L:

After weeks of training with the Blue Lions, the day has finally arrived. We have left Garreg Mach behind us and we are now traveling to The Great Bridge of Myrddin. We left fairly early so we should arrive by the evening. That's what Alois said. I'm usually with Claude but he is with Dimitri talking about their strategy. Claude looks like he hasn't slept in days. I know he doesn't show it but he doesn't want anyone to get hurt on our first mission. Dimitri has also seen better days. I want to listen in on their conversation but a certain girl has me carrying her equipment.

"I can't believe you tricked me into helping you."

"I didn't trick you. I'm telling the truth. I'm so nervous that I could throw up right here."

"Yeah I can see that. Does applying your makeup help you cope with your nerves? Does it prevent you from vomiting?"

"Look, we all have our ways of handling it. I mean, look at Ignatz. He has paint on his hands. He was probably painting to ease himself. Lysithea was trying to sneak into the pantry for some sweets last night but she was caught by Byleth. Leonie keeps touching her ugly necklace and mumbling something about Jeralt. I saw Lorenz talk to like a hundred girls yesterday. I swear he told one of them and I quote 'I hope to return from this glorious battle with you waiting for me. Please keep your bosom warm for me'."

She giggles to her own story and I joined in. Her impression of Lorenz was terrible but accurate. I can already see him getting slapped afterwards. Hilda continues on.

"Marianne is… well Marianne. When isn't she nervous? Although she has been more approachable since she met that Richard guy. Whatever he is doing, he should keep it up. But I won't lose to you Marianne."

"I think you're getting off topic."

"Oh yeah. Sorry. What I am trying to say is that not everyone is like you and Raphael. We all are pretty nervous since this is our first ever fight with our lives on the line. I mean how are you so calm right now?"

"Experience."

It's quite simple. Experience is the best way to improve on anything. Reading and being told how to do something can only go so far. Being in real combat is the best teacher for us. I have fought off countless bandits during my life. Either for some defenseless merchant or to protect my mother. I had to learn quickly or it would be the death of my mother and me. I still remember the nights were I would quiver in fear of an attack when I was on watch for my mother. I learned from those nights and it made me who I am. I can't imagine the rest of my house had similar circumstances. Except Raphael. He has told us that his parents are dead so he doesn't have a parental figure guiding him during those times. When I told Claude about my battle experience, he said that I should just keep that to myself. He has been helping me with knowing when and what to speak to others about myself.

"Wow. Didn't you have to fight off like bandits or something before coming here? I remember Claude said that he found you fighting off some bandits but I just thought that was him making some stuff up."

"Yeah I was attacked while I traveled to Garreg Mach. They saw my uniform and thought that I was some noble who could be used for ransom. I fought them for hours since more of them kept coming from out of nowhere. I'm not saying that Claude saved me. He only sped up the process."

She giggled before she responded to my truth.

"You know, if anyone else would have said that, I would have thought they were bragging, but after being around you for these last few weeks, I know you didn't mean it that way. I'm just glad Claude isn't here to hear you say that. He would die inside if his right hand man said he didn't need him."

"I think he already is."

We both turn to see Claude barely keeping his eyes open while Dimitri at least looks more presentable. We once again share a laugh which seems to help calm Hilda down. I know I tried to call her out on lying to me but I could tell she is nervous. Her hands are shaking slightly while her eyes have small bags under them. She was probably applying makeup to cover up her bags so she would at least look confident to others. I can't lie and say that I'm not nervous. Not for myself but for the others. When I woke up today I felt like throwing up. If I was that bad I don't want to know how Claude is right now. I'm actually glad that I helped Hilda because she always makes my worries go away when I'm with her.

I turn to look at the Blue Lions and they look more confident and alive. I guess that's the difference between Faerghus and the Leicester Alliance. When we trained together, they would beat us in pure combat. Felix is definitely the powerhouse of the Blue Lions. Plus Dedue is just a fortress and he didn't have any armor on. Include the fact that Mercedes is the quickest healer I've seen and Dimitri is incredible at giving the correct orders to his comrades. The Blue Lions are probably the best house if we just counted the students. The only problem I see them have is that Felix and Dimitri butt heads on and off the battlefield. I guess it's the dreaded two alpha males. Another flaw I've seen, but I can't say it's consistent, is that Dimitri can handle a one on one fight but if there are more combatants then sometimes he can get slightly overwhelmed and lose his focus. He is better behind the front lines while Felix is perfect for the frontlines. They make the perfect team but they just can't listen to each other. The rest of their house is nothing to laugh at but those four are the best of their house.

I hear horses approach us and I instinctively draw my sword. By the time Hilda understood why I drew my sword, I realized that the two horses approaching us were knights. I got closer to the front and I heard one of the two knights talk to Alois.

"Sir I have an important message to deliver to you."

"Well out with it."

"Apparently our intel could be wrong. We have been told that there are no bandits arriving to the Great Bridge. They are going to arrive at Ailell."

"What?! Are you sure?"

"Well we are not 100%. Since we just received this information, we can't confirm if they are heading there."

"Well then which is it soldier? Are they attacking Ailell or the Great Bridge?"

"Too be honest, we can't be sure of either."

"They why did you tell us this then?"

"Well when we were told this info even our commandeers sounded uncertain. We thought is was best if we told you the truth."

I have never seen Alois this upset. He is usually calm and jovial but right now he is 100% serious. I can hear him mutter his thoughts on what to do. Claude spoke up looking a little more livelier than before.

"Alois how about we split up? One of the houses go the bridge while the other goes to Ailell. We can find out which intel is correct without leaving one of locations defenseless."

"I agree with Claude. We can go to Ailell while Claude goes to the Great Bridge. Ailell is closer to Faerghus so I am somewhat familiar of the land."

I see Alois contemplate their idea.

"You have to remember that this is not a training session. This is life or death. If any of you make a mistake, it can lead to your death. Are you guys ready for that responsibility?"

"Oh c'mon Alois, we already accepted that when we enrolled in this school. I mean we were already going to fight some bandits anyway. The only difference is that we won't be together."

"I have trust in not only my house but in the Golden Deer as well. Just because we didn't win the mock battle does not mean we can't fight against some bandits."

Alois was pondering at this proposal while I turn around and look at the two houses. Confidence is pouring out of the Blue Lions. They wanted to prove themselves after being the first house to be eliminated and it shows. The Golden Deer tell a different story. I've quickly realized that our house is filled with strangers who don't know how to work together. The only reason we survived longer than the Blue Lions was because of Claude. He was holding together the makeshift raft of our team. The look of our house is filled with worry, doubt, and even fear. Claude has his work cut out for him.

"Fine. Claude, you take the Golden Deer to the Great Bridge of Myrddin. Dimitri, you and the Blue Lions go to Ailell. I will return to Garreg Mach and get reinforcements for the both of you. I imagine that we will arrive to your location by the time you arrive so don't worry. Hahaha. Good luck everyone. I will be praying for your safety."

"Yes sir."

To my surprise, Claude joined in with Dimitri when he responded to Alois. He quickly left us to our own devices. Dimitri was the first to speak.

"Okay listen up everyone. We know our mission. The Blue Lions will travel north to Ailell and stop any bandits from traveling into Fόldan. The Golden Deer will continue to travel to the east and stop any Bandits from leaving the Great Bridge of Myrddin. We will confront our enemies until reinforcements arrive."

Claude just stared at Dimitri when he finished his speech. I feel like Dimitri said everything that needed to be said and Claude was left with nothing. Dimitri turned to look at Claude with anticipation while Claude just stared at me with his eyes pleading to me. I just shrug at him and Claude just sighs.

"Okay, so uhh… ditto to what Dimitri said. Also we promise to everyone who makes it out okay, that we, the house leaders, will pay for dinner."

That raised everyone's morale. I guess Claude still has it in him. We all wished each other luck and we separated to our own paths. This time Claude pulled me aside and whispered into my ear.

"Those two knights felt off to me. Plus where did they go?"

I try to remember where they were after they told us about the info. My mind drew a blank. Leave it to Claude to even think about this while our plans have changed.


Rs:

We will arrive to Ailell in a few minutes at our current pace. I know Dimitri has been staying up late so he can plan out our first mission. Sadly, that has been time wasted as our mission has changed completely. The only good news is that Ailell is somewhat familiar territory for us since it's close to Faerghus. Our entire house wants to prove to everyone that we are the superior house. I won't lie and say that I wasn't happy when we separated from the Golden Deer. I want Dimitri to prove everyone wrong.

I could feel the heat rise up as we approached Ailell. The land looks terrible. The floor is burnt to a crisp while lava pools have formed. I can't imagine why people would even travel through here. I guess it makes it the perfect place for bandits to invade from. We can see a lot of bandits just from a distance. Dimitri turns to face us but before he could speak a word Felix draws his sword.

"I'm not going to listen to you boar. I'm going to cut them all down."

Felix then charges towards the bandits. Sylvain chases after him.

"Wait Felix! Sorry Dimitri but I'm going to get him back."

As soon as Sylvain left Ingrid moved to leave but made eye contact with Dimitri. He only nodded at her and she also followed suite. The three of them left our sights. Dimitri shook his head and he muttered something to himself. He finally looked at us and began to speak.

"The rest of you, follow me."

We all nodded and he charged in as well. The only difference was that we went in a different direction than Felix. They charged to the right side while we went to the left. The bandits were already alerted that we were here so we just attacked them full force. I swing my axe at a bandit and I landed a hit right at his side. He falls down while he dropped his sword. All I have to do is finish him off. I stand above while I look at him in the eyes. He has already accepted his death but I don't move.

I can't.

I stay frozen.

Why?

Before I could react I heard someone with a lance charging right at me. I still freeze up as I turn to see the new bandit. Is this really how it ends for me? The Aubin house can't end here. I just have to move.

Please.

I close my eyes waiting for the lance to hit me but instead I heard a man scream out. I opened my eyes and I see Dimitri pulling out his lance out of the dead bandit and he quickly turns to me.

"Rosa! You have to keep moving! You can't-"

He stopped talking as his eyes widen. I followed his eyes and I see the bandit that I floored grab his sword again. He is already lunging at me and I don't think Dimitri can run fast enough to reach him. I still have my axe above my head and I quickly swung it downwards. I made contact with his head and he just dropped to the floor. My first ever kill.

I killed someone.

I pull out my axe and I turn to Dimitri. I didn't know what to expect from him but he is already fighting other bandits. I quickly scan the area and I see everyone else fighting off bandits. Ashe is firing off arrows as fast as he can. Dedue is sticking close to Ashe and defending him from any attacks from our enemies. Annette and Mercedes are back to back while they are firing off spells. Annette is taking down multiple bandits while Mercedes is doing it one at a time. Everyone else is fighting so hard while I just froze up. I can feel tears forming in my eyes.

Not again.

I'm useless again.

I'm going to get everyone killed again.

Dimitri.

I'm sorry.

Mo-.

"Rosa!"

I snap my neck to the voice that called me. I see Dimitri being surrounded by multiple bandits. He is getting overwhelmed and no one else is close enough to help him.

Except me.

I feel my hands shake.

No! No! No! No! No!

Not this time.

I grip my axe so tightly that my knuckles turn white. I grit my teeth as I charge towards the bandits. I scream out as I swing my axe at them. I take down most of them while Dimitri handled the rest of them. I swear I could see a smile on Dimitri's face.

"Let's regroup with the rest."

I just nod as I follow him towards the rest of our house. Before we could say anything I can see something in the sky.

"Pegasus Riders."

I then look down and I see more bandits charging at us. My hands tremble again as sweat is dripping from my face. The heat is finally slowing me down. I can feel myself getting more tired than usual. Dimitri snaps me out of my thoughts.

"Okay Dedue and Ashe, you two stay here while the rest of us charge forward. Ashe try to take down as many Pegasus as you can. Dedue protect him as best as you can."

"Understood You're Highness."

"You got it. I'll try my best."

"Good. Everyone else let's go."

The four of us charge forward while Dedue and Ashe ready themselves. We form a T formation as Dimitri and I are in the front. Annette is behind us while Mercedes is behind her. We clash with the bandits while Merecedes is only healing us now. I try to take down the bandits with one swing but my nerves are preventing me from swinging with my full strength. Dimitri is taking down the bandits quickly and effectively. That's why he is the prince of Faerghus. He would never get caught up in the moment. I could see people fall from the sky. I still wonder how are Felix and the rest of them are doing. If we are facing this many bandits, I hope they are fine by themselves.

We clash with the bandits for what it seems like an eternity. They just kept coming at us. This heat is making all of this even worse. It feels like I might pass out from pure heat. I turn to see Mercedes trying her best to stay standing. Annette has started to defend her best friend while Dimitri and I continue fighting. I hear Dimitri speak while he clashes with the enemy.

"I haven't seen any Pegasus riders drop in a while."

My eyes widen at his statement. He didn't have to explain anything else as I begin to think the worst. This thought came at the worst time as a Pegasus rider swooped down and lunged his spear at me. I try to block it but I was hit in the shoulder. Luckily he hit my non dominant side. My left shoulder. The rider quickly flew back up and out of reach. I instinctively grab my wound as Dimitri tried to get closer to me.

"Rosa! Are you ok-"

I didn't hear the rest of his sentence because I could only hear a woosh noise. A javelin blew right past me. Everything else happened so quick. Blood splattered over Dimitri as the javelin hit it's intended target. The bandit dropped to the ground right behind Dimitri. We both turn to look at who threw the javelin.

"Sorry about that Dimitri, but hey, I got him, right?"

Sylvain, who threw the javelin, Felix, and Ingrid arrive to our sides looking pretty beat up. I quickly scan the area and I noticed that the only bandits left are the Pegasus riders. Mercedes is being held up by Annette as she is also looking worse for wear. We all try to catch a breath while Dimitri stares at Felix. They both have this angered look in their eyes. Ingrid steps in between them.

"Look right now we can't get distracted by this. We have to take down the Pegasus riders so we can finally get ou-"

She stopped talking as she stared at the distance. I turn to see what she saw and my body starts to shake.

More bandits.

How are there so many of them? It's like they never end. I almost dropped my axe to the ground with me following right afterwards. Everyone else has the same face as me.

Despair.

I don't think we can survive anymore of this. This heat has made us even more tired. Only one of us is still standing straight with a face of hope.

"Look everyone! I know that we are all tired but we must keep fighting! If not for Garreg Mach but for the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus! We are the Blue Lions and we will not fall here!"

Just the fact that his words were genuine and he still has hope in his voice, made me get ready to fight. I didn't turn to look but I heard Felix mutter something.

"Damn boar. He really wants us to go down with him and his delusions."

Yet after he said that he stood in the front with Dimitri. I could feel the blood still coming out of my shoulder and I was losing the feeling in my left arm. I just grip my axe with my right hand while I stood close to Dimitri. Before the bandits could reach us I heard another noise that made my heart drop, more wings in the air. More Pegasus riders. Then I heard more marching and galloping. The only difference was that it wasn't coming from the bandits. Before I could turn around, countless soldiers charged right past us form behind.

The Knights of Serios.

They clashed with the bandits while I just stood in shock. Everyone else was also frozen. What snapped us out of it was hearing a certain grey haired boy's voice from above.

"Come on everyone."

Ashe was riding with a knight on a Pegasus. He was okay which meant that Dedue should be as well. Dimitri was the first to charge with the knights. Felix followed right after and so did the rest of us.

After a short while, the bandits were finished off and we cheered in victory. I saw Dedue walking towards Dimitri with Ashe in tow. I also saw Ingrid being helped by Sylvain.

"I told you that I don't need the help Sylvain."

"Yeah I know. I heard you the first time."

Her words contradict her face as she had a smile with a red hue. I was glad that she can still smile like that. Especially after Glenn. Speaking of that I see Felix with Mercedes and Annette. Annette was yelling at him.

"Felix, I can't believe you left on your own like that!"

Mercedes giggled at her friend's words as she added her own comments.

"Felix, you should have heard Annie when she was fighting. She kept praying that you were okay but at the same time she also called each bandit that she hit Felix."

"Merice! Well I heard you pray for him as well."

"It's true. I was worried for you, Felix."

Even though Annette tried to embarrass Mercedes, it backfired. Both the girls were red in the face as they spoke. I looked at Felix and he had on the same indifferent face he usually has.

"Enough talking already. You're both annoying me."

Even though he said that he goes to help Mercedes walk since she used up all her magic today. I can see Annette pouting but she also helps Mercedes walk. I have a smile on my face. I'm glad no one is gravely hurt. If it wasn't for Dimitri, I would have joined the bandits on the ground. I try to walk but I stumble. With the loss of blood and the heat I feel like the world is spinning. I almost fall down but someone catches me. I turn to see Dimitri.

"Be careful Rosa. You're still wounded, remember? I'll help you to the infirmary."

I wanted to say thank you but I couldn't. I felt like my energy had been exhausted. I wanted to thank him for helping me walk. For saving my life. For pushing me to fight. For giving me the chance to fight along with him. For giving me a home when I was alone. For never leaving my side.

Thank you Dimitri.

My eyes are slowly closing. The last thought in head was me hoping that my face was red because of the heat.


L:

Our first mission was underwhelming. The only person who is hurt is Claude but that's because Raphael slapped his back for a good job leading us to victory. When we arrived to the Great Bridge Myrddin, there were only 15 bandits who were quickly disposed of. Hilda only took down one even though I bet she could've taken down the rest of the bandits. Claude, Lorenz, Marianne and Ignatz also only took down one each. I know Claude could take down more but he wanted to 'leave some for us'. Marianne and Ignatz were very hesitant to even kill one but eventually they did the deed. I don't know how long those two can last here if they continue to have that kind of attitude. Lorenz took too long to find a suitable first kill. He took down the last one since he was the only one who still hasn't done anything. Raphael and Leonie only killed two bandits. Raphael took out the first bandit with ease but since there was one heavy armored bandit he was the only one able to fight it. Leonie was a bit rough but she did better than most of our house. Lysithea and I competed to see who could take down the most bandits. For someone her age I was surprised to see how good she is. Claude wasn't joking when he said she was the best mage here. She was also quick to accept the fact that she took someone's life. I would never say it aloud but I was glad that she had that mentality. You can't survive long if you fear killing.

Kill or be killed.

What was surprising was what happened after we took care of the bandits. Claude asked the knights there about the message they sent us.

"We never sent any knights. Are you sure they were our people?"

I guess Claude was right. Something was strange about those two knights. We sent a bird to Garreg Mach to tell them that we completed the mission. I bet the Blue Lions are just waiting for nothing.

"Not necessarily."

"What do you mean Claude?"

"What if they did send bandits to Ailell and what happened here was not changed."

"So the only thing that changed was that bandits arrived to Ailell. But why?"

"That is an excellent question Leo. Why and who? I knew I should have kept an eye on them."

"Are we going to tell the Church about this?"

"If they ask."

He shrugged while he answered me. Claude always likes to keep any important info close to him. I can't imagine any girl staying with him. Then again I'm not one to talk.

"Hey Claude. Leo."

We both turn to see Hilda approaching us.

"What's up Hilda?"

"The knights said we can stay at a nearby village for the night. They said that if traveled back we would have to travel in the dead of night."

"Sounds fine by me. I could use some shut eye right about now."

He yawned and he was about to leave but he quickly whispered in my ear.

"Keep quiet about earlier."

He then left Hilda and me alone.

"Did he just whisper something to you?"

"Yeah. It's a guy thing."

I just walk away while I hear Hilda yell at me.

"Fine! Whatever!"

I just shrug her off. I feel I'm acting like Claude more and more. It doesn't make me happy. I try to look for Lysithea to ask her some questions. Luckily she was alone and she was just looking out to the distance.

"Lysithea."

She turns to look at me.

"Hey Leonardo. Do you need something from me?"

I walk up to her and I stand next to her.

"I just wanted to say how great you were out there. I was honestly impressed."

I could see her blush and smile to my compliments.

"Oh please. I was not as good as you Leonardo."

"But you and me are different. I have many years of experience fighting bandits. You only just started."

I can see that her smile turned to a frown. From watching Claude and her talk, I know that she is very sensitive to her age so I try to make sure she doesn't yell at me.

"Before you get mad, listen to me. There is a big difference between training and real combat. Someone can train their whole life but once they get into a real fight they might not know how desperate people get when their lives are on the line. Let's use magic for example. I can read hundreds of books on how to cast magic but once I start to actually try to use magic I could still mess it up."

She looked at me and to my surprise she nodded at me.

"I guess you have a point. One of the bandits fought completely different from everyone at the Academy."

"Exactly. See Lysithea, I knew you would understand."

"That's why I want to go on more missions. I want to get better and become stronger."

She usually says that but this time it feels different. She now knows how to get truly better and I can see the determination in her eyes. For only being 15, she has massive potential. Now that I prevented her from yelling at me, I ask her the question I originally came here for.

"Lysithea, isn't your family from this area?"

I think I might have asked her a bad question because she winced at my question.

"...Yes."

She was slow to answer so maybe I shouldn't ask her more about the topic.

"You know even though I said I moved around a lot with my mother, we usually lived around this area. We would stay in one town for a month or two and move on to the next one."

It seems like I said the right things as she looks more calm.

"Why did you move so much, if you don't mind me asking?"

"I don't mind at all. My mother was a merchant. We moved to different towns to sell what we had. That's why I know how to fight off bandits. They would try to steal from us but I would always fight them off."

I know Claude told me to try not to talk about my past too much but I think this can be an exception.

"Wow that sounds unpleasant."

"It was what it was. I learned a lot so it wasn't too bad. I never went hungry and I had my mom with me. I think it wasn't too bad."

I smile at her and her eyes widen.

"Do you know you look really cool when you smile like that?"

My face gets slightly red but I still smile at her. I see her face gets red too.

"I didn't mean to say that out loud! Just pretend that I didn't say that!"

She yells at me which makes me laugh. Even though I said that this house was very dysfunctional, I still enjoy my time here.

"Stop laughing!


R:

When I woke up today I noticed that Leonardo wasn't in his room. I know that they left early yesterday for their mission but I haven't heard anything about it since. I heard that the faculty of the Officer's Academy had an impromptu meeting yesterday but I didn't want to ask our professor. We have our first mission next week so I'm excited. I've been on countless jobs across Fódlan but never with proper nobles. All we have to do is go to the Red Canyon and take out some bandits. Sounds easy to me but I know at least Dorothea is pretty nervous. Compared to everyone else she has the least amount of experience with combat. I want to talk to her but she is still trying to ignore me. It's been weeks and she is still holding a grudge. I don't even remember what caused this argument but I'm getting tired of this.

After my morning workout with Ferdinand, Petra, and Caspar, I went to Dorothea's room. I know she is asleep because only her and Bernadetta ever wake up before breakfast is served. I arrive at her door and I knock. I wait for about a minute until I hear someone move inside. She finally opens the door and she jumps from the sight of me. Her hair is very unkempt and I bet she would never let anyone else see her like this. She tried to close the door but I already walked into her room.

"H-Hey, what are you doing?"

"I'm getting really tired of this Dorothea."

Her eyes widen and she just closes the door. I don't give her a chance to do anything so I speak first.

"Look, I just want to apologize to you about what had happened after the mock battle. I'm sorry."

"Do you even know why I'm actually upset?"

I sometimes forget that Dorothea is not someone who would forget the small things in arguments. I try to rack my brain and I try to remember something before she gets upset again. I had 2 seconds before that happened.

"See, I knew it."

"Just tell me what I did?"

"Look just forget it."

I roll my eyes. Either I leave this room or I speak my mind. I didn't have to contemplate this. I usually leave people, be it either friends, fellow mercaniers, or potential lovers, since I travel throughout Fódlan for my job. The only person that I never abandoned was Captain Veltus but she saved my life so she is an exception. Do I really care about my relationship with Dorothea enough to talk this out? The answer is simple.

"I want you to listen to me Dorothea. I've missed you since we were kids. You were the bright spot in my day when we hung out. I was probably happier than you when you joined the Mittlefrank Company. When we reunited, I was glad I had somebody I knew to be with. I don't want us to end our friendship just because of an argument so please tell me."

She was taken aback by what I said. I feel like this is a repeat of when we were in my room.

"Jeez, Ric. You just say what you want to say. I wish I could be like that."

She stopped talking and I didn't know what to do. I thought about saying something but luckily she continued on with a more confident voice.

"Richard Quince. I will be 100% honest with you right now. I think I love you."

Whaaaaaaaaa-

"-Aaaaaaaaaaat?!"

My face burned up. My brain shut down completely. She has never said my full name except when we were kids and I told her to never say it while we attend the Officer's Academy. Now she spoke my name and told me that she loves me. I really have nothing to say. Once again, I was lucky that she didn't finish her confession.

"Before you say anything else, I want to clarify that I'm not really sure that it's love. I have this intense feeling in my heart when I'm with you and I get upset when your with other girls. At the same time I don't truly know the new you. You have changed a lot since we were kids. I want to figure things out but I also wanted you to know my feelings. You don't have to say anything about your feelings. I don't want you to confess to me or reject me before you also figure out your feelings."

This is too much for me to handle right now. She likes me but doesn't know if it's love. She also is making me figure this out with her. I never really thought about her like that when we were kids but now it's different. My heart might explode from this. I want to say something but my voice doesn't leave my throat. A knock on the door saves me as Dorothea opens it.

Wait a minute.

"What's up Eddie?"

"Dorothea, it's almost breakfa-"

She then jumped in surprise and her face turns red.

"I-I didn't know you were here R-Richard. I umm-"

Before she could say anything else Dorothea cuts her off.

"Okay Eddie. I'm going to get ready so Ric can you leave please?"

She turns to look at me and I quickly leave. She closes the door behind me and I'm now alone with Edelgard. I turn to look at her and both of our faces are as red as a tomato. I decide to walk back to my room but Edelgard pulls my arm.

"Would you like to explain to me why you were in there, Richard?"

AN:

Yahello. I'm sticking with that intro now. So first off sorry for the two day delay for the story. I usually post on Thursday but half the blame is on my editor and the other half is me. Friday was the only day my editor could give me back my story but I forgot it in my locker. So that's why I just posted it today. Another thing to apologize for is I completely forgot to use Hanneman and Manuela in this mission. I almost never used them in my game so I just forgot them. Last thing to say sorry for is that I haven't been able to play three houses. I don't know if I should just play the blue lion route so I can write them better. Now all apologies aside, I really liked this chapter. Having the two missions in this chapter was a last minute addition. I didn't want to write out the Golden Deer mission because it would further emphasis the danger that Blue Lion faced. Just in case people get mad at me the blue lions weren't just great killers it's just from Rosaline's eyes. She sees everyone as strong willed since she is just scared. Hopefully Dorothea isn't too OOC is this chapter but I tried to write their relationship with the classic prolong romance angle but it just didn't feel right. I don't know how my romance writing is but I feel like it would be pretty stale if they just keep getting mad and stop talking for a month. I don't know but I liked what I wrote. Anyways that's all I have to say for this chapter, next chapter is the Black Eagle mission and we are on to the next moon. Thank you for reading and have a great day.-Omas125