The sun shined down on the monastery gardens, warming Byleth's pale skin as she waited for Raphael's arrival. As the professor of the Golden Deer house, she had taken it upon herself to spend time with her students outside of class as a way of bolstering morale with an obtained sense of camaraderie. Her duty to her students and the monastery aside, she really did enjoy spending time with her students. Golden Deer is a house full of diversity, having both students of commoner and noble descent. It was interesting to talk with them and get to know each of their personalities.

Though she would never give into favoritism, she would admit to herself that she especially enjoyed Raphael's company. His boisterous attitude reminded her much of her time as a mercenary. She was never one to participate in such rowdiness, regardless she had grown accustomed to such behavior by being around Jeralt's company. Many of her nights on the road were spent listening to the drunken raucous of the men after a job well done. She lost that after coming to the monastery, leaving her with a sense of loneliness. However, whenever she was around Raphael she felt more at home. Whenever the silence that so unsettled her was interrupted by his loud and jovial laughter it set her heart at ease, and for that she couldn't help but smile. Thus, in an attempt to get some alone time with him, she had invited him to tea.

The tea was ready, and the dishes laid out by the time he arrived. His sight landed on her as he rounded the corner into the gardens. He smiled and waved jubilantly at her as he shouted along the way, "Hey there, Professor!"

Passersby jumped at the sudden noise, some even turning to glare at his disheveled appearance. He was covered in sweat, having no doubt come directly from the training grounds. When he sat down, he did so with as little grace as one could imagine. He all but flopped into his chair, heaving a dramatic sigh as he slouched in his seat. "Man, am I beat," he said. He sounded relieved to finally be off his feet. "Sorry I'm late. I didn't make you wait too long, did I?"

Byleth shook her head. "Not at all, you're just in time. The tea is still warm."

Raphael's broad chest rose as he inhaled deeply. "It smells great."

Byleth gestured toward the table. "Please, help yourself."

Raphael eyed the empty teacup in front of him then glanced over at the teapot in the center of the table. As delicately as a man of his stature could, he picked up the teapot. One hand clasped the handle while the other nervously braced the bottom as if he were fearful of dropping it. Slowly he tipped the teapot, pouring the hot amber liquid into his cup. He ended up tipping the teapot too far forward, and without a hand on top to brace the lid it fell off the pot crashing down on his teacup, spilling the tea over the table landing in Byleth's lap.

"Oh, geez!" he exclaimed. "I'm so sorry!"

In his haste to clean up he placed the teapot down a little too forcefully, causing the dishes and silverware to rattle around. Byleth grabbed her own teacup just in time to keep it from tipping over. Raphael righted his cup back onto its saucer before grabbing the now slightly damp and stained napkin and started wiping down the table. Unfortunately, the damage had already been done, the tablecloth good and stained. As he wiped down the surface of the table his eyes wandered to Byleth's lap where the spilt tea seeped into her lace tights. He could feel the warmth of his face as he flushed.

"I'm so sorry," he said. "Some of it spilled on you. Are you hurt?"

She shook her head. "It's okay, I hardly felt it."

Once the mess was cleaned up to the best of his ability Raphael then proffered the wet napkin to her as a means of drying off. She doubted it would be of much help, but she took it from him anyway.

He brought a hand up to the back of his neck, his shoulders sagging as he said, "Sorry, again. Looks like I ruined teatime."

"It's okay. Let's start over," Byleth said as she gingerly picked up the teapot. "Let me help you."

With the same grace that's he carries on the battlefield, she poured Raphael a cup of tea, her hand placed over the lid as is proper. Raphael looked on in awe at her demonstration.

"Wow, you really know your way around a tea set," he said.

"Not really," Byleth said as she gently placed the teapot back in the middle of the table. "Lorenz has been giving me lessons on table etiquette. I would be clueless without him."

"Oh, I see. Yeah, Lorenz is pretty good at that kind of stuff, isn't he? Maybe he could teach me a thing or two," Raphael said with a boisterous laugh. He stopped suddenly as his expression grew sober. "That's not why you called me here, is it?"

She could tell by the look on his face that he was anxious, the very real fear that he's being tested settling over him. She smiled at him reassuringly. "No, I just wanted to spend some time with you is all. Though, in hindsight, maybe I should have invited you to do something else."

Raphael seemed to blush at this as he brought a hand up to scratch the side of his face. "Oh, is that all? Well, I don't mind having tea with you so long as you show me the ropes. Maybe you can show me some of that etiquette Lorenz has been teaching you."

She smiled warmly. Her heart throbbed, as she found his eagerness to spend time with her both reassuring and utterly endearing. "That can be arranged," she said.