Author's Note: I prefer not to lose much time at the beginning. Enjoy the chapter, I'll see you down there. :)
Chapter 8
Missing Part
"This is getting out of hand" Dimitri gasped trying to keep his breath in check.
"Then just quit already" Caspar said with a grin although Byleth could notice he was reaching his limit, Dimitri didn't say anything but Dedue put a hand on his shoulder.
"Your Highness, I think it is wise to retire now" he said in an almost fatherly tone, his skin so red even through the dark color.
"I think I'm losing muscle mass here," Raphael gasped. Ignatz and Ashe were struggling for breathing.
Balthus laughed out loud "You guys really can't take the heat, huh?"
"Literally" said Byleth.
This was in fact a special training Byleth came up with when the sauna was finally open for the students.
He had fought in the desert before and it occurred to him that most of the students were not used to fighting in those kinds of conditions. Especially the students from the kingdom, so used to the cold and the mountains.
He wished Felix could have been there, but he had asked for a whole week off the school to go back home to Fraldarius. The official reason was that he wanted to heal his arm properly, the real reason was only known to Byleth. The young man was meeting one of his possible future fiancees.
The Professor didn't raise an objection but he could see that Felix wasn't thrilled at all about the trip.
Ignatz finally collapsed from the chair and Byleth decided to call off the exercise. "Alright people, that's it for today. Please take Ignatz to get some air."
The little group was mostly made of the male students with the exception of Hubert and Yuri who almost very politely told him to fuck off with his crazy exercise. Too bad, they will be struggling next time they fight in the desert, probably.
The students went off to their own dorms, outside the sun was already setting, he found Edelgard sitting on a bench just outside the sauna reading a small notebook.
"Ah Professor, I was waiting for you for-" She cut herself off when she looked at him, her gaze on him but not to the eyes.
Byleth raised an eyebrow.
Edelgard's face became red and turned away from him. "Professor! That is not the way you go out to the school hallways for Seiros' sake!"
For a moment he didn't understand but then he realized he wasn't wearing a shirt when he noticed the cold air on his chest.
"Oh! I'm so sorry" he said putting on his shirt in a hurry "Mercenary life is not one with privacy, I have to remember I'm among royalty"
"It's fine," she said, wiping her nose with a handkerchief, the flu probably. "I came to tell you that the petition to add Flayn to the Black Eagles has been approved, she should be in class with us starting tomorrow"
"Perfect, she will be a nice addition has a Pegasus knight, we need someone to protect Constance in midair"
They both walked together for a while chatting about their strategy for the battle of Eagle and Lion.
"I could learn how to ride a wyvern Professor"
"Yeah, I thought of that. Ingrid might give us trouble and things could complicate if Sylvain joins him in the air. Not to mention Claude and his archers will be harassing us from the other side. That's why I don't want you on a wyvern in the battle. We will need a strong vanguard with no flyers vulnerable to the arrows. Constance and Flayn will have to stay behind while we take the hill. Is going to take longer but is the safest way we can cut through."
Edelgard nodded "Yes, Hubert said something similar. Although he wants the mages to flank the Blue Lions through the south and make way for the flyers."
Byleth considered for a minute, it was not a bad plan, a little bolder than he might expect from Hubert but he was learning from a bold teacher so the professor couldn't really object." I'll think about it"
They crossed the dorms and went to the greenhouse. "I was growing a few plants Dedue gave me, '' he said, watching the small flowers. "I think they are remedies for poison and cramps"
"Are you planning on using them anytime"
Bothe kneeled next to the flowers "Probably, I had taught you some survival skills but not a whole lot of what to use. I'm barely learning myself, back with the mercenaries it was the doctor who took care of that."
Edelgard was silent for a moment and Byleth wondered if she had heard him, he then noticed that the girl was looking at a bundle of yellow flowers, the petals were soft as if a blow of air could make them fly.
"You like those?" he asked.
"They are called Sunblade. A strange name indeed, centuries ago when women weren't allowed to go to war, their husbands would give one of those flowers to their wives. Legend said that a spirit from the sun would protect them even at night. This was way before Fodlan became three countries, a forgotten tradition."
"How do you know about it?"
"My mother told me about it. She was a woman of books and loved to read about legends long past. She studied here by the way a long time ago"
"She must be quite the woman"
Edelgard made a small frown, it was so quick that Byleth almost couldn't see it "Was"
"Oh, I'm sorry."
"As I said, it was a long time ago"
Byleth returned his gaze to the flower not wanting to make her feel uncomfortable "Maybe I will give one of those to each of my students. Who knows? They might bring us good luck."
"A good soldier doesn't depend on luck"
"No, but I'm sure it helps a lot when you are in a pickle." Byleth took one of the flowers and gave it to her. "You get the first one, don't do anything stupid on the battlefield"
Edelgard laughed and said "You are one to talk. Thank you"
For a moment Byleth couldn't reap his eyes from her, her smile was usually a sober one, probably rehearsed for her meetings with the nobles. Yet this time, that smile seemed soft and warm, Byleft noticed even over the smell of flowers that she was wearing a sweet perfume, he couldn't identify the smell but he liked it a lot.
"Professor Byleth, urgent message sir!" The gatekeeper barged in with his loud almost voice making him jump.
"What?!" Byleth said, sounding more upset than he should. He clears his throat "What is it?" he said in a calm voice.
"Seteth wants to see you in his office right now sir. Is about an attack on Fraldarius territory."
Twenty minutes later Byleth was reading his horse along with his student, all of them in battle gear already. He was still a novice at riding in battle but he would not get a better chance to try than this one.
Two groups of bandits gathered up north Fraldarius territory forming a force of two hundred, it was a scout from Gautier who gave the message to Lord Rodrigue and then set up to the Monastery to ask for reinforcements. The Gautier army was too busy fighting with Sreng to help and although Lord Rodrigue's forces were enough to repel the bandits, the town would be in chaos for a few hours before they could capture or kill all the bandits.
Byleth and his Black Eagles were asked to support the army in the town and rout out the bandits.
He mounted his horse only to see the Blue Lion students next to him.
"Professor, I must ask that you let us go with you," Dimitri said with a firm voice. "Felix is our friend and Fraldarius is part of our country"
"I understand how you feel. But I cannot leave the Monastery without two of the houses, remember you are the last line of defense in case of an attack"
"But-" Ashe started but Byleth raised a hand.
"No excuses, we have more than enough people already. That's final"
"At least take me, Professor" Dimitri insisted tus time with a more angry voice, "These are my people we are talking about"
Byleth pursed his lips.
Well, we can use some support from the air.
"I will take one of you" he said "Ingrid, take one of the strongest Pegasus and meet us on the main road. We are not stopping until we arrive"
Ingrid nodded and went to get ready.
Edelgard smiled at Dimitri "Don't worry, I won't let anything happen to the town. You have my word"
Dimitri returned the smile and Byleth could clearly see he had more confidence in Edelgard than in Byleth. The Professor thought while reading through the fields that a shadow of jealousy crawled up in his chest, he didn't want to think about it.
-O-
Barely anything had changed in the few months Felix had been away from Fraldarius territory. The castle that was his home rose on a hill like a colossal guardian watching over the town.
The Fraldarius lineage was known for its affluence of outstanding military commanders, most of them were destined to be the King's main advisor on military matters such as Rodrigue was to the late king.
Felix always wondered if that was his destiny also.
"My Lord, are you alright?" a soft voice asked and Felix noticed his attention had slipped off while the lady in front of her was talking.
Lady Charlotte was the only daughter of a count with a small land between Fraldarius and Gautier, she had bright blond hair and big blue eyes, she didn't wear too much makeup but the red lipstick accentuated her thin lips and smile. She reminded him of Ingrid but with a more youthful and rounded face, she was pretty and Felix had to make a great effort not to imagine her with red hair.
"I'm sorry" Felix said he food barely touched "I'm not a good listener, am I?"
The girl smiled "Not at all. I'm sure you have a lot to think about. I assume your Professor gave you a lot of homework while you are absent."
Felix let out a smirk "Not only the professor. One of my classmates is teaching me magic and she is relentless with the theory. I must had read fifthteen books already"
"I never thought of you has a magic type, I always see you carrying a sword"
"It's what I do best, but I'm open to using any advantage I can get in a fight. That's how my professor is teaching me"
Charlotte drank some water before speaking. "If only I knew more about military matters, my father would prefer me to dedicate to economics before battles even though we are right next to Sreng territory, we can depend on House Gautier for our defenses."
"Well, that is probably why our fathers agreed for us to meet, isn't it?"
Charlotte didn't look annoyed at the comment even if it was a little out of line.
"Very true indeed, my lord. Even if I'm not thrilled about the idea of arranged marriage, I'm always prepared to do what my house needs to flourish"
"At least you are honest. This meeting is going better than I expected" Felix said with a hint of sarcasm, if the lady noticed it she didn't let it show.
Lady Charlotte stood up with grace and walked towards Felix and offered him her hand "Well, it's clear we are not getting anywhere with small talk. I wish to go on a stroll my lord"
Felix growled inwardly and looped his arm with hers going out of the dining room.
"You are not like the other lords I had met" She said while walking with a steady rhythm, her shoes barely making a sound against the stone floor. And one of her attendants followed close behind, it was in bad manners to have a young man and an unmarried lady alone.
"I heard that a lot. I don't have the charm or the flowerish tongue of my father." not that he wanted them anyway.
"Maybe not, but you fight like the proudest of knights" That made him look at her with a stern look. She noticed. "Oh come now, I saw you training this morning with the squire, you had the speed of a lion and the strength of a stallion. And you say what you think, your stern expression rarely betrays your thoughts"
Feliz raised an eyebrow "I…how did you-" he stammered bringing a smile on the lady's face.
"Ah-ja! Finally, a crack on that face of stone" she said triumphant "You are not accustomed to compliments, my lord"
"Well, no. Not really. Most of the ladies I know are warriors just like me, they might be somewhat different or eccentric but most of them would think the same indifference towards me so I just respond with the same. Not out of retaliation of course," he said quickly" more like a way to concentrate in things that do manner"
"And what is that my lord?" she asked, tilting her head. They had reached the garden, a modest flower bed surrounding benches and a big tree.
For a moment Felix thought about it, Byleth had asked a similar question, he didn't want his title as lord, he didn't really wanted to serve the crown so why was he fighting then?
"I want to become stronger" he said dismissively "I just want to sharpen my skills and be a better warrior"
"To become a knight I assume"
"No," he said firmly. "I don't fight for lost causes"
Then why the hell do you fight then? A voice asked him.
The lady watched him for a moment but she didn't say anything.
She sat on a bench, Felix stood next to her with his hands on his pockets watching the mountains to the north.
"What about your friends?" she said suddenly "Surely not all of them are aspiring to be a knight"
"Or course not. Mercedes for example is a healer, I cannot even imagine her as with an armor. Linhart is practically a scholar, he would probably continue his research on crests. Bernadette," he snorted "I don't even know what kind of aspirations that kind of person has. And Annette, well she just wants to solve a personal issue. She might have a much more complicated family than me and yet she is trying to fix it however she can, just like when she spends hours and hours figuring out a spell or clocking something everyone knows is gonna explode. She waves her problems off like they are nothing and keeps going, like a force of nature she can build and destroy with the same speed and-" he stopped noticing that Charlotte was looking at him with a playful smile, her head resting on her hand.
"Oh please, don't let me interrupt you. I want to hear more about this Annette" she said with her smile widening, that made Felix blush.
"What are you talking about? I was just talking about my friends"
"You were doing that until you started spewing flowers about that lady. She must be quite the special girl."
"What do you mean?"
"I'm not oblivious to your sarcasm, Lord Fraldarius, and I'm not obvious to the way your voice shifted upon saying her name, I can almost hear you choke when you say her name"
Felix didn't answer.
"You are not good at hiding your emotions, my lord. Don't try to start now, that only makes you angry and frankly it makes you frown too much. You better tell that girl how you feel before your face stays like that forever. As for me, " she stood up straightening her dress "I think I have wasted enough of your time."
"Where are you going?" he asked.
"Home of course''. I'm not interested in a man who's heart was already taken.
Felix crossed his arms "I have no idea what are you talking about"
"Of course, my lord."she said clearly not meaning it."I might visit some other day, maybe when you graduate and I see you happily married" Charlotte was about to go out the door when a soldier embroidered in the cyan of Fraldarius came out to the garden."
"My Lord Felix, we had received urgent news from the scouts in the north. Two big groups of thieves are approaching the town, they will be here in a few minutes"
"What?! Where is my father?"
"He is in town with a handful of men, my lord. twenty men."
"And the thieves?"
"Around two hundred"
Felix cursed and ran towards the barracks. The Fraldarius garrison was posted as a main guard in the Capital since the late king's passing and the few soldiers they had had been either on scout duty or supporting the defense in Gautier. That left Rodrigue with only a handful of men to defend the territory from bandits, and for the most part it worked.
But this group was organized, they knew exactly when to attack and that Fraldarius would be vulnerable, like now.
Felix suited up in his myrmidon armor and took a horse; four other soldiers joined him just before leaving the castle.
When he arrived Rodrigue was already fending off the first way of thieves, one of the soldiers was struggling against two of them. Felix jumped from the horse unsheathed two swords, with an expert move he cutted the head of the thief.
"Felix! What are you doing here?" Rodrigue said angry "You should had stay in the castle protecting Lady Charlotte"
"She is fine, old man, people of the town are in more trouble right now."
"Always the stubborn child I see," Rodrigue said, shaking his head and then shooting a spell that practicality turned five thieves into dust. "Well then, go help on the north side, we will take care of this one"
He didn't like following orders but his father was right. The young man ran through the streets directing the people towards the castle for protection.
He encountered three thieves with axes taking away a young woman. Felix threw a knife to the back of one of them and launched himself piercing one the men's shull, he parried the other one and did a diagonal cut making the man let out a cry.
The one with the knife in his back was running away while trying to take the blade out.
"Come on, get to the castle, go!" he said, helping the lady stand up.
Felix kept going, despatching enemies, he lost the count at twenty five but he managed to gather a few soldiers from the north gate and mounted a defense with shields. His arm was hurting since it was still healing from his fight with the Death Knight.
The thieves were disorganized but the sheer number of them was consistently complicating things. A horseman came from outside the wall charging against the wall of shields. Felix didn't have any more throwing knives so he threw one of his swords piercing the man's chest, Felix's arm gave a horrible throbbing in protest.
Felix spun around when two other thieves approached, he blocked one sword and dodge the axe. He slipped his sword down hitting the man's arm, three fingers came down as the thieves screamed in pain. Felix used the small distraction to make a deep cut into the other thief's chest and impaled the other one in the heart.
Felix felt the heat in his leg, the one that had been injured during the last battle, it wasn't painful, just the blood and adrenaline going through a muscle he hadn't used quite much since then.
They managed to repel the first way but he only had twelve heavy knights left, the other laid on the white stone floor between blood, gore and the bodies of their enemies.
Then another wave of thieves came, Felix prepared himself smiling.
"Come on you bastards!" he said, a sword in one hand and his other arm limp.
A javelin came down from the sky impaling one of the attackers, Felix blinked and looked into the sky. A Pegasus was flying just a few meters over the rooftops.
"Need any help?" Ingrid said smiling.
Then he saw Caspar, Edelgard and Yuri leap out from behind him towards the enemy forces.
Caspar charged with so much force he made the whole first line stumble back, Edelgard and Yuri started cutting down the sides.
From outside he saw Ferdinand and Byleth charging with horses and trapping the bandits at the doors.
"Are you okay?" he heard that sweet bell-like voice next to him. Annette helped him walked towards an alleyway "Come on, let the others take care of the rest"
"What are you guys doing here?" he asked with surprise.
"We received a message asking for help. We barely made it in time. Hubert and the rest of the team are helping Lord Rodrigue on the other side."
She made him sit on a barrel and started looking for injures.
"There's nothing serious, just my arm and my leg-ouch!" he noticed a shared stinch on his back.
"Arm and leg my ass! Your back is bleeding" she said angrily.
Felix had to try not to laugh with her cursing.
She raised his shirt and started healing his wound. "It's not deep but the bleeding is pretty bad"
He felt her hand on the tender skin in his back and the other one keeping him steady on his shoulder.
"You are going to give me a hard attack one of these days" she said as the sounds of battle started to die down. "You are reckless, and crazy, and a complete idiot, and-" he interrupted her, putting a hand over the one she had on his shoulder.
For the first time in a while he managed to turn and give her a genuine smile. "Thank you for coming, Annette"
Annette looked at him wide eyed for a moment and smiled, he felt his heart leap and the words Charlotte said before became clear with a bitter realization.
He had feelings for Annette.
-O-
Lord Rodrigue made a feast for the Black Eagle House the next night. Most of them were really tired right after the battle so they decided to leave it for the next day.
None of them had a formal dress to wear so they just wore their students' uniform.
Annette had never been on Fraldarius territory, it was a little more chilly than Dominic of course and the stone walls of the castle didn't help.
She noticed the decorations with swords and armors clearly lacking the femine touch, the house of a general indeed.
Lord Rodrigue also invested some of his soldiers with titles for their great service and joined them on the banquet, it was then when Annette noticed. Felix was sitting next to his father near the end of the table with Professor Byleth, but to his left sat a beautiful woman with blonde hair. Lord Rodrigue introduced her as Lady Charlotte and Anette's mood almost immediately went sour when he said that she was one of Felix's marriage prospects.
"Actually, Lord Rodrigue," Charlotte said. "Upon further consideration and mutual understanding Lord Felix and I had decided not to go ahead with the engagement."
Lord Rodrigue looked at his son with narrow eyes "Is that so?"
Charlotte smiled "Oh, it was a wonderful couple of days and Felix had been such a gentleman" Annette cracked a nut with her bare hand without even noticing. "But we found out we have very little in common. And it is better to depart in very friendly terms"
The girl had charm and the frown on Lord Rodrigue's eyes disappeared almost instantly. "Well, nothing to do about that. It only means that I would be waiting for grandchildren a longer time"
Felix just kept eating, ignoring his father.
Spent most of the meal talking to Constance and Mercedes. At the other end, Rodrigue, Byleth and Edelgard seemed to be talking about the situation with Sreng.
After dessert Annette stood up while everyone was talking in the great hall, she explored the castle, mucho too different to the Dominic State. It wasn't comfy like a home, but it had almost a regal manner and the staff kept everything clean and organized. Some of the floor was covered in a red carpet.
She reached a great hall with candelabra and a big fireplace. To the left there was a big sofa and some very comfortable looking chairs, to the right there were bookshelves, lots of bookshelves. Annette felt her mouth open wide seeing how some of them reached the second floor covering the whole wall. Ashe would have loved this place.
She noticed a big painting over the fireplace, it was a family portrait.
Lord Rodrigue looked much younger with his eyes not so narrowed by wrinkles, a kid around seven stood in front of him, although he was wearing formal attire she could see by his mouth that he was used to smiling a lot, he wore his black hair short, he had some resemblances to Felix but not quite he was probably his brother Glenn.
Next to Rodrigue, sitting on a chair was a young woman with brown curly hair. She looked like a statue with her beautiful dress, long neck and sharp features. She was stunning in a mature way yet she smiled like a woman almost half her age. She was carrying a little boy in her arms, he was dressed like a little prince, he probably was barely a few months old and looked at the painter with curiosity.
Annette smiled happy to see that even Felix had a normal childhood at least for a while.
"I thought I would find you here," Felix said next to the door. Really sneaky "That or the kitchen, though I haven't heard anything explode"
"Oh shut up! I would have like you more like that," she said pointing at the portrait "A soft baby bundle without a sharp tongue"
Felix let out a small laugh, he was doing that much more frequently "My mother would had say the same"
"Is she…"
"Dead, yeah. She died from illness a few winters after that picture was made. Can't remember her quite well though."
"I'm sorry"
Felix let out a sigh "What about you? Has anything happened in the Monastery?"
"The Professor and Edelgard are making us do this crazy training for the battle of Eagle and Lion. Did you know he made all the male students go to the sauna for almost two hours?"
"That's called an stamina test, if you can't take the heat you are not gonna last long on the worst days of summer.
Annette turned her eyes "Of course you would understand that, you are a freak of nature"
"And you a horrible natural disaster"
She turned to him "And you are a meathead"
He also turned and then she noticed how close they were "And you…" the words died on his lips.
"I want to tell you something," Felix said suddenly, making some space between them. "But I want to tell you after the battle of Eagle and Lion"
"Always training first, right?" she said smiling "Can't you tell me now?"
"I…I'm not even sure if I really want to tell anyone yet"
Annette noticed how uneven his voice was. Was it something that serious?
"Felix, should I be scared?" she said with genuine concern.
Was he leaving the Officers Academy? Or maybe he didn't want to study with her anymore. Or maybe he already chose a woman who he wanted to marry.
Annette then suddenly felt an ache in her chest. So that was it, it was obvious yet so difficult for her to understand.
Felix smiled again "No, is nothing bad. Is just, I don't want to have anything in my head. Right now with all that happened, the coming battle, the thing with the Death Knight and the Flame Emperor. I just need to be focused, for now at least"
She raised an eyebrow "So am I a distraction?"
"A very good distraction"
Annette's temple softened and smile again "Alright, after the battle"
"Yes, after the battle" Felix then took her hand and she felt a shiver run through her when he kissed it gently. "Thank you. Sleep well, Annette"
When he left she just stood there feeling something inside her, this wasn't the little spark she felt before, it was a giant vortex of flame making her stomach burst with emotion. She put her back against one of the bookshelves and fell on her knees enjoying the feeling.
A few minutes later she went to the room she shared with Mercedes, Constance and Ingrid.
"I think I like Felix" she said right in the middle of a conversation they were having about…well she didn't remember what they were talking about.
The three girls looked at her with raised eyebrows but it was Ingrid who talked "Took you long enough"
"Way more than it should have," Constance said."
Mercedes let out a laugh" Oh come now, don't be like that. This ussuaññy take time to figure out"
"What, so was that obvious?"
"Well duh." Ingrid said "You are like burst of fire when you are with him"
Annette felt her cheeks turned red and she hugged her pillow "Is it weird? I mean, we are so different he and I. Like polar opposites"
"Ah, but you see, those are the best relationships. They complement each other." Mercedes said.
"And is not like I would act on it or anything, I don't think he really feels like that about me"
"You are kidding right?" Ingrid said "Felix is practically melting for you, hell I barely seeing smile but you can make him go it every single time he sees you Annette"
"He is just a really good friend," Annette said, evading her gaze.
Constance approached sitting right next to her "I might be oblivious to most people's emotions, but I can clearly see that you care about him deeply, it is not just friendship. You might be onto something really special, Little Annette."
"You really think so?"
Mercedes put her arms around her like an older sister would "Isn't worth the try Annie? Isn't he worth the try?"
Annette bit her lip. Yes he was worth it.
He was brave, strong and handsome, and even under that stone shell he had a soft spot, a warm spot that she was dying to feel and she could only get some glimpses of it every time he smiled.
"Okay" she said nodding "I will tell him how I feel, but after the battle of Eagle and Lion. Professor Byleth wants us to focus on training"
Constance fell on to the mattress with a sigh "Don't even remind me. My soft arms hurt with some many spell I had to cast"
"You sounded like Hilda for a second there" Ingrid laughed followed by the other two girls.
Annette felt her heart lifting, she would focus on training and when the time came she would tell Felix how she felt. She wondered how it would be with him every night in that cold and lonely room he had in the castle, and also if she could fill that room with enough warmth to make him feel like a true home again.
-O-
Author's Note: Now, I know what you are all thinking. "Really? They figured their feelings out so quickly?". Well yes, dear reader, I'm not one to beat around the bush, that said, I'm still keeping a bunch of surprises.I know it's been a while since the last update, but I assure you it is worth it. I'm also working on a Bloodborne fic and a The World Ends With you fic if you want to check them out.Next chapter is the whole Battle of Eagle and Lion so forgive me if it will be more action oriented, and luckily is almost done so you won't have to wait long for it, but I will update my Bloodborne fic first and I will update this one the same date or the day after.That's it for now, thank you all for reading.