Chapter 5: Watchful eye
Walking around the Monastery, Balthus never would have imagine walking so carefree again. There is no doubt that there are still bounty hunters after his head, yet, Garreg Mach did turn into their base of operation so with all the soldiers walking around he can at least be somewhat at ease.
A little while ago, Claude expressed some concern on the fact that he left something important by the stables, so being as generous as he is, he offered to retrieve it for him.
To get to the stables he must first go through the picnic area. Passing by, an image of pink and green caught his eye. He ducked and quickly hid behind one of the hedges.
"Wait, is that the professor and Hilda?" he peeked at them again and sure they were, they appear to be having tea together.
He can't really make out what they are saying but what he can tell is that Hilda is clearly enjoying Byleth's company, her giggles and sighs clearly give the idea of a woman getting swoon over. He then gifted her a flower which she wholeheartedly accepted.
"Well I'll be, looks like little o' Hilda finally found a worthy suitor, and the professor of all people." He rubbed his temple. He sat upright on the ground and crossed his arms.
"I heard rumors about them from the others, but I never expected it to be true. Damm that Holst, giving me a task like that, sure I can take on anyone, but even I doubt that my skills can compare to his."
"Skills compare to whose?" a bright response emanated above him
"Gah! - Oh heya Hilda, what are you doing here?" He gathers composure and stood up to greet the younger sister of his friend.
"Now, now, if you honestly expected to hide behind a tiny o' bush with your size and all, not to mention that big hair of yours really sticks out. I can practically see you from a mile away." A lighthearted response.
Now that he looks at it a bit more clearly, the bush wasn't really that big. He chuckled ay his own foolishness, he can't afford to make careless mistakes like that again.
"So, are you done with your 1 on 1 time with the professor"
"Yeah, Byleth said that he needed to discuss something important with Claude, so he had to cut things short today." She said with a bright smile. "So why are you here Baltie? You came to ask me for gold again or is stalking your new hobby." her expression changed from her cheerful-carefree self to one where lying would surely be the end of him.
"Well… you know how Holst entrusted me with your safety and all, and how I should challenge anyone who might be a potential sui-"
"I'm going to stop you right there, honestly, I appreciate what you and my brother are doing, but you boys tend to get a little- overprotective" She placed her hands on her hips. "And I seriously doubt that Byleth needs to prove himself."
"Sorry Hilda, but as Holst's dear friend I must tend to his wishes, andhewillkillmeifanythinghappenstoyou."
"Sigh" She gave him a look of disappointment "I know I can't stop you. Whatever you do, please don't get yourself too hurt alright Baltie."
"Wouldn't bet on it, I'm the king of grappling after all." He said proudly.
"If you say so" she flicked her hair and walked away.
"Wait where are you going?"
"To the sauna, I need some time to relax."
"and, she's gone. Oh well, only one thing left to do." Now where was it again?
Balthus walked back to the war room carrying a clear vile with some type of dark substance. Damm what the hell is Claude even planning? Imagine what would have happened if someone else found it. Well that is not his problem anymore, all he needs to do is return it to its owner.
Right before he reached the door, he bumped into Byleth exiting the room.
"Oh, what a coincidence" Balthus started.
"Balthus, need anything?" Byleth asked.
"Nothing in particular pal."
"Oh, alright, I'll take my leave then." Seeing that he is not needed he started to walk away.
"Wait. Actually, can I ask you something?" The darked haired man stopped him, might as well get it out of the way.
"Huh, sure I have some time right now" he faced his direction. "So, what can I help you with?"
"I challenge you to a one on one duel" he stated boldly, leaving Byleth a little dumbfounded.
"Uhm, sure, but for what reason exactly?"
"Where should I start, well you know how Holst and I go way back, and he tends to be a little overprotective of sister, so he left it up to me to test all of her potential suitors and all. So, what do you say pal?"
"and you see me as a potential suitor?" Byleth replied half-jokingly.
Balthus did not like that response. As this duty was bested upon him by Holst, he will take this seriously.
'now what exactly is he trying to pull off? Whatever it is, it is starting to piss me off'
"Don't act dumb pal, there are rumors going around that you and Hilda are becoming rather close, at first I thought of it nothing more than soldier banter but based on what I saw today confirms it." He said firmly.
"Wait, I thought our relationship was already made public?" Byleth was confused on why he had no idea.
"Really? That doesn't matter now, get ready to fight! Oh, and why don't we bet some gold on it while we're at it."
Byleth looked worried, so much for his day off. Oh, what a long day its going to be.
"Ack, watch it, that stung!"
"Stop moving so much and let me treat your arm." Hilda bickered back as she applied vulnerary to his arm then wrapped in up in bandages.
"Damm that hurts, could you at least do it- Ow, gently" she tightened the bandage.
"Don't be a baby, and… almost…done… there! Good as new."
"Gee thanks" he rubbed his arm. Aside from the minor bruises, and damaged ego, he was completely fine. He could of have just shook it off and call it a day, but the pinked hair insisted on treating his injuries. Not so long ago, he faced off against Byleth, the match went better than what he expected but it still ended with his face in the dirt, if it were not for Katherine challenging Byleth he would persisted on having his injuries looked at. When he thought that the day couldn't get any worse, he came across Hilda coming out of the sauna. So here they are sitting on the stairway.
"Why go out of your way to patch me up? It's not like you." He questioned her motives, usually when she does something like this, is because she is expecting something in return.
"I'm just playing the part I have always played back then, don't expect this to happen too often ok." She argued her reason.
"Sure you are." He left it at that, she can deny it all she wants but he knows that she truly does care. "I still can't believe I lost" he turned his gaze to the sky. He got stronger because of the various misfortunes in his life, not to mention that there are people back home that he needs to be strong for.
"I guess you never did change from back then, then again my brother changed very little too. You know, when I mentioned him to my brother in one of my letters, he said if I could arrange a meeting with him to personally test his prowess personally." She shook her head in disbelief.
"Ha, I wish him the best of luck, but if you ask me, I wouldn't get my guard down around Holst, compared to me, he is more of a force to be reckon with." The sun has started to set, and the once clear blue sky has turned a shade of red and orange. "I am truly happy you found someone you love."
"Eh? What's with you all of a sudden."
"I've know you for a long time now, it's only natural that I want the best for you, isn't it" He stood up, Yuri and the others are probably in Abyss right now and he has done all what he came to do in the surface. "I'm going to call it a day, later."
"What? So early?" she asked but he casually waved. "Oh, Ok, see you then" She saw him walk around the corner, dissapearing from her sight. 'sigh, men can be difficult sometimes.' She feels that she will never understand what goes on in that thick skull of his.
She stood up and grabbed her bag. Its about that time for her to go too.
"Hilda, what are you doing here?" she heard a familiar voice call out to her. She faced the direction where the voice came from and saw Byleth standing by the entrance to the training grounds calling out to her. She smiled and waved back till she saw that he was roughed up pretty good.
"What happened to you?" She rushed to his side. From her point of view, he faired a lot worse than Balthus.
"What? This?" He inspected himself. His clothes had a torn here and there, with minor bruising on his hands. "Katherine had a few good hits"
"A few? You're practically a mess" Now where did she have this conversation again?
"Sorry, I guess I got a little carried away" is all he could say.
Hilda looked a little disappointed, she expected this type of circumstances to happen with Balthus and her brother, but not him.
"I can't believe it… but that only means that I have to take care of you too" She smiled. Yes, that is what she needs to do.
"What's on your mind?" he questioned her motives. She pulls him into a kiss. It was a sudden welcomed surprise but the fact that they are still outside makes it a little embarrassing.
"*ahem* not in public." He pulled away and covered his face.
"No need to be embarrassed, now let's go." She said gleefully, grabbing his arm and playfully pulling him away.
"Where are we going?"
"Hehe, let's go to your room it's not that far from here"
"My room? I don't mind but what for? its already late."
"Don't be a buzz kill, I'll just stay the night" she rested her head on his arm.
As the couple retired for the night, Byleth couldn't help but feel a sense of happiness. The past couple of months since his return have been filled with nothing but pain and misery, having no choice but to kill his former students hunts him, so when times like this happen, he wishes it could last forever.
Yes, wouldn't that be nice.
Thank you for reading
I still feel that I'm not portraying Hilda and Balthus very well, but I hope you enjoyed this story.
Any mistakes? let me know.