And now we get our first glimpse of how the Cindered Shadows DLC will be incorporated into the story.
Chapter 19 – A Mother's Grave (Verdant Rain Moon)
Jeralt made his way down the eastern side of the monastery, past the Knight's Hall, with a small bouquet of flowers in his hand. It was a rather jarring sight for anyone who didn't know the man, but no one made a fuss over it.
That is, until a certain brown-haired singer noticed him. Dorothea's curiosity was piqued by the sight of someone as gruff as Jeralt carrying a bunch of flowers.
"Sir Jeralt," Dorothea said playfully as she approached the grizzled veteran. "Off to see someone special today?"
"You might say that," answered Jeralt.
"May I ask who this special someone is?" With a magnanimous smile, she added, "Is it someone I know? Maybe I could tell you her likes and disli–"
"Sorry to burst your bubble, young lady, but I'm afraid you've got the wrong impression," Jeralt interrupted.
"Oh? Then who are they… for…?"
Dorothea's words trailed off as Jeralt turned to his right and began to walk down a flight of stairs. Though deep down she knew where he was heading, Dorothea strode forward to look down at Jeralt's destination: the monastery graveyard.
As realization fully sunk in for her, Dorothea followed Jeralt as she said, "Oh. Sir Jeralt, I'm sorry. I must have sounded so insensitive there."
"There's no need for apologies."
"May I ask who you're here to see?"
Jeralt was silent, but his silence was enough of a prompt for Dorothea to continue following him. She glanced around at the cemetery and its countless crumbling gravestones, many with wording that had long faded to time and many others covered in plant life that brought them to the brink of erosion. It was a somber sight to the singer.
But then Jeralt stopped, yet it was not in front of any grave. Dorothea almost bumped into him before she realized he had stopped, and stepped back as she moved to look around his broad frame. Her gaze fell upon a solitary gravestone, one that was in far more pristine condition than the others.
She could barely make out the words upon it from where she stood.
Sitri Eisner
1139-1159
Resting in the warm embrace of cherished memories.
And next to the grave were two others who had come to pay their respects. Dorothea immediately recognized Byleth as the teacher knelt before the grave. The other was a man she did not know, with black hair wearing an ebony robe with a crimson trim.
The man turned toward them and, looking at Jeralt, said, "I was wondering when I'd find you here, old friend." His voice was gentle and calming.
"Aelfric!" Jeralt said with a smile as he strode up to the man and embraced him in a brotherly hug. "How have you been? I haven't seen you since I left 20 years ago."
"I've been rather busy, actually. I must say, the years have certainly been kinder to you than I." Turning to Byleth, Aelfric continued, "So, this is your daughter, Byleth?"
"Yes, she is."
Aelfric took a moment to smile as he said, "She looks so much like her. So much like Sitri."
"What are you both doing here?"
"Well, I had just introduced myself to your daughter recently and, after bringing up her mother, I offered to show her the place where she is buried. Though, to be honest, Jeralt, I thought you would have shown her this place by now."
"Rhea's been keeping me busy ever since I came back to the monastery. You know how she is."
"Indeed. She's had me doing quite a lot for her as well."
"And what exactly do you do for Rhea?" asked Dorothea.
"I apologize, young lady, but I am not at liberty to discuss that with a student of the Officer's Academy."
"Oh? Why is that?"
It was at this moment that Byleth rose from her kneel and turned to face her father and Dorothea. Byleth's expression, to Dorothea's curiosity, was one that clearly showed she wanted some answers, yet without any anger to it. It was more a look of disappointment.
"Father," Byleth said to Jeralt. "Why is Mother's grave here? You told me she was buried all the way out near Redwater Village."
"Hrm? Oh… I guess I did tell you that," Jeralt said as he scratched his head. "I apologize, Byleth, it's just… I wouldn't know where to begin…"
Despite the awkwardness of the exchange, Dorothea said, "Well, why don't you tell us a bit about her, Sir Jeralt?"
Pausing for a moment, Jeralt said, "I suppose I haven't talked much about her." Turning back to Byleth, he continued, "Sitri was gentle and smart. So smart. A wonderful cook. Always kind to everyone. And…"
As if to punctuate his next point, Jeralt stepped up to the gravestone and placed the bouquet of flowers down upon it.
"She loved flowers. Whenever I brought her back an unusual flower, her face would light up. I cherish those memories. I can't count how many times she made me happy just by smiling." He then turned to Byleth as he added, "And she smiled the most… when she was pregnant with you."
"I remember those days," said Aelfric. "You told her such stories of the outside world and each one would make her so happy."
"The outside world?" asked Dorothea.
"Sitri was born frail, you see," answered Aelfric. "She lacked the strength to travel beyond the monastery. The only souls she ever spoke with were a select few within the monastery walls. And she found it difficult to express her emotions."
This made Dorothea giggle for a second. Looking at Byleth, she said jokingly, "Well, now I see where you get that from."
"Huh?" Byleth asked in confusion.
"Oh, it's nothing."
Ignoring this joke, Aelfric continued, "Whenever Jeralt would return with stories of his adventures, it always made her so much livelier. It was the only times I would ever see her smile… a smile that rivaled the very sun."
For a moment, Jeralt smiled at Aelfric's words. But then Jeralt's expression turned to one of muted sorrow as he shut his eyes.
This prompted Byleth to ask, "What happened to her?"
Sighing, Jeralt answered, "She died right after you were born. She couldn't bear the strain of childbirth, and she wasn't able to spend much time with you. But she loved you with all her heart. That's the truest thing I know…"
"Oh, Sir Jeralt, that's just so wonderful, and yet… so tragic," said Dorothea. "I'm sorry for your loss."
Jeralt simply nodded in thanks to Dorothea. Then, he reached into a satchel on his belt and pulled out something from it. It was an exquisitely-made silver ring with a number of small amethysts embedded in a flower-like pattern.
Looking at Byleth, Jeralt said, "This ring is the only keepsake I have left of her. In time, it will be yours. One day, I hope you'll give this ring to someone you love as well as I love her."
…
Dorothea and Byleth left Jeralt and Aelfric in the cemetery to catch up with one another while the two women made their way back toward the dormitories. Along the way, they caught glimpses of the other students going about their day. Dorothea was left giggling after hearing Ingrid shouting at Sylvain for having a childhood attraction to her grandmother. Then, minutes later, the singer found herself rolling her eyes upon seeing Lorenz trying to negotiate his way out of doing manual labor with Leonie. They also spotted Manuela squabbling with Hanneman, though this was a usual sight for those around the monastery. Dorothea had thought to ask the two why they held such animosity, but she decided against it after a moment.
It was once the two reached the dormitories that Dorothea said, "Hey, Professor, you remember what you father said? About your mother's ring?"
"What about it?" asked Byleth.
"Well, he said that you'll eventually want to give it to someone you love. Tell me, is there anyone here who catches your fancy? Maybe I could help."
"I'd… rather not think about it right now."
"Oh, don't say that! You'll only be beautiful for so long, you know! We've just got to find you the perfect match!"
"Dorothea, I appreciate the notion, but I'm not interested in romance right now. I'd like to focus on my teaching for the time being."
Disappointed, Dorothea said, "Oh, alright… But do tell me if you change your mind, okay?"
"I'll… keep it in mind." Opening her pocket watch, Byleth then said, "Anyhow, I have sparring practice with Catherine in a few minutes. Would you care to join me?"
Dorothea blanched at this for a second, remembering her humiliating loss against Judith a few days ago.
"I'll… pass, Professor," Dorothea answered sheepishly. "I've got other things to–"
"Actually, I insist, Dorothea. After hearing how Lady Judith trounced you, I believe you need to work on your swordplay."
Now Dorothea went visibly red-faced.
"Y-You know about that?!"
"She spoke with me about it before she left."
Dorothea let out a whine of embarrassment at this.
"P-Professor…"
"Come on, I just need you to watch."
Byleth took Dorothea by the wrist at this point and, knowing she wasn't going to get out of this, Dorothea let out a whimper of shame as she followed Byleth to the training grounds.
Kind of a weird note to end this on, but let's just leave it at that for now.
Anyhow, Aelfric's inclusion into the story, as well as the Ashen Wolves, is going to be tricky, but I intend to have them in the story, as well as the events of Cindered Shadows. I hope I can nail it right.