The Ethereal Moon had not lasted quite as long as Eve had hoped. The White Heron Cup had come and gone in what felt like a matter of moments. Felix had won the competition after a deciding vote from Shamir, and Sylvain had still not let him hear the end of it. And just like that it was time for the ball.

Just the night before, the Blue Lions had all made a promise to reunite five years in the future for the Millennium Festival. It had chilled Eve to think of where she would be in five years. Would she be the Queen of Faerghus? Or was there another path she would follow down? The fact that this close to the wedding she still didn't know frightened Eve to her core.

And now it was the night of the ball. Despite the looming dread of what had happened in Remire, everyone was soaking in the revelries and enjoying themselves. Eve had watched as plain girls from various classes all clamoured to get one last dance with Dimitri before he was a married man. He had always been quite handsome, she thought, and popular with the girls. She found herself wishing with all her heart that he would somehow fall madly in love with one of the girls vying for his attention and forget all about his feelings for her.

But that would never happen, and she knew it. Even now as Dimitri danced with one of the younger girls from the Golden Deer who was absolutely smitten with him, he kept glancing up to look at Eve.

"Care to dance?" A flash of lavender and an extended hand snapped Eve back to reality.

"Yuri." She said simply. "Rare to see you up here."

"The Church spared no expense for this event." Yuri said with a smile as Eve accepted his outstretched hand. "Even us down in Abyss deserve a little luxury here and there, no?"

"Who would've ever thought when we first met that we'd be dancing together like this at an event hosted by the Church of Seiros, huh?" Eve chuckled lightly as they danced.

"Stranger things have happened." Yuri smirked. "You and I both know that."

"Certainly…" Eve muttered half-heartedly.

As they danced some more, she caught sight of Dimitri with yet another girl. She was saying something to him rather passionately while he listened patiently with a polite smile. He was always so kind despite everything. Everything that had happened to him, even just everything Eve had put him through—she wouldn't have blamed him if he had been bitter or spiteful.

"Have you made your decision yet?" Yuri whispered in her ear, his breath tickling her skin.

"My decision?" Eve frowned.

"Are you going to marry your prince?" Yuri asked.

"Since when was that a decision that needed to be made?" Eve pulled back to look at Yuri's face.

"You tell me." He smirked, throwing a less than subtle glance in the direction of the corner where Felix had taken up residence to sulk for the entire night.

Before she could answer—or rather, fail to do so—Eve was saved by Sylvain cutting in.

"Stop trying to monopolise her, Yuri." Sylvain clapped his shoulder with a hearty laugh. "She's about to be a married woman, you know."

"Oh, I know." Yuri smirked once more at Eve.

"This is my last night to try and woo her, so scoot!" Sylvain laughed again.

Yuri graciously bowed out, but not before giving Eve a rather meaningful look. She knew he had no stake in what happened, but he was also the kind of person who needed to know what was going on. If she was going to walk out on her duty, he wanted to know that in order to prepare for however that might affect Abyss and his people. But unfortunately for him, Eve still wasn't even sure what she was going to do.

"I know that look, kitten." Sylvain said softly as they danced.

"What do you mean?" Eve scrunched up her nose in distaste. She wasn't used to being so easy to read and was annoyed that lately she had taken to betraying her own emotions on her face.

"You still haven't decided." Sylvain said rather seriously though he kept a smile plastered on his face. She appreciated the effort he made to ensure no one would suspect their conversation.

"Not this from you as well." Eve sighed, burying her face into his chest.

"What happened, kitten?" He asked. "Up until recently you were so staunch on the fact that you would perform your duty no matter how you felt. What changed?"

"I don't know." Eve replied. "I guess I started dreaming of Glenn and thinking about him and how I would've done anything for him. And I guess all those memories made me want to rebel again."

"The wedding is tomorrow." Sylvain said gently.

"I know, I know. I just…" Eve trailed off.

She just what? She just didn't know? She just missed Glenn? She just wanted more time?

"Alright, that's enough of that." Sylvain said, placing a gentle kiss on the crown of her head. "Tonight's a night for fun, so I'm going to leave you alone. Go have fun, kitten."

With that and a final reassuring squeeze of her hands, Sylvain left Eve's side to go dance with some other girls.

Eve knew that she would miss Sylvain the most when she inevitably outlived this generation of friends. But she found some solace in the fact that he knew the truth. That meant she could allow herself to stay in his life for longer without worrying about him questioning her lack of ageing.

It had always hurt the most when she had to leave those people in her life after only a few years. She had had to disappear on friends and lovers without so much as an explanation. That was something she treasured about the stability of serving House Fraldarius. She never had to leave, never had to prematurely give up the relationships she had formed. But it also meant that she was always around when those she cherished inevitably died without her.

There was always the option, though, that faint voice in the back of her mind. Eve could share her longevity; she knew it was possible. But who was she to play Goddess? If she did that, was she any better than Rhea?

"Hey, Eve!"

A chipper voice startled Eve from her thoughts and she turned to see Ashe beaming up at her. He had a light dusting of blush across his cheeks and Eve could tell that he had taken advantage of the fine wine the Church had provided for the night.

"Hello." She smiled in greeting, taking a sip of her own drink that she hadn't remembered grabbing.

"Perhaps I should start calling you 'Your Highness' now." Ashe frowned slightly.

"There's no need." Eve laughed with a dismissive wave of her hand. "No matter my station, you can always call me Eve."

"Well, anyways," Ashe glanced around curiously before continuing, "I had a question for you."

"Ask away." Eve motioned invitingly with another smile.

"When did you know you loved His Highness?" Ashe asked.

"When?" Eve echoed, looking out into the crowd and almost immediately picking out his mop of blonde hair.

"Or, I guess, how did you know you were in love with His Highness?" Ashe rephrased his question as his eyes followed hers.

"Well, I suppose there's a lot of factors." Eve said slowly, trying to buy herself time to come up with an answer.

There was no use coming up with lies because Ashe knew Dimitri. He would be able to tell what was and wasn't true. So, Eve decided to speak from the heart. Dimitri was a good person and plenty of girls at the Academy loved him for his princely façade. It would be entirely believable if she just listed things everyone already knew about him.

"You don't need me to tell you how kind he is." Eve chuckled softly. "And I suppose that is the main thing. Dimitri is perhaps the kindest person I've ever met."

This was not a revolutionary thing for Eve to say. She said this because everyone knew this.

"I've lived a rather sheltered life away from other people." She continued. "I've never really learned how to trust or get to know others; I lie as a default because of it. But Dimitri never faulted me for this. He never accused me of not trusting him; he never forced me to open up to him."

While this was perhaps not a widely known fact, it was simply tied to his kindness. He often offered support to his peers who would not do the same for him. She only said this because she needed to convince Ashe.

"And he's never wanted anything from me; he doesn't expect anything of me. Not in a negative way, but more like he doesn't push any unreal or harmful expectations on me. He has always simply wanted me to be myself with him."

Why was she still talking? Surely those two examples had been enough. Ashe was gullible and trusting, this wasn't an inquisition.

"All this and I still haven't mentioned his passionate heart. He always wants to help others, to learn new things. And Dimitri has never cared about his title or his station—he sees everyone as equals. He just-."

Eve cut herself off when she realised she was speaking too much. She hadn't needed to say all that. Ashe had most definitely gotten the point already, so why did she continue? Why was it so easy for her to think of all those things?

"Is there some reason you ask?" Eve tried to compose herself as she turned to smile at Ashe.

"N-no reason!" He blushed deeply and Eve caught the quick flash of his eye over to a certain redheaded classmate of theirs.

"You should ask her to dance." Eve smiled with a nod in Annette's direction.

With that, Eve excused herself to get some fresh air. As she stepped outside into the brisk, silent air, she couldn't help the stirring in her chest.

Why was it so easy to come up with things she loved about Dimitri? Ever since his confession of love, she had refused to even consider him in that light. But had she always been harbouring these feelings? Had she always held Dimitri in such high regard?

Eve knew that she did not deserve to love again. That was why she had pushed Dimitri away. But then everything with Felix had happened and she had been unable—unwilling—to stop it.

"Goddess, what do I do?" She whispered into the night sky, craning her neck up to look at the stars as if they could provide her with an answer.

"Running away? I understand. You hardly had the time to breathe in there. It must be hard to be the favourite teacher at the ball! Poor, poor Professor!" Sothis giggled as Byleth left the revelries of the ball to stand in the courtyard.

"It is difficult." Byleth answered absently.

"So you do think you're the favourite! I might have known." Sothis laughed again before sobering up. "Hold a moment. Who is that?"

Byleth looked across the dark courtyard to see a figure with their head turned towards the heavens. It took a moment of her eyes adjusting to recognise the person as her own student.

"Eve?" Byleth called out.

"Professor!" She seemed startled, caught off guard which she seldom was.

"What are you doing out here?" Byleth asked much at the behest of Sothis.

"Do you know the story of the Goddess Tower, Professor?" Eve asked after a moment of thought rather than answering the Professor's question.

"I've heard of it." Byleth answered simply.

"I've heard so many different versions, it's hard to say which—if any—are true." Eve laughed though it sounded hollow. "But they say this night is when the Goddess is closest to us. So maybe a wish made at the Goddess Tower will be heard. Or maybe the Goddess will send your true love to you there. Or perhaps a promise made before the Goddess at the Tower will be made unbreakable. Do you believe it, Professor?"

"Do you?"

Byleth got the feeling like Eve wanted to ask her something, something more than she was saying. She had always been the most mysterious of Byleth's students. The Professor often was of the impression that Eve knew far more than she was ever going to let on. So these questions almost felt pointed, as if she were after something specific.

"I don't know." Eve smiled in response to the Professor's question. Byleth noted how wistful she looked in that moment. "I think I want to believe. But my prayers have never been answered."

"Perhaps not in a way you're aware of." Byleth said.

"Maybe you're right." Eve half laughed. "Will you then hear my prayer tonight?"

Byleth simply nodded in response. This was perhaps the most Eve had ever spoken to her—especially without Dimitri by her side. It made her wonder why, all of a sudden, she was willing to open up to her.

"I must make an impossible choice." Eve said, looking directly at Byleth as if begging her to hear her words. "I thought this decision was going to be an easy one, in fact I never thought I was going to have to consider it. I always thought there was only one path for me to take. But lately my heart has changed. All I can hope is that the Goddess will show me the right path."

"The way this child looks at you…" Sothis trailed off in thought. "It is almost as if she knows I am here."

"Thank you for hearing my woes, Professor." Eve smiled gently. "I should leave you alone now. I imagine you didn't come out here looking to see other people."

Before Byleth could respond, Eve turned on her heel and walked away towards the Goddess Tower.

"What an odd one that Eve." Sothis muttered.

"I don't understand her motives." Byleth frowned in thought. "What did she want from me."

"Perhaps she simply wanted someone to listen." Sothis offered. "Regardless, there is something strange about her. I suggest we look more into who she is very soon."

Before Byleth could consider this, she was approached by yet another of her students that happened upon the courtyard.

"Professor? What are you doing here?" Dimitri walked towards Byleth with a curious frown upon his face.

"Aren't you going to dance with Claude?" Byleth asked, trying her best to joke with him.

"Good one, Professor." Dimitri laughed. "I could see saving a dance for Edelgard, but Claude is another story. In any case, I have no intention of dancing with anyone."

Byleth frowned at this. She had very much seen Dimitri dancing with people throughout the night. Though, notably he had not once danced with his own fiancée

"As a child, Edelgard taught me how to dance. It was...a bit awkward, honestly." Dimitri explained when he saw the Professor's confusion.

"As a child?" Byleth cocked her head to the side in curiosity.

"I've told you before we're siblings by marriage, haven't I?" Dimitri asked to which Byleth nodded. "Her birth mother was my stepmother, although I didn't know that at the time. My stepmother treated me with such kindness...just as though I were her own flesh and blood. And yet she never so much as hinted that she had her own child...Edelgard. We were born and raised in different territories, without ever knowing the other even existed. Yet, against all odds, for just over a year, we became childhood friends."

"Friends?" Byleth's brow furrowed.

"Indeed. Unaware of each other's stations or backgrounds, we met and became incredibly close. This was when she and Lord Arundel were living in the Kingdom." Dimitri explained.

"Why were they in the Kingdom?" Byleth asked.

"They were in exile... This was a time of great turmoil within the Empire." Dimitri continued, a gloss of distant memories glazing over his eyes. "I ran into her when visiting Lord Arundel's residence with my father. She seemed...quite bored. With everything. At first I found her to be difficult and stubborn, but that facade quickly fell away, revealing her true self beneath... That's around the time when she taught me how to dance. Her instruction was... Oh, let's call it strict. To put it nicely."

Dimitri chuckled at this. It seemed to Byleth that he held those memories quite dear. And suddenly it made sense to her the way he would look at the leader of the Black Eagles house. She had at first wondered if he had a crush on Edelgard before he had explained they were siblings by marriage. But now she realised that he truly treasured his childhood memories of her.

"That one year before she had to return to the Empire was...so much fun. The time of my life, in many ways." Dimitri smiled wistfully. "It's kind of pathetic to think about it all these years later, but can you guess what I gave her as a parting gift?"

"A dagger?" Byleth offered, half joking.

"Huh. Good guess, Professor." Dimitri's eyebrows went up in shock much to the Professor's surprise. "But I swear, it came from the heart."

"What a strange boy." Sothis interjected.

"In Faerghus, we've long considered blades as tools of destiny. As a way to cut a path to a better future." Dimitri rushed to explain himself. "She was being dragged all over, unable to live the life she wanted. I thought the dagger could help her cut out a path to the future she dreamed of. However...that was many years ago. I'm sure she's forgotten all about the boy I was back then."

"It's not too late to reconnect." Byleth offered gently.

"I'm afraid it's far too late for that. Things are different now. She's different. I'm different." Dimitri seemed suddenly overcome by a certain sadness as he spoke before shaking his head as if to shake the memory away. "Anyway... I'm feeling a bit out of place here. Festivities like this don't suit me."

He paused as he moved to turn away, seemingly stuck between the want to escape the revelries and his feeling of obligation to return to the ball.

"Still, I suppose I should get back in there." He gave the Professor a tight smile as he bowed at the waist. "Good-bye, Professor."

"You should go to the Goddess Tower." Byleth said before he could turn away.

"Pardon?" Dimitri's brow furrowed.

"If you're looking for fresh air." Byleth explained. "No one is on that part of the monastery. You'll be able to have some quiet to yourself."

"Thank you, Professor." Dimitri dipped his head in a shallow bow. "I believe I'll take you up on that piece of advice."

"It is not like you to meddle like this." Sothis said with an air of amusement as they watched the prince walk away. "That girl's prayer was for me was it not?"

"I'm not meddling." Byleth shook her head. "What they decide to do from here is up to them."

Truly, Byleth wasn't sure if she had made the right call by involving herself. But she had seen how Dimitri looked at Eve. No one could speak to Eve's emotions or intentions, but Byleth got the feeling that she was in need of someone to show her what direction to go in. Whether that direction came from divine intervention or not didn't seem to be of much importance.

And as she had said, what they decided to do from there was up to them. Not even the Goddess could tell them what was the right path.