AN:
*Shimmies into the room*
Hel-LO my friends! Welcome to the Valentines' Chapter I'm excited to show you!
Most everything I want to say is at the end, SO the only thing I want to add is y'all better send me some virtual gifts because my b-day is tomorrow and if you don't send one I WILL forever never post another chapter again! :D
I'mjokingIwouldneverbethatpetty
Reviews!
Dragon Lord Syed 101: Oh Boy indeed! And yeah, TWSITD aren't playing around (we'll see more of that next chapter)!
Matt Rogen: Glad you liked it! I enjoyed writing that scene lol
Random Fan: The real question is "Sylvain, why not?" XD AND YES people can love each other without wanting to lock lips! I find people believe platonic love no longer exists and it's sad :( And who likes Tomas? NOBODY! People either forget him or hate him and I am in the latter!
Welp! Hope you enjoy!
Chapter IX: The Throned Rose
Edelgard sat back in her vanity chair with a pleased sigh as she looked down at her finished analysis on the differences, similarities, pros, and cons of Faith Magic versus Reason Magic.
Five pages full of neat and elegant letters with the most sensationally beautiful words Edelgard could think of—Manuela would certainly appreciate this, whether sober or not.
She was in the midst of yawning into her palm when three quick knocks and three long ones lightly rapped the back of her door.
Edelgard frowned in curiosity and called, "Yes?" As she slipped her previously bare hands back into her silk gloves. It couldn't be Dimitri—not only had he given her some much needed space thus far but the knock was rhythmic rather than hesitant and, it couldn't be Hubert either; his knocks were straight to the point and brief.
"Eeedie!" A sing-song-voice called from the other side of the door.
Well, there was her answer.
Sighing, Edelgard stood and opened the door to reveal a familiar smiling songstress. "Good evening, Dorothea. Can I help you?"
"On the contrary, I think I could help you," Dorothea said. "Me and Ingrid are going for a little night out in town and I think you need some good old girl time! Come with?"
Edelgard shook her head. "I'm afraid I'm busy."
"Busy!" Dorothea repeated as if she hadn't understood the word. She placed her fists upon her hips and gave Edelgard a sad pout. "Edie, Manuela hasn't given us homework all week and you weren't assigned any chores—what could you possibly be busy doing?"
Before Edelgard could answer, Dorothea peeked into her room and frowned at the pages atop the princess's vanity.
"Hold on...are you writing a book?"
"What? No! It's a detailed analysis on Faith and Reason Magic," Edelgard corrected and Dorothea blinked in confusion.
"Goodness. Since when were we assigned that?"
"We weren't, but comparing the two was on the syllabus Seteth provided me so I—"
"Wait, wait, wait, wait," Dorothea said, holding up her hands and stepping back in horror. "Are you telling me you've been blowing me off for almost an entire month because you're busy doing work we weren't even be assigned?"
Edelgard rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. "Do put it bluntly; yes."
"Edie!"Dorothea cried, positively aghast as she placed a shocked hand atop her chest.
"Dorothea, with all due respect you wouldn't understand my situation," Edelgard said. "I'm not only a student at the Officer's Academy but the Heir Apparent to the Adrestian throne; I must prove myself here and now by projecting a disciplined image through my grades and work ethic—"
"Even princess need a break!" Dorothea cried. "Come on, Edelgard; your grades aren't going to slip just because you do work at the same time as the rest of us! You're the top of this year's entire class by a wide margin."
Seeing Dorothea was not about to see where she was coming from, Edelgard stepped back into her room and placed her hand on the door.
"My mind is made. Have fun on your—"
"Edelgard," Dorothea said with a sharp voice and a scowl. "You are going to go out with your friends!"
"I don't even know Ingrid and I'd hardly call you and I friends," Edelgard huffed.
Dorothea crossed her arms and said, "I know we aren't friends now, Edie, but how can we become friends if you keep to yourself constantly?"
"I don't want, nor do I need friends. Good evening again, Dorothea," Edelgard said tightly as she shut the door.
Dorothea seemed about to say something else but the door was closed before she could.
Now then, where was she?
Edelgard picked up the finished pages of her analysis and made sure they were in the right order before Dorothea said in a suspiciously sly voice, "Alrighty, Edie. If it's Manuela you're trying to impress..."
Her voice trailed off ominously before the sound of a cheerfully hummed tune and the click of heels on marble could be heard.
"That girl," Edelgard sighed, hitting the bottoms of the pages against the vanity to straighten them out. She didn't dislike Dorothea, and of course going out with girls her age would be fun but...she already had her father, Hubert, and even her own well-being dangled over her head by Those who Slithered in the Dark.
And...well there was whatever she felt for Dimitri too.
She didn't dislike him either—in fact it wouldn't be a stretch to say that she in fact liked him (purely platonically of course), and though he wasn't her friend, Solon still believed he was important enough to her to threaten, and there was no denying Edelgard didn't want Dimitri to die.
She didn't want any innocents to die if she could help it—not strangers, and certainly not people she personally knew. And if Solon or any of his fellow rats saw her hanging out with someone, they too would unknowingly be tangled up in something greater and darker than they anticipated. Much like Father.
Much like Dimitri.
-o0o-
"Good morning, my dear Eagles!" Manuela chirped brightly as she entered class the next morning. "I have a special little thing for you all today. Caspar?"
"Ooh, ooh! Are we finally going to spar each other?!" The teal haired boy asked in excitement, hand waving in the air as he half-stood in his seat.
Manuela chuckled and placed her omnipresent flask atop the teachers' desk as she shuffled the stack of papers in her hand. "No, Caspar, no sparring. I have something even better."
She then began handing out the pages one by one, the faces of the Eagles ranging from confusion to annoyance. As the paper was placed on Edelgard's desk, she just...stared.
Test of Love! Time: 30 minutes
The only time Manuela had given them things outside of the syllabus was the first class where she was hopelessly tipsy—the essay she had demanded hadn't even been handed in because she had proclaimed twenty minutes after during lunch that drunk given homework did not count.
But...Manuela wasn't tipsy or drunk here, so that meant this test did count. And—
"Edelgard?" Manuela acknowledged, as the girl rose her hand sharply in the air.
"Professor, this isn't in the syllabus."
Manuela hummed and placed in hourglass atop the table. "So it's not. Begin!" She said, flipping it over.
Edelgard inhaled slowly as she looked back down at the test with quickly mounting dread, already seeing her impeccable track record shatter like glass in her mind's eye.
And all for a foolish test on love.
That being said, it was a multiple choice test—surely she could get something right?
Edelgard dipped her quill in ink and tapped the excess off before turning to the first question
Question 1: What is the ideal way to confess your love to someone?
A. Orally
B. A love letter
C. A grand romantic gesture
This—this was purely subjective! How was Edelgard supposed to answer this correctly?!
With heavy sigh, she circled "A" and continued to the next question.
As the test continued, the questions became more and more nebulous such as:
Question 5: What is the ideal rose colour to give to a lover?
Or
Question 39: How does falling in love feel like?
Still, Edelgard circled her answers and hoped desperately for the best.
"Time!" Manuela called. "Drop your quills, children!"
Edelgard placed her quill down and hid her anxiously twiddling thumbs underneath her desk as the tests were all collected.
This was terrible! Edelgard couldn't remember a single point in time where she was this scared to have her test corrected. Usually she was excited, proud, to show off her mental capabilities.
But now...
Manuela dipped her quill into red ink and began correcting the tests in between sips of alcohol. And after five agonizing minutes, she rested the quill in the inkwell and sighed dramatically.
As she took another drink, she slammed the flask down and picked up the stack of papers.
"Before I end this class today, I would like to remind all of you that you are late teens how can none of you properly understand the subtlety and complexities of love!?" Manuela cried as she slapped paper after paper atop each Black Eagles's desk.
"Bernadetta! Your page is blank!"
"I didn't know what to put and I panicked!" Bernadetta wailed as a paper sporting nothing but a bold red 0/100 was slapped on her desk. "What's so good about dumb relationships anyway? We should all just hide in our rooms where it's safe from heartbreak!"
"Lindhart! did you even try?"
"No," Lindhart deadpanned as he uncaringly watched a page being slapped in front of him.
"All of you have either done horribly, or have wallowed in mediocrity! Love is wasted on the young I say! A multiple choice test! How did you fail a multiple choice test!?"
Manuela slapped a paper on Edelgard's desk that had a red 15/40 on it. The princess gaped in horror at such a low score. How was this even possible? She couldn't be that incompetent could she?!
"Well, actually there were two who didn't disappoint me. Dorothea love, I expected nothing less," Manuela smiled as she handed Dorothea her page. "And Hubert! I am pleasantly surprised."
Edelgard choked on her saliva and turned a wide eyed gaze to her retainer the same time everyone else did.
"Simple physiological thought processing," Hubert drawled with a pleased smile. "Understand the universal needs of the human mind and you understand love."
"Ugh, leave you to make love sound so simple," Dorothea said dramatically as she rolled her eyes.
"It is simple," Hubert snorted.
"Honestly, Hubie. Please don't ruin love for the rest of us, yes?"
Before their argument could continue, the Monastery Bell sounded and the Black Eagles with exception of Edelgard got up. The princess had turned back to her paper and was too busy staring horrified at the terrible score before her.
Ferdinand looked over her shoulder and beamed. "HA! I, Ferdinand von Aiger have finally beat the almighty Edelgard von Hresvelg in the art of homework! YES!"
"You don't need to rub it in!" Edelgard snapped testily as she shoved her paper into her satchel and followed after Ferdinand as he walked out with a spring in his step.
"Edelgard, hold on a moment," Manuela said and Edelgard's heart sank.
"Professor?" Edelgard said as she stopped before the teachers' desk and kept up her comfortable mask to hide the guilt and shame from her face.
"It's a shame to see work like this from you; so smart with things like weaponry, magic and attack formations but oh so foolish in the ways of love," Manuela sighed, staring solemnly at the alcohol in her flask as she swished it around.
"Apologies, My Teacher," Edelgard said, forcing the embarrassed flush from her cheeks. "I'll—"
"Tell you what," Manuela said. "You're a good student Edelgard, and I hate giving you such a horrible score, so..."
Manuela placed a sealed letter atop the desk. "Go ahead, open it!"
Edelgard picked the delicate pink letter and gently pried the seal. Within were two equally pink tickets decorated in vivid red hearts.
"I...don't understand," Edelgard frowned. "What is this?"
Manuela chortled and took a sip from her flask. "You've never seen tickets before?"
"Of course I know what a ticket is," Edelgard said with a deeper frown of indignation. "I just don't understand what their for—that is to say, why are you giving me these?"
"Let's call it extra-credit," Manuela said with a smile. "Take a special someone—Not Hubert—to this play and write in detail your experience. Do that well and you can keep your straight "A" track record! As an added bonus you also get to experience some real romance so, win-win."
Edelgard stared at the tickets, then back at Manuela, this time not being able to stop her emotions from pouring out of her mask.
Why was she being forced to do this? How and why did Manuela have this extra-credit planned out—
Edelgard scowled as the answer hit her. Dorothea.
"I...accept," Edelgard said before exiting the classroom. "Good luck, sweetie!" Manuela called.
"Hey, Edie!" Dorothea greeted oh-so-innocently as soon as Edelgard's boots hit the grass.
Edelgard gave the brunette a sideways glare as she continued walking. "I know you schemed this."
"Guilty as charged, but I knew if I couldn't convince you, Professor Manuela could," Dorothea smiled sweetly as she casually inspected her nails and followed. "I also knew you'd be struggling with a quiz that wasn't on the syllabus since you couldn't peek ahead."
Edelgard's scowl deepened as she clenched the envelope tighter in her hand. It seemed she had underestimated Dorothea greatly.
"And I talked to Manuela about it and she agreed that you needed some time off," Dorothea finished.
Edelgard sighed. Of course Manuela was in on this too. "But it's not time off; it's extra-credit and a healthy dose of manipulation," She said in annoyance.
"Only because you were so gosh darn stubborn, Edie! Go on, invite someone out!" Dorothea elbowed Edelgard and she rolled her eyes.
"I'm not allowed to invite Hubert; who else am I meant to ask?"
"Edie, you are gorgeous, smart, talented, and a princess. Just pick someone and they'll go out with you in a heartbeat! Anyway, I'm off! Ta-ta!"
As Dorothea sauntered off, Edelgard turned back to the envelope of tickets. If she couldn't invite Hubert...who else could she possibly invite?
The image of Dimitri popped into her head and she immediately dispelled it. No that wouldn't do, it certainly had to be someone else but...who?
Other than Hubert and Dimitri, who exactly had Edelgard had a friendly conversation with? She supposed she could just turn around and ask Dorothea to go with her but as petty as it was, Edelgard was still mildly peeved that the songstress had orchestrated a way to force the princess to bask in frivolity.
Ferdinand was also a definite no, and Edelgard wasn't familiar with any other Eagles so that once again left Dimitri—unless she swallowed her pride and got Dorothea anyway...
No...she didn't feel like it.
Determined look upon her face, Edelgard marched to the Blue Lions homeroom.
-o0o-
"This is ridiculous," Felix sneered from his desk in the Blue Lions classroom as Hanneman explained their upcoming mission for the quickly ending month. "We're guarding a village? There's no guarantee we'll be fighting anyone!"
"Felix, it's not about fighting, it's about helping people," Ingrid scolded. "I for one think it's a great idea Lady Rhea is giving us a peaceful introduction to these missions; the fact that we shouldn't be killing anyone makes it easier."
"'Peaceful Introduction' my ass The Golden Deer are fighting bandits!" Felix complained. "Bandits that nearly killed The Boar and his princess—why couldn't we fight them? They seem like an actual challenge!"
"Let's just be glad for what we have and make the most of it, okay?" Mercedes suggested sweetly. She patted Felix's head and he knocked it away with a growl.
A part of Dimitri silently agreed with Ingrid—he had no desire to paint his hands red so soon after the last time. Though another, darker part of him agreed with Felix. That part wanted to ring the necks and spill the blood of the fools who felt they could hurt El and get away with it.
But he supposed it didn't need to be he that disposed of the bandits—the Golden Deer were an exceptional group of students after all, especially their Professor Byleth, surely they'd avenge Edelgard for him.
"I believe you should listen to your classmates, Felix. Never wish for the horror of battle," Hanneman said as he straightened his monocle. "That being said, just because we're defending a village this month doesn't mean we won't be stopping a rebellion the next! So don't be too disappointed, alright, my boy?"
Felix grumbled a half-hearted, "Whatever," before the bell rang.
"Well, that's all for today! Remember to train hard, there's only a few days before the mission after all!"
As the classroom dispersed and Dimitri was packing away his books and writing utensils, Sylvain let out a sly, "Well, well, well!"
Dimitri looked at his friend curiously as he grinned and nudged him in the side. "Look who's here, Your Highness! The girl of your dreams!"
Dimitri rolled his eyes. "Sylvain, what are you going on ab—Edelgard?"
The Prince stared shocked at Edelgard as she stood at the Blue Lion's doorway. Her mask was on once more and she had and envelope clutched in both hands.
"I—what are you do—I-I mean, Good Morning!" Dimitri quickly dipped into a bow to hide the flustered red of his face as Sylvain snickered.
"I've come to extend an invitation," Edelgard answered. Dimitri stood once more and found the girl walking towards him, hand extended and a ticket between two fingers. "Manuela has given me tickets to a play and I wondered if you'd like to accompany me?"
"Tickets? Play? Manuela? M-me?" Dimitri spluttered.
"Those...were some words I used in inviting you, yes," Edelgard said slowly before sighing. "Do you want to go or not?"
"Yes! I-I mean, are you sure—?"
"I wouldn't have invited you if I wasn't," Edelgard assured him.
"O-oh right! Of course that makes...sense!" Dimitri said, taking the ticket and squinting at the imprinted date. "Oh! It's tonight?"
"What?" Edelgard demanded in shock, snatching a second ticket from the envelope and reading and re-reading the date before looking at Dimitri's. "I...had no idea. If it's too late notice—"
"No, no! I'll come!" Dimitri said quickly. "Thank you for inviting me."
Edelgard nodded as her pristine mask returned and she said, "Fishing Pond at dusk?"
Dimitri smiled and nodded. "Of course! I'll be there."
Edelgard gave him a tiny smile before she left the classroom, Dimitri staring at the ticket and rubbing it between his fingers as if it were the most precious thing in all of Fódlan. Was this it? Was El—?
Or would it be selfish to—?
But she had said—
Sylvain whistled. "She totally asked you on a date."
"Hmm? Oh no, Sylvain," Dimitri said, breaking out of his trance with a quick shake of his head. "It's clearly just a friendly outing."
"Buuuut, she got the tickets from Professor Manuela and the tickets have hearts on it, and the title is..."
Sylvain gestured dramatically to the bold cursive letters Dimitri hadn't seen due to the euphoria and mixed emotions that had frazzled his head: "Searching for Love".
"So? Just because Professor Manuela has other motives doesn't mean they align with Edelgard's," Dimitri frowned. "I thought we already had this discussion, Sylvain?"
"Okay, okay, I'll drop it. But!" Sylvain clapped a heavy hand atop Dimitri's shoulder. "I'm helping you get ready."
Dimitri gave his friend what he hoped was a Not-at-all-Worried smile.
-o0o-
Dorothea was an evil manipulator indeed.
Had she meant to disorientate and fluster Edelgard? Had she meant for her to worry about an outfit when she had the continent's future atop her shoulders? Because by Fódlan she had certainly done it!
Edelgard currently hated herself for staring despondently at her open closet after confirming that her dresser drawers were useless in terms of appropriate outfits as well; there were only uniforms and one overly fancy dress. When was the last time she had shopped?
Edelgard cursed the dress code of the school—had she not been forced to wear a uniform she wouldn't have such a mediocre clothing selection!
"Oh, Edie!" Dorothea's muffled voice chirped from outside her bedroom door.
"Dorothea," Edelgard responded in barely veiled agitation.
"I got you a little something!"
Edelgard closed her closet doors and open her bedroom one to find a beaming Dorothea holding up a red dress. "Bought it for you yesterday for this very occasion!"
Edelgard looked at the dress and frowned. Dorothea had bought the dress yesterday, knowing that Edelgard would loathe having anything less than perfection mar her final grade and would accept Manuela's terms.
She had truly underestimated Dorothea and her own predictably, something she would have to remedy. Now though, she took the dress gingerly and backed into her room.
"Hope you like it! It just screamed you you know?"
It didn't scream Edelgard by any stretch of the imagination.
The dress itself was fine—pretty even, but it certainly didn't take into account her...deformities.
There were no straps, thus Edelgard's scarred shoulders were left exposed, as was the dark prominent wound that ran from below her collarbone to between her breasts thanks to the sweetheart neckline.
And there were her legs to worry about; the scars there weren't as deep as the ones on her chest, back and shoulders, but they were still very much visible pink lines of pain proudly showcased by the dress's mid-thigh length.
"Edie? Are you dressed yet?"
"I—yes I'm just going to add a few more accessories."
"Ooh! I'm excited!"
When Edelgard did step out finally, Dorothea's excited smile faded. "Oh, Edie, you covered everything up!"
"That is a gross overstatement," Edelgard frowned because it was. The black cropped long sleeved bolero buttoned over her chest had effectively covered her arms and shoulders while the white tights she wore covered her legs. Other than that though, the dress was the same as it was before.
"I guess the tights are fine but...you covered up the best part of the dress! That neckline would have looked fantastic on you, and your date wouldn't be able to take their eyes off you."
"My goal isn't to entice, my goal is to get that extra-credit," Edelgard said firmly. "Now, thank you for the dress but I must be—"
"You have to show some skin!" Dorothea insisted, taking Edelgard's hands in hers. "Come on, at least take these off."
Edelgard was then struck with a bolt of horror and panic as Dorothea pinched the tip of her gloves and attempted to tug.
"Leave it!" Edelgard exclaimed in a rage filled snap as she tore her hands from Dorothea's grip.
"Oh! Edelgard I didn't—I'm sorry!" Dorothea stammered as Edelgard stormed passed her.
'Control your breathing,' she told herself firmly as adrenaline pumped her heart viciously and caused her limbs to quiver. If she showed up looking like this, Dimitri would no doubt question her, and what would she say? "Dorothea tried to remove my gloves and I panicked,"? Then he'd ask about her reaction and she would have to shut him down and the mood of the night would be ruined with lingering secrets.
No. She was being forced to do this, but that didn't mean she couldn't enjoy herself.
And so with that thought, the all too familiar mask slipped back on as she exited the Monastery and cool night air played with her hair.
-o0o-
"Why is it so...empty?" Dimitri questioned as he and Edelgard sat in their assigned seats within the dark theatre. He could only count ten people out of the hundreds of velvet and wood seats.
"It's a little early," Edelgard said. "Although I am a slight bit worried; this is a pretty awful turn up for a debut. The pre-showcase reviews might have been bad."
"Oh, I don't read reviews," Dimitri chuckled, batting his hand through the air.
"No?" Edelgard asked, turning to him with a curious look.
"It's...childish but I stopped looking at reviews after a horrible adaptation of 'The Sword of Kyphon' was made. It completely degraded an outstanding piece of literature and the reviewers seemingly didn't care!" Dimitri exclaimed passionately before clearing his throat and leaning back in his seat. "Did you read any reviews?"
Edelgard shook her head. "This was a spur of the moment event; I didn't have the time and so I'm just as blind as you are to what's to come."
The conversation seized as a man came atop the stage and cried, "Welcome! Welcome one and all to this fabulous play of love, comedy, and heartbreak! We worked extensively on this and pray you enjoy it as much as we enjoyed performing and writing it!"
"Ah, they put effort! Perhaps it will be good, Edelgard," Dimitri said brightly and Edelgard shook her head. "I wouldn't say so yet, working hard on something doesn't make it good."
"Ah...I suppose that is true," Dimitri admitted as he joined in with the polite scattered applause.
A band came out, violins and cellos in hand while a woman sat at a piano with a smile. A conductor stood before them, mouthed a tempo and the music began.
"A good start; excellent music," Dimitri stated.
"It sounds as if you're desperately trying to convince yourself that this will be good."
"Would you think of me differently if I said I was?"
Edelgard smiled and didn't respond, but Dimitri captured that image in his mind as he did with all her fleeting moments of even the most delicate acts of happiness.
The play began as a man stepped onto set, foot atop a makeshift rock and a sword brandished forward. "Oh! How I long for love but I do not deserve love and I wish I did but I—oh! What's this?" The actor peered behind the rock and picked up a smaller rock. "Why! This looks like a woman! I shall make you my wife!"
Dimitri's mouth slowly opened as he soaked up the opening scene, disbelief sending delirious laughter bubbling through his throat until he could no longer hold it in.
That laughter was the only sound within the theatre as the actor continued. "Yes! But oh no! How can I marry you when I don't have your parents? I shall find them!"
The actor got on his stomach and wiggled around looking for more rocks. Dimitri was acutely aware of the baffled look Edelgard and the entire theatre audience was giving him as he clutched his stomach and howled but he couldn't help it.
People wrote this. Human beings sat down, wrote this in a script, and thought it was good.
Goddess bless their souls.
A half-hour into the horrendously written play, fuvd people could be found walking out, and Dimitri could tell by the twitching of Edelgard's brow that she was considering doing the same.
"But! But Father Rock! You must allow this marriage! I will die without my beloved!" The actor (whose character's name Dimitri couldn't recall) curled into a fetal position and crocodile cried like a baby.
Dimitri saw Edelgard squeeze her eyes closed and pinch her brow, taking in a deep shuddering breath. If he didn't know any better, he would have assumed she was being physically tortured.
This reaction was of course opposite to Dimitri's who was now clutching his stomach with a red face and a pair of lungs begging for air.
He was going to die. He was going to die laughing at the worst thing he had ever set eyes upon.
He had regained his breathing when Edelgard tapped his shoulder vigorously, scowl on her face.
Dimitri wiped the amused tears from his eyes and looked back at the scowling princess. "Edelgard?"
"Can we leave? Please?" She asked, voice bordering desperate as her eyes darted towards the actor who was now rolling around and knocking over props.
"S-sure," Dimitri giggled as the two made their way to the exit.
-o0o-
When working with the likes of Those who Slither in the Dark, there were things that needed to take back stage—things like shame—just enough to keep up appearances but not enough to turn your backs on the people who took nearly everything from you.
But walking out of "Searching for Love" filled Edelgard with so much shame that she wanted to curl up into a little ball and dissipate into thin air; to hell with Fódlan and to deeper hell with the Goddess. She was no benevolent being if abominations like that play could come to existence and be shown to human eyes.
Everything was a daze, the golden glowing hanging lanterns and the starry night sky blending into a dreamlike illusion and the sound of her and Dimitri's boots against cobblestone echoed a lifetime away.
"Well!" Dimitri said with a grin. "That was perfectly atrocious."
Edelgard stopped walking and her eyes widened as she turned to Dimitri. "Wha—you thought it was bad?"
"Bad? No it was possibly the most horribly written thing ever put to stage," Dimitri chuckled with a shake of his head. "Saying it's bad is just an insult to actual bad things."
"You were laughing like a lunatic!" Edelgard uttered in confusion. "And may I add you were the only one remotely amused in the entire audience? How can you tell me you didn't enjoy it?"
"Oh I did enjoy it—that play was so fundamentally wrong that it's just...hilarious!" Dimitri let out another laugh as they continued walking.
"You enjoyed it because it was...bad?" Edelgard repeated, blinking rapidly in non-comprehension.
Dimitri smiled at her, the glow of the lanterns causing his eyes to shimmer brighter than they already were due to tears. "Precisely that."
Edelgard shook her head and chucked lightly as well. "You truly are odd, Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd."
"That's what the server said when I enjoyed Flayn's cooking."
"Is that another thing you enjoy because it's so bad?"
"Not at all! I genuinely think it's delicious!"
Edelgard balked at him. "You genuinely enjoyed Flayn's cooking?"
"I do! Why is that so hard to be—" Dimitri stopped abruptly as his eyes found something behind Edelgard. Whatever that something was, it was clearly a good thing if the even brighter look on his face than before was any indication.
"Look, over there!" Dimitri pointed and Edelgard turned to see a little mini puppet stage set up. Crowded around it were many little children, some with their parents as a have puppets told a story she couldn't hear.
"'The Throned Rose.' It's an old Faerghus story; oh, how I loved it as a little boy! Come, we should go see!"
"What?" Edelgard demanded as he grabbed her hand and attempted to pull her forward. Her glove slipped and she inhaled sharply before quickly tugging free of Dimitri's grasp and adjusting it properly. "No! I'm not going to watch a child's play."
"We are children, Edelgard," Dimitri said gently.
"We're both months away from eighteen," Edelgard pointed out with crossed arms.
"But we're still seventeen for now, are we not? Come, you'll enjoy it, I swear."
Edelgard still felt a lingering embarrassment at the thought of sitting around with a bunch of little children but she needed her brain to be cleansed from her...experience and Dimitri looked so positively excited...
Sighing, Edelgard related and said, "Well, it can't be worse than 'Searching for Love.'"
"Nothing could, I believe. Well...the stage adaptation to 'The Sword of Kyphon' could be the exception—it wasn't even hilariously bad, just...boring. Anyway! This one will be good!"
The two made their way to the little crowd and sat behind the majority child audience and sat behind them. Edelgard was acutely aware of how big they were in comparison to their child companions but had to remind herself that she had just voluntarily watched the worst thing ever conceived by man; this shouldn't at all be embarrassing.
The puppet of a rose quivered as it watched the other puppet flowers being dragged underneath the stage by disembodied hands.
"It's a silent play," Edelgard whispered to Dimitri.
"It is, would you like me to explain what's going on?" Dimitri murmured back.
"That would be appreciated," Edelgard agreed.
"We missed a bit of the beginning, but the red rose was proud, believing she was the prettiest rose in the garden and couldn't wait to be picked and cherished by human owners. However, she soon saw what was truly happening to the picked flowers—how painful being picked was and the horrible pain that followed," Dimitri gestured to the disappearing flower puppets. "The Rose feared for her life and began searching for a way to not get picked—as we're seeing here."
The Rose bobbed up in down in a silent conversation with a bumblebee puppet and bowed her head as the bee shook its body in what Edelgard assumed was a "no".
"She asked the bees for protection, but they hadn't the time—they were far too busy," Dimitri continued to narrate.
The bee puppet disappeared beneath the stage as a snake puppet rose above it.
"She also asked the snakes...but they proved to be untrustworthy," The snake opened its mouth and The Rose quaked in fear as the audience became filled with screaming and giggling children.
"Finally, she found The Thorn Bush, and...well it's pretty easy to see what happens here," Dimitri said as The Rose gingerly approached the bush puppet (which in actuality was a bundle of yarn with spikes glued to it), and tilted its head to the side.
The thorn bush bobbed and The Rose slid within its spiked confines. A disembodied hand went to pick her but jolted when making contact with the thorns and retreated.
The curtains closed and the child audience cheered, Edelgard watched a nostalgic smile creep its way onto Dimitri's face before he got up and held a hand out for Edelgard to take.
Edelgard opted to stand on her own before the two embarked on their walk back to the Monastery.
"Well? How was it?" Dimitri asked, a bit of hesitancy in his voice.
"It was...alright."
Dimitri's face deflated. "Oh."
"I didn't much understand why The Thorn Bush could help her when the others couldn't."
"Ah, well...they explain it better in the far more superior novel; The Thorn Bush felt worthless and despondent due his lack of beauty; because of his lack of it nobody gave him the light of day. The Rose gave him beauty, and in turned she could live and grow without the interfering hands of outsiders," Dimitri explained. "It's...a bare bones story, I know but I can't help but adore it."
"Why is that?" Edelgard questioned.
"Other than its nostalgic value?" Dimitri asked as he stared up into the night sky and smiled wistfully. "Who doesn't want to be seen as beautiful? Or have companionship? Or grow happy and safe away from meddling hands?"
Edelgard looked down at her own hands and gently peeled back her gloves, staring at the scars beneath.
"Touché," she said quietly.
"Say...Edelgard."
"Hm?"
"After tonight...do you still need me to stay away from you?" Dimitri asked, eyes searching her face as she straightened up her glove.
Edelgard smiled sadly at him and looked down at the cobblestone beneath her feet. "I'm sorry. Truly. But it's for your own good."
Dimitri swallowed, hurt in his eyes before he smiled understandingly. "Alright. But just know if you ever need me—"
"I know," Edelgard said softly. "That's why you're so dangerous."
-o0o-
Manuela looked over Edelgard's finished essay and smiled, handing it over to Dorothea who sighed dreamily. "If they don't get together, I will never be happy," she gushed.
Manuela nodded as she scribbled an A. "Same here, Sweetie; and I'm the happiest woman alive!"
Dorothea snorted as Manuela tossed her a joking smirk.
Dimigard Playlist
Old Habits Die Hard ~ Allie X
Highschool Sweethearts ~ Melanie Martinez
White Flag ~ Dido
Six Feet Under ~ Billie Eillish
Again ~ Sasha Sloan
I'm Yours~ Alessia Cara
War of Hearts ~ Ruelle
Can't Pretend ~ Tom Odell
Meet me on the Battle Field ~ SVRCINA
Cinnamon Girl ~ Lana Del Ray
Haunted ~ Taylor Swift
Obsessions ~ Marina
Mermaid ~ Skott
Only for a Moment ~ Lola Marsh
Black Sea ~ Natasha Blume
Hold On ~ Chord Overstreet
Unsteady ~ X Ambassadors
Broken Girl ~ Matthew West
Sweet Little Lies ~ bülow
Nothing Breaks Like a Heart ~ Mark Ronson ft. Miley Cyrus
AN: Yes, I am Pop Trash, and yes, 99% of these songs are sang by woman—that being said, I can see a lot of said female songs being from Dimitri's POV.
Anyway.
Did I say "Super Fluffy?" Last chapter? Nah I actually meant bittersweet angst lolz.
This chapter was actually based on real events—I saw a horrible movie with some loved ones (Holmes and Watson) and felt a part of me die, but then we watched a simple little vintage movie my grandfather was watching (Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?) and my mind was cleansed :D
Also the Rose story was something I wrote two years ago and thinking back on it I went "Ha! I like this!"
Next chapter we jump bsck into the plot—which might be posted in 2 weeks instead of 1 so it's easier for me :3
Happy Valentines' Day!
Fantasy Fan OUT!