Just realized it is the weekend… that explains why no one joined our work meetings. I guess I'm technically on holiday until Jan 3rd! That means more writing!

Also! I finished the cover art! Whoo!

To DireRavenIII: glad you're enjoying it! I'm definitely going somewhere with it… though I have to constantly update my outline due to wildly going off course. I call it my 5th route because it's all the things I *wished* I could do in the game because I like to have my cake and eat it too!

"I was led to believe… that the Black Eagles," Lysithea huffed. She held a single sandbag in her arms while she stepped in place as she brought her knees as high as she could manage, "had an unparalleled… physical regiment."

"You have to learn to crawl before you can walk," Byleth held his sandbag above his head as he kept his steps in line with hers. "The other students have been doing this for quite some time now."

"I find this… to be most befitting," Flayn did her high steps on his opposite side and somehow kept her upbeat tone though was clearly out of breath. "I admit… I find the other students… a bit intimidating."

"Two more minutes, and we'll break for dinner," he instructed.

"Will I… be able to join…" Lysithea gasped for air, "the class run… tomorrow morning?"

"You may," Byleth answered. "But we'll start off with a non-weighted staff like Flayn." He knew she wished to push her physical limitations, but he had hesitations, especially knowing what her body must have gone through.

"None of the others… use an empty quarterstaff," Lysithea grew annoyed at his response.

"Dorothea just recently upgraded to using sandbags," Byleth tried to console her. "As you will once you're ready."

"When will that… be?"

"When I say," he tried to be gentle with his words. Lysithea was especially impatient and Byleth attributed it to the fact that her time was short. However, he also knew that pushing her harder than her body would allow could have grave consequences.

"I will do… as you say, professor," Flayn smiled as she adjusted her grip on her sandbag.

"Okay," Byleth lowered his sandbag and placed it on the ground. "That's good enough for today."

Flynn immediately dropped her weight to the grass, "that was more wearing than it appeared."

"Let's grab something to eat," it was then that Byleth saw that Lysithea had not yet stopped.

"I am quite famished!" Flayn seemed delighted at the idea.

Lysithea's eyes stared forward, her knees trembled under the weight.

"Go on ahead, Flayn," he waved. "We'll join you in a bit."

"Yes, professor!" The green-haired girl gave him a formal bow before making her way toward the hedge garden.

Byleth crossed his arms and watched Lysithea. He did not say a word.

Lysithea's eyes shot in his direction as she continued to inhale through her nose and out through her mouth, "must you stare?"

She kept her sentences short, he could tell she was nearing the end of her stamina.

He did not break his silence. Lysithea was clearly not interested in following his direction, despite how carefully he had timed how long she should keep her body moving. Byleth would simply have to wait.

"I can go… longer," she lowered her brows as she quickened her steps. "Though your gape… is distracting."

Byleth blinked a few times but held his arms firmly intertwined in front of his chest.

Her body began to sway. She then dropped her sandbag and stumbled as she struggled to regain her balance.

Byleth darted forward and placed his hand on her shoulder. He straightened her body and pointed behind her, "let's sit down."

"I don't need to…" Lysithea held the palm of her hand against her forehead. "If you insist."

She walked slowly and Byleth was sure to keep her within arm's reach. She turned slowly as she lowered herself on the bench. Byleth sat beside her.

For several long moments, he allowed the silence to fall between them.

"I only got lightheaded," Lysithea finally spoke as she rubbed her temples.

"What's your other crest?" Byleth leaned his elbows on his knees.

"Excuse me?" She snapped her head to face him.

"Your second crest, what is it?" He rephrased his question.

"You certainly don't play games," Lysithea's tone lowered. "Did Edelgard tell you?"

"No," Byleth bluffed. "I make it a point to learn what I can about my students. But now I know Edelgard is also aware."

"Then how did you-"

"It wasn't easy, but I managed to find one tome that mentioned the use of experimentation," he lied. He would not betray Edelgard's confidence, nor would he have Lysithea be wary of telling her anything further.

"The Minor Crest of Charon," she answered.

Byleth let out a long sigh, "if I am to be your professor, you will need to learn to trust me."

"I don't have the time to take things slow," she angrily muttered. "That is why I chose the Black Eagle house."

"I know trust takes time to develop," Byleth continued. "But know that I will find a way to undo this. Then you will have all the time in the world."

"It cannot be undone," Lysithea moped.

"Everyone I've asked said the same thing, renowned crest scholars," he nodded slowly. "But they're also the ones that told me it was impossible to bestow a second crest, and yet, here you are."

She eyed him carefully but did not reply.

Had this been another life, or even just a year earlier, he would've had no choice but to throw up his hands in the air at these atrocities. But he now had the ability to turn back the hands of time. If such a thing was possible, then crest-removal was not too far fetched.

"While I certainly doubt the plausibility of a promise such as yours," Lysithea hesitated. "I do appreciate the sentiment."

"In the meantime," Byleth tightened his lips, "I need you to follow my instruction."

She hesitated and opened her mouth to protest, no doubt, but no words came out.

"I promise to push you as hard as possible," he anticipated the subject of her objection. "But you cannot keep exerting yourself to near unconsciousness. I fear that every time you do, you lose a little more time."

"Very well," Lysithea said defeatedly. "Only since you're so insistent."

"Good, you're quite determined. I know we can figure this out, together," Byleth gave her a warm smile.

"You.. you think I'm determined?" He watched as her face perked up.

"Clearly, or I doubt we'd be having this conversation right now," he nodded, bent on capitalizing on her improving mood.

"Professor… I…" Lysithea's words trailed off. Her eyes searched the ground for what to say. "Thank you! You're the only one who's praised me like that. I mean… people are always telling me that I have a knack for magic. If you can call the power of the crests a 'knack,' they aren't wrong, per se."

"I wouldn't know, I haven't seen your magic yet," Byleth had only heard rumors of her power. But according to the stories, she was quite a large explosion in a small package.

"Which makes your compliment all the more meaningful," Lysithea continued. "I've always made it a point to work harder than most and not rely too heavily on the power my crests bestow. So I find it frustrating that the only praise I seem to receive is directly related to that power."

Byleth could relate, if only a little. Since the Holy Mausoleum, most of the people he encountered were amazed at his ability to wield the Sword of the Creator, or the fact that he possessed a rare crest he didn't know he had.

"If you've noticed how hard I work, then, well…" she appeared to have an issue with articulating any other emotion besides razor-thin focus. "It just… it makes me happy."

"It makes me happy too, Lysithea," Byleth wasn't embellishing his joy. "I'm glad you decided to transfer. Now, what do you say we head to the dining hall?"

She nodded with a smile as she stood from the bench. The two walked together through the courtyard and approached the hedge garden sidewalk.

"I heard your class is infamous for original activities," Lysithea queried. She had to speak louder than normal due to the clamor that came from the cafeteria. "What do you have planned for us tomorrow?"

Byleth chuckled, "I like to keep an element of surprise in my lessons. I find it forces my students to think on the fly which improves their ability to improvise."

"You really do think of everything, don't you?" Lysithea beamed. "Most professors would never think to be so creative."

"Most professors weren't mercenaries before coming to Garreg Mach," Byleth opened the north entrance to the dining hall. He allowed Lysithea to walk through first.

"Professor!" Either he was greeted the moment he entered, or Hanneman and Manuela were also dining at the same time.

It was then he saw Ingrid's arm waving in the air.

"Your food's going to get cold!" Annette cupped her hands around her mouth.

Byleth turned to face Lysithea, "will you join us for dinner?"

"Of course," Lysithea made her way to the beginning of the line. "I am a Black Eagle now, after all."

He gave her a nod before he began to make his way to their usual table, "you made my plate?"

"Ingrid did," Leonie pointed at her classmate like a child trying to pass blame. "So if there's a lot of meat on your plate, that's why."

"W-we thought the protein would do you good," Ingrid sheepishly explained.

"Better than letting Annette do it," Caspar laughed. "Or you would've had nothing but dessert for dinner!"

"Training from dawn until dusk?" Edelgard caught his eye as he lowered himself onto his seat. She sat across from him and gingerly pushed her food with her fork.

"I thought our newest students could use the extra sessions," Byleth dropped his eyes to his plate. Leonie didn't lie. It overflowed with bear meat steak, pheasant thigh quarters and grilled herring. It only took a moment for him to realize he'd never be able to finish everything Ingrid piled onto it.

"That's precisely why you need the extra protein," Ingrid quietly added.

"Surely, you'll need extra rest the days you bring our classmates up to speed," Edelgard took a small bite from her utensil.

Byleth shrugged as he eyed his plate, trying to decide where to start, "thought I might go for another run after dinner."

"Or perhaps, you could train in another type of dancing?" Edelgard lowered her voice as she patted her lips with her serviette.

Byleth lifted his brow and met her gaze. She seemed bent on helping him with his ballroom dancing, though in truth he was leaning against attending at all.

However, he did enjoy learning new things and Edelgard was opening his eyes to a variety of things he had not yet experienced. Maybe there could be some new training method that could be derived from the type of dancing she wished to teach him.

He nodded his head toward her, "I think that's an acceptable idea."

"What?" Leonie leaned across the table as her excitable voice was quickly drowned out by the surrounding commotion of the other students, "there's a new type of dancing? I want to learn!"

Byleth saw Edelgard flare her nostrils as she inhaled deeply, "h-he's merely been attempting to create new regiments for our class to practice."

"Fantastic!" Ferdinand joined in, "we'll truly be unbeatable with yet another fighting style."

Byleth ran his eyes across his students. It appeared Leonie had attracted all of their attention, except for Dorothea, who grinned curiously as she skewered a piece of food with her fork.

"When will you be done?" Caspar leaned his head toward the center of their group.

"Soon," Byleth nodded.

Edelgard forcefully dropped her utensil onto her plate. Byleth could imagine she grew angry at her classmates' intrusion.

It was only when he lifted his eyes that he saw her face drop. Her eyes were focused on something behind him.

One by one, his students sighed or groaned.

"Professor!"

He knew that voice and it never came bearing good news.

"I know, Cyril," Byleth didn't turn his head. "Lady Rhea wishes to see me."

"Yes, professor!" Cyril huffed. He must have run quite fast for him to be gasping for so much air. "Immediately."

When was it ever not immediate?

"Don't fret, professor," Flayn offered him a comforting smile. "I will pack your plate for later dining."

"Thank you Flayn," he placed his serviette onto the table. Edelgard joined him in rising from the table.

"We'll be waiting in our homeroom," Leonie sighed.

He exited the dining hall briskly with Edelgard by his side and led by Cyril. His stomach flipped many times.

Byleth had never intended for Monica to escape custody. Surely, the rest of her shadow organization must have heard about him by now. He inwardly kicked himself for not considering the third possibility.

He had made the threat against Edelgard in case his reflexes proved to be too slow. Then he would have died without Those Who Slither in the Dark being wise to Edelgard's participation. Or, with her in custody, he certainly could have controlled the flow of information from Monica's mouth.

Byleth knew that whatever Lady Rhea had to tell him was not going to be good. He also knew he couldn't allow Edelgard to accompany the class or they'd surely know she had defected.

"My kid and I know the people of Remire village," Captain Jeralt stood in the center of the throne room. "If there's something happening, we have to help them."

Edelgard stood beside her teacher. His shoulders slumped more than usual, his eyes stared at the ground as if he were lost in thought.

"We are in agreement, Sir Jeralt," Rhea gave him a nod.

"There have been sightings of Tomas within the village," Seteth added, "so in addition to assisting the villagers, you will also have to secure his safety."

Captain Jeralt bobbed his head up and down, "we will leave tonight."

Edelgard couldn't say she was surprised. It was only a matter of time before Those Who Slither in the Dark struck back. Though she'd be arrogant to say that the thought of facing Solon after all that had transpired didn't spark a little fear, because it did.

Her only solace was that her teacher would be by her side as she faced her former oppressors. They had made a solemn vow to see this through together, and Edelgard intended to keep her end of the bargain.

"I urge you to use caution as we do not know the source of this illness," Rhea continued.

"Of course," Captain Jeralt gave her a formal bow before turning to make his way to the exit. Her teacher followed suit and Edelgard had to double step just to keep up.

"May the Goddess Sothis protect you," Rhea called as they walked away.

Her teacher stopped. Edelgard searched his face, his behavior was becoming worrisome. It was almost as if he'd begun to withdraw again and she desperately wished for him to remain with her, not hidden away in some dark corner of his mind.

"Is… something wrong?" Lady Rhea seemed as confused as she was.

"It's nothing," Byleth resumed his stride.

Edelgard waited until they had descended the stairs before she broke her silence, "my teacher, is something wrong?" She chose her words carefully as Captain Jeralt was still within earshot.

"Get your students ready," Captain Jeralt turned sharply in the opposite direction, "meet me by the gates."

Byleth did not answer either of them. He kept his brisk pace while Edelgard awaited her answer.

"Is this because of… them?" Edelgard did not understand. He had seemed solid in his conviction to help her repel Those Who Slither in the Dark, now he was just as the first day she met him.

"You'll stay here," he finally offered a response, but not the one she had expected.

"Stay here?" Edelgard lowered her brow. "I will do no such thing."

"Do as I say," Byleth stated coolly.

"My teacher… I don't understand," Edelgard did not watch where she was walking, she kept her gaze firmly planted on him.

Again, he did not answer. She could feel the fury grow inside of her.

Edelgard stopped but he did not. She balled up her fists until she was sure her knuckles were turning white, "Byleth!"

It was only one word, but it caused him to stop his motion. It had even surprised her that it was his first name her rage chose to yell. She had never referred to him by his name before, not even in her thoughts.

Byleth turned and began to approach her. It was then she realized they stood in the grass of the courtyard not far from their homeroom.

As he grew closer to where she stood, she could barely hear his lowered voice, "if Solon, or Monica or whatever her name is, see you. They're going to know you've betrayed them. Do you understand?"

She scrunched her brow in confusion. Edelgard had assumed that would have happened anyway, she thought this would be the night she could look her former oppressors in the eyes and declare her freedom, out of earshot of her classmates… she did not wish to have that conversation just yet.

"Isn't that not the idea?" Edelgard was finally able to muster. "I mean, they clearly know about you. I don't see a difference."

"I cannot risk it," he threw his hand into the air in frustration. "Not until I know their numbers and what they're fully capable of."

"Your demeanor…" she felt relief flow through her body, "is because you wish to protect me?"

"Of course," Byleth took a deep breath as he rested his hands on his hips, "what else would it be about?"

"We are still in this… together?" Edelgard had feared her teacher was pulling away from her. Perhaps even regretting siding with her in the first place. To hear that he was still thinking of her, made her feel…

"Yes, El," Byleth took another step closer. "I promised we would do this together and so we shall."

She tried to suppress the flutter in her chest as she hardened her face, "right, together. I will be going."

"Why will no one listen to me tonight?" Byleth shook his head. "The last I checked, I am still your professor. Do you not understand how dangerous it will-"

"I understood the dangers when I made my decision," Edelgard snapped. She did not wish to be angry with him, but she would not allow him to fight her battles on her behalf.

Byleth sighed as he looked to the sky. His eyes darted back and forth, almost as if he were having a separate conversation with himself.

"I will not hear your promises of being together only to have you face my foes for me," she did not want to give him time to think of a comeback.

"In this together?" Byleth lowered his voice even further.

"That is what I said, yes," in truth, she wasn't sure what she said. There were few times she allowed her anger to dictate her words or actions, but this was an exception, "I realize you aren't accustomed to jumping head-first into a war without having a plan. However, the situation is what it is. Unless you are having second thoughts."

He shook his head zealously, "I already told you that I wasn't."

"Then why are we even having this conversation when we should be preparing for our march?" Edelgard began walking again. This time, it was Byleth who struggled to keep up with her. She quickened her pace, she did not wish to hear anymore of his reasoning.

"You're really going to make me chase you?" He whispered loudly.

Edelgard didn't answer. Soon she reached the entrance of their homeroom to find her classmates sitting idly by. In their presence, her teacher wouldn't dare speak of her staying behind without having to provide an explanation to her more curious peers.

"Professor," Ingrid gave him a nod as he finally approached the entrance.

"Where are we going this time?" Annette dropped her head.

He hesitated.

"We are prepared, professor," Flayn quietly stated. "We even finished packing."

"Remire village," Byleth finally told the class. "There's an unknown… illness. It's causing some of the residents to behave aggressively."

"How are we meant to fight an illness?" Ferdinand furrowed his brow. "Lindhardt might be able to, but I certainly do not know how."

Edelgard felt as if she'd been struck in the stomach. The realization that her classmates… no, her friends had no say in the war they fought took her breath away. She had confessed everything to her teacher and while she was relieved to gain his support, he had the choice to decline.

"Our first priority will be to help those that are not affected," Byleth answered Ferdinand.

Her eyes fell across each of her peers. They were about to be unwilling participants in her battle for freedom. It was no different than when they risked their lives fighting the Death Knight, or any of the soldiers of Those Who Slither in the Dark as they tried to steal the Sword of the Creator.

But somehow, it felt different.

"At least Remire village is pretty close," Caspar swallowed hard. "Not even a night's march."

Her teacher gave him a nod and waved his hand, "let's go."

Edelgard watched as each of her classmates begrudgingly began to leave their homeroom. She tried to suppress the guilt that overwhelmed her as they passed her, one by one.

"Edelgard?" She lifted her gaze to see Lysithea approach her. "Will you walk with me?"

"Gladly," Edelgard forced a smile. If it meant her teacher would not have a chance to continue their argument, she would happily walk with the young girl.

She turned to start her walk beside Lysithea. She slowed her pace and allowed some distance to grow between them and their classmates.

"You've known the professor for a long time now," Lysithea began. "Is he one to keep his word?"

Though Edelgard was a little angry with him at the moment, she could not make false accusations, "he does. I've never known him to break a single one. Why do you ask?"

"We spoke about… the experiments earlier," she swallowed hard. "I never knew they were documented at all, but he said he read about them in an old book."

"He is thorough in his research," Edelgard supported his white lie.

"Anyway, he made an odd promise. Quite frankly, one I find hard to believe," Lysithea continued. "But for the first time in my life, I feel… hopeful?"

"What promise did he make?" She queried.

"That he'd find a way to undo it… the crests, the side effects, everything," the younger girl lifted her eyes to meet Edelgard's gaze.

Edelgard was taken back. It was true he had once promised her the same thing, but she had chalked it up to hollow words of hope in her hour of need. She hadn't thought about that promise since it left his lips. However, to repeat it to Lysithea… could he truly aim to fulfill it?

"Do you think he can?" Lysithea interrupted her thoughts. "I mean, I always believed it would be impossible and I do not wish to carry false hope-"

"I believe he can," Edelgard interrupted her. Perhaps they were not hollow words, after all. "Our teacher has proven capable of many impossible things."

She felt her anger toward him subsiding. For as long as she could remember, she believed she would live a short, intense life as a burning candle. Even after coming to terms with her feelings for Byleth, she only hoped to spend her remaining years with him.

But it seemed he had not forgotten.

"That's… wonderful," Lysithea sighed in relief. "I don't know if he truly can or not, but I find that the hope he has given me… it's only made me more determined."

Edelgard bit her lower lip. It had been a night full of various emotions and she wasn't sure which she was feeling now. But she knew she had to start stripping herself of the armor she'd always worn, "it would be wonderful for both of us."

Lysithea snapped her head to face her, "Edelgard… are you admitting-"

"If it should actually happen," Edelgard interrupted her, "we must promise to keep in touch, even in our old age."