"Claude, pay attention!" Hilda tugged at Claude's arm, jostling him into what could be argued to be a conscious state. "Professor Hanneman is going to be here soon, and then the mock battle will start!"

"Hanneman being on time for something, that's a laugh." Claude muttered. It had been a few days since Hanneman had been assigned to the Golden Deer, and Claude had the strange feeling that he should have seen the Professor more then the five minutes it had taken to meet the class. Claude had even tried to set up an appointment with the man, but Hanneman hadn't responded to any mail. When Claude had gone up to the Professor's office, there had been a sign telling people to go away. When Claude had stayed to knock on the door, Hanneman had barely looked up from his work before brushing Claude out of his office, citing 'important research'.

"He'd better. Even if classes haven't officially begun, the Professor can only avoid his responsibilities for so long." Lysithea huffed out.

"It will reflect very poorly on Professor Hanneman if he is not here for the mock battle." Lorenz said. "But putting aside our Professor's chronic absence, you should know better then to stay up late Claude. The mock battle is an important tradition-"

"Yeah, yeah. The heir of Gloucester is correct, as he often is." Claude wasn't in the mood to get in a back and forth with Lorenz, so he conceded the argument before it could start. He had been up late last night reading over the final draft of the note he was going to send to his grandfather. Enclosed was just enough tantalizing details to make the old man pay attention, balanced with just enough plausible deniability in case the message was intercepted. If there was a war with the empire on the horizon, Claude couldn't be too careful.

Before Lorenz could gloat, Hanneman slammed opened the door. He walked briskly to the front of the room, a stack of loose papers under one arm, and a cup of coffee twitching in his hand. "Good morning class! My deepest apologies for not having much time, but now that the preliminary results of my latest breakthrough have been set in place, my schedule will soon right itself, just in time for our first class together!"

Now that Hanneman had stood in place for longer then a minute, Claude noticed the dark rimmed bags under their Professor's eyes. All of his classmates were staring too, and no one was willing to break the silence that had swept through the room. Claude sighed, before playing leader.

"So…Professor?" Claude asked. Hanneman spun on his heels, locking eyes with Claude.

"Yes Claude?"

"…No offense, but you do know the mock battle is starting in an hour, right?"

Hanneman took a moment to process Claude's words, before furiously flipping through his documents.

"Oh yes yes yes yes! Of course I do! I even drew up a battle plan that should knock Manuela and her class down before they even knew what hit them. I made it up two nights ago, just to be sure I was on time."

Hanneman finished flipping through his stack of papers, before deciding to try again from the beginning. The tension in the room began to rise. When Hanneman stared looking through his packet of notes for a fourth time, Claude's classmates began to mutter amongst each other.

"I got pay-rolled by every man, woman and child in my village to get trained by this clown?"

"I don't understand-father assured me that Professor Hanneman was one of the most respected scholars in the world…"

"Come on everyone, I'm sure the Professor knows what he's doing…"

"If we lose the mock battle, do we still get to eat?"

Claude felt the pit of dread at the bottom of his stomach widen as he placed his head in his palms.


"Lady Edelgard, may I remind you to keep the pretty nothings that the…" Hubert almost growled out the next few words. "…Professor told us out of your mind. My agents are prodding leads in Arundel's employ. We will have answers in due time."

"Yes…" Edelgard's thoughts kept falling back to the fateful lecture Byleth had given her. Edelgard knew that she should have been able to wait for Hubert's investigation to try and turn up something, but had a sinking feeling that even if Hubert seized the title of Count Vestra and all it's resources immediately, nothing would be found. That meant that the only avenue to learn more was from Byleth herself, an option that almost scared Edelgard. The woman seemed to haunt her faded memory. Whenever Edelgard saw Byleth, a pang of familiarity crept through her bones. Whenever Edelgard heard the mercenary speak, she thought she might remember hearing Byleth's voice from so long ago, but never could.

It was distracting. Edelgard had spent hours staring off into space, accomplishing nothing, futility trying to remember when she had known Byleth. And for all her efforts, frustration was the only discovery she ever made.

But Edelgard now had an opportunity to vent some of her anger. She wasn't particularly drawn to violence, but without any other outlet immediately available, Edelgard would make do. It was just a large-scale sparring match, after all. It was good way to let out some pressure. Good practice for the coming years. Edelgard wouldn't normally care about who won the mock battle, but at the moment, she just wanted a simple victory to call her own.

Composing herself, Edelgard walked to the Black Eagles, who were loitering near a small patch of trees. "Alright everyone. Professor Manuela. Does everyone understand the plan?"

Her classmates all nodded at once. Manuela smirked.

"I must say Edelgard, your plan is clever enough that no one should see it coming. Hanneman will be taken for a loop! Let's give it our all, class!" Manuela gave a wink. Caspar cheered. Bernadetta groaned.

Any other comments were cut short by Seteth's voice booming over the battlefield. "Attention everyone! The mock battle is about to begin. Take your places, and wait for the horn!"

The Black Eagles scrambled into position, gripping their practice weapons. Edelgard focused on breathing in and out, keeping herself calm. This was a training exorcise. She could let her worries slip from her mind.

The horn bellowed from atop the hill. The Blue Lions had taken a small ruin to Edelgard's right as their starting position. The Golden Deer hid behind fences and the woodland to her left, Just to Edelgard's liking. Neither had committed to any offense. Edelgard gave the signal.

With a cry, the Black Eagles charged at the Blue Lions as a single wave. Edelgard batted away Ingrid's hastily drawn lance, leaving the rest of her classmates to secure the defenseless Galatea's surrender, and charged at the ill prepared Gaspard boy with the bow. Edelgard hooked onto the bowstring with the crook of her axe, before ripping the cord in half with a twist of her hand. The boy looked up, terrified, and raised his hands in surrender. Edelgard didn't spare him another glance as she turned to survey the battlefield.

The rest of her class was making good time. The Gautier lout, Sylvain, had fallen to Caspar and Dorothea. He was the last member of the Blue Lions who had made up their shoddy perimeter, and Edelgard's plan was going just as she had foreseen. Instead of a complex game of back and forth, Edelgard had opted for a simple plan: all out attack. She had bet that instant and rapid aggression from an entire house wouldn't be expected, and her plan seemed to be paying off. The Golden Deer were prevented from making any sudden flanking movements by the trees and fences isolating them from the rest of the battle, and would be easily seen charging through. Edelgard had also placed Hubert to watch over her flank, with Bernadetta and Petra ready to shoot down any Golden Deer brave or foolish enough to try and charge through. Their only safe option was to charge further north, but that would lead them into the bulk of the Blue Lions, where they would have to help fight Edelgard's battle for her. Finally, if Edelgard's read of Claude was correct, he was the type of man to travel the path of least resistance. Attacking the Blue Lions while they had men down and were focused on the Black Eagles advancing was the most logical course of action. A flanking movement of the Black Eagles would cost too much time, and would be seen coming.

All of this was excluding Edelgard's most subtle tactic: fear. Dimitri may have proven his bravery and Claude demonstrated his quick wit during the bandit attack, but many of their classmates were inexperienced. Inexperienced fighting. Inexperienced at taking orders in the heat of battle. Inexperienced at being attacked. It showed. The few Blue Lions that had fought before had to spend their time calming down the others. The newly minted Professor Alois was much the same, his hand on the shoulder of Annette Dominic, steadying her.

The element of surprise was dulling, however. The remaining Blue Lion's were reforming their lines, under Dimitri's lead. The prince and his bodyguard now stood at the front of their new formation. He raised his wooden spear, calling out to Edelgard.

"Ha! Impatient, aren't you?" Dimitri said. "You may have drawn first blood, but you won't find the rest of the Blue Lions so easily put down!"

"Someone has to make the first move Dimitri." Edelgard said back. "My flank is protected by the fences and forest the Golden Deer hid behind. Your only option is to fight me with three fewer soldiers, or be torn apart on two fronts if you retreat west. Surrender now."

"We won't give in that easily." Dimitri said proudly. "Even if we have to fight both houses, the Blue Lions will not give in…so…"

Dimtri trailed off looking past Edelgard with a confounded expression on his face. Edelgard dared to follow his eyes.

Behind the Black Eagles, Lorenz Hellman Gloucester was slowly picking himself up from the ground. Edlegard's eyes darted to the forest and fences, but still saw the outlines of the rest of the Golden Deer safely behind their walls.

How had the Gloucester gotten there? Had one of the Golden Deer somehow gained mastery of warp magic? If so, why had they sent only one of their ranks to flank Edelgard's forces? How-

Edelgard's parade of questions were answered when she saw Lysithea von Ordelia thrown over the fence, screaming bloody murder.


Lorenz had barely caught Lysithea before Ignatz sailed over the fence. Hilda and Raphael were already turning to grab Leonie.

"Yes Students! This is ingenious creativity! Good thinking Claude!" Hanneman quickly shouted. "We'll get the drop on Manuela and come out victorious yet!"

"It was a joke…" Claude whimpered out.

The Golden Deer had shown up to the mock battle with no real plan, and had decided to play defensively and hope for the best. Like Dimitri, he hadn't expected Edelgard to rush in like she did. That left the Golden Deer in a tight spot. They had no easy ways of attacking the Black Eagles, and so when it became clear that they would have to play Edelgard's game and attack the Blue Lions, Claude's stubborn streak shone through. He didn't like playing into other people's hand before he came to Fódlan, and he hadn't been kicked down enough to start now, even if he was fighting for nothing more than pride. Still, he had no way of attacking Edelgard quickly. The Golden Deer's position was suitable for defense, but any attack would be made sluggish by the barriers the house had hid behind.

And so, when Lorenz asked him what his plan was, Claude responded by quipping that Raphael and Hilda should just throw everyone over the fences.

Somehow, Raphael had taken the suggestion seriously, and convinced Hilda to play along. Claude would have wondered why the Black Eagles hadn't counterattacked yet, but he could guess the answer without having to look: they were stupefied into inaction. Claude knew this because he had apparently suggested the plan, and his jaw still wasn't working right.

"Alright brave, noble leader man. It's your turn~" Hilda all but sang.

"Yeah! Be sure to leave some for us!" Raphael laughed.

Claude just sighed. "Let's get this over with."

With one mighty throw, Claude was sent spinning over the fence. His years of Wyvern practice and crest Imbued agility allowed him to land safely on his feet. Quickly scanning the battlefield, Claude saw whatever shock had gripped the Black Eagles had now passed. Ferdinand dueled with Lorenz. Lysithea and Ignatz had secured Linhardt's surrender. Leone was charging at Caspar, and Hanneman and Manuela were trading insults and spells. Claude sighed and took out his bow, aiming at Ferdinand's knee.

The arrow flew to its mark, but was intercepted at the last second by a flick of an axe head. Edelgard had arrived to reinforce her failing defense. To Ferdinand's horror, Edelgard hit Lorenz in the back, forcing the young noble to his knees. Claude nocked another arrow and charged the imperial princess.

With nothing but pride on the line, Claude fired a volley at Edelgard. She dodged, but Claude had captured her attention. He jumped past a huffing Caspar as he raced to the eastern block of trees, Edelgard in quick pursuit. Edelgard followed, her axe rose to deflect incoming arrows. Claude darted into the trees, letting one arrow lure Edelgard in further. Now, Claude had to figure out what to do now that he had the princesses' undivided attention. Quickly scanning the trees layout, Claude came up with a plan.


Edelgard chased after Claude. His plan was a strange kind of ingenious-So ridiculous everyone was caught off guard. More importantly, it put Edelgard in a very vulnerable spot. The Black Eagles now had to fight on two fronts, a recipe for disaster. Leaving Hubert in charge to manage the defense, Edelgard chased after Claude. If she could take him out quickly, the rest of the Golden Deer should fold just as fast. Then, the Black Eagles could turn back to face the Blue Lions, who had no doubt recovered at this point. Still, she would have to act quickly.

Claude shouted out provocations as he ran into the trees. "Princess, you sure about this? I hear rats love hiding in the underbrush."

Edelgard let out a hiss. "Don't you-Claude! Don't joke about that!"

Edelgard had endurance, by Claude had speed. The Riegan heir darted between trees, looping in and out of sight before finally vanishing. Edelgard slowed as she lost sight of Claude, taking a few cautious steps forward.

"I know what your planning, Claude." Edelgard announced, fishing for a reaction. "You think you're clever, sneaking about behind my back. You think I don't know what your up to."

The sound of fighting outside the trees weakened, but Edelgard heard nothing from Claude. He was playing the assassin. Edelgard continued, slowly turning in place. "You think you can flank me in these trees like you did on the battlefield. It wont work."

A branch cracked on the forest floor, and a quiet curse followed. Not quiet enough for Edelgard not to hear it, however. Edelgard spun towards the sound. The princess marched forward confidently, axe raised to swing. "It won't work because you lack experience." Hidden behind the shrubs she had heard the noise, Edelgard saw a flash of yellow out of the corner of her eye. Slowly walking by the patch, Edelgard spun to face the yellow cloth at the last second, pushed the shrubs out of view. "Did you really thing sneaking about in bright yellow was a good pla-?"

Edelgard froze as she felt a block of wood plant itself at the back of her head. In front her, Claude's cape was tied to a tree branch, lazily flying in the breeze.


Claude smirked as he jumped out of his hiding place, Arrow pointed at the back of Edelgard's head. "Yeah, I figured you'd see bright pastel, even in this light." Claude said. "So I planned for that. Snapping a twig from a distance takes some work, but I manage. And I wouldn't call myself a master, but I do have some experience at throwing my voice." It was one of Claude's favorite traps. Letting his quarry think they'd caught him unaware, all while he held all the cards.

"I see." Edelgard said. She remained frozen in place, but did not drop her weapon. "Clever, Claude."

"Thanks." Claude smirked. "Now, I don't mean to push, but I'd like you to drop your weapon now."

"Really?" Claude could hear Edelgard's smirk. Something was up. Claude prepared to let his arrow loose-

Before his hands stung terribly, forcing Claude to drop his bow. Claude looked up to his right, seeing Hubert's hands buzzing with dark magic.

"You never let Lady Edelgard out of your sight." Hubert chuckled. "But I never let you escape mine."

"Guh…" Claude grunted out. "Well, you got me. I give up. Run along and mop up the rest of my house."

Hubert let out an oily chuckle. "Of course." He took a step forward, magic still churning in his hand.

"Hubert." Edelgard said.

"Of course, Lady Edelgard." Huber responded, but did not stop the magic in his hand from channeling. Claude's eyes widened.

"Hubert, stop scaring our classmates!" Edelgard shouted.

Hubert stepped back. "My apologies, Lady Edelgard."

I'm not the one you…" Edelgard started. "…Wait. If you're here, who is commanding our house against the other two?"

Before Hubert could respond, there was a thunder of footsteps, and the three turned. Dimitri, Alois, Dedue, Annette, Mercedes, and Felix rushed out of the trees, surrounding the three. Everyone stared at each other.

"Ah." Dimitri spoke first. "Just some friendly advice, but a leader probably should not leave their forces rudderless in a battle. Your classmates completely lost any sense of direction when you ran away to fight each other."

"What about the Professors? They should have been able to lead the classes." Edelgard asked. Alois coughed.

"They knocked each other out seconds after you two ran off."

"An illustrious start to our school year." Claude sighed out.


Edelgard huffed in frustration. Manuela had discharged the Black Eagles, telling them that they would be learning from the mistakes they made next week, but that hardly mattered at the moment.

"Hubert, what have I told you about scaring our classmates?"

Hubert gave a stiff bow. "A thousand pardons, Lady Edelgard. It seems you are not the only one put in a foul mood by…Professor Byleth's revelations, and I found the opportunity to…vent. I swear to you, it shall not happen again."

"Good." Edelgard sighed. "I'll apologize to Claude on your behalf. You've never done well with displays of remorse. I have also decided to start planning for you to tail me instead of following orders."

Hubert smirked. "You have my thanks, Lady Edelgard."

"Yes. Still, that was a fun distraction while it lasted. My head is a bit clearer." Edelgard looked up to the stars. They were hidden behind the clouds. Perhaps it would rain soon.


"Well, we tried, and that's what counts, right leader man?" Hilda said, batting her eyes. Claude rolled his own pair.

"You'r one to talk, Hilda. You gave up before you got to the fight. There's not a scratch on you."

"I quit while I was ahead. We'd basically lost at that point." Hilda shrugged.

Lorenz, who had been nursing the back of his head, scowled.

"Just for the record, Hilda, never throw me again. What in the Goddess' name possessed you to perform such a brutish act?"

"Yeah, who's bright idea was that anyway?" Leonie grumbled.

"Hey, it seemed like a good idea at the time! It was one of Claude's ingenious plans!" Raphael said. "Sorry about the surprise, everyone!"

Lysithea muttered quietly. "Never…Pegasus rides…stupid tall people…"

Marianne stayed quiet, doing her best to heal Ignatz, who whimpered.

Claude sighed, and looked up into the sky. The clouds were moving in. The moon was waning. He wondered if there would be any light tonight.


"Excellent work, everyone! It was a rough beginning, but we pulled through!" Alois said.

"Just goes to show that we work best together!" Annette said.

"More like it shows how uncoordinated the other two houses are. They were a mess once Claude and Edelgard left." Felix scoffed.

"Hey now, I thought the Eagles did pretty good those first few minutes." Sylvain said, rubbing a bruise on his neck.

Alois beamed. "Correct, all three of you! Both houses had strong starts, but couldn't keep together in the end." Alois paused for dramatic effect. "You could say their leaders lacked a 'dearly' needed a set of 'eagle' eyes to watch the battlefield!"

No one laughed. Alois continued. "Meanwhile, we managed to hold fast, and work with each other, and stuck together, even if the battle started out poorly! Keep that in mind when you think about how to improve yourselves!"

Mercedes nodded. "I'm ready to work as hard I can. Thank you, Professor Alois!"

Ashe smiled. "We'll all work harder next time!"

"Every defeat is a chance to grow, I suppose." Ingrid huffed.

"That's the spirit!" Alois said. "Now, lets go celebrate! The dinning hall won't know what hit them!"

The Blue Lion's walked toward the feast. Dedue looked to Dimitri. "An excellent performance today, your Highness."

Dimitri smiled back. "To you to, my friend." The prince walked along with his friends and classmates, the faint glow of starlight peaking through the clouds. Dimitri felt like didn't have a care in the world.


I heard you all wanted Flysithea. I deliver, weeks before the game can.

I wont lie, that's probably half the reason I wrote this chapter. Tried to write in more drama with Claude and Edelgard, but it just felt forced. Keeping things fluffy this time. We'll get back to the serious business soon, but…

DLC trailer dropped, mucked up my schedule a bit. We'll all se how much lore it changes, and how much erasing myself and every other longfic author on this site have to do.

As always, reviews are appreciated.