Month of Wyvern Moon - Cake For Breakfast
Chapter 26
A few days later I was laying sprawled out at the morning breakfast table utterly exhausted. Training this morning had been unusually brutal. Mostly because Felix never had any mercy when sparring, and then after being soundly beaten by the swordsmen, I misplaced my common sense and challenged Dimitri to spar with spears. If that wasn't enough punishment, I also squeezed in brawling sessions with both Caspar and Byleth.
So, by the point breakfast came along I was feeling each and every bruise from my morning training period on top of being exhausted. Utterly defeated, I kindly requested Raphael to grab me a plate of food and limped off to secure an undisturbed table. Once having located an open table close to the breakfast line, I flattened myself against the hardwood table and began to doze.
My morning nap was interrupted a short time later by a bubbly gasp of surprise.
"You look absolutely exhausted!" My house's pink haired second exclaimed as she sat down across from me. The table shifted as Hilda set her tray down, the china chiming lightly as the aroma of freshly made hotcakes and sweet syrup began to tease my nose.
My nose twitched as my stomach rumbled in response to the sweet scent. My eyes fluttered open to see if I was right, but I couldn't muster up the energy to raise my head. My suspicions were confirmed that it was indeed Hilda that had joined me at the table and not Raphael. I managed to groan a rough welcome as I wrapped my arms hungry around my stomach. "Good morning Hilda."
Hilda immediately started gossiping as she poured the syrup over her breakfast. Her consistent barrage of chatter had my eyelids drooping as I observed, sleepily, Cereza and Petra walking by my table.
The Brigid Princess gave me a friendly good morning when she noticed me staring blankly at her approach, while Cereza tagged along beside her. My friend stopped just in front of me as my eyes finally closed.
I groaned weakly and cracked open my eye as a sharp job to my side prompted some kind of response.
My eyes flicked over to see Cereza setting her tray down next to me. I rubbed my forehead on the table wishing I could just sleep in peace as the young shaman put her bag down on the bench next to me and chirped "I am a hoping you have a present day."
"Pleasant." I corrected her absently, still not bothering to lift my head off the table. "But thank you."
I closed my eyes again, beginning to think I should just skip my morning classes as Cereza rustled around in her bag. A few seconds later the rustling stopped, and I slowly opened my eyes to see the shaman setting a plain white box down in front of me.
I felt my eyebrows crinkle as I stared at the box, puzzled.
"Present day." Cereza insisted as she slung her bag over one shoulder and grabbed her tray, following after her princess to sit at a sun-drenched table.
I continued to stare at the box, growing more and more confused as Hilda's gleeful surprise grated on my ears. "Ohhh, is that a gift? What did she get you?"
"No idea..." My brain fizzled out as my exhaustion made putting two and two together difficult. It took me a few seconds to line up what Cereza had said to the plain white box in front of me. "Present day…Present day...Oh...Oh!"
I picked my head up eagerly, ignoring the twinge of pain as my muscles all protested in unison. I leaned back and waved happily down the line of tables to yell to Cereza. "Thank you for the present!"
Cereza smiled and waved back as Petra leaned down and spoke with her. I stretched as I turned my attention back to the box in front of me. Audible popping sounds ensured as I arched my back, yawning.
Hilda's excited voice urged me to finish. "Come on you need to open it up! What is it?"
I shook my arms out, keenly aware of a sharp pain in the middle of my shoulders. I shrugged the pain off, knowing that I was sore because Felix had harshly planted his boot there just a few hours earlier. Feeling a little better after the stretch, I reached out and lifted the lid up on the box. I could not stop my lips from slipping up into a delighted grin as I found a small, heavily decorated cake nestled securely in between the box walls.
Hilda leaned over the table excitedly as I turned the box towards her to show her the beautiful piped white icing along with the glittering candied fruits.
"Aww, she made you a cake! Wait does this mean?! Oh, I know what this means! Happy birthday!" Hilda gushed happily as she sat back down, twirling her fork in thought.
I rubbed the back of my head nervously as Hilda's excitement drifted over to nearby tables. "Ah, thank you Hilda."
Looking around, and still failing to spot Raphael, I picked up my fork. I was a hair's breadth away from digging into my morning treat when Hilda poked her fork at me and criticized. "Now I'm not one to judge, that cake certainly looks delicious, but should you really be eating that for breakfast?"
The tank taunted me as I held a fork posed right above a glittering, sugar encrusted cherry. I raised my eyebrow questioningly as I rolled my eyes."Is there an adult here that's going to tell me I can't have cake for breakfast?"
"Did someone say cake for breakfast?" Lysithea walked down the aisle, her morning breakfast tray in hand.
I tilted my head towards her, knowing I had just gained a valuable ally as the temperamental mage sat down next to me with an excited glint in her eye. "That sounds like a great idea!"
I followed up, wasting no time as I offered her a slice of cake. "Doesn't it? Would you like a slice?"
Seeing me offer a slice to Lysithea, Hilda chimed in expectantly. "Hey, I never said cake for breakfast was a bad idea! I would like a slice to please!"
I suppressed a snicker as I grinned at Lysithea, waiting for her answer.
"Sugary sweets help wake me up in the morning." Lysithea nodded sagely as she offered me her plate. Hilda followed the mage's example and held out her own plate, eager to not be left out of the festivities.
I chuckled at both plates and set my fork down to see if I could locate my knife. A slight frown of confusion flickered through me as I touched my thigh and failed to find the band that typically held my knife.
Seeing me look around in confusion, Leonie sat down on my other side with a cheerful smile. "You forget something?"
I pursed my lips and nodded trying to think of if I had forgotten the knife in my room or if it was at the training yard. "Yes, I seem to have misplaced my knife."
The huntress shrugged and dug into her pocket, handing me hers with a knowing grin. "It happens, let me know if you can't find it and I'll help you search for it."
"Thanks Leonie, will do." I flicked the knife open and cut into the cake.
Leonie looked over my arm to see what was in the box. "So it's your birthday huh?"
"Present day." I corrected her as I dug out the first slice of cake and passed it carefully along the blade edge to Lysithea. "Do you want some?"
Leonie shook her head as I passed Hilda her slice, picking up a candied kiwi as as it fell off during the transfer process. "No thanks, maybe later. I don't do sweets first thing in the morning."
"Suit yourself." I shrugged as I cut myself a slice and realized I had no plate to put it on. I was strongly just considering just holding the cake in my hand while I ate it, when a jovial voice carrying my morning breakfast sat down with a mountain of food next to Hilda.
"Did someone mention cake?" Raphael passed me two clean plates, while Ignatz yawned sleepily behind him.
The archer sat down on Raphael's other side as I put my slice down on the clean plate. Seeing the other plate, I knew the answer before I even asked the question. "Do you want some Raphael?"
"Sure! I am always in the mood for food!" The big man boomed as I served him a thick slice of cake as a thank you for getting the remainder of my breakfast.
Raphael passed me a modest stack of hotcakes off the mountain he had claimed as I turned to the artist. "What about you Ignatz? Do you want some cake?"
Ignatz nodded and passed me a small plate. "Sure, I'll take a small slice if you don't mind."
We were all laughing and enjoying the meal as a disgusted voice cut through the cheery atmosphere. "Ech, that cake was meant for you alone."
I turned to look over my shoulder and spotted Lorenz. The tall, distinguished noble was walking over with his morning repast looking disgusted. I immediately rolled my eyes as he began voicing this morning's indignation. "I apologize, the cake failed to come with specific instructions. Besides, isn't it better to share these things with friends?"
Lorenz huffed as he stood behind me, staring down his nose disapprovingly at my actions. "I would refrain from eating such unrefined food first thing in the morning. It would ruin my appetite."
The noble watched the others begin to enjoy their cake and abruptly finished his sentence. "It also has an adverse effect on my calm and peaceful morning respite."
Out of spite, I took a bite of my cake as Lorenz lectured us on the adverse effects on eating cake first thing in the morning, struggling to remain civil. As the lecture droned on about eating a healthy, balanced breakfast I had a malicious idea. Struggling to hold back a suggestive smirk I began slowing licked some of the wayward frosting off the back of my fork, whilst making direct eye contact.
Lorenz stopped mid-sentence and glared frostily down his nose at me. "I beg your pardon; I do believe I have informed you priorly that your current actions are completely barbaric and utterly devoid of any semblance of table manners."
I caught sight of a drop of frosting on the tip of my finger and promptly proceeded to lavishly lick my finger for good measure with a cheerful wink, knowing full well my actions infuriated the pristine noble to no end.
"I wish you would stop licking your food in front of me!" Lorenz's face flushed a brilliant shade of pink as he protested my actions. His righteous rage warmed the cockles of my heart, and I couldn't help the sly grin from creeping onto my face.
"What's the matter Lorenz? It's absolutely delicious. I am sure Cereza made this especially for me, so it would be a waste not to eat everything." I stressed certain words in my sentence and then proceeded to annoy him further by bringing another bite of cake up to my lips. My eye contact did not falter as I proceeded to slowly lick the cake off my eating utensil to maximize his discomfort.
Across the table, Hilda's barely controlled snicker was muffled behind her hand as I repeated the gesture for good measure. My degenerate actions had Lorenz's pale blush blooming into a crimson red one that matched the fresh rose in his lapel. The noble's indignation rose as he broke eye contact with me and turned on Hilda. "Really, Hilda! Must you also engage in such lascivious activities? Surely it is more becoming, considering your station, to know how to properly handle one's eating utensils?!"
I leaned towards Lorenz, unable to control the smugness that was quickly creeping into my voice. "Think about it this way Lorenz, it's an excellent way to discover just how talented your future wife's tongue can be."
My side comment caused the proper gentleman in him to go beat red up to his ear tips as Hilda utterly failed to hide her hysterical laughter.
The pink haired noble snorted as she grabbed the table reeling with laughter. "Ohhh, oh - oh my! Haha, I can't believe you said that! Lilianna has you there Lorenz!"
I ran my tongue all the way up the fork and winked at him connivingly.
My teasing, in accompaniment to Hilda's laughter, caused Lorenz to scowl down at both of us with an intensity that might have killed us. "If you will excuse me, I am off to find some more civil company to enjoy my morning tea with."
He promptly moved over to the table where Cereza, Petra, and Ferdinand were sitting and struck up a conversation. My small shaman friend turned around and gave me the most confused look, in which I responded with another liberal demonstration of what was bothering the noble so early in the morning with a mischievous wink. Cereza shook her head at my antics, turning back to her table's lively conversation while attempting to hide her own laughter.
"I can't believe you did that. He is going to have nightmares for weeks." Leonie snorted quaking with laughter as Lysithea continued to methodically consume her cake like nothing was amiss.
"So, what does licking her fork have anything to do with finding a wife?" Raphael inquired innocently as he speared his slice of cake with a giant fork I had never seen the likes of ever before. My mouth fell open in amazement as I watched the jovial merchant's hand shovel the entire slice into his mouth in one go.
I was too speechless at watching a quarter of the cake disappear in one go, to field the question and Ignatz was less prepared to tackle the question first thing in the morning. The archer began to panic as he stammered for an answer which only made Hilda, Leonie, and me laugh harder.
"Umm, would it be ok...if…" I gestured to the open seat next to Hilda, now gasping for air. If breathing was a challenge, cutting a straight line was even harder.
"Yes, haha, go ahead." I managed to wheeze as I finished cutting Marianne a slice of cake.
Having been around the shy healer enough I knew she would never have the nerve to ask, even if she wanted a slice, I just took on the task of cutting her a slice anyway. I guessed it was hard enough for her to ask if she could sit with us anyway, so I decided that for her hard work she needed a larger piece as well.
As I plated another slice of cake and passed it over to Marianne with a shaking head as I heard Raphael gasp behind me. "Oh! I get it now! It makes sense!"
I shot a curious look over my shoulder, and spotted Claude leaning over, whispering in Raphael's ear while Byleth and Dimitri approached from behind him.
The Golden Deer leader straightened up and gave Raphael a firm pat on his back before making his way toward me.
I put my fork down and licked the corner of my mouth. "Morning Claude, Professor." I nodded my head to Dimitri who was staring at me looking very confused. "And good morning again your highness, long time no see."
"Yes, good morning?" Dimitri gave me a polite bow as Byleth gestured to the table behind us.
"Sooo, I see you guys have managed to scare Lorenz off already this morning?" Claude poked Lysithea who grudgingly moved down a seat, sliding her cake down with a warning glare that Claude laughed off.
My house leader sat down in the freshly vacated seat as Hilda wheezed across the table. The second dabbed lightly at the corners of her eyes with a light pink handkerchief, as she tried to prevent her tears of laughter from smudging her perfect makeup. Hilda attempted to get her laughter under control as she explained the situation. "Oh Claude! You should have seen the faces he made! It was great!"
"Let me guess, by licking?" The Golden Deer inquired with a yawn as he investigated the box next to his elbow. "Oh, look at that, a cake. First thing in the morning too. What's the special occasion?"
My house leader started to grin slyly at me, and I began to worry he was already planning something as he continued breezily. "Let me guess. Finally finished your backlog of homework? Did you complete a certification? Oh, I know! You're deeping your growing dependency on sugary sweets?"
Hilda covered her mouth again and turned away, her barely muffled howls of laughter left me to face Claude's mischievous grin alone. Unable to stop myself, I picked up my fork and dainty ate a piece of cake. "I don't know what you're trying to imply. I have been eating my cake dainty, one delicate crumb at a time. Any well-bred noble woman would be envious of my impeccable table manners."
Lysithea rolled her eyes and leaned over the table to answer Claude's pending question. "It's Lilianna's birthday, haven't you guessed?"
"Is that so? Well why didn't you tell me?!" The Golden Deer winked at me as I averted my gaze, proceeding to lick more frosting off my fork.
"I doubt he's guessing. You're just looking for confirmation are you not?" My sarcastic draw caused Claude to shift in his seat.
The Golden Deer crossed one leg over the other as he leaned on the table. He nodded sagely, confirming my suspicions. "Course I did! I have also arranged for us to have a feast for dinner tonight!"
His sudden proclamation caught me off guard and my fork dropped out of my hand in shock.
My house leader lazily put a handout to grab the falling implement before had a chance to hit my plate. "That was exactly the reaction I had been hoping for."
My voice dropped to a shocked plea, and I managed to squeak. "Clauddeeeee No! You can't do this to me!"
Claude was remorseless in his teasing as he twirled my fork around. The silver tines poking out as he made the eating utensil dance in unrelenting circles. "Oh I can and I will."
Not remotely happy about this new turn of events, I pleaded for him to cancel the party.
"Claude loves any excuse to have a party." Hilda explained as she recovered, "So he's been planning it for a few days now."
"Well, I had help of course." My house leader ratted out his accomplice before using my fork to help himself to a bite of cake. With the most malicious smile I had ever seen on him, the Golden Deer proceeded to lick the sweet treat off the tines the exact same way I had moments before.
"You don't say…" I replied glumly, all hope of preventing the planned festivities dissipating as both my house leader and his second teamed up on me. I watched Claude lick my fork and felt the intense urge to rub my temples.
Internally I was wondering how I had missed catching wind of these plans. I racked my brains trying to think of how these two could have hid something from me so easily, and my mind jumped from preventative action to planning my escape routes. My mind skimmed over plan after plan, doing all it could to come up with ways to escape the festivities before they occurred.
My sour reply caused my scheming house leader to chuckle. "Aw, come on! It'll be fun Petal! Besides, what's the worst that could happen?"
Claude picked up another bite of cake and held it towards me as further damn me. My gaze shifted away from the mischievous sparkle in my house leader's unrelenting gaze and focused on Hilda.
The second in command took one look at my pleading gaze and Claude's remorseless teasing and burst back out laughing. "Haha, you should see your face!"
"What's wrong Petal?" Claude cooed, his grin betraying how much he was enjoying the game he was playing. Feeling totally played, I felt my cheeks start to blaze as I tucked my hair behind my ear and leaned forward.
At the last heartbeat, I sensed I had an opportunity. I did not wait for an invitation. As I leaned forward, Claude leaned in closer to me, victory glittering in his gaze. In the next beat of my pounding heart, I grabbed Claude's wrist. It took a small amount of pressure to hit the delicate pressure point. The sudden pressure caused the Golden Deer to involuntarily loosen his grip.
Claude took my counterattack in stride as I relieved him of both my fork and cake. I quickly made off with the eating utensil and ate the cake off the end. My cheeks blazed with heat as I failed to make eye contact, looking anywhere but at the Golden Deer.
A sudden crash from the other side of the table had me looking back. I raised one eyebrow as I looked around for Hilda. The pink haired tank's mad giggling drifted up over the table from her new position on the floor.
I continued looking where Hilda used to be seated, my eyes drifting involuntarily towards Claude. I stared at him out of the corner of my eye and felt another fresh wave of heat on my cheeks as I noticed he was doing the same. My mischievous, scheming, house leader gave me the slyest of winks and started laughing uncontrollably.
I couldn't help myself and I felt myself start to giggle helplessly alongside him.
After the incident at breakfast I found myself doing everything I could to avoid Claude, dreading the rest of the day. However, it appeared that my resourceful house leader had just about everything planned in his efforts to keep me from fleeing. Claude's efforts and planning proved to be all encompassing. From knowing my class schedules down to where I went on breaks, he had people keeping an eye on me. To the point where he even resorted to keeping his own watch.
I first noticed it when I got up to go for a walk in the nearby gardens during a short recess from our morning lessons. First incident of me being watched caught my attention when Hilda decided to follow me to chat rather than finish painting her nails and I became certain something was up however when Claude himself stayed behind after we were excused for lunch.
I had been planning to approach professor Hanneman after the lecture to get clarification on a trade law I had been researching in my efforts to craft better trading contracts, and then I had a question about some of my crest findings. I wanted to ask for an expert opinion on a confusing question I had encountered regarding the use of crests in battle and how they could potentially be used to affect our outcome during the battle of the Eagle and Lion.
"Neglecting lunch to watch over one of your wayward fawns?" Finishing my conversation with the professor, I met the Golden Deer at the entrance to our classroom. My hand went to my hip in exasperation as he flipped a page in the book he was reading.
"Uh huh, exactly what I am doing." Claude spoke into the page, his eyes zipping along the text in a way that made me almost queasy.
I waited in silence, interested in what he was up to despite myself as I watched the brilliant forest green eyes spark with interest as he worked to finish the passage he was on. I absently watched my house leader's small side braid swing back and forth as he studied the page he was reading intensely.
I waited for Claude to finish, still thinking over Hanneman's answer to my question, along with what I might be able to do for the upcoming battle.
The thought hit me at once and prompted a soft gasp of insight. "Oh…"
Realizing what I could do, I turned and went back into the classroom
. "Professor! Professor Hanneman!" I called out as I trotted back inside the Golden Deer's homeroom. "I was wondering if after class today, I could take my certification exam to become a wyvern rider?"
My request caught my professor off guard. Professor Hanneman looked up over his spectacles, scrutinizing me as I adjusted the strap on my shoulder. "Why yes, of course?"
The professor's eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "I thought you were signing up for the bishop examination? I thought that was what we agreed on?"
I shook my head, both of us knowing magic was a tricky subject at best. We had priorly discussed the possibility of me testing into the warrior class as well, if Zu couldn't be cleared by Seteth as suitable for flight.
I pressed my case. "I am certain I can pass the wyvern rider certification! Besides Seteth gave Zu the all clear last week to begin fighting in a flight, didn't you see the memo on your desk?"
I put one hand on the professor's desk as I pushed for approval. "With the clearance from Seteth, I think it's a good time for me to pursue the advanced certification."
The professor took off his glasses and began to clean them. His words and tone were a cautious warning at best. "If you are certain, you do realize that this means that one of your first battles will be in the Battle of the Eagle and Lion?"
I nodded, not giving in. "Yes, I understand the risk. It works in the Deer's favor actually, if we lose we can just chalk it up to some of us having new certifications and not being that familiar with our new jobs."
I took my hand off my desk and shot an experimental look at Claude who still had his book cracked open as he waited in the doorway. It was pretty clear he was listening in on the conversation.
I shook my head, my trading instinct kicking in to appeal to the academic professor in front of me. "And if we win, then it's because we got our advance certifications early. That should help motivate other students to push themselves to excel in their studies."
"Hmm, alright I see your point. I will make sure to prepare your certification exam. You may come take it after you finish your evening duties." The aging professor stroked his mustache in thought, a slight smile at the corner of his thin lips.
I smiled brilliantly at my professor, satisfied I had just figured out a cunning solution to two of my more pressing issues. "Thank you, professor!"
Just then Hanneman seemed to notice Claude lingering against the doorway. "How can I assist you Master von Riegan?"
Claude snapped his book shut and straightened up right shaking his head. "Arguably I am beyond help, but thanks for asking."
My house leader's sharp retort made me realize I might have struck a nerve with my effort to get out of the birthday celebrations he had been planning.
I hid a smirk as the professor shook his head in disapproval. "I am well aware of your misgivings, but I assure you that I do not think you are beyond assistance. Please let me know if there is anything I can do for you."
"Sure thing professor, will do." Claude's easy smile was back a split second later as he yawned. "For now, I'm off to eat lunch and have a friendly chat with one of my wayward fawns."
I rolled my eyes at his word play and headed out towards the door. Claude gave professor Hanneman a two finger salute and fell in step next to me, following me out the door.
I shook my head as my house leader grinned at me, his smile not quite reaching his eyes.
"First I am a Petal, now I am a fawn." I shook my head sadly as we made our way into the gardens, heading towards the dining hall. "Am I your pet, or do you just have this kink for pet names?"
Claude winked at me, the light playfulness of his tone turning to border on flirtatious. "Which would you prefer?"
I stopped and frowned, caught off guard by the sudden change in demeanor again. This morning had thrown me for a loop as well. I expected these kinds of advances from Sylvain on a daily basis and it was easy to know how to deal with them, because I knew Sylvain's tricks didn't mean anything to him. The flirtatious behavior coming from my house leader however had me second guessing everything. Was he just messing with me or was he hinting at something more?
Uncertain what was going on, my hand burned where Claude had placed a mischievous kiss last week, and I decided to turn the tables for once. Interested to see how far my daring Golden Deer leader would take this game. With a sharp breath, I turned and leaned into him. We both came to a stop as my breath ghosted over Claude's neck.
The faint scent of sandalwood and leather tickled my nose as I tried to keep my emotions in check long enough to play the game.
"Can a lady have both on her present day?" I purred softly against his skin and was delighted as Claude's cheeks started to flush a pale pink. *
"Well, errr, sure why not?" The Golden Deer took a quick step back, away from me and I confirmed it wasn't anything to read into.
"Great! So you'll stop calling me a delicate feminine flower and I'll know what to expect if Byleth asks me about any juicy gossip the next time we have spar!" I smirked as my house leader's mouth fell open in a complete gasp of horror as I continued, making up for all the trouble he had been causing me recently. "Or maybe it will make for a better teatime conversation. I think both have great potential."
"It- It sounds like it would be a lively conversation." Claude tugged on his shirt, managing to hide his surprise a few seconds later to muster a weak comeback. "You have been spending entirely too much time with the Blue Lions group I see."
I shrugged and began making my way towards the dining hall again.
"Sylvain, you can blame Sylvain for that. It's probably due to accepting a few too many lunch invitations." I casually admitted that I made a habit of dining with the flirtatious redhead frequently, and then continued. "If not, my time on the road definitely meant I had to learn a few tricks."
My fleeting mention of my past teased the Deer and he soon followed up on his curiosity. "I imagine it must have been hard, huh?"
I clicked my tongue as we passed by a popular gazebo full of students taking lunch or enjoying tea in the weakening sunshine. "Well, having Navan around helped most of the time. He's fairly protective even if he doesn't show it that often."
"You don't say. I heard he has been dispatched to deal with the western church with Jeralt's battalion." Claude casually threw out that he knew where my training mentor was and I raised an eyebrow, wondering just how close of an eye the Golden Deer kept on me.
I watched Claude out of the corner of my eye as he attempted to match his longer steps to mine. "Unfortunately. Byleth and I have a running bet on how big their bar tabs will be when they return. I have 100 gold riding on Navan returning with at least ten bars' worth of tabs."
My house leader chuckled; his laughter not quite guarded but not totally relaxed either. "That sounds like a promising wager. I heard that last time the two of them were sent out together, Seteth himself gave them both such a royal lecture about unpaid tabs that they didn't drink for a week."
I nodded, having barely survived Navan's training as he went through withdrawals. "That sounds about right. Navan's had a drinking problem since before I even knew him."
My eyes focused on the tall, ominous, black mass that loomed over the open garden gates. Hubert's narrow yellow eyes quickly scanned the garden before moving off again. I shuttered involuntarily, feeling sorry for whoever his quarry was this time.
As Hubert ducked out of sight, I felt comfortable enough to continue. "I was told that there was a sickness that ran through the region where we lived, a bit before I was adopted. This sickness killed a lot of people in the region. Both Navan and my father lost their wives and children, so I guess in a way, I kind of stand in for them."
My heart felt heavy as I thought about the tragedy, and I was reminded once again of why I did not stay in one spot long enough to develop connections. With a heavy sigh to match my heart, I stopped again to look up at the blue skies. I took a minute to admire the freedom of the puffy clouds that roll casually by in the noon sunlight.
Claude broke the moment by interjecting his own observations. "Right, right that makes complete sense. Just like him beating you into the ground every morning does. Though given what you have told me about your travels, I am going to just guess that's his idea of protecting you."
The Golden Deer's wit amused me, and the mood between us changed abruptly as I found myself laughing. My lighthearted laugh was in direct contrast to his sarcastic and disbelieving tone. "Haha! Well that might be part of it, but I think the real reason is he got sick of having to stop drinking to dissuade men from bothering me. I might have..."
I choked back a laugh as I remembered several incidences of bar brawls that I had initiated on my own. Claude shot an inquisitive look down at me as I hid my laugh behind the back of my hand. "Hehe! You'll probably find it amusing to know that I may or may not have... destroyed a few taverns in my travels on my own accord thanks to Navan's training."
I smirked up at my house leader as he let out a surprised laugh. "Alright you got me, that wasn't the ending I expected."
Emboldened, and still not quite done teasing, I held up a hand and gestured for him to lean down.
Something in my smile must have given something away because Claude dropped his ear down to me so I could whisper. "Mmm, I'll also admit that I may have drugged a fair share of them as well. Normally it was to get out of us having to pay rent or Navan's bar tab..."
I pulled away, giving the Golden Deer a sly, knowing, grin.
"He really has a drinking problem, doesn't he?" Claude shook his head exasperated as I gave him a playful wink.
"Yup! Well traveling with him sure has been interesting, I'll say that much. I kind of wish these peaceful days could last forever." I grinned as I watched as a wyvern entered my field of vision. In the skies the flying wyvern swooped down, followed closely by another one.
Claude leaned back and looked up at the sky next to me, his hands reaching up behind his head. "That would be something wouldn't it?"
We both paused, watching the wyverns dancing in the air. The beasts darted to and fro, using the clouds for cover as the other attempted to tag the leader. We both knew the game to be flight exercise, nostalgia running me as I wished my little prayer would be answered.
It was not to be as the post noon bell began to sound over the monetary grounds, signaling an end to the lunch period.
The bell startled me out of my reverie and I grabbed Claude's hand on impulse. "Ahh! Come on! We are totally going to miss lunch! It was one of my favorites today!"
Claude tripped along behind me, yelling as I bolted for the dining hall. "Wooh! Hold on a second! Lilianna slow down!"
Author Corner: - Bonus - Rejected Scene
I normally revise and revisit scenes - and sometimes they are minor updates and other times I completely rip it up and replace it to get back on track. So here's a bit of a runaway train that I snipped off and rejected in one of the earlier drafts featuring how Claude could have reacted to Lilianna's return flirtations.
In the end I rejected the draft because I feel like the 18 year old, academy phase, Golden Deer is lacking experience when dealing with women/romance/reciprocated flirting to know what happens when the girl flips the table on him. That being said, I could totally see Claude rolling with it in his older years - and the scene certainly would have played out differently. I hope you enjoy the bonus scene! (Find the * to see where this would fit!)
* The flush on Claude's cheeks wasn't enough to prevent the Golden Deer from finding a comeback however. He leaned down towards me with a wicked grin, our noses almost touching. "But of course my pet, it is your special day after all. What might you desire from your Golden Deer?"
I stepped back, several steps in fact, with my heart hammering while he grinned like he had discovered something huge. "You are a delight to mess with."
The Golden Deer's blatant flirting caused me to narrow my eyes. "I tolerate that kind of behavior from Sylvain and Sylvain only. "
My mind took a short hiatus as I grew more defensive.
What would I even do if Claude had that kind of interest in me? Clearly, he was interested in Professor Byleth, that much he had admitted to on a couple of occasions already. Besides, our worlds are entirely too different.
I bit my lip as I began to think that maybe Lorenz had a point about commoners' vs nobles. I shook off that train of thought.
There was no way the heir to a dukedom was remotely interested in someone like me unless he wanted to use me. Probably as a pawn in one of his many games. I almost pushed myself backwards away from him. If he ever found out about my crest's powers...I didn't want to think about it but knowing Claude's interests and power I would either be killed or he would lock me away to keep his own secrets, secret.
I didn't want to be locked away in the abyss and I had zero confidence that I could actually run from this man long enough to escape back to Almyra.
"Hell-o Lilianna? You in there?" Claude was waving a hand in front of my face as I pulled myself out of my mind. "Oh, look you rejoin me."
So - yaaa that was the rejected scene - I wonder where that conversation would have gone? Food for thought I suppose - but I really do enjoy this chapter with Claude growing more fluent in teasing Lilianna and planning the party behind her back. Even going so far as to post a watch on her to make sure she doesn't slip down into the underground or fly off on Zu. Of course, Lil doesn't remotely appreciate him (Or anyone for that matter) watching her so closely. She likes her privacy - so irritated already - Lili takes the initiative to take matters into her own hands - rudely throwing Claude's invite to the wind as she schedules her wyvern rider test over top of his party.
We will see what happens at the Golden Deer's party in the next chapter - and ohhh it's gonna be a long one so stay tuned! (Help motivate me by leaving comments saying you're enjoying the story and look forward to the next chapter? - I've had a terrible start to 2021 and would love to know that people are enjoying my hard work/passion project.)
I must say one of my fav parts in this chapter is Lilianna teasing Lorenz. It's sweet Cereza was the first one to wish her a happy birthday with a freshly baked cake, but Lorenz is miffed that she is sharing a treat that was meant for just her. So, Lili had some fun at the noble's expense - and it kind of boiled over. Of course, Hilda is just enjoying the whole thing unfold, and Claude is - oh - opportunistic about the whole thing. (I think he's excited maybe? The Golden Deer likes to party.)
So - before I go - thank you guys for stopping back in and reading! I hope your enjoying the chapter and how things are turning out - I sincerely hope to see you again here soon - and remember to like/kudo if your enjoying the story and feel free to give a follow! (Shameless promotion but I am also over on twitter and normally post links when I update along with snippets and other art - so maybe check me out over there? Handle is: SaynaYuki)
