A/N: What am I doing? Writing another massive chapter when I should be writing a paper instead. Oh well, enjoy the fruits of my procrastination.
I was trying to keep one year's visits under one chapter but if I did it with this year than I would just have one randomly super long chapter so here's part one for the year 1174.
Ages:
Byleth: 14
Dimitri: 10
Edelgard: 10
Blue Sea Moon 1174:
At the mere age of thirteen, Byleth was given her first personal contract as a mercenary. It was from King Lambert so she didn't really count it, but her father said she should be proud to have impressed a king enough to be given a contract. She still had her doubts about being really that proud of it but with the contract she would be able to finally help her father and that was good enough for her. She was excited as well as terrified as the contract only required her which meant she would be working alone and would spend a few months alone without her father for the first time in her life.
"Relax," King Lambert said, and she stood attentive. She let go of the hem of her tunic in an attempt to hide her nerves. He walked to the front of his desk and leaned against it. He smiled down at her and it helped her a bit.
"Congratulations," she blurted out. When she realized she had interrupted him she quickly bowed as an apology and he laughed.
"Thank you." He patted her head. "As I was saying my fiancé has a daughter and I would like for you to be her friend." She tilted her head and looked up at him. That didn't really sound like a job for a mercenary. And why did it require her coming so soon? It was already agreed that the Jeralt mercenaries would be back for the Giant Wolves seasons.
"A lot of stuff has happened to her and she could really use a good friend." She had no problem with becoming the girl's friend, but she still didn't understand why it had to be her? She was sure if the girl really needed a friend than Dimitri would gladly be one. And if the friend had to be specifically a girl than why not Ingrid?
"You are wondering, 'why me' are you not?" Her eyes widen slightly, and he laughed. "It is alright. It is an unusual request." He stood up and his expression took on a more somber one. "The truth is right now everything is a bit chaotic and there is a chance that she might be targeted." She immediately stood attentive at that and he smiled at her for that. "I do not expect anything to really happen but since an assassin was able to sneak in a few years ago, I decided to be a bit cautious."
He placed a hand on her shoulder. "I would very much like for you to never have to engage in combat but if the worse was to come I feel comfortable with leaving Dimitri and Edelgard to you." She nodded with a firm nod.
He spun her around and started leading her out of the room. "Let us go greet them, shall we?" he sang with a smirk on his face.
"Your Majesty, where do you think you are going?" asked an older man with his hands full of paperwork. The king directed her into the opposite direction of the man and gave her a light push to increase their pace. "Your Majesty!"
"A father needs to spend time with his children."
"But the paperwork!"
"Children!"
She was going to say something, but he didn't allow it and hurried her along. He guided her to the courtyard, where Dimitri and a young girl about the same age as him with long, brown hair was practicing dancing. Byleth was going to rush over to them but King Lambert held her back. He watched the children with a soft smile on his face for a bit, before turning to her with a grin. He stood in front of her, blocking her view of the kids. She tried to peak past him, but he stopped her. Holding a finger to his lips, he got her to stand still.
"Dimitri," he called, and she noticed his body tremble with his held back laughter. She could hear the sounds of the kids running towards them and frowned that she couldn't see them. "I have a surprise for you!"
"A surprise?" Dimitri asked.
"Yes, and you are going to love it." His body shook again with his unshed laughter. She could hear Dimitri stomp with excitement. "Are you ready?"
"Yes!"
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, I am!"
"I do not know if you are."
"Dad!"
"Okay, if you insist." King Lambert hopped to the side to reveal Byleth. It took the prince a moment to process everything. With wide eyes, Dimitri glanced between his father and her several times before screaming her name and squeezing her into a bear hug. She had to smack his back several times before he would release her and allow her to breath. The father watched with great amusement as his son circled her asking a lot of questions but never giving her the chance to answer a single one. Edelgard watched with a stern expression.
"El!" Dimitri yelled after he asked all his question and still didn't give her a chance to respond to any of them. He grabbed Byleth's hand and lead her to the other girl. He positioned the two girls in front of each other. "El, this is my friend Byleth! By this is my friend Edelgard. I know you two will get along well!"
"I am Edelgard von Hresvelg," the girl said with a curtsey and the stern expression never left her face.
The older girl wanted to tease the younger one about having a difficult name to pronounce as she often did with Dimitri, but she got the feeling that it wouldn't go over so well. "I'm Byleth Eisner," Byleth said with a bow, "It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."
"Aw, what happened to your cute, little curtsy?" King Lambert asked.
With a slight coloring in her cheeks, she looked away from everyone. "Poppy, said I don't have to curtsy if I don't have a dress," she mumbled.
"Poppy?"
"That is Sylvain's nickname," Dimitri said.
"Ah. But I liked your little curtsies."
"Your Majesty, it is not proper to tease a lady," Edelgard criticized and the king stood straight. "And Byleth," she started as she turned to the other girl, "do not mumble."
"Yes!" Byleth said as she stood attentive.
"It is also not proper to slouch or look away. You need to work on your form." Byleth could only quietly nod along to her lecture.
Laughter from the king freed her for a bit. "Well, I shall leave you kids alone for now. Have fun." He waved goodbye as he left.
Edelgard's stare was intense and Byleth now understood why people felt uncomfortable when she stared at them. She tried to smile but the girl's eyes narrowed, and the smile was quickly lost. She glanced at Dimitri, who was just smiling happily. She wanted to sigh but didn't as she was sure she would get a lecture if she did. Dimitri and the others were so quick to be her friends that she realized that she was never the one to try and start a friendship before. She was clueless as to where to start.
"You are a mercenary correct?" Edelgard asked. Byleth nodded and received a small glare as a response so she was quick to voice her answer. "It is most unusual to see a mercenary given so much privileges as you have been given." The older girl was silent as she didn't know what to say to that. After all these years she still didn't know why she was treated so special and she could never bring herself to ask King Lambert either. If Edelgard was going to have issues with that then Byleth was sure that the friendship was doomed, and she didn't know how she was going to tell her employer that she failed.
"That is because By is my friend!" Dimitri came to her rescue. "Just because I am a prince does not mean that I am anything special.
"Actually, it does," Edelgard was quick to counter and he frowned at her.
"So, what if I am a prince? By can do so many more things that I can. She is super strong, she protected me from an assassin a few years ago. She is really skilled at making things from leather. She always makes me all kinds of special gifts for my birthday. She is also really smart! And," he glanced at her for a bit and his cheeks became enflamed, "she is also really pretty."
A warmth blossomed in her chest. She patted his head like she usually did but instead of getting the usually smile she got a frown instead. She tried to look at his face, but he kept looking away.
"I see…," Edelgard said glancing back and forth between the two in front of her. When the attention was back on her, she stared at Byleth, who in turn matched the stare. "You have some lofty praise to live up too." Byleth nodded. "Do not disappoint."
The older girl said nothing as she watched as Edelgard grabbed Dimitri's hand and lead him back to where they have been practicing earlier. She slowly followed behind, keeping a small distance. She didn't know what she was going to do. To have her every little action be scrutinized was going to be incredibly frustrating. How was she going to be friends when she was sure the other girl hated her? She wanted to sigh but fought against it.
She watched from the sidelines as the princess practically forced the prince to learn how to dance. Whenever he glanced at Byleth, he was assaulted with a lot of criticisms, which brought his attention back to his dance partner. Edelgard was free to look around though, because whenever Byleth slouched she would receive her fair share of criticism. Byleth had often wondered if she had chosen the right decision to be a mercenary instead of a knight and if constant criticism awaited her as a knight then she knew she chose right.
Byleth didn't know how long they had been practicing, but she did know that her back was starting to hurt from sitting up straight for too long. She decided she was going to check the perimeter. It was her job to do so, so yeah, she was being a model employ. It wasn't like she was using that as an excuse to escape the ever-watchful eyes of Edelgard; nope she was just being a good little guard. After excusing herself, she quickly scampered off before something else about her could be criticized.
Being in Fhirdiad was hard sometimes. Every winter had proven to be a challenge for her, and she had hoped at some point she would get used to them but nope, it didn't help that she was weak to the cold to begin with. But the summers in Fhirdiad were nice, not to hot, prefect for just walking around. Maybe she could convince the others to go for a walk. That would save Dimitri and maybe help Edelgard relax.
Everything was so peaceful that she nearly forgot what she was doing. She believed she wouldn't have to worry about any threats; the assassin had been a special case that both Dimitri and she made themselves vulnerable too. Taking a moment, she allowed herself a small break and sat in the hedges to enjoy the gentle breeze and the smell of the flowers. She decided that Fhirdiad in the summer was the best.
"Did you hear? The king brought the prince's mistress back early," said a woman from behind the hedges.
"No, and with the current controversies going on now. He's just asking for trouble," said another woman.
She didn't bother looking over the hedges to see who it was as she was sure it was just some maids passing by. Her cheeks did burn at the word mistress. Now that she knew what the word meant, it made her feel awkward around Dimitri when she remembered it. She knew she wasn't being groomed to be one, but it didn't help to not make herself feel uncomfortable sometimes; and it made her question some of King Lambert's actions. She buried her face into her knees, she didn't want to admit it, but it did hurt to know that no one expected her to anything more than a mistress. Why couldn't she be considered a queen candidate?
"Oh my!" a new voice spoke, and it was much closer. She shot her head up and looked up to see a beautiful woman before her. The lady had long brown hair and lavender eyes, she wore a stunning red dress. Byleth had never seen a woman so beautiful and yet she looked so sad.
"What are you doing there, child?" It was only then, did Byleth realized she had tucked herself into the bushes out of habit from all the time she played hide and seek with Dimitri.
Quickly she crawled out of her little hiding spot and bowed. "I'm sorry for startling you," Byleth said.
"Where is your mother?"
"She passed when I was just a baby."
The lady took on an even softer look as she made her way over to the young girl. She pulled a leaf out of Byleth's hair. "I am sorry to hear that dear." She then proceeded to smooth down Byleth's messy hair.
"It's alright…I didn't really know her…" She felt weird admitting it but as hard as she tried, she had a hard time feeling anything for the woman that she never met. She didn't know if it was because she was just heartless or another one of her emotion issues. She was afraid to tell her father about it, in case he come to hate her.
The lady patted her head. "Does your father miss her?"
"Yes, but he doesn't really talk about her often." She's only heard bits and pieces about her mother. Like that she liked tea and flowers and in a way that did help her feel a little closer to her. "He says I look like her."
"You must be a wonderful treasure to him then."
"Really?" Byleth looked into the lady's eyes suddenly, startling her a bit. "I've always been afraid that my looks bothered him."
"And what makes you believe that my dear?"
"Because he would always look sadly at me from time to time." Unable to maintain eye contact any longer, Byleth looked at the ground.
The lady cupped the young girl's face and gently made her look up. "He must have loved her dearly. And I am sure that you and looking like your mother is a wonderful thing for him."
"Really?" Byleth's voice was barely a soft whisper.
The lady smiled down at her and she finally didn't look so sad. "I am positive. You should ask him." Unable to find her voice, Byleth could only nod.
Releasing her the lady made her way over to the little table the accentuated the area and Byleth realized she needed to break her little habit quickly if she chosen bushes over a table. All of the woman's actions had been graceful and mesmerizing to watch. A perfectly, trained smile stayed on the woman's face as she watched some birds enjoy themselves with the little bird bath that was not too far away. Slowly the lady's attention shifted back to the young girl, who only now realized how rude she was for staring and not introducing herself.
"Forgive me," Byleth was quick to say and bowed. "I'm Byleth Eisner."
The lady's smile became a bit more genuine and she gave a small little bow of her head. "I am Patricia von Arundel. It is lovely to meet you." Byleth had heard that name before but she couldn't quite remember where but before she could recall a new voice had broken through the little peace.
"By! There you are!" Dimitri shouted as he ran over to her. When he noticed Patricia, he bowed. "Hello mother." He smiled as the term rolled off his tongue.
Byleth was quick to bow deeply when she finally realized who she had been speaking too. "I am so sorry for my rudeness!"
Slight chucking from Patricia caused Byleth to slowly raise her head. The future queen consort had a genuine smile on her face, but the sadness still remained in her eyes. "It is alright, my dear."
Patricia's voice was soft, and her small laugh was melodious. On top of that she was beautiful and graceful. Byleth was nothing like that or at least that's what she thought. The young mercenary wanted to laugh at herself for thinking she could ever rise above being a mistress in people's mind. Her dark thoughts were broken when she felt Dimitri grabbed her hand.
"Mother, would it be alright if I took By away?" When the queen consort gave her consent Byleth was quickly whisked away.
She was brought back to the center of the courtyard where Edelgard was waiting at a table with some tea. Dimitri pulled out a seat for Byleth to sit at and eagerly waited for her to sit. She tilted her head at him as had never done such thing before. She glanced at Edelgard, who merely took a sip, maybe this action was some kind of new etiquette training for Dimitri. She sat down and was about to push herself in when he did it for her but with a bit too much gusto and he accidently pushed her into the table. After recovering from the little blow to her stomach, she looked up at him and thanked him and his face turned a bright red, but he refused to acknowledge it.
The tea was nice and peaceful. If either Byleth or Dimitri slipped in their mannerisms, Edelgard didn't say anything. When she wasn't under the fear of being threaten with a lecture, Byleth was finally able to look at the princess, who looked a lot like her mother.
"It is rude to stare," Edelgard said as she gracefully placed her tea back onto its saucer.
"I'm sorry," Byleth was quick to say. "I was just thinking that you are going to grow up to be really pretty." Edelgard's cheeks turned red and she tried to cover them by raising a hand to her face.
"El is going to be really pretty!" Dimitri chimed in excitedly. "Dad says I am going to need to get stronger soon so that I can chase away all the boys, whatever that means." He then turned to Byleth with a slight shade of pink coloring his cheeks. "I will do the same for you too, By!"
"Then you will need to get stronger really quick as I am sure Byleth is already very popular with the boys."
"What?" He looked at Byleth with a frown. "Is it true?"
The older girl tilted her head and then rested it on her knuckles. "I guess so," she said as she recalled how more boys were eager to talk to her whenever she was in a town. Dimitri gripped her arm painfully as he stared at her with a complicated expression that she wasn't sure what to do about it. "A man did propose to me in the last town I visited." He gripped her arm tighter that she had to smack it to get him to loosen up a bit.
"Are you…are you going to marry him?"
"No, my father chased him off." He released a sigh of relief and his gripped relaxed a bit before tightening again.
"What about anyone else?" There was a panic to his voice that she didn't like. "Is there anyone that you do want to marry?" He wasn't able to look at her as he mumbled his question.
"I don't think my father is going to let me marry anyone yet."
"But is there anyone you want to marry?" He still couldn't look at her. "Like…like Glenn maybe?"
"Glenn? He hasn't proposed so what's the point of talking about it?"
"Because I need to know if you want to marry him!" He was finally able to look at her and his face was as red as a tomato. Frowning slightly, she tilted her head at him and Edelgard sighed.
"I am embarrassed from just watching," she quietly said. "Byleth," she paused to wait for the other girl to look at her, "do you like this Glenn person?"
"Yes," the mercenary answered quickly, and Dimitri deflated into his chair. Edelgard narrowed her eyes on the woman.
"Do you like prince Dimitri?"
"Yes," Byleth answered just a quickly and Dimitri tried to hide his face by resting it against the table, but his ears betrayed his blush. "I also like you, Edelgard."
Edelgard simply shook her head and took a sip of her tea. With his head still resting against the table Dimitri groaned. Byleth rubbed his back and was asking if he was alright but he refused to speak and tried to worm his way out of her touch. Glancing around the older girl waited for someone to explain what she was clearly missing but no one did.
With the little tea break over, it was back to dance practice, but Dimitri had even less motivation than before. Byleth sat the table watching as he kept getting critique after critique and he seemed like he was putting no real effort to correct himself. With a huff Edelgard ended their dance and beckoned for Byleth to come over.
"For your next lesson, you will be teaching Byleth the basics," Edelgard ordered.
"What?" Dimitri yelled with his face bright red. "I do not want to teach By to dance!" She frowned slightly. She didn't really want to learn how to dance either but to be so strongly rejected hurt. It was the first time she was ever told something like that from her best friend. "I mean, Iwantdancewithyoubutbeingsoclosetoyouisaproblem…" he mumbled everything so quickly and quietly that neither girl was able to make out what he said.
"Nonsense! Now teach Byleth to dance!" She practically shoved the older girl into him.
He was reluctant to even look at Byleth but a glare from the princess at least had him facing his partner, but he didn't do anything else. A clearing from Edelard's throat had him lightly placing his hands on the proper spots but he maintained a large distance. Unsure of where to place her hands, Byleth just let her hands dangle at her side until the princess put her hands in the right spots. Before Edelgard left she shoved them closer together and planted his feet firmly into the ground before his face came into contact with Byleth's breast. His face was practically burning at that moment.
The prince was completely silent, forcing Byleth to try and figure out the steps as they practiced. Edelgard would mention a few things for the other girl to do, but it was mostly telling her to not look at her feet. Dimitri just stared straight ahead at Byleth's chest, with a determined look. The mercenary found the whole thing to be frustrating but kept quiet.
"Enough," Edelgard finally said and Byleth finally allowed herself to sigh. "Prince Dimitri, it is repulsive to stare at a woman's chest!"
Dimitri's face turned the brightest yet and he practically shoved Byleth away. "I-I was not staring!" The brunette stared him down. "Honest! I-I was just concentrating!" He glanced at Byleth and his face was practically melting off at that point. I-I have to go!" And with that he took off running as fast as he could, and not once did he glance back at the girls.
Resting a hand on her hip, Edelgard sighed, "I was just trying to help."
"With dancing?" Byleth asked and the other girl just simply stared at her for a bit.
"Are you really this dense?" The mercenary tilted her head and the princess sighed again. "That boy has more work cut out for him than I realized."
Verdant Rain Moon 1174:
Verdant Rain Moon had turned out to be a really busy month. The first big event to happen was on the sixth which was Byleth's fourteenth birthday. And to say Dimitri and King Lambert were ecstatic to celebrate it would have been an understatement. When Dimitri practically screamed "happy birthday" to her, first thing in the morning, she had been tempted to hide away until the day passed. It was the first birthday she ever had where her father wasn't around, and she feared that she would be lonely, but the royals saw to it that she wouldn't; she hardly even had a chance to be alone that day.
The kitchen had been ordered to cook all her favorites, which honestly could have been whatever the chief wanted to cook as she liked all the castle's food. The number of gifts she was showered in was overwhelming, she had no idea where she was going to start, let alone do with all the stuff afterwards; she did get a new shinny sword, so she was happy. When it came time for her to blow out her candles and she was presented with a massive cake, she officially decided that they had gone too far.
"Happy birthday, my beautiful daughter!" King Lambert sang as he hugged Byleth, who was indifferent to his affection.
"You have a daughter now," Byleth said blandly.
"Well, I wanted two daughters."
"Now, you are just being greedy."
"Yes, I am!" The king laughed as he released her at his son's constant instance.
"Happy birthday By!" Dimitri said after he shoved his father out of the way. He then presented her a messy, wrapped gift. Carefully, she unwrapped the gift and inside was a leather-bound book. Upon opening the book, she discovered that all the pages were empty but were filled with pressed flowers. "I wanted to make you something like you always do for me, but I kept breaking everything. But you like flowers so I hope you like this."
Clutching the book tightly to her chest, she smiled her little smile at him. "Thank you!" She was practically beaming when she said that. "I love it!" It had been her most favorite gift that she ever received. With a bright red face, he couldn't look at her any longer, but his large smile was very present.
Edelgard was the next to present her gift and it was nicely wrapped. Inside was a pink headband that she quickly put on. "As a mercenary, it will do you some good to not have your hair in your face," Edelgard said. "I apologize that I was unable to give you something more grand."
"No, this is perfect! Thank you!" She flashed Edelgard her small smile and the princess mirrored Dimitri's actions but with a smaller smile. "Ah, Lilac smiled!" The princess' face flushed more, and she tried and failed to suppress her smile, so she resorted to hiding it behind her hand.
The queen consort wasn't present for the birthday celebration, but she did seek Byleth out later that day. She gave the young girl a beautifully, ornate hair clip. Byleth thought it was much to grand for her and believed that it would look much better on the queen, who smiled and dismissed her claim. Afraid that she would break the clip, Byleth rarely wore it but still put it on from time to time to show the queen that she liked the gift and if she wanted to feel pretty that day. She didn't know how to properly wear it so she usually would just clip her bangs out of the way but whenever she ran into the consort, the older woman would fix up Byleth's hair to better suit the clip. She never said it out loud, but the mercenary liked those little moments with the queen.
Byleth's birthday had been one of her favorite days ever. The joy didn't last for very long though, as only a week later both Dimitri's and Edelgard's uncle, Lord Volkard Arundel had come to stay at the castle; Byleth did not trust him. No one seemed to hold her opinion of the man, so she kept it to herself, less she upset someone. She didn't like not trusting her friends' uncle, but she didn't know what to do with the primal fear that would settle in her, whenever he laid eyes upon her. She made sure to never be left alone with that man and would cling to Dimitri, whenever he was around.
Fortunately, it seemed like Lord Arundel held little interest in her as he would barely acknowledge her, whenever he checked on the royal children and that was fine with her. Unfortunately, he did check on the children a lot, especially Edelgard. She wanted to chalk it up to him just being worried about his niece and yet she couldn't. Every time he came around, she just wanted to take Edelgard and run away but such an action would only get her killed and so all she could do was check on the girl after he left, which only confused the princess.
On the seventeenth day of the Verdant Rain Moon was when everything truly spiraled out of control. That day had been like any other day of that month, Edelgard was teaching a reluctant Dimitri to dance while Byleth watched from the sidelines. It was nice and peaceful; that was until the assassin magically teleported into the middle of the courtyard. Luck was somewhat on the side of Byleth as the assailant was teleported in next to her, but he gave her very little chance to react and he ran straight for the children.
Byleth threw her dagger at the man's back, slowing him down enough for her to attempt to get close and strike. Nimbly he rolled to the side and pulled out her dagger and tossed it to the ground. She stood protectively in front of her friends.
She bit her lip as she desperately tried to figure out what to do. She couldn't send the children away because of the chance of another assassin teleporting in. And there was the lunacy of the assassin's actions that threw her off more. He teleported into a castle's courtyard in the middle of a bright day would have been suicidal and yet his timing was absolutely perfect as no other soul was around. But how was he supposed to know that? A sickening feeling boiled in the pit of her stomach, but she ignored it.
Unable to think up much of a plan she ordered the royal children to stay behind her and they agreed without a fuss. She knew that she didn't have to defeat the man, she only needed to last long enough for someone to finally arrive and make a scene. Of course, that would only be possible if no one else teleported in. She was quick to ignore that thought as she didn't have the luxury to worry about unfounded fears.
She stood her ground refusing to budge from her spot and the assassin seemed to be doing the same. The mask that the intruder wore, bothered her greatly, she couldn't get a read on him and his silence only added to her worries. The man should have been in a hurry, right? The longer he took to kill the children the greater his chances of being discovered, right? Or was he buying time until another assassin arrived? Gritting her teeth, she dug her back foot into the ground and tighten her hold on her sword. What was she supposed to do?
The assailant made the first move by casting fire. She muttered an unknown Alymran curse, one of her father's mercenaries liked to use, as she slashed the fire out. She had little experience when it came to fighting spellcasters and she wasn't going to get any time to adjust because while she was distracted with the spell the man had rushed forward and slashed at her, right when the fire dissipated. With no time to react she tried to step back but bumped into Elelgard, which allowed him to slash across her chest and ripped her tunic open a little. In an attempt to counter she tried to jab the hilt of her sword into his side, but he skillfully dodged out of the way.
A shiver ran down the mercenary's spine. The blasted mask still shielded the assailant's eyes from her, but she could feel the air around him change. He charged again but this time at a greater speed. She swung her sword down, but he blocked it with his dagger and before she could pull back, he grabbed the blade and channeled thunder magic through it. She cried out as her entire body tensed, forcing her to release her weapon. She did not let the moment go entirely in his favor as she managed to ram her fist into his side forcing him to drop her sword but in return his dagger slashed across her cheek.
After his dagger came into contact with her face, she grabbed his wrist to prevent him from escaping her knee that crashed into his stomach, and finally she was able to get a sound from him, a gasp for air. His free arm grabbed her hair and tossed her behind him, removing the last little barrier that protected the children.
Much to her surprise and delight the man came after her. Grabbing her by the neck he slammed her against the ground, which his other hand tore more of her tunic. She reached for his mask, but he just tightened his grip on her neck shifting her attention away. Suddenly a sword was swung at him and it forced him off and to back away.
"Stay away from Byleth!" Dimitri ordered standing between the assassin and her. He held her sword before him in a stance she had drilled into him, long ago.
It took her a moment to catch her breath before she could get onto her feet. Never taking her eyes off the man she carefully took her sword back and stood before Dimitri. She glanced at Edelgard to see if she was alright and noticed that her normally strong confidence was gone, as she watched Byleth with wide, tearful eyes.
Caution be damned, Byleth decided. If the assassin was waiting for another to come than she needed to defeat that one now. She charged; her sword tucked back for a quick strike when ready. The mage tossed another fireball her way, and she was forced to slash at it, less Dimitri get hit by it, which left her open to the enemy. He was aiming at her side but she sunk her arm down to take the hit instead. She slammed the hilt of her sword against his head, crackling the mask a little.
The man stumbled back, and she pressed forward. She swung down and her crest activated upon impact with his dagger. She could feel the strange flow of energy leave her and travel into the man, momentarily paralyzing him. Finishing the fight once and for all, she twisted her sword upward, slashing him across his chest but she was careful to keep the cut shallow as so not kill him. The man dropped to the ground unconscious.
Dimitri and Edelgard were quick to run to the older girl's side, once she dropped her guard. Dimitri was at her side to help support her when she was about to collapse. She patted Edelgard's head in hopes of ending the young girl's tears.
"What is going on here?" a loud, angry voice yelled as it entered the courtyard. Lord Arundel along with two knights walked over to everyone. Upon noticing the unconscious man, a knight rushed over to it, while the other rushed to the kids.
"Byleth defeated an assassin," Dimitri said but remained glued to her side.
Lord Arundel walked over to them and looked down at Byleth, who in turn fought the urge to squirm under his gaze. "Girl," he started as his eyes drifted to her torn tunic, "what sort of crest is that?"
She glanced down at her chest and her eyes widen at just how much of her chest was revealed, and nearly all of her crest was exposed. Dimitri quickly removed his little shoulder cape and gave it to her; she wasn't able to wear it properly, but she was able to at least cover her chest. She gave him a thanks before addressing the older man.
"It may look like a crest, but I assure you it's just a tattoo," she said, reciting a lie her father and engrained in her, in case her crest was ever scene. "When I was younger, I got a nasty scar down by chest and in order to cover it up, I got a tattoo."
He said nothing as his eyes narrowed and she struggled to maintain an indifferent expression. Saying nothing he took out a handkerchief and roughly rubbed it against her cheek. To everyone it looked like he was trying to help her, but she knew differently, but she didn't know what he was doing. She watched as he carefully pocketed the now blood-soaked handkerchief. Her lips thinned into a thin line as she watched him order for someone to get a healer and walked away; not once did he ever properly check on his relatives.
The knight that was checking over the children was the one to fetch a healer, while the other remained behind to keep an eye on the things. Edelgard gave Byleth a pointed stare as Dimitri helped Byleth sit down. The prince fussed over his friend, who tiredly rested against him.
"Why did you lie?" Edelgard finally asked and Dimitri froze. "That is a crest. I saw it activate and everything."
"El….it is complicated," Dimitri settled on saying when nothing else came to his mind. The princess folded her arms across her chest and narrowed her eyes.
"My crest is dangerous," Byleth said as she matched Edelgard's stare, "In order to protect me it was decided that I should keep my crest a secret. I'm sorry for not telling you."
Dropping her hands to her side Edelgard let out a small sigh. "You did save my life so I shall keep it a secret too." Byleth nodded as she could feel her drowsiness take over. "Oh Byleth," the said girl only slight perked up at her name, "thank you for saving me." She nodded her head before slipping away into unconsciousness.
The next day, Lord Arundel caused an uproar over the assassin and there was little King Lambert could argue against. Byleth kept quiet throughout the entire proceedings that she was forced to sit through as she was a witness. A nagging suspicion had been bothering her after the lord showed up after the assassin had been dealt with, and that was that he was somehow involved; of course, she had no proof to back up her claim. But the assassin had struck at the time that the lord would usually visit; a time that she realized, upon looking back on it, was a time when the courtyard was usually empty. And then there were the knights. He never had knights with him before and yet the one time they actually needed them; he had some? It was far too much of a coincidence for her liking but after the assassin managed to kill himself with a hidden poison, she had no substantial proof to back up her claim so she couldn't say anything.
Two days after the uproar, Lord Arundel was returning to the Empire with his niece. He would not listen to any objections and was quick to remind everyone that Edelgard was a princess of the Empire first and foremost. Both Dimitri and the queen consort were devastated of losing Edelgard, but the queen hid it incredibly well; only showing the tiniest hint of emotion when she had run across Byleth in a hallway later that day. Edelgard remained strong during the whole goodbye but Byleth could tell that it was all a front.
The mercenary stood a bit way back from Dimitri and Edelgard, watching as he gave her a dagger. She twirled her own gift in her hands, a hastily made leather patch with lilac engraved onto it as she didn't really have any time to make anything to extravagant. She patiently waited for her turn.
A shiver ran down her spine when a large hand wrapped around her shoulders to grasp it. Instantly, she recognized the rings on the hand and slowly she looked up to see their owner, Lord Arundel. His hand slide along her shoulders as he stood in front of her, blocking her view of her friends. Placing both hands on her shoulders, he effectively sealed her in place. With wide eyes all she could do was helplessly stare up at him.
"Child, you have demonstrated that you are quite skilled," he said as he increased his grip ever so slightly. "Your skills would be better suited for the Empire. Join me."
"I can't," she said. She was glad that she was able to say anything, even if her voice was incredibly weak. When his eyes narrowed, she squeezed her gift but managed to maintain eye contact.
"If it is money, you desire then the Empire will be able to pay you handsomely. Far better than what the Kingdom will offer." His grip was strong, and she struggled to maintain eye contact.
"I-I can't," she repeated, and her voice was so soft she feared he didn't hear it.
"Can I help you with something Lord Arundel?" King Lambert asked from right behind her. She nearly cried out of relief at the sound of his voice.
Lord Arundel's grip left her and was replaced by King Lambert's gentle one. Slowly the tension left her body and she was able to look away from the lord to the king, who was staring at the other man with an unreadable expression. After a few seconds, the lord finally steeped back giving her the space she so greatly desired.
"She proved to be quite skilled and I was just seeing if she would be willing to join us in the Empire," Lord Arundel said.
"Have I not provided enough knights for your journey?"
"You have, Your Majesty. I was just thinking about what to do after they return home."
"I see. Well you will have to forgive me but Byleth has been placed in my care so I cannot allow her to journey with you." That was the end of that conversation.
After the conversation Byleth was able to give Edelgard her gift and say her goodbyes. She felt horrible after the princess left. She felt like she had abandoned her friend. Edelgard had never once voiced a negative thought about her uncle and Byleth was really hoping that she was just getting the wrong impression of the lord. But she knew better, she knew that Edelgard was keeping a lot to herself…She prayed to the goddess to watch over her friend that night.
That night Byleth had packed her bags and was ready to go say her own goodbyes. With Edelgard gone, her contract was finished so she would need to return to her father. So, with her one bag pack, she stood in King Lambert's office, who looked amused, with Dimitri, who was not happy about losing another friend.
"What are you doing?" King Lambert asked as he rested his head on the palm of his hand.
"I'm here to say goodbye," she simply answered.
"Why?" She furrowed her eyebrows at that question.
"Because my contract is up?"
Chuckling he walked around his desk to stand before the children. "By, your father is still in Alliance territory, right?" She nodded. Her last letter from her father stated that his mission had been taking longer than expected but everything was alright. "You do not honestly believe that I am going to let you travel there all by yourself?" She frowned. "Your father has agreed to let you stay here until his return during the Wyvern Moon."
"I get to stay with By longer!" Dimitri yelled and captured her in a bear hug but was quick to release her and was beat red. He had been acting weird since their reunion but because of Edelgard she never had a proper chance to ask him about it.
"Alright you two, now run along. I have a lot of work to do," King Lambert said as he escorted them out of his office. "By, this will be your home for the next few months, please make yourself at home, okay?" She nodded and said her goodnights.
Now that she was staying Dimitri carried her bag and was being the ever-good gentleman as he escorted her back to her room. Starting that year, they were no longer allowed to share a bed together, so she had been given her own room. It wasn't that close the prince's as he would have liked but it was the first room, she could ever call her own so Dimitri didn't object.
It was supposed to be a simple night. She was going to unpack, write a letter to her father about everything, and go to sleep; simple, except for the kidnapper. For most of their walk Dimitri had taken the lead but for one little instance she had charged a head of him in a little tease and ran right into the arms of a man that had just teleported in right before them. A hand wrapped around her mouth silencing her and she could feel a dark pull of energy surrounding her. In a last-ditch effort, she threw her hand out towards Dimitri, who latched onto it. It was only thanks to his monstrous strength that the kidnapping failed, but the man escaped.
The separate sleeping arrangements were immediately disregarded as she was once again staying in Dimitri's room, now with two knights stationed just outside. For about a week everything was fine, she was even starting to feel a bit comfortable enough to be left alone, Dimitri did not feel the same. With no information about either the assassin or the kidnapper coming to light, the prince never left her side.
It took her a bit of time to drift off to sleep at night, but she was finally able to, but it rarely lasted for long and that night gave her a good reason for the short sleep. She was awoken to a sweet-smelling cloth being pressed against her mouth. With wide eyes she stared forward but all she could barely make out was the back of a sleeping Dimitri. Her instincts kicked in as she stopped breathing and pulled out her dagger than she kept under her pillow. She jabbed the dagger into the arm of her attacker, freeing herself. She quickly tried to get up but stumbled back falling onto Dimitri, waking him. She realized that she had reacted to late and wouldn't be able to do anything at that moment.
Strong arms wrapped around her as the prince pulled her towards him. She shouted for the guards and within seconds they were storming into the room. One tossed a hand axe at the intruder, preventing him from escaping but just like what happened with the assassin he was quick to silence himself by ingesting a poison. Byleth tried to remain conscious but whatever she had breathed in had won over her will. She drifted off to the desperate cries of Dimitri begging her to stay awake.
King Lambert had acted quickly and sent both Dimitri and Byleth to the Fraldarius castle in the dead of that night. He had complete confidence that Rodrigue would be able to handle the sudden request and keep the children safe. A noticed was then sent to the school of sorcery to have every high-level mage come to the castle and construct a magic barrier around it.
The next day Byleth awoke in a strange bed. She barely allowed her body to adjust to awakening before she bolted out of the room and crashed against someone. Panicking she reached for her dagger that was gone and the color drained from her face. Strong arms held hers sealing her in place.
"Whoa there, calm down," said a familiar voice. She looked up and finally noticed who she had collided into, Glenn. "I guess having the prince share the bed with you wouldn't be enough to calm you after waking up in an unexpected place. I told them." Her eyes widen and she glanced back at the room, she just left, and she could just make out a groggery Dimitri waking up. Her eyes flew back to Glenn trying to comprehend everything. He smiled down at her and rubbed her arms.
"It is going to be alright now. You are at the Fraldarius castle. Do not worry, you are safe." All the fear and tension left her body all at once and she collapsed against Glenn. He laughed before picking her up and carrying her back to her bed. Gently he placed her on the bed and smoothed some of her bedhead down. "I will not let anything bad happen to you, while you are here. I promise." She felt her cheeks warm and her stomach was twisting itself around, but she felt at peace.
A/N: Okay, I think I'm just being unnecessarily cruel to Byleth. I keep promising her easier chapters and then bam, a dark side takes over me and I give her a rough time.
To everyone who liked, read, commented on my story. I want to offer you my sincere thanks. I'm starting a new period in my life and it has been stressful, but you all have given me the motivation to continue an. So, thank you all so much!