I posted Chapters 7 & 8 pretty close together, and it looks like some people might have accidentally skipped Chapter 7 (the trial). I'd highly reccommend reading it before continuing, it was a pretty hefty chapter in terms of plot. Also, hope you all enjoy Subaru/Crusch fluff, because this chapter sure has a lot of it. Wrote for 7 hours straight last night, and this chapter ended up turning out really good (I hope at least :)), and it's also the longest chapter yet, at 4.8k words. Hope you enjoy!

Chapter 9: Calm Before the Storm

1 Month Later

Day 338

Crusch stepped up to the prison door, her heart beginning to beat a little faster. It was silly; she'd been coming here for almost a year now, and still she couldn't help but look forward to each visit. Sometimes it seemed that she would look forward to this visits more each time.

Crusch was about to open the door when the faint sound of steel clashing stopped her. She grinned, then silently opened the door, hoping they wouldn't notice. After all, if she could hear the sounds of the combat from outside the thickly sealed door- then it would be a fight she wanted to see.

She wasn't disappointed, and quickly became mesmerized with the clash within.

Two combatants faced off inside the small cavern- although now it was almost more an arena than anything else. Wilhelm had hired an earth mage to create a series of boulders in the cavern, creating a much more dynamic fighting arena.

Wilhelm stood opposite Subaru, facing the door. His eyes flicked to her for the briefest of moments before returning to Subaru. His thin steel blade was held defensively in two hands, his attention focused solely on the man standing in front of him.

Subaru stood opposite him, ten feet away down a clear corridor of boulders. An identical steel blade was held in his right hand, but his left hand was held free. He stood in a two-handed stance, despite only wielding a single blade, his free hand held out in the offensive.

Speaking too quietly for Crusch to hear the incantation, a blur filled the air in a ten foot bubble around Wilhelm, all the air vacating the space around Wilhelm in a move that would have suffocated or disoriented a lesser swordsman. Wilhelm leapt forward, crossing the ten feet between them in a flash. He swung a frontal strike at Subaru, who threw his blade up in time in a parry that forced him to step back from the strength.

Not pausing, Wilhelm rebounded and jumped on top of one of the boulders. In an acrobatic twist he landed behind Subaru, whose blade was now woefully out of position. Wilhelm's blade came plummeting towards Subaru, who threw his empty hand up to block. A green blade suddenly appeared in Subaru's empty hand, the exact dimensions of the blade blurry. The new blade slammed into Wilhelm's sword in a strangely soundless parry.

Keeping Wilhelm's blade trapped with his own, Subaru swung out with his steel sword. Wilhelm was forced to forfeit his strike, and Subaru went on the full offense. In an dizzying display of feints and strikes from both swords, Crusch was astonished to see that Subaru had succeeded in pushing Wilhelm back.

The grizzled swordsman disengaged with a flourish, knocking both of Subaru's blades into a boulder, then withdrew ten feet. Reaching up, Wilhelm wiped a single drop of sweat from his forehead, then smiled proudly down at Subaru. They exchanged some words, their guards still raised, and then Wilhelm reached down and drew his second sword.

The two rushed forward once again, and within a minute, Wilhelm had one sword at Subaru's heart and another at his neck. But when Crusch walked closer, she could see Subaru's blade positioned directly against Wilhelm's lower leg.

Despite the fact that she had moved close enough to hear their conversation, they hadn't acknowledged her yet, so she was content to wait and hear what they were saying.

[Subaru] "Looks like I won, old man."

Wilhelm gave a jovial laugh.

[Wilhelm] "Won? I'm surprised that you were able to keep up with me so well with your eyes working that badly."

Subaru gave a chuckle in response.

[Subaru] "Against someone as skilled as you? If I can manage to draw even a little blood then that's what I call victory."

Wilhelm looked disgruntled and took on a lecturing tone, with Subaru nodding along obediently, though it was clear they'd had this conversation many times already.

[Wilhelm] "Listen son, you need to value your life more. You should never be willing to take a fatal blow in combat, regardless of the damage you inflict back.

[Subaru] "You say that, but if it takes my life to defend Crusch- I'll gladly do it without hesitation."

Wilhelm looked at him sideways, then nodded solemnly, a bit of wistfulness coming into his eyes.

[Wilhelm] "You remind me of my younger self. Sometimes a bit too much, if I'm being honest. Still, I can't disagree with your choice to protect the women in your life, particularly when you've already made a Contract with her."

Wilhelm leaned closer to Subaru, and Crusch had to strain her ears to hear the next few words. She could swear that there was a teasing tone in his voice, which was interesting because Wilhelm rarely dropped his formal attitude; he and Subaru must be closer than she thought.

[Wilhelm] "I must say, that was quite a bold move, Subaru. Most people wait for the ceremony before making their vows."

'Vows?'

Crusch tilted her head to one side in confusion. She knew about the Contract, of course. At the mention of it she instinctively touched her wrist, where a small faintly glowing rune was barely visible, the exact same size as the one that Subaru had. Regardless she wasn't sure which 'vows' Wilhelm had been referring to.

Subaru, on the other hand, seemed to understand exactly what Wilhelm was referring to, given that his entire face flushed bright red, a panicked look crossing his face.

'Wait, he couldn't be talking about… marriage vows, could he? No way, of course not. It's stupid of me even to think of that. He must be referring to something else… perhaps knightly vows? Yes, that must be it.'

Despite the internal self-justification, Crusch felt her cheeks flush bright red, and the thought of leaving for a couple of minutes and pretending she hadn't been here began to present itself as a real possibility. After contemplating, she quickly stepped behind a large boulder, concealing herself from Subaru's vision. She would stay just a little bit longer, then leave after hearing the rest of the conversation.

'After all, it isn't eavesdropping if Wilhelm knows I'm here, right?'

Ignoring the pangs of her guilty conscience, Crusch continued listening.

[Subaru] "Yeah, I know. Still, it's frustrating! Whenever she's around, it feels like beating you when I don't even have a sword would be easier than telling her that I-"

Crusch leaned forward, suddenly VERY intent on his next words.

[Wilhelm] "It might be wise if we were to speak about this another time. Just remember-"

Wilhelm's next words were spoken in a low tone. Crusch fumed silently. Was he intentionally trying to make it hard for her to hear?! She would definitely have to give him a stern talking to about this later.

[Wilhelm] "Besides, I should really get going. There's something I need to do before leaving, and I'd hate to have the opportunity slip away."

Crusch listened with a sinking sensation. Using magic to muffle her footsteps, she began to swiftly walk towards the exit. She'd barely gotten a couple of steps before Wilhelm's voice stopped her dead.

[Wilhelm] "Ah, Lady Crusch. My apologies, I didn't see you there. I really must be leaving though. I hope that you'll forgive me for leaving you two alone here."

Crusch saw Subaru step out from around a boulder, coming face to face with her. His face was bright red, a genuine look of panic in his eyes as he rewound his memories to see if he said anything incriminating.

Crusch could only look that she looked better than she felt. Her entire head felt like it was on fire, and for some reason she couldn't bring herself to meet Subaru's eyes, instead staring at the floor, walls- really, anything that wasn't Subaru. Thankfully it seemed to be an action he agreed with as he did the same thing.

Wilhelm looked over both of them with a broad, devious smile. Turning to leave, he shot a knowing wink at Subaru.

[Wilhelm] "Good luck you two."

With that cryptic comment hanging in the air, Wilhelm left, the prison door thudding shut, leaving behind two exceedingly embarrassed individuals.

It had been an hour since Wilhelm had left, and Crusch still couldn't help but turn over what he and Subaru had been talking about. It spun in her head over and over, the options racing through her head. Time and time again, her thoughts kept coming back to a singular conclusion, but every time she rejected the possibility on principle.

Subaru was sprawled out on his bed reading the latest of the history books she had brought him- something related to the recent history of major nobility and political figures situated near the Capital, if she remembered correctly.

Crusch looked down at the pile of papers laid out in front of her on the small writing desk. The Royal Selection was beginning to demand more and more of her time, so at some point she had decided to move her office to the cavern. It had been an immensely difficult time convincing Marcos, the Captain of the Guard, but in the end even he had to obey the direct wishes of a Royal Candidate.

The only problem was that she could not concentrate today. For whatever reason, her gaze kept slipping towards where Subaru lay on the bed. Something about those eyes- so determined, so resolute, so full of hurt, and yet so willing to move forward, which held her entranced. Other times they were filled with tender emotions; gratitude, concern, perhaps even- love?

But no. That was too preposterous. It was impossible to believe that he had such feelings for her- but then, what had he and Wilhelm been talking about? No. They were friends, and that was it. But maybe?

Crusch lost herself in a loop of thoughts, the minutes slipping by as her attention remained focused solely on Subaru. Eventually he looked up, startled to find her staring directly at him. She abruptly broke off, looking down towards her papers frantically.

[Subaru] "You okay over there, Crusch? You seem awfully distracted. Working on something important?"

Crusch could hear the teasing in his voice. With a slightly bitter sound to her voice, she answered immediately.

[Crusch] "Of course I am. I'll have you know that I am very focused on my work with…"

Crusch trailed off as she realized that she'd been staring at Subaru for so long she'd forgotten what she'd been working on. Subaru quickly caught on and began exploiting her mistake, the teasing tone intensifying.

[Subaru] "Oh please, Crusch. I can go to the other side of the room, if you want. After all, I wouldn't dare to interrupt your extremely important work on- remind me, what was it again?"

He gave a chuckle, entirely at her expense, and then continued with yet another jab.

[Subaru] "You know, Crusch- for someone who is literally a walking lie detector you're pretty bad at telling them yourself."

Crusch clenched her fists at her side and glared at him. Fine. If this was the way that he wanted to go, then two could play at this game. She gave him an incredibly fake sweet smile, then cut off whatever he had been about to say next.

[Crusch] "Oh it's nothing much. I was just trying to figure out what you and Wilhelm were talking about all conspiratorially."

Crusch felt an immense surge of satisfaction as Subaru's teasing immediately cut off, replaced by an embarrassed, somewhat mortified look, complimented perfectly by his horrified tone.

[Subaru] "Wait, you heard that?"

Crusch sent him another sickly sweet smile, deciding to show him just how well her lying skills actually were.

[Crusch] "Why of course I did. After all, you weren't exactly being quiet about it."

Subaru grew surprisingly nervous, which made Crusch a bit worried that she had gone to far- but this was one 'joke' that she was going to see through to the end.

[Subaru] "Well… then… I guess you know?"

Crusch answered him, lying through her teeth in the process.

[Crusch] "Why of course I do."

Subaru fiddled with his hands before answering.

[Subaru] "Well… then what's your answer?"

Crusch immediately felt all her worry return as she pondered the question.

'Answer? Damnit, I don't know! Think, think… come on, you're a trained diplomat, you should have something to say at least!'

A bit less confidently than before, Crusch answered.

[Crusch] "I believe that you should tell me yourself before I give you an answer."

Subaru eyed her, suspicion clear in his expression. He appeared to be toying with the idea of what to say. Perhaps a little nudge in the right direction would help.

[Crusch] "I can tell there's something that you want to tell me. You do realize that I'm not going to let you get away with not telling me. I am a Duchess after all, and I always get what I want."

She shot him a quick grin, making sure that he knew it was a joke but also grimacing inside. She'd tried to imitate Priscilla's voice for that last bit- gah, it probably sounded awful. At least Subaru seemed to find it amusing, though he was a bit distracted.

[Crusch] "Well?"

[Subaru] "Uh… well, Crusch, you see… For a while now, I've been wanting to tell you that…"

Subaru took a deep breath, psyching himself up. Opening his mouth, he was about ready to say something- and then he chickened out, mumbling something incoherent instead. Crusch frowned, not willing to let it go.

[Crusch] "You don't have to worry, I'm not going to bite your head off. After all, it's my duty as a Royal Candidate to maintain proper composure at all times."

[Subaru] "... i was just going to say that the dress looks very good on you…"

His voice came out quiet, almost a squeak. It was amusing for Crusch to see this side of him, so completely different from the focused and confident actions he took as a swordsman. Although, she wasn't entirely sure she was happy with the comment- and there was the telltale sign of mistruth whispering around him. Whatever he had been going to say, that was not it.

Crusch frowned down at him.

[Crusch] "That's not much of a compliment. It isn't even clear whether you're complimenting the dress or me."

Subaru turned bright red and stammered a bit, realizing his blunder. Speaking hastily, he tried to fix the mistake.

[Subaru] "No, I didn't mean it like that- I think you'd look amazing even if you weren't wearing that dress!"

Crusch arched her eyebrow, staring primly down at the flustered Subaru.

[Crusch] "My my Subaru, quite bold of you to give such a… daring compliment."

Subaru paused, processed what she said, then thought back to what he had said. Instantly all the blood drained from his face.

For the next 15 minutes, Crusch sat there with a half smile on her face as she listened to the boy stumbling over apology after apology. Despite her composed demeanor, inside her heart was racing in an excited and unfamiliar manner. Even if he hadn't meant to say it- her Divine Protection had picked up on it- he had been telling the truth.

Eventually she got tired of hearing Subaru apologizing. Standing up abruptly, she faced him and drew her sword, dropping into a battle stance.

[Crusch] "Listen up! You've said some really embarrassing things today, but in my graciousness, I would be willing to let you spar with me to clear your head!"

Subaru sputtered, muttering something about "damn you Wilhelm" before heading off to join her, though not before giving her a sarcastic "of course your highness" on the way". That one made her blush a bit- she wasn't anywhere near being crowned yet, and it was completely inappropriate of him to say that! Didn't mean she disliked it, but she stored that thought deep down.

Taking up a stance across from Subaru, she held her blade in a firm two-handed grip, her attention narrowing. Gone were the days when she could effortlessly trounce him in both swordsmanship and magic. Now it took real effort. She could still beat him nine times out of ten, but he was just too innovative to relax her guard around anymore.

Crusch initiated the fight by sending out a flurry of three wind blades, each screaming towards Subaru from different directions. Completely calm, Subaru closed his eyes, establishing his sensory network. A small green spirit appeared over Subaru's left bicep and lazily began floating in a circle above his head. The spirit flashed a vivid green, and an instant later three thin wedge-shaped blocks of condensed air materialized in the path of her wind blades, completely disrupting their flow and causing them to break off into a multitude of harmless breezes.

Subaru leapt forward, his sword lancing out towards his shoulder. She deflected it, sending a spike of concentrated air at his foot, hoping to hobble him, but he dodged backwards while at the same time lashing out with a newly formed green air blade held in his left hand.

The two danced back and forth for several minutes. Several times Crusch had almost nailed him down, but he was too slippery, escaping through the use of that suffocation spell of his to repeatedly disrupt her casting spells.

The two had backed off a short distance, swords still held at the ready, when Subaru spoke.

[Subaru] "So Crusch, how's that Royal Selection of yours going?"

Crusch grinned, ensuring she was properly set in a defensive stance before answering. This was a common game they played- attempting to have full conversations while dueling. It was ostensibly to practice their battle skills even amidst distractions- but Crusch honestly just enjoyed using it to throw taunts at the boy, attempting to get under his skin and mess with his focus.

[Crusch] "As yo-"

Just as she predicted, Subaru launched forward with a solid thrust as soon as she started talking. Quickly invoking a spell, she conjured a wall of solid air directly in front of her and sent it rushing away from her. Too late to change course, Subaru slammed into it, although a rapid spell of his own shunted him to the side, where he rolled to his feet.

Subaru quickly transitioned his fall into a roll, standing up and beginning to prowl around her like a hunting wolf. Crusch was content to let him waste his energy, and she stood still, waiting for his next attack. The perfect time for some psychological warfare. Adopting a lecturing tone, she taunted him.

[Crusch] "Now now, Subaru. Using such unfair tactics is hardly gentlemanly."

Subaru grinned, the taunt backfiring.

[Subaru] "Well, if you want to talk about unladylike behavior, I seem to recall a certain incident a couple days ago that could bear remembering…"

Crusch flushed with embarrassment as she remembered the awkward scene. She'd decided to surprise Subaru and had ordered an expensive meal that Wilhelm had delivered, complete with several bottles of wine. Unfortunately Subaru didn't drink any, and she wasn't quite sure how, but… well… all of those bottles had ended up empty, and Wilhelm had to literally carry her out of the dungeon.

Lost in thoughts, Crusch missed the moment Subaru attacked, using her own tactic against her. Two wind blades sprang into life to either side, one at knee level and the other at chest height. Caught between the two blades as well as a charging Subaru, Crusch sprang back, desperate for options.

Despite her speed, she couldn't quite move far enough. She managed to counter one of the wind blades with a spell and severed the other with her sword. A hastily incanted wind blade rushed at Subaru, forcing him to deflect it with his iron sword.

Taking a risk, she let go of her sword with one hand and moved it to block the air sword Subaru was swinging directly towards her heart. Then she caught his smile and saw the rapid flicker of his air blade, moving in a feint directly towards her now awkwardly held sword.

With a full force slash Subaru knocked the sword from her hand, then proceeded to follow up with a hook kick that connected with her knee, knocking her to the ground.

Crusch stared up at him, stunned at the sequence of moves. Accepting his hand up, she brushed herself off.

[Crusch] "That was amazing, Subaru! The sequence of moves flowed together perfectly, and that feint… almost anyone else would have gone for the kill there. But you- you went for a disarm! Brilliant!"

Subaru shuffled his feet, obviously uncomfortable with the praise.

[Subaru] "Maybe. But I still can't hope to match you or Wilhelm in speed or strength. Let alone Reinhard… Besides, I used magic. In a fight without magic, my sword skills are amateur at best."

Crusch immediately spoke up, letting the praise infuse her voice, hoping for once that he listened to the emotion behind her words and not just the words themselves.

[Crusch] "You're right. You can't match us in terms of speed or strength, and your sword skills do still show amateurish signs. But Subaru- that's what makes it so remarkable. You were able to defeat me despite all those disadvantages! That's your greatest strength- not raw power, but the ability to outthink and outsmart your opponents!"

Subaru still looked a bit embarrassed, but seemed to have largely accepted the comment.

Crusch reset her stance, facing off against Subaru once again. When she next spoke her tone was woven through with frustration.

[Crusch] "I wish I could take you with me. We're going to need all the help we can get…"

Subaru looked up, worried.

[Subaru] "What's going on? Did something big happen?"

Crusch looked worried as she answered, though that didn't transfer into her swordsmanship as she charged directly at Subaru, a the loud clang of metal on metal echoing through the cavern.

[Crusch] "At this point the question should be 'what isn't happening.' You've read about Priestella, I assume?"

Subaru nodded his head, too caught up in defending himself from a flurry of uppercut blows to answer verbally.

[Crusch] "It was the home base of that Royal Candidate who got killed a couple of months ago. I guess the Witch Cult had a bone to pick with her, based on the word I got earlier today. There was an attack on the city by the Witch Cult. Not only that, but it was led by multiple Archbishops, if the reports are to be trusted. Subaru, the entire city's gone."

Subaru's blade shook noticeably as the news processed.

[Subaru] "An entire city? Is the Witch's Cult mobilizing or something?"

Crusch shook her head as she deflected a blow that almost connected with her armored forearm.

[Crusch] "We don't know. But it's time to take action. Subaru, I'm leading an army into battle against the White Whale."

At this news Subaru's sword faltered visibly, causing a blunted air blade to slam into his shin. A moment later he had counterattacked with renewed vigor, the fear and concern empowering his attacks.

[Subaru] "Why you."

Crusch almost faltered at the surprisingly vulnerable sounding tone in his voice.

[Crusch] "It's for Wilhelm… but also, this Kingdom needs a victory. On top of the self-imposed death of Margrave Roswaal, the strongest mage in the land, we've also lost nearly 30% of the Royal Knights who patrol outside the Capital. Entire towns are being ransacked and burned by raiders from Vollachia, bandits, Cultists, or all three. Something needs to be done."

Subaru shouted in frustration, launching a massive two handed downcut directly at Crusch. She calmly stepped up blocked the blade, holding it suspended in the air. They stood like that, arms trembling, the heat from their bodies warming the little space between them.

[Crusch] "I wish you could come with us."

Her voice wavered, a deluge of thoughts pouring out all at once.

[Crusch] "The truth is… Subaru, I need you. Not your strength. Not your intelligence, or your determination. I need you."

Crusch felt her heart clench into knots at those words. This was it. This was the moment, the time when she found out if everything had been in her head.

As she gazed into Subaru's eyes, her heart froze. His face held an inscrutable expression, those comforting eyes of his now appearing almost alien. Her arms froze, no longer resisting Subaru's sword, forgotten in that terrible moment.

[Crusch] "I… Listen, I didn't mean it like that… I-"

Then in a second her protests were cut off.

[Subaru] "Crusch, I love you."

Her breath cut off, and all at once it was hard to breathe. Her brain seemed to short circuit, and it was Subaru's turn to look nervous.

[Subaru] "I mean… I like you as a friend… hehehe…"

His awkward tone tried to play it off as a joke, but Crusch had other things on her mind. Subaru was startled as the metallic clash of a sword hit the ground. He was about to turn and see what it was when Crusch's lips met his, and everything melted away.

They stood like that for a long moment, Subaru with his sword still held high, lips interlocked. Then a second metallic clang joined the first, and Crusch felt his strong, warm arms surround her as he pulled them closer.

After several long minutes they separated. Together they stood there, still awkward and unsure. But now they had each other- and for them, everything had changed.

Author's Notes

Oh boy, here it is! Been hinting at this for a couple of chapters now, hope y'all like it!

The Novel Dude: No worries my man, there is approximately a 0% chance this will turn into an Emilia x Subaru story. I don't dislike the shipping, but I've always been the biggest fan of the Crusch ship.

prabhijv: Thanks! One of the biggest changes in Subaru's motivation between this and cannon is that Subaru was heavily tortured from the very beginning. Due to this, he isn't afraid of pain or suffering- might even find it a bit satisfying (because it's proof that he's working hard to keep Crusch safe). This will definitely have some changes in the main storyline...

MaybeLesserEvil: Thanks for the typo alert! Just fixed it in the original document.

Memorysoul: Yeah, Julius was definitely having a bunch of conflicting emotions during the Trial. In his mind the decision was justified, despite a large part of himself knowing that it was the wrong decision. It ultimately comes down to him intentionally making the morally wrong decision due to his perceived duty as a knight.

KazeelBaYz: With the six Spirits, I chose that specific number to act as a foil for Julius. They are all Minor Spirits, each barely possessing any mana, so I justified his capability to get all six as a combination of 1) their lack of power and 2) his blatant disregard for negative physical consequences. Also, love your fics! Just read Chaotic Situation, and it's good!

OreosAreYummy: One of the themes of this fic is that I introduce a lot of varied pieces of information (setup), all of which point to the inevitable conclusion, and all of which will come crashing together like a massive puzzle at the end of each Arc/story thread. This Arc is drawing close to an ending, so the puzzle pieces are about to begin falling into place...