Huge thanks to Sharuru over on AO3 for betaing this, she helped me greatly in being able to finally get this chapter out.
-OOOOOOOOO-
"Hey kid. Time to wake up." A man said as he shook his daughter awake. Said daughter woke up, but rather than the usual silence he was used to as her greeting, he got a rather rude gesture as well as a crossed expression.
She awoke to the sound of her father's voice, as well as his hands which were just done shaking her. Upon opening her eyes she saw her father, who looked rather startled for some reason.
"I know you like your sleep Byleth, but this is the first time I've seen you so deep into it that I had to wake you like this. And certainly the first time I've seen you show your displeasure in such a rude way." Jeralt said with a small amount of surprise in his voice.
In response to that Byleth just blinked before noticing what position her finger and hand were in. A universal gesture she recognized, to express one's displeasure with another or as her father had once told her, to tell someone to 'fuck off'. But it was one she hadn't seen a use for.
'It seems that's all we have time for. The next time you see me, be ready to hear a 'I told you so' or 'I called it'. Just know that I say it with love and a dose of I was right'
Until last night that is. The boy and everything about him was confusing, and his manner of speaking didn't help with that at all. And as she couldn't convey her displeasure in words before waking up, she had seen fit to use that vulgar gesture instead. It was a shame she didn't get to see his reaction, though the one her father gave her was amusing enough that it would have to do for now.
"My apologies Father, that wasn't intended for you. I had a rather strange dream last night." After she apologized, she got out of her bed and walked out of her room with her father. There was no need to change as she slept in her armor, so as to always be prepared for a battle should one arise.
"Ah, was it the one about the war again?" Jeralt asked, to which Byleth simply nodded before pausing, debating on whether or not to talk about the boy and what he said. Normally speaking about the voices one hears in their head would be grounds for insanity, but neither Byleth nor the boy were normal. And if the information the boy said was accurate, she'd best inform her father of the bandit attack as to be prepared beforehand. That, and she wanted answers about her mother, of which her Father gave very little when asked.
"It was about the war, but this time there was more." At this Jeralt raised an eyebrow but motioned for her to continue. "There was a boy."
"Well now, a boy I hear. It certainly took a while but I guess it can't be helped. Who is it? Someone in the company, in Remire, or someone we met on our travels?" Jeralt inquired with a raised eyebrow, already interested but said interest shifted in a different direction.
"Much like the war, he was something I had never seen before. Yet he feels familiar somehow, like a distant memory of sorts."
"Hmm. While I can't help you much with the war, describe the boy to me and I'll try to see if we met before. What does he look like? What's his name?"
"He was an adolescent boy, about sixteen at most based on his size and features. With long and fluffy green hair in a single ponytail and pointy ears. He was dressed in a dark blue…. toga I believe it was, with gold details. He claimed to be the Goddess Sothis. He also had a lot to say."
"Huh, not what I expected. Not at all. Sorry to say but I don't believe that I've ever met anybody like that. Elves are mythical creatures after all. So, what exactly did he have to say anyway?"
"In terms of mythical creatures, I believe a gremlin would be more accurate. I say this as he was mischievous and what he said was rather troubling. He told me that my mother's name was Sitri, who was a nun of the Church of Seiros and one of twelve." Jeralt had frozen on the outside. On the inside, his heart ached at the name of his late wife. A name he had never uttered near her, but it may have been possible for him to have let it slip when he was rather drunk. Especially during the nights he was feeling particularly mournful.
"That you received the Crest of Seiros from Archbishop Rhea and that you're over one hundred years old. You're quite the relic father." Once again Jeralt had frozen, this time his mind crashed. Letting Sitri's name slip while drunk was possible, but even completely wasted he knew to never utter a detail of that event. To say that it would be a hassle to deal with if it was found out would be the understatement of the century. He was shocked enough that he almost missed her last remark. If he weren't still reeling from these secrets being revealed, he would've let out a smile at Byleth making a joke. That Byleth made a joke wasn't unbelievable but it was rather rare as she didn't talk much. Though he would've grumbled a bit due to it being at his expense.
'How the hell did some gremlin, and she was right in it being more accurate, know about one of those let alone both?! And what exactly did he mean about Sitri being one of twelve, she never had any siblings as far as I knew and she told me everything about her. Then again, Rhea…' The thought of said woman drove Jeralt to close his eyes as he brought a hand to his temple. 'First her and now this gremlin. What is it with people with green hair and causing me such grief...'
With a sigh he removed his hand and brought his attention back to Byleth, who had been staring at him in the meantime.
"Your reaction is telling enough Father. I will question you further about my mother, about Sitri, and why you felt the need to keep her name from me for so long at another time. For now, I will continue." She said, expressing some of her displeasure at the hidden secret. "And lastly, there will be a bandit attack on Remire with said bandits after the heirs of the Empire, Kingdom, and Alliance sometime today. Before I could question the boy for more you had woken me up."
'Something about the future now, hmm. Not as shocking or revealing as the other two but still concerning.' Jeralt thought.
"I'm not the superstitious type but based on what this gremlin told you so far, I think that it wouldn't hurt to be on the lookout for a bandit attack."
Before Jeralt could continue or Byleth add anything, one of Jeralt's mercenaries had barged into their room.
"Jeralt! Sir! Sorry to barge in, but your presence is needed." The mercenary informed in a hurry.
"What's happened? Don't tell me it's a bandit attack."
"Yes sir, it's exactly that. We also have what looks like three nobles in need of our assistance."
"Damn, it's something we'll have to deal with right away." Jeralt told the mercenary before turning to Byleth "As I said before, let's make this whole conversation an idle thought and put it out of our minds. We'll come back to it later," Jeralt said, thankful for the interruption.
'As much as I'd wanted to say never at all, the Goddess is rarely that kind. As soon as whatever it is is taken care of, and a few drinks, I'll explain everything. And find out how exactly those dreams of hers told her things I had never uttered near her.' he thought. 'I also outta give this guy a raise just for that distraction.' He also ignored the crossed look Byleth was giving him, it was hardly there but he knew her well enough to tell whatever she was feeling from the barest of expressions. 'And what's with her today, the dreams were one thing, and now she's acting more expressive, however slightly, than usual. I'd be happy if it weren't for the questions that I didn't want to answer and the ones I didn't know how to.'
"Lead us to them and let's get this over with."
"Right away sir."
--
As the mercenary leads Jeralt and Byleth outside, three young nobles make themselves known. A blond boy in a black uniform with a blue shoulder cape, a girl with white hair in a black uniform with red leggings and a matching shoulder cape, and a brunette boy with darker skin in a black uniform with a yellow shoulder cape.
"Please forgive our intrusion. We wouldn't bother you were the situation not dire." The blonde respectfully said once he noticed Jeralt's arrival.
Both Byleth and Jeralt were shocked, three high-ranking heirs to the superpowers of Fodlan. Just as this 'Sothis' had said.
"What do a bunch of kids like you want at this hour?" Jeralt asked, snapping out of his shock to assess the situation, though he did so grouchily, not happy with current circumstances.
"We're being pursued by a group of bandits. I can only hope that you will be so kind as to lend your support." The blonde said.
"Bandits? Here? After you three?" Byleth asks, her gaze instantly intense upon hearing the word bandit. 'Was the boy actually right all along? First with Father's reaction to my questions, one he had never shown before and practically confirmed them, and now here with these kids. The albino must be Edelgard, the blond looks to be from Faerghus so he must be Dimitri, leaving the other one to be Claude.'
"It's true. They attacked us while we were resting in our camp." Edelgard said.
"We've been separated from our companions and we're outnumbered. They're after our lives, not to mention our gold." Claude continues.
"Troublesome, and just as we were about to head off to the Kingdom for another job." Jeralt grumbled.
"And we'll be more than happy to give you enough of said gold to make it worth your while." Claude quickly offered.
"And as the Prince of Faerghus, I'm sure that I could ease whatever strife this delay would cause between you and your contractor." Dimitri added on just as quickly.
"No need," Jeralt said, waving both off. "Remire is practically home for us and nobody with any self-respect needs to be paid to protect their home. Though if you happen to possess any fancy drinks I'd be more than happy to take them off you, I'll be needing them later."
"That's all? Pal, I'd gladly give you the fanciest wine cellar in the Alliance if that's what it takes." Claude said.
"As tempting as it sounds to drink a noble's cellar empty, we'll have to discuss it later. Anyhow, I'm impressed you all are staying so calm despite the situation. I… Wait. Those uniforms…" Jeralt compliments before trailing off, the uniforms of the nobles jogging an old memory.
"Judging from your uniforms and the way you hold yourselves, you are all noble students of The Officers Academy, yes?" A simple nod from Edelgard answers Byleth's question. She already knew but wanted to confirm as much of the boy's words as she could. She also took note of her father's reaction to their uniforms, it seemed that it was another thing she would have to discuss with him. "In that case, why exactly are they after you? Even if they wanted to take one of you hostage, no ordinary bandit group would dare risk the ire of the Church of Seiros and be hunted down by the Knights of Seiros. It would be far too much risk for them, unless someone made the risk worth it." Byleth found herself rather curious, it was one of her many unanswered questions from her time with the boy who claimed to be the Goddess and she very much wanted it answered.
While she asked her question to all three of the nobles, she also took care to keep a watch on their faces. Father told her to always be on her guard near the nobility, with their minds on some plot or scheme of theirs, she'd do well to ensure she would not be caught up in one of them. It was how she didn't miss all of their faces shift in response to her words, Dimitri's eyebrows furrowing in anger with a flicker of a much darker one flashing in his eyes, Claude's face gaining a thoughtful and calculating expression, and Edelgard trying an angry yet stoic expression. 'It seems that she's either trying to play brave or she may have a hand in this. I'll need to keep an eye on this one as well as the other two, I can tell that they're all hiding something.'
But before Byleth could get a reply from the students, once again a mercenary came in with news.
"Bandits have been spotted outside of the village! Damn, there's a lot of them." Another mercenary reports as he approaches the group.
"I guess that they followed you all the way here. We won't abandon Remire now, not after all they've done for us." Jeralt said. "Come on, let's move. We'll need to take care of these thieves before they overrun the village." He then turned towards Byleth. "Byleth, I leave the safety of these kids with you, I'll be commanding the rest of our group for the battle."
"Pardon me, but what makes you so certain that you could trust our lives in the hands of one woman?" Edelgard asked, not too thrilled to be under the protection of a woman only a few years older than herself.
"This one woman is my daughter, the Ashen Demon. The safest place for you to be on the battlefield is behind her." All three of the noble's eyes widened in surprise upon hearing this. They now recognized that they were under the protection of one of the most famous warriors in all of Fodlan, the daughter of the Blade Breaker. Jeralt then turned towards Byleth. "Try not to traumatize these brats too much or we'll be getting strongly worded letters, again."
"Yes, Father." Byleth replied. Following that Jeralt rode his horse off to meet with the rest of his men.
'Things today are quite insistent on interrupting my questions, aren't they? No matter, after this battle I'll be sure to get my answers from those three, from Father, and especially from that boy.' Byleth thought. She then emptied her gaze and nodded back in her father's direction. There would be time for answers later, for now, it was time for battle. Now it was time for the Ashen Demon to show herself.
And following that thought, Byleth and the rest went off towards the bandits.
-XXX-
It was weird to see this whole thing play out through the lens of an actual fight rather than a level of a tactical RPG. Even weirder was the point of view through which I did. I could see through Byleth's point of view, but more like watching it from a screen than it becoming my own. I could also switch to other viewpoints like a third-person view and even a view from above, similar to how it worked in the game. Speaking of games, I can't actually do anything as if I was playing one, it seems that Sothis just had this ability of sight and I subconsciously accessed it like one.
Anyway,
Byleth had led the charge with the three lords following her lead. And it turns out that Jeralt was right, the safest place on the battlefield was behind Byleth, or should I say in this case the Ashen Demon, as edgy as it was. Any bandit who tried their luck in attacking them from the front was swiftly and mercilessly cut down by her.
And it made sense, this wasn't a level one character against level one enemies. This was a seasoned mercenary trained by one of the best on the continent against a bunch of poorly trained, if they even had any, thugs.
And it wasn't just Byleth who fought, the few bandits that had enough sense not to go after her went for the lords instead. But they were dealt with easily enough, in melee by Dimitri and Edelgard, and from range by Claude. While not as experienced or skilled as their soon-to-be professor, they were no slouches though they were limited by the low-quality weapons they were forced to pick up.
Things were going well until they reached the bandit leader, and it turned out that his name was actually Kostas, not Costco. To be fair to me though, the dude wasn't that important to remember and gets murked later on.
Anyway, after getting his ass beat, he jumped right back up and true to canon, and the urge of many a working-class man, rushed to kill his employer. I don't fancy her chances of fighting a bloodlusted guy with an axe while she just has some dagger on her, turns out that her axe was rather used and broke a while ago. I wonder how Edelgard feels, karma must be quite the bitch huh?
Once again Jeralt was proven right, much to Byleth's self-imposed misfortune. Ala canon Byleth jumped in front of an axe, even though she had a sword and really ought to know better. Though judging by the faint pulse I felt from her chest where my heart was, it seemed that it was less a mistake on her end and more of an effect of a lingering will left on Sothis', my, heart to protect those who bore his children's blood. And Edelgard in this case happened to bear two crests, which only made it harder for Byleth to resist.
My annoyance at Byleth's situation quickly gives way to melancholy at the thought. But I stop myself from falling into it since saving Byleth was a much more pressing concern of mine.
I focused on myself and reached for the magic within, which was easy since it was very much noticeable considering that I had originated from a world lacking in magic (as far as I knew). And this power felt incredible, but I knew that this was merely a pale shadow of Sothis' former glory. Of my full power, a state I haven't been in for some time now. I then call back all of the instances of Fire Emblem magic that I recall being cast, usually it being a glyph of some sort with a bunch of symbols. This recollection then triggers my memory of how Sothis would be able to use his magic. I gathered a sufficient amount of mana and then focused my intent towards my will.
'Stop the flow of time!' I thought.
"ZA WARUDO!!!" I yelled at the top of my lungs, because I really could not help myself, as I held my hands out, and in front of them were glyphs with symbols that looked like gibberish yet were recognizable in meaning and purpose. I'll look into those more another time but it's best to focus on what I'm trying to do now.
I could see the effects of time freezing immediately, as the moment it did a pane of glass shattered and was blown apart before the colors of the world became inverted then turned purple. This view of the outside world was the same for all of my visual senses.
It's so unreal to be able to do something like that on such a large scale, and on what I know isn't the best I can do. Despite being an incredibly powerful Dragon, akin to how Naga, Grima, and Anankos were, it was very easy to understand why they were worshiped as gods with the powers that they wielded.
Then a few moments passed before Byleth started phasing in, with an awful lot of angst too. It seems that being about to die did that to people.
-XXX-
It was a tactical blunder, it was stupid of her to shield the girl with her back when a simple block with her sword would've sufficed, especially for a strike that was as angry as it was sloppy. Her father, if he had seen, would've beaten the basics back into her and she wouldn't at all fault him for it.
'How could I let this happen, and just when I finally learned of my mother's identity as well. Just when I was starting to feel-'
"To be honest, I feel rather torn. Granted, not as much as your back, but still torn."
She immediately opened her eyes, finding herself standing within the void that contained the boy from her dream. She had expected the next thing she heard to be the sound of an axe cleaving through her back, not the voice of that ghost. But perhaps it made sense, that she would join him in haunting wherever here was. Though she couldn't help but feel that last comment was uncalled for.
"I want to oh so badly, to just smugly tell you 'I told you so' or 'I called it'. And had it been almost any circumstance other than this, I would have relished in proving your skepticism wrong and I'd have a laugh. But here and now, all I can say,"
If the boy was going to chew her out, then by all means he should. Father wasn't here to do so and she already knew how badly she failed. Perhaps the crass tongue of this boy, one strange enough to call himself the Goddess and somehow predict the future, would further impress how much of a failure-
"It's just as I expected."
'What?' "What?"
"Which also falls under 'I told you so', but I'm missing a pair of glasses or a mask with a deep voice to give any real effect." She had no idea what any of that meant but she was sure it was nothing but rambling.
"What exactly do you mean by 'it's just as I expected'?' Do you mean to tell me that you foresaw this?"
"I mean, I was already right about your mother, Jeralt's past, the Lords, and that bandit attack. Don't be too surprised that I know."
"I'm not surprised that you knew," She was very much that he did at all but didn't want to give him the satisfaction that he sought. "I'm surprised that you knew and didn't feel the need to warn me that this would happen."
"Well, I was going to cover that in our last conversation before Jeralt woke you up. And besides, I too am surprised that the Ashen Demon, with her 'unflinching proficiency as a mercenary', unflinchingly forgot how to block." He scolded as he shook his head. "And now the Ashen Demon, known and feared throughout Fodlan, had died as any other human had. At least, in the absence of this Goddess, she would have."
While she agrees with him, a part of her balked at him using her own words against her and winced at the truth of them. Then she remembered 'You dare use my own words against me mortal?' and decided to let it lie.
Wait? Would have? Does that mean she's not dead? How could that possibly-
"The reason that you aren't dead right now is that I have stalled the flow of time, freezing it to all of the world but us two. You're welcome." He said, with that last statement coming out in the tune of a song she didn't recognize.
She finds it unbelievable, as much of a fantasy as this boy's claims of being a Goddess. However, she finds herself far more grateful for the fact that she's still alive after a foolish mistake that should've been her end. So she just bowed as her father had shown her, lowering herself a little with her hand over her heart. "Thank you."
To that, the boy just smiled at her. No, if he possessed such power then his claims of being the Goddess may have been true. But until she's seen it for herself she'll continue to see him as she does, this boy on a chair, a different one at that (when, where, and how did he even get that?). The boy who claimed to be Sothis was simply happy to hear her gratitude. She doesn't know why but the sight of his smile made her feel warm inside, not like how she'd feel on a hot day but one she could describe as a pleasant feeling. 'Such a feeling.' She shook her head, 'There will be time to reflect on that later.'
"What now? Are we stuck here forever, until I die-"
"No need to worry about being stuck or meeting an unfortunate fate." The boy quickly interrupted her inquiries. "I'd be a pretty useless Goddess if I couldn't undo my own work now wouldn't I."
"Many would say you already are, at least from what I have heard from the more jaded among Father's group."
"Sadly, courting death can happen even to gods." The boy merely shrugged at what she assumed would've been a great offense, judging from fierce debates among believers and non believers of the Goddess she had overheard over the years. "And I didn't even get it via Death of the Endless or Grim, just some bearded asshole." He then proceeded to grumble about dying, not that he had but because of who had delivered it to him. "At least my daughter returned the favor and that asshole is rotting in that shithole Shambala." She had no idea of what meaning any of that was supposed to have but was more than a little confused about the tidbit of a child speaking of his daughter killing his murderer, then again all were supposedly children of the Goddess. Maybe, her verses weren't the most accurate.
"What will happen when time resumes?" She asked to return to the topic and settle it. She just hoped the answer wouldn't be what she expected.
"Not a pretty sight, I'll tell you. Your back gets split open by an axe, if it doesn't kill you you'd surely be crippled. Saving Edelgard's life at the cost of your own, leaving her to accomplish the rest of her plans, and leaving you out of action, which would leave us quite fucked as well as the rest of Fodlan."
"I see, it's quite unsettling to hear," What would be worse, dying from her mistake and leaving her father to mourn her or to live crippled from it and have her father forever look at her in disappointment, she did not know and was once again thankful that she would never know.
"But what do you mean after that? Do you mean to tell me that this whole scenario was some plot of Edelgard's?" If so, her opinion, which wasn't that high due to her status but had risen a little with how she held herself in battle, of the noble fell. This plot of hers put not only the people of Remire at risk but her father and his men as well. It seemed that she planned to have the bandits kill the other heirs to powerful countries, Dimitri and Claude. It was little wonder why her father had such a low opinion of nobles besides the amount of payment they gave, when they weren't foolish enough to try and snub the Blade Breaker from what he was owed anyway.
"Ah, so you noticed something was off with her. Good, because before you leave your mindscape we'll have to have another discussion, this time about… Edelgard." He says before placing his hands in front of his face and letting out a breath. "Fun." Despite the word itself, any feeling related to said word was absent from him.
"And what is there to be said?"
"Far too much for my liking."
"Really now? And here I thought you couldn't say enough with how often you ran your mouth."
To that, he only chuckled, but this one lacked much of his mirth. Now she was feeling more than a little concerned.
-XXX-
And here comes the moment of truth, at least for this point in time.
During most of the battle with the bandits, I've been debating with myself on whether or not to keep Edelgard alive. Her war brings with it a lot of suffering and lost lives. Yet at the end of the day, it did provide an opportunity for whoever won to change Fodlan for the better. Provided of course that the Agarthans are dealt with as per the game endings and not left to strike later on. The problem with that is that I can't exactly depend on things going as planned in the original timeline. I'm in Sothis' place now and I don't plan on getting stuck in Zaharas and merging with Byleth, letting her get lost in that pit for 5 years, or letting Jeralt die anytime soon. No, Fate can very much go and fuck itself rather raw and thoroughly, thank you very much.
But what does it matter what I debate with myself when the most important factor here is Byleth. It'll be her choice on what to do. The only thing I can do right now is give her all the information that I have to help her make a choice. After that, I'll continue to help her as best I can.
"On whether or not you should allow her to die." Hmm, that comment seems to have startled her.
"That is rather unlike you to say, based on what little I know of you, or of the Goddess you claim to be. But for you to say that would mean that whatever she commits in the future must be quite grave."
"She seeks to bring about her reforms to Fodlan by ending the system of nobility and replacing it with one of merit and the abolishment of the Crest System which she sees as upholding the system she hates." I start off.
"That doesn't sound too bad. From what I know, most nobles are either corrupt and arrogant or genuinely care about those under them." Byleth placed her fist underneath her chin. "So a system based on merit sounds much more efficient than one based on blood."
Makes sense that she'd be on board with that, since as a mercenary, she could appreciate the idea of a system where competent and skilled people were in charge as opposed to entitled and egotistical people being born into it for life. Though I'm about to see if she'll appreciate what Edelgard will do to get such a system.
"Sure, it sounds noble and all but," I start to say with a grin. "Her method is to start a clusterfuck known as not only the biggest but also the bloodiest war in the history of Fodlan that lasted for 5 years. It all started when Eldegard led an attack on the Officers' Academy. Not soon after, she declared war on her neighboring countries for they too follow the very system she loathes." Ah imperialism, never change.
That got a more proper reaction out of her, plain old shock. Though to be honest, hearing that a war is going to happen soon when things seem perfectly fine would do that.
After dropping that little bombshell I tell her a bit more, about everything I knew about Edelgard's role in the future (Mostly based on what I know from Claude's route and some osmosis from Dimitri's and Edelgard's routes). About the War and her actions as the Flame Emperor in preparing for it, the moments before and after she declared it, a gist of the five years that it went on, and four of its conclusions. I also told her of Edelgard's past, not to excuse or purposely sympathize but merely to give context to why she does what she does. Then I mention a link between Edelgard's past and my own, the Agarthans and their role in all of this.
--
"So you mean to tell me that this girl, Edelgard, starts a war across all of Fodlan to take it over so she can force her ideal form of government everywhere and abolish the Church of Seiros, with the backing of an ancient and advanced subterranean society that once destroyed the continent, was responsible for your death, continues to cause trouble with their vile experiments, of which she is a victim of, and political unrest throughout history to this present time, and in the future assassinate my father? And all of this ends up benefiting Fodlan regardless if she succeeds or not, provided that at least one of the leaders of the other factions remains alive and these Agathans are dealt with. Was my recounting of what you said accurate?"
"Yes. Unfortunately, it's quite a fucking mess and will be something we'll have to deal with. Since you know, you live here and the Agarthans may come after you and your father later on."
"You do realize how outlandish this all sounds when said at once?" She asked before placing her hands on her head, thumbs rubbing the sides of her head. "Though I could see having the bandits kill Claude and Dimitri to weaken their respective countries be something she could've planned, which does give some credence to the idea of her planning for war against their countries. But these Agarthans are currently something neither of us can verify the existence of right now without asking Edelgard about them, which isn't ideal as she certainly wouldn't trust me enough to be of any help and may even report my knowledge of them. That said, out of what you've told me so far these Agarthans are most certainly my highest concern. I am no knight nor do I have any right to say this but even I felt a degree of disgust at their lack of care for human life, demons in human flesh are certainly fitting. And a threat to my father's life is most certainly not something that I can ignore."
"So I ask this of you, can you tell me with the utmost certainty that Edelgard had not planned or had knowingly acted in a way that would've led to my father's death?" Byleth's face was blank, not the blank as she usually was but the blank she was when she acted as the Ashen Demon. And though she was devoid of most emotions in this state, I could certainly feel her anger.
I can tell that she's unmovable on this. If Byleth believes that Edelgard had ordered or allowed Jeralt to die, she would kill her. Oh Kronya I'd pity you, if you weren't such a batshit insane mole woman entirely deserving of Byleth's wrath that is. That said, Edelgard at the moment certainly didn't, even though I could argue that she would later on.
"She has no control over their decisions, it was an agent of Agarthans, Kronya, who chose to do so. You attempted to prevent this but their leader, Thales, stepped in to stop you. Edelgard is only working with them because as the old saying goes "The enemy of my enemy is my friend" and, from what I understand of Empire politics, the Agarthans have control or sway over the seven nobles who currently have more power than the Emperor position she will inherit, with one of the Agarthan leaders disguising himself as one of them, being Volkhard von Arundel, so she pretty much has to work with them if she wants to work on her goal. So in a sense, she was somewhat responsible, due to helping them get to such a point, but neither knew, approved, nor agreed with the decision. Though she is a bit of a cold bitch about it when offering her 'condolences' to you."
"Very well then. Edelgard's goals are noble and change is indeed needed, but there is a more pressing threat that needs to be dealt with by a united or at the very least allied Fodlan."
I see that she's much more focused on the Agarthans than anything else, which is understandable considering the threat they posed and the fact that they would kill her father making this very personal for her. And great because this was very much personal for me too, they must pay for their crimes against decency.
"Now let's say that I do kill Edelgard, what will the Agarthans do without their pawn? Will they start the war with or without Edelgard to act as their figurehead? The seven nobles carry the real power at the moment, so they could be persuaded to start said war anyway only for far less noble purposes."
"Hmm, to be honest, I put so much thought into Edelgard's role that I didn't think much of the other nobles besides Arundel. That said, Edelgard as Emperor served as a unifier and motivation for Adrestia to fight at all. And she does have two Crests, which would make her a super-soldier of sorts and give her great advantages in battle. Also committed terrorist attacks which weakened the Church for her and the Agarthans to exploit." 'Which had her minion kidnap Cethleann for the Agarthans in doing so.' The thought of the first confrontation with the Death Knight flashed through my head, but I quickly dismissed that as luckily nothing too serious had occurred then, Flayn was still alive afterwards.
"But honestly, I think that despite her rather bad actions she does mean well and even works to destroy them once she accomplished her goals, so I'd like to get her to work with us before you kill her for things she doesn't know better about."
"I agree. Though I must say, she is awfully idealistic. People aren't the sort for peace, especially not when they're forced into something against their will, supposedly good for them or not."
"You know, I figured that you might've been more opposed since a peaceful Fodlan means you'd be out of a job."
"I am not a mercenary because I enjoy it, I am one simply because it is what my father has trained me for and is where my skills are most suited towards. And it is because I am a mercenary that I know that there will be conflict where there are people." She shakes her head before continuing. "But, I would not be opposed to the idea of a peaceful Fodlan coming to fruition."
I simply nod back as I cross my arms. "That girl desperately needs someone to reach for her hand and guide her out of the darkness that she's surrounded with."
Byleth tilted her head to the side. "And is it not the role of the Goddess to pull such individuals from such situations?"
"That moment has long passed since the time she had started her path. But you are right, I wouldn't be worth much if I didn't try to make up for my absence. And as my vessel towards this material plane, you'll have to do. That said, she still remains a threat to the remaining elements of my family as a pawn of the Agarthans. While I do not condemn her to death now, I will not forsake my children or the rest of Fodlan for her either." I say as I shake my head and let out a sigh. "But I am in no state to be fulfilling such bold words. So Byleth, just to ask. What will you do?"
"I do have another question," I raised my brow in curiosity but said nothing. "When would there be another opportunity to dispose of her should we fail to change the course of her path?"
"The way to go unpunished is by killing her anytime she appears in her alternate alias and disguise, the Flame Emperor. The absolute last chance you'd have is near the end of March, during a raid of the Holy Tomb by the Flame Emperor. The day after she escapes is the day that she declares war, though by that point the war will be inevitable."
"I believe that's enough of the future for now," Byleth said. "And besides, shouldn't you be beginning to reverse time now?"
To that I just blinked, did she do that on purpose? If so then I must say, what a cheeky brat she's becoming. Hehe, shows that I'm getting through to her. Though I really gotta curb those puns of hers, otherwise I may not be able to help everyone when she meets Alois. "Ever heard that patience is a virtue, child?"
"Yes, the fact that I'm continuing to speak with you should tell you enough of my patience. I probably have more virtue than the greatest of your saints."
"I think a time will come when you'll find it wanting when compared to Indech, barring certain fish-obsessed exceptions. And maybe Indech after some Dragon Grass, my boy is pretty chill that way. That said, you're gonna really gonna need it."
But for as fun as this was, I need to focus on turning back time.
I repeat the process of how I froze time in the first place. This time my intent was focused on turning back time a few moments and then unpausing it. It took more mana than just freezing time as turning it back required more effort to be spent and was adding in another action by unfreezing it, but it wasn't too expensive or draining on me yet would very much become so if I tried to push myself too much and too quickly.
"I'm going to reverse time by a few seconds and then unfreeze it. Things to note, currently I can't turn back time too far, only a couple of seconds. As of right now, my ability to do this is limited as is my current power, so you only have three times to use it. I doubt you need an explanation on why we shouldn't try pushing our luck, yes?" To that Byleth only nodded, understanding what I said. "But for someone of your caliber, it should be more than enough. Get ready and please use your sword this time."
"Very well. But before I go, are there any more revelations you wish to deliver so I may be confounded until our next meeting?" Ah she's coming around I tell you, a bit less stiff than before!
"And here I thought that an impending war and a new enemy in a secret subterranean society would be enough for you."
"Oh, it very much is. Enough that when my father and I have our talk I'll be joining him with his drinking. Heavily. But I meant more of your last couple of words for me."
"You know, trying to preempt me won't work like that. But since I gave you so much info on Edelgard, I might as well spill a bit on the other lords."
--
"-so I very much recommend that you look out for the guy as well. Honestly, a whole bunch of those kids at that Academy would need it too but I'll go over that later. "
"Confusing and very concerning, but not world-shattering and nothing a drink or two with my father couldn't fix. It seems that you're losing your effectiveness." And before I could say anything she's fading away! And she's smirking at me too, rather slight on her face but I can feel satisfaction with a hint of smug on her. Tch, the cheek of this one, oh so eager to get back at me I swear. Would definitely get along well with Claude if she continues this, or most of her students really with that weird charisma of hers. Yet suddenly that smug aura gives way as confusion bursts in.
"Wait, why would I be at that Academy in the first-"
"All I'll say is that you might not be out of a job should peace come. And bye, have a wonderful time!" I gleefully say as I wave and cut her off. Haha, seems that I'll have the last laugh after- Hold up, is she flipping me off!? What the hell? And judging from how her smug quickly trumped her brief confusion and annoyance/frustration and she gave me an ever so slight smirk of all things, my surprise definitely gave her the last laugh after all.
I couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity of it, getting flipped off by Byleth of all people. Tch, I'll get you back for that though woman. Hmm, how about knowledge about what she wore in the original timeline. She'd die of embarrassment from how impractical it was and the fact that she in all four timelines thought it was a good idea to wear it in the first place.
Now to more serious things for a moment.
Honestly, I was a bit hasty in calling for Edelgard's death. Commit many wrongs she will in the future, the same could be said for Rhea could it not? They have both suffered greatly, tried to do what they saw best despite the damage they caused, and in turn need great help.
But as I told Byleth, I will not forsake my children for Edelgard however.
Now finally a much less heavy but still important topic for later! Which house to join? I won't lie, I'm a bit biased towards the Golden Deer since they were my first house after all. But again, that'll be something I'll leave to Byleth. After all, she'll be their professor, not me. I certainly don't envy her for actually having to do things like grading and all sorts of paperwork that come with actually doing the job.
-XXX-
It's one thing to be told that you would be going back in time, it's an extraordinary thing to actually do so. Within her dreams it was easy to hear all of what Sothis had described, truly experiencing it with her own eyes in reality however had finally set it upon her that this was all real.
'He truly is the Goddess Sothis. And all of this…' Byleth thought with her eyes the widest they've ever been, completely shocked at what she was witnessing. Everything, herself included, had become some kind of purple before that had inverted and everything began to move in reverse rapidly.
Any other thoughts she could have were interrupted upon the sound of glass shattering and everything coming back to how it should've been, with proper color and motion returned to the world.
The bandit leader had gotten up from the ground and immediately rushed towards the first person he saw intent on cutting them down, that person being Edelgard. Said noble had stood her ground as she couldn't try to outrun the bandit leader and risk meeting his axe with her back, so she wielded her dagger and was ready to fight back as best she could.
As much as she'd like to claim that she had long since forgone it, she could feel an instance of hesitation towards her next action. Which was ridiculous as she had already gone in depth with Sothis about this.
Much like the last time this scenario occurred, Byleth had jumped towards Edelgard's side. Except this time when she had moved between Edelgard and the bandit, she had her sword ready rather than her back, and ignored the sudden feeling in her chest. With a slash of her sword, she had sent both the bandit and his weapon flying.
Once the bandit fell to the ground, his nearby underlings rushed and carried him off and ran away as fast as they could. Byleth considered making a pursuit and putting the one who nearly killed her into the ground but thought against that as she had more important things, people in this case, to take care of.
"Hey! Over here!" Claude, apparently an Almyran Prince, called out as he and Dimitri, also haunted by ghosts though much less nicer than her own, ran towards her and Edelgard..
"I'm glad to see that the two of you are alright." Dimitri says after looking them over, likely relieved that there weren't any major injuries on them..
"Same here. Thanks for the help." Claude's comment caused Edelgard to snap out of whatever haze she had been to look at Byleth with a more focused eye. As well as a faint blush on her cheeks, though it quickly disappeared.
"Yes, I'm glad that the both of you are alright as well." Edelgard said towards the two men, and then turned towards Byleth. "I must thank you as well. You didn't have to put yourself at risk yet you saved me regardless."
"Well now, it seems that not only are you skilled in battle, you're quite the charmer getting Her Highness to smile like that." Claude complimented Byleth while also teasing Edelgard.
"I am merely thanking her for saving my life. Surely gratitude would be expected for such an act, even for one with poor manners such as yourself." Edelgard said with a glare towards the heir to two countries.
"Why of course, but from how you're looking it seems that you may want to give our friend here more than just words as gratitude." He replied with a grin, somewhat reminding her of Sothis and his antics.
"Claude-" Edelgard looked annoyed and was about to chastise him before an unexpected arrival interrupted her. Arrivals in fact.
"The Knights of Seiros are here! We'll cut you down for terrorizing our students." A knight in shining armor had announced once his horse had come to a stop along with a dozen or so other knights. "Hey! The thieves are running away! Go after them!" He said once he noticed the backs of the fleeing bandits. After the knights rushed to follow his order, he rode over to the students.
"The students seem to be unharmed. And who's this?" The knight said, sounding rather relieved to see the students in their state before his voice shifted once he looked at the direction of her father.
"Ugh, why him?" Her father said as just as his horse brought him over towards her and in the line of sight of the one at the head of the Knights of Seiros. Once the knight's eyes lit upon in gleeful recognition, all the Blade Breaker did was place his hand over his face and groan for all to hear.
-OOOOOO-
Oh boy it's been a while, huh? So sorry about the wait, this chapter was mostly done since mid March but it was that conversation between Sothis and Byleth about Edelgard that had me stuck for waaaay longer than I would've liked. Was originally gonna just post it this weekend and get it over with. Though I was lucky that I found Sharuru, from AO3, to beta this fic and help smooth out any issues I had. So hopefully it won't be too much of an info dump for those of you already familiar with Three Houses but also decent enough for those of you new to or haven't gotten to into 3H.
So it's a sort of similar chapter like the last one in that events are mostly the same but Sothis' input leading towards changes later on. Also want to note that I tried to portray Edelgard fairly and think I did a decent job at it, as I like the girl and her goals but don't like how she goes about it. Though some bias may have slipped though, which I think is expected since Sothis isn't too happy with her considering her future actions and allies.
Sadly I have a bit of bad news. As some of you may already know, I'll be on hiatus for a month (Stated on my profile but will explain here. This is due to studying for the AP English exam and a few life related things) so this'll be the last update for a while as I won't be working on chapter 3 until sometime in May or even June.
Anyway, I hope you guys liked what you read and please leave your thoughts, any feedback or constructive criticism is good as it helps me improve. I thank you for reading and hope you have a good day!