A small interlude, of sorts.

Chapter 32 – The Fourth House (Horsebow Moon)

Byleth groaned, her vision swimming before her eyes as consciousness returned to her. Subconsciously she raised a hand to her face and rubbed her temples, trying to remember what had happened to her.

As she let out another moan, a familiar voice said to her, "Professor, you're awake!"

Immediately recognizing the voice, Byleth turned to see Dorothea as the singer knelt beside her. The bluette felt a pang of relief at seeing Dorothea was unharmed.

"Dorothea? W-What happened?" asked Byleth.

"Don't you remember? You collapsed after the fight. We were really worried about you."

Byleth nodded as her memory of the altercation with the Ashen Wolves came back to her. Then, as she looked past Dorothea, Byleth realized they were not in the monastery infirmary, nor her room, nor any other place Byleth could recognize. The architecture told her that they were likely still in the catacombs of Garreg Mach, but the furniture around her was clearly not as old as the monastery itself.

"Where are we?" asked Byleth.

Before Dorothea could say anything, a sly voice answered, "This, my lady, is Abyss. Our home beneath the monastery."

Byleth looked to the entrance to see Yuri leaning against the archway. He no longer had his wolf mask on, revealing an effeminate face with violet eyes that, were it not for his voice, could have led one to mistake him for a woman.

"I trust you had a good rest?" said Yuri.

Byleth said nothing as she swept her legs off the makeshift bed she had been lying on and bolted to her feet defensively.

"Where are the others?" Byleth asked demandingly.

Instinctively she reached for her hip, but she quickly realized the Sword of the Creator was not strapped to her side, nor her dagger.

"No need to be so feisty, Professor Eisner," Yuri replied. "They're safe and sound. Balthus and the others were just giving them a little tour." Seeing that Byleth wasn't letting down her guard, Yuri then said, "I get it: you're still wary of me. But if I'd really wanted to hurt you or your students, do you think for an instant that I'd have brought you all here?"

Dorothea looked on at Byleth as she stared Yuri in the eye, both with an unflinching gaze. Though her expression didn't show it, Dorothea knew Byleth wasn't convinced.

It was then that a friendly voice outside the room said, "It's okay, By! The Ashen Wolves are good types!"

Her eyes widening slightly in surprise, Byleth said, "Anna?"

"The one and only!" said Anna as she slinked into view. The merchant was not dressed in her usual attire, and now was wearing a yellow and crimson traveler's garb.

Surprised by the merchant's presence, Dorothea asked, "Anna, what are you doing here?"

"When I heard about all the commotion down here, I came down to set things straight between everyone. Don't wanna have my customers fighting one another."

"Anna occasionally comes down here to do business with us," added Yuri. "Even if some of her merchandise is of… questionable utility."

"Hey!"

"Anyhow, perhaps it's best that we explain everything to you with the others. If you'll just follow me, I'll show you around the place." As Yuri spun around to leave the room, he then added, "Oh, and your weapons are over there in the corner."

Byleth turned to see, to her relief, the Sword of the Creator leaning against the far wall of the room. Her dagger was sheathed next to it atop a small crate. She walked over to them and strapped them back onto her waist, and then followed Anna and Dorothea as they went after Yuri.

…

"So, to put it in a nutshell," Balthus said as he and the other Ashen Wolves stood before Byleth, Anna and the students, "Someone's targeting Abyss. Mercenaries keep sniffing around and causing trouble here. They won't let up."

"It's a real problem, and we have no clue who's pulling the strings," said Yuri. "There are many within the church who would love to see this 'filthy' underground city purged. When you first showed up, we thought you were here to do just that."

"So that's why you came at us with that nasty 'kill the outsiders' act," said Hilda.

"Pretty much," said Hapi. "Sorry about that. We're all pretty on edge these days."

"Indeed!" added Constance. "That someone would descend to Abyss out of pure curiosity was far too outlandish to consider."

"Really?" Dorothea asked sardonically. This earned her a glare of ire from Constance, something that satisfied the singer.

"What is the purpose of Abyss?" asked Byleth.

"No idea," answered Balthus. "These tunnels have been around for ages. They could be older than the monastery for all we know."

"None remain who know the complete truth," said Constance. "However, I shall tell you all that we know for certain… Abyss is home to those who shun the light of day. It is the secret shadow of Garreg Mach, if you will."

"The church quietly tolerates us," said Hapi. "They think they need a place like this for Garreg Mach to thrive."

"The deal is simple," Yuri continued. "Abyssians never get involved with the surface, and the surface never gets involved with us."

"With exceptions, of course," Anna chimed in.

With a dramatic wave of her fan, Constance then said, "Alas! For some foul reason, surface dwellers have been after us as of late. Further oppressing those souls who can only find solace beneath the ground? I cannot abide it! Though it pains me to admit, we, too, harbor valid reasons for not venturing into the light. That is why, by the grace of our esteemed patron, we have been granted sanctuary here in Abyss."

"I see…" said Hilda. "Baltie, does that mean you've got a reason for being here too?"

"Afraid so, Hilda," Balthus answered. "I'm here because… there are more bounties on my head than there is hair. Needed to lay low. Real low."

With an exasperated look, Hilda said, "Baltie… That's awful."

"Well, that pretty much sums things up," said Yuri. Then, turning to Anna, Yuri added, "So, now they've gotten the gist of it, Anna, could you show them the way back to the surface?"

Before Anna could reply, Constance interrupted, "Nonsense! Intolerable nonsense! Whyever would we let slip this chance to acquire their aid?"

"You require our help?" asked Dedue.

"Like we said, recently this place is being targeted by mercenaries," said Balthus. "Myself excluded, a lot of the folks who live here can't defend themselves. They're here to avoid conflict. The elderly, the infirm… orphans, lost souls… merchants who were chewed up and spit out by the nobility. The works."

"It rests on us to protect those who cannot protect themselves… and to safeguard our home," said Constance. "To that noble end, I must insist that you lend us your strength!"

"U-Us? But…" Marianne stammered, but couldn't find anything else to say.

"I feel for your cause, truly," said Dimitri. "However, I cannot help but wonder why you would trust us so readily. We are from the surface, after all."

"Trust is a choice," said Yuri. "We're choosing to trust you. For now. It's clear you're not here by command of the church. And you're not just a bunch of noble twerps, either. You can hold your own. It's in the way you fight. How you carry yourselves. Still… I'm reluctant to get you involved with this madness. It's our problem, not yours."

Then, just as it looked like Constance was about to say something to Yuri, Dorothea said, "Maybe we can help each other."

"Hmm? What do you mean by that?" asked Hapi.

"We came down here because we're looking for someone." Making a gesture, Dorothea added, "She's about this tall, long green hair, green eyes, kinda speaks in an old-fashioned way. Her name is–"

"Flayn, correct?" Yuri interrupted. "The little sister to the archbishop's chief advisor."

"Y-Yes! How did you know?"

Anna then said, "I already asked Yuri and the others about her a week ago. They said they'd keep an eye out for her, but…"

"I'm afraid to say that we haven't seen her down here," said Yuri. "Normally I wouldn't have my people trying to find someone from the surface, but Constance insisted we could use her as leverage."

"W-What!?" Constance snapped at Yuri. "How dare you insinuate that I would use an innocent girl as collateral! Someone of my station has no need for such underhanded schemes!"

"This coming from someone who froze our Professor solid when her back was turned?" Dorothea said with a glare. When Constance glared back, Dorothea added, "For the record, I haven't forgiven you for that."

"Watch your tongue, you impertinent tart! I'll have you know that I come from one of the oldest noble families in the Adrestian Empire!"

"I knew it…" said Edelgard. "You're Constance Von Nuvelle, aren't you?" Constance smiled proudly in confirmation as Edelgard added, "I recall hearing of your disappearance. I never would have imagined you'd end up in a place like this…"

"I might say that your presence is equally curious, Your Highness. As is your association with this stroppy street strumpet."

Edelgard now glared angrily at Constance, who instantly realized her mistake as the princess said, "Dorothea Arnault is one of my closest friends, Constance Von Nuvelle, regardless of her heritage. If you plan to continue disparaging her, I will ensure that you regret it."

Constance, for once, was left speechless, something that brought a satisfied smirk to Dorothea's face.

"In any event," Claude said, interrupting the girls' heated exchange, "we could use your help in finding Flayn. If we help you with your problem, would you help us in finding her?"

"Sounds like a good deal to me," said Balthus.

"Eh, fine," added Hapi. "We could use more bodies to throw at our enemies. Thanks for volunteering."

"I guess it's settled then," said Yuri. "Now, I suppose we'll need to–"

"Hold on a second," said Ashe. "Are you certain that just the ten of us will be enough?"

"What are you suggesting?" asked Dedue.

"We should see if any of the other first-years want to help too."

"Wait, you mean bring more of your academy buddies down here?" asked Hapi. "Not sure I like that idea. Things are crowded enough as is."

"Oh, rubbish, Hapi!" said Constance. "The more the merrier, as they say!"

"Hey, if they can fight as well as you guys can, I say let'em join the party!" added Balthus.

"I'm against it," said Yuri. "Bringing too many of your friends down would make everyone here nervous. And we're trying to keep things low profile. Sorry, but I'm gonna have to say–"

"Boss! Hey, Boss!" shouted a man's voice, prompting the group to turn to see one of Yuri's rogues rushing toward them. "We've got trouble!"

"What's going on?"

"We've got a whole load of company coming through the eastern passages."

"Define 'a whole load of company' for us," said Balthus.

"I counted at least seventy guys, probably more."

"Seventy?!" Constance said in alarm. "Surely you have miscalculated!"

"I wish I had. But there's a lot of them, and they're all headed this way."

Everyone was silent for a moment at this news.

Then, breaking up the quiet, Dorothea asked, "Still don't want the help from our classmates, Yurikins?"

"Y-Yurikins?" Yuri asked in confusion while Hapi let out a snicker.

Turning to Ashe, Byleth then said, "Ashe, go back up to the surface and gather the others. We're going to need all the help we can get."

"Of course!" Ashe said earnestly. "I won't let you down, Professor Eisner!"

"Hey, hold on!" said Claude. "You know how to get back to the surface from here?"

"Don't worry about it! I can remember the route."

"I trust in you, Ashe," said Dimitri. "Now go. We'll hold the line for as long as we can."

Ashe nodded to this and took off, leaving the others to plan their strategy for the upcoming battle.

Just so you know, Dorothea's rivalry with Constance is gonna be a thing in my story. It just fits.