5/21 Gardland Moon

Byleth, opened his eyes. The day of the tournament had arrived. He changed his clothes and checked the armor he was going to wear. Looking satisfied at the state of it, he put it on him.

He waited in front of the Black Eagle´s class until she arrived. She was wearing a heavier armor than his. Its crimson color dazzled him.

"Good morning Edelgard, is that a new armor?"

"Yes, it is, newly forged and sent from the armories of Enbarr. I sent Hubert to get it, as it is adapted to my body and I thought it was a good opportunity to make use of it. What do you think of it?"

"It looks great"

"I´m glad to hear that. We should head to the canteen. Fighting without proper feeding would be ill-advised"

"I agree"

The canteen was more crowded than usual. Everyone was talking about the tournament which was going to take place.

"Hey Teach I heard you will be taking part in the tournament" said Claude with a smile on his face. Next to him was Hilda, a member of the golden deer house. "I will be taking part with Hilda, I´m sorry but I will be taking the victory today"

"I wonder what schemes you have prepared for the upcoming battles" Edelgard said with a firm voice.

"If I told you it wouldn´t be a scheme anymore Imperial Princess" said Claude while winking an eye.

"You shouldn´t underestimate the Professor strength. I´ve had the opportunity to see it more frequently and he is a force to reckon" Dimitri was standing next to them and behind him was his protector Dedue.

"I know how strong he is, but there is going to be quite an opposition. I heard that Lady Catherine is going to take part"

"With who?" asked Byleth

"I don´t know but I´m sure it will be another knight from the church. I will be taking my leave. Teach, take it easy on us" he winked

After taking a light breakfast they headed to the training room. The rivals were chosen by a draw and their first rivals were…

"Dimitri and Dedue" finished for him Edelgard. "Our first battle and is going to be a rough one, but I´m sure we will prevail"

"We won´t lose"

Edelgard nodded to his reply "Just the response I expected to hear"

The teams entered the arena. Dimitri was wearing knight armor and was riding a horse while Dedue was wearing a heavy armor matching his impressive size. Compared to him Edelgard looked like a small girl.

"Don´t dare to say it aloud. I bet she wouldn´t like it"

"Sothis, it´s been a while"

"I´ve been busy with sleeping and stuff. Your constant training with the Princess has grown me tired. Anyway good luck" she said yawning "make sure that you win or all your efforts will be wasted"

"We will win the tournament"

The sound of trumpets marked the beginning of the battle. Dimitri charged at Edelgard but in the last second he changed his course to him. "A faint" he thought "he is learning to hide his intentions in battle" He avoided the charge jumping to a side…

But Dedue was already on him. Despite wearing a heavy armor Dedue was moving surprisingly fast. His maze hit the floor but it was a close call. Dimitri was already preparing a new charge, but his body was hit by a flying axe that hit him in the face, knocking him down of the horse.

"His majesty!"

"Don't worry Dedue focus on the Professor. I will take care of Edelgard" blood dripping from his nose.

Dedue´s hit were strong as a mountain so Byleth tried to block the less possible amount of hits. The heavy armor made Byleth´s hits ineffective but there were weakspots on the junctions of his armor. Dedue´s hit were starting to slow down but it was taking time. Meanwhile Dimitri was full berserker on Edelgard, his lance giving a distance advantage over her.

Finally, Byleth was able to disarm Dedue but he reacted trying to punch his face, avoiding his hit he counterattack using all his strength to hit his head. Dedue was wearing a helmet but the impact on his helmet was strong enough to knock him down. When he turned to Dimitri he saw him striking Edelgard in the stomach with his lance, with a blow that cut her breath, but even then she counterattacked striking Dimitri on the chest with her axe, sending him flying.

"You are strong Dimitri, but I won´t give up on my path" she said a painful smile on her face.

"The winners of this round are Byleth and Edelgard!"

They received an ovation from the audience. He looked at her and nodded.

"Are you ok?" he asked her as he approached.

"I´m fine, nothing I can´t withstand. Our next combat will be in 30 minutes. I wonder who is going to be our next rival"

"No matter the rival we will overcome it together" he assured her. He touched the front of the plate covering her stomach and used some magic. "It´s not much, but it´s better than nothing"

"Thank you my Teacher, but don´t abuse your magic, we may need it for the final phases of the tournament"

The combats continued with unique combinations: Ferdinand and Dorothea, Raphael and Caspar, Ashe and Silvain and even Félix and Bernadetta, although by the looks of it seemed that she was forced to participate by the menacing aura of the blue lion's student.

"Next round! The first round teams will be Byleth and Edelgard versus… Claude and Hilda"

An uproar followed the announcement.

"Claude now, don´t lose your focus my Teacher, we don´t know which plan is preparing"

They entered the arena again. Claude was smiling at them a bow on his right hand. Hilda was wearing a heavy axe and was light armored.

"Hey Teach, take it easy on us. We are here just to have some fun"

"I don´t trust what do you intend for having fun"

"Come on Princess, everyone who hears you might think we are not friends"

"Begin!"

Claude and Hilda started to run, Claude slightly in front of Hilda. When they were at five meters from Byleth, Hilda lowered her axe and launched Claude with it.

"Impressive" he thought, when he saw Claude aiming at him , it was too late. The arrows impacted him on the chest and taking advantage of the attack Hilda hit him as well.

"My Teacher!"

Edelgard threw a small axe towards Claude, which he evaded, he ran towards her dropping the bow and unleashing a sword next to his belt.

Byleth was too busy stopping the blows from Hilda. She had a similar size to Edelgard and their strengths were comparable.

"You are making me work Professor, why don´t you have pity of a weak girl like me?"

"Your strength tells otherwise"

"Not the compliment I would like, but ok"

A few meters from him Claude was dancing around Edelgard, his sword was searching the junctions and was trying to exhaust Edelgard, but Edelgard´s movements were faster than Dedue´s and Claude was forced to block more attacks than he would like to.

Claude had taken advantage of the surprise effect to land hits on him, it may be useful to use his same way of thinking to counterattack. He threw his sword at Hilda and pushed her to the ground.

"How you dare Professor!"

Hilda charged at him, her axe at full swing. He waited her attack and avoided it in the last second, her axe impacting on a column and getting stuck. He kicked her again to the ground and taking ground on the axe he climbed to the cornice and when he was a few meters on Claude he jumped towards the Golden Deer leader.

It was a mere second of distraction, but it was the time that needed Edelgard to neutralize his foe. Claude crashed to the ground. When the dust dissipated he looked at them and grinned "I admit my defeat I didn´t expect being attack in the same fashion from you Teach"

"You are too harsh Professor" approached Hilda "How can you push a girl to the ground not once but twice? You should be a better gentleman"

"Your strength is something to reckon Edelgard, but I´m glad I was able to experience it firsthand"

"It doesn´t matter what schemes you prepare, I will destroy them one by one"

"That remains to be tested"

Round after round the number of participants reduced, until it was the time of the finals. Together Byleth and Edelgard overcame students and members of the church alike, making their way into the finals.

"The final battle has arrived Byleth and Edelgard versus Seteth and Catherine!" shouted Alois.

"Our rivals are going to be a tough nut to crack my Teacher, but I will show no hesitation"

"We won´t back down I promise you we will win" his eyes full of will. They looked at each other at nodded. If they have arrived to this place there was no turning back.

"Professor Byleth! I´m looking forward to fighting with you. Don´t restrain yourself or you will regret it" Catherine grinned.

"I am confident about my abilities in combat Professor. I will test now your abilities against me" Seteth said.

"Go brother! I believed in you!"

Seteth´s serious gaze sweetened a bit after hearing that.

"Begin!"

Both teams charged at each other. There was no time for second plans, only the strongest will prevail. Byleth and Catherine started a sword dance, while Edelgard faced Seteth. The previous combats had allowed her to get used to lance wielding combatants and was taking the initiative of the fight to avoid getting outranged by Seteth.

"You are fast" Catherine grinned "but can you stop this?" fast as the lightning she tried to hit him on his left, Byleth blocked it but wasn´t prepared for the punch he received to his face from the right.

"To win you have to give all you´ve got. Sword or fists it doesn´t matter!"

She tried to thrust him, but he parried the attack and used his left leg to hit her on the stomach.

"That´s what I mean!" she laughed.

…

Edelgard and Seteth were changing blows. The lance of the archbishop´s right hand was used to attack and to deflect Edelgard´s attack.

"Even though you are wearing a heavy armor you are fast Edelgard"

"I will thank you for your compliment after I have defeated you"

"A bold statement I must say. Maybe choosing the Professor wasn´t a bad decision after all. Show me the results of your Professor´s training"

"I will gladly show you the results of my efforts"

…

Both pairs of combatants were getting closer. A storm of blades and a hurricane of iron approaching to the center of the arena.

Edelgard noticed Byleth´s presence a few meters from her. He was completely focused on Catherine, who seemed really enjoying the development of the battle.

"You should stay focus"

A Silver lightning came close to her face, barely avoided by her reflexes.

"I apologize, allow me to retaliate"

…

"Your student fights well and you are making me sweat. This is why I chose to be a knight. Don´t you feel it? Our styles might be different, but a battle is a battle"

"I agree but I am a mercenary no more. Allow me to demonstrate"

As he hit her with his sword he charged his right hand with fire magic. The sword started to grow red releasing sparks.

"Using magic on your sword? Interesting. But a bit of fire won´t scare me"

"That wasn´t my purpose"

"?!"

Byleth´s blade was weakened by the use of magic fragmenting and releasing splinters on his rival. Taking advantage of the confusion he used the accumulated energy to punch Catherine in the stomach.

"Ugh!"

Catherine fell to the ground with a loud sound. The arena grew silent, interrupted only by Edelgard´s voice.

"I will prevail!"

The shout was followed by a loud sound. When Byleth turned to see Edelgard she was sweating and tired but victorious.

"And the winners are Byleth and Edelgard! I can´t wait to tell your father about this!"

The end of the battle was received by a wave of applauses and shouts. They looked at each other and Byleth could see in her eyes happiness and pride. Taking her hand he raised it, as a symbol of victory.

In a few seconds, they were surrounded by students acclaiming them. The more vociferous were the Black Eagle´s students, especially Caspar. The joy of their faces made him feel accomplished.

"You did well Byleth. I´m proud of you. You won without the assistance of your mysterious crest" said Sothis

"Crests are not what define a talent. As long as I have a sword in my hand I will keep fighting and training, like I´ve done all my life"

"For your students?"

"I think so"

"I´m glad to hear that, please continue celebrating with your children, they are calling you"

"Professor, Edelgard! You did it!" Caspar cried

"I told you there was no possible way to win in your case. Both of you are too strong I grew tired just by watching"

"Fighting back by back was so romantic I would like to sing an opera about a battle like that"

"Dorothea!" Edelgard interrupted her

"The Professor strength has been proven again, but I dare to say that Edelgard´s presence was the key to the present victory"

"Edelgard and the Professor are strong. They won´t be an easy prey"

"You really like hunting Petra" Dorothea sighed

"Why I had to fight? Felix is so scary he was going to kill me if I refused!"

"Calm down Bernie, you did quite well and I heard him say that he chose you because of the strength of your hands"

"I´m glad that you fought alongside me, Dorothea, I know we have our differences, but I thank you sincerely"

"I would have liked to fight with the Professor, but I guess that you can be bearable from time to time" she giggled

"Everyone did great, now let's celebrate in the class" said Byleth

….

The celebrations continued for a few hours. Her Teacher and she were the center of attention of the excited black eagles´ students. She was happy about their victory and watching the bonds that were blooming between her fellow classmates made her feel happy. "If it could be always like this" she lamented inside her mind.

When the celebrations ended every student said goodbye and headed to their respective dormitories. Hubert had returned earlier to continue with his tasks and she unsuccessfully tried to dissuade Dorothea from singing a song about the battles of the tournament, before she departed too, leaving her alone with her Teacher.

"My Teacher"

"Yes Edelgard?"

"Would you mind taking a walk with me until my dormitory?"

"I don´t mind"

They were talking while they were walking around the monastery.

"Today was really eventful"

"Indeed"

"It seems like yesterday the day our paths crossed, yet two months have already passed. Everyone is changing for the better, I can see it. The bonds between the students are getting stronger"

"Yours as well"

"You are right, even Hubert I dare to say, but keep it a secret" she giggled

"Are you enjoying your time here as well Edelgard?"

"If I have to choose an answer I would say yes, I´m enjoying it, but I know that these days will eventually end" her tone grew darker when she said it, but it was the sad truth. Her path was full of sacrifices and eventually her peaceful days at the monastery will end.

"Do you want to be free?"

Edelgard was surprised by Byleth´s question. "I would like to be free, but I´m bound to my duty"

Byleth remained silent, but she couldn´t decipher what he was thinking.

"It seems that we have finally arrived, thanks for scouting me my Teacher. If tomorrow were like today it would be a pleasant surprise"

"It will"

After wishing a good night to her Teacher she closed the door and sighted. She was happy, but behind the light she felt the shadow of her duty was waiting, and she knew she would always choose her duty first.

"Even if I cannot run away from my fate, is it wrong to wish a similar day for tomorrow? After all it´s my birthday. Will he remember?" She sighted again "I´m having too many foolish thoughts. I have to focus" she reassured herself as she started writing a letter to his uncle Arundel.

6/22

Edelgard opened her eyes when the sun started to shyly show it´s face between the clouds. She didn´t have that night the nightmares that usually tormented her. Looking through the window she saw a familiar back walking alongside a Pegasus. He was holding something but she couldn´t identify it from the distance. Before, she couldn´t start to wonder what was doing her teacher outside at dawn he mounted the animal and headed to the horizon. She was intrigued by it "I will ask him later if I have the opportunity" she thought.

She looked at the letter that she had written the day before. It was a report about the facilities of the monastery and the possible secret passages inside it. She was forced to cooperate with them and she couldn´t give false information since Tomas was already there. The only comfort she could find was the retaliation that she was preparing to all of them when she freed herself from their chains. "For the time being I must cast aside my feelings, but I remember brothers and sisters".

She opened the door and there was Hubert awaiting his orders of the day. However, today his expression was a gentler one. "I wish you a day full of fortune, Lady Edelgard"

"Thank you Hubert, I appreciate it" she smiled "I beg you to send this as soon as possible"

"It will be done, Lady Edelgard" he bowed

The clouds were retreating and it was starting to blow a gentle breeze, so she thought it would be a good idea to walk through the gardens. There she found Dorothea, who was humming a song, while contemplating a particularly big rosebush.

"Good morning Edie" she smiled at the sight of her. "Aren´t they beautiful? A beauty that will eventually fade, it makes me feel happy and sad at the same time"

"Even if they fade away their scent will outlast them. In a sense they won´t completely die until we forget how they smelt"

"Oh Edie! You have got up like a poet. If most men could have a deeper way of looking the reality" she sighed.

Dorothea was gaining quite a reputation as a heart breaker, but she could say nothing about it since she was inexperienced on these matters.

"By the way" continued Dorothea "Did you know that the Professor has taken a liking to gardening? He is planting his own seeds and some of them are starting to grow"

"Really? You can´t just judge a book by its cover it seems"

"To be honest, I thought at the beginning that he would be a harsher man, but I find it to be kind, even if sometimes it´s difficult to know what he´s thinking"

"I guess you are right. He can be seen as a distant person, but he is kind"

"If I can say the truth it reminds me of you" she smiled at her "Both of you have the aura of a leader and can join persons of different backgrounds together. I must thank you for accepting me, even if I´m a commoner"

"Don´t think less of you just for being born a commoner. We don´t choose our fathers or the place where we are born. I consider you an equal"

"If most nobles were like you I wouldn´t hate them" Dorothea giggled. "What are you planning to do today?"

"Nothing in particular, just walking and reading"

"Then, could you come to the Black Eagle´s classroom at night?"

"I wouldn´t mind"

"It is a promise then" Dorothea smiled "See you later Edie!"

The day passed as usual, but her Professor wasn´t the only one who was acting strange. She caught a glimpse of Bernadetta, before she hid in the kitchens and Petra was using flowers to make a purple pigment. When she asked her what she was doing she answered "It´s a custom from Brigid I use it to make my corporal markings"

When the sun started to set she headed to her classroom. It was completely dark. She thought she had mistaken the time when a chorus of voices shouted.

"Happy Birthday Edelgard!"

All her fellow students were there, even Hubert, although his face was tense, not use to this kind expressiveness.

"Edie, you should have told us that it was your birthday. I´m glad that I asked Ferdie and Hubie about it."

"I thank you sincerely for your consideration" she smiled

"You don´t have to worry Edelgard. As the future prime minister it´s only my duty to remember the emperor´s…"

"Ferdie, she is thanking us all, not only you"

"I agree with Dorothea on this matter. If you have to make a reference to your nobility for remembering a date then you have nothing to boast about"

"Calm down you two" Dorothea sighed. "Sit with us and eat. Bernie has made the sweets"

"If you don´t like them please don´t kill me" Bernadetta begged

"I wouldn´t do such a thing so calm down Bernadetta" she reassured her

She was pleased with the taste of the sweets. Seeing Edelgard´s reaction Bernadetta calmed down and was even able to chatter normally with the rest of the students.

"It is time for the presents!" Dorothea announced.

"You didn´t need to do that" she said, feeling a bit embarrassed but she accepted the presents she received.

Ferdinand gave her an elegant black feather, while Caspar gave him a pair of training gloves. Linhardt gifted her a book about the history of the foundations of the empire while Hubert gave her a new pair of white gloves. Petra painted on her hand a marking that would give her favorable hunts when the moon was full like tonight as she assured her and finally Dorothea sang for her a special version of happy birthday just for her in her songstress voice. The faces of everyone would be a memory she would keep for the rest of her life.

…

Receiving the final congratulations from her fellow students she headed towards her room. Her birthday was better than what she would have expected, but she couldn´t avoid but feeling a bit of disappointment for the lack of her Teacher. "I wonder where he is" she thought

"Edelgard, over here"

As if he had read her mind. Byleth was standing a few meters above her. He was riding the Pegasus she saw in the morning.

"My Teacher, what are you doing?"

"Happy birthday Edelgard. If you don´t mind would you like to come with me? I have something to show you."

"He didn´t forget after all" she thought "Thank you for remembering it. I accept your invitation but where are we going?"

"If I told you it wouldn´t be a surprise" he simply told her.

Sitting behind him her Teacher prepared the Pegasus to fly again

"Hold onto me. I don´t want you to fall"

Embracing his back, they departed into the night. The air around them was cool but that couldn´t hinder the beauty of the sky above her. Enjoying the feeling of freedom she didn´t realize when the Pegasus started to fly lower, eventually landing.

"We have arrived" Byleth announced

Helping her to get off the pegasus she looked the area around her. She was in a field of flowers and when these flowers received the Moon´s embrace they started to glow. The sight of hundreds of flowers glowing at the same time left her breathless.

"What do you think Edelgard?"

"It´s beautiful. How did you know of such a place?"

"I´ve been learning about the plants of Fódlan and this particular specie caught my attention. They remain close during the day and only bloom when there is full moon. I heard that there was a place near the monastery with such species of flowers and I spent the day searching for them"

"You didn´t need to do such a thing my Teacher"

"I did it with pleasure Edelgard. I wanted to make you feel free of the constraints of your life, even if it was only for a day. Because for me you are not an imperial princess but my student and between my students you are the one who needs the most to cherish this short period of time"

"My Teacher…"

She was completely moved by his words, her inner self a raging storm of emotions.

"When you master your flying skills you are free to come to this place" his expression hadn´t changed a bit, but there was kindness in his tone. "And take this too" he handed her an armored bear stuffy "I don´t know if you will like it though"

"My Teacher, I will cherish these memories forever" and when she smiled the real Edelgard smiled, the emperor remaining in the shadows for the time being.

….

When she returned to her room she kindly placed the armored bear beside her, her mind filled with the emotions of the day.

Next chapter will be the battle against Lord Lonato. I will finish that chapter quick and focus on the following month. Jeralt will finally return to the monastery, it´s been a while.