The Final Push
Dedue held Areadbhar, took Dimitri's hand (he was holding Dimitri's hand! If only he could appreciate this more...), and put it gently onto the spear.
Dimitri heard him talk, heard Dedue encourage him to move on. To keep going. How he couldn't throw himself away because his people still needed him. How his friends still needed him.
Dedue didn't say it, but Dimitri still knew that he was thinking one more thing. That Dedue also needed him.
Dimitri needed him, too. He always had. And this proved it.
Dedue had seen everything Dimitri had gone through, and somehow he still thought that the kingdom wanted him as a ruler, that Dimitri could still be king, that he could overcome all the risks he was taking to defy Cornelia right now.
Dedue needed him, and Dimitri needed Dedue, and that was all that mattered.
And so Dimitri stood up, gripped Areadbhar tighter, and charged into the fray to save his people.
For the man who'd saved him so many times. Maybe someday they could walk around the streets, holding hands for real, with everyone accepting them.
But for now, all Dimitri cared about was not letting Dedue down in this very moment.