Early in the morning, an Empire servant knocked on Dimitri's door, carrying a letter. The mail sent to Dimitri was usually from a Kingdom messenger, so Dimitri took the letter with caution. He inspected the plain envelope, the red wax, and sat down on his bed to open it. Dedue was putting his armor on in the corner.
Your Majesty, Dimitri,
This is Yuri, Byleth's fiance, writing. I heard the news of her falling off the cliff and went to search for her body. We've found both Byleth and her supposed murderer. I humbly request that Your Majesty come pick Byleth up and bring her back to Fhirdiad. Her health is deteriorating. She's in need of blood transfusions, and my blood isn't compatible. Her father's blood may be, though. I'll have a lookout stationed at the Abyss tunnel we'd left from a year and two months ago. When Your Majesty arrives, we will bring Byleth and the Church knight over.
I'd also like to request that Your Majesty not disclose this to any other party. Not to the Church, the Empire, or the Alliance. We don't know who wanted Byleth dead. We don't know what they may do if they discover she isn't dead. Please, burn this letter.
Sincerely,
Yuri Rowe
Dimitri passed the letter to Dedue and donned his own armor, decorative sash and blue cape. "What is the plan, Your Majesty?" Dedue asked.
"We meet the others first," Dimitri said and lit the letter on fire with the nearby candle. "Let's decide later."
They walked to the cafeteria for breakfast, before congregating with the others in the Great Hall. In light of Byleth and Branson's death, all four parties were meeting up instead of breaking into the usual, smaller groups. They sat quietly for a moment, staring at each other, waiting for someone else to say something.
Dimitri cleared his throat and said, "I'd like to return to Fhirdiad for two weeks. We must hold a funeral service for Byleth, and her father and her surrogate mother should be informed."
Edelgard nodded. "I understand."
"Yes, we must also inform the knight's family," Rhea said.
"I'm only worried that once everyone leaves, we won't meet again," Edelgard said. "If possible, I'd like to finish the peace treaty details first."
"Edelgard has a point," Claude said. "If we don't have Byleth, we're going to have to work together better, if we want this peace treaty to happen." The room fell quiet again, but Rhea and Edelgard were both staring at each other with narrowed eyes and silent accusations.
"Then, let's try to figure out what we can today," Dimitri said.
"When are you thinking of leaving?" Edelgard asked.
"As soon as possible," Dimitri said.
"Very well." Edelgard nodded at Hubert, who spread out the sheets of parchment paper that they'd been writing on over the weeks. "Let's break into our groups and continue then."
One day wasn't enough to make significant progress, and none of the parties were ready to sign an incomplete peace treaty. So, they agreed to reunite in a month to continue.
The next day, Dimitri told Rhea's party to go on ahead of them, as he had to stop somewhere. He sent four of his knights to go with the Church for extra protection, with the promise that they'd arrive at the Galatea lands before nightfall. Dimitri's group stopped when they reached one of the major crossroads. Here, Dimitri dismounted, and he, Dedue, and Ingrid walked through the forest to the mouth of the Abyss tunnel.
There was a thuggish man standing there, and his eyes lit up when he spotted Dimitri. The man bowed and said, "I'll inform Yuri boss right away. Wait one moment, please!" Then the man dashed into the tunnel and vanished.
Dedue and Ingrid scanned their surroundings while they waited, a hand upon their hilts, but the forest was quiet. There was a gentle spring breeze and chirping birds. They waited for about ten minutes before the man returned, sweat beading his forehead. There were two other people behind him. One was Yuri, carrying Byleth, and the other was Balthus, carrying Branson, the knight.
"She's alive?" Dimitri said, reaching for Byleth but Yuri held her close.
"Yes, barely," Yuri said. "The knight is dead, though. Your Majesty, may I accompany you? I need to see for myself that she'll be all right."
Dimitri looked at Yuri and nodded. "Yes, you may. Is Balthus also coming?"
"No, no." Balthus shook his head with a smile. "I can take this guy to a carriage or wagon, if you've got one."
"Yes, come with us," Dimitri said and turned. They walked to where their horses and carriage were waiting. There was one carriage for Dimitri, though he rarely sat in it, and there was a small wagon for their luggage.
"You should take Byleth to the carriage," Dimitri told Yuri. He looked at the body in Balthus's arms, still in a black bag. "Perhaps the wagon is better."
"Yeah, he might stink up the carriage," Balthus said and moved towards the wagon. Once the knight was settled in under the tarp covering their luggage, Balthus went to say goodbye to Yuri. "See you, pal."
"I'll be back soon," Yuri said. They hugged. "Take care of everyone for me."
"Of course." Balthus grinned, bowed at Dimitri, waved at the others, then disappeared back into the forest.
Dimitri joined Yuri in the carriage, sitting opposite of him. She was lying on the cushioned seats, her head resting on Yuri's lap. There was a gray blanket covering her. Her face was pale, and her lips bloodless.
"You had a doctor look at her?" Dimitri asked. The carriage shook as they started moving.
"Yes," Yuri said. He shared the doctor's diagnosis with Dimitri and what he'd noticed of Byleth and the knight's wounds.
"A dark magic wound, but not a mage," Dimitri muttered to himself, resting his chin in his hand.
"I believe Lord Arundel is lying. Even before, Byleth and I suspected that he might be associated with Solon and Kronya."
"What makes you think that?"
Yuri shook his head. "We don't have proof, and I can't disclose our information sources either."
"Then, what do you think really happened?"
"If the knight wasn't involved, then Arundel killed the knight first, before attacking Byleth. If the knight was involved, the knight attacked Byleth, was killed, then Arundel attacked."
"Why would the knight do that?"
Yuri shrugged. "He was bribed, threatened, or any number of reasons. He could also be disguised, like how Solon and Kronya poised as other people."
"I see."
"Your Majesty," Yuri said, shifting in his seat. "I don't know who I can trust, so until we reach Fhirdiad, could we keep Byleth secret from the Church?"
Dimitri leaned back into the red cushions. "And the knight?"
"I don't care for the knight," Yuri said.
"Then we can tell Lady Rhea that you found the knight?"
"That's fine," Yuri said. "You can tell her that we found Byleth too, but not that she's alive."
Dimitri nodded. "I don't think Lady Rhea was involved."
"Neither do I. Nor do I think Edelgard was involved."
"No?" Dimitri raised an eyebrow.
"Regardless of whether the knight or Arundel instigated the fight, they must have acted of their own accord. If Edelgard didn't want a peace treaty, it'd be easy to lure everyone to the monastery, kill her enemies, and claim a victory."
Dimitri frowned. "That's still not out of the question. Just because she hasn't done so doesn't mean she won't." Yuri didn't say anything, and Dimitri rested his cheek against his fist and gazed out the window.
They stayed the night at the Galatea manor, welcomed by Ingrid's father. Yuri carried Byleth in with the blanket covering her face and tucked her into the room he was given. One of Dimitri's knights informed Seteth about Branson's body, and Seteth went to take a look at the man.
"That's not him," Seteth said. The other Church knights looked at the man and shook their heads too.
"So someone replaced him," Dimitri said.
"This proves that we had no part in Byleth's death," Rhea said. She massaged her temple with her thumb. "Oh, what are we going to tell Jeralt?"
"There's no need to take him with us to Fhirdiad," Seteth said and turned to Lord Galatea. "May we bury him here?"
"Oh, yes, of course," Lord Galatea said, nodding. He was a round man, with a bushy blond mustache, and hair combed back. He gestured for the servants to take the unknown man away for burial.
"Then it's likely Branson was killed and replaced," Dimitri said, crossing his arms.
"What about Byleth?" Rhea asked. "You found her? Can we see her?"
Dimitri shook his head. "No, we'll be back soon enough. Let's get some rest."
They left early the next morning and reached Fhirdiad by mid-afternoon. Dimitri rode in the carriage with Yuri and Byleth. When Yuri stepped out and into the warm sunlight, he saw that a footman was helping Lady Rhea out of her carriage. He caught her eye, and she gazed at the bundle in his arms.
"Yuri, come with me," Dimitri said with a brief nod, and Yuri followed him and Dedue into the grand palace.
"Your Majesty, wait!" Rhea said, walking quickly to catch up with them. Dimitri stopped and turned. "Yuri, you have Byleth."
"Yes," Yuri said.
"Is she…" Rhea held her breath for a second. "Is she truly dead?"
Dimitri looked at Yuri. There were Church and Kingdom knights mingling behind them. "Can we talk more later?" Yuri said.
"Of course," Rhea said with a nod.
Dimitri led Yuri to the entrance of the throne room. He called for a servant to take Yuri the rest of the way to Byleth's room. "I'll send the royal doctor," Dimitri said. "I must talk to my uncle, but I'll come by later. The servants will help you with anything you need."
"Thank you, Your Majesty," Yuri said and tried to bow with Byleth in his arms. Dimitri strode into the throne room, while Yuri continued on to Byleth's room. After laying Byleth down upon the plush bed, he asked the maid to inform his mother and Byleth's father.
The royal doctor arrived within five minutes. Yuri sat and watched as the doctor peered into Byleth's eyeballs. Byleth was still in the same clothes. Yuri had attempted to scrub some of the blood off of her clothes but thought it'd be better for a nurse to change Byleth's clothes - if that was necessary.
Jeralt knocked on the door before entering. "I was told Byleth is back," he said and walked over to stand beside the doctor.
"She's bleeding internally," the doctor said to Yuri. "You healed her up quite a bit, but there are still some fractures in her bones. She needs more blood."
"Try mine," Jeralt said.
The doctor wrapped two fingers around his wrist and nodded. "Yours will do. Blood transfusions will only help sustain her but not for long. She's in a coma. If she doesn't wake up soon, her body will start to fail."
If? Yuri stared at Byleth's sleeping face and felt the previous hope he'd had fizzle out, replaced with a sinking stone in his stomach. Byleth might never wake up and simply die instead. While the doctor took a needle out to draw blood from Jeralt, Rose entered. "Yuri, what happened?" she said, hurrying to his side.
Yuri shook his head. "I'll tell you later, Mother."
The doctor returned to give Byleth the blood. "I'll send a nurse over to help change her clothes," he said. "The nurse will do daily checkups in the morning, and I'll come by on a weekly basis. She'll probably need another blood transfusion in two or three more weeks."
"Thank you," Yuri said. The doctor nodded, cleaned up his tools, and left. Jeralt picked up one of the armchairs and carried it over for Rose to take a seat.
"Oh, no need," Rose said and sat down on the bed instead. "Won't you tell us what happened, Yuri?" Jeralt sat down, and Yuri told them. The nurse came in, afterwards, with a change of clothing for Byleth.
"Mother, can you stay?" Yuri asked Rose, when the nurse was ushering him and Jeralt out. Rose opened her mouth to protest, to wonder why, but she closed it again when she saw the tight lines in Yuri's face, the smudge of his eyeshadow, and the bags under his eyes.
She patted his hand. "All right, all right, dear."
Yuri and Jeralt waited outside. Yuri paced back and forth in front of the doors. It was his first time in the royal palace, but he paid little attention to his surroundings. He wasn't sure who he could trust. He needed to make sure someone would protect Byleth once he left. Rose couldn't. Yuri might ask Dimitri to assign a personal bodyguard, but Yuri wasn't sure he'd trust the bodyguard, unless it was someone he knew. One of the crewmates would stick out like a sore thumb here. None of them had any teachings of high society, and they'd be easily distracted by all the luxuries and nobles around.
Jeralt turned to Yuri and said, "Yuri Rowe, right? You're close friends with Byleth. Er, no, your mother said you two were engaged now."
Yuri nodded. "Yes. Nice to meet you, sir."
"Just call me Jeralt," he said with a smile. "You know Byleth better than I do. Hell, you've known her longer than I have too."
Yuri looked at Jeralt. He was taller, broader, and carried a dagger on his hip. He was famous for his fighting skills - the perfect candidate. "Jeralt," Yuri said. "As I was saying earlier, someone wants Byleth dead."
"Yeah, well, must run in the family," Jeralt said with a chuckle. When Yuri didn't laugh, he rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry."
"I can't stay here long, but I want to make sure Byleth will be safe."
"You want me to look after her? Of course I'll do that. She's my daughter."
"Not just look after. I want someone with her at all times," Yuri said. "And never leave her alone with someone you don't know or don't trust."
Jeralt raised an eyebrow. "You know, kid-"
The door opened, and the nurse came out. "You two can come on in."
Jeralt and Yuri shuffled in, as the nurse walked out. Rose had taken Yuri's seat. "I imagine you're going to tell me that I'm being paranoid and too distrustful," Yuri said with a small smirk. "I know. But I have my reasons. And I can't stand the idea of someone murdering Byleth while she's asleep."
"I wouldn't want that either," Jeralt said, as they approached the massive four-poster bed. Rose was staring at them, no doubt wondering what the context of their conversation was. "Hmm, is there anyone in particular you don't trust?" Jeralt scratched the side of his head, resting a hand on his hip.
"Any generic knight," Yuri said. "Anyone carrying a weapon. Anyone who might want to see this war happen. The only ones I trust are my mother, yourself, and any of her classmates."
"I'll see what I can do," Jeralt said.
"Why don't you stay?" Rose asked. "You know Byleth would like that."
Yuri shook his head. "I'm only staying for a week. I can't leave Abyss alone for too long." He looked at Byleth, who was now in a sky blue nightgown. He couldn't remember the last time he'd seen Byleth in a gown.
Rose glanced at Jeralt. "Jeralt, I'm sorry if this is rude, but could I talk to my son alone for a bit?"
"Oh, no, not rude at all." Jeralt stood up. "I'll get out of your hair."
"Thank you. So sorry about that," Rose said, and they watched him leave. Once the door shut behind him, she reached into her pocket and pulled a worn notebook out. "Byleth had me hold onto this. It's from her brother."
"Why are you giving it to me?" Yuri asked, taking the book. He resisted the urge to open it.
"You don't think Byleth is going to wake up within a week, don't you?" she said. "That's why you're looking for people to protect her once you leave."
Yuri stared at the plain brown cover. He recognized the book. It was the one that Byleth had salvaged from her dorm room during the attack on Garreg Mach. "You heard the doctor. She's in a coma."
Rose pressed her lips together.
"Mother, you haven't answered my question."
"You can look. You won't see anything," she said. Yuri opened the notebook to the first page. It was blank. Crisp, white pages, like a newly printed book. "Her brother's magic is on it to prevent others from reading what's in it. I don't trust myself to keep it safe while she's asleep."
"If it's been spelled like this, it'll be safe with you," he said and held the notebook back out to his mother.
Rose shook her head. "You weren't there when Byleth was reading it. Whatever's in there is… important. Dangerous."
"Her brother won't die anytime soon," Yuri said. Rose frowned. That wasn't what she was worried about then. "But if you don't feel safe carrying it, then I'll take it." Rose nodded, and Yuri tucked the notebook into his pocket.
"Thank you, dear." Rose stood up to hug her son. Yuri rested his head on her shoulder and closed his eyes. There was a lump in his throat. "I'll look after Byleth." She patted his back. "I won't let her get hurt."
Yuri nodded. He was exhausted to his very core. He wanted Byleth to open her eyes, so that he could sleep soundly. He wanted to find who did this and punish them. And he was terrified that he wouldn't get even one of those two things.
Thanks for reading! Any feedback is greatly appreciated. :) I'll be back in 2 weeks with the weekly updates again on Thursdays.