"Of all the incomprehensibly foolish- what were you thinking?" Hubert is furious in a way that none of them have ever seen. "You have jeopardized everything you have worked these past ten years for, did you not consider the consequences of laying down your weapon and surrendering on the whim of emotion? Of the threat Lord Arundel will still pose to not only the Empire, but all of Fodlan should you proceed in such a manner?"
Even Edelgard is stunned by her retainer's vehemence and sits at a complete loss for words.
She had considered the consequences, weighed them more than Hubert will ever know and is still weighing them even now. But with the Almyran army a possible ally, should Claude use them the way she would as reinforcements, and the combined might of the Kingdom, Alliance, and those loyal to her and her alone in the Empire, not to mention the Professor? They have a better chance at uniting Fodlan and tearing down the hierarchy that currently threatens the country overall.
It seems a much better option than this bedamned stalemate of before, even if it means some concessions regarding the Church of Seiros. Which, if she understands what Claude had been saying prior to their departure, has been left predominantly with Byleth as its stand-in leader or Rhea's actual successor. Rhea she can't stand and would be happy never to see again once this is done and over with. Part of her even contemplates having her killed just to settle things once and for all, discreetly of course, and without it being able to be traced back to her. Seteth and Flayn are a little more complicated but she wouldn't be too unhappy if they vanished too.
Hubert's attention has turned to Byleth and he's in the middle of reading her a similar vitriol filled dressing down when Edelgard interrupts him.
"It was not the Professor's idea, Hubert. It was mine and mine alone."
"Do not think that you will be able to accept the responsibility for something that is clearly not your idea, Lady Edelgard, I will not-"
"Hubert." Her voice is sharp and she is on her feet in the next instant. "You have not allowed either of us to explain anything other than the bare minimum. Were you to listen prior to your lecture, you would understand there have been developments that alter my plans and have a wider-reaching effect than we initially planned for."
He is not quite taken aback by her forwardness and her aggressive stance but he is not entirely pleased by it either. His eyes narrow and his arms fold in the same manner he typically has whenever in one of his arguments with Ferdinand over a break in moral judgments and legal matters. "What, then, could have possibly come to light that has altered matters so drastically that you would make a decision without counsel?"
She can feel Dorothea and Ferdinand, the latter especially, boring holes in her back with their stares. Her hesitation is not so much because she wants to protect Claude, not really, but because there is something… that feels wrong about just outing him like that. Even those he expressed it fully knowing it would have to be said elsewhere in order to end the war. And he did already tell Seteth, according to Byleth, and the reaction the stand-in leader for the Church had was something she wishes she could have seen.
"Should we proceed as planned, there is a high risk of the war becoming an international incident."
Hubert's frown deepens. "...Brigid and Dagda are of no concern. We have heard nothing of Sreng or Albinea. Certainly nothing of Morfis. Which leaves-"
"Almyra." Ferdinand supplies after a moment's thought. "Isn't it a good thing if they're attacking the Alliance?"
Dorothea adds to Ferdinand's question. "Why would we need to worry about the Almyran forces, if that's who you're referencing, of course."
Much to their surprise, Edelgard looks to Byleth on this one. The Professor, to their greater surprise, inclines her head after a moment's hesitation as well.
"That would be the issue; the Almyran army is not presently attacking the Alliance." She informs them. "The opposite, in fact, there has been a stalemate between them for the last five years- since Claude took over as head of the Leicester Alliance."
"...are you suggesting that von Riegan has established diplomatic ties with Almyra?"
Ferdinand is quicker to recognize the hint, much to Edelgard's surprise. "It's more than diplomatic ties. He has a direct connection to Almyra, doesn't he?"
She keeps underestimating von Aegir's ability to be quick on the uptake in certain matters and it's really annoying. "Yes, Ferdinand, that would be correct. He is the heir to the Almyran throne, to be exact."
Hubert and Ferdinand look as though someone dropped a heavy weight on their heads and can't quite believe what they're hearing. Dorothea, on the other hand, appears thoughtful as a result of this new bit of information. "That would explain a few things."
Everyone turns to her.
Dorothea smiles and offers a one-shouldered shrug. "The perks of being a socialite; you hear all manner of rumors from across the houses."
She rests a finger against her cheek as she recalls the ones she heard that were most relevant to the discussion at hand. "There were whispers of him being an Almyran spy or plant meant to tarnish the reputation of both House Riegan as well as the Academy, to put it lightly. It seemed petty and unsubstantial to me at the time, so I didn't really pay much attention or mind to it. But he always has been rather avoidant when it comes to answering questions about himself and that would certainly explain why."
"That makes him even more of a threat than I accounted for." Hubert finally manages to speak and he is greatly disturbed at the revelation. "Even with that in mind, is it enough to throw away all of your hard-fought plans and progress?"
"Claude told her of someone in the Alliance who has suffered a similar past and worked out some personal details on his own." Byleth offers in turn and does not budge beneath the man's dark glower. "She is not alone and it sounds as though the other involved has shared her suspicions with him."
Not a comfortable thought by any means and she can see the surprise flash across Hubert's face before the fury comes back. He wants those responsible dead more than anything, but he is not pleased with Edelgard's closely guarded secret coming to light, nor the existence of a second woman who has endured far too much.
"So, what now, Edie?" Dorothea asks gently. "If Claude is the heir to Almyra and the Alliance… wouldn't that benefit us all the more from recruiting him to our cause?"
"Were it that simple." Edelgard replies with a long, tired sigh and takes her seat once more. "There is more to it than that, you may as well sit, this will take a while."
By the time Edelgard has finished explaining everything, there has been four or five heated arguments, three of which nearly came to blows between Dorothea and Ferdinand with Hubert siding with Ferdinand twice- to everyone's surprise, even their own- and once with Dorothea. Edelgard herself has a headache that won't quit, and Byleth looks more and more like she'd rather be anywhere but there at the moment.
"I do not like this." Hubert repeats.
"We know." Three voices reply. Byleth offers a weary look in kind that says she knows and she doesn't like it much either. Hubert is offended by their mutual agreement on the matter and isn't quite sure why.
"How are we going to end the war and still hide what's going on from Lord Arundel and the others?" Ferdinand asks, pinching the bridge of his nose as he feels a headache coming on. "Let me be perfectly clear; I would be beside myself to put an end to this war and return to my duties to lead the people properly and make amends for the failures of House Aegir. But how are we to do that with so much at stake even assuming that Claude and Dimitri can be trusted to uphold their end of the deal?"
"Gathering at Garreg Mach would be suspicious and alert them. As would communication between the Alliance and the Empire." Hubert adds after a moment. "Not to mention the confusion among the ranks of our soldiers loyal to us and the spies we have yet to fully weed out."
"We don't have much time before we need to take action- especially if Edie plans on remaining 'missing' for the duration of the incoming storm and we're to be there to support her at Garreg Mach." Dorothea chimes in with her own worries. "How are we going to pull this off? Do you have any suggestions, Professor?"
She has been trying to work out a strategy, a plan, something that would allow all of them to return to the place where so many happy memories had been made. To allow a true reunion and begin truly working toward that new dawn she thought was so near. The moment she turns up at Garreg Mach, the moment Dimitri and Claude and the Professor do as well, they will know. Her uncle's spies will know because she hasn't managed to kill them all yet and replace them with her own. All of their plans, their hopes will be for naught and there will be more blood spilled in this haphazardly slapped together plan than continuing this war until the inevitable conclusion of their deaths or her own.
Hubert, as always, is right; she wasn't thinking and had acted purely on emotion and selfish desire alone.
Her eyes land on Byleth and linger there. I hope you understand what it is I need to do.
Edelgard rises from her seat, every inch the Emperor instead of an equal among peers. The shift in her body language and demeanor is enough to draw Byleth's immediate attention, Hubert's shortly behind. Dorothea looks at her, freezes, and furrows her brow in immediate worry. Ferdinand tears his eyes from whatever it is he's looking at to glance toward her and his eyes narrow. He knows what that expression means and should; nothing good has ever come from it.
She straps a bit of mental steel to her spine and allows herself a deep breath in, out, and again before she speaks. "We cannot return to Garreg Mach."
"Edie?"
"We will return to the Empire, immediately." Edelgard says finally and turns the full weight of her attention on to her beloved teacher. There is nothing she can say that will smooth this over. There is nothing she can say, can give her to give back to the two who will surely be awaiting their return with good news and allies. Any information she gives her now will only be used against them in the future. She knows what this looks like. She knows what this sounds like. "We will speak more on the matter there."
"Hold on, I thought-"
"Be silent, Ferdinand."
Dorothea ignores the men bickering in the background and looks from Edelgard to Byleth and back again. What had she missed? What issue had they not been able to work through- the Professor not being given the opportunity to even try to fix whatever mess has come up is alarming. She opens her mouth to try and persuade Edelgard to hold off, to let Byleth put in her thoughts on the matter before anything is firmly decided.
"Professor."
Byleth's gaze has not wavered from where Edelgard stands. Her expression is frighteningly devoid of emotion and Dorothea feels herself shiver just looking at her. She says nothing and waits for Edelgard to speak again.
"...tell them I will meet them with everything I am on the battlefield."