#and as for byleth's hints of pink? Well

[themoomoorn]

With this nifty color analysis in place, how would you interpret Byleth, Ashen Demon and villain(ess) of a thousand mercenaries' nightmares, having a soft pink as their secondary color? It does apply a bit more to the female, but other than their promotion (Which has divine/royal purple/gold/white as the main combo), all of their options include pink!

And one nifty aspect about Claude that I will always be convinced is a happy accident is that yellow and green are both his colors - enhanced by the fact that green appears to be Almyra's representative/national color. He's heroic when he embraces both colors (even though Barbarossa's outfit is mostly brown and gold) and more villainous when he's sliding towards one...hm hm hmm...

For a second, let's look at how Houses/Hopes uses colour and equipment to foreshadow what each characters role is in the game.

Byleth is the Ashen Demon, and checking around in the Japanese text this is meant to be more of a grey character. So, somewhere between black and white. They have black armor initially, but gain white when they obtain their Enlightened One class after fusing with Sothis. Black and White right there, but there's more. They lose the white (Enlightened One powers) if they fight alongside Edelgard, leader of the Black Eagle Strike Force, against Rhea, whose title is the White One in Japanese, undoing their character arc and returning to how they were at the beginning of the game.

That's cool. We also see Red associated with Edelgard, a colour that the series uses to denote enemies, with her little cape and the names of her routes (though Safflower was done this in relation to the lyrics of Edge of Dawn). Dimitri, while he has black armor after the timeskip, has a blue cap (a heroic colour in the franchise) and his Great Lord design drops the black armor for a whiter set. Considering it's used at the end of Flower, where his mental problems didn't drive him, and at the end of Moon, where he becomes the Hero, the design is meant to show he's the good guy here.

Claude is associated with gold/yellow, usually used for a third enemy faction on a map. This works with his outsider status, but joining the Deer in Houses results in the route being labelled as Verdant. It's green, an ally color, while the House keeps it's association with yellow in Hopes, where Claude becomes a villain in his own right. But considering Claude leaves Fodlan in Byleth's hands and returns to Almyra, it's almost like Almyra is meant to be the true third faction.

We also see their weapons relating to the weapons triangle. Byleth has a sword and beats Edelgard's axe in SS while they're implied to lose their sword at the end of Flower, replacing it with the Sword of Seiros. Sword can no longer beat axe. Edelgard's axe beats Dimitri's lance unless he has help from Byleth, while Dimitri's win sees him as King with Byleth being his ally. We get something similar with Claude's bow, it's outside the triangle and would be at a disadvantage if he was attacked directly. He needs an ally to back up. Likewise, the series has used swords as the heroic weapon often enough while axes were originally enemy only as they weren't seen as heroic.

We put this together and we end up with something like this. Grey/Silver + Sword = Good, Blue + Lance = Good, Bow + Green = Good Ally, Bow + Yellow = Bad Enemy, Red + Axe = Bad.

Silver can also represent the design philosophy of the game. It's Byleth's route, the one most materials push as happening, but you can't save everyone. No matter how much you want to march with Dimitri, join Claude, or get Edelgard to wake the fuck up and see reality, you can't. You can get a good ending, but not a perfect ending where everyone lives. And considering the one war phase that is associated with gold is a villain route, a route that is the antithesis of Wind, the idea of a ���Golden Route” is presented as a bad thing because it goes against what Houses was doing.

[dpsisquared]

A lil only one bed snippet, for funsies 🛏️💙💚 (Hopes Dimileth)

"I am terribly sorry about this, Byleth." "You said that already," she said, her face frustratingly impossible to read. "A lot." It wasn't that Byleth was rude-- quite the opposite, he realized once he became accustomed to her mannerisms. Her responses were just so alien to him, a complete reversal of the cloying noble etiquette he'd known all his life. She should be angry with him, and if she wasn't the most honest person he'd ever known, he'd suspect her of lying to spare his guilt. It had been his foolish whim to steal off to the town and masquerade as a knight, indulging the selfish impulse to temporarily cast off the burden of his station. Byleth had caught him at it-- if a wretch such as him had any strengths, stealth was definitely not among them-- but rather than admonish him, she'd simply tagged along for the trip, a quiet, reassuring presence at his back.

The gentlemanly thing to do would have been getting back to camp early, but goddess forgive him, he'd reveled in her company, stretching out every menial task he performed to prolong the comfort he didn't deserve. Every word he coaxed out of her, every muted expression and elusive, soft smile felt like a victory greater than any battle won. And because of his selfishness, they were now trapped in this inn-- in this single room-- to wait out the storm. "I shall sleep on the floor, of course," he said, as if that paltry sacrifice could make up for a blunder of this magnitude. "Why?" she asked, gesturing at the bed with her chin. "'s big enough for two." Again, that honesty, that utter lack of guile, charmed him and flustered him in equal measure. How could she suggest they share a bed in such an impassive tone? As if the size of the bed were the issue, and not-- well, he didn't want to let his thoughts wander down that particular path, lest his depravity show on his face. "No, I must insist, Byleth. I could never forgive myself if your reputation was tarnished by my foolishness." "Reputation?" She wrinkled her nose in confusion, and he found even that expression positively endearing. He was starting to suspect that he was, as Sylvain had accused, a goner. Finally, realization dawned on her face. "Oh. You don't need to worry about that." "Nonsense! With your skill and your exceptional contributions to the Kingdom, you will surely have the opportunity to marry well, particularly in Faerghus where I-- where the nobles are so very fond of you, and--" At that moment he wished that Byleth was more like his other blunt swordsman friend, who would have given him a look of disgust to stop his rambling long ago. "That's not what I meant," she said. Her gaze was averted, hiding half her face from him, but he swore he could make out the slightest hint of pink on her cheeks. It was gone before he could be sure, and she turned back to him, face blank once more. "Anyone who knows you knows you wouldn't dare. And anyone who knows me knows you'd be dead before you could get it out of your pants." "Ah." He huffed a laugh despite himself. "That is quite reassuring, actually."

[ashenprofessor]

"Professor, I suppose we'll be saying goodbye for this month." Elincia's voice holds just a hint of sadness. She has become rather close to the Blue Lions professor over the past year and was hoping they'd both be together during this month's missions. Unfortunately that wasn't to be and Elincia couldn't help but worry a little. Of course, Byleth was a former mercenary. Her competence was not in question. The events over summer however had been disturbing. It takes a lot to force a smile on her face. "Do be cautious, I know you'll be fine but I'd rather be there to back you up myself. I think we make a pretty great team after all. "

Her laugh is hollow. Fearful. Elincia hesitates.

"In all seriousness, I'm a little worried this is related to what happened over summer. If my fears are correct, all I can do is ask you to stay safe. Please, let's both return whole and well next month."

Byleth looked up to see Elincia approaching her spot in the garden. Laid out before the professor was her sword maintenance kit as she was giving her weapon a once over before they left. She had a feeling she would be relying on it a lot in the coming month. "I suppose so, with us being sent to separate part of the continent. " Whilst it would have made the month's mission more enjoyable to have been placed alongside her friend, Byleth had complete confidence in the young queen's ability to handle whatever confronted her at the fort. There was a bit of worry present however.

Byleth had been on annual leave when the event of the summer had taken place, but had still needed to deal with its aftermath. While lesser than experiencing it herself, it was enough to raise alarm bells about future missions from the church.

"We would" Byleth agreed. "I may not have you at my side, but I'll have you with me in spirit. Backing me up." Reaching in her pocket, Byleth withdrew the gift she'd carved for the crimean queen in the time since the last mission. It was a small sakura blossom charm on a pink ribbon, a reminder of the start of term festivities. "A promise. That I'll do my best to return."

She couldn't let her student embark on her own assignment without issuing her own plea for caution.

"Naturally I expect the same from you. Stay safe out there. Use your head as well as your heart"

[mortyvongola2-0]

Motivation

Pairing: Sylvain x F!Byleth

Genre: Oneshot, smut

Word Count: 3.9k

Warnings: Student teacher relationship, descriptions of sexual acts, 69, oral sex, pinning, Sylvain is 19 so its fine, a tiny bit of a size kink.

Read it on AO3

Sylvain groaned and threw his head back in his seat. “This heat is killing me,” he whined. He brought a hand up to fan himself a bit, though the action seemed to do little to prevent his impending heat stroke.

 “Go get something cold from the kitchens then,” Ingrid tsked at him. More then tired of his whining. She brushed the side of her Pegasus thoughtfully. Sylvain noticed a slight flush to her pale cheeks, no doubt also suffering in the heat wave consuming Garreg Mach.

 “But Ingrid, if I get up, I’ll get even warmer.”

 “Then hush! I’m tired of your incessant whining,” she huffed. The redhead sighed, taking the hint. He put his hands up and stood.

 “Sorry, sorry, I’ll leave. Try not to miss me too much.” He didn’t have to see it to know that the blonde had rolled her eyes at him. A playful smirk crawled onto his lips and he began to make his way toward the dining hall. Sylvain waved his greetings to the friendly gatekeeper before noticing his favorite teal haired professor down in the market, buying some supplies from one of the merchants. He changed course and began to walk toward her. “Hey, professor,” he called, raising an arm to wave.

 “Oh,” she turned to look at him, her face as expressionless as usual. “Hello Sylvain.”

 “Mm, that’s a lot of supplies there. Need any help with that?”

 “Okay,” she responded with a nod. “Thank you.” Byleth handed him an armful of random trinkets that she had bought. Sylvain glanced down at everything, lots of boxes of tea and fishing bait, but other oddities as well. Coffees, stuffed animals, jewelry, snacks, and other things.

 “Hey, professor?”

 “Yes?”

 “What’s all this stuff for anyway?”

 “Most of them are gifts for all of the students,” she said nonchalantly. It took him aback a bit. He’d remembered receiving one or two things from her in the past, but he hadn’t realized she gave things to everyone. He bit back the soft smile that threatened to overtake his expression.

 “Anything for me in here?” He wiggled his eyebrows at her teasingly. She blinked up at him, her own arms full of knickknacks.

 “No.” Her tone was dry, and her expression hadn’t changed. Sylvain felt the disappointment creeping through his system. Why hadn’t she gotten anything for him? Had he done something wrong? It was childish, really, the jealousy that he could feel bubbling in his stomach, but he couldn’t help it. His face scrunched a bit in displeasure, but his breath hitched at the small smirk he saw grace his professor’s lips. “No need to be so disappointed, Sylvain.”

 “Disappointed? Me? Never,” he tried to play it off, smiling widely and laughing. “Come on, professor. You know me better than that.”

“Mmm,” she nodded, that darned smirk still on her lips. She was beautiful, truly beautiful, no matter her expression. He had always thought so about her, and he probably always would. He hated it.

 “Anyway, where to?”

 “My quarters,” she said plainly, that teasing expression finally gone.

 “After you then.” He bent at the waist playfully, one arm extended, ushering her in a manner that suited Dimitri more then him. After she had passed him by, the redhead easily followed her. It seemed she had forgone the cape today, as well as her usual tights and black armor. Instead, she wore her usual form fitting shorts and a black undershirt that had a very tantalizing window, revealing her usual amount of cleavage. He wondered if she had dressed down due to the weather as well.

 For most of the walk, his eyes were glued to her ass and the perfect sway of her hips. He wondered whether she would be soft and pliant under his touch, like most of the women he slept with, or hard and lean from the muscles she so obviously worked hard to strengthen. When they reached her room, he was still thinking about her body under his, still wondering how she would feel, stretch, move, and if she was a screamer. He wouldn’t mind if she was, in fact, he quite liked the idea of his stoic professor falling apart on his fingers, his mouth, his cock, and screaming his name for all of the monastery to hear. “Thank you, Sylvain, you can put those down on the bed.”

 “Oh,” her voice had pulled him out of his imagination. “Sure, no problem.” He made his way over to her bed which was still messy. A huff of amusement left his lips, of course she wouldn’t be the type to make her bed. What kind of mercenary had time to clean up like that? The redhead set the stuff down easily before turning back to her. He rubbed the back of his neck and almost cringed at the sticky sweat he felt there. “Hey professor?” She hummed in a questioning tone to let him know she was listening. “I’ve been trying to get better with the hand to hand combat lately, would you mind tutoring me a little bit? Maybe later today if you have the time?”

 “That’s not like you,” she muttered with an almost imperceptible pout. “Why the sudden interest?”

 “Just in case, it’s better to be prepared for anything, right?” He really just wanted to spend more one on one time with her, and he knew she wouldn’t go for anything else if he asked. She always catered to her students, tutoring and mentoring them at her own expense. She continued to stare at him in thought, then turned and checked a small booklet she had on her desk. Byleth gave a small nod to herself before turning back to him.

 “Alright, I have a bit of time before curfew tonight.”

 “Great,” he sighed in relief. “Even a little bit of time will be extremely helpful.”

 “I’ll meet you at the training grounds tonight then.”

 “Right, thanks professor!” With that, he ran off. Sylvain needed to find some other girl to work off his lust for the professor before their training session.

 ~

 The redhead paced back and forth anxiously. He had, in fact, found a random girl from the village that had let him fuck her, however, imagining the professor while doing so had only worsened his curiosity. Sylvain continued to wonder what his professor would be like in bed. Had she ever slept with anyone before or was she still a virgin? Either was fine by him, but he needed to know. He heard the doors to the training grounds open and he turned to see the object of his thoughts.

 She looked flushed, her pinks a dusted a light pink, her jagged locks stuck to parts of her forehead and neck, her ample chest rising and falling at a faster rate. He gulped audibly. “Everything okay? You’re looking a little flushed.”

 “Hilda dragged me into the sauna with her,” she responded and walked toward him. “Sorry I’m a bit late.”

 “The sauna huh? Its been so hot today, I can’t imagine getting hotter, let alone on purpose.”

 “Mm, it is hotter than I like it to be when I go to the sauna, but she insisted that I needed the relaxation.”

 His brow furrowed. “If you’ve got too much going on, you don’t have to train with me like this.”

 “No, I’m fine,” she grabbed two rolls of knuckle tape from a bin of supplies by the weapons wrack. The young woman handed one of them to him before standing a bit away from him and flicking her wrists back forth, applying the tape evenly and with expertise. “I find training relaxing anyway.”

 “Alright, then.”

 “Show me what you know,” she commanded, and he nodded.

 Sylvain wasn’t much for training, he found it exhausting and it took too much effort. He never understood Felix, Dimitri, and Ingrid’s obsession with it. But when he got to be so close to Byleth he could feel her breath mingle with his, he could get behind the idea of it. The teal haired professor taught more by example than by instruction. She would always critique when she needed to, but most of the time she would spar with or watch her students spar.

 She easily dodged another of his fists and slid her foot underneath his. Sylvain lost his footing and fell to the ground, he grunted at the pain that blossomed from the back of his head at his rough landing. He reached behind him to check and make sure he wasn’t bleeding. “Dang, you really don’t take it easy, do you?”

 “You aren’t focusing, Sylvain.” She frowned at him, her fists on her perfectly shaped hips. “If you aren’t going to take this seriously, then I’m not going to waste my time.”

 “I promise I’m taking it seriously,” you’re distracting me, “the heat is just, distracting.”

 Byleth continued to pout and Sylvain started to sit up. “I’m sorry professor we can-“

 “Let’s make a deal then.”

 “Huh?” He looked at her, incredulous.

 “So you won’t be so distracted,” she said, a playful smirk on her chapped lips. “If you win this next match, I’ll give you whatever you want.”

 “And if you win?”

 “You have to start actually trying in class.”

 “Whatever I want, huh? Are you sure?” She gave him a silent nod. He rubbed his chin before standing to his full height. Sylvain knew it’d be difficult to beat her, but the offer of whatever he wanted was too tempting. “Alright, you’ve got a deal.”

 As soon as the match started, he was on defense. She came for him, hard and fast, no holds barred. Obviously, she was better at hand to hand then him, but he couldn’t give up. There had to be some way for him to win, for him to get what he really wanted. He was fueled by lust, and he almost always let his lust win. Sylvain knew she had a weak spot, he’d seen her rub her left knee a few times after training sessions, she even wore a knee brace with her armor to keep it protected. For only a moment, he glanced down to see if she was still wearing said brace, and that moment earned him a swift punch to the gut.

 It had been worth it though; he had noticed that she wasn’t wearing it. Without thinking much more about it, he leaned forward and went to hit her side, while she focused on the incoming punch, he used his weight to his advantage and swept his leg out, knocking her on the back of her left knee and causing her to stumble. Sylvain continued to press his weight forward, eventually pressing it into her and causing the two of them to fall. Byleth landed on the ground, the redhead on top of her, straddling her torso and pressing the side of his forearm against her neck. They both panted, her eyes wide as she looked up at him, obviously she had not expected him to be able to win.

 “I win, professor,” he breathed out, droplets of sweat rolling down his unclothed arms, he had changed into the lounge wear earlier in the day to keep cool, and falling onto her own sweat soaked neck.

 “Well done,” she said after steeling her expression. “Though, that kind of trick won’t work very well on an opponent you know nothing about.”

 “Hey, all that matters now is that I won,” he said with a smirk, removing his arm but keeping his straddling position. “So now you have to give me what I want.”

 “Fair enough,” she muttered and tilted her head to the side in curiosity. “What do you want?”

 “You.”

 “Wha-“ he cut her off with a hard kiss. He almost groaned, he had wanted to feel her lips, to taste her for so long. Unlike his usual trysts, her lips were chapped and inexperienced. She tasted like sweat and saltine crackers, but he wouldn’t have had it any other way. At first, she didn’t respond, but then she started to give in. That surprised him the most. Did she feel as attracted to him as he did her? Byleth wrapped her arms around his neck and when he licked her lips, she arched her back upward, her chest meeting his, and he ground his hips down toward her own.

 She gasped at the feel of his semi-erection against her, and he used the opportunity to pull her tongue into his mouth and suck on it lightly. When she gave out a soft whimper, he shivered and felt himself throb in the confines of his trousers. Once he couldn’t stave off his need to taste more of her any longer, he began to trail wet kisses down the side of her neck. “Sylvain,” she let out breathily. “We can’t-“

 Again, he cut her off. This time, by sucking on the junction between her neck and shoulder. He felt like he couldn’t get enough of her salty sweet taste. “We could get caught,” she tried again. He ignored her and placed his hands at her sides by the hem of her shirt, waiting there for permission. “We really shouldn’t.”

 “But professor,” he began between nips to the delicious column of her neck. “You said I could have whatever I wanted.”

 “My quarters,” she muttered. Sylvain lifted his head from her neck to look at her face. His stomach filled with butterflies and his chest tightened. Byleth had a dark blush on her face and refused to look him in the eye, she was nibbling at her bottom lip, the only indication of her sudden shyness. She looked adorable. “We can continue in my quarters, we’re less likely to be caught there.”

 The redhead smirked to hide the genuine smile that threatened to show, “Whatever you say.”

 Much to Sylvain’s chagrin they walked to her quarters at an even pace. He walked throw the door frame first and she followed, closing the door behind her and then standing there quietly. The redhead assumed the worst, she must be backing out, he thought. He put up his walls once more and gave her a tired and disappointed smirk. “Chickening out?”

 “No,” she replied, without hesitation. “But, before we go on, I’d like to request that this doesn’t become a onetime thing.”

 “Oh?” Sylvain was surprised, both by her request and by the fact that she wished to continue, his traitorous heart pounded excited in his chest. She nodded in response. “You mean you want to?” He trailed off.

 Again, she nodded, but this time she was the one to kiss him. He responded eagerly, pliantly complying to her rough and roaming hands, her chapped lips bruising with force against his. Her hands reached for the hem of his blue lounge shirt, and he helped her tug it off of his torso. Once his chest was bare, Byleth’s deft fingers began exploring. The redhead responded in kind, assisting her in the removal of her black top. Sylvain bit back a groan at the sight of her naked breasts, and she moaned when he reached up and began tweaking her nipples.

 She forced him back, pushing him to lay down on her bed. Not giving him too much of a chance to fix himself, she straddled his waste and ground her clothed cunt down on top of his swollen member. Sylvain threw his head back with a hiss, his hands flying to her hips to encourage her to continue. He could feel her heat through her shorts and wondered if she was even wearing any smallclothes. “You’re still wearing too much,” she grumbled and began tugging at his trousers. He was all too happy to oblige.

 He exposed himself to her, now free of his pants and smallclothes, and he smirked at her obvious attentions. “Like what you see?” He teased and brought one of his hands to stroke along his own cock. She nodded boldly, unabashed, and began to remove her shorts as well. The redhead was right, she hadn’t been wearing any smallclothes. “I know I do.”

 “You’re very attractive, Sylvain,” she said softly. Byleth brought her hands up and kneaded at her large breasts, she let out a soft sigh of satisfaction. He trailed his hands upward, running them along her sides, barely touching her flesh. Goosebumps rose on her skin and he watched her shiver. She removed her hands and let his hands take their place. They were soft, probably the softest thing on her body, and so very perky. Her nipples were sensitive, he realized, after rubbing her left nipple in rough circles and hearing her breath hitch.

 One of his hands trailed its way back down her body and cupped her ass, giving it a playful smack before grabbing a cheek and jiggling it roughly. She squirmed, and he leaned his head forward to suck on her now neglected nipple. The hand on her eyes slowly slid undo her, making a line from her plump cheeks to the lips of her vagina. Even before spreading those lips, he could feel the slimy wetness collected on them. Sylvain let out a dark chuckle, “I didn’t know sparring got you so worked up,” another tease.

 “Only with you,” she whispered.

 Sylvain’s heart skipped a beat and he pressed his forehead between the valley of her pillow breasts and let out a heavy sigh. “Why’d you have to go and say that, professor?”

 “It’s the truth,” she said. One of her hands reached down to play with his hair gently. “And while we’re like this, call me Byleth.”

 “Okay, Byleth,” he responded, his entire being feeling lighter than before. His cock twitched and he decided to lay back down against the bed. “Turn around and sit on my face.”

 The teal haired professor nodded and turned. She knew what he was asking for, and he let out the loudest groan yet as he felt her small hands wrap around his aching cock. “You’re bigger than I expected,” she muttered, more to herself than to him. He chuckled before grabbing her hips and forcing them down on his face roughly. Byleth squeak in surprise.

 Sylvain licked a trail across her pussy lips, already enjoying the taste of her leaking fluids. He brought a hand down and spread her open. For a moment, he leaned back and admired her twitching pink opening, leaking with slick and begging for his fingers, his tongue, his cock, anything of his to fill the empty space. She whined in displeasure, but he was done observing. He blew on her entrance gently, it flinched and pushed more fluid out, a minute amount dripping down onto his face. “Sylvain,” she whined again, stopping her ministrations to his penis, trying to encourage him.

 “You’re beautiful, you know?” The redhead licked a stripe from the tip of her clit down to her entrance where he swirled his tongue and pulled back. “Absolutely gorgeous, and you taste better than expected.”

 “So taste it some more,” she implored, then leaned her head down to give small kitten licks to his tip. He groaned and unconsciously bucked his hips upward, trying to force himself into her warm mouth. Byleth wrapped one of her hands around his base, the other grabbed at his balls and began massaging them gently. She squeezed the base of his shaft, almost too hard, before taking his tip into her mouth. With a grunt, the redhead took the hint.

 Sylvain wasn’t much for oral sex, always preferring the real deal, but he would be lying if he said he didn’t want to taste Byleth’s cunt forever. She moaned around his cock, the girth of him stretching out her lips and causing saliva to dribble down her chin and onto his pubes, he wished he could see it better. His tongue attacked her clit, pressing against it and flicking back and forth, giving it an occasional tug and suck. His hands, very thankful for their large size, grabbed each cheek of her ass and spread it apart, opening her lips wider for him to devour.

 Another moan wracked her and tingled down his cock. He shivered. The redhead brought his tongue again to her entrance and began lapping at it eagerly, enjoying the seemingly endless slick that leaked out. One of his hands came down to assist his tongue, a digit toying with her clit while his tongue slithered into her vaginal opening. She quivered and fell further onto his cock, pushing his head to the back of her throat. He closed his eyes at the sensation.

 Her throat pulsed around him, gagging a bit and trying to force him out of where he didn’t belong, but his hips started bucking once more, forcing her to take him in, all of him. Sylvain lost focus on his quest to make her cum and began to focus on himself instead. Much to her dismay, he began to flip them, wishing more than anything to see her take him in her throat like a horny teenager. She whimpered but complied, now kneeling in front of him while he sat on the edge of her bed. His hand, the one not soaked in her slick, went and tangled in her hair, assisting her in her bobbing and keeping her from removing him from her throat. “Fuck, Byleth, you look so good sucking my dick.”

 She closed her eyes, the smallest moan escaping her. There were tears beginning to well up in her eyes as he pushed deeper into her throat. “You’re getting off on sucking me off, aren’t you? I can tell,” he grunted, moving her head faster as he began to feel his impending climax. “I could taste it. You would gush into my mouth every time I hit your throat.”

 Byleth moaned again, louder this time, one of her hands reached down and began to play with her clit. She sucked on him harder.

 The coil in his gut tightened exponentially at the sight. Sylvain would have to burn it in his brain. His favorite, normally expressionless professor, with his cock in her throat. He could see the bulge in her throat where resided. His free hand rested against that spot and she whimpered while he bit his bottom lip. His cock throbbed and he felt it through her neck. She looked blissed out, tears running down her cheeks, nostrils flaring in attempts to suck in air, lips stretched wide around him and drool mixed with his precum leaking down her chin. Her cheeks were flushed, and goddess he couldn’t get over the bulge he made in her throat. He added some pressure to it, she choked, and he came. Hard.

 Sylvain felt bad, he really did. Normally he’d give a warning at least, or pull out, but he couldn’t help it. He was so high off his orgasm that he didn’t pull out of her spasming esophagus until he had sent all of his semen down into her stomach. Once he was out she coughed and gagged, gasping for breath and cradling her throat. “Byleth, I’m so sorry, usually I last longer but-“

 She held a hand up telling him to stop. He waited for her to calm her breathing, his now semi-hard dick sticky with his cum and her throat coating. The professor took one more deep breath. “Its fine. I liked it.”

 “What? Really?”

 She nodded, and gave him a small smile. “Besides, next time is my turn.”

 “I can get you right now-“

 “We have class in the morning, don’t be late. Do well enough, and we might just cum together next time.”

 He smiled, “That’s some good motivation right there.”

[blackfen]

The door was locked but that obviously didn’t stop Dimitri. Standing in the doorway, hand still on the knob, Byleth stared at the slouched figure sitting in one of the couple of chairs placed randomly about his bedroom. Well...that...that was certainly not what he was expecting to see after returning from another long day of skirmishing. It was both laughable and sad but when he first opened the door to see Dimitri, he thought, for just a moment, that he was witnessing a specter. Perhaps one of their foes, finally coming back to haunt him. Given towards Dimitri’s inclination to refer to himself as a ghost, that might have not been the best reaction to have. 

Thankfully, he just barely managed to suppress a yelp. Recovering quickly, Byleth stepped further into his room, quietly closing the door behind him. A quick glance behind showed that the lock didn’t seem to be broken. There must be a master key to this place or Dimitri really was a ghost and had slipped through the wood, unhindered by the laws of the tangible world. Byleth shook his head slightly - not about to go down that line of thought. He hardly let Dimitri get away with calling himself a ghost; no way he could start referring to him in such a way in his own head. 

Dimitri didn’t look up or acknowledge his presence in any way as he moved further into the room. It was a little uncomfortable, having him just be there, silent and unmoving, more statue than human. To label this situation as odd was an understatement. Things were hardly amiable between them anymore. Usually, any attempt to start a conversation with him was met with silence or a grumbled ‘go away’. Not that Byleth ever let that stop him. He talked, he prodded, he pushed - as gently as possible, of course - he forced Dimitri to take notice of him, hoping that by continuously interacting with him, there might be some kind of positive reaction. 

So far, nothing but this...Byleth sneakily glanced at Dimitri. Still staring at the floor. His broad chest slowly rose and fell with even breaths. The splash of yellow against his sunken cheeks only made it more apparent how pale he was. His hands lay limp in his lap. With a startled jolt, Byleth realized that his spear, something he was never seen without, was nowhere to be seen. His gaze quickly swept around the room. Nowhere! It could be under the bed or perhaps stored away somewhere but there was no reason for Dimitri to hide it. The tiniest, faintest, weakest buds of hope sparked to life inside his chest. Forcing himself to take a deep breath, Byleth opened his mouth to ask Dimitri what he was doing in his room then stopped before the syllables could get even remotely close to his tongue. 

No...no, that was wrong. That wasn’t the question he wanted to be asking. In fact, he didn’t need to be asking any questions right now. Tugging his shirt up over his head - it was a little awkward, having to undress in front of him but he doubted that Dimitri cared - Byleth thought for a moment then began to talk. He spoke in a low, quiet voice, making sure to keep his tone warm and smooth. He talked about the pregnant cat he’d found wandering the monastery and how excited he was for the kittens; he talked about how Ashe had to save a dish Mercedes was trying to make, laughingly commenting that you’d think after 5 years, she’d gotten better at cooking; he talked about the brightly colored fish he saw in the pond and how Alois scared it away by roaring like an injured bull when he saw it. 

He just talked, letting the words flow naturally, staying far away from battles, strategy, wars and killing. If Dimitri was paying any kind of attention to him, he didn’t show it. His face remained still, blank but Byleth kept talking, all through the purposefully drawn out process of getting undressed, retrieving his a fresh undershirt to wear to bed and tugging it over his head, putting his clothes away and washing his hands and face. Dimitri said not one word in response. He didn’t even lift his head. When his nightly routine was finally finished, Byleth lingered for a moment, unsure of what to do next. He was exhausted, his bed was calling his name but with Dimitri right there, was it really alright for him to just fall asleep?

His answer came for him when Dimitri slowly stood. Certain that he was leaving, his tongue aching to ask why he’d come here, saddened that nothing really had come of this but hopeful that, perhaps, the result just wasn’t visible yet, Byleth offered a small smile, “Good night, Dimitri.”

No response, not that he was expecting one. He waited a moment for Dimitri to get moving, wanting to, at least, see him off but nothing. Dimitri continued to stand there, staring at nothing in particular. Blinking slowly, Byleth turned and climbed up into bed. It felt incredibly rude to do so but something told him that this might be what Dimitri was waiting for. It was as he was sinking underneath the covers that his assumption was proved correct, though not quite in the way he expected. From behind him came the sound of shifting fabric, clinking metal and quiet shuffling. Confused, Byleth glanced over his shoulder. His eyes widened in surprise. 

Dimitri was undressing, methodically removing his armor and setting it aside. Mouth falling open a little, Byleth watched him for a few seconds until that empty blue gaze flickered over. Their eyes met. Byleth’s face flushed hotly. A soft hint of pink dusted Dimitri’s otherwise pale cheeks. Dimitri’s mouth turned down further into an annoyed frown. Looking away, his hair falling in a curtain around his face, he remained still, clutching the gauntlet he just removed. Ah, he didn’t want to be seen? Was that it? Rolling back over, his heart thudding wildly, Byleth lay still, listening to the sounds coming from behind him. What...what was going on here...? He...he didn’t get any of this. 

There was one more thump then silence. Unconsciously holding his breath, Byleth waited to see what inexplicable thing might happen next. He wanted to look but didn’t want to risk Dimitri getting spooked. The next few moments were torture. They stretched into a millennia, seeming to grow longer and longer with every breath. Then, finally, soft, padding footsteps. Byleth sensed, rather than saw Dimitri walk over to the bed. His heart was going to break his ribs at this point. Squeezing his eyes tightly closed, he couldn’t help but jump a little when he felt pressure on the edge of the bed. Without a word, Dimitri climbed up behind him, sliding underneath the covers. 

It was a tight squeeze - neither one of them were small by any definition of the word. Wriggling closer to the wall to give Dimitri as much room as possible, Byleth shivered when warm breath puffed against the back of his neck. Dimitri’s movements were tense and clumsy. His body was so tense, it felt like a wall of rock being pressed to his back. There didn’t seem any attempt to keep any distance between them. Dimiti plastered himself to Byleth, curling as close to his back as he could possibly get within the small confines of the bed. 

Forcing himself to relax, hoping it would encourage Dimitri to follow suit, Byleth slowed the pace of his breathing to a steady, even beat. The smell of worn metal, musky smoke and sweat surrounded him. Despite the stiffness of Dimitri’s body behind him, his own rapid heartbeat and the strange fluttering in his belly, he was oddly...comfortable. It was strange - he was practically kissing the wall, he was so close to it but he didn’t want to move. Both out of the fear that the slightest twitch would send Dimitri flying away like a startled animal and just because...this, he liked it. The closeness of Dimitri’s body, his scent, his warmth, the feel of his skin pressed to his own, he...he couldn’t get enough of it. 

“Do you want me to leave?” Dimitri suddenly murmured, his lips brushing against the back of his neck, sending a shiver racing down his spine. 

Byleth snorted, “If I wanted you to leave, I would’ve stopped you a long while ago.” He paused for a moment then asked, “Do you want to leave?”

“No.” Dimitri responded softly after a elongated pause. “I don’t.”

Byleth nodded, “Then get some sleep.”

“I don’t sleep.” Dimitri said, even though his voice was already beginning to slur slightly. 

“You will tonight.” Byleth replied encouragingly. When there came only a low hum in response, he took a risk, glancing over his shoulder. A fresh flood of heat poured into his cheeks. Close-! Dimitri’s face was so close-! When he turned around, their noses almost bumped together! Thank the Gods, Dimitri’s eye was closed so the embarrassment of meeting his gaze when they were so close was avoided. Letting out a slow breath, Byleth studied his face. Despite his insistence that he didn’t sleep, it was obvious he was already conked out. He couldn’t imagine that he had slept well at all these past few years. Judging from the dark bags underneath his eye, it felt safe to assume that his last good night’s rest was over five years ago. 

That needed to change. Byleth slowly, cautiously rolled over onto his side, carefully watching Dimitri’s slumbering face for any sign that he was waking up. All that came out of the movement was a slight shift, a barely noticeable tremble of his full lips and a soft inhale. Settling onto his side, Byleth hesitated for a moment then reached up to brush a lock of hair away from Dimitri’s forehead. Honestly, he didn’t know if he could do it. He didn’t know if he could help him heal but...by all the fucking Gods in this war torn land, he was going to do everything he could to try to lead him back into the light. 

Slipping forward, Byleth placed the lightest, gentlest kiss possible onto his smooth forehead and whispered, “Sleep well, Dimitri.”      

[golden-deer-dear]

How to Say ‘I Love You’ When the Word is Not Enough, Claude x Byleth Fluff Fic (art inspired)

Summary: Claude never had someone touch him before with any sort of affection, so when Byleth does just that, it is a completely new experience for him. Or, five times Claude is touch starved, and one time Byleth returns the sentiment.

Notes: Does anyone remember the 5 times (sometimes +1) fics that were really popular years ago? I miss those. Let's bring those back.

Anyways, this entire fic is a gift to @julls because their art gives me life. Hope you like it!

Scene 1 Scene 2 Scene 3 Scene 4 Scene 5 Scene 6

How to Say ‘I Love You’ When the Word is Not Enough

Their first kiss was honey on a sore throat. It soothed a pain Claude had long tried to hide. But there in her arms, with every ounce of love he was capable of being poured onto her soft lips, it was as if a dam burst inside his soul. He wanted her close, wanted to hold her in his arms forever, and just feel her warmth against him.

It was amazing, strange and overwhelming, something his brain raced to process. Claude had never held anyone like this before. He honestly could not remember anyone ever touching him with any sort of affection at a previous point in his life, save for when his mother touched his cheek and told him to watch his back before he left for Fódlan. This was different. This was something that did not fit into any scheme, but this was Teach after all. She had a habit of throwing him off kilter. 

And it all hurt so much because he knew he would have to let her go. Byleth would leave the warmth of his embrace and go rule a newly united Fódlan. He would have to leave the softness of her lips to return to Almyra and deal with the crown. Even with her lips still on his, the thought made Claude’s heart ache so much for a brief moment he considered forgetting his plans altogether.

They broke apart just long enough to catch their breath, lips lingering close to one another. Claude knew he should go, but he wasn’t strong enough. He craved her touch as if it gave him life itself. And so he dove back in.

This kiss was not as frantic as their first, but no less desperate. Claude’s fingers curled against her back, one hand upon her waist, the other caress the line of her shoulder blade, as he tried to bring her closer despite their bodies already being flush against one another. He felt Byleth’s arm move, her sword calloused fingers brushing against his neck as she reached for his hair, ideally flipping the ends of the soft strains between those talented fingers. 

Claude cursed inside his own head, again unsure how to process such a small gesture with so much weight behind it. Stars above and earth below, but he loved her so much his heart hurt. 

He pulled back, forcing himself not to rest his forehead against hers. He would never be able to leave at this rate. Instead, he settled for a smile, the corners of his eyes crinkling with joy when it was returned. Byleth’s cheeks were dusted pink, her lips sweetly kiss bruised. She was everything he wanted, and so much more than he deserved. 

“I never thought I could love someone so much that not being close to you tears my heart apart,” Claude whispered, stopping just short of leaning in for another kiss.

Byleth’s face creased in confusion. “I’m not sure how we could be much closer right now.”

“Oh, I can think of a few ways.” Claude laughed at his own joke, a slightly strangled quality to the sound, raising his brows a few times even as Byleth rolled her eyes at him. He was a moron. Best not to think of that right now. It was extremely dangerous territory. He really would never leave if they gave in and were intimate right now. “But we only have a few minutes. And thinking about not being near you, of being unable to hold you like this…” He trailed off in his explanation, unable to describe the ache in his chest. 

Byleth stood on tiptoe to kiss him again, quick and reassuring, too fast for him to drown in her again. “Then don’t think about it,” she said as if it were the most logical thing in the world. “Not for the few minutes we have. And after that, just think of what it will feel like when I get to hold you like this again.”

Claude pulled her as close as he could, burying his face against her neck. “Sounds like a plan to me.”

A few more minutes he would gladly indulge in.

And after that, a lifetime.

/

“Take this to Shamir. She’ll know what to do with it,” Byleth ordered. The soldier nodded and turned on her heel, leaving the room quickly to fulfill his orders. 

And that left them alone. Claude flipped his quill back and forth between two fingers, uncaring of the ink he was splattering onto his desk. He chewed the inside of his cheek, trying to resist the sight of his wife dressed in light cotton, her black shirt hanging off her shoulders and hugging every curve. The sun shone on her through the large windows, creating a lovely picture that reminded Claude just why he liked summer so much. But no, in this case he was weak, and he very much wanted his arms around her. 

Claude pushed his chair back, standing and rapidly crossing the room to his wife’s side. Byleth blinked at him, her mouth opened to ask a question, only for it to turn into a laugh as Claude slid behind her and wrapped his arms around her. 

“Claude, we still have work to do,” Byleth pointed out even as she relaxed against him. 

Claude hummed softly, nuzzling against her cheek. “We can take a quick break.”

“Claude, your stubble tickles,” Byleth chastised, her voice so light Claude could easily picture the mirth in her eyes. 

“Does it?” Claude practically purred. Byleth stiffened in his arms briefly, hearing the hint of a scheme forming in Claude’s own laughing tone. But she did not fight as he walked them backwards to a lounge, sinking onto it while pulling Byleth down with him. He curled around her like a cat, arms still slung over her shoulders and legs propped up around her, as he settled them comfortably against the plush cushions. 

He nuzzled at her cheek again, rubbing more of his beard against her cheek. “How about that then?”

Byleth squirmed in Claude’s grasp, trying to turn in his arms so she could face him. Claude held her in place, not even close to done with his teasing. He moved down, rubbing against her neck and shoulders. His fingers played at her sides, causing Byleth to let loose a squeak as she squirmed harder. Claude grinned widely, loving that he had pulled that sound from her. He was certain he was the only one who knew Byleth was ticklish, and it was a secret he guarded jealously.

“Claude!” Byleth laughed, that light carefree sound she made more and more often whenever she was alone with him. “Stop!”

He gave one more last nuzzle against her cheek, smirking as she shuddered in his arms. “If I must,” Claude pouted.

Byleth was finally able to turn in his embrace, placing a quick kiss against his lips to steal away his frown. “Now, about this break…” Byleth trailed off, cuddling against Claude’s chest as she closed her eyes. “It sounds like a good idea.”

“Those are the only kinds of ideas I have, my love,” Claude pointed out before kissing the top of her head. 

“Shhh.” Byleth lifted her hand to place a finger against his lips. “Nap now.”

Getting a moment to hold her uninterrupted? Yeah, there was no way he was going to argue with that. She was beside him, resting against his chest, making his heart light and his thoughts carefree.

/

Claude reluctantly lifted his head from his place between his wife’s legs, smirking at the noise of annoyance she made as he left. But he was certain he had heard something else beside his wife’s moans as he pleasured her with his tongue. 

Byleth glared up at him, but Claude tilted his head to the side, listening once more for the voices he heard before. Sure enough, coming closer to them were five...no, make that six knights if he was reading the sounds of their shoes crunching against the gravel pathway correctly. He picked out Cathrine’s voice, although that wasn’t too hard since she was louder than the rest of them put together. Thankfully they were hidden by a row of rose bushes. So long as they were quiet, no one would even know they were here.

He knew the moment Byleth heard them as well by the way her eyes widened. She stared up at him with a spark of horror. It was one thing for everyone to know the new king and queen enjoyed a healthy sex life, but it was another thing altogether to be caught in the act itself. Especially if Cathrine was the one to do the catching. And oh, there rose another voice that made the situation so much worse. 

Seteth.

Honestly, Claude did not really care if they were caught or not. He would laugh off Seteth outraged lecture, stealing Byleth away to finish up what they started. Byleth, however, would not enjoy it. She would not be mortified by any means, Byleth didn’t do mortified, but she would be upset. She had grown so much since coming to the monastery, more so after their marriage. He loved being able to read her, but would hate to see her truly upset. Better just to avoid it overall.

But on the other hand…

Claude missed the feel of her. Byleth was lying on the garden grass beneath him, her legs on either side of him, but not touching him. He wanted her, needed her like he needed air in his lungs. He couldn’t help himself. 

Byleth’s eyes grew a fraction wider as Claude gripped her leg, but she offered no resistance as he guided her limb up. He hooked her knee over his shoulder, eyes greedily taking in the display before him. 

Claude raised a finger to his lips, eyes glittering with mischief.  “Shh,” he whispered. Oh yes, this was much more enjoyable than simply waiting for the others to pass.

Byleth slapped a hand over her mouth, trying to regulate her breathing as Claude lined himself up with her. Her eyes fell shut, her head tipping back as her back arched, when Claude slowly pushed himself into her. He bit his lip to stifle his own moan, but found it quite easy to keep quiet. If he was loud now their fun would end. 

For her part, Byleth brought her other hand to her mouth as well, using both to cover the sounds that were desperate to escape from her. Claude really wasn’t helping when he pulled out only to slowly thrust into her again. He could feel her foot move against his back, flexing as he moved within her, channeling the expressions she could not currently put into words. 

Claude bent forward, placing both hands on either side of Byleth’s head. The motion forced Byleth’s leg further up, causing Claude to thrust into her at a different angle. Byleth shuddered beneath him, her moans audible even through the hands still covering her mouth. She squeezed him as if she never wanted their bodies to be parted. Claude fell forward, burying his face against her neck, busying his lips with kisses along her skin to distract himself from the sounds fighting to escape from his own throat. 

And then Byleth’s body went taut. Her hands dropped away as a heavy sigh went through her, unable to hide the noise from the world. Thankfully, Cathrine choose that moment to laugh at something one of the other knights said, completely covering any noise Byleth made. Claude held himself still, one of the most difficult things he had ever had to do, as Byleth unraveled around him. He watched as she came down, joy shooting into his heart like an arrow as she instinctively reached out for him.

The sound of gravel crunching from the other side of the rose bushes alerted Claude that the knights were finally moving on, none the wiser to their rulers’ presence. 

Or so he thought until someone cleared her throat right next to them. “Might want to wrap it up,” Shamir said softly. “Seteth is looking for the two of you.”

Claude shared a look with Byleth, who blinked up at him. He couldn’t help it. He laughed loudly, wrapping himself around Byleth until she joined him.

“Stars above,” he whispered in her ear, “I love you.”

/

“Byleth!”

His wife stopped and turned, a smile more radiant than the sun gracing her lips when she saw him coming toward her. There was so much love in Byleth’s eyes Claude wasn’t sure exactly what to do with it all except try and love her back just as much. 

Byleth waited for him, leaning into his side as Claude threw an arm around her shoulders. “Care to join me for a cozy morning stroll?” she asked. 

“I cannot think of anything I want to do more.”

“Oh?” she said in a teasing tone Claude recognized all too well. It was the same tone he used when he was about to tease her. “Are you sure? We are headed toward the gardens after all.”

Claude quirked an eyebrow even as he smirked at her. “Was that an invite?”

Pink sprang up in Byleth’s cheeks as Claude pressed himself closer, but she held his gaze without issue. “Unfortunately I’m expected at a meeting with Seteth and Judith soon. But I have enough time that I don’t have to hurry, so long as I am actually headed that way,” she was quick to add the last part when Claude’s tongue poked out to lick his lips, mischief flashing in his eyes. 

“Ah well, an actual stroll is enjoyable too.” 

Byleth smile was small and barely there. Those who were not close to her probably wouldn’t even notice it. But her eyes, those beautiful mint green eyes, shone. She looked at him, and Claude could swear he saw stars, even though the sun was already blazing summer heat into the early morning. She kept herself at his side, craving his touch as much as he craved hers. 

It had taken Claude a while to understand that Byleth loved him as much as he loved her. It wasn’t that he doubted her. He just found it difficult to wrap his head around the idea that someone cared for him that much. Byleth wanted him near, did not find it at all annoying when he clung to her. She clung to him just as much. Somewhere, somehow, Claude had come to accept that Byleth had helped him find his heart.

The crest stone inside Byleth’s chest may have kept her heart from beating, but Claude knew how much love she was capable of. It was what made his own beat to her steady rhythm. 

/

Their breathing echoed off the walls of their bedroom, heavy after their recent activities. Claude’s hand curled over the top of Byleth’s head, tangling his fingers in her hair. “I always forget how small you are,” Claude murmured as he leaned over his wife, his bare chest brushing against her own. 

Byleth laid a hand over his heart, the metal of her engagement ring cool upon his hot flesh. She tilted her head up, lips begging for a kiss. She hummed a non committal sound as she opened her mouth. It was a lazy motion, made without any thought other than a desire for her lover. 

Claude could not deny her, knew he would never be able to do so, and accepted it gladly. He leaned in for the kiss Byleth was so eagerly asking for, teeth nibbling at her lower lip. Byleth hummed again against his lips, expressing her approval as she always did through little sounds that were for his ears alone.

She was smiling at him when he pulled away, staying close enough that their lips still brushed each other when she spoke, her top lip catching against his. “What was that about me being small?”

“You are small,” Claude repeated. “My small, precious wife. Light of my life and goddess of my heart.”

“You don’t believe in the goddess,” Byleth pointed out. She raised one finger to caress against his neck, the softest of touches to a spot she knew made him shiver. He could not help the reaction that ran through his body at that simple touch. She knew exactly how to play him.

“But I believe in you,” Claude answered, nipping at her lips again.

Her smile grew, her eyes still hazy with the afterglow of her orgasm. “Oooh, good answer, lover boy.” Byleth’s finger twitched against his Adam’s apple, forcing another shiver through Claude’s body. 

She was certainly proud of herself for that one, if the laughter in her eyes was anything to go by. He loved that look on her, that unbridled joy she no longer hid behind a stoic mask. And he was the one who put it there. This was happiness, laying here with the woman he loved, her body pressed close to him, as they lingered in the afterglow of their lovemaking. How did one simple word manage to capture all that he was feeling in his heart?

“You’ve become quite expressive, haven’t you?” he whispered, his nose brushing against hers. He did it again a couple more times, knowing that it was a super cheesy move, and not really caring. It just felt good to touch and explore all of her.

Byleth blinked, the smile disappearing for a moment as she thought over Claude’s words. “I suppose I have. You taught me how to feel after all.”

Claude’s world came to a screeching halt. That was certainly more of an answer than he was expecting. It was too much. He flopped on his side, keeping himself pressed against Byleth as much as possible while removing his body weight before he could crush her, and buried his face against her neck. 

“Are you blushing?” Byleth asked, although he was certain he could feel how hot his face was against her shoulder. She turned her head, kissing the top of his head with a smile on her lips.

“Leave me alone,” Claude mumbled even as he nuzzled against her neck, trying to hide himself more. 

“Never,” Byleth promised.

And Claude, the very embodiment of mistrust, believed her.

/

Byleth threw a pair of socks at her husband, watching as he blinked up at her in surprise. “What are these for?”

“The floor is cold,” Byleth said simply. “I know you hate the cold.”

On their rare day off, Byleth had taken a nap, only to wake up to quite a shock when her feet hit the floor. A cold front had swept in, the first hint of autumn, making the stone tiles of the monastery chill to the touch. And there was Claude, sitting upon a lounge on the opposite side of the room, surrounded by puffy pillows as he read (it had better not be reports, not on their day off, or else there would be a talk later). He was wearing a simple shirt and pants, the shirt cut with a deep v to reveal his chest. But his feet were bare. He would be upset when he stood up and made the same discovery she had. 

Claude blinked again before a smile crossed his face. He set aside his book and picked up the socks, slipping them on and wiggling his toes at her. “Thanks, By.” 

He blinked again, the smile fading as Byleth continued to stare at him. “By? You okay?”

“You think there’s enough room on there for me too?” she asked. Of course there was, they had sat together on that lounge hundreds of times before. 

But Claude knew what she was really asking. His smile returned as he spread his legs wider, opening his arms in invitation. “For you, always.”

Byleth happily slid onto Claude’s lap, wrapping her arms around his neck as she laid her head on top of his. Claude helped her pull her legs up, one hand staying upon her thigh as she relaxed against him. His other arm wrapped around her waist, fingers tapping against her hip.

Yes, this, this was what she wanted. Every time Claude held her she knew, without him having to say a word, how much he loved her. He’d told her before how much she affected his heart, usually stumbling over the lines or blushing profusely afterwards, but he at least managed to put those feelings into words. 

She always struggled with that. Sometimes she could answer him with her own feelings, but starting the conversation herself was difficult. So she clung to him, hoping every emotion she felt could be conveyed through contact. 

How did she tell him? How did she tell him how grateful she was that he was always on her side? That he believed in her even when others did not? He made her heart feel like it could skip a beat it did not take whenever he stole away her breath. He was her grounding force, as much as she was the stars in the sky for him. She ached when he was away. She ached when he was near, in a completely different way. Both ways were confusing, but nothing she would ever willingly give up. 

“Claude,” she whispered, nuzzling her nose into his hair and breathing deeply the scent of pine and cinnamon. “Your embrace soothes my soul.”

She could picture Claude blinking his surprise again as a moment of silence passed. “Wow By, that was really elegant.”

“Oh hush,” Byleth chastised without putting any force behind her words. Heat rushed to her face, and she knew her cheeks were the deep red that Claude enjoyed seeing so much. “I love you.”

“I love you too, By,” Claude answered easily. He tilted his head back, begging for a kiss which Byleth eagerly gave. It was short and sweet, the easiest way to convey love with more than the word that seemed so inadequate to capture everything he did to her heart. 

But that was fine. Because Claude knew, and that was all that mattered. His touch made her heart feel whole.

Being wrapped in his embrace was all that she would ever need.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Personal headcanons that made an appearance if anyone is interested:

1. Byleth is ticklish, but doesn't realize it until the first time she's with her so. 2. Claude smells like pine needles and cinnamon because of the tea he drinks with Byleth. 3. Instead of swearing on the goddess, Claude says things like 'stars above' or other nature related curses.

[imthepunchlord]

What I wish for FEA

On the off chance Fire Emblem Awakening got remade for the switch (which can handle far more than the 3DS), things that I really hope for. I really would love if it did get remade for the switch, it was a lot of fun, a lot of great characters, an interesting set up that they could’ve done a lot more for. It’s not a perfect game, so a remake would be good to polish it up, and do the update that’s needed. 

And this is more for me, been holding this in since playing FE3H and finally decided to share it. 

- More supports for Chrom and Sumia

For someone who insists about standing for friendship, he doesn’t have a lot of supports, I also would’ve loved to see some other romantic options for him; like him and Flavia could’ve been great. I’d also be intrigued to see Lucina as a half taguel or manakete. And Sumia has no excuse for her small support pool. While I love Cordelia and Stahl, I also really wanted to see Sumia and Stahl, if they had a support. 

And set it up that, whoever Lissa marries, that opens up a support between Chrom and his brother-in-law, if he doesn’t have one open with them. My otp is Lissa and Henry, I’d love to see the support between Chrom and Henry, that could be so funny. And have this extend to potential aunts and uncles between Lucina (Lucy’s younger sibling) and Owain. There are interactions we’re not getting but should be. 

- Model edits for half races

Speaking of Lucina being half taguel or manakete; do actual edits of their models so they have those traits; I was bothered to see Morgan lack those traits. Also to see that Morgan is just a copy of her mother’s model. Taguel, ok, I can let fly since gender seems color coded for their armor, but manakete, seeing 3 different colors (yellow, pink, and white); its not hard to tweak the color. Morgan could’ve been black or purple (and on the off chance we ever get manakete!Lucina, blue for her). 

- Plegia

This is a big one. While FE doesn’t have the best history with their poc, 3H was a step in the right direction, I would like this added to FEA. 

Don’t make things so black and white, especially with Plegia and Ylisse. Plegia is overwhelmingly framed as the villains and Ylisse is just pure good. Never mind the fact that Ylisse did a mass genocide on Plegia that still effects it to this day. While it is acknowledged, it also feels swept under the rug too and Plegians are portrayed bad for responding as they do. And to my knowledge, Emmeryn didn’t do much to try and make up for her father’s actions outside withdrawing troops. Its a complicated situation I want to see addressed more, for there isn’t an easy answer to this. She’s not her father and shouldn’t be blamed for his sins, but she also can’t just bow her head and try to let things be, leave them to lick their wounds in peace; that allows anger, hurt, and resentment to fester that lead to Plegia lashing out. Actually one thing that could’ve been done is make use of Robin being Plegian and Emmeryn using them as a means to make up for how bad things got. Give us more on Emmeryn, and address that complicated situation. 

Also, really address Robin being Plegian. Aside from later story detail, its something very forgettable and its a huge disconnect from Robin and their character. Robin is an amnesiac, yet there’s nothing of them trying to learn of their past. I would love to see Robin delving into being Plegian, their culture, and what it means to them to work with the Shepherds. While the Shepherds has been kind to Robin and embraced them to be among the flock, Robin canonly does still face suspicion after serving Ylisse loyally (Frederick). Realistically, Robin should be facing far more prejudice in Ylisse, which can help break this black and white set up between Ylisse and Plegia. This would also be really interesting to see for Robin as a character, acknowledging their Plegian heritage, what it means for them, where does loyalty lie, do they want to go to Plegia and try to find their past? Validar even hints that Robin’s mother is alive (potentially); where’s Robin trying to find their mother? To learn of their past and see what Robin was like before losing their memories, what happened that got them separated from their mother? 

And not everyone will agree or like this, but remove being able to change up the avatar’s appearance. Because they want Robin blank for the player, this makes Robin lackluster as a character, and doesn’t work since there are actual conversations between the avatar and other characters that won’t match with the player’s views. Say you don’t like Chrom, but your avatar does and there’s nothing you can do to change this, its a set conversation between two characters. Let Robin exist as their own character, no changing up the design, and keep Robin as a person of color. I can say you can change the color itself  from light to dark, but no making Robin white. This extends to Tharja, Noire, Henry, and the Morgans. All Plegians that are “good” and that can recruit are white, which doesn’t help things. Keep all Plegians dark skinned, it will help remove that light skinned people are “good” and all dark skinned people are “bad”, especially when majority of Plegians are dark. So keep Robin, Tharja, Noire, Henry, and the Morgans all poc, and let Robin become their own character, for they are meant to be but also an insert for the player and they aren’t a good insert. They can do what they did with Byleth, have a potential reason why Robin starts out so blank; maybe Grima reaching out to Robin is what set that off, and the further into the story you play, the more of Robin’s true personality shines through. Tharja reveals that knowing someone’s true name allows for hexes to work, and its a wonder if Robin is their true name or if they have a true Plegian name. 

And what becomes of Plegia when you beat the game? Is Plegia left broken and never rebuilt, becoming part of Ylisse? Does Robin (and their spouse) go to store Plegia and become new rulers and help forge friendships between them and Ylisse? Or does Tharja or Henry go to become the new Queen or King of Plegia with their respective spouse? House does Plegian monarchy even work? Gangrel was a peasant that survived the genocide and stepped up, then Validar just took over and now we don’t know who rules or if Plegia is just left forgotten and broken. 

Speaking of Grima, lets get more into them and Plegian culture and religion. They’re a largely worshiped god that promises doom upon the world, why are they so worshiped when it means many Plegians will die as well? Are they based on the Egyptian culture, believing that there is an afterlife after death, and that it will be better than their present life? Do they believe this world is the actual hell? Is there more to Grima in worship than just death? To play off their old name, is Grima known as a creation god, for destruction is a form of creation, paving way to renewal or new things to rise from creation. Aversa mentioned “gods”, so Grima isn’t the only god that is worshiped. Who else do they worship? Are there believers of Naga? What other gods are out there? 

And Grima’s mention that they and Robin are one and the same, it doesn’t get addressed or explored as much as I’d like. To what extent are they the same? Is Robin just a human reincarnation of Grima? Could Robin become Grima without the possession? Are they a dark and light counterpart to each other? Does this mean that Grima is like Robin, started out good and open to the world and just wound up corrupted or went down a dark path, that Forneus potentially pushed Grima down? Or was Grima always evil at the start? Does that mean Robin actually started out evil and then the amnesia hit and they became good? 

Its said on the wiki that Robin often experienced nightmares, which we didn’t see in-game, Grima could be set up to play a similar role to Sothis, an inner demon sitting in Robin’s subconscious, trying to manipulate and scare Robin down a darker path. And if Robin can potentially explore their own mindscape, could use this to lay hints to Robin’s past and Grima’s. 

- Also go ahead and expand on the lore of the world

Plegia is the one I’m interested to see more of, but would like more on Regina Ferox, more on Ylisse and their views of Plegia presently, of Valm, of the taguel and of the manakete. 

But just expanding this world, for there are a lot of interesting things and details set up that are left unanswered. Actually there are some paralogue that can be doen to expand on characters and give a little on their history. 

Like, Nowi revealing that she was stolen from her parents. Are they possibly still around? Who stole her? Why doesn’t she have a support with Tiki?

Is Panne really the only surviving taguel or are there more? 

Is Donnel potentially part manakete since his father gave him a stone that has a “hidden power” and Nah can use it as her dragonstone to transform. So was his father a manakete or did he just find that stone? 

- Take the new features from Three Houses

One of the things I really liked about 3H was being able to explore the church and talk to characters, see what new thing they have to say for each month. I’d love to see the barracks explored and talk to characters in your army and see what new thing they’d have to say to you when you go about talking to them, what their thoughts and views can be. 

I’d also like to build up points like 3H does, have lunch or a drink with your army, do little things for fun and build up supports and stats. 

I also adore characters being fully voice acted and seeing the cutscenes play out. I’d love for them to stay and be used for FEA. 

And while very unlikely to be done, I would love them doing another take on divide paths. Two possible routes to go, there’s going with Ylisse, or going with Plegia. Have Robin decide if they want to stay and assist the Shepherds or go to Plegia and learn of their pasts, see more of characters we didn’t get to see much of, see Plegians’ life and potential struggles after that genocide and being under Gangrel and Grimeal’s rule. Maybe have a complicated goal of improving things for Plegia, work at becoming the new Queen/King of Plegia, see how things stay the same or play out differently with you there. 

It is very unlikely though, so at most I’d hope for an expansion on lore and culture, and make things far more grey than the black and white set up they did. 

- Update characters 

There are characters who haven’t aged well and require a major update in design and personality. Tharja is creepy but has a secret heart of gold, which clashes with what Noire tells us in the future. Inigo is a nice guy and is extremely annoying. Nowi has the mentality of a child and its extremely uncomfortable to pair her up with anyone, and I’d like to see her updated to be more along the lines of Flayn, still child-like in a sense, but also mature and wise in her own way. Her daughter Nah I don’t remember liking much either and would like to see adjusted. This is one of a few I think really need a tweak in personality and design. 

- Allow for same sex endings

Now, this is unlikely since female characters (minus Chrom and male Robin) are the ones with future kids, but I would like to see that some same sex characters could have endings together, though there’s the issue of no child from mlm pairs. This can be solved by adding a handful of future kids to certain male characters, and can open up more sibling supports. its also realistic for some parents to have more than one kid.

But that means adding more children and I don’t know if they will. I would love to see more child characters and more sibling interactions, but yeah I don’t know if they will... 

- Remove allowing Robin to pair up with a kid from the future

No. Just no. That should not have been a thing. 

- Allow me to have both my children 

Future Past dlc all but confirms that Morgan has a twin that exists, let us have them both. I adore them both, and I would love to see them work off each other. 

- Give Flavia and Say’ri their own kid 

Very salty that these two woc don’t have their own kid as well and a very small window of supports. Which ties into the next point. 

- Update supports 

It is very annoying that some characters don’t have supports with each other. Not just Chrom being picky about company despite boasting about friendship and bonds and Sumia being picky about spouses (for some reason); but Lon’qu and Basilio can’t talk, nor him and Say’ri despite coming from the same region. Nor any support between Nowi and Tiki despite Nowi having a fear of being alone, here is another manakete and yet no interactions between them? And on the off chance they keep in extra recruitable characters, why don’t Emmeryn have a support with Chrom and Lissa and Frederick? 

- Chrom 

So I know Chrom needs a wife for Lucina, but my god its the most annoying thing to deal with him till past a certain chapter, especially if one of his few potential wives I want to pair with someone else. I know its a must, but I would like it updated and adjusted. Because at the start of the play through, everyone has to avoid him like the plague less he goes and steals someone’s wife. 

Another issue is him being the Exalt, we don’t see him being the Exalt and most of his time is spent away from his kingdom, making him lackluster as a ruler and leader. Who is he leaving in charge of Ylisse when he’s about when his potential wife, Lissa, and Frederick are at his side? Is any of the people of Ylisse bothered or nervous about him being vacant to rule? 3H the heirs feel like actual rulers and leaders, Chrom doesn’t. I’d like that updated, see what he is like as an Exalt, and what issues there are for there is no perfect ruler. What are his goals and how will he act them out? Does he have any? is Ylisse ok enough that he hardly needs to actively govern it? 

.

.

.

And I think that about covers it for all things I’d hope to see added/polished up for FEA remake, if it ever happens for the switch. I really hope so, it got me into Fire Emblem, and while a lot of fun, it needs polishing up, and could use some updates and add ons. 

I hope one day I will get to see it on the switch, and to see it updated and improved upon. 

[gemstonerose]

A Gift from Mother

Byleth meets her mother.

Fire emblem 3 houses Cinder Shadows spoilers

Or read on AO3

Shout out to @lady-branwen for all the Sitri content that gave me the inspiration to make this.

Byleth thought that investigating the strange underground of the monastery and figuring out who was snooping around earlier would be quick and easy. That the Lords and her would go in, find a bunch of rats going about their existence, catch the mystery person, and be out by dinner. What she hadn’t planned for was the civilization of people living there. The Ashen Wolves, the protectors of Abyss, were interesting people. And it was a wonder as to how no one had mentioned this secret fourth house even once. Byleth thought that after they assist them and sort things out with Rhea that would be it. Yet, sadly for her that wasn’t the case. Life loved to mess with her and throw one curveball after another in her direction. And then they discovered that Aelfric found her mother’s body down in the Abyss. Since coming to Garreg Mach she’s becoming more in tune with experiencing normal emotions. She doesn’t get the chance to see her mother until the end when they take down the Umbral Beast. Byleth is rightfully upset with how things had happened and demanded that her mother be taken to the surface so she can be properly buried. Jeralt will have to be told the truth about what happened with his wife and that was going to be a headache she wasn’t looking forward to dealing with. Byleth already knew that her father had a distaste for Rhea, and this isn’t going to make it any better.

Rhea thankfully allows her request to be fulfilled without any trouble, “If you can wait here with her, I’ll send some knights to come get her.” Rhea departs on that.

The students gather themselves and assist in mending each other’s wounds. They talk among themselves about what they have just been through and what they will do once this is all neatly tied up. Claude goes over to her, “How are you feeling Teach?” Byleth doesn’t look at him and shrugs as she continues to look to her mother laying still across from her. She feels something, but she knows it’s not some random emotion. At least she thinks it isn’t. “If you want to go see her then do it.”

“Huh?” That breaks Byleth out of her daze and she finally meets his eyes.

“I mean this will be the only time you’ll get to see her. My parents told me that even though people die their spirit is always watching over us no matter how long it has been. Make your peace with her. Let her know that the child she loved and cared for so much made it and became a wonderful person,” the pink dusting Claude’s cheeks don’t go unnoticed by her.

Byleth places a hand on his shoulder. He looks to her and is graced by a small smile, “Thank you.”

Claude’s eyes widen and the blush on his face deepens in color, “Uh sure! No problem Teach! A-anytime!” He stumbles on his words, “I um… I’m going to go make sure Hilda is doing alright.” And he rushes off back to the group.

Byleth takes in a deep breath and makes her way to her mother. It felt like she was being lured to the resting woman by some invisible string. Now that she’s seeing her face to face any doubt she may have had vanished. Jeralt always said that she was practically a spitting image of her mother. Sitri’s hair and face were like hers. Byleth knelt near and looked over the mother she never got to meet. She places a hand atop Sitri’s folded ones which to no surprise are cold. Her chest doesn’t rise, nor do her eyes opened. Byleth would be lying if a small part of her wished that maybe something else would have happened. That maybe her mother would have woken up, but she didn’t. ‘It’s for the best,’ Byleth thinks to herself. She closes her eyes and does a silent prayer for her mother apologizing for everything that had transpired and hopes that she is resting well.

“Professor,” Dimitri, Edelgard, and Claude have come near her. They stay a few feet from the stairs and have sorrowful looks on their faces. “The knights are almost here,” the blond prince informs her.

She nods at the three leaders and stands. “Thank you,” the three nod and begin to turn away. Byleth looks to her mother and mouths ‘Goodbye’ before turning to leave. Then she feels something. That strange feeling pulled her too Sitri and she looks back at her. She hasn’t changed, but she’s suddenly feeling dizzy. The last thing she hears is someone yelling to her before the world goes black.

………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Byleth wakes to the sun hitting her face. It alarms her immediately as she shoots up from the ground. She’s in one of the gardens of the Monastery, but something seems off. The first thing Byleth notices is that she’s wearing a long black dress with coral color lining the cuffs of her sleeves and the trim of her dress. The golden tasseled medallion that she normally wore still hung from her chest. Byleth looked around the area for any signs of life. It only took a moment to notice a woman with long blue-green hair and a white dress tending to the flowers across the small yard. Byleth walked over to the mysterious lady who was a few inches shorter than her and stood a few feet away.

“Excuse me?” Byleth called to the woman. The woman in white stiffened for a moment before she turned herself. Forest green eyes meet Byleth’s purple-blue ones, “Mother?” She breaths out. The small surprise that was present on Sitri’s face faded as she fully faced her daughter and graced her with a small smile. The two stared at each other in silence for a few moments. “How is this possible? I’m not dead, am I?” Something in her stomach twisted. Her wounds weren’t that bad, and what of her students?How would her father react?

Sitri shook her head and stepped closer to her daughter. Byleth stiffened when Sitri brought her hands to cup her face. Sitri studied her, moving a strand of hair that fell out of place, and rubbing her thumb over her right cheek. She was real or at least felt real. Sitri smiled big as she moved her hands behind Byleth’s head and pulled her in for a hug. Byleth was still for a few moments before returning the embrace with a surprising tightness but making sure to not crush the smaller woman. It was nice; comforting even. After a moment Byleth sighed as she rested her face in her mothers’ shoulder. Sitri let out a small laugh as she held her tighter. They stood like that for a long time in the sweet comfortable silence of the garden.

Sitri was the one to pull back. Byleth frowned at the loss of contact. Her mother backed away for a moment as she reached for something in the flowers. Sitri placed the small pink bloom in her daughters’ hands and closed them around it. Byleth looked at her with confusion which soon faded as Sitri cupped her face once again and gave Byleth a bright toothy smile. She brought their foreheads together, “My precious baby,” Sitri spoke in a soft voice. She pulled back just a bit and kissed Byleth’s forehead as the world went white around them.

………………………………………………………………………………………………….

There was mumbling around her. She couldn’t make out who the voices belonged to, but they sounded panic. The more she focused on them the louder they became. ‘Why are they being so loud?!’ she thought in annoyance. She can feel herself groan and the voices stop. A moment later she can hear one of them.

“Teach? Can you hear me?” The male’s voice is edge with a hint of worry. She groans again; her head hurts and she’s tired. “Come on Teach, wake up!” His voice is much clearer now. She knows who this person is. Byleth feels coolness under her legs, but her upper half is floating. There is warmth next to her and something supporting her back.

‘Someone’s holding me?’ Byleth thinks. She can make out other voices. Each of them with a mix of worry coating their tones. Byleth forces her body to move. It works but she doesn’t get far. Something or someone is holding her in place. It takes more effort than it should have for Byleth to will her eyes open. It takes another moment for her vision to focus, but when it does, she is met with worried green eyes staring down at her. Claude sighs in relief and smiles down at her. Yuri is behind him with a hand on his cheek as he sends her a wink. The rest of the Wolves a few feet behind him. Linhardt is crouched on her left as he slowly lowers his hands to his lap. Hilda was right behind him rubbing her eyes as they both let out similar sighs of relief. Byleth lifted her head a bit and was able to spot Dimitri and Edelgard, with their hands over their hearts, loosen their posters and give her small smiles. Ashe was by her ankles wiping tears away from his face.

“Gave us quite the scare there my friend,” Yuri spoke first.

Byleth sighed as she looked around at her students. Her head was pounding, and her body felt heavy. She was about to raise a hand to her head when she felt something. Byleth’s right hand was lightly clenching something. When she opened it a small bloom of pink Valerian flowers rested within it. “So, it was real?” she whispered quietly to herself.

“Huh?” Claude looked at her with curiosity and then to the bloom in her hand. He looked back to her with a raised eyebrow. She cleared her throat as she fought through the pain and willed herself to speak. “It’s nothing,” her voice was still low. She gently closed her hand back around the small pink flowers, “What happened?”

“You just collapsed! And we couldn’t find your pulse for like three minutes!” Hilda shouted. The echo of Abyss amplified the sound as it rung painfully in her head. It made Byleth flinched and she attempted to curl into herself. Claude’s grip on her tightens slightly. By the Goddess was her head exploding.

“Teach?” Claude called to her in a softer worried voice, “What’s going on?”

“Head,” was all she could get out as Byleth closed her eyes once again. Even the dim lighting down in Abyss was proving to be too much for her.

Her students were saying something that Byleth decided not to focus on. Footsteps are heard and fading around her. The arms holding her began to change their positions to under her knees and her back. It’s wobbly at first, but she’s eventually lifted from the ground. “It’s okay Teach, I got you,” Claude softly tells her. Byleth gives him a hum as she rested her head on his shoulder and drifted off to sleep.

[lovelyfeh]

hi lovely!! i’m so sorry about the wait on this one, but you were one of the first requests I needed to do!! This prompt is so cute Ashe my l o v e ❤️ this turned out absolutely abysmal! I’m so sorry and will happily rewrite this if you don’t like it, but it’s horrendous :(

┈┈┈┈┈┈┈୨♡୧┈┈┈┈┈┈┈

“Look look! There he is S/O!”

You sighed, watching Ashe enter the library from the second floor with tired eyes. You could hear the giggles of Hilda and Lysithea from behind you as he notices you right away, waving cheerfully as he always did. You halfheartedetly waved back and averted your eyes. Why did he have to make this whole ‘ignore the source of your problems’ thing so difficult?

Hilda and Lysithea both peeled over your shoulders, watching Ashe as he looked through the book for a new novel to read. “My my S/O! Good choice! I never noticed before how cute of a boy Ashe is...!” Your eye twitched in irritation at her crude remark. “Hilda,” you groaned, “ you’ve been teasing me over this crush for a month now. Are you ever just going to leave me be?”

“Nope!” Lysithea chimed in, patting your head sympathetically as Hilda continued her teasing. “Trust me S/O, we only do this out of love. If we don’t push you to eventually confess to him then who will? You have to tell him someday!” Lysithea nodded along to Hilda’s words. You let out an annoyed huff, burying your face in a book without looking at either of them. “No. I don’t. He never needs to know about my feelings towards him! And you two pushing me to do it makes me want to do it less!”

“Didn’t you say you had one planned?” Lysitha asked, staring straight at the paper wedged between two pages of your book. Your cheeks reddened, and you quickly yanked the letter out and stuffed it into your pocket. “No. And I do not need you two here. I need to study for this quiz. If I don’t pass professeor Byleth will have my head!”

You could practically see Hilda’s eye roll, but they thankfully took the hint. “Fine fine! Don’t take our advice! We’re outta here!” She grabbed Lysithea and started dragging her down the stairs, “and don’t come to us if you need help with your confession! We won’t help!”

Thank goodness, you thought to yourself. You quickly distracted yourself from the two girls’ words by burying your face in a book, trying to push any thoughts of Ashe out of your mind. He had been hindering your studies as of late, running through your brain day and night. Byleth has already expressed their worry as your professor, so you needed to work extra hard not to think about Ashe!

“S/O! Hey! Are you studying right now?”

You jumped out of your skin at the sound of that familiar voice. Oh, just what I needed! Ashe smiled at you, sitting down next to you with a new book and tea from the cafeteria. “Ah, yes. I’m studying some magic for tomorrow’s exam... are you also studying?” You gazed at the fairy tail he had picked up, but quickly re-met his eyes with flushed cheeks. “Ah, not particularly,” he smiled sheepishly at you, “just needed something to read! You don’t mind if I join you though? I won’t bother you, promise!”

You had to quickly quiet your panicking thoughts. Sitting next to Ashe? Your crush? The boy you were supposed to avoid so you could focus? This was a bad idea. You needed to be mature and give him an answer you wouldn’t regret!

“Of course, no problem.”

Or not.

“Thanks S/O!” He smiled, before turning his attention to his book. “Of course, what are friends for...” you bit your tongue, looking down at the words in your tome but not actually processing them. You found your gaze returning to Ashe almost every second, which made it a bit difficult to do anything related to school.

This went on for several minutes. You watched Ashe do the most minuscule things, such as turning the page or sipping on his tea. It was starting to frustrate you considering this test was important, and you’d never pass with such an obvious distraction next to you.

With a huff, you slammed your book closed and stomped off. You could feel Ashe’s eyes on you as you left, his concern and confusion following you out the door. You needed space. You couldn’t think about giving him your stupid confession letter or if he actually liked you at all! You needed to think about school and school only!

“S/O! S/O! Where are you going?”

And there that voice was again! Did he have to follow you around so much?!

You turned to meet Ashe, an irritated look on your face. It was unfair of you to be mad at him, but you didn’t want to accept that it was your own fault that you couldn’t study. “Listen here Ashe! You’re distracting me, so leave me alone!” You stuck your finger in his face before he could say anything and scowled. “B-But I didn’t do anything! You just stopped out of the library! Did I say something earlier in class?!”

“No! You didn’t! But-”

“Perhaps I spilled tea on your book without realizing it? I’m so sorry S/O!”

“Ashe!-”

“Maybe it was the tea! Did the scent bother you?”

“Ashe! It’s because I love you! You’re distracting me because I love you!”

Time stopped. You didn’t realize you had said it until moments after. You immediately froze in place, staring straight ahead and not daring to look at Ashe. “What?” His voice had gone quiet, and you screamed internally. What had you done?!

“I-I..I just-I mean-I-I,” you could barely get any words out, fidgeting with your hands and averting your eyes from his gaze. “Did you just say you love me S/O?”

This was it. Your life was over. Might as well make it count.

With shaking hands you handed him the crumpled up love letter from earlier, trying to cool your burning face. You stared at the ground as he read it, not daring to peek. He probably didn’t even want to look at you!

“I-I’ve been... I’ve had a crush on you for a long time! And I really never planned on telling you! But I accidentally... well, you know. I’m sorry. But I really do love you! Your eyes and face and personality and everything about you! You probably don’t feel the same, and that’s ok..! I just... I guess since you already know nows a good time as ever to spill all of this to you...”

There was a long stretch of silence, and you looked up at Ashe for just a moment to see how pink he’d gotten. You stared in disbelief as he tried to muster up his own words, but failed. He stammered and stuttered, eventually covering his mouth as his face just continued to grow redder by the second. You looked at him in a trance, before snapping out of it and looking down. “I’m guessing that’s a no then? Ah. Of course. I’ll see myself...”

You started to walk away, but a gentle hand grabbed yours and stopped you. You turned back to Ashe, who looked on the verge of passing out, but stayed as he finally managed to spit out words. “S/O, why wouldn’t I like you back? You’re a wonderful girl who I’d love to go out with!” You blinked I’m disbelief, turning to him with wide eyes and an equally as red face. “You don’t mean that. You’re joking.”

“Of course I’m not joking! Why would I?”

Your mouth went agape, and you both stared at each other for what felt like an eternity before he broke the silence. “S/O?” You nodded, a small smile spreading across your face as reality set it. He was your boyfriend now. Ashe. “Yes, Ashe?” He let out a nervous chuckle, pulling you a bit closer to rest against his chest. “Y-You wouldn’t mind joining me for tea now, would you?” You giggled.

“Not at all, my love. Lets go!”

[nicolewrites]

We Stand, Fate-Tested - VIII

D&D took up much more time than I anticipated which is why this is late haha. 

Rating: T+ Genre: Mystery, Friendship, Romance Characters: [Byleth/My Unit, Dimitri B.], [Byleth/My Unit, Claude R.] Words: 6,249

A birthday party gives Byleth a headache. / Claude unmasks an enemy. 

AO3 | FFN

VIII - Complications

Garreg Mach University - 10 Lone Moon, 733 AU

"How's your neck today, Byleth?" Harriet asked as she entered the lab.

Byleth turned her head experimentally. There was still a twinge of pain when her jaw angled towards her right shoulder, but it was much, much better than it had been directly after the crash.

"It's alright," she replied. She kept her eyes focused on the screen of the computer in front of her, hoping the post-doc would leave her alone if she was clear she didn't want to talk about it. Thankfully, Harriet got the hint and settled down at her own workstation, leaving Byleth alone.

Since the crash, Byleth felt like she was being babied. Flayn called her every night to check up on her and Seteth never left her alone on-site during the dig. He also seemed keen on having one of his other students in the lab whenever Byleth was there as if she was just going to keel over on her own. It was starting to get annoying.

Out of the four people in the car, Byleth felt like she had gotten off the easiest. Edelgard was recovering from a not-so-fun concussion, Claude had fractured his arm in three places, and Dimitri was another story entirely. While he wasn't as physically hurt as the rest of them, the accident had dredged up some horrible psychological trauma for him and he had been basically catatonic for a week, responding only to the gentle prodding of his childhood friends who knew him best.

Edelgard's father had wanted her to return to Fhirdiad where she could be safe and guarded, but she had protested, staying on in all of her classes as well as the dig in the pinnacle of stubbornness. Claude had had his archery season cut short which was definitely annoying, but he still managed to keep his head up and help out on site, despite lacking the use of his left arm.

The crash had been the subject of several tabloid stories for about a week before Edelgard's father finally managed to get it snuffed out. It had been strange to get sympathetic glances wherever she went and to hear the murmured whispers behind her back. It still happened occasionally, but it helped that Edelgard, Claude, and even Dimitri were good at ignoring rumours and pretending that nothing had happened.

Claude had been spending a lot of time in the lab with Byleth when he wasn't in class. He claimed it was because he needed to feel useful to the team somehow since he thought his arm was impeding the dig. Byleth never protested his company. He never pushed her to talk about the crash or its lead up, instead chattering about history and whatever artifacts they were working with. It was both a pleasant distraction and a welcome motivator.

The door to the lab swung open and Byleth glanced up. Seteth strode in, looking more stressed than she'd seen him in a long time, not counting the look of despair he'd worn when he'd visited her at the hospital. Byleth straightened in her seat as Seteth hung his jacket by the door.

"Seteth?" she inquired to her advisor.

Seteth turned towards her when she spoke and Byleth caught the hint of guilt that rapidly spread across his face as he did so. Byleth frowned and pushed her chair back.

"What is it?" she demanded.

Seteth glanced at Harriet who was working away at her own computer with headphones in and he walked towards Byleth, sinking into the seat next to her. "I received some news today," he admitted.

He passed her a folder that he had been holding and Byleth flipped to the first page in it. It was a letter from the Fhirdiad Museum. She scanned it and felt her features twist into a scowl as she processed the words on the page.

"Cancel the dig? They want you to call it all off? Because of a car accident?"

Seteth sighed and took the folder back from her. "Byleth, you were run off the road. That's not just a car accident. You happened to be with three of the most famous youths in the country at the time while on an equipment retrieval trip for a sponsored dig. That's not good press."

Byleth huffed. "And we're all fine and still ready to work on the dig. They can't just cancel it! You've been working towards this for so long. We've only barely started the work we wanted to do. We just got structural approval for the eastern chambers and we're only now passing where Dr. Charon got to. If we don't do this now, there's no telling when the next time someone will be allowed to excavate down there."

Seteth's expression flashed with guilt again. "I was the one who proposed cancelling the dig," he admitted quietly. "There is no history or discovery that is worth the lives of students."

Byleth's hands slammed against the desk and she shot to her feet. Harriet looked over at the disturbance. "You don't even know that that was what any of this was about," she hissed. "You can't throw this away just because of one thing, Seteth."

Seteth looked tired, but he didn't argue with her. Byleth frowned and stepped away from her desk. She grabbed her purse and jacket from by the door and gave him one last hurt look.

"I'm going for lunch," she said shortly.

She made it almost out of the building when her phone started buzzing in her pocket. She huffed and fished it out, expecting to see Seteth's caller ID. It wasn't him calling so Byleth answered and pressed the phone against her face.

"Claude?"

"Teach! Exciting news! We've finally gotten everything organized for Friday so we can start inviting people now," he said cheerfully through the phone.

Byleth laughed faintly. "Inviting people?"

"It's Ignatz's birthday on Friday and we're having a surprise party for him. Consider this an official invite."

"A birthday party? Claude, I don't know," she began, but he cut her off.

"Don't worry about not knowing people. It's Ignatz, so we're keeping it relatively small. The whole undergrad dig team is getting invited, plus the archery team, plus our roommates so you'll probably know almost everyone that's there."

She huffed a laugh. "When and where?"

She could practically hear the smile on his face through the phone. "Friday at 9 at our place. I'll text you the address."

"I haven't said yes yet," she pointed out.

Claude chuckled. "You asked when. For you, Teach, that's a yes."

-

Golden Deer House, University Suburbs - 14 Lone Moon, 733 AU

Byleth knocked on the door with the backs of her knuckles. Her toe tapped against the stone of the doorstep as she took in the house again. It was a beautiful place: something much more extravagant than she had expected for a bunch of students. She had almost wondered if Claude had given her the wrong address until she saw the wire cutout of a deer stuck into the garden and she had chuckled to herself.

After a moment, the door swung inward and Byleth was met with a grinning Hilda. She blinked in surprise at the sight of another of her former students. Hilda's hair was pulled up and she was wearing a flashy silver top and a cute skirt. Hilda stepped backwards and gestured for Byleth to come inside.

"Uh, thanks," she mumbled. "And hi, Hilda, I didn't know you'd be here."

Hilda snorted a laugh as Byleth stepped inside and slid off her boots. "Wow Claude really didn't explain anything, did he? I live here. This whole place is a bunch of Golden Deer in our year. We've been living together since our second year."

"So, it's you, Claude, Ignatz, and," she trailed off, waiting for Hilda to continue the list.

"Lorenz, Marianne, Lysithea, Raphael, and Leonie. You know Lorenz and Lysithea, obviously. Marianne is my best friend and Raph and Ignatz are from the same small town. Leonie's from eastern Fódlan. Most of us are in fourth year, but little Lysithea is in her third year and Leonie's doing five years because of her job," Hilda explained, tapping her fingers as she counted out her roommates.

Byleth furrowed her brow. "Wait, Leonie Plinecky?"

Hilda blinked, her pink eyes widening a bit as Byleth caught her off guard. "Yeah. Do you know her?"

Byleth laughed to herself. "Yeah, she used to take self-defence from my dad," she explained.

Hilda shrugged. "Huh, small world I guess. Now, come on. Ignatz is already here and we did indeed scare the shit out of him with this party. You've got to say hello."

Hilda linked her elbow with Byleth's and dragged her through the living room towards what Byleth assumed to be the kitchen. She recognized a few of the faces in the living room that were drinking and playing games from around campus, the time she went to one of Claude's archery competitions or people Claude had exchanged words with when they had been together on various occasions.

In the kitchen, Byleth recognized more people. There was Ignatz, Lorenz, Annette, Ingrid, Lysithea, Dimitri, one of Dimitri and Ingrid's other friends with dark hair who she thought was named Felix, a boy she recognized from the archery team, plus a few others, and of course, Claude. Lorenz spotted them first and wandered over. Hilda dropped Byleth's arm and planted a light kiss on Lorenz's lips. Byleth blinked in surprise, but her attention was quickly drawn to Claude who had beelined to her side.

"Teach! You're late," he teased.

Byleth rolled her eyes. "You said 9, it's only 10."

"Hello Byleth," Ignatz said brightly. He was wearing a crooked birthday hat and Byleth laughed at both it and the blush on his cheeks.

"Happy birthday," she replied.

"Ignatz! I got it working!" the hulking young man next to Ignatz said, practically shoving his phone in the smaller boy's face.

Ignatz's smile grew and he took the phone. "Maya!" he greeted. Instantly some of the people in the kitchen giggled and started filing out of the room.

Byleth glanced at Claude curiously. He pressed a cup full of some sweet, alcoholic-smelling beverage into her hand and steered her back into the living room.

"That's Raphael," Claude said. "Ignatz is dating his little sister Maya, so that's who's on the phone there. They do long distance, but Ignatz is very sweet and loyal as I'm sure you could guess."

Byleth smiled. "That's sweet." Her eyes wandered the party until they landed on Hilda again who was tucked against Lorenz's side this time. She raised an eyebrow. "I didn't know that was a thing," she said quietly to Claude.

He followed her gaze and laughed. "Oh man, that's a heck of a story. They've been together for almost three years now though, so I guess it's working."

Byleth was about to press him for details when she felt a tug on the arm that Claude wasn't occupying. She turned, so that she didn't spill her drink, and found herself face to face with a grinning, pink-cheeked Annette.

"Hi, Byleth! I didn't know you were coming!" Annette said cheerfully.

Byleth smiled at her former student. "Yeah, it was kind of last minute, but I'm glad to be here." She sipped her drink and was momentarily impressed by the strength. Most university parties supplied watered-down drinks, but this was something pretty heavy-hitting.

"Claude, I bet that's your doing," said the young man standing next to Annette. He had slightly curly silver-coloured hair and bright green eyes. He was holding Annette's hand and Byleth knew she recognized him from the archery team.

Claude winked. "You bet, Ashe," he said.

"Claude!" a loud voice called suddenly, causing all four of them to turn towards the table where cups were lined up to play pong. "Just because you have a bum arm, don't think you're getting out of this!"

Byleth gave Claude a side-look. "Is that Leonie?"

He laughed. "Yeah. We make a decent pong pair and even the bad arm," he shifted the arm that was still in the sling, "apparently doesn't get me out of that."

Byleth took another long drink and looked back at Annette and Ashe. "I'm good here. Go play."

Claude grinned at her and Byleth felt her stomach warm. She turned back to Annette and Ashe and took another sip of her drink.

"I'm Byleth, by the way. I think we met very briefly once."

Ashe nodded. "Yeah, I think you came to an archery comp. You were the Archaeology TA, right?"

Annette nodded. "Yup! And she works with us on the excavation process."

Ashe brightened. "Oh yeah! That whole thing is so cool."

A girl with a long dark purple braid suddenly popped out of the crowd and grinned at them. "Annette, may I be borrowing your boyfriend? Claude challenged my pride and I intend to be showing him his place."

Annette laughed and nudged Ashe. "Of course, Petra. I'll come and watch too!"

Ashe and Petra immediately headed for where Claude had vanished off to. Annette lingered for a moment longer, glancing between Byleth and the table. "You should come watch," she suggested lightly.

Before Byleth could reply, Hilda had reappeared at her side, linking arms with her again. "I've got her from here, Annie. Go watch Ashe and Petra destroy Claude and Leonie again."

Annette grinned and vanished into the group of people. Hilda peered into Byleth's almost empty cup and immediately steered her back towards the kitchen to get a refill. She filled Byleth's cup and grabbed one of her own, waving at Ignatz and Raphael who were sitting in the corner still talking over Skype to Raph's sister. Hilda then dragged her out the opposite side of the kitchen into what was probably supposed to be a dining room. Ingrid, Dimitri, their friend, and a girl with faint, silvery-blue hair were sitting on the far side of the room, chatting, but they didn't seem to pay Hilda and Byleth any mind.

"So, you and Claude are pretty tight, aren't you?" Hilda said, turning back to her.

Byleth took a sip of her drink. "We're friends," she said. "He pestered me a bunch last semester until we started meeting up to discuss my research. Most of what we talk about is history related anyways," she deflected.

Hilda rolled her eyes. "Look, I've hooked up with Claude. I know what infatuated Claude looks like."

Byleth didn't know what was more surprising to her: the fact that Hilda and Claude had hooked up or the fact that Hilda thought Claude liked her. Hilda noted the surprise on Byleth's expression and laughed.

"Oh come on, you haven't heard that story? In first year, Claude and I were flirting it up when we both met Lorenz. Lorenz and I also hit it off. Claude and Lorenz naturally hated each other, but once they found out I was kind of seeing both of them they united into hating me for all of like two weeks until Claude got his head out of his ass and Lorenz and I had a chat. I'm kind of the whole reason this house exists since Lorenz and Claude hated each other before they both united against me."

Byleth laughed shortly unintentionally. "Wow, not sure that's something to be proud of."

Hilda shrugged, smirking. "Claude's my best friend and Lorenz and I have been steady for a couple of years. I think it worked out okay."

Byleth giggled lightly. "Sure, sure." Her gaze wandered to the other side of the room where there were the other four. "I know Ingrid and Dimitri, obviously, but who are the others?"

Hilda followed her gaze. "That's Felix, Ingrid's boyfriend, and Marianne, my best friend and totally not Dimitri's girlfriend." She said the last part sarcastically and Byleth smiled faintly.

Marianne was very pretty and Dimitri kept casting her quiet, affectionate looks. They certainly looked like a couple. Felix and Ingrid, on the other hand, were much less lovey-dovey looking, but they certainly looked comfortable with each other.

"Drama with that is that Ingrid was dating Felix's brother Glenn when he died. Ingrid and Felix got together a couple of months ago after a lot of dancing around," Hilda continued.

The story clicked in Byleth's head. She lowered her voice to an almost whisper. "Glenn died in the same crash that killed Dimitri's parents, right?"

Hilda nodded. "Yeah," her smile dropped a bit, "it's pretty sad." She shook her head and turned her full attention back to Byleth. "But, I'm here to bother you about Claude! What's really going on with you guys?"

Byleth shook her head. "Nothing, Hilda, I swear. We're friends." A spark of pain flared behind her eyes and Byleth grit her teeth. Her headaches had been more frequent and much worse since the crash and she had been hoping to get through the night without any more of them.

She downed the rest of her drink and felt the alcohol sting her throat as she swallowed. Hilda finally seemed to take the hint that there was nothing more to talk about and shrugged. She bid Byleth a farewell and darted back to the rest of the party to play hostess. Byleth cast Ingrid and Dimitri's group a glance and felt another headache rip through her mind.

She shook her head and slid out the side door of the dining room into the main hallway. Annette and Ashe had apparently migrated there and were chatting with Linhardt and a boy Byleth faintly recalled to be Linhardt's boyfriend. Pain pulsed in her skull again and she winced faintly. She needed to get somewhere quiet. She quickly slipped past the group and found a flight of stairs leading up. There appeared to be a glorious absence of loud music and chatter from upstairs so she headed up, massaging her temples as she went.

She closed her eyes briefly at the top of the stairs and almost keeled over as another sudden sharp pain flared behind her eyes. She saw white for a moment and something that she could have sworn was Annette and Ingrid's boyfriend Felix. Byleth staggered into the nearest room which happened to be the bathroom and sunk onto the floor. She leant against the cool bathtub and rubbed her temples.

A few more images flashed in her brain: Ashe and Petra wearing strange clothes, Lorenz and Marianne sharing tea, Ingrid riding horseback with a man who looked like her other friend Sylvain, and Dimitri extending a hand to Byleth with a soft smile on his face. She exhaled heavily and rubbed at her head, trying to get the images to fade.

"Byleth?" a voice called softly. She snapped her head up and saw Claude standing in the doorway of the bathroom, looking concerned. He stepped into the room and closed the door behind him, sealing out most of the noise from the party. "Are you alright?"

She smiled faintly as her headache pulsed again, but more weakly. "Just a headache. I needed a breather."

Claude drifted towards her and sat next to her, leaning his back against the tub as well. "I get that," he admitted. "Linhardt said he saw you heading up here and I figured I'd come to check in."

Byleth nodded. "Ah," she agreed faintly. The headache faded more until she was almost feeling like herself again, just definitely drunker than she normally was. "Did you and Leonie win?"

Claude snorted. "Nope. Ashe and Petra murdered us. Leonie mentioned that you guys know each other though."

Byleth smiled faintly and nodded. "Yeah, she knew my dad pretty well."

Claude winced. "Sorry."

Byleth shrugged. "It happens," she mumbled in reply.

"Are you really okay though? You kind of looked like you were in pain."

She shifted so that their shoulders were pressing against each other. "Headaches," she explained. "At first it was just the usual stuff I've been getting since the crash, but," she trailed off, not sure if she should mention the roiling feeling of wrong that had settled in her stomach since she'd first arrived at the party.

Claude twisted so that they were making eye contact, but their shoulders remained a point of contact. "But?" he prompted softly.

She sighed. She had trusted him with many of her strange dreams and feelings in the last eight months so she didn't see a reason to hide anything else from him. "I feel like everything is wrong. Everyone is talking to the wrong people. Everyone is acting strangely."

"The wrong people?"

"Annette and Felix, Ingrid and Sylvain, Lysithea and Linhardt, Lorenz and Marianne, Ashe and Petra," she listed off-handedly. "That feels right. Not, whatever is actually happening."

Claude's brows furrowed. "Strange," he mumbled. "Do you think this has anything to do with the dreams?"

Byleth dropped her gaze down and shrugged. "I have no idea," she confessed. Her head was starting to feel foggier and less painful. Claude's solid presence next to her felt comfortable.

She looked up and was almost taken aback by the startling green of his eyes. They had made eye contact dozens and dozens of times since they'd met, but he'd never induced the strange warmth in her stomach that she was feeling right then. She exhaled shallowly and studied his face.

Claude's breathing echoed hers as his eyes flicked over her face noticeably. She could smell a hint of alcohol on his breath and she knew that she herself was fairly tipsy, but she couldn't remove herself from the moment.

"Is this wrong too?" he asked quietly. Something unreadable and serious flashed in his eyes and Byleth's chest contracted a bit.

"Yes," she confessed just as softly.

"You're impossible to read sometimes," he said. "But," he inhaled slowly and Byleth watched his gaze noticeably dart to her lips, "I still think I'm crazy about you."

She leaned forward and kissed him.

His lips were warm and softer than she was expecting and he reciprocated the kiss immediately. It wasn't the best angle with them still awkwardly shoulder to shoulder and with their backs against the bathtub, but the kiss made something simmer warmly in her stomach. His shoulder shifted and his right hand, the uninjured one, came up and cupped her face as he pulled back to breathe before kissing her again.

Byleth felt a twinge of stiffness in her neck and a tightness in her chest due to the lack of air, so she leaned back, gasping. Looking into Claude's heavy, green-eyed gaze, the words he'd spoken to her sunk in and Byleth's whole being twisted viciously with a sense of wrong. She jerked back away from his touch, her neck protesting the movement. Her palms thudded against the bathroom tile to catch her weight before she tipped to the ground.

Claude looked startled. "By," he started gently.

Byleth's breathing sped up. It was shallow and fast and the room suddenly felt too warm. "I have to go," she said suddenly.

Hurt flashed across Claude's expression as she scrambled to her feet, ignoring her alcohol-induced wobbliness and the headache that had sprung back to the front of her mind. He looked like he was about to protest again so she bolted.

-

Infirmary, Garreg Mach Monastery - 2 Lone Moon, 7 AU

Byleth came to feeling like she had been trampled by a pegasus. Her body was aching and there was a sharper, razor-like throb from the side of her ribs. She blinked and saw a faint glimmer of candlelight nearby. There was a blurry figure sitting next to her, dabbing a cool cloth on her forehead. The cloth jerked back as Byleth blinked again and she heard a familiar gasp.

"Professor!" the familiar voice exclaimed and Byleth's vision cleared enough that she saw Annette sitting next to her, looking incredibly relieved.

Byleth's throat felt dry and sore when she tried to speak. Her words came out breathy and almost as a whisper. "What happened?"

For a second, her mind was blank, but when Annette's features twisted into deeper concern, the memories came rushing back. Byleth jolted and immediately tried to sit up, ignoring the lingering pain in her side.

"Dimitri!" she exclaimed.

"Please, Professor!" Annette said sternly, gently pressing her back into the mattress. "You were very hurt. You need to stay down."

Byleth listened, settling back against the mattress, but a cold fear spread to her limbs. "Where is Dimitri?" she asked again.

Annette sighed slowly. "He's going to be alright. Don't worry."

The cold panic and fear drained away slowly and she tilted her head a bit, checking out the rest of the room. There was no one else in the infirmary besides the two of them, but one of the other beds looked like it had had some recent use.

"Where is he?" she asked, her voice cracking.

"I believe he's with Sylvain, Ashe, Dedue, and Felix," Annette answered. She furrowed her brows at Byleth. "You were both hit with powerful dark magic spells, Professor, but I think the fact that he wasn't also stabbed helped with that."

Annette fetched Byleth some water and sent a monk to fetch Mercedes while she answered more of Byleth's questions. She had been unconscious for almost two full days. Dimitri had woken up in the afternoon yesterday. They hadn't caught any of the people who had attacked them. No one else was hurt or targeted in the attack. The perpetrators hadn't left much of a trace besides the magic traces on Byleth and Dimitri after they'd been knocked down.

Byleth recalled the blade suddenly. "I need to talk to Sylvain," she said breathlessly.

"You're not going anywhere until I check you over, Professor," Mercedes called from the entrance to the infirmary. "That magic did a number on both you and Dimitri, but I've never seen anyone react to it quite like you did, Professor."

Byleth frowned. "Annette, please fetch my husband and the others. Especially Sylvain. It's important."

Annette nodded and Mercedes took her place, asking Byleth a million questions about how she was feeling and if she was in any pain. After another Heal spell and a few more swallowed herbs, Mercedes checked the sword wound. It was almost completely healed, but the healer let out a startled gasp that had Byleth twisting her shirt up further to try and see what Mercedes had seen.

She had basically removed it when she saw it: a burn scar kind of in the shape of a star right over her heart. The skin was tender, but the burn appeared to have healed itself and Byleth recalled the intensity of the wave of white magic she had released to repel their attackers.

"What is that?" she asked quietly.

Mercedes shook her head, looking puzzled. "It looks like a white magic burn. Dimitri didn't mention they used white magic too."

Byleth exhaled slowly. She knew where the burn had come from, but how was she supposed to tell her dear friend that it had been self-inflicted by the power sizzling in her veins that was eating her alive. Before anything else could be said, there was a sharp rap at the door and Byleth yanked her shirt down, making herself decent.

"Come in," she called before Mercedes could ask for a bit more time.

Dimitri burst into the room and hightailed it to her side. He basically fell to his knees next to her and Byleth saw the hurt and pain and love in his gaze as he reached up to touch her face. "You're alright," he breathed.

"You're okay too," she replied, lifting one of her own hands to cup his jaw.

Their moment was interrupted by the arrival of the rest of their friends and Dimitri quickly stood and pulled up a chair next to Byleth's bed. He and Mercedes helped her sit up so that she could face all of her friends. The entire group of her former students were present, minus Felix and Ingrid.

"Sylvain," Byleth started, focussing on the northern Faerghus noble. "Has Sreng ever struck this far south?"

He seemed alarmed at her question and shook his head. "No," he said firmly. "They press at the border, but I've never heard of them striking at the heart of Fódlan."

Byleth exhaled warily. "How has the border been?"

He frowned. "Chaotic. They come and go, but I had believed we were reaching an agreement recently since I took over for my father."

"The blade had Sreng lettering," Byleth confessed.

Annette's breath hitched. "What?" she squeaked.

Dimitri looked troubled at the news. "It did?"

Byleth closed her eyes, conjuring the memory of it. She was quite sure. "It did."

Sylvain ran a hand through his hair, looking distressed. "The Sreng people are warriors. They do a lot of weapons trading. Perhaps this was an attempt to frame them."

Dedue folded his arms and looked down, something dark crossing his expression. "This information mustn't leave this room. There will be slaughters if it gets out."

"Yes," Seteth agreed as he strode into the room. He dipped his head to both Byleth and Dimitri in respect. "It is good to see you are recovering Your Grace, Your Majesty. I agree with Dedue here that we must not let the word of a potential attack from Sreng get out. In fact, I would recommend we try to limit the spread of the attack entirely. It would not do well to know that someone got close enough to render both of you unconscious."

Ashe nodded. "I asked Petra and our guards to return to Brigid without me. If the information does get out, I would like her not to be here. Foreign powers interfering at a time like this would be bad." He looked guilty for a moment and Byleth knew it was the guilt of leaving his wife so soon after they had been wed as equals in Brigid. "I hope my skills are still welcomed here," he added quietly.

Byleth nodded. "Ashe, you are always welcome. I agree with Seteth, though." She looked around the room at her trusted friends. "News of the attack does not leave this room," she said sternly.

Everyone nodded in agreement.

-

Garreg Mach Monastery - 9 Lone Moon, 7 AU

Byleth was in the market when she heard the crowing of a wyvern. She snapped her head up and spotted the white beast descending towards the stable, followed by a brown wyvern. Her lips parted in surprise. She knew that wyvern and she had no idea what it was doing here. She smiled politely to the vendor she had been speaking with and excused herself, making quickly towards the stables.

Claude was assisting his two companions down off of the second mount by the time she had arrived. Byleth's steps faltered and she stared at the Almyran King for a long time. Claude helped Lysithea down and said something quietly to the third new arrival, Linhardt, before he turned and finally noticed her. He grinned.

"Hello, Your Grace," he said lightly. There was a familiar teasing lilt to his voice and Byleth could only stare dumbly at him.

"What are you doing here, Claude?" she demanded after a moment.

His grin twisted into a sly smirk. "I figured you could use a dark magic specialist and someone who has some ideas who might be interesting to you," he offered, gesturing to Lysithea and then Linhardt.

Lysithea brushed off her skirt and sent Claude a dirty look. "He's being evasive, as always, but he did bring us some interesting news."

Byleth furrowed her brow and stared at Claude again. "How did you know?"

He shrugged. "I'm good at knowing things."

Byleth scowled at him. "This information wasn't supposed to leave the monastery grounds," she said firmly.

Claude winked. "Good thing we're on the grounds then." Byleth scowled, but he continued before she could interrupt him. "Gather your group. This information is probably more than you're expecting."

-

They met in Byleth's study. Dedue, Mercedes, Ashe, Dimitri, Claude, Lysithea, Seteth, and Linhardt stood and sat around the room each wearing an expression of varied discomfort and concern. Sylvain, Felix, and Annette had had to return home for their children's sakes and Sylvain was also looking into the Sreng lead.

Byleth turned the paper in her hands over. It bore Hubert's writing and detailed the activities of the dark group that had assisted in the Empire during the Unification War. Linhardt had presented it to her along with a few more just like it that he had recovered from the Vestra estate after the war. Apparently he had been doing his own research from Ordelia territory where he had settled with Lysithea after the two of them successfully had Lysithea's Crests removed and dissolved her noble house.

Claude, of course, had gotten wind of their work and the attack at Garreg Mach and had apparently drawn a thread connecting the two. He had brought them to the monastery to discuss their research and Lysithea's past experience with them. She shared her horrible childhood trauma where she had had her second Crest implanted and Dimitri's breath caught when she had described the fading of her hair's pigment and the weakness the second Crest had imposed upon her.

The group, dubbed Those Who Slither in the Dark, according to Hubert's notes, were apparently vehemently against the children of the goddess and had fantastical weaponry and dark magic mages, including Cornelia and Solon. Dedue and Dimitri had both stiffened when Byleth had read about Cornelia and her involvement in what Hubert described as the orchestrated Tragedy of Duscur.

Byleth placed the last letter down on her desk and frowned. "Claude, you're saying these people are the ones who attacked Dimitri and I?"

He shrugged. "I don't know, but it certainly seems more likely than a Sreng invasion and assault to me. If I had to guess, I would say their target was just you, Byleth, and that Dimitri was meant more as a personal attack. If you give Linhardt and me more time, we could probably work with Hubert's notes more and figure out where they're hiding. Then we can remove them and remove the threat entirely."

"No," Seteth cut in sharply. His face was pale and Byleth bit her lip as she studied her advisor. "Doing so will only create bigger targets on both His Majesty and Her Grace. If you pursue this, they could only come after you harder and if you're wrong, then you are chasing empty threads into the wind and letting the true culprits get away."

Lysithea scowled. "We're not wrong. The Hades spell that struck Byleth and Dimitri was strong enough to take them both down. I know that spell," she asserted. "I have met very few people who could cast it at that strength. We're not wrong."

"Even so," Dedue said, "I agree with Seteth. We can look into it, but His Majesty and Her Grace should not be leading any charges. It endangers them too much."

Dedue's compromise settled the animosity in the room, but Byleth felt frustrated. She was tired of being protected. These attackers had tried to kill both her and her husband in their home. She wanted to remove them personally. Dimitri looked conflicted and Byleth instantly understood. He felt the same way she did, but he obviously did not want to put her in any more danger, just like how she wanted to keep him from further danger. Claude had said the target was likely just her, so she wanted to protect Dimitri as much as she wanted.

She took a deep breath. "I give you permission to look into this further," she conceded. "But, no one will be taking any offensive action until we reassess."

Dimitri frowned at her, but he didn't argue. Dedue and Seteth looked placated and Mercedes and Ashe nodded in agreement as well. Linhardt gave her a cryptic look but didn't argue. Lysithea huffed and narrowed her eyes. Claude simply studied her, his expression unreadable. Byleth inclined her chin and refused to show her hand.

"Now, I believe this discussion has concluded. We should all go for dinner." She smiled at Lysithea and Linhardt. "We have friends visiting, after all."

Her companions accepted her suggestion and began making their way out of the room. Claude and Dimitri lingered until it was only the three of them left. Dimitri looked between her and Claude twice, but the Almyran King didn't even flinch.

"My love," Byleth said gently, "I would like to speak with Claude briefly about handling private matters of state. We'll join you in a few minutes."

Dimitri looked only partially convinced, but he kissed Byleth gently on the lips and made his way out of the room, leaving her alone with Claude. Claude raised an eyebrow at the door as it shut behind Dimitri.

"Private matters?" he inquired.

Byleth took a deep breath and folded her hands atop the desk. "We're going to finish this," she said firmly. "We stamp them out and remove the threat as soon as you figure out where they would be."

Claude's eyes narrowed. "You didn't send everyone away to tell me you're going against the direct council of your closest companions."

"No," Byleth agreed. "I sent everyone away to tell you we're going to do this without Dimitri."

[razieltwelve]

Avatar (Fire Emblem 3H/Final Rose)

Jeralt watched the battle unfold with grim fascination. Even now, more than five years after he’d first begun to let his daughter take command in earnest, it was still almost frightening to watch her at work. Oh, he was a skilled commander himself, and he’d served alongside and faced no shortage of talented leaders as well. However, his daughter was beyond all of them.

There was a reason people called her both the Ashen Demon and the Queen of the Battlefield.

She had commanded dozens of battles over the past five years, and she hadn’t lost a single one. Moreover, her victories had been devastating. She didn’t just beat her opponents. She crushed them, leaving utter carnage in her wake. More than one of their rival mercenary companies had challenged them on the field of battle only to be wiped out.

Jeralt wanted to believe that he was at least partially responsible for his daughter’s prowess, but Byleth had always been different. Even as a child, she had looked out at the world with eyes both far too cold and far too keen for any child. When the time had come to teach her the ways of combat, it hadn’t been like teaching a novice. No, it had been more like watching a veteran reacquaint themselves with their old weapons.

And then there was the magic.

Once Byleth had been introduced to magic, she’d approached it with the same ruthless efficiency she approached combat and leadership. As far as anyone could tell, she was a prodigy, someone who had a knack for cutting right to the heart of the matter to devise ever more powerful and ever more efficient spells. 

Over the past two years, she’d even begun to incorporate more and more spell craft into the mercenary company’s weaponry. He was no expert, but Jeralt knew enough to realise that her ‘seals’, as she called them, were growing closer and closer in functionality to crests. But unlike crests, they didn’t belong to people. Instead, they could be put on weapons, armour, and other objects, and they were fuelled by the ambient currents of magic that filled the world.

He’d been a bit wary after she’d worked on inscribing seals on a set of his armour, but after trying it on and witnessing firsthand how effective it was, he’d asked her to teach him as much as she could. Seal-craft wasn’t easy, but even with his rudimentary understanding, the implications were obvious. With less than a dozen lesser seals at his disposal, he could already greatly enhance his offensive and defensive prowess while imbuing his weapons and armour with a variety of abilities.

For obvious reasons, though, he and Byleth had both agreed on playing down the significance of this new form of magic and in keeping its operation as secret as possible. The only ones she’d taught were him and the most trusted members of their company. Even so, rumours had begun to spread.

And marriage offers had begun to come in.

Jeralt scowled, and his lips curled in distaste. His little girl was not only a peerless warrior, unmatched commander, and magical savant, but she was also a growing beauty. There had been no shortage of offers from the nobility eager to win not only her hand but also the loyalty of the mercenary company as well because for as cold as she could be, Byleth had the loyalty of the mercenaries. With her and Jeralt as their leaders, they had earned far more coin than they ever thought possible while taking far fewer casualties than they could ever have dreamed.

He smirked. His ‘little’ company of mercenaries had grown from a few dozen to a force numbering five thousand of the most elite soldiers in the world. In all honesty with him and his daughter leading them, he would pit his five thousand against any ten thousand other soldiers without a moment’s hesitation.

Still, he wasn’t about to let some stupid noble steal his daughter away. No. He’d gut anyone who tried to lay a hand on her and damn the consequences. Of course, it wasn’t like he’d have to do the gutting himself. Byleth had shown plenty of skill at that already, both with a blade and with coldly spoken words.

Just thinking about how she’d handled the lost foppish noble to make a play for her hand brought a smile to his lips. Now that had been hilarious. He chuckled and urged his horse forward as the signal for their cavalry to charge was given. This ought to finish things off, and then they could go to their next job. His thoughts drifted for a moment. It would take him back to a place he’d long left behind.

X     X     X

“Father.”

His musings came to a halt as Byleth raised her fist into the air. He stopped and looked around. Her senses were incredibly keen. “What is it?”

“Trouble,” Byleth murmured. “Bandits… and some other people.”

“This near the village?” Jeralt growled. This wasn’t some war torn area. This place was supposed to be relatively safe. “We’ll take a look. We can always back off if there are too many of them, but I wouldn’t feel right leaving without knowing what they’re up to.”

“Understood.” Byleth nodded. “The usual?”

“Aye,” Jeralt said, grinning. “I’ll take the lead. If I have to, I’ll get their attention, and you can go ambush them.”

“Try not to get stabbed, father,” Byleth drawled, the faintest hint of amusement in her eyes. “It would be a hassle having to take over the company right now.”

“Hah!” He gave her shoulder a fond squeeze. “I’m getting older, kid, but not that old. I’ve got at least another couple of decades before I have to worry about getting killed by random bandits.” He gestured. “Let’s get moving.”

X     X     X

Byleth bit back a smile as she watched her father stalk toward the bandits. He wasn’t as stealthy as he thought he was, but her standards were a little higher than most. After all, she’d spent a lifetime around two of the finest huntresses the Yun had ever produced.

“So,” Sothis said. “What are you going to do if there are a lot of bandits?”

Byleth didn’t bother to look at the green-haired girl who only she could see. Sothis had appeared in her dreams for months before finally appearing in earnest a few weeks ago. As far as she could tell, Sothis was harmless. In fact, she could actually be quite useful when it came to scouting. 

However, the real kicker had come when Byleth had asked Saviour to examine Sothis more closely. Her Semblance was still not at its full power - being reborn into another world had all but reset its power, and she’d spent the past twenty years rebuilding it - but it had still been able to tell that Sothis was not merely some random spirit.

No, Sothis was apparently something far, far more than a mere spirit. Indeed, experimentation had revealed that she had the ability to rewind time. Given Saviour’s own time-manipulation abilities, they were able to largely negate the downsides of Sothis’s power, not that Byleth had needed to use it much. So far, she’d yet to encounter anything that could truly challenge her power.

“She’ll probably kill them all,” Saviour said. Her Semblance had started to copy Sothis’s habit of hanging around and offering commentary. “She hates bandits in this life… and she hated them in her past life too.”

Sothis shook her head in disbelief. “I’m still having a hard time wrapping my head around that, but the evidence is pretty strong.”

Byleth continued to slink through the shadows. It was still sometimes troubling to look at Saviour. Her Semblance’s appearance hadn’t changed in this new world. Saviour still sported the pink hair and green eyes that Byleth had once seen in the mirror every morning. Now, though, Byleth’s appearance was different. At least, she was still a woman in this life. It would have been much more awkward if she’d been born male.

“Quiet,” Byleth murmured. “We’re getting close now.”

“Just don’t get killed,” Sothis said. “Because I’d rather not find out what happens if the person I’m attached to ends up dead.”

Saviour chuckled and patted the girl on the head. “Based on my projections, you’ll disappear if we die.”

“Yay.” Sothis sounded less than enthusiastic. “Well, try not to die then. I like being around.” She folded her arms across her chest. “And let me know if we need to meddle with time. It’s not the easiest thing in the world, but it’s better than being dead.”

Saviour rolled her eyes. “Against bandits? We’ll be fine. The only thing we should be worrying about is whether or not she’s going to get blood everywhere again.”

Sothis pointed. “Maybe we should pick up the pace. It looks like there are some people in trouble up ahead.”

Byleth’s eyes narrowed. She could see her father hidden amidst the shadows on the opposite side of a clearing. Within the clearing were a trio of young people, two young men and a young woman, surrounded by bandits. She met her father’s gaze, and he gave a small nod before running out into the open.

“Looking for trouble?” Jeralt boomed as he raised his sword. “Well, you’ve found it, bandit scum.”

As the bandits turned to face the new threat, Byleth took a split-second to identify the optimum course of action. Satisfied, she breezed forward. It was time to get to work.

X     X     X

Author’s Notes

Yep, this is Averia in Fire Emblem: Three Houses. 

If you’re interested in my thoughts on writing and other topics, you can find those here.

You can find my original fiction on Amazon here.

[derireo]

dedue - like a real lover

this is a big fat lemon beware

dedue x f!byleth

Byleth just wanted to bring someone home and show them a good time. She may have ended up with a crush and much more than what she bargained for.

Dedue wasn’t really sure how he ended up in a girl’s bedroom this late at night. Dimitri, Felix, and Annette were going to the club the very same evening and since Mercedes couldn’t go due to having to study, Dedue had offered to take her spot.

The group of four weren’t very outgoing, but Sylvain had suggested to them that they should all go out for a drink to let go of some of the stress uni was giving them.

And so that’s how the quiet bunch ended up taking a booth that hid away from the dance floor.

Dedue had gone to the bar to order them all drinks, and once he came back and they got started, the four of them began throwing back drinks as if there was no tomorrow. Dimitri seemed to have a good tolerance to his alcohol intake, and surprisingly, Annette held her own as well. Felix was already starting to get a little pink.

“I’ll go get us some water.” Dedue said, his voice barely heard over the booming music that pounded through the humid club.

The trio exclaimed their thank yous as he stepped out of the booth and sauntered down towards the bar with little difficulty, the bodies that mingled and danced around him giving way.

And just as he was about to reach the bar a girl had tripped right in front of him, barely giving him enough time to reach out and catch her in his arms.

Although a noise didn’t fall out from her lips, Dedue was able to tell by her small expression that she was just as surprised as he was. It was the subtle way her eyes widened after she had realised a man was holding her did he notice.

She’s pretty, he noted.

Her eyes twinkled despite the weak lights in the club, and his heart stuttered when he saw those gorgeous hues of jade staring right back at him.

“Thank you.” she spoke over the shitty music that was playing and nodded at Dedue, her hands coming up to just barely curl around his biceps while he helped her find her balance again. Her eyes darted away from his face to admire the way his button down hugged his large frame, his sleeves rolled up to his elbows.

From the booth, Dimitri whistled while Annette elbowed Felix in the gut.

Dedue knew what that look meant when he watched the woman’s eyes trail down from his face. He had received those looks all evening due to the way he was dressed tonight, and he had even shrugged a few other men and women off when they attempted to make a move whenever he was at the bar waiting.

But there was something about this woman with her flowy black dress and the little window above her chest that made Dedue not want to let go.

So he didn’t.

Something flickered in her eyes then, and the tiniest hint of a smile made an appearance on her face. Subtly, the grip she had on his arms became firmer while Dedue’s hands found their way to the woman’s waist. She stood up on her tiptoes even though it was likely she had heels on, but even then he had to tip his head down for her.

The woman bit her lip in excitement when she felt the warmth of his fingertips on her back and nearly shivered at the way his thumbs brushed against her stomach. Slowly, creeping higher and higher, her lips barely brushed against his jaw until she was able to reach his ear.

“Wanna come home with me?” she whispered.

And after that, everything else was a blur. Other than the dizzying kiss the woman gave him after he replied with a nod. The journey to her dorm room was hazy and he could barely remember Dimitri, Annette, and Felix waving goodbye and sending a thumbs up to him when he looked back.

Well, Dedue supposes he is sure how he ended up in this girl’s bedroom. Just wasn’t able to think so clearly when said girl was currently on top of him, marking his dark skin with her sharp little teeth and playful tongue.

It was dark in her room, save for the small lamp beside her bed that sat on a nightstand, and when Dedue looked up at the woman who moved to sit comfortably on his hips and undo the buttons on his shirt, his breath caught in his throat.

Her eyes were still sparkling then, but there was a soft smile playing on her lips that complemented the gentle features of her face.

Dedue was slightly concerned with how fast his heart was beating.

“I don’t even know your name.” he breathed out shakily as the women gazed up at him through her eyelashes, in the midst of trailing feather light kisses to each inch of his skin she continued to expose. She left the last two buttons of his shirt alone and kept it tucked, but lazily slid her hands underneath the fabric to hold onto his waist.

Gently, almost lovingly, did she brush her thumbs along the hard ridges of his stomach, making Dedue’s breath catch a second time.

She smiled again, deceivingly sweet, as she dipped her head down to trail her kisses back up his chest, breath hot against his skin.

Dedue’s hands silently dragged their way to the woman’s hips as she continued to mark and bite him, his fingertips eventually finding the hem of her dress and pulling up. The soft material was bunched in one hand, and with the other held an overflowing handful of her plump bottom.

She let out a surprised noise this time, and Dedue couldn’t help but feel a little smug.

The pleased look on his face was short lived though as the woman quickly recovered, and all of a sudden, her hands reached out and found his. Her giggle was airy, but his heart sang anyways, and slowly, she guided Dedue’s arms above his head without him even realising it, distracting him by dragging the flat of her tongue up along the length of his throat to his chin, her grin devilish.

“Byleth.” she murmured quietly, her body a comforting weight on top of him as her fingers went to intertwine with his, her hips a snug fit against his own.

“But you can call me sweetheart.” she offered with half lidded eyes and an adoring smile.

Dedue had gulped then, the expression on her face nearly making his hips buck. The compromising position she had him in wasn’t helping either, but the way her small hands were tangled with his was making him feel like he was going crazy.

“Sweetheart is a very fitting name.” he chuckled under his breath, the low timbre of his voice causing a delicious shiver to run up Byleth’s spine.

Her body arched against his with a pleasant giggle falling from her lips, causing Dedue to roll his hips as he felt her grind against the erection that lay stiff in his pants.

She pressed a gentle kiss to his lips to ease the impatience that was growing inside the man that lay beneath her, the tip of her nose bumping against his to make sure his attention was on her and not the feeling in his lower body.

“Ya think so?” she cooed happily and gave another sweet kiss to the man to please him, her fingers squeezing his. “Well, I think Daddy suits you just as well.” she hummed.

Her eyes were twinkling again, and her gaze was set on him.

“Don’t you agree, Dedue?” she coaxed him with the flutter of her eyelashes and finally rocked her hips against his to give the man some friction, her little tongue poking out to lick at her lip.

With a quiet curse of relief under his breath Dedue threw his head back against the pillows, teeth gritting as Byleth worked her hips in a near tantalising manner. When he tried pulling his hands away from Byleth’s grip, he was surprised to learn that she was much stronger than she appeared, and it didn’t seem like she was going to let him go until he said something.

“Yes, sweetheart.” he murmured in slight disbelief, but was immediately granted his release when Byleth sat atop his hips again after guiding his hands back under her dress.

“Good answer.” she praised and decided to reward Dedue by pulling him up into a sitting position by his half opened shirt and slotting her mouth with his in a wet kiss, letting the much larger man scratch his blunt nails up the bare skin of her thighs before lifting her dress up once more, this time his fingertips finding the thin fabric of her panties.

The soft smack of their lips was the only sound in the room as Byleth pulled Dedue in closer with her arms around his neck. A sweet gasp puffed out of her mouth when Dedue twisted his fingers in the waistband of her panties, and effortlessly ripped the sheer white fabric from her hips, the sound of it tearing very loud and clear.

“You’re a strong one.” she teased breathlessly and nipped at Dedue’s bottom lip, showing him a rare grin as he lifted up her broken panties to see what kind of fabric she was wearing.

He chuckled, in awe.

“Sheer.” he mused to himself before tossing aside the useless article of clothing. “Now I kind of regret ripping them.”

Grinning even more, Byleth unraveled her arms around Dedue’s neck and reached behind her to pull down the zipper that held her dress closed.

“I should punish you for it.” she stuck her tongue out at Dedue, who pinched her thigh in retaliation for the attitude she was giving him. Lazily, Byleth began to lift her dress over her head while Dedue kept his hands wrapped around her waist, sighing in contentment when she felt his thumbs again caressing her stomach.

“Really? I should be punishing you for wearing so little underneath.” Dedue rasped out, throat dry as he watched the way Byleth’s breasts spilled from her dress after she finished removing it. His brain short circuited for a brief moment when he realised that she wasn’t wearing a bra the whole time he’s been with her, and with authoritative hands, pushed her onto the mattress with a crooked smile.

Another gasp escaped those pretty lips, and suddenly, Dedue was thirsty for another kiss.

“Mmh, but Daddy–” she mewled against the searing heat of his lips on hers and was deliberately cut off by the lazy roll of Dedue’s tongue licking its way into her watering mouth.

“No buts.” he crooned and repeated the actions that Byleth had used on him not too long ago, keeping her wrists held together in one large hand as the other trailed itself between her breasts and down to her stomach, where his fingertips teased her bellybutton.

“Now spread your legs for me, sweetheart.” Dedue kissed her cheek, sweet, and patiently waited for the girl to obey with his palm resting on her belly, his lone hand practically the same size as her waist.

Byleth pouted at the command then but listened nonetheless, her actions bashful as her legs fell open for him.

And for the third time that night, Dedue’s breath stuttered.

He didn’t normally play around with girls, he’ll admit, and he’s not usually one to have his own set of kinks. There was just something about this Byleth girl that made a part of Dedue want to take care of her tonight, to kiss her swollen lips and pet her hair.

But this was the same girl that he had pinned to the bed right now, who was calling him Daddy and had the audacity to suggest she punish him. And with the way she spread her legs after a single command, pouting up at him as she shyly gave Dedue the pleasure of showing him her gushing little hole, he was about ready to break her in half.

“No touching. Got it?” he warned as he reluctantly released his grip on the woman’s wrists, waiting for her to nod in obedience before he made another move.

“Yes, Daddy.” Byleth let her head fall back in embarrassment and reached out for a pillow on the bed for her to hold onto as she watched Dedue go down her body, his mouth printing feather light kisses down her skin just as he did to him a few minutes prior, causing her to shiver in delight while he hooked his arms around her thighs, her legs coming to rest on his shoulders.

Her breath came out shaky as the sensation of his lips brushed along the inside of her thigh, and she squirmed when his hands came to wrap around her waist, her lip caught between her teeth.

“Please..” she choked out impatiently as Dedue continued to tease her with his mouth against her thighs, his teeth occasionally coming out to nip at the sensitive skin there. The man below her chuckled in amusement, and he complied, since she was so cute.

His hot breath fanned across her clit once he dipped his head, and Byleth let out the sweetest whimper when he gave the pink nub an open mouthed kiss, his tongue quickly coming out to give it a small flick.

Byleth could only tighten her grip on the pillow she had in her hands and squeeze her eyes shut as a tingling warmth bloomed through her legs and down to her toes while her lover for the night fanned the flames that was spreading through her body like a wildfire.

Muffling her gasp by throwing the pillow onto her face, Byleth’s thighs closed around Dedue’s head when he used his fingers to expose her leaking hole and proceeded to give it a wet kiss.

Her little cry afterwards only spurred Dedue on, and his tongue licked a lazy stripe from her entrance to her clit before he went back to her hole and lapped at the slick that continued to drip out of her like honey.

Her mewls were shaky, and oh, so cute, and when he gave a particular suck to her entrance, flooding his mouth with her sweet nectar, Byleth moaned into her pillow.

Dedue kissed her entrance once more, lazy, glancing up at her to see she had her face hidden behind her pillow.

“Don’t do that.” he whispered as he pried apart Byleth’s legs away from his head, and brought himself back to his knees between her thighs with an adoring smile. He gently tugged at the pillow Byleth was holding onto and threw it across the room once her hold loosened, laughing quietly when he saw the flushed look on her face.

“You’re making me shy!” she complained and hid her cute expression by crossing her arms over her face, causing Dedue to watch her in amusement. They were in a much more compromising position that she should be caring about, considering Dedue had her thighs spread apart, showing her pretty, glistening hole.

With his hands coming to her wrists, the young man pulled her arms away from her face with a slight grin, coming down to give her mouth a kiss as he pressed her hands back into the mattress.

“The Maneater Byleth shy?” he questioned, a teasing lilt in his voice. The flustered sputter of incoherent words that left her mouth after that gave Dedue another reason to laugh, and he buried his face into the crook of her neck to give the skin there a heated kiss.

“Yes,” he sang, so loving. His lips dragged across the length of her throat, and she shivered. “I know who you are, sweetheart.”

“Thought it was too good to be true when you didn’t recognize me at first.” she laughed breathlessly, biting her lip as the man above her began to trail wet kisses along her collarbone.

“Figured it out when you told me your name.” Dedue mumbled under his breath, giving a playful nip to one of the dusky nipples that lay in front of him, soothing it over with his tongue before playfully blowing cool air just to make Byleth shiver.

“You don’t normally hand out your name to anyone.” he stated, his gaze flickering up towards Byleth’s face to watch her expression. She pinked, and it made him look down at her with fondness.

“And I’ve heard you always give,” he continued, and lazily pulled Byleth up so that she was in a sitting position, guiding her hands towards the belt clasp that sat in front of his pants, “But never ask to receive.”

Dedue lifted a hand to pet her hair and immediately, the woman leaned into the touch as she worked on taking off the leather belt that wrapped around his hips, thumbs happily undoing the button on his trousers.

“So here’s what I’m going to do.” he chuckled, amused at how eager Byleth was to get him naked.

Just as she was about to dip her fingers into the waistband of his boxers, Dedue tangled his fingers in her hair and tilted her head back so that she was looking at him, causing her to pause in her ministrations.

“I’m not gonna let you suck me off. I see you drooling.” he scoffed playfully, the corner of his mouth twitching upwards as Byleth stared at him with her cute doe eyes, lips slightly parted.

“Instead, you’re gonna ride Daddy’s cock like the good girl you are.” he cooed, and brought up his other hand to brush his thumb against her cheek, finally smiling again when Byleth tilted her head to press her lips to his thumb, eyelashes fluttering prettily.

“Do you understand?”

Byleth sent Dedue a sweet smile as her answer and kissed his thumb as she went back to helping him take off the rest of his pants, sighing dreamily while she watched him undo the last few buttons of his shirt and drop it to the floor.

“Answer me.” he looked at her expectantly with mirth in his eyes, amused that she was still staring at him even as he propped himself against her headboard, beckoning her forward with his index finger.

Byleth swallowed; suddenly thirsty as she crawled into the space between Dedue’s legs.

“Yes, Daddy.” she murmured bashfully, her hands coming up to rest on his thighs. Pleased, Dedue raised his hand to cup her cheek in his palm, letting her lean her weight on it.

He pulled her in by the back of her neck and gave her a gentle kiss to her lips while mumbling his permission for her to take off his last piece of clothing, humming his approval when she began to tug at his waistband. He chuckled against her mouth when she bit at his lip, and tensed just the slightest once his cock was freed, laying heavily against his toned stomach.

“Oh, Goddess.” Byleth breathed out helplessly once she took a glance down and pouted at Dedue who was smiling at her; face innocent.

“I can’t believe you told me not to suck you off.” she sulked, biting her lip with furrowed brows once she found both of her hands wrapped around his large shaft. The heated flesh in her hands nearly had her eyes rolling, and she leaned her forehead against Dedue’s as she dragged the tips of her fingertips along the length of his cock.

“It’s like winning the lottery and you telling me I’m not allowed to spend any of the money.” she grumbled unhappily, missing the way Dedue’s breath caught in his throat when her thumb came up to toy with his slit, her other hand teasing him just below the crown of the head.

“I’m mad at you.” she said.

Dedue laughed weakly and rest his head back against the headboard.

“You’re still adorable even with my cock in your hands.”

“Disgusting.” Byleth murmured with a little frown, still not making any move to seat herself all snug in his lap. Her index finger came up next to spread the precum that began to leak from the tip of his cock, her other finger lazily trailing up the vein that lay on the underside of his length.

“You’re making me like you.” she teased him, but she didn’t smile. Her eyes were narrowed though, and Dedue was able to tell that she wasn’t upset at the fact, but the pink tinge to her cheeks showed that she was getting flustered.

“Good.” he winked, causing Byleth to blush a darker shade.

Quickly, her mouth covered his own, and much to his amusement, she mumbled a tiny shut up against his lips as she began to finally clamber herself onto his lap, her hand reaching back to grip the base of his cock.

“Slowly.” Dedue murmured against her swollen lips and held her waist in his hands to keep her from moving too fast, humming softly in approval as she teased her own entrance with the tip of his cock before carefully easing the head in once she had it wet enough with her own slick.

“That’s it.” he praised her, quiet and intimate as the stretch of her entrance around his cock made her hold onto his shoulders for stability, her breathy gasp fanning across his face as she rocked her hips back in pleasure, the rest of his length sliding inside of her with ease.

Dedue swore under his breath once he bottomed out inside of her, the wet warmth of her walls squeezing at his cock uncontrollably despite neither of them moving at all.

“Fuck.” Byleth choked out when Dedue guided her hips in a small circle then rolled her forward onto his length, his smile private and sweet as he kissed her nose.

“I know, baby.” he whispered to her and guided her arms to wrap around his neck so that she could have something to hold onto, his own arm going back to sling around her waist while his free hand went down to tuck itself under her knee, tilting his chin up to let her kiss him again as she began to move her hips in her own rhythm.

The faint sound of Dedue’s length sliding in and out of Byleth was lewd, and it made the woman whimper as her sweet little hole gushed with more slick.

“Big.” she mewled, at a loss for words as she finally got the right rhythm going, her cute belly bulging with Dedue’s cock everytime she sank herself back down to the hilt.

The air in the room was getting hotter as Byleth got greedier and greedier, her swollen lips drinking in the taste of Dedue’s tongue as she let a hand roam along his chest, feeling the sturdy muscles that tensed underneath her fingertips as she scratched at his skin.

Her gasp-like whimper was the sweetest melody to grace Dedue’s ears when he angled his hips to hopefully hit that spot inside of his lover, and his reward was the delicious squeeze she gave to his cock, her mouth falling open against his own as her pace slowed, but the push of her hips became heavier with purpose.

“Daddy.” she gasped once more, and Dedue snapped.

Using his strength that was regained from that smallest sound, Dedue lifted himself from the headboard and forced Byleth back onto the mattress with a pleased hum, his smile sharp as he wrapped a hand around her throat while the other pressed into her belly, adding pressure to the bulge that protruded as he thrust his hips into her.

“Yes, please–” she sobbed weakly as the hand around her throat squeezed, her own pair grabbing onto the man’s arm to keep his grip there as he fucked her hole with abandon, her body sliding violently against the bed with just the sheer force of his hips.

“Dedue,” she squeaked helplessly, “I’m gonna cum–”

He interrupted her with a sharp kiss, his teeth digging into her bottom lip as he continued to pound into her to help reach her climax, the growl that rumbled against her mouth causing Byleth’s eyes to roll in excitement.

His hands quietly found hers despite the noise of their skin slapping against each other, their fingers intertwining as he pressed their joined hands on either side of her head, being careful not to catch her splayed out hair.

Dedue’s lips went back to her own, and with a low grunt that was teetering to a growl, buried himself to the hilt as the coil that twisted in his stomach sprang free, and the blissful release of his orgasm crashed through his body, heavy ropes of his cum spurting and filling Byleth up to the brim.

The warm sensation of her lover’s release flooding her body made her cry out once more, and she bit his lip hard enough to draw blood as she reached her own climax, her body arching into his as her head pressed back into the sheets, mouth falling open in a silent scream.

Her body shook with each aftershock that rippled through her as Dedue began to calm down himself, his breathing heavy as he squeezed her hands to keep her rooted and not fall into subspace.

“Ah..” her breath caught in her throat when Dedue began to lazily fuck his hips back into her again, his cock still hard inside of her despite the huge release he flooded her with, his cum being pushed out of her with each thrust of his hips.

Her body twitched beneath him, and the soft gasps kept falling from her lips as the man continued to toy with her, his whispers of praise spreading a tingly feeling throughout her body as his cock continued to push into her.

“Dedue..” she whined breathlessly as her eyes began to well with tears, the pleasure still coursing through her body causing her to twitch with each move of his waist.

“It felt good, didn’t it?” he asked, affectionate, but the nudge of his hips didn’t stop, making Byleth unable to give him a worthy verbal response.

“Uh huh..” she whimpered, her legs coming up to wrap around his waist to keep him buried inside of her, her entrance still gushing with their mixed cum.

Her hair was matted to her forehead as she looked up at Dedue who was looking at her with a fond look in his eyes, and he kissed away the unshed tears that lay on her eyelashes. The gesture was innocent, but for some reason, Byleth’s entrance released even more slick.

Dedue chuckled, incredulous.

“You are the cutest thing.” he teased, letting go of one of Byleth’s hands to reach down between her thighs, thumbing at her clit that lay ignored until now and laughing breathlessly at the violent jolt she gave in turn.

“Sensitive!” she complained, squirming as she swatted at Dedue’s toned bicep.

He chuckled in response and dipped his head down to give her a kiss, his thumb still circling her clit as she scratched at his chest in defiance.

He kissed her again to keep her quiet. And then once more. Their kisses made wet popping noises as their mouths slotted together in a heated kiss, Byleth’s sweet mewls being swallowed up by Dedue as his fingers worked at her clit until his pretty little girl was spilling with slick again, his cock sliding in and out of her messily with how wet she was getting.

“More.” she gasped into his mouth as he pinched her clit between his thumb and index finger, her arms moving to wrap around his neck once more.

“Don’t pull out.” she begged sweetly, and tightened her legs around his waist, Dedue’s fingers skillfully playing around with her clit while her toes curled in overwhelming pleasure. Her moans were adorable, the man couldn’t help but think, and he caught her mouth with his to make sure her lips were swollen after he was done with her.

“Don’t think I’ll be able to.” he chuckled, sucking at her bottom lip as she quivered around his length, the heat of her walls around him not letting his cock soften.

“Wanna stay like this.” she sighed, her fingers reaching out to scratch at his undercut with gentle motions, her lips kissing the scar that ran vertical on his mouth. Dedue pinked at the gesture, and his thumb came to a slow on her clit, finally giving Byleth a chance to breathe properly.

“You..” Dedue let out a breath of air and rest his forehead against Byleth’s, his smile full of adoration. “I’m gonna keep you in this room for the next few hours– maybe even days.” he promised.

Byleth stared at him with her bright, doe eyes, biting her lip with a bashful smile.

Dedue raised the hand that wasn’t between her thighs and cupped her cheek in his palm.

“And I am going to fill each and every one of your pretty, little holes with my cum.” he whispered the last part, repositioning his hand between her thighs until his fingertip was lazily prodding at her puckered rim, wet with her slick and his leaking release, “Starting with this one.”

Byleth’s eyelashes fluttered with joy, and she nodded obediently, giving her Daddy a sweet smooch to the mouth. She had no doubt this man was going to break her apart, but she didn’t mind the idea of becoming his cumdump.

“Yes, please.” she sighed dreamily, thighs twitching at the lewd noise of his length pumping inside of her again.

“I’m all yours.”

[qvill-s]

gah can I ask prompt fluff 10 for M!Byleth?

NOTES: of course !!!

m! byleth + “are we on a date right now?” under the cut !!!

It is not too often that Byleth invites someone other than his students to tea.

On the silent walk to the courtyard, you worried over the atmosphere, the conversation, and everything in between. You didn’t particularly know him too well, aside from the fact that the Academy is grateful for every new teacher they get, but the clear blue of his eyes and the curl of his dark hair against his neck makes you wish you did.

Now, however, as the two of you sit at a table together you find that there was really very little for you to worry about. The silence is comfortable—you learned he wasn’t really much for talk—and the tea is heavenly, its aroma reminding you of a land beyond the borders of the mountain, of a summer by the ocean, and a hazy dream of a lover that whispers with the waft of the breeze through his hair.

You watch him watch you, taking in the almost methodical way he seems to keep track of your mannerisms. Every shift in your seat, every sweep of your hair out of your eyes, every inhale of the heady scent of roses and sunflowers (and a mild hint of strawberries) as you sip your tea feels as though they are being cataloged inside his brain, stored in a file with your name in his scrawling script, to be saved for later.

It is a feeling that is both flattering and embarrassing. You won’t deny that you think Byleth attractive. You won’t deny that more often than not, you wish for a little bit of his attention—if your constant greetings and check ups and attempts to help weren’t enough of a giveaway—but you never expected that you would have this much of it. The idea is enough to fluster and bring a light pink to dust at your cheeks.He watches you so closely, watches your nervous tics, your preferences in tea, and your less than noble table manners. With nothing more than a flick of his observant eye, he unravels the wrapping to your secret self piece by piece.

“So,” you say, attempting to prevent yourself from worrying about what he could potentially think of you, “what is it that you wanted to talk to me about?”

“Nothing, really.”

“Oh.” You try your best to hide your frown. You suppose there really isn’t a point to this after all, and somehow that thought hurts more than him meeting you for a reason that doesn’t concern yourself.

He mirrors your expression on his pursed lips, deciding to elaborate on his words as he tells you, “My father said I should get to know the other teachers better.”

“Oh.” That’s much better. You place your teacup back into its saucer and recline back into your seat, trying to seem inviting as you say, “Well then, what would you like to know?”

And from there, he asks you a variety of questions and you ask them back, ranging from simple things such as your preferred weapon, to more complicated questions involving politics, religion, and war.

Though he says so little, he speaks with careful purpose and the few words that he speaks reveal so much.You know what little of his mother he remembers, the places he’s been to and the food he’s eaten. You know he adores his father more than anything in the world, and cannot resist petting the Monastery’s abundance of stray cats. You know that he considers the Gatekeeper to be one of his dearest friends, and you know that he has yet to solidify his name. The time passes by as pleasantly as it has before, with more talk and less silence, and your wish to know him better is finally granted.

In a lull in your conversation, you realize something, opening your mouth to speak before you can think, “This is kind of like a date, isn’t it?”

To your utmost surprise, he makes a spluttering sort of noise from behind his teacup. When he lowers it, he reveals himself red-faced and coughing aggressively, pounding a fist to his chest.

Oh, fuck.

You made him choke.

The next few moments pass by almost comically. You get out of your seat hastily, the chair toppling over into the grass below, and you hover beside him, frantic arms darting this way and that, unsure of where to place your hands and what to do with them. Your constant stream of apologies and offers to help were certainly not helping, and Byleth manages to pull through the tough situation all on his own.

“Sorry,” you repeat, hands no longer frantic but still unsure as they fall to your sides.

He nods, and somehow you know that it means he holds no malice towards you about the situation. Reassured, and once more not thinking, you reach over to smooth his ruffled collar, brushing his hair away from his neck as your hand travels down to his shoulder to give him a few pats on the back.

It is only when you right your chair and sit back on it that you understand what you did. You touched him, fixed his collar, combed your fingers through the short hairs on the back of his neck, gave him a gentle pat on his back. You touched him, and it was not in the way acquaintances or even friends do. You touched him like a lover, a partner, a soulmate—but the problem was that the two of you were nothing close to that.

Still, you think, you had to know—

“So, is it?” You ask, suddenly emboldened by a strange sense of confidence. (Where could you have possibly gotten that?)

Byleth opens his mouth as if to say something, but then thinks otherwise and snaps it shut. He lifts his tea cup once more to his mouth, the rim hovering a little ways away from his lips. After a few contemplative and increasingly disconcerting moments, he gives you a tiny, but firm, nod.

When you manage to catch his eye from across the table, you see the faint pink that stains his cheeks, and you know that it stains yours as well.

[alsolfu]

Pink Skies (Part Three)

(Part One & Two) (AO3)

After enduring the entirety of a war, Lorenz was hard pressed to be intimidated. He knew his worth after painstakingly long years of learning that confidence didn’t entirely make up for a lack of competence. There had been so much trial and error, leagues of missteps that he’d gotten through to be where he was now.

So it was with a peculiar edge of wariness that he accepted the cup of tea from Rhea. He wasn’t going to be intimidated by a woman still recovering from imprisonment. He respected her greatly, but to feel intimidation right now would be preposterous.

Still, he found it difficult to keep her gaze.

“Lorenz Hellman Gloucester. You’ve stuck by Byleth’s side throughout everything, and you’ve sought a wife long before needing one. What exactly is your objection to this proposal?”

He lifted the teacup from its saucer delicately and blew on the surface of the tea. An urge for pleasantries and small talk came to him as he took a sip. He fought it down, an easy task to accomplish with Rhea’s intense gaze locked onto him.

“I’ve learned well that it’s bad practice to coerce someone into marriage.” Despite the situation, the intimidation, and the too hot tea, he felt in his element. “Spending your life with someone isn’t a decision to be made impetuously.”

Rhea tilted her head in a long stare at him, saying nothing for a stretch. Like intimidation, Lorenz never felt unnerved. He didn’t! And he certainly didn’t feel it now. When Rhea smiled, it did nothing to settle him; he took a large drink of tea in an attempt to remedy that but ended up with a burning throat and chest. He swallowed hard and returned the smile.

“Tell me how you met Byleth. Was it during her first lesson, or perhaps she introduced herself before then?”

Lorenz relaxed at this hint of small talk, lowering his hands and the teacup in them to the table between them. “She wasn’t one for introductions. I heard tell of the mercenary who’d saved Claude and saw her around the monastery with him when she first arrived. I thought she would be another student and made it a point to make myself known.”

A slow nod from Rhea relaxed him further. She seemed to be understanding; maybe all she required was a sensible explanation to let go of the potential fiasco that this arranged marriage was sure to be.

“Any point of contention?” Rhea finally picked up her own teacup, one of her eyebrows arching carefully. “I recall her addressing complaints about you. Are there possible lingering resentments over this?”

The teacup in Lorenz’s hand clattered against its saucer when he placed it down. “Resent― Of course not.”

He’d been a different person then. He’d thought her shutting down his romantic pursuits to be a misguided attempt to keep him tamed. The ladies were honored to have his attention, he’d thought. He looked down into his teacup, now nearly empty. Right. What a person he’d been. It was no wonder Byleth was so adamant against marrying him.

A frown pulled at his mouth, and he brushed his hair over a shoulder in one quick flip. “It’s not as if she was so perfect. For someone who rarely spoke outside of lessons, she was loud, dirty, and―” He cut himself off, his eyes widening in realization at what he was saying about his professor. His friend.

Rhea’s smile broadened, and she nodded in invitation for him to continue.

Lorenz sipped the last of his tea and placed the cup and saucer back onto the table. He didn’t especially want to divulge his old perceptions of Byleth, but it could be just the thing to end this.

“Common. She was proudly common.”

⁂

He missed the school of sorcery in Fhirdiad. The studies had been far more focused. The new professor wanted him to give the lance a try. He couldn’t sense any progress being made, but if he had to give Byleth credit for anything, it would be her consistency. She had a feeling about him, she’d said. Sure. Regardless of her feeling, Lorenz excelled in everything he saw worth pursuing. This would be no different… once he grasped the concept.

Fingers and hands sore from the new training, he held his teacup gingerly. Across the table from him sat Ferdinand, who spoke at length about a particularly heart-racing experience he’d had before coming to the monastery. Lorenz would normally cut in with his own thoughts, but the ache in his hands distracted. The professor had actually brought this bit of culture in the form of Ferdinand into his circle, giving him a reprieve from the constant buffoonery Claude loved to indulge in. So that was two things he had to credit her: consistency and understanding his need for decent conversation.

“Professor!”

Lorenz nearly dropped his teacup at Ferdinand’s sudden call. He followed the other man’s line of sight to find his professor standing on the edge of the courtyard. The day was sunny, lighting up her face and brightening the shades of green in her hair. She approached their gazebo with a curious look, glancing between Ferdinand and Lorenz as if she wasn’t sure which one had called her over. She never smiled, and it was frankly off-putting.

The closer she became, the more Lorenz wished she wouldn’t. In one hand, she held a fishing rod. That had been clear from a distance. Now, though, he couldn’t keep from curling his lip at the squirming mass of… He put his teacup down and quickly tugged a handkerchief from a pocket to cover his mouth.

“Indulging in an outdoor activity on such a nice day?” Ferdinand asked with a small nod toward her fishing pole. “That’s a brilliant idea, professor.”

Lorenz fought an eye roll. Minding manners was an utmost importance, but was Ferdinand always so overly polite to people who weren’t… noble? There was a time and place for niceties, and this wasn’t it. Just let her continue on her way. She had pockets spilling over with live insect larva. Lorenz felt his stomach clench when a few of the tiny, squirming things fell to the ground as she shifted the pole from one arm to the other, propping it on her shoulder.

“I’m relieved to see you enjoying each other’s company,” she said, still looking between them. She must’ve been out in the sun for a while; it showed on her skin, twinged pink along her cheekbones and the bridge of her nose. “I had a feeling you’d be fast friends.”

“Professor,” Lorenz spoke up, lowering the handkerchief. “Try not to overuse that turn of phrase.”

Byleth cocked her head and stared at him. More larva tumbled out of her overly stuffed pockets. “Hm?”

Lorenz returned the handkerchief to his mouth and closed his eyes. For a person who didn’t give much in terms of facial or bodily expression, Byleth seemed to always have a feeling about things, about Ferdinand’s friendship, about Lorenz himself.

Well, Lorenz had a feeling about her in return, and it wasn’t one that should be mentioned in polite company.

⁂

Lorenz had been proven wrong. He was remiss to assume Byleth incapable of genuine feeling. She was the one in the wrong regarding his expression of romantic interest in the young women he deemed suitable, but he trusted that she’d recognize that someday. In the meantime, he decided to listen to her advice. It wouldn’t hurt to hone his skill in wooing before exercising it on the right person.

To be so incorrect himself, though, was a new concept. Byleth could indeed smile; more than, where he was concerned. As if by an accidental miracle, he’d made her laugh. Part of him was curious enough to want to do it again. He just… wasn’t certain as to how.

Opportunity struck when she caught him outside the gardens, her hands covered in dirt from Sothis knew what she’d been up to in the greenhouse. She invited him to share a meal with her. He considered her approach with caution. She must’ve been entertaining someone important, a nobleman in all likelihood, and needed him as a buffer. It was a wise choice, and he wouldn’t turn down someone so clearly in need of his aid.

He realized his mistake when sitting across from her at one of the tables in the galley. In the seat next to him sat Ignatz, smiling and blinking at him from behind his round spectacles. Rather than showing the uncertainty he felt, he lifted his chin and greeted them both. The plate waiting for him on the table was― oh.

He allowed an easy smile to cross his face, aimed at Byleth. “I did not expect such a delicacy to come from the dining hall.”

Ignatz echoed a similar praise before they tucked in. It was a shock to Lorenz that they could share a favorite food. Of course not all commoners were the same; Lorenz knew that. But it was a surprise all the same.

Byleth held her fork like a knife, the same way Felix Fraldarious did the one time Lorenz was so unfortunate to eat near him. She stabbed a bite of the fish on her plate and held the fork up as she said, “I caught a ton of fish this week.” She punctuated the statement by eating the entire bite in one go.

Lorenz endured the meal, deeply conflicted. It had to have been pure chance that she’d invite him to share in one of his favorite meals―two-fish saute was a rare thing in Garreg Mach―and he was thoroughly enjoying every single bite. But he couldn’t say, despite his budding curiosity, that he enjoyed her ghastly presence.

Rather than himself taking the role, Lorenz was grateful for Ignatz being present as a buffer of sorts between himself and the professor. Her table etiquette was horrendous, her words often vulgar, and she couldn’t seem to refrain from holding eye contact with him for far too long. It was impolite, to say the least.

Good thing she hadn’t been meeting with anyone important. Lorenz wasn’t sure keeping her from looking foolish was within even his realm of great capability. A shame, though, that he didn’t get the chance to make her laugh again.

⁂

“Again!”

Lorenz grit his teeth, wishing wholly that looks could kill. The professor hit the floor of the training grounds with her sword, urging him to repeat his recent manoeuvre. The tempo of it irritated him. Thwap, thwap, between her yelling, it was a countdown to his next move. He didn’t want to do it again and glared across the room at her. Sweat prickled at the back of his neck uncomfortably. This must’ve been the definition of misery, surely.

“Let’s go, string bean!”

He went into action at her insistence on using that awful nickname. She’d said during their first training session that he was too thin. Waifish. A freakishly tall skeleton with pale skin stretched over it. His appearance, like everything, mattered greatly, and he genuinely hoped she only meant to tease. Regardless, it worked to anger him, which drove their sessions for longer.

She was either terribly rude or an evil genius. He strongly believed it to be the former.

His grip on the lance tightened. Don’t just jab with it, she’d said. Worry about finesse later. Strike to kill every time. He moved through the motions with a mind aflame, rushing toward her through the ringing in his ears. She always went easy on him. He could tell, and he hated it. The thought pushed him forward harder.

Handling a lance required such a different way of thinking; not less thought than magic, just a complete wipe of what he knew about approaching an opponent. This, beyond the wildly different physical focus, should’ve been easier than his magic studies, in which he excelled. Yet he struggled. She was going to point out his shortcomings with the lance during their next lesson, just like she had the last time. And the time before that.

She swore loudly, the hard F―“Fuck!”―startling him out of his thoughts. He blinked, looking down at where she lay below him. With a foot planted on each side of her waist, he stood above, the tip of his lance piercing the floor next to her left arm. A long line in her skin, cut cleanly over her arm, began to drip blood.

His irritation subsided, and he met her wide eyes with concern. When had he overpowered her? He was larger, sure, but she’d always proven to be faster.

“Great job!” She was close enough that yelling was unnecessary, but it seemed to be more of a cheer this time. He withdrew the lance and stepped away from her to offer a hand. She took it with one of her rare smiles. On her feet, she let go of his hand to touch the cut. “I should go see Manuela. Excellent work, Lorenz.”

“It was only a trifle.” He watched her leave before putting away the lance and making his own exit. He supposed the lance training was actually working. His frustration faded into a soft pride.

Excellent work, Lorenz.

He smiled to himself on the way to the sauna, envisioning himself riding gallantly on a steed into battle. Perhaps her feeling about him had been right all along.

⁂

Silence followed the end of his explanation. It rested between him and Rhea, filling up the advisory room until Lorenz thought he could suffocate. Then, finally, Rhea frowned, her fingertips tracing the rim of her teacup delicately.

“I had no idea you disliked her so thoroughly.” Her fingers stopped, lingering above the cup. “If the hatred is this deep―”

“Archbishop, you misunderstand.” Lorenz touched the rose at his lapel and looked up to meet her eyes for the first time since beginning his story. “I could never hate her. She was our professor, and she led us to victory. We all care for her a great deal.”

Rhea lowered her hands, laying them one atop the other behind her teacup. “We are not asking Ignatz to marry her. Nor Ferdinand or Felix.” She paused, as if to think. “Do you think they are better candidates?”

If Lorenz were the type to snort, he’d be doing it now. Fodlan was beginning to rebuild itself, most of the others were off tending to their responsibilities, assuring their people and stamping down on all remaining enemies. Claude had left Fodlan entirely. The rest, between their duties and amidst the cleanup, were pairing off with those they’d grown closest to throughout the conflict.

It would take weeks to send for any one person who’d once stayed in Garreg Mach and weeks more to receive the refusal because I’m proposing to someone special when things settle more or I haven’t gotten over the person I lost in the war. I’m sorry, Archbishop. Sure, these could be gross assumptions, but Lorenz knew the others almost as well as he knew himself.

The crux of it lay in the fact that Byleth didn’t seem to want to get married, whatever her reasons may’ve been, and what they’d all learned, in spite of everything, was to trust the judgement of their professor.

[loyalflutist]

Cake (F!Byleth x Edelgard)

Challenge: Edeleth Twitter Week (09/29/2019 - 10/05/2019)  Day 4: Cake

A/N: Singing praises to Lysithea for she kick-started this entire event for Byleth and Edeleth. 

---

Edelgard has always liked sweets. Though her past was riddled with plenty of misfortunes and tragedy, the one thing that never eroded away was her love for these tasty treats.

Oh, how much her eyes lit up at the sight of cakes! Teatime was a frequent activity between her and Lysithea. Every week, the two would spare an hour or so to indulge in the sugary content. Their palates were delighted by the fluffy texture. Their appetite sated by the burst of flavors. Their sight appeased by colorful decorations. Cake was and still is mankind’s best creation.

“…”

Byleth crossed her arms. She stared intensely at the oven in isolation within the open kitchen. Adorned over her usual mercenary attire is a white apron; splotches of pink and yellow tainted the pristine fabrics. As students were settling in for the night, so did the staff from the cafeteria. The eatery was empty, save it for the few soldiers and guards during their night shifts. That meant it was free for usage so long as one cleans up after themselves. This professor took advantage of the scarce opportunity.

“…”

Her navy hues never once left the heated equipment.

“Let’s hope you didn’t add salt in this time.”

Sothis floated nearby. She plopped her arms on Byleth’s head as if she were a table, then rested her chin on the disheveled hair. The teal-haired resisted the urge to swat her away. She opted to remain silent, the only response being a sigh.

…she didn’t add salt, right?

Her index finger that began to tap on her exposed arm hastened. Byleth moistened her lower lip, and she gulped in hopes of eliminating the sudden dryness of her throat. She shifted her gaze elsewhere as beads of sweat flew out of her head. The confidence that once possessed the professor began to melt into a sticky pile of uncertainty. (Thanks, Sothis!)

“Hm? What’s with that worried expression?” The green-haired remarked once again, this time peering down at her host. Not even two seconds ticked by until it clicked in her head. A faint smirk formed on her lips as Sothis returned to her resting posture. She closed her eyelids and stifled a yawn. “I’m certain you did not make the same mistake. I checked the content this time around.”

“You didn’t have to—”

“I had to. Otherwise, you would’ve panicked.”

“I would not.”

“Your body doesn’t agree.”

“…”

“Dear child… I’m sure your Edelgard would be disappointed if you gifted her with an atrocious-tasting cake.” Sothis exhaled loudly and, while floating, nestled onto Byleth as if she were a pillow. “I wouldn’t want that to happen to you.”

She wasn’t wrong about that. If anything, Byleth had no choice but to succeed. Failure is not an option.

One might also wonder why this stoic professor would spend her quiet night making a cake. The funding provided by the Church was plenty enough to purchase one at the bakery. Time and energy would be saved in the process, and a delicious cake still waits for their owners at the end of the day. Edelgard had always bought her sweets. What difference will that make?

Well… she overhead Lysithea and Ferdinand about Edelgard’s strong liking towards sweets. Their private teatime parties would always consist of these delicacies; the young noble’s likes also extended towards cakes. Normally, Byleth would leave the two to be. Lest to say an exchange perked her ears one fateful night during her patrol.

“Lady Edelgard, has anyone ever baked you something?”

“Not yet.”

“What a shame… Perhaps you should ask Dorothea to make you some.”

“I prefer not to bother her with these requests.”

“I see. How about the Professor? I think she’s capable of it.”

“By— Teacher? O-Oh, I’m not too sure about that…”

“Why not?”

“She might be too busy to bake something for us.”

“The future is unpredictable. It might be too early to make that conclusion.”

“I can only hope so…”

The way Lysithea guided their conversation almost made it seem as if she purposely hinted at the professor— Actually, she was. Lysithea was always perceptive to her surroundings. Edelgard may have not noticed Byleth’s presence as her back was facing the doorway, but the other white-haired sensed her beyond the partially opened door. A faint smile scrawled her features as she tipped the teacup to her lips.

“You should place more faith in your girlfriend, Lady Edelgard.”

“G-Girlfriend!?”

“Why are you acting like I just blew your cover?”

“Well— I… Um… That’s… it’s just… embarrass… ing…”

“Hoh~ What a rarity to see you flustered.”

“Lysithea, I will take away your sweets if you say any more.”

“Okay, okay, I won’t tease.”

“Good—”

“Though you should seriously place more faith in the Professor. Don’t forget to invite me too!”

With newfound knowledge of her girlfriend’s interest, the instructor decided to make her next weekly gift for the student a bit different: making the cake from scratch on her own.

However… a couple of problems reared its head into this ambitious project.

There was the issue of her inept bakery skills. She could cook heartful meals, and she could improvise on the spot when it came to breakfast, lunch, and dinner. But dessert? Byleth never ate many sweets as being a mercenary provided very little chance to do so, but she expected it to taste like heaven based on Edelgard’s and Lysithea’s fixation to the treat.

Ingredients were purchased from the market, and some ingredients forced the professor to scour villages and towns outside of the monastery’s wall on her own. She engaged in haggles and arguments over rare items required for the baking process. The equipment was provided upon request by the staff, but no one had time to teach Byleth how to bake. Those who were free to mentor were not exactly the sort of person one would go to for advice.

Jeralt was the worst one of them all.

“I don’t know, kiddo. I know nobles love chocolate, so why not throw them into the batter? I’m not sure if you need to melt them or not… but give it a try.”

“…”

That didn’t work at all. Rather, that advice, accompanied by her amateur skillsets, nearly burnt down the cafeteria! Sothis combination of scolding and laughter echoed in Byleth’s skull as she and the Gatekeeper furiously dumped water onto the smoking oven. Had it not been for the kind soul who had worked that day’s night shift, the fire would have spread towards the other appliances. Rhea and Seteth— especially Seteth— would not be happy if they were to catch news of her wild nightly adventures at the monastery’s kitchen!

“Professor, please be more careful!” he shook his head. “I wouldn’t want to see you get hurt!”

The two eventually chuckled it off. It was a little too comical not to find it amusing. Though it was a little difficult to hide the incident from Edelgard. Byleth would always beat around the bush and scamper away once this particular topic arises. Lysithea, Claude, and Mercedes did their best to distract Edelgard from wringing the truth from Byleth. They dragged her around the monastery with useless tasks. Some offered teatime parties. There was also the training ground and seminars hosted by other knights and teachers. They did everything in their power to keep her away from the professor and the kitchen at night. At least until the cake has been properly made.

“…”

The present time ex-mercenary knelt. While Sothis took a small nap overhead, Byleth cracked open the oven’s lid. A puff of steam blew onto her face as a result. She shook off the heat and, with oven mittens, pulled out the baked good.

“!”

The cake…

Its fluffiness…

Its texture…

Its color…

It was a success! Compared to the first few times earlier this week… this one upheld its shape and retained the flavoring she had instilled into the product. Imaginary musical notes bounced off from her head as she placed the finished product onto the counter. Now it was time for the creams and toppings. Byleth shifted her attention over to the sliced strawberries and white cream. The mittens came off, her hands were washed, and the decorations commenced.

Time dashed forward as the professor was kept busy in the kitchen. By the time she was finished, the sun had already risen from the distant. One well-known rooster cried out on the cafeteria’s rooftop to signal the early morning. Guards and soldiers that were on night shift huddled back to their quarters without hesitation; their replacements immediately arrived in conjunction with their leave. The new day was a weekend, but for Byleth, it had dawned upon her that she literally stayed up 24 hours to make this cake happen.

“Don’t you want to get some sleep?”

“No.”

This is worrisome. Dark shadows were prominent under her eyes, yet she refused to crawl into her mattress

“Oh dear…” Sothis immediately reached out to ruffle with Byleth’s hair. “You did a good job, though. I’m proud of you, Byleth.”

Hearing praise from the usually critical Sothis… she flashed a weary grin at the floating girl. That gave an extra dose of energy to mechanically operate for the morning. Byleth placed both hands on her hips, her sparkling hues observing the piece of fine work she had created. A couple of kitchen staff and chefs coming in for their morning shift too observed the cake. One of them whistled.

“You made this? Good job, Professor.”

The end product was a strawberry cake. It stood proudly on the counter with ease. All that hard work was worth it. Byleth yawned loudly as she wobbled on her feet. Though it did not come without a price. The effort she placed on this dessert was exchanged with her rest. She blinked a few times.

How was she going to bring this to Edelgard? Should she call for her? If she was going to deliver it, would it be possible to deliver it? What if she drops it? Or worst, what if the heat from outside turns this beautiful art into a pile of gooey flavors?

She shuddered at the thought. That would be a nightmare. Imagine the fright Edelgard would have upon seeing the discombobulated cake! She might as well deliver it during the time of Halloween!

“My, you’re up early.”

Fortunately for the professor, that horror was never going to be a reality. Edelgard had arrived at the cafeteria bright and early for breakfast. On weekdays, weekends, she was always on time for her meals. What she did not expect was to bump into her professor this early in the day. (Byleth tends to sleep in during weekends.) The white-haired adjusted her uniform’s collar as her eyes darted between the older woman and the recently made cake. She narrowed her eyes. Then, those lilac hues widened.

“Byleth… did you stay up all night to make a cake…?”

“Yes.”

Despite the fatigue that plagued the older woman, she motioned towards the sweet treat; a twinkle shining from the corner of her eye.

“It’s for you.”

“You… did you really do this for me?”

“Yes.”

“Lysithea was right…” Edelgard covered her mouth, her cheeks becoming rosy. “It was right of me to place my faith in you.”

“Did you say something?”

She shook her head. Then, she grabbed ahold of Byleth’s hands and crashed her lips into the older woman’s. Byleth nearly melted into a pile of goo herself once Edelgard pulled away. Excitement lit up like fireworks behind her lilac hues.

“Thank you, Byleth, thank you!”

Suffice to say, Edelgard chomped on the dessert with delight for the morning. Gorging on it was something of a sight to see for the lucky early risers. (It appears the concept of moderation does not exist for Edelgard when it comes to sweets…) Ferdinand and Hubert did complain about the abrupt change of dieting for today, and Lysithea threw a small tantrum with the lack of invitation from Byleth. Not that it mattered to the two. Byleth reveled in her results and Edelgard basked in the results.

Shortly afterward…

“Byleth.”

“Yes?”

“I think you should have some dessert too.”

“I’m not much of a sweets person— El… What are you doing?”

“I didn’t say your dessert had to be another cake.”

“…”

She certainly received a dessert of her own; it was a “cake” that she could still taste to this day.

[blackfen]

That made the eleventh time Dimitri had glanced at him out of the corner of his eye. Ever since they’d come together for a strategy meeting, his gaze had repeatedly flickering down, lingering for just long enough that, if he had done it once or twice, Byleth wouldn’t have noticed but around the fifth time, it started to be hard not to notice. Crossing his arms over his chest, Byleth shifted his weight from one foot to another. What was he looking at? Was there something in his hair or food on his face? If so, he should say something, instead of just looking at him. Just to make sure he didn’t look sloppy, Byleth sneakily brushed a hand over his mouth then pushed it up into his hair. He didn’t feel anything foreign but if there wasn’t anything, then why was Dimitri looking at him?

Twelfth time - this time, he lingered for even longer, staring down at him with a calm, thoughtful expression on his handsome face. Sighing, irritated, Byleth turned his head slightly to look back up at him. Vibrant green met depth-less blue. Dimitri jumped a little, his eyes widening. A tinge of pink dyed the tips of his ears. To Byleth’s surprise, instead of immediately looking away, Dimitri offered a small smile, his bright blue eyes full of warm fondness. Flushing, his cheeks tingling with pleasant heat, Byleth pointedly looked away, turning his attention back to Gilbert. There came a soft, happy chuckle from above him, followed by Dimitri gently bumping against him. 

Byleth forcibly bit back a smile. He felt like if he smiled now, the two of them would dissolve into downright giddiness. Not exactly the behavior to be exhibiting at a time like this. Really, he should be scolding Dimitri for not paying attention but...how could he possibly do that when he looked like that? This was the kind of behavior that he wanted to be encouraging at every turn. He just wasn’t expecting it right now. Byleth rolled one shoulder, sighing softly. Ah well, he was being quiet and non-disruptive so he could let it slide. He just wanted to know why he was staring at him. 

By the time the meeting came to a close, the number of times Dimitri had glanced at him out of the corner of his eye had risen to 22. Byleth was dying of curiosity by then so as soon as they were dismissed, he walked off before any of the others could catch hold of him, knowing full well that Dimitri would follow after him. Unsurprisingly, Dimitri paused for just a moment to have a word with Seteth then followed him out of the room. Byleth waited until they were out of earshot of everyone then turned. 

Crossing his arms over his chest, he looked up at Dimitri and quirked a brow, “Well?”

“Hm? What is it, Professor?” Dimitri asked, coming to a halt right in front of him, close enough that Byleth would hardly have to extend his arm to touch his chest. 

“Why did you keep looking at me? Is there something on my face?”

“Ah.” An adorable tinge of deep red dyed his pale cheeks. Smiling sheepishly, he bowed his head meekly, “My apologizes. It was not my intention to make you uncomfortable.”

“You didn’t. I just want to know why you kept looking at me.”

To his surprise, Dimitri flushed an even brighter shade of red. Clearing his throat, he went as though he was going to say something, only to stop before any words came out. Even more curious now, Byleth frowned up at him, giving him his best unimpressed look, waiting impatiently for Dimitri to get on with it already. Whatever the reason, it couldn’t be that bad so why dwaddle like this? After a few more moments of silence, during which Dimitri got progressively redder, Byleth finally sighed and turned away, nervous that if he pushed this any further, Dimitri might pass out. Knowing him, it was probably something completely harmless, magnified to a ridiculous level because that was just Dimitri’s way of doing things. 

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it. Next time-”

Before he could finish speaking, Dimitri caught hold of his arm, tugging him back around. Large hands cupped his cheeks. Cold metal pressed to his skin. Dipping down, his one good eye fluttering closed, blond hair shifting around his broad shoulders, Dimitri firmly, sweetly kissed him. Jumping slightly, his eyes widening in surprise - Dimitri was usually never the one to initiate - Byleth quickly melted into his touch, reaching up to curl his fingers around his wrists. Pushing back up into the kiss, adoring the sensation of their lips sliding together, Byleth shivered when a clumsy tongue slipped into his mouth, swiping over his own, over the roof and sides, covering every inch in the taste of chamomile tea. Byleth happily reciprocated, the corners of his lips curling into a hint of a mischievous grin at the shiver he provoked when he rubbed his tongue against Dimitri’s. 

To his disappointment, Dimitri pulled away with a soft, shuddery breath. Chuckling at his pouting, Dimitri pressed their foreheads together, “If we go any further than this, I don’t think I’ll be able to stop myself.”

“Lets go back to my room, then.”

Dimitri shook his head, “As tempting as that offer is, I have a meeting with the merchant’s guild. We’re beginning the preparations to set up new trade routes. I thought it would be an easy enough process but apparently not.”

Letting out a long, overly suffering sigh, Byleth stepped away, “I guess I’ll wait, then.”

“My apologizes, Professor.” Dimitri said, his soft voice laced with amusement.

Byleth waved a hand dismissively, “You can make it up to me by telling me why you kept looking at me during the meeting.”

“Ah.” Dimitri flushed brightly once more. Laughing sheepishly, he said, “I was thinking about how much I wanted to kiss you. My apologizes, I know that was inappropriate to think of during an important meeting.”

Now, it was Byleth’s turn to blush. Beyond delighted and unable to hide it, he laughed softly, crossing his arms over his chest, “I wouldn’t say inappropriate. Though, if you want a kiss, all you need do is ask. I will always be more than happy to oblige.”

“You spoil me, Professor.” Dimitri shook his head but quiet, profound happiness lined every inch of his expression. 

“For the tenth million time, it’s just Byleth. You’re no longer my student, and it is rather awkward for you to refer to me as such when I can still taste your tongue in my mouth.”

“R-right.” Dimitri stuttered. He hesitated for a moment then said quietly, “Well, I must be going. Would you care to join me...Byleth?”

“And listen to a bunch of money grubbing merchants vying for the best route?” Byleth snorted, a wide smile on his face, pleasantly surprised - as always - that he had gotten Dimitri to actually say his name, “I’ll be in my room by the time you’re done. I will see you then. Have fun, Dimitri.”

“I doubt that is possible, Pro....Byleth.”

“Well then, do your best.” Byleth offered a soft, warm smile. Pushing himself up onto his tiptoes, he placed a gentle kiss to Dimitri’s smooth lips, brushed his fingers through his soft fingers and said, “I’ll be waiting, Your Highness.”

“That’s unfair, Professor.”