A/N: -slaps this chapter- This chapter can fit so much Edelgard von Hresvelg with suffering. And it's 5.7k words long! The longest chapter yet! Next chapter will focus on Byleth meeting Edelgard again like in-game. It begins!
The last bit of this chapter has Edelgard's...experimentation life and may not be pleasant. Read at your own risk.
Note: Updates will be slower now due to winter semester coming up and I may not have the time due to this being the last semester of nursing school for me. I am amazed of the support I have for this fanfic and I do hope I continue to serve up good content for you all!
"You ought to stay indoors at all times. Never leave the residence unless you seek 'disciplinary' action, Edelgard."
"Of course, Uncle."
The door shuts and the imperial princess stares out of the window. There was weariness in her complexion, the light in her eyes drained of all life. Edelgard was simply miserable. It happened all to sudden at the dead of night, she was whisked away, forced to follow her uncle and next thing she knew, she was in Faerghus. The greens of Enbarr were no longer visible to her lilac-hued optics, and the brunette simply sighs as she continues gazing out of the window, noting the dull, earthy colors and the hint of light snowfall.
Faeghus was nowhere near like Enbarr. The kingdom certainly had hardened soil, dull, rigid and filled with cracks. Trees were beginning to strip of their colorful leaves, and while it wasn't entirely barren, there were some crops that did find the hardened soil to be of a proper housing spot. There were trees that had needles, pine trees were a delicacy back in the empire, except when it came to the forests.
She misses her homeland, her family, her friends. Yet, she had no choice but to live in utter solitude and been told to bite and bear with it. Arundel had seldom answered her questions about why and where. He only simply spoke cautiously, avoiding the main topic and simply stated that it was necessary and she had no choice but to follow his orders. Fear was something she had felt in that time-she never enjoyed her uncle's company. Something about him was off.
Of course any rebellious behavior would only get her berated by the imbalance of power of adults combined with a vice grip upon her wrist. Said grip had caused the blood to almost cease going to her hand and the nerves at her arm would ache and scream in agony. It was too much for her body. None of her siblings had come with them. Oddly, it was just her. Oddly, it was just Hubert as well. And Hubert, unlike the servants at her home, would always be by her side, like a shadow, a dark guardian that protected her from harm. A guardian who provided her with plenty of reason, logic and of course would always tell her everything that was necessary.
Edelgard feels vulnerable without Hubert. He would have been near her or be with her as not only a servant, but her personal retainer. Without him, she doesn't know what to do. She often spent most of her time with him and her siblings until she met Byleth. But Byleth as well, was never going to come with her. Most of the people she's familiar with are unaware of who the mercenary was. A commoner was less likely known to nobles unless they performed incredible deeds worthy of acknowledgement. She certainly had heard stories about Byleth's father, his title being the Blade Breaker and his ability to break the focus of enemies and aim for the kill. While he was a commoner, his title was of tremendous talk.
Regardless with her thoughts, all Edelgard could do was simply hibernate in her own room, have a walk around the residence or stay cooped up in the library. There weren't many options to keep herself occupied. She fears that she's going to lose her sanity by staying indoors and being unable to socialize with anyone except for her uncle who would come in to keep a watchful eye on her. Part of her knows that if she were caught sneaking out of the area out of her own rebellious nature that she would never hear the end of it from Arundel. Another part of her fears what he's been plotting seeing there had been some chaos back at home.
What's worse is that she's definitely unsure how long she'll remain in the kingdom. All the vague answers and avoidance of blunt truths is what will keep her gambling with the devil in terms of when she'll be free from captivity. It's obnoxious, she ponders, head resting on the window sill and boredom begins to creep up in her body. Her mind begins to ache from the lack of activity that she was ever so accustomed to back home-her siblings would constantly drag her around places to either play with her or if they were like her older brothers, spar with her with wooden swords. The concept of being able to protect the family was subtle motivation for her brothers. The brunette wouldn't ever mind learning how to use swords seeing she is of royal blood and assassination attempts could occur in the future.
She ultimately decides to venture out of the room and into the library, informing her uncle of where she'll be. She plans on hibernating there at least rather than in her room pondering endlessly with her thoughts. Plus, it's a distraction. It keeps her from worrying about what is going to happen from then on since it appears she'll be stuck in a winter-like area for quite some time.
Edelgard is grateful that the library is barren-aside from the books of course; it's a gold mine of knowledge and written fables and stories. She doesn't want to be bothered by anyone, and rather, she enjoys the solitude once in a while. The imperial princess allows her eyes to scan the dabbled ink onto pages, learning of the history of the kingdom. The great lion king, Loog. History of the Battle of the Eagle and Lion. A list of Kingdom Nobles. Gautier. Galatea. Fraldarius. "Interesting." Edelgard muses to herself, quirking a brow as she flips pages.
Possibility of her marrying into a noble family in Faerghus is certainly plausible. Of course she hadn't been betrothed yet (thankfully) ; being royal-blooded meant doing things out of necessity and out of politics. Still, the possibility was incredibly slim, seeing the empire was majority of the continent of Fodlan, and certainly it was most likely she would be given away to a noble in her own home territory rather than outside of it.
Lilac eyes finds books about the empire and she scans them as well. Familiar information to her, but things have been reworded, catering to the kingdom citizens. It's intriguing to find differences based on perspective alone. Edelgard finds mistakes in writing, but corrects them in her mind. She's fascinated at the very least by the differences and subtle tones used in the writing.
The next time she visits the library is on a different day; bright and early after some morning tea. Her uncle of course vanishes to goddess knows where, but she knows that he was notorious for creeping up on specific individuals whenever it suited his needs. Thus she begins to hibernate at the library, picking out novels from the fiction section and allowing herself to indulge. At the very least she's keeping herself occupied, and taming the demon of homesickness away with mere distraction.
It seems that the novel she had chosen to read was romance in terms of genre-the description of cliche forbidden love; royalty and those born of common birth. Edelgard quirks the edge of her lips slightly in amusement. It's always been typical, but often she's reminded of how many nobles did have consorts that were of women and men of common birth and of course it reminds her of how overly cliche and overdone it is. Even for someone as young as her, she's not immune to eavesdropping on tales from adults gossiping. Though, the story has an interesting twists and turns. War was inevitable it seems in this world, and often glorified as noble. Chivalry was certainly...something of course. Edelgard wasn't too aware of the ethics and codes relating to chivalry and knighthood. Still...the way the story describes the main hero...it reminds her of…
Byleth.
A frown begins to form on the princess's expression, her mind wanders to the friend she had suddenly left behind against her will. She had promised her a gift-a token of appreciation for their friendship and yet, her uncle of all people had whisked her away without allowing her to give a formal farewell. It certainly stings like a hornet against soft skin, but it was inevitable despite her protests. A sigh escapes from the back of her throat. Strong, courageous... a couple of words Edelgard thinks of when it came to Byleth.
She misses her. A lot.
Edelgard feels her vision blur slightly, and the room becomes chillier all of a sudden. Fingertips immediately brush against the skin under her eyes, swiping away the tears that threatened to fall. "Why...do I feel so sad about this?" she ponders to herself. "It's...not like I wasn't expecting this."
Unread pages were left in the library that day.
Other times, Edelgard attempts to paint scenery; a change of pace from reading all day long. She attempts to paint trees, the soil, the few flowers she sees out of her window. Other times when she dedicates her days in the kingdom, she paints the time; sunset, sunrise, the night. She paints the bird that nests in the trees, the occasional rabbit peeking out from its den, the fox that yawns and rests under the pine trees for respite from a long journey. Her art wasn't good , but of course she wasn't going to be an artist. It was...simply a hobby, an activity to pass time and keep her occupied from the thoughts about her family, friends and the scenery back at Enbarr.
One day she decides to rest and gaze out of the window, watching the scenery change, eyes watching the stars in the night sky twinkle and shine from far away. It's refreshing at the very least, albeit chilly due to the temperature changes compared to the empire. Her lilac eyes notice an animal treading across her perspective, and she notices the eyes that seem to pierce right at her. Amber eyes continue to stare at her, its paws frozen in place. A wolf, she notes to herself, keeping her gaze at the animal.
It's intimidating at the very least, seeing such a noble animal stare at her, unflinching, ears perked, tail swaying ever so slightly. Perhaps it's curious? Edelgard wasn't the best in terms of reading body language from animals, but what she senses was not one of malice. She knows she isn't going to be mauled by a wild animal so long as she didn't provoke it. Edelgard watches the wolf leave her visage and she continues her usual routine for the day. It feels like some odd omen; a feeling she can't seem to shake off for the rest of the day.
A political meeting. The life of a noble was certainly tedious , and in a sense, Edelgard is glad that she was one of the younger ones in the family. Aside from her baby sibling of course. She wasn't the youngest when one of her father's consorts gave her yet another sibling. Still, she can't help but peek from her hiding spot, watching her uncle and the king of Faerghus communicating over politics and the like. Edelgard wasn't one to eavesdrop, but it was a change of pace for once, and certainly one where she actually sees her uncle for once in these weary days.
Lilac irises peer at the boy with short, blond-hair with aqua-hued eyes. He appears to be around her age, Edelgard estimates and she notices that his eyes look at her in return. The brunette princess hides back from where she was peeking from, hearing her name being spoken by Arundel and hearing the king and his son speak. Sound of light footsteps are heard. Edelgard finds her adrenaline peaking up and she almost panics seeing it had been a couple of months since she had contact with someone around her age.
"Hello." she hears the boy speak towards her, head tilting slightly out of curiosity, "I'm Dimitri. What's your name?"
So casual. Edelgard sighs to herself, but it was inevitable. Despite being highly awkward in social situations, she wasn't rude to those who addressed her-especially those around her age. "Edelgard." she answers quickly, "you're the king's son, right?"
"Yup!" Dimitri chimes in response, a small smile on his complexion, "I didn't think I would meet someone around my age here." A small pause. "Do...you want to do something together? It seems that I'll be here for a while...and I don't think you would want to remain standing there listening to the adults talk about politics all day."
Edelgard finds herself dumbfounded. Again, it had been a while since she ever had company ever since she left Enbarr. The sudden invitation was unexpected at the very least, but seeing that both of them were still children and had zero interest in politics, it was best to distract each other until one of them had to leave. Dimitri did have a point. It was idiocy and a waste of time listening on the adults talk about politics and other necessities while bearing very little understanding towards those specific topics. Plus, it was daunting imagining standing there all day listening to the rambling.
"Sure." Edelgard answers, nodding slowly, but a small frown appears on her expression shortly after, "Unfortunately...I'm not the most sociable person around. I'm unsure what I can offer aside from having tea and a conversation. Unless you have other ideas."
Dimitri hums to himself, immediately guiding his hand to his chin, pondering. He remembers meeting Ingrid the first time-having to bond with her was difficult at first, but sparring and stories about knights assisted him there. Then there was Felix. Felix only craved the clashing of blades thanks to his brother's behavior and certainly it made sense to offer sparring to bond with him. Sylvain on the other hand preferred tea and flirtations-obviously talking about girls and other domestic behavior helped him there. Yet, Edelgard was different. There was a different aura to her he senses, and of course this made things difficult. "Well...I can offer sparring, but...I'm unsure if you'd like that. I can go with some tea if you're really stubborn about it."
Stubborn, huh? Edelgard puts on a wry smile at that comment. No offense was taken from his remarks, but it was amusing how the idea of a stubborn, bratty princess may have been portrayed by her body language towards the prince. "I could go for a sparring match," she says, almost out of petty spite to prove him wrong. "I don't mind getting a bit physical; especially to boys."
Of course. She had older brothers who would force her to spar with them. It's for your own good, El! She remembers one of them lecture her. What if one day we aren't around and you have to defend yourself? Another memory with her siblings. Of course, they were right. They couldn't always be by her side and eventually she too would need to know the art of combat if she were to survive in this world alone someday. Plus... it would impress Byleth in a way... she ponders, remembering how she would spar with the mercenary and lose every single time. Perhaps if they did meet again, their skills in combat would be more evenly matched.
Edelgard notes the blinking of aqua eyes at her acceptance for a sparring match. It continues to amuse her, her grin widening. Whether she won or lost, it certainly wouldn't be an easy match at all. She was far too stubborn to lose quickly-especially from a prince who may have contemplated that she was far too fragile and reluctant to get her hands dirty. She remains silent about her status of course, Arundel had insisted she behave as a commoner or a noble; not a princess. "Hm?" Edelgard hums at Dimitri, head tilting to the side, "did you think I wouldn't accept a sparring match, Dimitri?"
"I-" Dimitri finds himself flustered, but he immediately swallows down his surprise and answers her back accordingly, "I didn't actually...but I always enjoy a good practice match. It's what I do with my friends."
"Oh?" This was fascinating to hear about. "I suppose Faerghus is known for its code of ethics in terms of being a knight and being chivalrous. Am I wrong?"
"Well," Dimitri allows his foot to drag back a bit, his arms behind his back in a respectful manner, "you aren't wrong. Ingrid especially wants to be a knight and she often asks to practice her technique with me. Felix doesn't really...care about being a knight but he's really invested in getting stronger. Sylvain is a different case I'd say but I don't really talk about him."
Edelgard couldn't help but let out a small giggle at the mention of Sylvain. He seems like an odd one, she muses to herself. "Well, I am a citizen of the kingdom. Don't think I wouldn't be a part of that sort of lifestyle."
"Of course." Dimitri nods, "I'll get the wooden swords unless you want to use something else...like a spear or an axe."
An axe, huh? Edelgard knows that axes weren't the most common weapon due to how clunky and heavy they are. It took a tremendous amount of strength to use such a weapon and often bandits along with thieves would use them. It's sort of a stereotype she had grown accustomed to, but she was far more accustomed to a blade. "A sword is good, thanks." she answers, though lances and axes were part of her curiosity. "Perhaps if we had time I'll switch it up and use a wooden spear or a wooden axe."
"Sounds good to me!"
Dimitri definitely sounded eager. A new sparring partner for him? Perhaps. Edelgard doesn't mind having a new friend, but she's far more concerned about handling her current state of mind and emotions.
Next thing she knows, she finds herself outside, wooden sword in her hand, and her opponent ready. Dimitri immediately launches himself towards her and the princess finds herself using her utmost strength to block the attack, feeling the strength of his muscles nearly overpower hers. It definitely showed that he was accustomed to the arts of training, and that was his advantage. Edelgard staggers back and blocks another attack, but she keeps her lilac eyes focused on the blond-haired prince, finding an opening before launching her own attack back at him.
"Not bad," Dimitri compliments her, keeping his distance from her. "I didn't think you were this good at fighting."
"Hmph." Edelgard scoffs, before launching her attack once again, hearing the clash of wood. "If you don't know how to use a weapon, you'd be good as dead in this world."
"That's true." Dimitri answers back, launching his own attack, "it's why I want to keep training and one day protect those who I love the most."
More sounds of clashing wood. "How ambitious of you, Dimitri."
Edelgard finds herself feeling the ground with her back, mildly wincing upon feeling the impact, the wooden blade placed against her throat. Of course I'd lose. She muses once again to herself, before watching Dimitri get off of her. "You put up a good fight Edelgard," Dimitri announces, assisting the brunette back onto her feet, "even if you did lose, you certainly wouldn't go down without a fight."
"Of course," Edelgard allows a wry smile on her expression, and she immediately takes her training sword and allows the blade to touch where Dimitri's carotid would be. "If this was a real battle…" she answers, "you may have lost your life."
"Well that's hardly ever fair," Dimitri frowns, allowing his hand to push the training blade away.
"Since when is there fairness in combat?" Edelgard questions, feeling the cynicalism seeping through, "you know I'm right, Dimitri."
Dimitri sighs in defeat. "Right..."
There was still time and the king and her uncle had not arrived to interrupt their session. Edelgard almost sighs, seeing that the prince had decided that swapping weapons would be a good idea. She does end up surprised however, seeing how the wooden axe feels in her hand, the weight obviously heavier than a sword, but it cuts through the air more easily, the weight of it feels ominously natural to her. She finds that she had won the match when it came to axes. Dimitri was clumsy with the axe, she notes, using that to her advantage.
Sparring with lances was a bit more challenging, but there was more distance to it, it worked well but ultimately she lost . It seems that lances were Dimitri's strongest weapon. He must have trained with spears for quite some time, she analyzes.
It was after that match that Dimitri had to go. While farewells were a common occurrence for the brunette, this one felt a tad painful. She didn't mind it as much...compared to what she had already left behind.
The next time she meets with the prince was when the king had visited yet again for another meeting with her uncle. Edelgard finds herself winning over the dispute on what activity they could do for this visit. Some tea was always good she finds; combined with some sugary treats as well.
"Chamomile for me, please." Dimitri requests, and Edelgard notes the choice of tea as she pours him a cup of it. He is the guest after all, she'll deal with not having bergamot for today.
"Chamomile your favorite?" she inquires, taking a sip and tasting the mild flavor, smelling the nearly scentless tea. "It's a good choice."
"Yeah, it's my favorite," he replies, allowing himself to indulge in the hot beverage. "It's also Ingrid's favorite tea and I've grown to love it thanks to her."
Edelgard smiles. It was nice to talk about friends. "Ingrid sounds like a very good friend."
"She is." Dimitri smiles in return, "She's kind, caring...even if she's a tad bold and strict...but she's an amazing person. Ambitious even."
The princess pushes the tray of sweets towards him, an offering. "She reminds me of one of my friends."
Dimitri blinks and tilts his head. "What were they like?"
An image of Byleth enters her mind, and she remembers the times they've spent together. They certainly have done everything together. Pick flowers, make flower crowns, have tea...go exploring together, sparring...so many memories. "She...she's bold...kind. Protective...she's a bit strange and doesn't express her emotions very well...but I...I got to know a lot about her. I ended up understanding her."
There was something in Dimitri's eye-a hint of empathy perhaps. It's as if he can tell that his new friend felt some sort of yearning for the friend she had just described. "Do...do you miss her?" he asks quietly, cautious with his words as he didn't want to open any closed wounds.
Edelgard allows silence to envelope both of them, and she soon hears the awkward sip from Dimitri, in an attempt to fill the crippling void. "Yes." she finally answers. "I do. I really, really do."
Another time she's met with Dimitri, it was another meeting, but most likely an invitation to the party back at the king's castle. It was apparent that she had to go-for formal purposes and to accompany her uncle for goddess knows what. Edelgard doesn't mind of course, she feels a connection to the young prince. Perhaps it was a vain attempt to fill the crippling sorrow she felt from having zero contact with Byleth, Hubert and her siblings. It was awfully lonely without them. Not one day passes where she isn't thinking about them.
"I...don't like dancing." Dimitri sighs, scratching the back of his neck. "I'm just not good at it, El."
Of course Edelgard was the only one to tell him that he could call her El, to make it more familiar, more comforting. It was selfish, but she truly did see a friend in Dimitri, and he felt family to her in his own way.
However, his comment made her freeze, lilac eyes staring at him, almost judgmentally. "What." she breathes out, "how...how can a prince not be good at dancing? I-" she's baffled.
"It's easier for me to wield a weapon than hold a woman's hand and dance," he shrugs in response, "plus...no one really taught me."
"Then I'm going to teach you!" Edelgard retorts, immediately taking Dimitri's hands into her own.
And they danced. Or at least tried to. For hours.
"Wrong foot, Dimitri!" Edelgard scolds, huffing, "you're supposed to lead with your right!"
Exasperated, Dimitri quips back, "El, the sun's going down!" he really needs to get back home (also to avoid her scolding), "I really outta be heading home…"
Swallowing the lump in his throat quietly, Dimitri notes the way Edelgard narrows her eyes at him, as if she's aware of what his ulterior motive was. Though, she doesn't debate, and releases her hands from his. "That's fair." she answers, "best that you do go home for I fear that the night could do troubling things to you."
Edelgard wasn't the most sociable person. She had made that clear. It was highly awkward when Dimitri's friends had come to meet this friend that the prince had been talking about. She notes how Sylvain would instantly serenade her with compliments. Of course she rejected it all. She had zero interest in that sort of thing. She notes the way Ingrid smacks the back of the red-head's head, watching Sylvain rub the back of it before being admonished by the blonde girl. She notes the way Felix lets out his sigh , and she definitely can relate to how reluctant they both were in social gatherings.
She notes the way Dimitri apologizes for his friend's behaviors. She tells him that it's completely fine. She never expected people to cater and pander to social norms all the time. She notes the way Dimitri tenses up when she begins to dance with him, the way his feet were skittish, the way he holds her hands incredibly gently-as if he would fracture her hands and wrists if he held too tight.
She notes the way Dimitri falls on top of her once he missteps, the impact of icy-like floor causes her to shiver, but she can't help but laugh at his clumsiness. All of the practice and all of his tenderness, they end up down on the floor from tripping.
"I'm so sorry El! I didn't watch where I-"
"Dimitri! You clumsy dolt!" she continues to laugh, filling both their ears with her laughter. She hadn't laughed this hard in ages , ever since she left her family and friends in exile.
Dimitri finds himself laughing too, sharing the moment before he takes her hand and hoists her back up onto her own two feet. "I'm sorry. Let me try again," he states, a sloppy attempt for bringing her down with him in the fall.
He succeeded in dancing with her during that day. Edelgard feels a sense of pride of course. She was the natural dancer in her family.
A year seemed like a long time. It certainly is a long time. Yet, time flies when memories form and shared memories are retained. Edelgard was finally going home. Yet, this familiar pain she feels aches and throbs in her chest. Dimitri had been nothing but a good, close friend to her. Kind, tender, friendly... trusting. He was exactly what a good friend was. She'll miss him, but there was a part of her that knows , they'll meet again somewhere. They're both royalty , after all. Royalty was likely to see each other, no matter the distance.
"El!" Dimitri chases up to her, panting to catch his breath, "So it's true...you're really going away? Going back home?"
There was pain in his voice, but Edelgard chooses to not notice it-it'd hurt her too, just like before. "There's nothing I can do about it." Edelgard swallows the sensation down to the pit in her gut, "It's all happening so fast...I'm as surprised as you are."
"El…" Dimitri frowns, before pulling out a gift from his pocket, handing it over to her. "Um...here. I want you to have this." He wanted to give her strength, and he musters all of the courage he has to tell her. "El, listen to me. No matter how hard things get, you can't give in, okay? You've got to cut a path to the future you wish for, no matter what."
Edelgard finds herself shaking, lilac eyes wide in surprise as she takes the sharp, deadly gift into her hands. "It's...a dagger?" she's baffled, "why would you give me something like this?"
Dimitri downcasts his gaze. He wasn't the best in expressing his emotions-let alone thinking of proper gifts to give to a girl he grew attached to. "Oh, um...I'm sorry," he apologizes sincerely, "I couldn't think of anything better to give you."
Before Edelgard can answer, she hears the exclamation from her uncle, his tone of voice utterly filled with impatience. "Edelgard!" she hears him beckoning her, "What are you doing? It's time to go. Hurry and get in the carriage."
The princess finds her spine tense, sending signals of anxiety into her mind, "Oh! I...I'm sorry, Uncle!" Lilac eyes find mournful aqua irises, and she frowns before giving her farewells to the prince, "I have to go now...goodbye, Dimitri."
There was so much more I had to say… Edelgard tells herself as she runs off before her uncle gives more of his temper away.
In all natural sense, winter eventually evolves to spring, giving back life and allowing colors to flourish once again. Yet, there was no "spring" in this world of hers. Edelgard finds herself feeling nothing but pain, the way the silver blade cut apart her flesh, droplets of crimson dripping from her arms, her chest, her legs, onto the ground. It stains the fabrics that once protected her and kept her warm.
Edelgard remembers screaming in agony, crying for her father, for her older brothers, her older sisters to come and save her. She remembers seeing no one familiar, she remembers seeing masked mages perform on her like an animal. Their wicked curiosity on her pain was nothing but cruel sadism.
Edelgard remembers nothing but the pain in her stomach from being neglected. Edelgard remembers the foul, pungent smell of death and despair around her. The cold floor became her habitat. The rats became her only companions, and yet they defiled the dead with their fangs and claws. She remembers almost gagging and vomiting from the sound of slight tearing, skittering and goddess knows what else.
Edelgard remembers shaking each sibling that was tossed in this overly cramped cell, staining her own digits with their own blood. "Wake up! Please wake up!" she'd beg. She'd beg and beg, and they never woke up.
Cold. It's...cold… Edelgard tells herself as she curls up, the iron chains keeping her pinned to the wall rattling as she allows her head to rest on her knees. Tears continue to flow, and she remembers that Victor, the eldest of them all had kept her warm with his embrace.
Edelgard remembers when she was supposed to go next, but the crowned prince-the very prince who would become the next emperor offered himself instead of her. If he could survive, then she too would be free from torment. Or so he believed.
Edelgard remembers scales and darkness, the grumbling and roaring of a demonic beast ramming its head against her cell. She remembers being too frightened to move, eyes wide with nothing but fear and she finds that the beast was none other than her brother.
"Take the crest out of him." Edelgard would hear a mage speak, "the last Hresvelg is our only hope."
Edelgard remembers the most agonizing pain in her life. Her screams, her throat clogging with her own blood as she's choking on it. It was sadistic torture, a cruel fate of hers as she silently begs for the goddess to save her-no one came, not even a miracle. She remembers the way mages would heal her up just to keep her alive and yet simultaneously cut her open like a live animal. She feels something being implanted and it hurts. She clenches her fists, feeling the burn and sting in her arms travel up to her chest and she lets out another screech before she runs out of energy.
"-fighting! Keep fighting!" she'd hear a distant voice in her head, and she abides, desperate.
She sees black and finds herself awake in her own bed. Bandages cover her entire body, drenched and stained with blood. Her brown hair no longer brown, she feels her veins and arteries freeze, noting the lack of pigment in her hair. Her skin is pale, her eyes paler as well-lacking the lush lilac hue that she once had. Edelgard wants to cry. She wants to cry when Hubert barges in, panting, breathing and he cries out her name in not only relief, but in terror of her state.
Edelgard finds herself unable to speak, yet Hubert's embrace only racks up pain in her body. Yet her expression does not change. A part of her dies that day. She was never going to be the sweet, tender Edelgard von Hresvelg that others knew.
She remembers when she speaks words again, it was on the day Arundel had paid her a visit. "You're perfect. The perfect emperor!" he'd speak to himself.
Edelgard feels disgusted with herself. She's nothing more than a tool for her uncle's selfish desires. "I'm...I'm going to save this world…" she'd say to Hubert one day, clenching the sheets of her bed; she feels anger and utter disdain. "I'll put my siblings to peace...I'll...I'll…"
"Lady Edelgard…" Hubert answers, and he allows the only heir to the empire to hold him into an embrace. "I will walk this path with you." he promises, "I will serve you till the day I die. Together...I'll make sure your ideals are fulfilled."