Hello everyone. This was originally written for the 'Launch the Ship' Challenge, but then I discovered that this pairing already had a fic written for it (which I somehow never came across. HOW didn't I see it?!). Either way, I really wanted to write this, so I hope you enjoy it! This takes place during a specific wedding I've written about in a different fic of mine, so if you've also read that one, you'll pick up some extra details.
Alright, I've talked long enough. Now: onto the fic!
Hilda bounced around flowing dresses and immaculate suits, but for once in her lifetime, she had something more important than a party to attend to.
"Baltie, you ready?" Hilda asks as she strutted her way into the little circle that had formed on one side of the foyer.
"Hell yeah!" Balthus said. The man towered above the others in the small group, not only in height but in well-toned muscles that stretched out his grey suit. It stood out sharply next to Hilda's poofy pink dress, but Hilda quite liked that the two of them stood out. "I've been training for this for months. No way am I gonna forget about it!"
"Balthus here even paid off all of his debts," said the other man in the group. Yuri himself was wearing a silver piece that Hilda noted was personally tailored, and it complemented the dress that the girl on his arm was wearing. "Though I admit, paying off your final debt just now was cutting it a little close."
"But he did pay you!" Chirped Bernadetta. She was so small and cute standing next to Yuri, not to mention how tiny she'd look if she were standing next to Baltie, that Hilda could help but giggle at the adorableness of it all.
"I told you you could count on me." Balthus turned to Hilda and gave her a smile, one which made her twist her lips into a smirk. Balthus was looking handsome for the occasion. Though he was the one who wanted to look 'nice 'an spiffy' for his friends' wedding, Hilda was the one who picked out the piece. And even though Hilda thought he would've forgone it, Balthus was actually wearing the shirt! Buttoned all the way to the top!
"You did." Hilda brushed her hand against his, but not for too long. They did have something to do, after all. "I'll go get Holst."
"And I'll go get the arena ready." Balthus grinned. "And I gotta promise Constance I won't wreck her pretty house."
"Eh, if it's necessary, go for it," said the final person in the little group. As one of the brides of the occasion, Hapi looked absolutely stunning. Her emerald green dress flowed in waves around her, and though it wasn't overly decorated, Hilda admired the simple yet elegant cut of the piece.
Hapi took in their looks of shock. "What? This is the main act for tonight. If there's gonna be a fight, I at least want it to be good. Coco will understand."
"You know," Hilda drawled, "if it's the bride's wish, we can't go against it. Now can we?"
Balthus took Hilda's own grin in stride. "No, we can't. See you in a bit."
So Hilda left Balthus to prepare the match, and she ventured into the party's crowd.
The reception for Constance von Nuvelle's wedding to Hapi was whispered to be the next party of the decade, but Hilda knew that wasn't true. As for how the night was going so far, this was going to be the party of the century.
Everyone who was anyone was here. Old classmates turned war heroes mingled about in fine tunics, dancing and drinking as if they'd only won the war just now. The food had been catered from local markets, and as such, some of the locals of the new Nuvelle territory had been invited, and they were happily drinking and partying up and down House Nuvelle's grand foyer. Rows of fresh gardenias bloomed all around them, laughter echoed on the walls, and all Hilda saw were smiling faces. Tables had been foregone in favor of everyone using the large space to enjoy the night, taking in the live music of a ten-person band whose members got happier the more they played. Family from Hapi's village weaved in and out of a dance Hilda had never seen before, nobles Hilda would typically call 'stuffy' were waltzing with giant smiles on their faces, and even King Dimitri, who was known to be fairly serious, was chatting and gossiping with Claude. Of all people!
Hilda tore her eyes away from it all, because if she had to see Lorenz Hellman Gloucester do one more split as Leonie watched on in gales of laughter, there was no way Hilda would ever stay focused.
Finally, as she passed by a slightly intoxicated Annette, Hilda caught a familiar glimpse of bright pink hair. Fluffing out her frilly pink skirt, Hilda marched her way over to where Holst was laughing at some joke Raphael had told him.
"How are you enjoying the reception, big brother?" Hilda asked.
"Gotta admit, Count Nuvelle knows how to throw a good party!" Holst grinned down at his sister. The general was a large man, on par with Balthus in terms of height and muscle. He had a beard he kept short, calloused fingers that never went more than two days without holding a weapon, and a charming smile that Hilda recognized as a family trait. He was wearing a brown suit that should've clashed with the nighttime wedding, but somehow, he fit in just perfectly.
"Glad to see you're enjoying yourself," Hilda said as Raphael got distracted by a tray of meats a caterer was passing around. "But if you remember, there's something you agreed to do for me. Something right about… now."
"Of course I remember!" Holst said. He wrapped an arm around Hilda's shoulders and gave her a shake. "This is a big day for the two of us. Time to see if my old friend is serious about this."
"You know, I think he is," Hilda said, ignoring the sounds of Raphael scarfing down an entire sausage. "I didn't even have to ask him to do this for me. He was the one who came up with the idea."
Holst's chest puffed up. "Gotta say, any man who's willing to ask permission from me deserves some respect. Especially if it's about my dear little sister."
Hilda slid her way out of his hold and folded her hands in front of her. "Now, Holst. While I appreciate that you care about me, we kind of do have to get moving. So…"
"Right!" Holst patted her once on the shoulder. "Wish me luck!"
Her brother stomped away, and Hilda noticed something funny. She sniffed the air around her, her hand, her shoulder, and noticed that a particular smell seemed to be missing…
"Neither of them has been drinking tonight," she said out loud. "Huh. They must be pretty serious about this."
As Hilda skipped her way between the partygoers, murmurs began to spread amongst the crowd. Everyone leaned in to one another as word spread, a drinking contest that had been going on at the far wall had stopped, and even Hilda even caught the lyre player stop playing in order to hear what was going on. Hilda caught Lorenz listening to the gossip intently as Leonie pulled him up from yet another split, and she nearly crashed into Ashe as he led Annette out to the arched doorway that led out into the Nuvelle courtyard.
The night air and scent of sweet gardenias swirled all around Hilda as she stepped outside. Candles and torches had been lined around large columns that created a walkway through a blooming garden, making pinpricks of light dance all around the guests as they slowly made their way outside. The garden was simple yet well-maintained, with roses, periwinkles, and gardenias. Hilda walked down the path until she reached the courtyard's center, a stone circle roughly ten meters wide that was a placeholder for a future gazebo. According to what Balthus had told Hilda, Constance had specifically demanded that the gazebo be built after the wedding, and Hilda could now see why.
The area around the large stone circle filled up with wedding attendants as they milled about the garden, and if Hilda listened carefully, she was pretty sure that the musicians were also coming outside, still playing their instruments. Soon enough, the two brides of the wedding came out as well. Constance strutted out in a swirl of blue and purple tulle, sewn together in a way that resembled a blossoming flower, and she even had a hairpiece to match. Hapi hung off her wife's arm, her own dress shining like an emerald beneath the candlelight. Guests parted the way for them, and soon enough, they stood beside Hilda at the circle's edge.
Just moments after the brides had arrived, a short figure with white hair made her way out of the crowd. She stood tall and proud in the center of the circle, and Hilda turned her attention to the match's appointed referee.
"Esteemed guests of Count Nuvelle and her newly-wed wife." The woman's voice was high but commanding, and it made all whispers in the crowd stop immediately. Her hair had been tied up in a complicated bun, and she was wearing a slim, floor-length purple dress in an attempt to make herself look taller. "I, Lysithea von Ordelia, am here to announce the main event of tonight's reception."
Hilda cheered at Lysithea's announcement, and her amusement only grew when Lysithea's face turned red.
"Is this really happening?" Asked Bernadetta in a small voice. She and Yuri had shown up at some point, and Bernie had found a little opening between Hilda and Hapi to look out towards the stone circle. "What if someone gets seriously hurt?"
By her side, and with a giant smirk, Yuri shrugged. "Looks like. I don't know whether to get a healer or another ale."
"I hear mumbling from the sidelines!" Lysithea yelled, looking in the direction of Yuri and Bernadetta. Bernadetta jumped to hide behind Hilda, and Hilda did her best to flash Lysithea a winning smile. Once making sure that no one else was mumbling anything, Lysithea straightened herself up. "Thank you. Now that the noise has settled down, we can begin. We will now announce our challengers for tonight!"
"Why am I announcing him?" Whined Hapi to Constance, who promptly took on a look of shock at hearing Hapi's question.
"Because he was your man of honor, Hapi!" Constance said, jutting out her chin as she spoke. "Wouldn't it be rude for you to introduce his opponent?"
Hapi merely shrugged. "Well, yeah. But I kind of think it'd be funny if his opponent won."
"I said," yelled Lysithea in a very pointed voice, "we can announce our challengers. For. To. Night!"
It took every smidge of willpower Hilda had to not burst out laughing.
Hapi's face didn't even change as Lysithea stared right at her. She merely said, "Oh, right," and then walked to stand beside the white-haired woman.
"Hilda, you're shaking," whispered Bernadetta. "Are you ok?"
Hilda couldn't exactly tell Bernie that she was shaking from holding in a horde of giggles, so she just said, "Mhmm!"
Hey, at least she wasn't actually laughing!
"All the way from the mountains of Kupala," announced Hapi in a tone that was just barely louder than her speaking voice. "I present the guy who has a knack for getting into any kind of fight, miraculously survived a war, almost never wears a shirt—"
"Hey!" Yelled an irate voice from within the crowd.
"—and still somehow became one of my best friends." Hapi looked over at the source of the yell. "B, get out here."
Balthus marched his way out of a suddenly roaring crowd. He had changed out of his formal wear into his usual war monk outfit, complete with black trousers, steel boots, a high collared robe, and the glowing claw-like gauntlets that were known only as the Vajra-Mushti. He stopped just short of reaching Lysithea, but before he could say a word, Constance strutted into the circle and held up a single hand.
"And I, Constance von Nuvelle, count of these lands and new wife of my beloved Hapi." With her free hand, Constance gestured towards Hapi before continuing her speech. "I am proud to announce Balthus' opponent. The general and lord of House Goneril, a fearsome commander, and the brother of our dear guest, Hilda. I present to you all: Lord Holst Tristan Goneril!"
From the other side of the crowd, wedding guests cheered as Holst strode his way across. He'd changed as well, and his golden war master armor glinted beneath the candles. The cape that hung off his soldiers had been emblazoned with the crest of Goneril, and in his hands, Holst held the legendary relic of their house. Hilda had let Holst borrow Freikugel for the night, and it was a decision she was only regretting slightly.
"You better not break it," she said, even knowing that her brother wasn't paying attention to her. All of Holst's attention was on the man in front of him. He and Balthus stared each other down, but then Balthus grinned, and Holst barked out a loud laugh.
Lysithea stepped forward until she was just a couple paces behind the two men. She was shorter than both of them by nearly 40 centimeters, but that didn't stop her from standing as straight as possible. It was so cute that Hilda almost burst out laughing again. "Balthus von Albrecht, lover and fiancé of Hilda Valentine Goneril," Lystithea said. "Why do you challenge Lord Holst?"
"Simple." Balthus placed his hands on his hips, and considering he was wearing the enormous Vajra-Mushti, the fact that he was able to do so was impressive. "Holst told me that to earn his blessing to take Hilda out to see the world, I had to beat him in a duel. That's exactly what I'm here to do."
Lysithea nodded in approval and turned to Holst. "And you, Holst Tristan Goneril, elder brother of Hilda Valentine Goneril. Do you accept this challenge?"
"I do." Holst slung Freikugel over his shoulder and cocked his head to the side. "Balthus wants to prove himself worthy enough for my sister, and as a favor to my oldest friend, he has a right to fight for my blessing."
Once again, Lysithea nodded. The little mage turned to Hapi and Constance, and after the ladies traded a few whispers, Lystihea turned her gaze toward Hilda. "Hilda Valentine Goneril," she said, "do you accept the duel that is about to occur?"
"I do," Hilda said immediately. But she had a persona to maintain, so she quickly clasped her hands together and brought them up to her face in a picture of innocence. "I don't want anyone to get hurt, but if these two are willing to fight in my name, who am I to stop them?"
Lysithea gave her a dead-panned look. "Hilda, you know you can actually stop them, right? Right?"
"Oh, Lysithea. No need to get so worried. I know." Hilda lowered her hands and winked at her friend. "But what's the point in doing all this if I can't have a little fun?"
Balthus burst out laughing, so loud that Constance almost looked offended that he'd laugh so loud at her wedding. "You never change, do you, Hilda?"
Hilda shrugged, but as she saw Holst turn away to hide his own laughter, she used the opportunity to blow Balthus a quick kiss.
Lysithea ordered the two opponents to go to opposite ends of the 'arena' as she arranged for healers to come in on standby. Hapi and Constance walked over to stand next to Hilda again, and that's when Hilda heard a sea of whispers rise up around them.
Hilda's eyes scanned the crows around them. Almost everyone who was at the reception was now out in the garden, and though they were all buzzing with excitement for the upcoming fight, they were also digging into their coin purses.
"I see you and your group are busy, Yuri," Hilda said to the Savage Mockingbird.
Yuri raised an eyebrow at her, neither confirming nor denying Hilda's observation. "Five thousand gold," Yuri whispered to a man who had suddenly appeared behind him. The man, a short boy who was in a simple grey suit, nodded and wrote the number on a small piece of parchment. More of Yuri's gang members mingled among the crowd, talking with anyone and everyone with a coin purse. And if the jangling of coins was anything to go by, this was going to be the biggest betting pool in all of Fódlan.
"On?" The boy asked Yuri.
Yuri smirked. "Balthus, of course."
"You really think B's gonna win?" Hapi asked as the boy ran off towards another guest. "I thought you were a pessimist."
"I'm a pragmatist, Hapi. That's something entirely different." Yuri gave Hapi a smile Hilda could only classify as downright devious. "And I know something you don't."
"Pray tell, what is that?" Constance demanded, leaning across Hapi in order to look Yuri in the eye. "This is my house, after all, and I have a certain right to know these things."
"Bernadetta, would you like to do the honors and tell them?" Yuri looked down at Bernie, and after a quick moment of shyness, the young Count of Varley raised her head to meet Constance's gaze.
"He's been training," she said. "A lot ."
"How much is 'a lot'?" Hapi asked as the sounds of jangling coins only grew.
"Well, he was actually super sweet about it," Bernadetta said, her voice gaining more confidence. "He helped us with the new construction project in Varley. He moved the building materials all by himself!"
Hapi's mouth parted slightly, and her brows furrowed. "But weren't you guys building…"
"A full hospital made out of prime Varley wood and stone?" Yuri supplied with a raised eyebrow.
"He was actually faster than the contractors we originally found," Bernadetta boasted, doing a little jump as she spoke. "He's really strong!"
"Strong, yes. And determined," said Constance. The woman took her time processing the new information, and she glanced over at Hilda. "What's your opinion, Hilda? I've noticed you've been listening in to our whole conversation, yet you've neglected to say a word."
"Since when do I have to say anything?" Hilda asked, turning on the innocent charm.
"Gonna enter the betting ring?" Yuri asked.
"Now, now," Hilda said to the Wolves. "I think it would look wrong of me to bet against my own brother. But then again, it'd be wrong of me to also bet against my own fiancé. Therefore, I must remain neutral."
"None of the work, yet all of the glory," Hapi said. "They're fighting for you, you know."
Hilda smiled, and all she said was, "I do."
"If our fighters are ready," Lysithea called out, silencing the murmurs among the crowd. "Come to the center once more and take your positions."
Balthus and Holst walked back into the center of the arena. Despite the fact that they were about to fight each other for the first time in years, and in a fight with pretty high stakes, both of them were grinning.
With Mercedes and Marianne on either side of her, Lysithea cleared her throat and spoke. "On the count of three, the duel will commence. I and I alone will be the referee for this match. If I tell you to stop, you stop. If I say the match isn't over yet, you keep fighting. I shall declare the winner only when I see that the fighter has completely triumphed over his opponent. Are the rules clear?"
"Hell yeah, little lady!" Balthus yelled, flashing Lysithea a smile. "I always knew you'd make a good ref."
"Crystal clear." Holst's grin widened. "I can't wait to wipe that smile off your face."
"Bring it!" Balthus yelled back.
Lysithea raised her arm high in the air. "Positions!" She yelled.
Balthus and Holst lowered themselves into their fighting stances. Balthus raised his fists in front of him, Holst hefted Friekugel off of his shoulder, and Hilda yelled out, "Good luck!"
Though they didn't look over at her, Balthus and Holst's grins got even bigger, and their eyes burn with nothing but determination.
"On the count of three," Lysithea yelled.
Gold coins jingled as last-minute bets were placed.
"One!"
The crowd murmured eagerly.
"Two!"
Hilda held her breath.
"Three!"
Holst was the first one to strike. He swung his ax in a fast blow, and Balthus had to slide back to just barely avoid it. Holst used the momentum to launch another strike at Balthus, who rushed to block the ax with one of his large gauntlets.
Holst rushed forward with an overhead strike. Balthus rolled to the side, coming up on one knee and throwing a quick punch at Holst's side. Holst sidestepped the blow and hauled Freikugel up in a diagonal strike towards Balthus' head. Balthus ducked underneath it, and while Holst had to pull back the ax before it could fly out of his hands, Balthus had already stood back up.
"Yeah! Get 'im!" Yelled one of the wedding guests. The crowd cheered on Holst as he forced Balthus to dodge and retreat around the arena with every strike. Balthus threw out a punch or two every now and then, but Holst was on full offense. He launched strike after heavy strike, forcing Balthus to either dodge or deflect the blade with his Vajra-Mushti.
Balthus rolled into another crouch to dodge an upper swing. In a flash of orange, Holst brought down Freikugel in a glowing arc. Balthus dodged the blow at the very last second, and Freikugel hit the flooring in an explosion of grey stone.
As a cloud of stone dust rose up around them, Balthus took the distraction to run off towards the crowd, to the left of where Hilda and her group were. The people made way for him, shuffling about and trampling on each others' toes as Holst dug Freikugel out of the floor.
"What's takin' ya so long?" Balthus called out from behind one of the gardens' stone columns. "Is the mighty Holst really struggling with a rock?"
Holst grinned. With large steps, he sprinted out of the designated arena and toward the elegant columns. More people rushed to get out of the way, and the clash of weapons continued.
"Is this even legal?" Yuri asked Lysithea from the sidelines.
Lysithea paused for a moment, not speaking as she watched Balthus block a wing aimed for his legs. "I didn't specify that they had to stay within the stone circle, so I guess it's alright."
"Aah!"
The sudden cry made Hilda immediately narrow in on Balthus. Baltie had mistimed a dodge by a second, and Holst, whose Crest of Goneril had activated behind him in a flash of golden light, had gotten his chance to bring his ax down on Balthus' leg. The hit grazed his lower left calf, but even though the damage didn't hit the center muscle, it had cleaved off a good chunk of skin. Balthus was still able to dodge, but blood continuously gushed out of the leg.
"Yeah!" Screamed someone in the crowd, but Hilda didn't turn to see who it was. Her heart beat in her chest as Holst and Balthus continued to trade blows. The hit had given Holst a new boost of confidence, and Hilda's brother continued his assault with an extra burst of strength behind his attacks. Balthus had to sidestep faster around every swing, and though he kept up with his own offense, Holst matched his steps with near-perfect precision. Head strikes were avoided with quick body turns, and chest-level punches were countered with strikes from Holst's ax.
"Oof. It's getting bad," Hapi muttered in her usual deadpanned voice, but Hilda noted that the green-clad bride kept glancing down at Balthus' still-bleeding wound.
"Just keep those infernal weapons from my columns!" Constance yelled as Balthus dodged another swing. Holst had swung wide, and he had to use his entire body to stop the weapon's momentum before it crashed into the stone. "It took weeks just to find the right design for them!"
On orders from Constance, or more likely because he needed to get away from Holst, Balthus ran back into the stone circle they had started in. Holst chased after him, running beside the trail of blood left by his opponent.
Balthus skidded to a stop in the center of the stone arena. Blood still flowed out from his wounded leg, but he ignored it. Instead, he bent his knees and held a fist high above his head, as if challenging Holst to come right at him.
And that's exactly what Holst did. With a fire in his eyes, Holst rushed forward. He pulled his ax back with both hands, aiming to strike at Balthus' exposed side.
In Balthus' hands, the Vajra-Mushti glowed. The Crest of Chevalier activated behind him, and in Hilda's eyes, it looked almost as if a silver halo had illuminated him like a saint.
"Aaah!" Balthus screamed, and with the force of the Vajra-Mushti and the Crest of Chevalier, he brought his raised fist down onto the stone beneath him.
A flurry of rock flew out all around him. As if impacted by a comet, the floor surrounding Balthus blew out in a wide circle that sent Holst flying.
The shockwave blew a cloud of dust and pebbles toward everyone in the crowd. Hilda brought up an arm to protect her eyes from the debris. Once the cloud had settled down, she lowered her arm to see a giant crater in the place of most of the stone circle. Holst had barely caught himself, digging Freikugel into the ground to slow himself down as he skidded backward due to the force of the blast.
Balthus stood up in the center of the crater, pulling his gauntlet out of the ground. He had punched himself into a crater that was as deep as he was tall. Balthus raised his arms back into a fighting stance, and Holst was already halfway down the slope, Friekugel held high above him and ready to strike.
Hilda hid her blazing grin beneath her hands.
Another crash echoed as Balthus halted Freikugel with the Vajra-Mushti. The two relics hummed as their power collided. Holst, with the advantage of being on the crater's slope, was pushing down the ax with both arms. Both of Balthus' gauntlets were raised in defense, and Baltie was grunting in exertion. His face was beaded with sweat, his feet worked to avoid sliding in the pool of blood coming from the injured leg, and Holst kept pushing down the ax with all his might.
"B might actually lose…" Hapi muttered under her breath. Whispers around them all grew, and many were saying the same thing. Balthus was, by all intents and purposes, in a bad spot, and Holst had him cornered.
Many were calling Balthus stupid for having made the crater in the first place, but Lysithea still hadn't called the fight yet, so Balthus kept holding on.
"Bernadetta," Hilda said to the woman behind her, schooling her face into a neutral smile as she pulled her hands away from her face. "Remind me, where exactly did you order that hospital to be built?"
Bernadetta jumped in surprise at Hilda's voice but answered her question nonetheless. "A little bit away from Vallais. Why?"
"Just humor me for a moment, Bernie," Hilda said. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw both Hapi and Constance lean in to hear what they were talking about. "Tell us, why did the contractors have so much trouble getting all the building supplies there?"
"Because there was a huge ditch that split the road. It took the contractors hours to get everything across." Bernadetta winced as the relics ground against each other under the force of the fighters, and Yuri put an arm around her shoulders to steady her.
"You don't mean to say that Balthus filled the entire ditch all by himself?" Constance said, holding a hand up to her dress' elegant bodice in shock.
"Good guess, but nope," Hilda replied. "Baltie's strong, but Holst was just a little bit stronger. Baltie wanted to challenge himself enough so he could beat him, and that's what he did."
Hapi turned her gaze back to the fight. "You mean…"
And at that moment, Holst let out a grunt of exhaustion, and his grip on Freikugel slackened.
With every bit of strength left in him, Balthus readjusted his gauntlets' grip on Holst's ax… and began to push Holst up the crater wall.
Holst's feet scrambled to find their footing as Balthus kept pushing. Even with a bloody leg, Balthus kept his stance firm. Every time Holst's feet would regain their grip, Balthus would dig his own feet into the cracked stone beneath him and launch his entire body forward. With how the Vajra-Mushti were wrapped around Freikugel, if Holst wished to keep his weapon, his only option was to let Balthus push him back.
"He crossed that ditch more than two dozen times," Yuri said, never once looking away from Balthus' surge against Holst. "Each time with more stone than the last."
Holst let out a war cry as his feet brushed against the crater's edge. His muscles tightened as he made one last attempt to throw his full weight against Balthus, but his arms were spasming under the strain.
"He only filled the ditch at the very end," Hilda said, and despite being supposedly neutral, she couldn't help the hint of pride that colored her voice. "When he was satisfied with where he was at."
Finally, Holst was pushed fully out of the crater. Balthus pushed himself out as well, and now that gravity was no longer on his side, Holst's arms began to shake.
"Aaaah!" Balthus let out a scream. Twisting his gauntlets around the ax, he yanked it all backward. As he did so, he stretched out his bloody leg to kick Holst in the gut. Holst stepped back to avoid the strike, but that movement, combined with his shaking arms, let Balthus pull Freikugel out of Holst's hands.
Balthus yanked the ax away from Holst and threw it to the side of the arena in one fluid motion. The glowing ax skidded across the floor until it stopped a few paces away from Hilda, but she didn't bother picking it up.
Holst's pristine war master uniform was dotted with Balthus' blood. Upon realizing that he had no weapon, Holst ran straight at Balthus. Hoping to catch his opponent in a surprise attack, Holst lowered his body in preparation for a grapple, not noticing that Balthus had done the same.
Balthus had widened his stance. His knees were bent low to the ground, and with the extra reach the Vajjra-Mushti gave him, he used his gauntlets to grip Holst's torso before Holst could even get within grappling reach.
"Aaah!" Balthus yelled once again. With his grip on Holst, Balthus launched Hilda's brother over him in a wide arc. Holst flew above Balthus in a blur of pink and gold, crashing down into the center of the stone crater with a crash.
Balthus jumped into the crater right behind him. After being launched by his old friend, Holst had fallen into a backward roll inside the crater, covering his war master cape in the blood that had pooled in its center. Seeing Balthus coming at him, Holst pushed himself back up.
Through a thick layer of fresh dust, Hilda saw as Balthus and Holst collided. Holst, even without a weapon, gripped the Vajra-Mushti with his bare hands. Finally, without an ax in the way, Balthus grappled with Holst head-on. With fire in his eyes, Balthus pushed against Holst with his entire body. And with his cape covered in Balthus' blood, Holst responded in kind.
"I gotta admit, Hilda," Hapi said as the rest of the crowd held its breath. "You must be pretty special for Balthus to care about you that much."
"What can I say?" Hilda replied. "I guess it helps that I care about him ."
Balthus stared Holst down, his face glimmering with sweat and his eyes bursting with adrenaline. Holst grunted, and as he did so, one of his hands slipped off of Balthus' gauntlet.
Seizing the opportunity, Balthus pulled his free arm back. Holst bent down in a last-ditch attempt to grapple Balthus' waist, but Baltie was faster. The Vajra-Mushti glowed brightly with power, and in a move that was so fast Hilda could barely process it, Balthus used the gauntlet to deliver a punch straight into Holst's side.
Holst fell back with a gasp. His back hit the crater floor, and Balthus was on him before he could react. Balthus punched the same side one more, and as Holst yelled in pain, Balthus shook his other arm free of the gauntlet. He gripped Holst's wrist with his bare hand and twisted it. Holst's arm spasmed once more, letting Balthus get behind his friend and wrap his free arm around Holst's neck.
Balthus wasn't choking Holst, and even though he could have, he hadn't broken Holst's wrist.
If there was any way for Balthus to show how much he cared for Hilda, it was in the way he gripped Holst in a way that wouldn't truly hurt him. And that, that made Hilda's heart soar.
Holst struggled against Balthus' frame, but Baltie held firm. Even as Holst tried kicking Balthus' bad leg, Balthus merely responded by pulling Holst onto his knees. With one arm held immobile, his legs unable to kick out, and with Balthus' arm holding his neck in an almost chokehold, there was nothing Holst could do to fight back.
"The duel is over!" Lysithea's voice rang out across the courtyard. "I declare the challenger, Balthus, the winner of this match!"
He did it, Hilda realized as she processed Lysithea's word.
He actually did it!
Hilda didn't even wait for the crowd to break its stunned silence. The moment Lysithea announced the winner, she raised her fists in victory and jumped high into the air.
"Yaaaaaay!" She yelled with all the force in her lungs.
From the crater, Holst and Baltie stared at her in shock. They were both panting, sweat dropped down from their faces as if it were raining, and as Balthus released Holst from his hold, Holst barely could barely catch himself before falling over.
And then they both grinned at Hilda.
Holst and Balthus burst out laughing. Their laughs echoed within the crater, and finally, their audience snapped out of it.
Hundreds and hundreds of voices rang out in the Nuvelle courtyard. The earth seemed to rumble as they all jumped and cheered, whooping in glee at winning their bet, shouting in despair over lost gold, and screaming shouts of congratulations at a fight well fought. Even Constance, who was literally staring at a crater in the middle of her courtyard, was applauding and cheering, "Aha haha! What a wonderful spectacle! And at my wedding, no less!"
Surrounded by applause, Balthus and Holst helped each other up. Lysithea stepped forward to offer help, but the two of them waved her off. With an arm wrapped around each others' shoulders, Holst and Baltie climbed their way out of the crater, with Holst taking care of his injured side and Balthus stepping gingerly with his bleeding leg. Mercedes and Marianne immediately began their healing spells, and a white glow enveloped the area. And through it all, Holst and Balthus never stopped smiling.
"I, Holst Tristan Goneril," he said in a booming voice that calmed the crowd, "officially declare defeat against Balthus von Albrecht in single combat." Holst held a hand out, which Balthus shook firmly. "And I am a man of my word."
"That's right!" Balthus said, beaming as Mercedes' magic stitched together his roughed-up leg. He also gave Holst a very pointed look. "Which means…."
Holst looked over at Hilda. "Get over here, little sister."
With a little bounce, Hilda obliged. Picking up Friekugel along the way, she skipped her way around the giant crater until she was standing right beside her big brother. Marianne was on his other side, using her magic on Holst's injured side, and whispered a quick, "Thanks for taking care of my brother," at her friend. Marianne responded with a nod and a smile of her own.
Holst wrapped an arm around Hilda. He gave her a quick wink and then turned his attention to Balthus. "I officially give Balthus, my oldest friend in the world, permission to take Hilda, my one and only sister, out of Fódlan. He has bested me in combat, and now I know for certain that there is no one better prepared to fight for her."
"Not like I'll need to," Balthus responded. "You seen her with an ax? Honestly, a fight against her would've been tougher than the fight against you."
"Oh, so you wanna put that theory to the test?" Hilda asked. She stepped out of Holst's embrace, and with a slight twirl of her skirt, swayed from side to side with Freikugel in her hands.
Balthus grinned back at her. "Nah, I'd rather not take my chances."
"All done." Mercedes stood up as the healing magic dissipated from her hands. "There was a lot of bleeding, but the cut wasn't too deep."
"Thank you, Mercedes," Hilda said to the healer, then promptly went up to Baltie. "Congratulations! I always knew you could do it."
"Well, it helped that I had someone worthwhile to fight for," Balthus said.
"Does this mean we get to fight you for her?" A voice in the crowd yelled. Hilda couldn't see who it was, but she stepped forward anyway.
"That's pretty funny, man," Balthus said as Hilda walked towards the crowd.
"You think you'll have to fight him," Hilda said, settling the giant ax on her shoulder with only a single hand. "But who I get to be with isn't your choice. It's mine ."
As Hilda smiled, Friekugel glowed. "So if you wanna take me away from Baltie, you gotta go through me."
The voice in the crowd didn't speak up again, and the people around them whooped and cheered for Hilda. Even Constance and Bernadetta were jumping up and down as they cheered Hilda's name! Yuri and Hapi were merely shaking their heads in amusement, but hey, that was likely the biggest reaction Hilda was going to get from those two.
"Not gonna second guess, Balthus?" Holst asked, still holding his side but grimacing less as Marianne continued her healing spell.
"Hell no," Balthus said. In one big swoop, Balthus wrapped his arms around Hilda and hoisted her up into the air. Hilda, who was still holding Friekugel in her hand, giggled as Balthus twirled around, and her dress fanned out in a sea of pink fabric. "I fell in love with one hell of a woman, and I ain't letting her go."
"You better not." Hilda smiled down at Balthus, wrapping her arms around his strong neck. Freikugel glowed behind his head, illuminating every dip and curve of his face. "It took so much work getting Holst here. You better not make me work that hard again."
"Wouldn't dream of it," Balthus said. His arms tightened around Hilda, and really, there was only one response Hilda could give to all that.
Right there, in front of everyone she held dear, Hilda kissed Balthus' lips. He returned the kiss with equal force, and though the crowd around them cheered and applauded, Hilda ignored them in favor of savoring this moment with the man she loved.