the camp." He said calculating in his head.

He heard her gasp. He quickly turned around, dagger in hand ready to protect her. She was holding a hand to her mouth. "Professor… The last thing I saw before hitting the water was the tower crumbling down. Do you think…?" She seemed concerned. "I hope they are Ok." He said trying to sound confident. Truth was that he was also very concerned.

"They were on the top floor, maybe they survived with minor injuries." He tried to use logic, to calm both of their minds. "That is why we need to make our way to them as soon as possible." He said.

He tried to put his chest plate on. But he had forgotten about his broken rib. He winced at the pain he felt. "Let me help you." She said grabbing the chest plate from his hands. He nodded. He put his arms inside of it and let her slide it on. "Thanks." He said to her, noticing how close they were again.

For the second time in minutes, his pulse quickened. He was sure that if he had a beating heart, it would had sprung out of his chest. The first time he had been able to avoid doing anything stupid with chatter. But at that moment, words avoided him completely.

He locked his eyes to hers. He raised his injured left hand to her forehead to move a lock of stray hair behind her ear and rested his hand on her neck. This time she did not flinch from his touch. Edelgard rested her own hand on his.

Before he could blink, he felt something cold and soft on his lips. The kiss, if you could call it that, was hesitant and barely a touch. It took him a split second to register that she had brushed her lips with his.

She was about to separate from him blushing and embarrassed. He moved on reflex and recaptured her lips by pulling his injured hand on her neck lightly. He felt her arm wrap itself around his neck and kiss back. His free arm pulled her closer by her waist.

Soon, both of them needed to breathe. Byleth pulled out and placed his forehead on hers. "My teacher…" She sighed. "Call me Byleth." He offered.

"I don't think I can yet." She said sadly. "…I see." He answered and started releasing her from his grip. "I would nothing more than to call you by your name." She said stopping him. "But you are still my teacher." She sighed.

"I have developed feelings for you. Feelings that were not in my plans." Edelgard's voice was conflicted. "… Plans?" He asked her confused. "I cannot tell you about them yet." She shook her head against his forehead. "I will, but I have to set some gears in motion."

"So, after all you do not trust completely." He said hurt. He released her stepping back. His mind was racing, his gut was hurting…

"Professor…" She approached him. "I do trust you. Otherwise why did I tell you about my past?" She argued softly. "I would like nothing more to tell you everything. All I ask is for a bit more time to prepare." She was pleading.

"Edelgard…" He sighed closing his eyes. "Prepare away… I will give you all the time you need." He finally said. "But do not ask me to distance myself from you." He told her. "Not after that kiss." He was looking at her deep into her eyes. "I would never ask you such thing. Not anymore anyways." She said hugging him.

"I think I love you, Edelgard." He said and heard her gasp. "I love you too." She said smiling before their lips reunited again.

They walked into the woods up-river in relative silence. After their confession it took them a few moments to remember where they where and where they had to go.

Edelgard had lost her axe back in the tower, but se had a dagger strapped securely to her waist. Byleth had the Sword of the Creator and a dagger. It was not much, and it would make hunting or fishing difficult, but he would teach her how to set a trap, like his father had taught him.

It was getting dark, and they needed to find shelter. Byleth was hoping that they would find a cave on the foot of the waterfall. But luck would have it another way. They did not find a cave, but they found an wooden shack.

The shack was old, its wood was almost completely rotten. It had a door, that was closed and a window with broken glass. It was small, maybe it was a tool shack from the old gold fever days in the Kingdom. The roof did not seem to have holes on it, which was fortunate. There were logs of wood neatly piled up on the far side of it.

Byleth motioned Edelgard to be ready with her dagger, they needed to approach carefully. She nodded understanding his order.

Once they reached its porch, Byleth tested its resistance. The wood cracked dangerously but did not break under his weight. He reached a hand to the doorknob and turned it. It was not locked. He slowly opened the door, his sword ready to strike anything down.

He stepped in. The shack was long ago abandoned. There was an old iron oven there. It looked like some bird had nested on it on the spring. There was a shelf with probably rotten books and a straw bed.

He moved carefully; he saw something scurry past him squeaking. Edelgard jumped noisily letting out a girlish squeak. He felt her grab his cloak from behind shielding herself from the scurrying rat.

He turned back to look at her, an eyebrow raised. "I… I-I don't like rats." She said sheepishly. "...Really?" He asked in disbelief. "The mighty Edelgard von Hresvelg, future emperor of Adrestia, afraid of rats?" He asked sarcastically sheathing his sword.

"I do not appreciate your mockery." She said indignantly. It was a cute side of her. "Rats were for a long time the only companions I had during my confinement." She said to him turning away. "It is natural that I developed a sort of phobia against them." She continued explaining. "Especially after they bit me multiple times while I was... not able to move." She said hugging herself.

Byleth approached her and hugged her. "I didn't know. I am sorry." He said. She turned to him face him. "Just... Do not joke about it, please." She said to him. He nodded. "So… What do you think of this shelter?" He asked her changing the subject.

"It will do. It is filthy and infested. But It will keep us dry and warm for the night." She said analyzing the room. "Well, I will see if I can get that to work." He motioned to the oven. After a few minutes cleaning it, he grabbed a few logs from outside and threw them in.

With a little fire magic, he got it to work nicely. In the meantime, Edelgard had looked over the old books. "Anything good among them?" Byleth asked her. "No, they are all romance novels from an author from the empire." She said.

"…Hm." He responded. "Come on, we will need to go find something to eat before its dark." He said. She nodded following him. "What are we hunting?" She asked. "Not hunting, fishing." He said cheerfully.

He missed fishing with his father. It was one hobby he had not had time for in the last few months. Besides, fishing in the pond of the monastery felt odd. As if the fish were placed there artificially just to be caught by the students and knights.

Byleth had found some long sticks and some rope in the shack. He would use it to attach their daggers to the sticks. "Maybe we can catch one or two carps. We can cook them to take them with us for the trip tomorrow." He said.

Edelgard looked hesitant, not wanting to go near the water again. "Is something wrong?" He asked her. "If you would not mind, I would prefer to stay out of the water." Edelgard said to him. He raised an eyebrow but nodded.

Byleth found a spot where he could use his makeshift fishing lance. He stood there motionless. Once he saw a fish, he waited patiently for it to be in range. He launched his lance hoping it would not fall apart.

It didn't, the fish was stabbed by his dagger. He took it and after smashing its head, he tossed it to Edelgard. "Gut it." He told her. She nodded unsheathing her own dagger. He was surprised that she would know how to gut a fish.

After about an hour, he had managed to capture four fish, two large ones and two little ones. It was dusk, and they needed to go back to their shelter. Byleth examined her work. It was messy, but she had managed.

Edelgard approached the river carefully to wash her hands. Once her hands were clean, she was quick to retreat to his side.

On their short way back, he was on the lookout for some large leaves. Once he found them, he used his dagger to cut some of them down.

The shack was warm, it was a relief to be out of the cold air from outside. Byleth checked the oven. The wood inside was nothing but mere embers. If they wanted a warm night and cook their meal, he needed to grab some logs from outside.

"Can you lay the fish near the oven? It will take about an hour until we can eat them." He asked Edelgard. Something is wrong with her. She was too quiet ever since we left the shack.

He stepped outside, making sure that he closed the door to prevent their precious heat to get out. He walked around deep in thought. Sothis? I need your guidance. Silence. This is the longest she has been gone. He was getting worried.

He stepped inside again. Edelgard had already placed the fish on sticks near the oven and was wearingly inspecting the straw bed. Byleth knelt in front of the oven opening its lead and tossing a few logs into it before closing it again.

He placed the rest of the logs beside the oven and checked the fish. It was still raw, so they would have to wait a bit longer. He scanned the room. He saw a rotten chair on one corner. "Would you mind looking at the bed, please?" Edelgard asked him.

"Something wrong?" He asked her. "Just want to make sure that the bed is not a rat's nest." She said sheepishly. "Ah… I see." He moved closer to her. He kicked the bed with his foot and listened intently.

"Clear." Byleth said smiling at her. "That is all?" She asked incredulously. "You expected more?" He asked smirking. Edelgard was fuming. "Alright, alright…" He raised his hands in defeat. He lifted the bed with his good hand. He looked under it and found nothing.

"Nothing here." He said. She was still looking at the bed wearingly. Byleth shook his head and sighed. With a swift motion he dropped to the bed. Dust flew everywhere and it smelled badly, but he had had worse in the past. A memory of sleeping in mud came to mind.

The bed resisted his weight and was surprisingly comfortable. Well anything would be comfortable at that moment. He was so tired he could sleep anywhere. "See?" He made a notion to stand up again but was stopped by Edelgard sitting down on the side of the bed.

"Thanks, I guess." She sounded frustrated. "What?" He raised to sit beside her. She scoffed once she saw that he had used his injured hand to support his weight.

She got up and grabbed some small planks that were lying around. She grabbed a piece of wet rope that was used for the makeshift fishing spear. She used her dagger to make four small incisions on the sides of the boards.

"Give me your hand." She commanded. Byleth raised an eyebrow but raised his hand in her direction regardless. Edelgard sat down beside him again. She took his hand gingerly in hers and proceeded to put one plank just below his fingers.

She supported the plank long enough to put the other one above his hand. She proceeded to wrap the wet rope around the incisions she had made. It was a tight fit, he had to stop himself from grimacing any discomfort he felt.

Once done he inspected her work. "It will hold long enough to get real medical treatment." She said. "Or so I hope." She added. "Anyways, it is the best we can do in this situation." Edelgard said almost justifying herself.

"Thank you." He said to her nodding. "Here, you can have the bed." He said standing up and approaching the oven to check on the fish. One side was cooked so he turned them around so that the other side would also be cooked. "Where will you sleep?" She asked him.

"If that rotten chair supports my weight, I will try to sleep there." He said sincerely. "And if it doesn't?" She pinched her nose with her fingers. "Then I'll sleep on the floor." He answered shrugging.

"You really are one strange mercenary." She said smiling. "…Huh?" he asked while grabbing the chair. It almost crumbled under his touch and would definitely not support any kind of weight. The floor it is then. "I keep hearing that. Care to elaborate?" He asked.

"No… You will get ideas." She said shrugging and smiling at him. "… Hm. For your information, I have ideas. I just happen to not act upon them because I respect you too much." He said earning a laugh from her. It was a wonderful sound.

"Very strange indeed." She said smirking. "What? Do you prefer me to stalk you and have my way with you?" He said without thinking. This is dangerous territory, need to steer the conversation another way.

But regardless of all the red flags his mind had raised by his own comment, Edelgard's reaction was to laugh again. "You would not do that. Besides, who said I would let you?" She smirked again.

"Confident, are we?" He said smiling. He approached her and stopped only to kneel in front of her. His face just a few inches from hers. "You sure you want to challenge me?" He said raising a finger to trace her jawline. Edelgard shuddered under his touch.

"If you play with fire, you will get burnt." She said. "Is that a threat or a promise?" he asked before kissing her again. He wrapped his hands around her waist pulling her closer. She responded to his kiss by pulling him closer to her by wrapping her arms around his neck. This time the kiss was passionate.

He lost himself in that kiss, he did not know where she began, and where he ended. The kiss felt right. No, being with her like this felt right. It was as if he finally could be free of an unknown confinement of his own. But he still did not want to push her into anything. So, he slowly pulled out of the kiss.

He rested his forehead against her once again. He was breathing heavily. "I could get used to this kind of burns." He said smirking. She shook her head against his forehead. "You are impossible." Edelgard sighed, still not releasing him.

He chuckled. "I have heard that before." He said smiling. "Oh… Any lady friend I should be aware of?" She asked smoothly. "I did not pinpoint you to be the jealous type." He said just as smoothly.

He released her waist and made a move to check on the fish. But she did not release him. "Avoiding my question much?" She demanded. He chuckled again. "Well, taking note that I have been constantly monitored by your loyal servant, you should know that there aren't any lady friends in my life." He said.

"Hubert has been spying on you?" She asked in disbelief. "Huh. And I thought that you were the one that gave the order." He said surprised. "But yes, he has been following me for a long time. Lady Rhea is also keeping a close watch on me." He responded.

"Lady Rhea keeps watch over you?" She asked again in disbelief. "Yes. She has taken an interest on my person." He said not wanting to tell her everything. "And I believe it has a reason. I just haven't been able to find it yet."

"I see. It will be difficult then to keep this a secret then." She said motioning the lack of space between them. "That is true." He responded. "But I always manage to give them the slip." He smirked. "It is amusing to see Hubert that frustrated every once in a while."

She laughed. "I can imagine it might be very amusing." She responded. "I could try to call Hubert off, but I am not very sure that he will follow that particular order." Edelgard was pensive. "As for the Church spies…" She trailed off. "I will take care of them." He said confidently. "Still there is the question, do you want to risk us being discovered at the monastery?" He asked honestly.

"The last thing I want or need right now is for you to be released of your duty because of insubordination." She said scowling. "This means that we will have to be patient until we can be truly alone." She sighed sadly. "We will find time. In the meantime, I'll just invite you to tea parties." Byleth said. "That way we may be able to just talk."

"For the moment that must suffice." She said sighing. "I think we will have to sneak out on one of out missions in order to be alone." She said mischievously. "Hm… Sounds dangerous. Count me in." He said giving her a small kiss.

"I need to check on our food." He released her. "Do you have to?" She asked holding him in place. "Are you not hungry?" He answered chuckling. "…Yes." She released him.

He just shrugged smiling at her antics and moved to check the fish. It was perfect to eat. He grabbed the leaves that he had gathered earlier in the evening. They would help him wrap the dish for tomorrow and serve as dishes. He placed all the fish on one of the leaves and handed it to Edelgard.

She accepted it and started eating. Byleth heard her sigh. "It could use some salt or pepper." She lamented. "Huh. I had forgotten that you are a noble. You are used to fancy food being served." He said thinking. "I am sorry I cannot serve you fancy food like in the monastery right now, but I can prepare you something when we are back." He said almost defeated. "I am an excellent cook."

"That is not… I do not mind… It's just different." She tried but apparently the words evaded her. "Is this what you used to eat while you where a mercenary?" She asked him trying to steer the conversation another way.

"Yes, usually my father and I managed to catch enough fish for the whole troop." He nodded. "We used to travel light, so salt or pepper where usually not in our travel bags." He remembered. "You can imagine how it was once we found a tavern on our way." He smiled sadly.

"Some taverns do have good food. I remember a tavern in the Kingdom who would make the best stew I have ever had." She remembered. "What was its name?" She was thinking. "It had something to do with a flower." She scowled as she tried to remember. It was adorable.

"The only tavern I know in the Kingdom with a 'floral' name is 'The wet Rose Tavern'" He offered. "That's it! You know it?" Se exclaimed excitedly. "Yes, we were able to land a very good job in that tavern. Brought a lot of gold at the time." He responded.

They ate their fish while Byleth told Edelgard about some of his jobs. Then tiredness hit them with all its force, to which they decided to go to sleep. She settled on the bed, while Byleth insisted on sleeping on the floor.

He awoke to the sound of screams and tossing. He grabbed his sword and jumped to his feet ready to strike any opponent. But there were none. The screams originated from the sleeping beauty on the bed.

He placed the sword on the ground again and approached her. He sat on the bed and shook her awake.

She had also been ready for any possible attack because once she woke, a dagger was placed on his throat. "Edelgard, its me…" He said softly trying not to move. He made a mental note to never wake her up like this again.

"Professor…" Edelgard said once she realized she was not being attacked. Slowly the dagger at his throat was placed somewhere else. "It's ok. They were just bad dreams." He tried to console her. Her eyes where once again full of panic.

Without a warning Edelgard embraced him. It took him a second to wrap his arms around her, placing his right hand to her head. "Shhhh." Edelgard was sobbing.

"Please do not let me go." Edelgard pleaded with him. "Never." He answered.

It took her a few moments to regain her composure. "Would you accompany me outside for a bit?" She asked him. He nodded. He stood up and offered her a hand. They stepped outside of the shack. It was a lovely dark night. The moon shone where the trees allowed it to.

The stood in the porch hand in hand for a moment. "Thank you." Edelgard said "I just wanted some fresh air. There's a lovely cold breeze tonight." She sighed. "Fresh air helps me clear my head." She continued.

Byleth stood there in silence, waiting for her to be ready to return to the warm shack. He squeezed her hand lightly in response. "Want to tell me what the dreams where about?" He decided to risk it and ask her.

"I… I dreamt of being washed away by that cursed river." She said lowering her head. Byleth stepped closer to her wrapping his arm to her waist. "These dreams happen every once in a while, and I believe that today's events triggered it again."

"I would have prevented it, even if it meant that I would not survive." He said softly. "You can't swim, am I correct?" He asked. She nodded slowly. She seemed ashamed. "Nothing to be ashamed of. That is a skill that can be learned." He said to her, trying to console her.

"Let's get you inside." He said steering her to the shack. Once inside, he went to the oven and dropped a few logs inside of it. She was sitting on the bed again. He moved to sit beside her.

"Edelgard, if you want me to, I can teach you how to swim." He said. "Maybe it would bring some relief to those nightmares you have." He was very hard trying to find the correct words to console her. But that was something he was not accustomed to do, so he was very insecure if it would work. "That would be nice." She said offering him a sad smile.

Byleth smiled back. "Would you stay with me?" She asked softly. "I am with you." He said to her. "I mean here on the bed?" She was blushing. "I do not want to sleep alone." Do not get ideas! Byleth reminded himself.

"If that is what you really want… I will stay here with you." He told her. She was biting her lower lip. "Yes, please." He nodded and proceeded to lay on the bed. His rib was still hurting so he could only lay on his back. He let his arm open as an invitation for her to lay her head on it.

An invitation that she gladly accepted. He felt her lay on it and wrap her arm around his waist. He kissed her forehead and closed his eyes. It felt nice to have het this close to him. He drifted off to a peaceful sleep.

Firstly, I have to say that this took me longer than expected to write. I hope it was not too much Edelgard/Byleth fluff.

Secondly, as I am still moving out, the next chapter will also have delays. I will make no promises that it will be posted on Friday. Sorry in advance.

Thirdly, if you find any typos or mistakes, please let me know. I will fix them as soon as possible.

If you enjoyed, please don't be a stranger and leave a review.

Until next time.