Genres/Ratings: War, Ideology, Angst, Friendship. (T)

Characters: Raine, Dimitri, Warin, Edelgard, Hubert.

Summary: They stood at the inevitable crossroads, enemies to the very last, and it was a last-ditch effort for him to reach out his hand in a desperate effort to understand one who did not care to be understood. Their ideals, their lives, their experiences would simply never allow for it. But those who would been brought along disagreed, and were not afraid to voice it as the parley continued, and though weapons were sheathed and lowered, the words rang out as sharp as any blade. In the end, it was all hypocrisy, and blood would flow no matter what was said. That was the ending she had devised for them, and that was the ending they would ensure she reached.

Verdant Rain Moon

Ruins of Fort Merceus

Morning

The tension was palpable, filling the destroyed glade where the ruins of Fort Merceus stood at their backs, but Warin had little interest for the once great fortress. Instead, his sharp eyes were for the two figures cresting the hill, ready to enter into the parley that Dimitri had requested, and a small part of him tried to hold in his laughter at the sight of them. He could rather easily believe their arrogance in appearing, after all, they were self-righteous enough to believe that, even now, they were in the right, but he still couldn't quite fathom the depths of their idiocy. They were treating with two former mercenaries, not just the future King of Faerghus, and how foolish were they to believe that everyone there would be so willing to treat the unspoken laws of parley as steel?

No, Warin was not so foolish. It would be easy, far too easy, to end the war right then and there, and it was why he had chosen to accompany them when Raine had told him what Dimitri's wishes were. He didn't need to call the man an idiot, Raine's distaste and dislike was enough to let him know she had no love for this farce, but he had insisted that he be permitted to join them. A morbid part of him wanted to see how this would play out even though he was aware of how it would go, but another wanted to make sure the numbers were leaned heavily in their favour in case the worst came to worst.

He put no stock in unspoken laws and the honour of nobles. It was nothing but dust in the wind, a feeble attempt to cling to things that had long since been shattered when the war had first crested, and he was not about to care if he broke sacred rules to spill blood should the need arise. A parley meant nothing to him, and those who were arriving to speak meant even less. They, as far as he were concerned, had come this far and done enough to earn a quick, humiliating death, and yet they were eager to draw it out simply because they refused to see reality. If that was their wish, he knew he would be forced to abide by it because of his commanders, but it did not mean he had to like it.

Enough blood had been shed already. He had no interest in shedding more simply over something as pathetic as differing ideology. Nearing six years of constant warfare and death had beaten out the idea of a "noble war" out of every single soldier they possessed, and down to a man, they were all exhausted and done with killing. There was no rage to spur them on anymore. No righteous pride, or wish for vengeance... Just a tired, bitter knowledge that the war had to end with more fighting, because those they stood opposite of would never see the sense to surrender.

After all, the rebellion's army was immense, and Enbarr's gates could not hold them out. Their scouts had returned only last night to tell of the massing of the remaining Imperial troops, with word of the dark-robes littered throughout their numbers, and the advantage skewed oh-so-heavily in their favour. The capital itself of Enbarr was being ready-made into a battleground, with the smallfolk hiding in their homes in a desperate attempt to weather the coming storm, and simple mathematics already told of their victory. The Empire had suffered too many losses, and though they owned the territory, even that small advantage would not afford them victory against the combined troops of the Church, the Alliance, and the Kingdom.

Enbarr was surrounded, their men outnumbered, and the forces of the rebellion ready and willing to bring it all crashing down in order to end this war once and for all. Though many knew the fighting would not completely be over until Thales and his men were driven into the ground, this was the last big step that was needed to end the conflict across the continent, and to say that all were looking forward to it, if it could be done without mass casualties, was a gross understatement. War fatigue had set in and set in heavily, especially after the massacre at the fortress, but that, too, was the way of war. Six years was a long time, though perhaps not the longest history had ever seen of constant conflict, and an end in sight, any end... It brought forth hope, and a deadly determination to see it all through.

Still, there was that one last damned hurdle to clear, and Warin stood still and calm, back up against a ruined pillar as he leaned against it in a show of casual disinterest as two of their three foes came into no-man's land as if they had no fear, no care, of the massing army that lay just behind their three fellow leaders. He had positioned himself well and behind Raine and Dimitri, not inserting himself in a place of power or leadership, but his presence was undeniable all the same. And when the dark mage's eyes swept over his surroundings and picked him out, Warin bit the inside of his cheek to stop himself from smirking back at him.

The man's scarred cheek was dark and ugly, proof that their last spat in the fall of Garreg Mach had become a daily reminder for him, and Hubert's face twisted into a deep scowl at the sight of him. He held out an arm, stopping the advance of his lady, and he stood protectively in front of her, hand tightly clenched into a fist as he called out before he gave another step forward to truly meet with those standing in wait for them, "What is this? The letter of parley you sent said nothing of unequal numbers. My lady and I have arrived as requested... and yet here you stand to outnumber us. You are not acting in good faith."

Raine raised her eyebrows, looking from Hubert and then to her brother, and she watched the dark humour flickering in his eyes at the speech. He said and did nothing, arms firmly crossed over his chest and posture as non-threatening as he could look, but it was clear that he was enjoying the fact that his appearance had already started the "negotiations" off to a rough start. She couldn't quite blame him despite it all, as the very first note had already struck sour and proved what tone would be remaining for the rest of it, but she wondered if it was worth it despite her own emotions. After all, seeing that scar on the mage's face and knowing her brother had put it there and shaken him, shaken him deep enough to make him halt at the very sight of him all those years later... That was something a dark and malicious part of her savoured.

"Enough, Hubert. Three men to our two is nothing... and a single man advantage is a grace they offered. After all, the newly crowned leader of the Alliance is likewise not here, nor is Claude, and I see no emissary for the Church, either. This is enough for a parley." Edelgard dismissed her right hand with a shake of her head, and she stepped around him pertly to close the distance despite his obvious objections. Her eyes however spoke a different story despite her words, piercing both of those hated two through as they stood proud and defiant before her as they always had. Raine was watching her closely, body coiled tightly in preparation to pounce at any given notice, while the elder brother was surveying them with something approaching arrogant disinterest. It was what she had expected, with their ignorance bolstering their confidence, and so she ignored them wholly as she turned to look at Dimitri, who was watching her with a tired, wary sort of expression before she greeted him coolly, "Well, well... It has been a long time. We have arrived, as you have requested. What is it you wish to speak of, Dimitri?"

"Edelgard." Dimitri returned her greeting with a stiff nod, feeling Raine's tension on his left, as well as Warin's piercing stare on his back as he spoke up and began to parley in earnest. He did not regret his "choice" in companions, and though an angry row had started when he had denied any others the chance to join him, he was confident that the Eisner siblings were the only two who had the right, and the need, to be there for the discussions to come. Claude had proven he had no true interest in the end of the war, and his personality would quickly erode any patience that was required for these talks. Lorenz was the newly elected leader of the Alliance, and while his first act had been to throw all of his support behind the Kingdom's war with the Empire, he had agreed to the fact that his country's late entry to the rebellion meant his presence was not necessary. Seteth had made no qualms of being told he was not welcome, and he had admitted he had no desire to go as it was. The burning question he had worried over had already been answered, and he had no need for parley. Which left only him, his former professor and her elder brother, and yet all the same... Dimitri shook his head slowly as he admitted, "I did not think you would actually accept my request. To see you here is something of a surprise."

"Call it a whim." Edelgard answered with an errant flick of her wrist, but her eyes once again betrayed her calm demeanour and her casual tone. She could feel Hubert stiff and displeased at her side, clearly aching to pull her behind him and out of harm's way, but she had gambled correctly that the rebellion's honour would not permit for them to break the laws of parley. They would come to no harm here, even if the majority of the rebellion's troops were amassing, preparing for the battle to come. It made her both bold and angry, knowing of the traitors in their midst, and feeling the cold hatred pouring from the eyes of the eldest Eisner as the youngest simply watched her in predatory silence. She felt and shared their hate, their anger, and though it took effort to ignore them and focus her gaze on Dimitri's face, she forced herself to continue, "Your request was simple enough to honour... A simple parley, before the ending of things, as you said... So... Speak. Tell me of your wishes."

"Why did you start this war?" Dimitri cut straight to the point both bluntly and coldly, and as he felt Edelgard's gaze on him, he also felt that familiar, ugly plume of rage warming his chest. She seemed so unconcerned, so unruffled and unshakable, and he had no idea how she could look so after all the blood that had been shed between them. Because of her, the three countries were shadows of their former selves, with so many lost on all three sides that the mourning would not end for generations. And yet she stood aloof and above them all, like it did not matter an ounce to her because she believed so firmly in her cause, in her actions, that she would never be convinced she had done wrong. He knew already this was not entirely the truth, but the aura she projected spoke otherwise, and it made his voice harsher as he demanded, "Surely there were other ways, countless ways, to change the state of your territory without subjecting the whole of the continent to war. A way to change things without so many, innumerable senseless deaths."

"It may be hard to believe, but this is the way that leads to the fewest casualties in the end." Edelgard answered with a shake of her head, and she, now, mimicked Warin's posture as she crossed her own arms to look at him almost sadly. He would never understand, and the look of angry shock in his one good cerulean eye was proof enough of that at her answer. She had expected this, his inability to reason with her, but he had requested this parley, and she had come to give him answers. She was tired of their ignorance, of their inability to understand, and even if would fall on deaf ears... A chance to explain herself, to try and make them see the truth that they had been ignoring, was one she had leapt upon greedily. "Don't you see? The longer we took to revolt, the more victims this crooked world would have claimed. I weighed the victims of war against the victims of the world as it is now, and I chose the former. I believe that I have chosen the best path. The only path."

Dimitri tensed, and he felt Raine exhale, slowly shaking her head with disappointment, but the shock and anger ran high through him at Edelgard's words. He could not believe it. He would not believe it. It sounded too much like madness, putting the lives of innocents on a scale already twisted by internal bias, and believing that her judgement and her judgement alone was enough to deem who deserved to die, as well as when. It was her right as a leader, as it was his own as the future king, and yet... He shook his head again, hands curling into fists as he shot back sharply, angrily, "Even after seeing the faces of those who've suffered, who've lost everything to this conflict, you would still force them to throw their lives away? How blinded are you by your obsessive devotion to this madness? You cannot change the cycle of the strong dominating the weak with such a method. It is impossible."

"You're wrong. Well-intentioned, perhaps, but still wrong." Edelgard disagreed with a shake of her head, and she felt both pity and disgust for him as she saw the disbelief in his eyes and the anger that was emanating from him as he stood opposite of her in defiance. Raine was no longer looking at her, and had turned her head away with her expression disguised by her hair, but she could feel Warin's stare on her like an icy dagger sliding over her skin. He hadn't torn his eyes from her since she had arrived, and some primal part of her quailed underneath the strength of his stare. He reminded her much of the feral man she had met and nearly felled in Grondor, a wild animal hiding in the skin of a man, but unlike how Dimitri had once been, he was restrained in his wildness. He was a predator incarnate, a stalking wolf amongst the heedless herbivores, not the mad bear pursuing the end of everything in sight.

Edelgard admitted she did not know how this change had come upon Dimitri, what had restored his sanity and made him reach out to her now, but she also admitted that it did not matter. He perhaps had regained his mind, but he still was fighting a war based upon lies and delusion, and he would never understand or come to accept the realities of life as she had. He was simply too different from her, and that was something she was truly saddened by. The others, though, they had lived different lives, and it was to them she hoped her message would be heard more than anything else as she explained firmly, "That very cycle, of the strong dominating the weak, is exactly what I have devoted my life and my power to destroying. If after all of this you still believe that the weak will still be weak, then that is only because they are too used to relying on others, rather than relying on themselves."

A sudden burst of laughter broke the tension, and all eyes turned to Warin as he buckled over, a hand on his chest as he laughed loud and long. His face was twisted with mirth, though it was not at all light or warm. There was cold harshness to his every chuckle, an icy sort of sharpness that made the laughter sound dark and almost angry, and there was complete silence as everyone watched and waited for him to right himself. He did so slowly, allowing himself to get out every last chuckle, but when his eyes opened as his body straightened, there was cruel fury simmering deep in his navy irises as he focused his gaze to Edelgard. It was as sharp as a lance, as deadly as the arrow that had took Cornelia, and he remarked with a wave of his hand as his smile spread across his face, cold and unforgiving as the snow in the depths of Faerghus, "Please, forgive me, oh noble ones... I'm suddenly feeling an intense need to empty my stomach over this self-righteous insanity. I fear if I listen to any more of this pathetic blathering I might ruin someone's coat of armour."

Edelgard felt her teeth grind together, and she looked angrily from Dimitri's quiet, taut expression to Warin's coldly amused one with quiet wrath. It was the same as before, just as she had known it would be, and yet still somehow he managed to needle past her mask, past her belief, to ignite her temper just as he had all those many years ago. Except now it felt even worse, as he laughed at her outright rather than challenge her in words as he had before, and she could see his damned sister fighting to hide a smile out of the corner of her eye as if his antics amused her. Her pride was wounded, and she stood tall, tall and defiant as she demanded of him tightly, "Did you come here just to insult me?"

"Please. As if you need me here to insult you. Have you not heard yourself already? You're as insane as the day you pulled me aside to spout this trash six years ago, if not moreso. The weak will be weak because of reliance on others? What hypocrisy you spout, with such a smug look to your face as if you've climbed this heap of bones and corpses all on your lonesome. You are so deluded that the blind see better than you do." Warin returned with another laugh, though his eyes showed no mirth, and his face was a mask of stone with the heat of the world running beneath it just inches below the surface. Though he carried no weapons, he still looked as if he could reach out and crush her skull with his bare hands should he choose to, and he seemed to be very aware of that as he held her stare fearlessly, recklessly, and continued, "But I digress... I've heard more than enough to satisfy my morbid curiosity. Continue on without me. I'll see you on the battlefield, where this should be settled."

Raine bit her lip, stifling laughter of her own was her brother stalked off without another word, or a care in the world. In the moment, despite it all, and despite knowing full well the damage it had done... Raine admitted she loved her brother dearly for daring to step forward and rip away the shields and the excuses that any would hold themselves to without a shred of remorse. It wasn't as if he was wrong, either, and she admitted that if that was to be his only contribution, she was glad to have brought him along. He would not permit her to speak her lies unchallenged, nor would he entertain this madness a moment longer than he had the patience for. It simply was not in him, all sense of decorum or respect be damned, and she admired and envied him for his beliefs, and his willingness to stand for them no matter who he stood in company of.

Edelgard turned on her next, eyes blazing with wrath as the sting of Warin's insults seeped under her armour like the worst kind of poisons. He spoke as if he knew all, despite her knowledge that he was the worst of the lot in his ignorance and myopia, and now he dared to stand against her and call her wrong? His brass was no surprise, as he was the most brave and heedless of anyone she had ever met, but his arrogance was enraging all the same. For a moment she had forgotten, forgotten that his lack of belief in humanity stretched so far that he cared not if the world burnt because he had no love at all in him to give to others. He despised humanity as a whole, strong and weak alike, and yet he dared to reject her world because he believed her a hypocrite. She knew full well his sister had to know this, if no one else did, and she demanded of her harshly, "Why did you permit him to come, knowing full well he would not take his parley seriously? All he wished for was a chance to insult me to my face. Do you truly intend to pretend that he ever had a different motive?"

"Considering that near on six years ago, you pitched this very idea to him, he was quite intrigued to see how well you believed your utopia was coming along. I take it he was extremely unimpressed. But you can't fault him for wishing to be here. You are the one who extended the invitation when you tried to make him see the world as you did." Raine countered with a raised eyebrow of her own, and her arms crossed over her stomach as she stood straight and tense. Warin had kept no secrets from her, and he had told her multiple times of that day in the training grounds when she had approached him, hoping to find common ground with him only to find that he would happily become her enemy before allowing her to see her dream come to fruition. She defended him coolly, sharing in her brother's distaste and disgust, especially in the face of Edelgard's injured pride, and she told her flatly, "He had every right to be here today to hear you make your case... If that's what you would call a case. If you take issue with it, then perhaps you ought to apologize for making an attempt to draw him into your madness in the first place."

Edelgard scowled deeply, realizing that Raine cared little for her feelings, and that Dimitri would not step in to either defend or apologize for the behaviour of those he had brought with him. He had stood silent and staring, watching the exchange as one would watch a fencing match, and his expression was almost inscrutable as Raine added her own cold venom on top of her brother's. She breathed in deep, refusing to be taunted further by those who did not understand, and she turned back to Dimitri, hands curled into fists at her side as she continued with a snarl, "This is what I believe. That the weak will continue to be weak if they only rely upon one another, rather than their own strength... If you believe otherwise, I would hear so. It seems that to be the matter that causes us to differ."

"Perhaps someone with the strength you possess would have such beliefs, but you do not account for those who lack it..." Dimitri answered wearily, and that ugly sinking sensation in his stomach was worsening with each passing minute. He could not delight, or even take amusement, as Warin did. Nor could he feel fury, like Raine did, despite the fact there was truly anger in him somewhere. There was more disappointment and sadness than there was wrath, disappointment in her dismissal of those beneath her boot, and sadness that she had isolated herself so strictly that she could not believe in the strength to be gained from those who could not rise of their own will or desire. "You cannot force that belief upon others. People as a whole, they simply are not as strong as you claim that they are. We are weak creatures, and that weakness means we must depend on one another in order to both survive, and to thrive. This independence and power you speak of, only a select few can safely say they wield it. Others cannot live without their faith, and others cannot go on when they lose their reason for living. Your path will not save them. Are they to be discarded, too, because they cannot live up to your ideals?"

"Even if one clings to their faith, the Goddess will never answer them. Countless souls have already been lost that way. They've lived without purpose, and those who continue to cling to their faith even now continue to live without purpose. And I could have easily been counted among their number, had I not chosen this path." Edelgard answered with a shake of her head, and she leaned back on the balls of her feet at she wondered momentarily at him and his words. They sounded much like the young man she had known in the academy, not the blood-thirsty monster she had sought to end in Grondor. Something truly had changed within him, and she could only guess it was the hands of the professor who had somehow managed to break his insanity. For that, she mused, she should be grateful, as it now meant she could face a man rather than a feral beast, but she didn't feel pity for him any longer. Not when he spoke so surely of things he did not know, or understand. "That is why I am here. That is why I have chosen to fight. To change this crooked world, on behalf of the silent and the weak."

"That is merely self-righteousness." Dimitri argued, his brows furrowing and his hands trembling at his sides as he tried to fight down his anger as her hypocritical words rang harshly in his ears. How could she speak so easily of freeing the weak from a crippled and broken world, when she dismissed them so easily by claiming their faith had left them to live a purposeless life in the first place? The anger was again rising in combat to the deep sadness he was feeling, in disbelief at her arrogance and her inability to see the world before her with clarity, and he combatted her now without reservation or fear as he pointed out harshly, "You stole the power you wield from the broken-hearted masses you're claiming to defend. You're discarding them as you speak, mocking them and their lives, even as you say you are fighting for their freedom. You are pushing your own sense of justice onto them, and calling them failures for being unable to live up to your standards. That is not how a world will ever see change. Not through force of will, or by demand, but by the power of the people as a whole. If you truly believe them to need strength, then they can find it in unison, not underneath a boot of a tyrant. Do you not believe in the power of people to join together, and to rise up, even if they are weak and without purpose?"

"I doubt a high-born person such as yourself would ever understand how the poor feel, or what motivates them." Edelgard dismissed him with a wave of her hand as she began to understand what a waste of time this truly had been. He continued to speak of unity, of power when hands were joined, but he knew nothing of what he spoke. He was a nobleman, born into the lap of luxury and knowing no hardships that had truly robbed others of their power, and their will to live. Their ability to even see a direction, if there was one to take, in order to change the path their lives had been forced down. Of course he could never understand. It made her eyes drift, however, to the only other person who possibly could, who had lived a life different than him, as she continued firmly, "I see that we will never truly agree, nor will we ever truly understand one another now... It is time to end this nonsense."

"Indeed." Raine's voice broke through the conversation for the first time as her eyes met Edelgard's, and her entire body was trembling with wrath as she held that stare and pierced her through with it. Anger, disgust and hate were flowing through every inch of her, making her ache to reach for her blade, and she was only glad that underneath her armour, Edelgard still bore that scar about her throat from their bout in Grondor. She could hardly believe the words she was hearing, and though she had promised to try and hold her tongue... It had gone on too long, and her voice shot like a spear of ice as she demanded furiously, "You disgust me. Are you truly standing here as you are, the Emperor of Andrestia, and claiming that you understand the plight of the poor and the weak better than him? The man you chased off of the throne and into the wild to be hunted like a beast for sport? You are not some lowly commoner, born without wealth, status or power. Look at what you wear. Where you sit! If anyone is to be too far and away to understand the battles of those without strength, it's you. What are you truly serving, beyond your own deluded dreams of merit-based dogma? You come out the victor in your world without lifting a finger because of the power you were born with, and call that your right... and yet you claim to fight for those who have been silenced, or crippled, by the very system you have benefited from since the day you were born!"

Edelgard's teeth ground down tightly, and both anger and a lifelong silent agony roared to the forefront of her mind without her better judgement. Again. Again this woman spoke as if she knew all, but she was well aware of how ignorant she truly was. She knew nothing. Absolutely nothing of the pain and the loss and the indignity she had suffered as nothing but a little girl, and yet now she dared to stand toe to toe with her and claim her privileged? She would not permit it, and she knew she was losing a hold of herself, but her temper and her pride demanded it as she snarled back in reply, "You do not know what I have suffered!"

"Enlighten me, then! Since the day this all began, again and again you've called me ignorant and told me I know nothing, and yet you've made no effort to enlighten me and tell me what it is I am not seeing! You are not about to walk away again, calling me foolish, calling me blind, without giving me what you think I so sorely lack! Not today!" Raine's reply was a roar of a lioness, and her seafoam coloured eyes blazed as she stepped forward threateningly, uncaring and unthinking in her rage. She had had enough. If this was to be the last time she would trade words with this woman, she was not about to be told again she was blind, deaf, and dumb to the world. Not again. She knew better now, had learned much more than she had known the first time they had crossed blades, and she proved it as she met Edelgard tit for tat and growled, "I know full well who pulls your strings, and who is glaringly absent from this parley, Flame Emperor. If you think me so ignorant to you and your suffering, or to your machinations, then answer me this truthfully. Where is Thales, and why are you hiding him, and all of his ilk, from us as well as your own people?!"

Edelgard felt as if she had been bucked abruptly from a horse, and all of her breath left her in a sharp, wounded exhale to hear that name coming from the professor's lips. Dimitri stood at her side, eye studying her with simmering wrath, and there was no surprise whatsoever on his face. She felt Hubert stirring in surprise behind her, clearly just as taken aback as she was to hear him named so loudly, so furiously, and all thought of indignation and rage simply disappeared from her and left her reeling. She could only shake her head slowly, confused, and admittedly afraid for the first time in her life as she demanded almost hoarsely, "How is it that you know that name?"

"I know much more than you realize. Enough to know that had you had the brass to open your mouth six years ago that all of this tragedy could have been avoided before it had even begun. Had you just explained the situation as it truly was, and not what your sick and demented mind had twisted it into being, the true path of least bloodshed could have been taken before you raised your weapons at those who once called you friend." Raine spat back fiercely, and her hand was trembling and aching simultaneously as it fought not to leap for the hilt of her blade. An anger she had never known was surging through her now, unlocking her tongue and allowing every single little thought and hurt and opinion to come flooding out like a storm, unchecked and unchained. "At the start of all of this you called me ignorant... So I set myself to the task of learning the truth. Now, I know everything. The snakes slithering in the shadows who made you their figurehead, the tragedies they orchestrated, the power they forced upon you and the cost you paid for it, and the lives they took... and you how looked away, smiling to yourself, because so long as it benefited you, you could look past the atrocities they committed."

Edelgard felt herself stepping backwards as Raine made to continue forward, but she stopped herself as she felt both anger and a cold wave of dread simultaneously fight to take control of her body. She had guessed that their idiotic choice of felling Fort Merceus would be her undoing, and yet Raine spoke with such confidence that she was well and truly shaken. How was it that she knew these things? How had she connected all these dots, dots that she, herself, had only seen because she had lived it, when this woman had not even known of the existence of Garreg Mach when she had been found whiling away her life as a mercenary in the town of Remire? It made no sense to her, and it frightened her, seeing this woman she had called ignorant laying her bare to the bone with no mercy, and with such righteous rage that she would in no way be surprised if that accursed sword at her side came springing again for her throat.

"Tell me, did you honestly think that at the end of it all, you would end them yourselves when you had amassed the power to do so? You damned fool. This all could have been averted, save for your arrogance, and your insistence on standing alone. Alone, and holding knowledge that could have united Fódlan, and saved countless lives, but for your distrust in all but yourself." Raine stood tall and trembling, her body alight with wrath, and her fingers twitching with desperate need to find her blade and put an end to it all her and now, all laws of parley be damned. She was sick and tired of dancing to this mad tune, to burying bodies of civilians, soldiers, and friends, and she did not want to do it again. She was sick and tired of this war, and the justifications that had been made to see it waged. And that anger and disgust fuelled her, and dripped from her every word as she growled, "Now, here you are, blocking the path to the true end of the corrupted world you want to see gone. You've done nothing but further their goals, not your own, and you're too damned blind to see it, even though you may as well already be a corpse."

"You... You still know nothing of the true reality if that is how you see it..." Edelgard forced out through gritted teeth, and her own temper lit itself again as she felt each word like an arrowhead. She had educated herself, but she still was not seeing the whole of it all. She was merely turning it to her own favour, pinning the fault, the blame, solely on her without seeing the world entirely in its broken, bleeding state. If that was how she wished to see it, that was her choice, but it was still a failure on her part. It still was ignorance at its highest and purest, and she would not permit this woman who did not understand to stand there and accuse her of things she did not know. The blood she had left behind, the blood that soaked her boots and her hands, demanded she take action and refute it, and so she did so, sharply and without mercy, "You want someone to pin this upon so you can end your war and go back to your life as if you have achieved something by ending me, but nothing could be farther from the truth. You do not know reality, if this is what you claim you've learned! You do not really know the enemies that you claim you now see!"

"You think I don't know reality? Allow me to educate you, then, Flame Emperor, on what reality truly is. You are already dead." The words were clipped, sharp as steel and as unforgiving as the end of her blade, and her eyes had turned cold and wrathful. She did not reach for her blade any longer, as there was no need for it, but she could feel the warmth of it through its sheath as it hung on her side. It answered her rage, responding to her hatred and her determination just as it always had, and her chest was tight and burning in tandem as she hissed, "I've buried you, you and your army, and your capital has fallen in smoke and ashes. You're nothing but a corpse under my feet to be trodden down on, because I don't care about your dreams or your delusions. The ones I truly want are beyond you. Hide them if you wish. It doesn't matter. I will find them, with or without your cooperation, and I will be the one to end them. Because you do not matter. You've already lost. I've already killed you. And I'm moving on to my next target. The very least you could do is have the good grace to lay down and die, and not make this more difficult than it already is. At least, if all your talk of the most merciful path of the world had an ounce of truth to it."

"You-"

"Shut up. Don't make me break the rules of this parley and end this war here and now. Because I am sorely tempted to take your head from your neck and make that scar on your throat into a permanent fixture. I've had enough of this, and of you." Raine cut her off angrily before it could start all over again, and she was dangerously aware of how close she truly was to breaking all laws of parley and leaving the woman before her as a martyr for the cause of her masters. She would not end it that way, she would not permit this woman who had a hand in the death of her father to be hailed as a tragic hero, and she looked to Dimitri, eyes smouldering with wrath as she told him flatly, "I've said my piece, and heard more than enough. Do as you will. If I stand here and listen to this for another second longer, you'll need to throw me in the dungeons for violating the law of war, even if it means ending it early. Finish what it is you came here to do, and call me when it's time to end it properly. I've no more patience for this charade."

Dimitri watched her go, saying nothing and feeling himself wince deep and inwardly as the flames of her anger burnt into him like the bite of a wolf. He had pondered before at her ability to hold it all close, and had wondered what it would look like when she finally unleashed it, and yet... Yet, still she held back her hand, because the laws of parley demanded it. She had not yet truly unleashed her wrath, not in the way he knew she could, and all the same the remaining trio stood momentarily silent, afraid and taken aback to see the once emotionless woman throwing almost everything to wind and ripping skin from bone with nothing but a steel-bound tongue.

"Did you call for this farce of a parley merely to see me continuously insulted? Is this your idea of a game?"

Edelgard's voice returned him quickly to the task at hand, and he turned his head back from where Raine had disappeared into the woods to glare at her. He understood now why both she and her brother had given up on the idea of such a negotiation the moment it had been raised. And moreover, he knew he had made an error in judgement, thinking that even for a moment, this would do anyone any sort of good. All it had caused was hurt and frayed tempers, and nothing new, nothing of substance, had been revealed to him. She was far out of his reach, far out of the reach of anyone, and there would be no end where blood did not flow. Still, he kept his temper in check, aware that if no one else would that he had to, and he spoke quietly, evenly, despite the wrath that was quietly simmering away in his chest, "I called for this parley to see if you would surrender peacefully, and spare your men, your smallfolk, from the invasion to come. I can see now that to make such a request of you would be foolish... but I have come away understanding you, or at least, understanding that there may never be a way for me to know you. That opportunity passed me by, long, long ago. If where you and I stand now is a consequence of that failure, I shall bear that sin readily enough. You are not the girl you once were, nor am I the boy I once was. Too much time has passed."

"What are you speaking of now? An opportunity to know me? What kind of nonsense-" Edelgard's words caught abruptly in her throat as Dimitri's left hand pulled into his cloak as she spoke, revealing a dagger in his palm as he silently showed her what he had been hiding. For a moment, true and genuine shock crested over her, and she froze as she looked to the dagger, up to his face, and then back down to that innocuous little weapon in his hand. She had thought it lost, and to see it in his hands, and hear those words... The dots connected themselves far too easily, bringing with them muddled memories that she had long since buried, and long since forgotten. She could only stare at that sheathed weapon, her body heavy and mind spinning, and she spoke quietly, uncertainly, "That... You were the one who...? All those years ago, the one who gave that to me... It was you?"

"You've forgotten. As you've forgotten so much else. I will not claim to understand how, or why... but that does not matter. I am returning this to you now, after carrying it with me for the past six years." Dimitri replied quietly, and without preamble or even the facsimile of gentleness, he grasped her hand roughly and pushed the dagger into it before releasing her just as quickly. His eye was narrowed, his body tense, and he was amazed how quickly, how painlessly, all sense of sympathy and sadness had fled him. There was still disappointment, disappointment and perhaps something akin to grief for all that could have been, but it was overshadowed by disgust, and by anger as he watched her studying the dagger with widening eyes. It was far too late... For him, and for her. "When I gave this to you so long ago, I told you carve out your own path with it. And carved out your path you have, even though it has left you standing at the end of a road opposite of mine... You did well for yourself, El, and that I can say sincerely. But I can also sincerely say that now... I will stand here, blocking your way, and I will never allow for the world you seek to come to fruition. When we meet in Enbarr, I will bury that blade with you... That blade, and all of your sins with it."

Edelgard's hands closed about the weapon she had forgotten, and she looked up to meet Dimitri's cold, and unflinching stare. The ease with which he used the name only her dearest family had ever dared to use... It tugged again at her memory, at her heart, demanding clarity to things that were still so out of her reach. Just beyond her fingertips she could feel it, things that she had forgotten either by choice or necessity, she could not tell which, and for one, heart-stopping moment, she wanted to demand him tell her all that she did not know.

In that same moment, Edelgard cast it viciously aside. She had come too far. Her hands, her boots, the very soil she stood upon was caked and stained in blood... and what little memories and feelings she had buried long ago mattered not a whit in comparison. If she had lived this long without those memories, then they clearly were not of importance to her now. They would get in her way, trip her up when she was so damned close to finding a way through the darkness and to the light she had always been chasing after. She did not need the sentiment, just as she did not need the grace of a fabricated Goddess. She would prove her strength of will and create the world she wanted with her own hands, and nothing else. She did not need such things as pretty memories and promises to accomplish that.

"Very well. Then I shall meet you in Enbarr, future king of Faerghus. I shall not surrender. There will be no need. You will fight me, and you will lose... You will not rid me of my dream. Not when I still have a chance to see it come to fruition." Edelgard slid the dagger into her belt, knowing it would be foolish to toss it aside, but meeting his gaze calmly all the same. It felt at home there, despite it all, and yet it also felt surprisingly heavy. She did not wish for it, did not want it, and yet she hadn't thought twice of setting it in her belt to hold it close to her. The dichotomy annoyed her, and she knew it showed on her face as she turned her heel, regarding him out of the corner of her eye as she told him bluntly, "When next we meet... One of us shall bury the other, and prove once and for all who is truly right. I will be looking forward to it."

Dimitri said nothing, watching as she swept away with Hubert at her side, and he wondered how she could say such words with such confidence, knowing the price she would have to pay for it to happen. For them to meet meant even more had to die, and yet already she, like Raine, had buried them and moved on. He couldn't understand it, how callously she dismissed the death and pain that the war had wrought, and still think her path had been a path made for mercy. He watched her go, disappearing over the hill in her blood-red clothes, and he felt sick to his stomach with wonder, horror, and anger. More now than ever, she was a stranger to him, and more now than never he understood this madness would only end when one of them were finally dead.

Heavy, Dimitri forced himself about and back towards the camp where his fellows were preparing for the war on the morrow. He didn't want to imagine where Raine had left to in her anger, but he could well picture that she had sent everyone, friend and ally alike, running the moment she had returned. She had been right about the uselessness of the parley, which he knew he owed her apologies upon apologies for. She had done it for him and him only, after all, and he admitted that was just one more burden to bear for making her go through for his sake. He should have listened to her.

His boots felt like they were made of lead with each step he took away from the ruins of the fortress, and his body ached with exhaustion though he had done nothing more than walk to the promised place and then turned himself back for the trek to their camp. It had been futile, just as everything else had been involving her, and though his way now was clear, as was his conscience... He doubted the price that he had paid for it was worth it. Why hadn't Raine's words been enough? Why couldn't he have been content with her wisdom that nothing but hurt would be gained by treating with Edelgard? She hadn't been wrong yet... Why would this prove to be the one thing that she would be incorrect about?

"It's over, I take it?"

Though he would hate himself for the rest of his life for it, Dimitri nearly leapt out of his skin at the sudden remark from over his shoulder, and he whirled to see Warin leaning idly against a half-fallen tree not a stone's throw away from him. He had passed the older man in his quest to return to camp and never once noticed him, and Dimitri wondered just how lost in thought he had been to have missed him entirely. For his credit, Warin barely acknowledged the fact that he had clearly startled the prince, and he allowed Dimitri to regain his composure, even giving him a chance to speak first once he had put himself together enough to do so, "You... You didn't leave?"

"On the contrary. I left enough to be out of earshot, as I meant what I said about emptying my stomach if I had to listen to you lot drone on, but I didn't go far enough to be useless to you if things went sour." Warin answered with an idle shrug of his shoulders, but his navy eyes glinted with cold humour as Dimitri's brow furrowed with both confusion and concern. He shook his head slowly as he crossed his arms over his chest, and he offered Dimitri one raised eyebrow as he remarked, "It seems you still have a lot to learn, don't you, princeling? You think the laws of parley unbreakable? You think your opponent honourable enough to obey these unspoken laws, after all the crawling about in the mud she's already done? Raine left in anger... I'm not nearly as beholden to my emotions, despite how it looks. If she was to kill you, I'd have been there to aid you, before you would have died. I owe you that much courtesy, after everything."

Dimitri said nothing, unsure of how to respond, and he mused that the cold pragmatism should not have surprised him after so long. Of course Warin put no trust in such unspoken laws of noble treating... He shouldn't have, either, considering things, but he hadn't thought nearly that far enough ahead. It made much better sense now, why Warin had been steel in demanding he be permitted to join them, when no one had doubted he had a place in that parley from the beginning. He was merely standing there to watch, to wait in case a blade was drawn or an arrow fired from the shadows, because he did not trust his enemy to ever cleave to their word. "I... I suppose I owe you thanks, then..."

"You owe yourself more care. You're to lead a nation, after this pathetic excuse for a war ends... You can't be treating with every noble as if they have the same mind as you do. Your idea of chivalry will live and die with you. Do you want your reign to be so short?" Warin replied bluntly, and his eyes were dark and cold, appraising him flatly and clearly finding him lacking. He pushed off from the tree, stepping forward and jerking a hand over his shoulder to gesture to those who were still walking away, unmolested and still thinking they had come away the victors, "She held her blade because she was outnumbered. You heard her little minion. He expected even numbers, because he expected you to be idiotic enough to think them honourable. Pragmatism, princeling. At least own a shred of it for your own life, if not for my sister's. You do intend to take her to Fhirdiad with you, when all this is over, do you not?"

The sudden question made him start, though Dimitri admittedly was not sure why. It wasn't as if he hadn't considered it. If anything, it was all he had been thinking about, since the very first time she had invited him to share her bed. He supposed it was Warin's bluntness that caught him off guard more than anything. It wasn't as if anyone else in his life had the brass to look him in the eye and speak so bluntly. They were too bound by decorum or friendship or plain old fright to ever delve into his private life. Warin had no such compunctions. Still, Dimitri turned his head slightly, hands clenching automatically at his side as he corrected him quietly, "There's no such certainty in the future... I have not... and will not... ask Raine to tie her life to mine."

"Don't tell me you're going to cut yourself away from her because of some half-arsed belief you'll dirty her if you tie her to you."

"It's no such thing." Dimitri snapped without thinking, his temper flaring as he turned on Warin and allowed his true emotions to shine through for a moment. They were alone, and no one would dare to come near for awhile yet. Here, at least, he could be completely honest with the only other being still living who understood Raine as well as he did. He gestured vaguely, lip curling into a scowl despite himself as he growled out despite his better judgement, "From before she even took her first breath, her life has been dictated by the actions of others. Whether it was Rhea, whether it was Jeralt, whether it again fell to the Church of Seiros, and then even underneath my own boot... Time and time again, she's been denied everything, even the basic freedom to make a simple choice of her own will. When this war ends, when Thales is put in the ground and she removes her mantle to return it to Rhea, for the first time ever will she be free to do as she pleases. And you'd think my first act would be to put another shackle around her neck? I won't permit it, even if it is what I want. She deserves to make her own future, without any input from me."

It was Warin's turn to pause, momentarily taken aback by the ferocity dripping from Dimitri's voice and in every single word he spat out. There was a fire in his eye, a fire that no amount of insult from him, or threat from Edelgard, could ever dare to light. He was honestly surprised, both by the words and the tone, and he made no effort to keep the emotions from reaching his face. He tilted his head to the side, gazing at Dimitri both thoughtfully and with almost appreciative eyes as he remarked slowly, "Out of every response you could have given me, that was the least expected one... and I may have just grown a higher opinion of you for it."

Dimitri said nothing, both unsure of how to reply to such an oddly delivered compliment, as well as the speculative look in Warin's eyes as he surveyed him closely. He wasn't entirely sure why it seemed to surprise the older man so much, as he was well aware that he, too, had to know it was all true. Even if he disagreed that Jeralt had contained them, there was no doubt whatsoever that the lives they had lived thus far had not truly been their own. All of the decisions they could have made had been made by others, and continued to be made by others. Their freedom was an illusion, and had been ever since they had been born inside the halls of the monastery. "What she deserves more than anything, after the end of all this... is a path she can carve forward of her own will and want. I won't make her choose me, just because it's what I want her to choose. And even putting the suggestion in her mind is too much. I want her to make a choice she wants to make for her own future, irregardless of my own happiness. Anything else would be selfishness, and I won't force myself on her."

"That's respectable of you, princeling, but you forget that unless you speak up, she won't know what to choose at all. She needs to be well-informed in order to make a choice, don't you think?" Warin pointed out, but his voice wasn't sharp nor cold as he corrected him. Rather, it was almost amused, almost warm, which was something Dimitri had never once heard even remotely directed at him since his days studying in the monastery, rather than fighting from it. The older mercenary ran a hand through his hair, his lips curled into a crooked sort of smile as he mused, "Leaving her in your hands won't be so bitter, if you're already this ferociously protective of her freedoms... I'll be almost relieved when the time comes for us to part, knowing you won't chain her as others have. You've grown, and I'm beginning to understand what it is that drew her to you. I still have yet to forgive you, but that's a burden for me to bear awhile longer. Keep your neck safe, and perhaps a day will come when I can call you family without too much of a grimace."

"Y-You speak as if she'd take me... The future isn't so nearly set in stone." Dimitri shook his head, his ears beginning to burn despite themselves at the candid way Warin spoke, and how easily he said words he could never have imagined leaving his lips. It was strange, conversing with Raine's brother like this, as the last time they had spoke had been bitter and cold and far too close to violence for his liking. While Warin had given tacit approval, he hadn't exactly made an effort to welcome him, and Dimitri had known it was his right, and had said nothing. There was nothing for him to say, and he would prefer to work quietly, tirelessly, earning back Warin's approval bit by bit, rather than demanding to know what he could do to prove himself. "I've done nothing and offered her nothing."

"In words, maybe. In actions? It's obvious. You don't need to make a declaration. Raine may not be putting her thoughts to it because there's too much else on her plate to even imagine a future without war, but she'll turn to it eventually. And I can promise you that no future she'll envision will involve separating herself from you." Warin answered with an idle shrug, and he straightened his back as he carefully examined the uncomfortable expression on Dimitri's face. He didn't like this topic of discussion, even less having it with him, but Warin gave it no mind. It didn't much matter, in the grand scheme of things, and he said so as he turned his heel back in the direction of the camp, "I'm just glad you're finally remembering your promise, if you want the truth of it. I feel far more able to fight, knowing that my sister has someone to turn to, somewhere to call home, if I'm to be lost in this battle. Even moreso if I'm not, and our paths diverge naturally. She deserves a home. A family. Some peace, for once. You can give her that."

Dimitri stood rooted in place, unable to move or speak as Warin walked off calmly, casually, with all that he had wanted to say hanging in the air between them. His head suddenly ached, remembering a quieter time ages and ages ago, when he had stood at the door to his professor's room and heard her brother make him promise to take care of her should anything ever happen to him. He had forgotten such words, in the ensuing moons and years of rage and bloodlust. He had been too tied down with other vows, other pacts, that he had deemed more important... but of course, Warin would have never forgotten.

"If something were to happen to me, Raine would be alone in this world. All she's ever known is her family. Her family, and the Blue Lions. I'd have her leave this place if I died, leave it far behind and find a home with her students in the Kingdom. With you. Be it as a mercenary, a knight, or continuing on as a professor for your future knights. I don't quite care what it is she does... so long as she's safe. You're the only person here I can trust to take care of her should anything happen to me. So I will ask you again. Will you protect my sister, if I were no longer able to do so?"

He had hesitated, then, as a boy. Confused, torn, unsure... Now, Dimitri watched Warin's back, feeling the weight heavy on his shoulders, and yet well aware that his legs were more than capable of bearing it. There was no more doubt in his mind. That had long since been swept away, along with that dark and ugly hatred that had smothered all better sense and his ability to see beyond himself. Now, the very idea of abandoning her was alien to him. He had changed much since those days, some good, mostly bad, but still she stood beside him. The promise Warin had wrenched from him was no longer a burden, but something he wished to take up of his own will.

Dimitri let out a quiet breath, and his temples pulsed with the whisper of a headache as he looked over towards the camp where he knew Raine had disappeared into. It would be a challenge, seeking her out, and likely moreso, begging for forgiveness and taking her well-deserved ire... but he did not mind. He straightened his spine, hands curling into fists at his side as he mused there was no time to hesitate. She deserved his support, after she had given him hers... and more than that, he was aching for her, her smile, her kindness, and that tender look in her eyes that soothed those old, sharp hurts and gave him hope for a future he had once never dared to believe in.

'She'd call it weakness, but... I no longer care... I need her. More and more each day, I need her. I cannot stand on my own two feet any longer under my own power... and that is a life I can be happy with. Her lack of understanding that... doesn't make it any less real.' Dimitri mused quietly to himself as he began to follow Warin's trail, stride long and purposeful as he took in the harsh words that had been exchanged behind him, and discarded them. He understood now where they stood, the fact that their paths were never capable of reconciling, but he had been prepared for it. He could accept it and move on, it was not as if he had any other choice, but he would not let her stymie his progress. This war would end, even if it would be in bloodshed... but it would not rob him of his ideals, his beliefs, or her. 'Never again... Never again will I lose her... Not to this war, not to Edelgard... Not to anything. Never again.'

AN:

-runs across the screen screaming with my hair on fire, holding the document (which is also on fire), exeunt, pursued by bear-

Mood: Not Having It.

Listening To: Supernova - Within Temptation

~ Sky