A/N: I wrote this chapter in between the two papers I had to write for my midterms because I am a terrible student. I hope you all enjoy the fruits of my procrastination
I also have just reached the over 200,000 words mark! I'm still baffled at how long this story is turning out to be.
Garland Moon 1180:
Sixteenth of the Garland Moon:
"You have been in a really good mood for awhile now," Sylvain said with a little smirk. He, Felix, Ingrid, Dedue, and Dimitri were waiting outside their classroom. It had been too early for class, but Dimitri's good mood had him patiently waiting outside of it and his friends had joined him. The prince was grinning from ear to ear and didn't even mind the little nudging that Sylvain was giving him.
"It is disgusting," Felix grumbled as he folded his arms across his chest. He growled at Ingrid when she jammed her elbow into his side.
"Did getting a garland from By, really make you that happy?" Sylvain asked, clearly trying to direct the focus away from Felix and for that Dimitri was grateful.
"No. I mean yes, I am incredibly happy about that but that is not the only reason for my exuberance," Dimitri said and was practically beaming as he flashed the taller man a smile. "By, got jealous yesterday when a girl gave me a garland." His smile only grew. Felix rolled his eyes, Ingrid had a complicated smile (not that Dimitri really noticed), and Sylvain shook his head.
"You are not supposed to be accepting other women's garlands," Sylvain said, and Dimitri's smile began to wane a little.
"I tried not too but when they got so persistent or upset, I could no longer reject theirs." Sylvain shook his head again. "Besides, I know By, did not really understand the tradition." His smile left his face for a moment to sigh but quickly came right back. "But the fact that she got jealous means she is becoming more conscious of me, right?" There had been other times that he thought that, but they were small little moments, easily lost to time, but jealousy had to be something different; something major. "She is not seeing me as her childhood friend anymore, right?"
Both Sylvain and Ingrid gave him a smile, while Felix dropped his hands with a loud huff. "If she has any sensibility left, she will kill those emotions before you destroy her."
"Felix!" Ingrid shouted and he growled back at her when he avoided her punch.
Dimitri's smiled warped from a genuine one into his princely smile. He watched as his friends argued, like the outsider he had become in recent years; his body was there but his mind wasn't. Any traces of the joy he had been basking it was gone, and he found it incredibly difficult to be keeping his head up and looking forward. Putting on the mask that everything was okay, the perfect mask that he developed to protect everyone from the horror that simmered beneath his skin.
Felix was right. Dimitri knew that better than anyone else. Byleth would be so much better off without him. He wouldn't be able to drag her down to the abyss with him. The dead wouldn't be able to sink their fangs into her, if he avoided her. She deserved someone so much better than him. Someone stronger and more dependable. Anyone but him. He was so undeserving. How dare he take in delight that she might be jealous for him. She needed to be far away from him. Far from his decaying touch.
He felt a tight grip on his shoulders. He tried and failed to contain the shiver that ran through his body as he felt someone lean against him. The princely smile, he wore, finally left his face and he squeezed his eyes shut, no longer able to maintain a front that everything was okay.
"How dare you try to drag Byleth down with you!" the voice of Glenn's sneered into the prince's ear. "Byleth was never yours!" Dimitri's fingers dug into the sides of his legs, leaving bruises that would stay with him for a few days. "She was mine! I am a much better match for her!" He started to grit his teeth as the weight on him increased. "You not only robbed me from my family, from Ingrid, but from your precious Byleth as well! You-"
A different grip on his arm had Dimitri jumping slightly. He snapped his eyes open and was met with the concern browns of Sylvain's eyes, instead of the cruel stare of empty ones. He blinked a few times and looked at everyone as they all looked at him with concern, even Felix seemed a little worried.
"Are you alright?" Sylvain asked, and it took Dimitri a second to register what was said.
"Yes," he answered ever so quietly that he wondered if anyone even heard him. "Yes, I am fine." He tried to reassure them again, but his voice was still incredibly soft.
His gaze had settled on the floor, until some jostling from Sylvain had him looking at his friend. "I am sure that Byleth is becoming conscious of you. How can she not?" Sylvain nudged Dimitri, but he didn't respond. "By will be falling for you in no time!"
"Y-yeah!" Ingrid added. "How can she not? You two are perfect for each other!" Felix scoffed so she punched him, and he hissed in retaliation.
Dimitri looked at everyone, though it was a bit difficult for him to look at Ingrid and Felix. At their smiling faces, he felt his darkness recede. He wasn't able to return to his earlier joyous smile, but he could at least give everyone a soft smile.
"What are you all doing here so early?" the voice that had been delighting Dimitri for awhile now asked, and everyone turned to see Byleth and Claude walking towards them. Instantly, Dimitri's whole body felt hot at the sight of Byleth.
She was wearing a tight, oh so very tight, outfit. The white blouse looked to be a bit too small for her. Dimitri's focused was entirely on the one button that rested between the valley of her breast, waiting to see if it would pop off, and both his mind and body needed to see that happen. Eventually he was able to pull his sights away from the button to look at her tan skirt and a jolt rushed through his body. If the skirt hugged her so well at the front, he could only desperately wait and see how well it shaped her rear. Without being aware of it, he licked his lips as he stared at her.
"Like what you see?" Claude asked as he nudged Dimitri, breaking the prince out of his trance. Not really hearing what Claude said, Dimitri could only offer an unintelligent hum as his eyes were still glued to Byleth. The Golden Deer's leader nudged Dimitri a little harder. "Dude, you are staring!"
"What?" Dimitri slightly shouted as he finally tore his eyes away. "I-I am not!" The little smirk Claude was sporting, had the prince's cheeks heating up.
"By, what are you wearing?" Sylvain asked giving Dimitri the perfect excuse to look at someone other than Claude or Byleth.
"Oh, this?" Byleth asked as she twisted her body a little to show off her clothes as well as giving Dimitri a small tease of what her bottom looked like in that skirt, and once again she commanded his full attention. "Flayn noticed that I only have heavy clothes to wear and with summer blaring down on us she offered me this old school uniform. She said it was banned but she didn't know why."
"I think I do," Sylvain quietly mumbled and Ingrid elbowed him. "What? You are thinking the same!"
"Anyway, as a professor I should have no problem wearing it."
"Glad to hear it," Claude said and nudged Dimitri. "I am sure his kingliness agrees, right?" Dimitri didn't hear any of that.
"That outfit does seem a lot cooler than your other clothes, but," Ingrid said but paused briefly, "I thought you didn't like wearing skirts or dresses."
"I despise them." There was a brief frown on Byleth's face and Dimitri was able to tear his eyes away from his "inspection" of her body to notice that the frown turned into a confident smile. "But I decided to face your world head on and for that I need to get used to these types of clothing."
"I do not understand." Ingrid furrowed her eyebrows.
"It's alright. I decided that I'm not going to be submissive to Faerghus' nobility any longer! I'm going to make them acknowledge me!" There was a resounding cheer from her friends.
"I will do everything I can to help!" Dimitri said as he took a mini step toward her.
"I bet you will," Sylvain snickered behind him and the Blue Lions' leader's cheeks began to turn a nice shade of pink.
"You will need to stop staring at her to do that," Claude added, and Dimitri's blush spread to the tips of his ears.
Class had been progressing relatively smoothly. Dimitri had been extra attentive that day. He would like to proclaim that he could tell you everything about that day's lessons but that would be a complete lie; he wouldn't be able to tell you a single thing about any of the lessons that day. He could tell you how stubborn the one button on Byleth's blouse was or how perfect that skirt hugged that magnificent bottom of hers, though.
The final lesson for that day was a free lesson. Byleth liked to keep the last lesson open so that students could ask her questions more comfortably and it seemed like the quieter students liked it. Dimitri ignored the homework, that he usually finished during that time, to continue staring at her. She bent over, giving him a lovely view of her bottom and his quill snapped under his strong grip. He felt his blood rushing to an undesirable location and he didn't want to care about it so that he could continue watching her but he knew it would be quite embarrassing if he was discovered in such a situation; so he reluctantly looked away to deal with the broken quill that would be pointless to bother trying to glue together.
"You really like that outfit, huh?" Sylvain asked and Dimitri leaned towards his friend to "listen" better but was just another excuse to look at Byleth from a different angle. "I cannot blame you though. It does a marvelous job at accentuating all her lovely features."
"You two," Ingrid quietly grumbled. The slightly hostile tone grabbed Dimitri's attention and he looked away from Byleth. His innocent stare was met by a disapproving one. "Honestly, I am disappointed in you, Your Highness." He wasn't expecting to hear that and so he sat straight as he turned to look at her better. "Starring at By like that, is highly disrespectful!"
"I was not starring!" he shouted only loud enough for just his little group to really hear. Ingrid continued with her disapproving stare and Sylvain gave him a little smirk. "I was not…" He looked to Dedue for support, who only gave him a shameful, small nod. He looked at his friends and a blush crawled its way up his face as he hung his head.
"I cannot blame him," Sylvain laughed as he leaned back, "it is hard to not stare at By when she wears that." Dimitri gave the ginger haired man a glare and so Sylvain leaned over his table to match the glare with a smug grin. "Starring is improper, Your Highness." The glare quickly dissolved when the blush returned.
"You both are terrible!" Ingrid grumbled. "By, should be treated with respect!" Dimitri hung his head.
"Most definitely! But that does not mean we cannot appreciate the view, right Your Highness?" Both Dimitri and Ingrid gave their older friend a glare, who just laughed it off. Sylvain sat back in his chair and watched the other half of the classroom. "We were not the only ones staring." Dimitri followed Sylvain's gaze. "Seems like Ashe is enjoying the new look as well."
Dimitri watched as Byleth tried to explain something to the clearly flustered boy. It seemed like Ashe was trying to listen to her but would constantly drop his gaze and fidget a little. Dimitri noticed how tight Ashe's body was and how he kept his legs pressed close tighter. The back of the blond's throat burned, and he sighed. Was he really getting jealous just because an adolescent was finding Byleth attractive? He was hopeless.
He continued to watch as Byleth tried to demonstrate something with a bow but was struggling thanks to the tight outfit. Ashe tried to convince her that it was okay, but Dimitri knew that Byleth's stubbornness wouldn't let it end like that. After a few more attempts she managed to strike the proper pose and he wondered if she had to rip her clothes in the process.
"As much as I like the look and I think I understand what she is trying to do, but maybe it would be best for her to wear something else?" Sylvain asked and Dimitri glanced at him. "Afterall it is incredibly important that both Ashe and His Highness are able to focus during class." With warm cheeks again, Dimitri hung his head.
"I agree but By seems so determined," Ingrid said.
"Well we just have to make her see how impractical that outfit is for teaching but encourage her to wear it on our off days so she can get used to it and still allow His Highness the chance to enjoy it."
"Sylvain!" Dimitri weakly protested, "I do not enjoy it that much…"
A clap from the front of the class grabbed everyone's attention and saved Dimitri from another teasing remark. Byleth stood at the front giving everyone a quick overview of that day's lessons. Dimitri's eyes roamed over her, and not because he wanted to look over her body (honest) but because he was curious if she ripped her clothes in her earlier stunt. No tear could be found, and he refused to acknowledge the little disappointment he had from that.
With her review done the class was allowed to pack up and leave, and some did that, Dimitri wasn't one of them. He would get the pleaser of getting to stay after class to help her with whatever she needed. Whatever she may need.
With a quiet groan, he rested his head on the table. He would finally admit he had been staring at her all day, but he had been strong and kept such impure thoughts at bay. He wasn't like Ashe. He had managed to keep an unwanted guest at bay…until that moment. Groaning into the table he tried to think of a way of not only getting out of his responsibilities but as well as rushing into his room without being seen.
"Hey!" Felix's shout caused Dimitri to look up, though he didn't get up. The swordsmen stormed his way over to the front of the class after most of the students left, leaving the usual friends behind.
Byleth crossed her arms over her chest, clearly used to Felix's brash attitude. She gave him a little challenge smile, but it quickly vanished when Felix didn't bite back. His gaze dropped for a moment before snapping back to look her in the eye. Dimitri sat up in his chair, unsure if he should intervene or not.
"That scar," Felix started as his gaze dropped again. She cocked her head to the side but said nothing. "The one on the back of your knees." Flinching, she glanced behind her as if to verify what he saw. After that little show, everyone walked over to them and stood behind Felix, except for Dimitri, who stood next to him, but the swordsmen paid him no attention. "How did you get it?"
Dimitri noticed how Byleth continued to look behind her, refusing to look at them or say anything. She brought her arms up to wrap around her and he noticed that her fingers dug lightly into her arms. Felix stepped forward and she finally looked at him.
"A scar like that…" Dimitri watched Felix carefully, as he couldn't remember the last time, he heard such a soft tone from his friend. "You should be crippled." Dimitri's eyes instantly flew to Byleth, who again was looking away. He was barely able to register the gasps from the others.
"Yes," Byleth finally said after a moment of silence. Her arms fell to her side as she continued. "I should be. I guess you can say it is only by the will of the goddess that I am not."
She fell back into a silence, but it was clear that their intense stares were getting to her. With a heavy sigh she looked at everyone. She still remained silent until Felix took another step forward.
"I got it not long after we were separated." Folding her arms across her chest, she looked off to the side. She made her displeasure known but Dimitri couldn't bring himself to tell her that she didn't need to continue. "While I was still recovering from when those mask assailants nearly killed me that night I was released, they had attacked my father's camp." She paused to stare daggers at the wall. "Too weak to defend myself, they were able to whisk me away from my tent with an ease that I hate to admit."
Dimitri's fists were balled tightly as he carefully watched Byleth. Her gaze slowly drifted to the floor before snapping back up at the wall. "They tried to teleport me away but for reasons I still do not know, they were unable to get very far." His gauntlets began to strain under his intense grip. "So, I guess in a bit of desperation they sliced the back of my knees to prevent me from trying to run away." His breathing became shallow and intense. "It can only be by the will of the goddess that we had not been that far away from a town and I was able to get healing before the damage could become permanent."
"I was lucky that it was a group that wanted me alive. Back then it was so confusing. Some wanted me dead, others alive." She was talking mostly towards the wall, but she finally turned to look at everyone. "Now they all want me dead, so I guess that fraction won." The back of Dimitri's throat burned. How could Byleth say all that so easily? Where was her anger? She must know that all she needed to do was ask him and he would gladly break the necks of all of those, who would dare attack her.
"By," Ingrid whispered but it seemingly went ignored.
"That is all in the past. No need to worry about it anymore."
"No need to worry about it?" Sylvain asked and it was an incredibly rare occurrence, where he openly expressed his anger. "Those people have been attacking you for years! How can you be so passive about it?"
"Honestly? You kind of get used to it." The nonchalant response wasn't helping to calm Dimitri in the slightest or anyone for that matter.
"Bullshit! What is with this passiveness?" Felix roared. "Why are you so accepting of it?"
She stared at them for a moment. Furrowing her brows her gaze drifted towards the ground. "I guess," she started off strong, but her voice began to drift off, "I guess I just didn't expect to survive this long."
Gasps erupted out of everyone. Byleth stared at them with wide eyes, as if she had just discovered that fact right then and there. Dimitri rushed to her side and was about to grab her arm but hesitated as he didn't feel like that was the right thing to do.
Steel-blue eyes stared into his eyes, and he didn't know what to do. Should he pull her in for a strong embrace? Where he knows she will be safe, in his arms? Apart of him so desperately wanted to do that. But then what would he do with his burning rage that stems from the deepest part of his soul? The anger that seethes with the desire to kill all that would dare try to take Byleth away from him.
The decision was made for him by Ingrid, who tackled them into a bear hug. She screamed out Byleth's name as she buried her face into the older woman's shoulder. Before Dimitri could grasp what was going on, Sylvain shoved him further into Byleth, creating a group hug.
"By, we will protect you!" Ingrid muffled cried into Byleth's shoulder.
"Yeah!" Sylvain added, "you can count on us!"
"I'm the professor," Byleth said and her tone was much lighter, pulling Dimitri's attention back to her. Thanks to his friends, he was pressed against her, but he didn't realize how close he was until that moment. A blush warmed his cheeks but not because of their closeness but because of the pure joy he saw in those eyes, he loved so much.
"It's my job to be protecting you all!"
"We can protect you too!" Ingrid shouted as she finally pulled her face away to look at Byleth.
"Not with those terrible defensive skills you all have." Sylvain pushed more against Dimitri to rough up the professor's hair. Laughter soon erupted from everyone and that angered the burned earlier in Dimitri had simmered away.
All the friends kept declaring their desires to protect Byleth (Felix just grunted his approval). It took some time but eventually Byleth was able to comfort everyone and Sylvain and Ingrid brook away from the bear hug. After some coaxing, she convinced everyone to go get some dinner and that she would join them in a bit.
Dimitri remained behind as he still wasn't feeling to comfortable with leaving Byleth alone. Silently he watched as she organized her paperwork. When she was done, she turned to him and leaned against her desk.
"Ready for dinner?" she asked, but he said nothing. His gaze was focused on nothing. "Aster?" At the sound of his nickname he began to move to stand in front of her but was still quiet. "What is wrong?"
He reached out to touch her, but his hand hung limply in the air as he couldn't bring himself to actually touch her. She helped him out by grabbing and holding his hand. Rubbing his thumb over her knuckles he stared at their hands. He wished he wasn't wearing his gauntlets so that he could better feel her warmth.
"Aster, are you okay?"
"Are you okay?" he finally spoke but his gaze remained on their hands.
There was a bit of a pause but eventually she answered with a "yes". She guided their hands upward and his gaze followed before soon settled on her face. "What is wrong? I will not know unless you tell me."
He squeezed her hands as he took a step closer, closing the little distance that was left between them and her warmth soon spread throughout his whole body. Her steel-blue eyes looked up at him and he realized just how different hers were to his. He didn't normally see Byleth as a confident woman but when he looked into her eyes, he thought differently then. Her eyes were so clear, no shadows in them, no sign that anything was holding her back. And why would there be anything holding her back? Byleth wasn't like him. She was strong. She was able to face everything the world threw at her, head on.
"Are you really okay with leaving it all in the past?" She cocked her head to the side. "Do you not want to get revenge on those mask people that attacked you?"
"No." Her voice was so resolute that it left him speechless. "Revenge will not solve anything. I will still have those scars and memories. And I don't think it will change anything. They will still come. They will still try to kill me. Revenge is pointless."
No words could come to him. All he could do was just stare at her. How could she not want revenge? How could she believe that revenge was pointless? Does she feel the same about his revenge? She did say she would help him get his, but she had yet to reach out to him about it; not that he did the same to her but then again, he did not want her involved. But if she did not see the point of revenge, then was she worthy of helping him get his? His revenge wasn't pointless! His revenge would allow the dead to rest! Would she understand that if he explained it? Did he want to explain that?
Pulling his hand away he took a step back to stare at the wall behind her, so that he didn't have to look at her. He came to Garreg Mach to get revenge and yet he only just thought about that for the first time since she arrived. His fear was founded. The allure of the happiness that she had brought, had distracted him. He couldn't allow that. Byleth might not believe in revenge but that was only because she couldn't hear the dead. He owed it to the dead. That was his price for surviving that day. The dead deserved to have their revenge!
With a short goodbye, he excused himself. He faltered for far too long. He was no longer the pathetic little, child, he once was, he would get their revenge no matter the cost! And he would not let anything, or anyone get in his way. No matter how wonderful they may be.
Seventeenth of the Garland Moon:
After receiving an unexpected visit from Flayn, with the gifts of other uniforms and pants to wear, Byleth was starting to wonder if she should be wearing uniforms. Eventually, she decided to stick with her current outfit, since she didn't look like a student wearing it, but she did agree to wear pants at Flayn's insistence.
After acquiring her breakfast, she spotted Dimitri and Dedue at the end of the hall, eating. Happily, she sat next to Dimitri and wished the two a good morning, to which only Dedue returned. She wished the prince another good morning and he finally returned it with a mumbled one and he never took his eyes off his meal.
Seeking answer, she looked at Dedue, who had a blank expression, and she hated it. Did he know? Or did he not know? And if he did know it irked her but not because he wouldn't share the information but because it was a sign that Dimitri trusted Dedue more. And she hated feeling that way. She knew that Dedue had been a big comfort to Dimitri during the time they were separated and yet the feeling didn't go away.
She pushed her food around, no longer having an appetite and if her father saw her then, he would be proclaiming that the Eternal flame had been extinguished. It wasn't long after that Dimitri got up and excused himself with nothing more than a quick goodbye and he didn't even giver her a chance to respond. Dedue had given her a proper goodbye and she gave him a lackluster one in return.
Silently, she went back to pushing her food around with even less enthusiasm. What did she do this time? She knew had to be from something she said yesterday but what did she say that was so terrible? Apart of her knew it was a bit foolish to expect their friendship to fall back into the routine it was before everything had fallen apart, and yet she couldn't help but wish that it would.
"I do not think you are at fault," Sothis chimed in. "He is a young man and you did wear the quite exciting outfit yesterday. I would not be so surprised if he is just too embarrassed to look into your eyes after to doing a certain activity." Frowning Byleth finally took a bit of food. She didn't understand how her clothes could be a problem. "Byleth, really? Your father must be quite pleased with himself for being able to maintain your innocence, especially in a mercenary group!"
Feeling her cheeks warm, the former mercenary began to stuff her face as an excuse. She wasn't necessarily innocent because of her father. Many men had tried to entice her into doing some mature things, things she understood perfectly well. She just had never been interested. None of them had ever made her feel anything and she had never thought about it until now. Should she have felt something before? There had been a few instances as of late where Dimitri did make her feel something. Something she didn't really know what, but it had been something she wouldn't have minded exploring, if he had pursed it. Whatever it was.
"Maybe you were just saving yourself for the little prince?" She could feel Sothis' little grin as she danced around in her head. "After all you did make that promise to him. Oh, how adorable you are!"
Sitting her fork down, Byleth stared at her food. Was that really the case? As nice as it sounded, it didn't feel like that was the reason to her. It felt more like another defect of hers, like with her subdue emotions. That thought didn't sit well with her and no comforting words from Sothis made her feel any better.
Despite the rough morning, class had ended with a relative calm. Dimitri still remained distance but that was fine as she had several distractions to focus on instead. Distractions that she so desperately welcomed.
"Sylvain," she called out just as everyone was about to leave. "May I speak to you?" Dimitri spared them a quick glance before slipping out. She stared at the exist even when Sylvain had approached her.
"What can I do for you?" Sylvain asked and her eyes glided over to him. With a simple nod, she silently slid around her desk to have a seat.
Resting one of his hands on her desk, he leaned forward. "You have been distracted all day." She lightly gritted her teeth, she though she had hide it well. Has her blank façade started to crumble? Why? And how? What was wrong with her?
"Is His Highness-"
"Why do you call him, 'His Highness'?" she asked not because she wanted to know but because she need the distraction from her own thoughts. Standing up he looked at her with such confusion that she was starting to wonder if she was missing something.
"Because he will become king?" There was a frown upon his lips, and she matched it with one of her own.
"You know he hates it when you guys call him that." The frown deepened. "You didn't call him that before."
"That was because we were naïve kids, who did not know any better. He will become king. He is above us and so we must show him respect at all times."
She didn't like that. She didn't like that at all. Dimitri didn't want to be treated special; they all knew that. So why did they distant themselves? By their logic, she shouldn't even be addressing them, especially not Dimitri. There was a sharp pang of pain in her chest. She said she would challenge their world head on, but did she even have a chance? Could she even challenge it? She felt sick to her stomach.
"Well then, Lord Gautier-"
"By no!" He looked so hurt that she wished she could take back her words. "We may not be able to escape the suffocating traditions of nobility, but you are an outsider. You are free from it. So, please do not call us by our titles! Please do not force those restrictions on our friendship! Please…"
She pressed her lips together unsure of what to say. Everything was so much simpler when they were just children, free from society's harsh burdens and expectations. Maybe Lord Rufus was right. Maybe she didn't belong. No, she wouldn't worry about that. They needed her and she wasn't going to let them down.
"Alright then, Poppy." He smiled warmly at her and she felt all her negativity washing away. If they needed an escape from their harsh burdens than she would gladly be that escape.
"Well then, lets get to the point of why I called you." From one of the drawers in her desk she pulled out a piece of parchment and laid it out before him. She watched his eyebrows knit together as he looked over the paper.
"What does this have to do with me?" he asked after a few seconds of silence.
"I want you to take the mage test next moon."
"What? Why?"
"You don't like training with lances." Or training in general, but she decided to keep that thought to herself. He pressed his lips together as he stared down at the paper. "If I recall correctly, you and I have the same affinity for magic and you have an interest in it, don't you?"
His eyes remained glued to the paper. "I…" he stared but quickly stopped. He brought up his left hand, the hand that his crest was imbued into the palm of, and he silently stared at it. She wondered how much he must hate having his crest in such a visible location and yet he didn't wear gloves.
Clenching his fist, he threw away his hand away from him. "Gautiers, do not use magic." His tone was sharp, and she couldn't help but think that it didn't match him. "We use lances." She almost expected venom to start spewing out of his mouth at the amount of hate that spilled through the word "lances".
She dug into her drawer again and pulled out two parchments to layout before him. Slowly he looked at the paper and his eyes widen. He reached out to them before violently jerking his hands back to his side as if the papers would burn him. The little spark in his eyes that grew at the sight of them, vanished as he looked away.
Byleth tapped her finger on one of the papers until she brought his attention to it. "Isn't Lord Rodrigue trained to be a Holy Knight?" Sylvain was quiet for a moment before he muttered a quiet yes. She looked up at him, but he didn't match her gaze.
"I see what you are trying to get at, but my father looks down on Lord Rodrigue because of the class he trained for."
"Because he went down a path that focused on Faith magic?" A small nod was her answer. "Didn't Lambert also know Faith magic?"
"That is different. That is because of a tradition in the royal family."
Tradition? What tradition? She never heard of such a tradition that required the royal family to know Faith magic. Why didn't she know about it? Was she not allowed to know about it? She shook her head to dislodge those negative thoughts as that wasn't the time for her to focus on them. Though she did make a mental note to ask Dimitri about it later.
"Well, what would your father say about a Dark Knight? They can be quite devastating with both magic and lances."
"He…He would just think the same thing. He sees magic as something for the weak."
"He just doesn't know how deadly the combination of magic and weapons can be." He gave her a little smile, before dropping his gaze onto the papers.
"Poppy, what do you want to do?"
"What, I want to do…?" He never answered the question, but his gaze did settle on the flyer for the Dark Knight exam.
"You want to learn magic, don't you?" He said nothing. "I remember you being excited about learning about it when Lord Rodrigue hired that retired professor that one time." Closing his eyes, he pressed his lips together. "I will gladly teach you all that I know."
A silence settled over them. He finally picked up the flyer for the mage exam. The silence continued as stared at the flyer.
"Is it," he started but paused for a moment to look her in the eyes, "is it really alright for me to study magic?"
"Of course."
"My father would disapprove."
"So? He's not my boss." He laughed through his nose.
"He will probably challenge you."
"That's okay. I like a good duel."
"I would not put it above him to use the Lance of Ruin."
"If he needs a handicap than I'm willing to give him one." She sat back in her chair as he laughed a little. "I will defeat him even if he uses a Hero Relic. Imagine how much more valuable I will become after I defeat a Hero Relic. I will become the most sought-after mercenary in all of Fodlan."
He stared at her wide eye for a moment before breaking out laughing. He looked down at the flyer before looking at her. He almost seemed like he was free from something to her, and that brought a smile to her face.
"By, I wish to learn magic!"
"Wonderful! But my teachings do come with a price." He arched one eyebrow. "I want you to study with Annette sometimes."
"I will never say no to studding with a pretty lady." She rolled her eyes.
"She is really good with the theory of magic, but she struggles with the putting the theory to practice. She tends to over think and I'm hoping you can help her with that."
"If you really think I will be of help than I will try and give it a shot."
"Thank you." This had been going much better than she was expecting and for that she was grateful. "I have something to give you." Again, he arched an eyebrow.
From under her desk she pulled out a large, round object wrapped in a white cloth and handed it to him. He looked at her for a second before accepting it, but he didn't unwrap it. It took a bit of gesturing before he finally unwrapped it to reveal a nicely made, leather shield.
With every gift she gave her friends she had always, etched their crest into them because she felt like it was a way to personalize their gifts, but she couldn't do that for Sylvain. She spent hours agonizing over what to decorate his shield with. Eventually she had settled on a knight because he was always talking about how he wanted to be a dazzling knight. But now that it was in his hands, she was starting to second guess whether a knight was the right choice or not.
He ran his hand over the knight and was silent. She tried and failed to not squirm in her chair. She wished he would say something already. It was so unlike her to be so self-conscious over one of her leather projects.
"Now, that you are going to be training as a mage, you will not be able to wear as much armor," she started to say after the silence got to be too much for her. "I want to make sure that you are still safe, so I made you this shield as a late birthday present. I hope you like it."
He ran his fingers over the shield again before looking up at her. "Thank you. This is such a thoughtful gift, By." The warm smile he presented her, had all her fears melting away and she returned his smile with one of her own. "I will treasure this."
Twenty Second of the Garland Moon:
Byleth stared down at the leather bracelet in her hands. It had been her most detailed project yet, with the Crest of Serios etched in it along with a wide variety of flowers. She had never really felt proud of any of the gifts she had made before, but she was proud of that one and she hoped that Edelgard would like it.
After giving the bracelet one final look over, she wrapped it in the prettiest red material she could find. Grabbing the few carnations, she picked earlier, she made her way over to the Black Eagles' classroom, where a small celebration was being held for Edelgard. Tucking the gifts behind her back, she softly knocked on the classroom's door to announce her presence.
"Professor Byleth? Did you need to speak with me?" Professor Manuela asked as she started to make her way over to the younger woman.
"Oh no, I just wanted to speak with Ed-" Byleth started but stopped briefly when she noticed Hubert's scathing glare, "Lady Edelgard, if that is alright?"
There was a bit of a small clamor from the students and Byleth wondered if maybe she should have given her gifts at a different time. Eventually, the students hushed when Edelgard got up and after telling Hubert to stay, the princess walked towards the door. After Professor Manuela teased about not "hogging Edelgard for too long" she slipped away, leaving the two women alone.
"Happy birthday!" Byleth shouted, a bit more quietly than she meant too, thanks to her nerves. She held out the gifts and Edelgard was silent.
The smile Byleth wore started to become strained. The longer she held out the gifts the heavier they started to feel. She was about ready to just drop them and say goodbye when Edelgard finally reacted.
"…Thanks," the princess mumbled as she finally took the gifts. She showed no desire to want to open the wrapped gift and barely even glanced at them. The professor didn't want to ask about that.
Now that the gifts were out of her hands Byleth excused herself. She ignored the dull ache in her chest as she slipped into her classroom. Sothis' comforting words fell on deaf ears.
Eating dinner with her friends had helped to lighten Byleth's mood and helped her to forget about her earlier worries, even if Dimitri was still being a bit distant. After a quick spar with Felix, she walked toward the sauna to relax her muscles before taking a bath. She had almost reached the dorms when some kids caught her eyes.
In front of the dorms were two kids playing. They were running around showing off some carnations they found. They had put a smile on Byleth's face until she noticed that one of them was wearing a bracelet to large for her little arm. Her breath got caught in her throat when she spied the carefully etched Crest of Serios onto the piece of jewelry.
She heard Sothis call her name softly, but she didn't acknowledge the voice in her head. Slowly she made her way over to the kids and they stopped their game when she was close. Getting low, she wore a smile that could rival Dimitri's princely one.
"Hello," she said, and the kids happily greeted back. "Can I ask you a question?" The two kids shared a look before nodding their heads. "Where did you get that bracelet from?"
"We found it in a trash can," the kids said in unison. Her smile never waivered but she did feel her heart drop.
"It's pretty isn't it?" the girl, wearing it, asked and Byleth nodded.
"There were also these flowers," the other girl said as she nearly shoved the flowers into the professor's face.
A woman called for the two girls and they said their quick goodbyes before rushing towards the woman. Byleth watched them, the smile, she wore, was starting to hurt but she was unable to drop it. Once again Sothis offered words of comfort and once again Byleth didn't hear them.
She finally understood. Edelgard did not want to be her friend and so she wouldn't bother the young woman anymore. Forgetting all about the sauna and bath, she made her way over to her room. Byleth couldn't cry, but at that moment she felt like that was the closest she had ever come to crying.
A/N: Flayn didn't know why the summer uniform was banned but as soon as she saw Byleth wearing it she understood why. When Claude saw Byleth wearing it, he knew he needed to see Dimitri's reaction and Dimitri didn't disappoint.
I love the summer uniform but it's not exactly a proper uniform for a school setting. That didn't stop me from dressing Byleth in it, until the Dancer outfit became available.
So, I have a bit of a question for you all. I have another Dimileth story idea, a more mature one, brewing around in my head. I'm not really sure where I will go with it but I also kind of want to write it, so I'm curious if you all would be okay with slightly slower updates on this story so that I can attempt to write the other one? I would be switching back and forth between the stories (one week on Blue Eyes for example). The other story will not be anywhere near as long as this one.
If you guys just want me to focus on this one instead, I am okay with that. I don't really know where the other one will go so, I'm not super attached with it. I probably just have an idea for it because I'm trying to escape from all the papers that I have to write (I got more now that midterms are over).