AN: So this fandom has this meme of Edelgard and Dimitri constantly going after each other's throats. You know the ones where they're glaring angrily at each other in fan art or Claude is holding them apart as they try attacking each other, and while it's funny, their canon time skip relationship is like:
Dimitri: I WILL SNAP YOUR NECK AND SEVERE YOUR HEAD AND USE YOUR CORPSE AS A CLOAK AND DRINK YOUR BONE MARROW AND USE YOUR BLOOD TO BATHE AND USE THE SCENT OF YOUR DECAYING BODY AS A SWEET COLOGNE
Edelgard: Lol, k
Honestly, what a queen XD
Anyway! Reviews!
Takedo: Noted! Though if it's frequent updates your worried about, I'll certainly try updating every Friday wether long or short :3
Random Fan: Same pal, same! She's so cute and far more expressive than Male Byleth imo. And don't worry I'm bad at making choices too! And we'll see about Claudeth :3
Klaw117: Aw, thanks! And Claudeth mayyyy be in the future ( ͡ ͜ʖ ͡) mayybee. I do believe Edelgard's crush on Byleth is in every route actually, since she expressed great sorrow that she couldn't get Byleth on her side in both Blue Lions and Golden Deer routes. But it's certainly more prominent in Black Eagles; Hubert mentioned his annoyance at her infatuation in one of his supports, Edelgard visibly blushes and even draws a picture of Byleth in Crimson Flower hue hue.
Oh, FYI Black Eagles has two routes and if you want a choice in who you choose you must talk to her while exploring the Monastery on chapter 11! I didn't know that on my first Black Eagles play through, unfortunately.
Anyway! Enjoy!
Chapter V: The Dead
Edelgard didn't know what Claude was so smug about.
He hadn't exactly run around the Monastery screaming in everyone's ear, "The new Mercenary is my teacher!" But with the large grin on his face, the random winks he gave her and Dimitri, and the noticeable bounce in his step, he might as well have.
The new Professor Byleth was an interesting person who was clearly talented in her field. However, the same could be said about virtually all the Professors in the Monastery. Perhaps Claude had seen something else in her when she had fought off those bandits before.
If only one battle made Byleth fascinating, then Edelgard mildly wished she could've seen it. Actually, there was a lot of things she'd rather be doing at the moment.
"In the middle of the night! Ran away!" Professor Manuela wailed, smacking the teaching desk with her palm. "No note, no warning, gone!"
Manuela paused to take a long gulp from her flask before slamming it down, alcohol sloshing out and darkening the wood of the table. "And, and, and, you know the funny thing?! He gave me an engagement ring the night before! How in the Goddess's name could you leave a beautiful woman like me after pledging your life to her?!"
Edelgard did her best to keep the politely interested smile on her face and stop the sporadic twitching of her eyebrow, but it was difficult when she was hearing a tipsy woman sob about her failed love lives instead of learning.
"And don't get me started on...!"
Edelgard tuned Manuela out as she surveyed the classroom to see how her fellow Eagles were holding up.
Beside her, Hubert wasn't even trying to hide his disdain over this blatant waste of time. The lime green eye not obscured by his hair was narrowed in irritation and he let out a few scoffs every now and again.
Both Ferdinand and Caspar were positively uncomfortable if Caspar's constant squirming in his seat and Ferdinand's insistent tugging at his clothes and scratching at his neck was anything to go by.
Petra looked understandably confused, blinking owlishly at Manuela as she continued to rant, while Lindhart slept shamelessly with his cheek pressed to his desk and Bernadetta...
Edelgard frowned and looked around the room. Well, Bernadetta appeared to be hiding in her room again but it was perhaps for the best at this time.
The only person who looked even mildly interested in the whole ordeal was Dorothea, who's brows were furrowed in clear sympathy and perhaps understanding.
"...I tell you when I see him again—!"
The bell rang, cutting Manuela off as everyone with the exception of Lindhart and Dorothea, eagerly stood up and collected their supplies.
Manuela blinked slowly as if coming out of a daze before wiping the dripping mascara from her face. "Oh. Is class done already? I suppose I should give you some homework," she mumbled as she tapped her flask with a painted fingernail in contemplation. "Oh! How about a five foot SA on the pros and cons of relationships? Yes, Edelgard?"
"Professor," Edelgard said as she lowered her raised hand. "With all due respect, what does this have to do with combat?"
"Dearest Edelgard," Manuela said seriously as she strode forward to lay a hand atop Edelgard's head. "Love is a battle, and only the well equipped can survive it. Now shoo! I look like a mess."
Manuela made a shooing motion before grabbing her flask again and downing the entirety of it in three gulps.
"A colossal waste of time," Hubert stated with a scoff as the two exited the Black Eagles classroom and made their way to the Dining Hall for lunch.
Edelgard sighed. "I am inclined to agree with you. Hopefully next class she'll be sober enough to—" she paused as a group of young orphans cut through her path running towards the Training Grounds.
"Come on, hurry!" One of the boys exclaimed enthusiastically as he and his little friends ran towards the large open doors where other students and orphans watched excitedly.
Curious, Edelgard strode forward into the crowd and pushed between two giddily giggling girls to see what all the commotion was about.
In a blur of blue and silver, Dimitri rolled and grabbed a fallen training lance from the sand and used it to block an attack from one of his Blue Lions—The man of Duscur. He then quickly pushed back in time to duck a sword swipe from his other classmate—one Edelgard wasn't acquainted with, but she recognized the familiar sharp gold eyes and dark hair from the feast.
Dimitri jumped back swiftly after ducking to charge forward in retaliation, but before lance and sword could meet, the Duscur man aimed his axe at the prince's legs. He gasped in surprise and quickly skidded and spun to the side in time to dodge.
The fight continued with Dimitri on the defence, blocking and dodging both powerful blows and elegant strikes while the crowd of students cheered.
After about a minute, the three men parted and assessed one another. And while Dimitri was panting heavily, he was also smiling with entertainment dancing in his eyes. So different from the self-pitying and awkward boy Edelgard had come to vaguely know.
In that moment of pause, Dimitri's eyes locked with hers. Surprise momentarily flashed across his features before a mischievous half-smile replaced it.
"Watch this," Edelgard interpreted it said right before The Duscur man charged with a war cry.
Dimitri charged forward as well and their wooden weapons clashed in a way that echoed across the grounds. Swiftly, Dimitri leapt back and charged again with a force that made his axe wielding opponent stagger.
Before Dimitri could knock him down however, the raven haired man charged forward as well, sword cutting a clean arc through the air that would've hurt badly had Dimitri not dodged out the way in time.
He landed directly under a beam of afternoon sun that caused his blonde hair to gleam like liquid gold and the beads of sweat that left his face and peppered the air to glitter like jewels as he tossed his head back, smug smile still in place. His chest heaved and strained against the restraints of his uniform and even beneath the snug dark cloth she could see the muscles in his arms bulge and shift as he blocked another blow.
Edelgard's mouth had gone inexplicably dry.
Gritting his teeth against the axe and the heavy weight behind it, Dimitri jumped back once more but the axe wielder was not about to let him have a breather.
Unfortunately for him, Dimitri had seemed to predict this. He side stepped and pivoted so that he was behind his assailant before jabbing the man with a quick sharp blow.
Paired with the attack and his momentum, the Duscur man staggered forward to the ground with a grunt. Dimitri's gaze swiftly darted to the swordsman who was dashing forward again, kicking up sand as he went.
Dimitri charged towards him as well, before dramatically twirling and throwing his lance with such force it blurred as it sliced through the air.
An echo of awed gasps followed this before the blunt edged weapon hit its surprised mark—the swordsman's chest. He too hit the ground with a thud and a grunt.
The lone sound of the prince's panting only lasted a moment before cheers and claps erupted throughout the crowd. Dimitri turned and bowed politely before he called out a happy, "Thank you!"
Edelgard smiled and clapped lightly as well while Dimitri helped the Duscur man to his feet with a quick apology. The swordsman had already gotten up and was grumbling under his breath as he swiped sand from his air.
"Well played," Edelgard complimented as the crowd dispersed and Dimitri with his friend in tow walked to the Training Ground's doors.
Dimitri beamed, eyes gleaming like sun kissed ice as he swiped beads of sweat from his forehead. "I'm glad I managed to entertain you! Now, I don't believe I introduced you to my friend, Dedue."
The Duscur man nodded politely towards Edelgard. "A pleasure to meet you. His Highness sings your praises much."
"D-Dedue!" Dimitri spluttered, his face already flushed pink from exertion now glowed a cherry red that rivalled Edelgard's tights.
"Apologies. Did you not want me to reveal that information?"
Edelgard covered an amused giggle with her gloved palm at the way Dimitri stared bashfully at the ground like a scolded puppy.
"You just continue to flatter me, Dimitri," Edelgard teased lightly.
Dimitri was about to respond when the little boy from before ran in front of Edelgard's path once again and jumped up and down enthusiastically. "That was fantastic!" He cried.
A fond smile warmed Dimitri's face as he crouched to the boy's level and ruffled his hair. "I'm glad you enjoyed."
"You have to teach me!" The boy exclaimed and Dimitri paused at this. "Teach you?"
"Uh-huh," The boy nodded. "And all my friends too! We wanna be just like you when we grow up!"
"If you knew what The Boar truly was you wouldn't be saying such foolish things,"
Dimitri flinched as both Dedue and Edelgard glanced up to see the previously fallen swordsman walking towards them with a scowl.
Dedue glared angrily back and stood just in front Felix with agitation burning in his eyes. The orphan child shifted his eyes from one person to the other in confusion of the situation.
"Do not insult His Highness," Dedue practically snarled.
"Hmph. Spoken like a true pet."
"Dedue, Felix, enough," Dimitri said wearily as he stood, eyes flickering between the two. "Not now, please?"
"What's the matter, Boar Prince?" The swordsman—Felix—said as he shifted his sharp gaze and taunting smirk to Dimitri. "Don't want your new friend to know what a beast you really are?"
Edelgard frowned as she recalled Dimitri's words from the day before. How a friend of his supposedly hated him for his darker side.
Dedue said, "I am warning you, Fraldarius; stop embarrassing His Highness in front of the Princess or else."
"Or else what, Dog? You'll beat me black and blue? Bet that's exactly what your savage master wants."
"Dedue, it's alright," Dimitri said firmly, placing a hand on his friend's tense shoulders. Edelgard could see all the delight and happiness that had accumulated from his sparring session drain from Dimitri's face and body until only the self-pitying boy she recognized returned.
Well. A wonderful friend this Felix fellow was!
"I'm sorry, but what exactly gives you the right to be so hateful?" Edelgard demanded as she stepped forward and sent a withering glare directed into Felix's pupils.
"Edelgard, please—" Dimitri tried but Edelgard held up a hand to silence him before continuing. "From the few seconds I've seen of you, you hardly seem qualified to pout about the short-comings of others when you yourself lack simple decency."
Felix narrowed his eyes. "You're only saying that because you haven't seen him, the true him."
"And what if I told you I had?" Edelgard said. "And what if I told you I simply accepted it because my life doesn't revolve around tauntingly reminding someone of a part of themselves they aren't proud of?"
Felix scoffed and turned turned away from Edelgard to sneer at Dimitri again. "Well look at this. Another pathetic dog to kiss your—"
Felix was cut off swiftly and efficiently as Edelgard slapped him sharply across the face with enough force to colour his cheek red and snap his head to the side.
"Refrain from calling me that again," she said cooly, as she straightened her glove. "And refrain from calling Dimitri an animal in my presence."
With that she turned on her heel, leaving the surprised three young men and little boy staring after her with wide eyes.
Edelgard realized Hubert was waiting for her when she neared the outside of the Black Eagles classroom. "Hubert," she said in mild surprise. "You didn't go to lunch?"
"I was waiting for you, of course," Hubert responded as the two made their way to the Hall. "I had no interest in leaving without you or watching the prince fight—although I'm pleased to say I saw you slap someone across the face. I didn't hear the conversation but I'm going to assume the boy deserved it."
Edelgard sighed heavily, clenching and unclenching her fists. "He did. People like Felix Fraldarius only see in black and white and it's wrong; a person is more than their worst selves and vice versa—more personally he referred both me and Dimitri to animals."
"You added the prince to your personal reasons for attacking him," Hubert observed.
Edelgard paused in her steps to direct her frown to her retainer. "Just what are you insinuating, Hubert?"
"Do you care for him?"
The question was straightforward and simple, and its answer should have been an equally simple one; a "yes" or a "no". But Edelgard found she didn't have one. Putting alleged past friendships aside, the two had only known one another for a little over a week after all.
Instead she said, "Should I ask you the same? Your enjoyment of that little scene seemed rather personal as well."
Hubert chuckled and shook her head. "Not at all, Lady Edelgard. It was entertaining to watch, that is all."
The two continued walking in silence before Edelgard spoke once more.
"It was a shame you didn't watch Dimitri sparring though, he's talented," She said. "So much so that...they believe he will make a useful asset."
Hubert's steps faltered for a mere moment before he continued onwards and entered the building proper. "Why him specifically? There are countless talented fighters in this Monastery."
Edelgard regretted to find she hadn't thought of that. Nevertheless an idea came to mind. "Perhaps he wants to take advantage of his interest in me?"
"Perhaps," Hubert hummed.
The two quickly ended the conversation before they reached the Black Eagles table.
-o0o-
Dimitri sat alone in his room with a "calming" cup of tea in hand that night.
Again. They had visited him again. Lambert had spat at him for sleeping when he had sworn he wouldn't, Patricia had sneered at him for thinking he was anything more then a subservient bloodthirsty weapon for them, and Glenn like always questioned his resolve.
Dimitri had apologized, denied their claims, and pleaded...oh how he pleaded. He had pleaded so loudly that Dedue, kind loyal Dedue, had barged in fearing he was in trouble.
Then he had coaxed Dimitri to bed and got him a cup of chamomile tea. It had taken awhile and a promise that he would go to bed for Dimitri to convince Dedue to get his own sleep.
Dimitri was a liar.
Sighing, the prince brought the cup to his lips and took a sip, a traitorous smile found its way to his lips.
The tea tasted like any other beverage to Dimitri—bland liquid. What he drank now was simply hot bland liquid. However it wasn't the taste that warmed his soul, but the smell. Or more accurately the memory that came with it.
The memory of a younger, happier version of himself curled up against his father's chest. One of Lambert's strong arm held him warmly and securely as the other held a book. He read him tales of knights and dragons and mad kings put down by the Goddess. And at a certain time a servant would come in with a tray chamomile tea and two teacups.
And oh, Dimitri could never quite hold it properly. But Lambert would just laugh and—
Dimitri hadn't noticed he was crying until a tear slipped from his cheek and plopped daintily into the amber liquid within his teacup and sent ripples through its small circumference.
His father was gone. All that was left of him was a ghost, an angry version of himself that couldn't rest in peace.
Dimitri's shoulders shook with quiet sobs as more tears fell into his teacup. Why did Lambert scream at him so? Didn't he realize Dimitri was trying? Trying so hard to please his soul? Why was he so angry? Why didn't he love his only son anymore?
Dimitri's grip tightened on the little handle of his teacup until it shattered. The cup fell, porcelain cracked against the wooden floor, and tea stained it. Fragrant smelling liquid seeped between the floorboards and Dimitri cursed.
Dedue had gone through the trouble of giving him something to calm his nerves and Dimitri had destroyed it. What was wrong with him? Of course Lambert no longer loved him, of course Felix couldn't bear his presence. Damnit he couldn't even stand himself! His pathetic, weak, lying, failure of a bloodthirsty savage self!
Dimitri snatched the cracked teacup and hurled it with a scream. With his strength and the hard surface of the wall, it shattered into tiny shards and fine powder.
He watched those shards fall, clattering to the ground in near silent pings before falling back in bed and staring at the ceiling.
"Say, if you're so keen on resting and refuse to be of use...why not join us?"
Dimitri gasped and rolled over to see Glenn sitting at his bed, smiling darkly.
Dimitri didn't like the cruel amusement in his friend's voice, nor the way the words seeped through his skin like icy water. And his heart leapt in his throat when Lambert and Patricia took each of his hands, pulling him off the bed and leading him towards the window.
"J-join you?" Dimitri repeated in whisper as Glenn opened the window and the night air blew in. It ruffled Dimitri's hair and penetrated the thin cotton of his night blouse.
"Yes, son," Lambert chuckled. "You want to rest? You may rest. Permanently."
Dimitri stared wide-eyed out the window, how far from the ground he was, how the wind seemed to have turned into long cold claws that pulled him towards the green ocean of grass below.
He knew what the ghosts wanted from him. He knew. But he also knew he couldn't die—that man, the one in the eerie red and white porcelain mask was still out there, alive and his blood had not yet coated Dimitri's hands.
And yet...
And yet Dimitri let the ghosts gently push him forwards, hoist him up so he was standing at the precipice of the window's ledge, peering down, down, down.
Would the fall be far enough to kill him? To allow him to rest, to leave this torturous plain of existence, to never fail or disappoint anyone ever again?
Or would his cursed Crest hold him here with its strength?
There was only one way to find out he supposed.
Dimitri leaned forwards, left foot ahead against the howling wind. He could hear a faint cry as he let gravity take his body and perhaps his life—
He stopped falling abruptly as resistance tugged at the back of his blouse. It only lasted a second before the grip released and Dimitri continued his descent—
A hand. Small and delicate and familiar grabbed Dimitri's wrist and stopped his fall once more. Looking up, Dimitri was surprised to see Edelgard leaning forward through the window, hair and nightgown billowing in the wind and her eyes wide with horror.
"E-Edelgard?" Dimitri stammered in shock.
Edelgard didn't answer as she grunted and struggled to pull him up, but she hadn't the strength. Her grip on his wrist was slipping and she kept leaning forward to keep Dimitri in her grasp.
She cried out when she nearly fell out the window due to his weight, but braced herself against the window's frame, bare knee bent and pressed against the edge as she used this new position for more leverage.
Panic squeezed his heart and suddenly, all thoughts of ending his life flew from Dimitri's mind, stolen by the wind. All he could think of now was that if Edelgard didn't let go she would plummet to the ground along with him. Dimitri could possibly survive due to his Crest, but Edelgard...
If somebody else died because of him...no, he wouldn't let El become a ghost.
He wouldn't.
Dimitri reached out with the hand not caught in Edelgard's iron grip and strained for the window's ledge, but his fingers could only brush it pathetically.
"Hold...on," Edelgard said through gritted teeth as she heaved Dimitri's arm with just enough strength for him to reach the cold wood. He easily pulled himself up with his one arm and simultaneously lessened the burden on Edelgard's arm, but she still held firm.
"Let go! I can get in myself," Dimitri said and Edelgard's eyes narrowed with clear suspicion.
Dimitri sighed. He supposed he couldn't blame her, in all honesty he didn't think he trusted himself not to throw himself to the ground as soon as Edelgard was out of danger.
Dimitri let Edelgard keep her grip while he pulled his bare foot atop the window edge. Edelgard switched her grip from his wrist to his shirt and tugged him into the room.
Dimitri sprawled unceremoniously to the ground with a gasp as Edelgard slammed the window shut, body shaking with adrenaline and the heavy breaths she let out.
"What..." she panted before spinning around swiftly to glare at him. "What in Fódlan's name were you thinking?"
Dimitri felt his cheeks warm with shame as he looked away from Edelgard's intense glare.
Goddess, he had tried to end his life! And for a grand total of five seconds Dimitri felt he had been a fool before his eyes fell on the shattered porcelain still on the ground.
He was just as broken as that silly little cup. Just as worthless and unworthy of a second glance. "You wouldn't understand," he murmured.
Edelgard laughed bitterly and stormed towards him. He still didn't look up at her and could only see her legs move forward into his vision. "Get up."
The tone felt so much like Lambert that Dimitri flinched and instantly obeyed. Even though she was shorter he still found the harsh fluorescence of her angry orbs intimidating.
"You're right; I don't understand. I don't understand how someone with a promising future would throw his life away!"
"Promising future," Dimitri repeated with a scoff. "What promising future, Edelgard? The one where I take the throne I'm not worthy of? Or the one where my sins catch up to me and I die on the battlefield chasing vengeance?"
Edelgard's scowl became perplexed and she took a step back. "Vengeance?"
Dimitri inhaled sharply and cursed under his breath. He hadn't mean to—ah, no it didn't matter what he meant. He had said it. And he could either insist Edelgard forget what he said, or...
"I'm sure you are aware of the Tragedy of Duscur?"
Edelgard's face immediately became masked as she took yet another step back from him. "I...am," she said slowly.
Her reaction touched a suspicious chord in Dimitri's chest but he quickly pushed those feelings aside. Why would Edelgard kill her own mother? She was probably trying to hide her grief from him.
"I lost my father that day," Dimitri whispered hoarsely, and he could see the moment in his mind's eye; horrible bird masked men pinning his father down with dark magic as he screamed for Dimitri to run. That masked and strangely armoured man bringing his axe up and—
No.
Dimitri shook his head and dispelled the memory, suddenly finding his legs too weak to support his weight.
"Come," Edelgard said, gripping Dimitri's shoulders and leading him to the bed. Her voice was gentle and the mask had seemed to slide off momentarily. "You don't have to continue if it's too painful."
But the words were spilling out now as the memories kept coming, his shoulders shaking as the tears from earlier made an unwelcome encore. "Stepmother...Glenn... so many others. I lost them, they left me all alone."
He swallowed thickly and blinked rapidly to rid his eyes of those cursed tears. Mercifully, Edelgard said nothing. She simply listened, and though the mask had returned Dimitri was grateful of it for once. He didn't want to see Edelgard criticizing him for acting like a child, or her pity that would make him feel even more like one.
"So many wonderful people. Gone. But me, the cowardly little prince survived," Dimitri snarled, fists clenched tightly atop the bed comforters. "They didn't deserve to die, Edelgard. They should have lived. But that masked man, those people in robes, they stole them from me." His voice quivered and tears of both anguish and anger returned. Dimitri quickly wiped them dry with his sleeve.
"I must avenge them. Not for myself, but for my loved ones who can no longer reach for the dreams—all because they died for me. And I know it is wrong to live for the soul purpose of revenge, but I owe them that don't I? No matter how bloodthirsty I become, no matter what anyone says."
Dimitri took in a deep breath and closed his eyes, a single tear leaking from between his lids and eyelashes. "But I can't even do that right. What kind of son—what kind of person lets their father down so horribly? I-I know it's selfish but continuing to go on, knowing that I'm not only letting down the dead but also the living I—"
"How do you know?" Edelgard questioned as she placed a firm hand on his shoulder. Dimitri glanced at it, noticing the thin scars dancing across the pale skin like spiderwebs. She pulled it back as if she were burned and put it behind her back. "How do you know your fallen loved ones are dissatisfied with you?"
Dimitri paused before saying, "They...tell me."
Edelgard opened and closed her mouth before understanding dawned on her face. She closed her eyes and seemingly pondered the situation, before she opened them and said, "Dimitri, do you recall the people your loved ones were before they died?"
Dimitri thought for a moment, a sad smile on his lips as he remembered. Lambert, loud, kind and gentle. Patricia, quiet, nurturing and sad. Glenn, sharp-tongued, courageous and loyal. "I do," Dimitri said as another tear slid down his cheek. He hiccuped and looked down at the comforters as more tears began to fall and decorate the white blankets in dark spots. "I do."
"Tell me, would any of them scream at you for failing, or making a mistake?"
'No' his mind supplied immediately. Lambert would chuckle and correct him, Patricia would gently scold him and more times than not, fix the mistake herself, even Glenn wouldn't yell or curse his name or tell him he should die if he—
Dimitri swallowed and looked up at Edelgard. He still couldn't decipher the smooth marble of her face.
"What are you saying, Edelgard?"
She hesitated for a second, shifted slightly and said, "Perhaps...perhaps those voices aren't your family at all."
Dimitri inhaled sharply, lips pressed into a thin light as he sharply asked, "What?"
"Think about it, they're far detached from their personalities—"
"They were murdered Edelgard! Murdered in cold blood!" Dimitri yelled. "Would you be the same person after that?"
"I wouldn't even be a person, Dimitri. I would be dead and unable to change my personality or express my disappointment with a single soul," Edelgard said coldly. "These voice are simply the delusions of your mind—"
"I am not mad," Dimitri hissed.
"Fine. Continue to believe that," Edelgard said in a tight voice. She uncrossed her legs and slid from the bed, walking towards the bedroom door. Dimitri kept his back to her. How could she suggest that he was crazy? He already had a long list of horrible adjectives that described him, if being delusional was one them—
"Edelgard."
Edelgard paused halfway out the door to look at him curiously.
"Now that you..." he licked his lips and breathed in deeply before turning to face her properly. "Now that you know why I'm like this, my reasonings...do you still believe I'm not a monster?"
"I do," Edelgard answered with no hesitation. Dimitri smiled shakily to himself at that.
"Truly?"
"Truly. But I want to you to know something."
Edelgard turned to face him fully and a sad gaze and frown had creased her forehead. "Don't you ever try throwing your life away again. I know sometimes that it's tempting but..."
She looked away from him. "If the...ghosts of your family is what you fight for, then you mustn't give into despair and forget. Never. You must continue your battle and never surrender." With that, Edelgard left, shutting the door behind her.
-o0o-
Arundel was right, Dimitri truly was a weapon—a weapon for the dead.
How must it feel to be haunted by the apparitions of your loved ones? Turned twisted and angry by a cruel torturing mind to validate one's self-loathing?
And he simply suffered and wore a kind mask through it all. All alone and taking the verbal abuse of both his mad brain and Felix because he felt he deserved it just for not dying, just because he felt obligated to avenge his family and felt horrible about it.
It she hadn't heard him break that teacup...
But Edelgard could not save him from his darkness. It was something he had to overcome himself, but the Tragedy had been five years ago had it not? If in all that time he couldn't break free from his mental shackles then could he even be saved?
She wasn't supposed to save him anyway, Arundel wanted a killer, and Dimitri in his current state was the perfect candidate.
There was a faraway bit of sadness and a huge chunk of rage in her heart at that thought. And she found herself sitting cross legged that night in her bed, staring at the sheathed dagger the prince had supposedly given her instead of doing something productive.
"You may not remember the joyous time we had together, but I know in my heart that the friendship we shared is still there, lying dormant."
Edelgard was still skeptical of that, but the more she thought about Dimitri, the more a familiarity blossomed in her heart. And the less she wanted the filthy hands of the Agarthans—the ones who caused his mental deterioration in the first place—to take advantage of his pain and use him as their newest puppet.
The more she truly felt she could call him a friend and the less she wanted to push him away.
"Foolish," she said to herself as she got up and slammed the dagger on her vanity with more force than necessary. Edelgard had sworn to herself she would no longer doubt, no longer sulk about working with her bastard "uncle" and here she was doing just that. And over what? A boy she couldn't even remember?
Gritting her teeth, Edelgard ran stressed hands through her hair and slammed her forehead against the vanity wood. "Damn you, Dimitri Blaiddyd," she hissed, even though logically speaking this wasn't his fault.
-o0o-
AN: This chapter was strictly Dimigard angst/fluff but next chapter shall be the Mock Battle!
I will ask you another question my readers; which House do you want be victorious?! The fate of the battle lies in your hands! *EPIC MUSIC*
Okay 'Bye
Fantasy Fan OUT!