Ashe X Dedue. The Restaurant.

"Welcome! Please take a seat, and I'll be with you in a moment!" Ashe called to the four men who just walked through the door. He quickly finished wiping down the round table he had been attending to, balancing dishes on one hand as he did so. Tossing the light blue cleaning towel over his shoulder, Ashe veered through the doorway into the kitchen, just barely managing to dump the plates in the sink before they could topple onto the floor. The clattering of the ceramic always sent a quick twitch of anxiety through him as he wondered how many of the dishes had actually survived their clash into the sink, but he had no time to check or ponder this.

Ashe touched the towel to his forehead, onto which little beads of sweat had found their way to from his hairline. He took a moment to breathe, glancing out the doorway anxiously at the small seating space of the restaurant, now crowded with knights and townspeople alike. The four men from earlier had found their way to the only open table, the one that Ashe himself had just cleared and cleaned.

This was the busiest the restaurant had been in… well, ever, Ashe was shocked to realize. Only open four months yet, it hadn't been challenging to get customers, the townspeople being drawn to the comforting aromas often drifting from the chimney or through the open windows. Or they had been guided in by the natural cosy warmth of the small building versus the brisk chill of Faerghus weather. But there had never been a day that Ashe was turning over tables faster than he thought he could, having hardly a moment to introduce himself to the customers before having to call out a "Be with you in a moment!" or a "Thank you for coming!". It was exhilarating, and exhausting. Ashe's feet ached and there was a throbbing soreness at the base of his neck and between his shoulders. This was his dream, and yet the stress and the rush were beginning to sow the seeds of frustration.

Taking a moment to crack his back, Ashe straightened his shirt, tugging it down so it wouldn't bunch around his apron, and he threw the towel into a growing pile of dirty cloths, grabbing a fresh one and a few menus, printed on parchment and fastened by small metal stubs to thin but polished slabs of wood. He put on his best smile, reminding himself of how happy this truly made him at the end of every day, and he went out to greet the knights. "Hello! So sorry for the wait, it's awfully busy today…"

Ashe was not happy at the end of the day. Satisfied, maybe. Exhausted, absolutely. The candlelit lamps flickered beside him as he washed the last of the what was probably hundreds of dishes that had been awaiting him in the sink. His shoulders ached and his neck almost felt cold due to soreness. When the last cup went on the drying rack, Ashe pulled the plug to let the water drain out of the sink and watched it spiral, soap spuds meandering into the darkness of the drain itself.

He startled, broken out of his daze when Dedue entered the small back room, finally emerging from cleaning up the kitchen. He looked slightly weary himself, although it was hidden well by his usual stoic features. They made eye contact, cold but gentle blue meeting tired mint green. Dedue walked quietly over to Ashe.

"How are you feeling?" It was a simple question, but Ashe had grown to recognize the traces of emotion in Dedue's words. This time, he was concerned.

Ashe's eyebrow twitched as he fought a scowl, but his eyes narrowed to betray his displeasure. "Terrible, if I'm being honest."

Dedue raised a brow subtly. "It was a good turnout today, Ashe. It would do us well to get some rest and be proud of it."

"And do it all again tomorrow," Ashe grumbled. He rubbed his eyes.

Dedue maintained his gaze on Ashe's movements, the hidden concern never leaving his expression. "Are you not happy with our work?"

"No, it's not that," the smaller man huffed. "I'm just tired. Just… I think I just need some rest. It's a lot of work and I'm sore, that's all." He untied his apron and hung it on the hook by the door. "I'm going up."

"Ashe, please wait." Dedue's voice was always so comforting, low and steady. But right now, it only infuriated his partner.

"I want rest, Dedue. I'm tired, and it's only the middle of the week. I'm going to wash up, change, and sleep. Please don't try and stop me again."

Dedue's expression softened only slightly, registering shock. "I am sorry." He glanced away with that guilty look at Ashe hated, if only because he damned whatever caused it. So, in this case, himself.

Ashe frowned, feeling sorry, and turned back to face Dedue fully. "No, that was… that was wrong of me." The silence hung heavy for a moment, before Ashe reached up into one of the cupboards above the counter, taking out a glass bottle with a warm, auburn liquor inside. He walked past Dedue and grabbed two glasses, turning back to face him. "I know neither of us are much for drink, but…" He raised the bottle slightly. "It was a good day today. Come on, Dedue."

Dedue, still with a refined look of surprise on his face, this time comforted, followed Ashe into the main dining area and sat at one of the round centre tables. Ashe uncorked the bottle and poured them both a half-glass of the drink. He pushed one towards Dedue and took a drink of his own, his face scrunching adorably for a moment.

"I'll never get used to it, but it feels appropriate," Ashe commented, setting his glass back down on the table.

Dedue stared into his own glass thoughtfully for a moment before taking a tentative drink himself. His lips twitched downwards in a frown as the slightly bitter taste met his tongue, but Dedue did not mind the flavour. He took another drink before setting his own glass down, fixing his gaze on Ashe. Once again, icy blue met the cosiest green.

Silence followed, before Dedue posed a question. "Have you considered hiring help?" He was not surprised, albeit taken aback when Ashe scowled.

"No. I don't want to hire help."

"Why not?" Dedue inquired, his tone patient, but his brows furrowed.

Ashe hesitated. His eyes shifted to the tabletop, then down to the floor, only faintly lit by the lantern hanging above the tables in the darkly wooden room. There were seventeen lanterns in the room, one above each table, with eleven tables against the walls and six rounded tabletops in the middle of the room. The two currently sat across from each other at the round table closest to the doors to the backroom, which would lead to another set of doors into the kitchen, adjacent to the storage room. The moonlight only faintly crested the dark, rich wood of the tables next to the windows.

It was a few moments before Ashe continued his thought. "This is our dream, Dedue. Ours. If we hire others… they wouldn't understand. It wouldn't be as special, and it wouldn't just be us anymore… We can do it. I know today was rough, but it was just the first. I… don't look at me like that. We fought a war. I can handle waiting tables." Ashe frowned as he took another sip of his drink. Dedue did not like seeing him frown. "I'll get used to it. This is our restaurant, our time and effort, our memories going into this work… It's special to me, Dedue."

Dedue nodded. "I see." He paused again before pressing another question. Ashe was the only person graced to hear as many of his thoughts as he shared. But then, over time, Ashe had grown not only to hear his thoughts, but to be his thoughts. "Are you happy, then?"

Ashe tilted his head, silver hair falling untucked from his ear and shimmering in the golden glow of the lamplight. It had grown a little since the end of the war, and now Ashe kept it at a comfortable length by his chin. "I already told you, Dedue. I am happy. This is our dream."

"When I met you, your dream was to be a knight. Do you not regret giving that up?"

To Dedue's pleasant surprise, Ashe laughed. It blossomed a warm feeling in his chest, as did his smile and his voice, and the way his eyes lit up every time he spoke, with every gesture he made. "After those five years, I couldn't have been happier to put my bow down, Dedue." His eyes glinted as he gazed up at the man across from him. "And yet, I find it funny that you ask that. Weren't you going to serve Dimitri for the duration of your life?"

Prickles of heat flushed Dedue's cheeks, and he looked down into his glass. "I was."

"See? It just worked out differently. That doesn't mean I regret my decision. This restaurant, this dream… it became my decision, Dedue. This is our dream." Ashe reached across the table. Dedue lifted his hand from his lap to the tabletop to meet it. For a moment, he marvelled at Ashe's delicate hands, as he often did when holding them in his own.

"I'm sorry for the way I acted earlier," Ashe continued, his voice soft. "It'll get easier, and you were right. We should be proud of the work we did. Not only today, but every day leading up to this point. We made this future for ourselves, Dedue. I'm so proud of that." He chuckled softly. "No heroic legends will be written about us, but so what? We have our own story right here in front of us." He squeezed Dedue's hand gently.

Dedue met his eyes. Clear blue met clear green. "Yes. Our story."

Ashe smiled fondly. Dedue mirrored his smile, softer and more reserved, but Ashe's heart soared all the same. "Although, I believe the next chapter of our story involves getting some sleep before tomorrow. It might be busier than today. But who knows? That's the wonder of reading a new book."

Dedue stood, still holding Ashe's hand in his own. "You are right. It is wondrous."

The candles in the lanterns flickered, dancing to illuminate the lovers as their eyes met once again, each gaze longer than the last. Each gaze wrote new paragraphs, scribing their story one day, one hour, one moment at a time. Every moment was precious, stunning, and beautiful. The story they wrote together, the life they built with one another, was more than any novel that could be recorded. Beyond words, the two gazed at one another in silence, put away their glasses in silence, and enveloped in the stillness of the night, rested for their coming day. Their new chapter awaited its heroes.

Author's Note: Oh my god, that one was so fun to write! I was so excited when I first finished Blue Lions route and I saw all of the surprise endings, but the ending with Dedue and Ashe was the most pleasant surprise... Honestly, they are such beautiful characters, and I wanted to write something to commemorate that and also to expand on that ending. It's so cuuuute!

I hope you guys are still enjoying this book, and feel free to ask for any pairings you wanna see fluffed up! I'll just continue at my (increasingly slower) rate, otherwise.

Thanks again for reading! Love y'all so much.