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Chapter Text

Dimitri hadn’t known what to do with himself once the war had ended. There were, of course, always fights to be won. Sreng was starting a new assault on the northern border, Petra’s death had brought forth the wrath of Brigid, there was even word that Dagda was stirring once again. At the very least, Dimitri was glad he and Claude managed to foster peace between Almyra and Fodlan. And yet, even with all these battles coming to pass, none reached the scale that the previous war had. Sylvain single handedly pushed back the Sreng invaders. Felix was a force to be reckoned with, him and Annette tearing apart any Brigid forces that tried to invade through the shattered remains of the land in the Empire.

Dimitri had been fighting for his entire life, ever since he watched his father die all those years ago in Duscur. And now, it seemed his biggest problem seemed to be the nobles clamoring for his attention, pressuring him to have an heir and to restore the Kingdom to its former glory.

It was as if the skills he’d honed his entire life were useless. He couldn’t exactly bring his lance into the council room to convince people to agree to his reforms. No, he’d never been the best with words. Of the three of them, Claude was the one with the silver tongue. And Edelgard had always commanded respect. Dimitri had always struggled with leading off the battlefield.

Maybe that’s why he was jumping at shadows. He was so desperate for a fight he was searching the old archives. There was something that was bothering him about everything. What had pushed Edelgard so far that she broke? Who had actually orchestrated the tragedy of Duscur. What was he missing? The war may be over but Dimitri was sure that their greatest enemy was still out there, watching and waiting for the best chance to strike.

He was sure that the Lords and Ladies of the court had thought he’d gone mad. He was chasing ghosts, they said.

If it weren’t for Byleth, Dimitri may have believed them.

“There’s more, isn’t there?” He asked her one day, after the war was over. “We haven’t really won, have we?”

She nodded. “Edelgard turned out the way she did because of the influence of those who slither in the dark.”

He didn’t ask how she knew this. He’d learned long ago that his old professor just tended to know these kinds of things. Back when the boar had been in control, that made him distrustful and angry. Now it just made him feel tired.

“What should we do?”

“We don’t have the strength to fight them,” she said. “The Kingdom has been torn apart these last five years, what with the coup. By the time we managed to muster up the strength, it would be too late.”

“So that’s it then?” He said. “We just let them slither back into the dark until they’ve decided that it’s time to start another war?”

He was tired, it was true. There was a part of him that wanted to settle down, marry Byleth, and move on with his life. But there’s a greater part of him that hates that idea. That loathes the thought of sitting back and letting the rest of his life pass him by. He may not allow his ghosts to rule his life anymore, but their calls for vengeance still fuel the boar that Dimitri pretends he’s overcome.

“No,” Byleth said, and Dimitri hated how much that relieved him. “Dimitri, do you trust me?”

He blinked, surprised. “Of course I do.”

“Then there’s something you should know.”

And she told him everything. About the Goddess living in her head, about the time travel. About how she’d lived this war, over and over trying and failing to save everyone.

“How many times?” He asked.

“I don’t know,” she said. “Too many to count. I chose Edelgard first, because she reminded me of myself. But when I found out she was the Flame Emperor I turned my back on her. When I tried again, I joined her, hoping I could minimize the damage and talk some sense into her. That failed too. I joined the Golden Deer next, hoping that maybe the outside perspective would help me stop everything. I tried each of those options, over and over again.” She shook her head. “Nothing I did helped. This is the first time I ever joined the Blue Lions.”

“We were that unappealing to you?” He asked, trying to ignore the pang of hurt. He could see why she would pick Claude and Edelgard over him, of course. But the rest of the Blue Lions didn’t deserve to be ignored, to be passed over.

“My second attempt, I helped Edelgard kill every one of the Blue Lions,” she said, her face expressionless. “I always managed to find a way to spare Claude and his classmates, but there was no saving you. Without fail, I always wound up with your blood on my hands. How could I face you, knowing that once upon a time it was my sword that ended your life?”

“Why tell me this now?” He asked. “Are you going to go back again?”

“No,” she said. “I’ve done this over and over again. Sothis has warned me that some things can’t be changed when I go back in time. I always lose my father. I always lose five years. I always lose too many of my students. I have the power to go back in time, but I don’t have the power to change anything. Not really.”

Byleth had never been the most emotional. But now, Dimitri could hear the way her voice wavered. He saw the way her hands shook. If he himself had nightmares of the horrors this war has inflicted on him, how could she stand seeing those she cared about die over and over again?

He placed a hand on her shoulder, trying to be a source of comfort despite knowing from personal experience that it wouldn’t be nearly enough.

“I want to send you back,” she eventually said.

“What?” Dimitri blanched. “I don’t understand.”

“I can’t change things,” she said. “I don’t have that much influence. Not to mention that by nature of my appointment at the monastery, I was forced to pick sides from the very beginning. I can’t do it on my own, not anymore. I need help, Dimitri.”

“Why me?” He couldn’t help but ask. “Why not Claude, or Seteth? Or anyone else? You know better than anyone what lurks beneath the surface. I’m more beast than man, Byleth.”

“You say that,” she said, looking up at him with a fierce expression, as if daring him to argue with her, “but I don’t think it’s true. Your heart bleeds kindness, Dimitri. You love harder than anyone I have ever met.”

“Kindness doesn’t win wars,” Dimitri said.

“I don’t want to win a war,” Byleth said. “I’m tired of winning wars. I want to stop one from starting. And I know that, in the end, you’re the only one that I can trust to actually save her. Yes, Seteth is a strong ally, and Claude is probably one of the smartest people I’ve ever met, but neither of them would be willing to sacrifice the world for the tiny chance that they could save her.”

Dimitri wondered, for a moment, what Byleth had left out of her explanations. After all, she had lived entire lifetimes trying to find a way to save Edelgard when it would have been simpler to just kill her. In the grand scheme of things, he could see the benefit. Without her, those who slither in the dark would have to take one step further into the light. And yet, time and time again Byleth relived a war, desperate to save everyone and never able to do it.

So it seems like he and Byleth have the same weakness. They both would rather see the world burn than lose anyone they loved.

“Okay,” Dimitri said. “But if you want me to be able to do this, then you’ll have to tell me everything that happens. No skipping on the details.”

“Of course,” Byleth said. “And the past version of myself should be helpful as well. That version of me has lived all the lifetimes except this one.”

This one, where he and the professor had grown close. Where they had stood at the top of the goddess tower, each trying to propose before the other could beat them to it.

Dimitri swallowed, trying to shove his feelings down. It didn’t matter, if that Byleth didn’t love him. It didn’t matter if that Byleth never grew to love him. Because, in the end, Dimitri would gladly place his happiness on a sacrificial altar to burn to ensure hers. And, in the end, if stopping this war cost him more than his life, then it was a risk he was more than willing to take.

***

“I’m going to die?” Dimitri asked. He wasn’t afraid of death, but he needed to make sure to fix things before he died if it really was inevitable.

“It’s why I’ve never sent anyone back before,” Byleth explained. “The Goddess’s power can be a lot, and even just the residue in your system could be enough to kill you. I’d give you a year after your arrival, and that’s being generous.”

A year. He could make that work. He really just needed to last until the Battle at Garreg Mach. If he can stop Byleth from disappearing for five years that would change everything. He would happily give his life for this.

“Hey,” she flicked him in the forehead. “Stop that.”

“Stop what?”

“Thinking about sacrificing yourself. I’m not just going to let you die. I have a plan.” She leaned back against the wall, brushing her hair out of her face. “Well…it’s less of a plan and more of a theory. Do you remember the Holy Tomb?”

Of course he did. It haunted him, facing the Flame Emperor only to find out that it had been El, the last piece of living family he had left. Every moment of that day was etched in his mind for all of eternity.

But instead of saying all that, Dimitri just nodded.

“If we can get you to sit on the throne before I merge with Sothis, I think that we can remove her power from you.” Byleth closed her eyes. Dimitri wondered if she was searching for Sothis’s consciousness, something she’d never quite broken the habit of doing after the encounter with Kronya and Solon.

“And how, exactly, do you propose we do that?” Dimitri asked. “I doubt Rhea will be holding tours down there any time soon.”

“We can break in if all else fails, though that’s mostly as a last resort. I don’t want to bring the wrath of the entire church down on us.” Byleth frowned, looking contemplative. “There’s one more thing.”

“What?”

“When you go back, you'll have a part of Sothis’s power in you. That’s what’s going to be killing you.” She kicked at the ground awkwardly. “I have no idea how the power will manifest in you. It could do just about anything. It allows me to turn back the hands of time.”

Dimitri suddenly thought of a story, a legend passed down in Faerghus. There had been stories of nobles blessed by the goddess with visions just before a calamity occurred in Fodlan. The Oracles. He wondered if something like this had happened before. If the Goddess had tried to intervene in whatever way she was able to, but it had never been enough.

What made him think that he would be any different?

Chapter Text

Dimitri didn’t know when, exactly, Byleth had intended to send him to. She had mentioned that she struggled to go back much further than when Sothis awakened in her, maybe a few weeks further at most. So he wasn’t surprised that he woke up to the ceiling of his room at the monastery, his head pounding so bad he had to close his eyes to stop himself from throwing up.

The sun hadn’t risen quite yet, so it was unlikely that anyone else would be wandering around. Dimitri knew he wouldn’t be getting any sleep any time soon, so he may as well get his bearings. Besides, there was no time to waste. Whatever moon it may be, whatever year it was, he knew time was short.

He needed to make a plan.

This led to him sitting in his room, a candle burning bright as he scribbled on a piece of paper words that would appear to anyone else completely incomprehensible due to his handwriting alone. Based on his notes, it seems that he was still rather new to the monastery. He, Claude, and Edelgard would meet Byleth in about two months, right before the mock battle. That gave him two months to set the groundwork in place for Byleth.

But where to start? Should he approach Edelgard? But doing so could cause her to get defensive. And he hasn’t had many conversations with Claude yet, so he doesn’t have his trust. Should he talk to Dedue? Except, knowing Dedue, he would do anything to protect Dimitri, even if it meant getting rid of Edelgard. No, he can’t start with any of them.

What he needed was someone with connections. Someone that was smart enough to know that Dimitri was telling the truth but cynical enough not to let him get away with everything. Someone that Dimitri knows is a good person, even if that person may not agree. Someone that could sneak around easily without anyone noticing anything different.

His feet were already carrying him to Abyss before he truly realized what he was looking for. Besides, the dim lights of Abyss would be much kinder on his steadily worsening headache. Despite the early hour, there were already people wandering around Abyss. That wasn’t a surprise, many people in Abyss grew to be nocturnal without the sun to guide them.

He got a few confused and suspicious looks when he wandered in, but no one was openly hostile. Then again, Aelfric hadn’t yet started his attacks that led to their original suspicion.

He was still, however, an intruder.

“Hey there,” a familiar, if young, voice greeted. “Color me intrigued. What brings the crown prince of Faerghus down to Abyss?”

Dimitri turned to find the familiar purple haired house leader. “Curiosity, for one,” He said. “But more importantly, there’s something I need to talk to you about, Yuri Leclerc.”

Dimitri saw the moment that Yuri’s guard went up, and he sighed. If there was one thing he learned from Byleth when it came to changing the future, it was that it was impossible to do anything alone. Yuri may not believe him at first, but if Dimitri was honest, then Yuri could turn into one of his greatest allies.

***

Yuri took him to one of the more private classrooms and gave him a look that Dimitri recognized as his “make this worth my while or I’ll gut you” look. Was it weird that a part of him was happy to see it? There are some things that don’t change over the course of five years.

“You have to promise to let me finish before you decide whether or not to stab me,” Dimitri said.

“I don’t make a habit of stabbing people who don’t deserve it,” Yuri said, and Dimitri could tell he was getting impatient.

“Well I’m about to tell you that I’m from the future, and in less than a year the entirety of Fodlan will be at war.” Dimitri watched the way Yuri processed his words, the way the other boy who was only a few years older than him seemed to be at war with himself on whether or not to believe his words.

“Explain,” he said flatly, his hand brushing by his hip as if to make sure his sword was within reach. “What the hell do you take me for? Some kind of idiot?”

“Like I said, let me finish before you start trying to stab me,” Dimitri said. “I’m here to warn you and hopefully get your help to stop all this from happening.”

“Start from the beginning,” Yuri said. “And when you're done, I’ll decide what to do with you.”

***

By the time Dimitri was done with his explanation, he was sure that the sun had not only risen, but that Dedue had likely noted his absence at breakfast. But Yuri was staring at him with a contemplative look that Dimitri was sure was a good sign.

“Either you’re crazy,” Yuri said. “Or you’re telling the truth. Either way, it’s dangerous.”

“So are you going to kill me?” Dimitri asked.

“You made the decision to trust me with this,” Yuri said, leaning against the wall. “I can appreciate that. So for right now, I’ll make the decision to trust you back. But that trust can be broken at any time.” A brief, puzzled look appeared on his face, gone so fast that had Dimitri not known Yuri as well as he did, he would have missed it. “Why did you come to me with this first?”

“Because you’re smart enough to know that I’m telling the truth,” Dimitri said. “But you’ll have no problems telling me if I’m losing sight of the goal. You have connections and you can sneak around easier than I can.”

“I could just go and kill Edelgard. I’ve killed people before for much less than what she’s going to do,” Yuri mused. “You had to expect me to think so.”

“You like to be in control,” Dimitri said. “More so than anyone else I know. If we kill Edelgard, all our knowledge of what’s to come goes to waste. She’s a puppet, in a way. We need to work in smaller ways. That’s your specialty.”

Yuri grinned. “So you want someone who likes pulling the strings, who’s willing to let some bad things happen so that we’re better prepared for things that are worse?”

“Exactly.”

“You know, your highness,” Yuri’s eyes gleamed, “I think we’re going to get along just fine.”

***

Yuri helped him sneak back into the monastery without being seen, though he was a few minutes late to class. He tried to sneak in, though the moment he entered the room there were multiple exclamations of surprise. Thankfully, his headache had ebbed enough that their shouts didn’t make him want to cry. Dedue was already on his feet walking towards him. Felix looked furious, though Dimitri wasn't sure if it was because he was worried or because he had gotten his hopes up. He should talk to him at some point. If there’s one good thing about losing control of himself for five years, it was that Dimitri understood the Boar much better than before. Hopefully, that side of him would never come out again.

Even now, thinking about it, he could feel the boar in the back of his mind, just waiting for the right moment to wrest away control to wreak havoc.

“Your Highness!” Dedue stopped in front of him, pausing to give him a look over. He looked worried. For a moment, Dimitri was looking at  the Dedue from a year from now, rescuing a version of himself that was doomed to die.

Dimitri always wondered if there was something he could have done that may have prevented Dedue’s death. If there was a way, he’d find it. But if he spent too much time worrying about what ifs then he’d never make any progress. He needed to forget the what ifs and start with action.

“Where have you been?” Ingrid asked storming up to him. “We thought something had happened to you!”

“We had hoped,” Felix muttered, a scowl etched on his face. Sylvain elbowed him in the ribs for his comment but he didn’t look deterred.

“Sorry,” he muttered. “I just lost track of time.”

“That doesn’t explain where you were!” Ingrid exclaimed. “We looked for you all over the monastery!”

“I wasn’t in the monastery,” Dimitri said without thinking, then flushed when he realized what that sounded like. “Don’t we have class to get to?”

“Sneaking out of the monastery huh?” Sylvain teased, looking absolutely elated. “And what were you doing out in the town so early all by yourself. Unless, of course, you weren’t by yourself?”

Dimitri sighed, but didn’t deny it. He was hoping to sneak out to Abyss pretty often. If they thought he was meeting up with a girl then they’re less likely to try and push, right? “I’m done talking about this,” he said instead. Multiple members of his house continued to shoot questions at him, but he let himself drop into a chair and turned his attention to their teacher who was hopelessly trying to reign the class in.

He and Yuri had talked long and hard about how Dimitri should approach the other two house leaders. While Dimitri wasn’t eager to deceive Claude and Edelgard, he knows they don’t trust him enough to believe the truth. Besides, does it really count as deception if he merely allows them to draw his own conclusions?

This may be the perfect time to get answers to some of his questions.

***

He managed to track Edelgard down in the dining hall during dinner the next day. It had been difficult to convince Dedue not to follow, his retainer had been hovering more than usual considering Dimitri’s disappearing act this morning, but Dimitri had eventually managed to convince him that he would be fine on his own.

“Dimitri.” Edelgard nodded to him in greeting. “How are you?”

“I’m doing well,” he said, drinking in the sight of her. She looked much less tired now than she did five years from now. What kind of toll had the war taken on her? “I was wondering if I could speak to you about something in private.”

“Of course,” she said, turning to dismiss Hubert, who gave Dimitri a glare that may once have left him feeling cold, though now only made him smile ruefully.

“You caused quite the ruckus this morning,” Edelgard said. “I thought some of your friends may have been ready to start a war.”

“I simply didn’t attend breakfast,” Dimitri sighed, running a hand through his hair. He’d begun tying it back in the future, and he was starting to miss it. It seemed his bangs were always brushing his eyes. He’d have to see if he could find something to pull it back within his room, otherwise he’d have to sneak out into town to get something. He definitely couldn’t fight like this. “But they’ve always been overprotective.” He followed her out of the dining room as they headed towards their dormitories. The hallways were empty as most of the monastery was still either eating or socializing in the dining hall.

“What was it you wanted to discuss with me?” She asked. Dimitri took a deep breath and tried to make himself seem vulnerable. It wasn’t hard. In the first timeline he’d often thought about having this conversation with Edelgard hundreds of times, but he always chickened out. After all, how do you ask someone why they gave up on you?

“I just wanted to know if I did something wrong,” Dimitri said, and Edelgard blinked, completely confused. “Was it something I did? Or was it your uncle?”

“What are you talking about?” She asked.

Dimitri pulled out his best hurt face. Which also wasn’t hard, considering all he had to do was think about the future and the war that they fought against each other. “Did it really mean so little to you? You were family, El.”

“Family?” She asked. “Dimitri, what are you talking about?”

But now that he had finally found the opportunity to talk about it, it was like he couldn’t stop. The words just kept coming. “I mean, sure a year isn’t a long time, and I know we were kids, but your friendship meant everything to me! And I thought it meant everything to you too! And then you went back to Adrestia and you returned all my letters unopened and I never heard from you until we got to the monastery and you just acted like I was a stranger!”

“Dimitri!” Edelgard reached forward and stopped him. “Stop.”

“Sorry,” he said, pushing his hair out of his eyes again. “You don’t have to tell me. I was just wondering. Did I do something wrong?”

Of course, he already knows the answer to that question. He allowed her to go back to Adrestia. And, when he didn’t hear from her, he didn’t storm the palace and demand to see her. And instead, he allowed her to believe that she was alone and didn’t have anyone that wanted to help her.

But with the way she was looking at him now, with wide eyes that reminded him that this Edelgard was still a young girl who was in over her head and felt like the only people who were willing to help her were the people that had tortured her and killed her siblings. She didn’t say anything for a long time.

“El?” He pressed.

“You were the boy with the dagger, weren’t you?” She asked. He nodded. “I had forgotten. After I left, a lot happened.” Her hand reached as if to brush against her hair, but she stopped herself. “I forgot a lot of things that made me happy.”

“What happened?” he asked. He knew bits and pieces, that those who slither in the dark had hurt her and her family and implanted a second crest into her. Byleth only had time to tell him so much before she sent him back. And there were probably plenty of things she’d just forgotten to mention. But she had told him that those who slither in the dark had given Edelgard the crest of flames.

“Maybe I’ll tell you another time,” she said, but when she looked at him, for the first time since he’d said goodbye to her in Fhirdiad all those years ago he saw just a bit of light in her eyes. “But for now, would you tell me about our time together? The more you say, the more I seem to remember.”

Dimitri felt a smile overtake his face. The first genuine smile he had worn in a very long time.

***

“So how did it go?”

“Son of a bitch!” Dimitri whirled around to find Yuri sitting casually at his desk.

“Hey, watch what you say about my mom.” Despite his words, his tone remained amicable and he was smiling. “Well? Did you get through to her?”

“I think so,” Dimitri said. “At the very least, I rekindled our friendship. Once she trusts me then it’ll be easier to change her mind.”

“Good.” Yuri nodded. “You keep doing things on your end, and I’ll keep an eye on the passageways around the monastery.”

“Thank you,” Dimitri said, suddenly feeling a ball of gratitude well up in his chest. “I don’t know what I would have done if I’d had to face all this alone.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Yuri waved his hand dismissively. “You’re grateful now, we’ll see how long that lasts. I can be quite the nag, I’ve heard.”

“Have you confronted Aelfric yet?” Dimitri asked.

Yuri scowled. “Yeah, he wasn’t happy about that. We’ve done nothing but argue all day. It’s one of the reasons I decided to bless you with my presence. He was getting annoying.”

The sun had long since gone down, and Dimitri’s room wasn’t particularly well lit, but he still could swear there’s a part of Yuri’s face that’s marked darker than the rest.

“Annoying, huh?” Dimitri asked. “Does he already have your mom hostage?”

“Yeah.” Yuri leaned back with a sigh. “But if what you said is true, then it might be better to push back against him earlier. At the very least, if I don’t seem loyal to him then maybe Balthus, Hapi, and Constance won’t trust him nearly as much.”

“Just be careful,” Dimitri said. “Aelfric isn’t just dangerous, he’s crazy. That makes him unpredictable.”

“Yeah, whatever,” Yuri said. “No need to mother hen me, Your Highness. I can take care of myself.”

Yuri stayed for another couple hours before going back down to Abyss and they further discussed their plans for the future. Already, Dimitri was glad that he’d asked for Yuri’s help. The burden he was carrying felt a lot lighter when he had someone to talk about it with.

***

Step Two of Dimitri and Yuri’s plan to stop the war from happening was dependent upon Edelgard. Hopefully, since it was so early into their time here at Garreg Mach, she would be more receptive to changing her plans. Of course, it was also dependent on her sharing said plans with Dimitri. And it had already been two weeks and she was no closer to telling him what her plans were.

“We can’t wait forever,” Dimitri said, accepting the plate of food Yuri shoved into his hands.

“What if you just confronted her with what you knew?” Yuri asked, sitting across from him. “She can’t exactly deny it.”

“But then she’d ask how I knew, if Hubert even let me get that far before killing me,” Dimitri pointed out.

“Say you get visions from the Goddess or something. It was her power that sent you back, right? So technically it’s not wrong. Aren’t there people that did that? Oracles or whatever? Don’t they also tend to die early? It’s the perfect cover.”

Dimitri poked at his food. “I guess.”

Yuri frowned at him. “I’m not letting you out of here until you've eaten that.”

Dimitri rolled his eyes. “Yes, because my friends would be willing to let you hold me hostage down here in Abyss until I’ve finished my vegetables.”

“They don’t know where you are.” Yuri shrugged. “Besides, I can tell you haven’t been eating lately. Maybe that’s a way you can get Edelgard to trust you. Try sharing a meal with her sometime. Make an effort to spend time with her.”

“You’re just saying that because you want me to eat more and take time to relax,” Dimitri said. “Who’s the mother hen now?”

Yuri shoved food in his mouth instead of giving Dimitri a response, gesturing to Dimitri’s own plate. “Eat.”

Dimitri obliged, taking the time to think. “Maybe you’re right. I’ve been so focused on training that I haven’t spent very much time with her. I could see if she’d like to do something together to make up for lost time?”

“There you go. Try that. And if that doesn’t work, just confront her.” Yuri grinned. “If you go for that option, though, wait for me. I want to see that.”

***

Edelgard actually accepted his offer to join him for a meal, much to his surprise. He made sure to pick her favorite, considering that taste never mattered to him anyways.

“You know, people are going to talk,” she said, sitting down with him.

“Let them talk,” Dimitri said. “It’s none of their business. I’ve never cared much for what people thought of me.”

“You can’t honestly say that you don’t care at all about the way people see you,” Edelgard said.

“I only care about how those I care about see me,” Dimitri said. “You, Sylvain, Ingrid, you’re all my friends. But as for strangers, if they decide to judge me before getting to know me, then that’s their decision.”

She smiled wryly. “I can’t decide if that’s a good or bad thing. After all, if you’re going to rule one day, you’ll have to care about how the nobles see you.”

Dimitri frowned. “I suppose. Though, I’ve never been happy with the way Faerghus is run. There’s far too much emphasis on status and crests. There are so many people that are looked over simply because of their blood when their merit should be what we judge them by.”

It was something he’d decided in the future. He didn’t want to run Fodlan the way his ancestors had. He wanted to create a world where people could be happy no matter their status, no matter the blood in their veins. Too often, people with crests were treated like valuable objects. He’d seen it with Sylvain and Ingrid. And even more often, people without crests were thrown aside.

“You don’t like Fodlan as it is?” Edelgard asked. Dimitri had never known exactly what her motivations had been, what society she’d wanted to create so bad she was willing to go to war for it, but he wanted to. He knew that she valued strength above all else, but what drove her to that point? He wanted to know what was so important to her that thousands of people had to die to see it come to fruition.

“That may be a bit radical, but it’s true,” Dimitri said with a smile. “I think this world puts far too much value into a person’s blood. Don’t you think it would be more important to judge a person based on their abilities and their accomplishments rather than whether or not they have a crest?”

“Yes.” Edelgard was looking at him, a mixture of emotions flashing across her face. Suspicion, briefly, followed by a brief glimmer of hope. “Yes, I do. Can I talk to you about something later? When there’s less people around?”

“Of course,” Dimitri said. “You could join me in my room for tea?” While Dimitri had never been fond of tea, Byleth had taught him how to brew a few blends well. It was a nice way to invite people to chat.

“That would be perfect,” she said. “Until then, maybe we could discuss less volatile subject matter. Tell me, do you still have two left feet or have you finally managed to rectify that?”

Dimitri’s short burst of laughter was emboldened by the joy that sentence brought. She really was starting to remember. Maybe his old friend wasn’t as far gone as he’d originally feared.

***

Finding out about the experimentation she’d undergone didn’t come as a surprise to him, but he was still filled with a burst of anger as she gave him the details of what those who slither in the dark had done to her. There was so much that Byleth hadn’t told him. Why didn’t she tell him? What else did she leave out from her explanation? Damnit, he really needed this time period’s version of Byleth to get here already. He had questions! Such as where the Agarthans’ hideout is. For the first time since Byleth had used the Goddess’s power to send him back, he felt the boar rise up in him with a vengeance.

Kill them , it whispered. Make them pay .

He took a deep breath, shoving the boar back. He wasn’t going to let it come out. Not when there was nothing to direct it at. He forced his shaking hands into fists and pushed the boar away with everything he had. It was still there, pacing in the back of his mind, but he had it under control.

“El, that’s horrible,” he choked out. He wanted to pull her into a hug, but stopped himself. With how tense he was, he was afraid to touch anything for fear of breaking it. “And they’re still in Adrestia, pulling the strings?”

She looked away. “I need them, Dimitri. They’re going to help me destroy the church.”

“Destroy the church?” He asked. “What are you talking about?”

“They’re the ones that created the society that allowed this to happen,” she said. “They put all this value into crests and created a world where that’s what’s important. They’re run by monsters.”

“But El,” Dimitri took a moment to think over what he needed to say. This moment was important, “that would start a war.”

“I know,” she said, finally looking back at him. She looked determined. “But if that’s what it takes, then it’s what I’ll do.”

He paused for a moment. “El, you’re the last family I have. I’d do anything for you. But can we try to look for other options? Maybe some that won’t cause unnecessary bloodshed?”

“Don’t you understand, Dimitri? There are no other options.” She sighed. “That’s why I need those who slither in the dark. And once I’ve won, I can turn my attention to them.”

“After a war?” He asked. “Won’t you be more vulnerable then? What if we pushed the church to reform instead? We have connections here, at the monastery. We can make changes. If we get the Leicester Alliance involved, the church won’t be able to stand against us.”

“How would we even get the Alliance involved?” She asked.

“Claude doesn’t trust easily, but I bet that he’d be willing to make an effort to change the way Fodlan is run. He doesn’t strike me as the conventional type.” She still looked skeptical so he pressed. “Come on El, wouldn’t it be better to try than to keep doing whatever they want you to?”

She finally seemed to give in. “Fine. We can try. But until we’re successful Adrestia will continue its preparations for war.”

“With the two of us both pushing for reforms people will have to either adjust or kill us,” he said. “If we get Claude’s help, then anyone who tries to stand against us will fail.” He rubbed his face, taking a moment to think. While he had wanted El to tell him this, a part of him wondered why she trusted him with this so quickly. But then he thought about the look on her face when she remembered him, when she realized that he cared about her.

Besides Hubert, is there anyone that cares enough about Edelgard to look into the little things? Who’s making sure she’s eating? Who asks how she’s doing? Was Dimitri the first person in years to reach out and talk to her with no ulterior motives? Yes, Hubert was her constant companion, but he also doesn’t push her, doesn’t stand up to her.

How lonely was she? How much did the professor really have to push to gain her trust? It’s no wonder she opened up so quickly.

And Dimitri would do everything in his power to make sure that this wasn’t in vain. El trusted him, and he was going to live up to the faith she placed in him.

***

In the end, Dimitri asked Edelgard to approach Claude. He knew that Claude had never liked him much, likely because of the reputation Faerghus retained after Duscur. Faerghus was known for disliking outsiders, and, knowing what he did, it made sense that Claude would be wary of him. Not to mention that Dimitri had a reputation for being an uptight rule follower. Meanwhile, Edelgard was known to dislike ceremony. Dimitri suspected Claude would be more likely to suspect a desire for change from her than Dimitri.

They’d agreed to meet to discuss their plans in an empty classroom after dinner. Once again, Dimitri had to lose Dedue in order to sneak away. His retainer was definitely becoming suspicious of his actions recently. Dimitri had never had to put this much effort into avoiding him in this timeline.

He’d borrowed a book on the history of Fodlan from the library in Abyss and was currently trying to figure out where those who slither in the dark may have gotten involved. He was leaning back, his feet propped up on the desk in front of him, when it struck him.

If those who slither in the dark were involved in the Empire, was it possible they’d infiltrated the Alliance? Or the Kingdom? It would explain the problems he ran into when the war started, what with the revolt and nearly being killed. Had Dedue not been there and decided to take his place…

Was it possible that Cornelia was actually a spy? She’d been the one in charge of everything, not to mention those horrible beasts they’d had to fight in order to take back Arianrhod. She’d also disappeared for a while, just like Thomas and Monica. She’s likely a spy in disguise.

Lysithea had white hair, just like Edelgard. Had those who slither in the dark infiltrated the Leicester Alliance through House Ordelia? Was Lysithea another victim just like Edelgard? Would Claude know about it? Does Byleth? He’s starting to wonder how much got left out of the quick explanation she gave him before sending him back. He certainly hasn’t lived a lifetime getting to know the Golden Deer and the Black Eagles. He could look into it now, but it probably isn’t completely time sensitive, so maybe he could wait and ask Byleth when she gets here in six weeks.

“What’s he doing here?” Claude’s voice brought him out of his musings and Dimitri internally cursed. He’d been so lost in thought he missed them entering. He’d once again woken up with a migraine this morning. It was odd, he’d never struggled with headaches in the past. Not even his struggles with the Boar had given him a migraine. But he’d been getting steadily worse headaches ever since waking up in his bed in the monastery. Maybe it was a side effect of coming back?

“He’s a part of this too,” Edelgard said, drawing him out of his head. “Bringing you in was his idea.”

“It was?” Dimitri can honestly say that he’s never heard Claude sound this shocked in his entire life. He was staring at Dimitri with something unreadable on his face. Curiosity perhaps?

“You seem like the kind of person that wouldn’t mind changing the way things are run,” Dimitri said, shrugging and putting the book down. Claude’s eyes glanced down to it and they widened.

“Where did you get that?” He asked, loudly enough that Dimitri had to stop himself from wincing. “That book is banned from the library!”

It was? That explains why it’s in Abyss. It’s the only book he’s managed to find so far that even references those who slither in the dark. Considering how little they’re in most history books, it’s likely that Rhea and Seteth decided to keep knowledge of them to a minimum.

“I got it from a friend,” he said, which was true, for the most part. Yuri was the one who told him he could take books from the Abyss library. Claude gave him another look he couldn’t decipher, before choosing to sit down.

“So what are we even deciding? All Edelgard said was that she wanted to talk about working together to change Fodlan.”

“That’s pretty much it.” Dimitri shrugged. “El and I both agree that the focus on crests is not only unnecessary, but detrimental to society. We want to restructure it so that crests aren’t what’s most important.”

“The importance of crests is kind of a part of the church doctrine,” Claude pointed out.

“There are a lot of points of church doctrine that should be disputed,” Dimitri said. “This is one of them. Besides, don’t you think it’s weird that it’s called the Church of Seiros and not the Church of Sothis?”

“Aren’t you from the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus? I can see the princess disagreeing with the church, but you?”

Dimitri smiled wryly. “Should I be offended that you see the Kingdom of Fargheus as one dimensional?”

Claude shrugged. “If the shoe fits?”

Dimitri sat up with a scowl, irritation spiking and opening his mouth to snap back, but Edelgard interrupted.

“Can we please be civil?” She asked. “If we want to start a coup before we graduate then we have work to do.”

Dimitri let his mouth fall shut with a click. She was right. If he wanted Claude to trust him, he couldn’t pick fights with him, no matter how annoying he tried to be.

He missed Byleth. Six weeks couldn’t pass by fast enough.

Chapter Text

Dimitri rubbed his eyes, feeling as though all he wanted to do was crawl into bed and sleep until his head stopped hurting. It had been spiking painfully since coming back in time, and he’s starting to wonder if there was something wrong with his brain. Perhaps he wouldn’t even make it a year, at this rate. Constant migraines can’t be healthy for people. He’d stayed far too late in the library doing research, and staring at the small words in the light of his dimming candle only served to make his head hurt worse.

Yuri was sitting on his bed when he finally tumbled through his door. “You look like shit.”

“I try,” Dimitri said dryly. “What’s up?”

“The good news is that Constance, Balthus, and Hapi have decided that Aelfric is a piece of shit,” Yuri said. “The bad news is that Aelfric blamed me for it. Which is fair, considering it was definitely my fault, but it sucks that I can’t fight back without risking him having my mom murdered.”

“Couldn’t you just have Balthus or Hapi heal you?” Dimitri asked.

Yuri gave him a quizzical look. “Hapi doesn’t know any healing magic. Where did you…” He trailed off, rubbing at his eyes. “That’s a future thing, isn’t it?”

Dimitri hadn’t realized that it was only the professor’s encouragement that helped Hapi learn to heal. Wasn’t her crest similar to Mercedes?

“What about Balthus?” He asked.

“Balthus barely knows the heal spell and it tends to be a brute force type of healing. That’s fine with bruises, but…” Yuri winced. “He broke my wrist. I need someone who knows Recover or maybe a concoction.” Dimitri frowned. He didn’t know anyone who knew Recover right now. But Mercedes was adept enough with her healing spells that she may be able to help.

“I don’t have a concoction,” Dimitri said. “But I do know someone who might be able to help.”

Mercedes’s room was on the top floor as well, which meant Dimitri should have no problem getting her help. As expected, when he knocked softly on her door she opened it, blinking blearily at him.

“Dimitri?” She asked. “What are you doing here so late?”

“I could use your help,” Dimitri said. “But please don’t ask questions.” Mercedes must be some sort of angel, because she just nodded simply and followed him back to his room.

Yuri was sitting on his bed, looking like he was ready to fall asleep. Mercedes’s mouth opened in a small gasp, but she didn’t say anything.

“His wrist is broken,” Dimitri said. “I know you haven’t learned much healing magic yet but…”

“Oh of course,” Mercedes said, walking closer to him. She inspected Yuri’s wrist for a moment before casting a healing spell on it. The tightness around Yuri’s eyes seemed to ease.

“Thank you,” Dimitri said. “And thank you for not asking questions.”

“It’s not a problem Dimitri, I understand,” Mercedes said. “With your crest it makes sense to sometimes lose control, especially in moments of passion.”

Dimitri’s face felt hot and Yuri started laughing, the little jerk. “She’s got you figured out, doesn’t she?” He teased.

Dimitri’s classmates were still under the impression that he was sneaking around with a secret lover. He supposed it was the most likely conclusion to draw, even if just the thought made Dimitri feel like he was on fire.

“Thank you again,” he said, trying to curb the embarrassment he was feeling. “I’ll see you in class tomorrow.” Yuri’s laughter continued until she was probably back in her own room. “You’re going to wake people up.”

“Oh please,” Yuri said. “Isn’t Sylvain next door to you? He deserves it. Thanks for the help, I should get back.”

“I don’t like it,” Dimitri scowled. “Aelfric knows you won’t leave or fight back so long as he’s threatening your mom. He’ll probably use you as leverage against the other Ashen Wolves to stop them from leaving, especially since they don’t exactly have anywhere to go. This is going to become something toxic quickly.”

“But it’ll make him desperate,” Yuri said.

“Desperate people lash out,” Dimitri said.

“They’re also more likely to make mistakes,” Yuri said. Dimitri grimaced. “Trust me on this, your highness, I have this under control.”

“Call me Dimitri,” he said. “I trust you, even if you are antagonizing a psychopath that has leverage over you.”

***

Mercedes couldn’t seem to look at him the next day without giggling. He just let his head drop to the table so he could hide his blush. This only seemed to increase her hilarity.

***

Slowly, but surely, Dimitri could feel things starting to change. Somehow, him, Claude, and Edelgard working together seemed to open up a can of worms. Things were no longer so divided. Earlier today he'd seen Annette and Lysithea leading a study group for a group of mages. Claude himself had been giving Ashe and Bernadetta pointers the other day.

As for Abyss, Dimitri has been trying to sneak down at least once a week to check in on everything. Although seemingly just as often Dimitri finds Yuri beaten to hell in his room in the middle of the night.

"I have everything under control," Yuri tried to assure him, though it's undermined slightly by the harsh bruises decorating his face. 

“What do the other Ashen Wolves have to say about this?” He asked.

“They’re not happy,” he said. “I think they’ve figured out that Aelfric has some sort of leverage over me, because they keep trying to convince me to leave.”

“That’s because you’re the only person that might actually have somewhere to go,” Dimitri said. “And Aelfric knows this. The bastard actually has some brains. He also knows that if you won’t leave, then neither will they.”

“He definitely hates me more than everyone else,” Yuri said. “Now that the others are starting to see him for what he is, he's becoming more desperate. He’s also becoming more of an asshole.”

“Do you want me to get Mercedes?” Dimitri asked. “How bad did he hurt you this time?”

“I’m alright,” he said. “It’s nothing Balthus can’t fix. Let her sleep.”

“Not that I’m not happy to see you,” Dimitri said. “But if you’re having Balthus heal you, what are you doing in my bed?”

Yuri grinned. “How many people can say they’ve been bedded by the Crown Prince of Fargheus?” Dimitri, well used to Yuri’s antics at this point, merely raised an eyebrow. “Aelfric is on the war path right now,” he said. “It’s…bad. I managed to convince Balthus, Constance, and Hapi to hide deeper in Abyss until he’s calmed down, but they really don’t have anywhere else to go.”

“They can come here,” Dimitri said. “My room is small, but if they don’t mind they’re more than welcome to spend the night.”

“Are you sure?” It was weird to see anything but confidence on Yuri’s face. “People would talk.”

“Let them talk,” Dimitri said. “If all else fails, I can claim to be taking after my uncle.”

“The notorious womanizer?” Yuri asked dryly. “You?”

“Well I am childhood friends with Sylvain.” Yuri laughed, and it was the happiest Dimitri had seen him in a while. There seemed to be a weight that was off his shoulders. “Alright. But only until Aelfric has calmed down a bit.”

“They can always come back,” Dimitri said. “Anytime things feel too dangerous. Promise me you’ll let me help.”

“Yeah all right,” Yuri said. “You’re such a mother hen.”

“Last time we were in Abyss you held me hostage until I finished my vegetables.”

“How do you expect to stop a war if you don’t eat healthy?”

Dimitri smiled, letting himself be drawn into the familiar argument. Yes, things were under control.

***

Dimitri’s room was a little crowded with the four Ashen Wolves hiding away in it, but he found he didn’t mind. After all, having friends nearby was always a comfort and rather helpful in keeping the nightmares at bay. Yuri returned back to Abyss to see how Aelfric was doing right before dawn, returning slightly worse for wear. It took a little over a day for things to calm down.

“You do realize that several people saw us sneak in here, right?” Hapi asked. “Everyone’s going to think you have a revolving door of lovers.”

Dimitri shrugged. “I wasn’t going to just let you get hurt. I was the one that helped Yuri discover Aelfric’s true intentions, I feel responsible for the turn this has taken. Besides, I know the truth and that’s all that matters.”

“Huh,” Hapi said, a small smile gracing her face. “You’re a good guy Didi.”

Dimitri smiled. “All of you are welcome to come back if you ever want to,” he said. Sure, he knew future versions of them, but these people were different. He still enjoyed spending time with them, of course. “I’d like to think that we’re friends.”

“The prince of Fargheus wants to befriend a bunch of street rats?” Balthus asked. “Never saw that coming.”

What is with people thinking he’s some kind of classist, racist snob? His best friend is a commoner from Duscur, that should speak for itself. Then again, he’d met plenty of people who excused their racism with the phrase “I have friends from Sreng” so maybe it doesn’t extend as far as he thought. If only he could push more political reform to increase foreign relations. Unfortunately, with his uncle acting as regent, Dimitri simply doesn’t have the power for it.

He was musing to himself as he walked towards breakfast, aware that his visitors would be gone by the time he returned to his room that night.

“Dimitri, Dimitri, Dimitri,” Sylvian said, plopping his plate next to his at breakfast. “I just heard the most fascinating rumor.”

Dimitri chose not to engage with him, shoving a spoonful of food in his mouth instead.

“The rumors are absolutely ridiculous,” Ingrid huffed, sitting on the other side of Sylvain. “It’s all anyone is talking about right now, as if they don’t have anything better to do than to spread lies about you.”

“They are lies, aren’t they?” Annette asked as she sat with them.

“What rumors?” Ashe asked.

“Everyone’s talking about how Dimitri had a bunch of women in his room last night,” Fellix said. “As if anyone would want to lie in bed with the boar.”

Mercedes was being suspiciously quiet considering she was the only person to have actually seen anyone in his bed. She was probably drawing all kinds of conclusions.

Rather than keeping his mouth shut like he really should be, Dimitri instead said, “They’re only talking about the women?”

Sylvain actually spat his water out onto the table, spraying Felix directly in the face. Judging by Felix’s face, Sylvain was going to be paying for that on the training grounds later.

Dimitri frowned, glancing around the table. “Where’s Dedue?”

“Your loyal dog is probably out defending your nonexistent honor,” Felix said, wiping Sylvain’s spit off his face.

Dimitri opened his mouth to retort only for Ashe to surprise him by snapping at Felix instead. “Don’t talk about Dedue that way!”

Felix simply rolled his eyes, but didn’t respond. Everyone else at their table simply seemed to be trying to come to terms with Dimitri’s supposed scandal.

“Wait, did you actually host an orgy in your room?” Sylvain, for some reason, looked inexplicitly hurt. “And you didn’t invite me?”

“It wasn’t an orgy,” Dimitri said. “Some friends of mine needed a place to stay, so I let them spend the night in my room until it was safe to go home.”

For a moment, Dimitri worried that his friends wouldn’t believe him. Sure, he cared little for what strangers thought, but these people in front of him were his closest friends. He couldn’t help but care what they thought. Of course, his friends knew him well enough to know that this scenario was much more likely than Dimitri sneaking multiple partners into his room in the dead of the night.

Ingrid nodded. “That makes much more sense. I’m sure that’s what Dedue is beating into people’s heads as we speak.”

Knowing Dedue it was less of a beating and more of a spirited lecture with a stare intense enough to scare anyone.

Mercedes forehead creased with worry. “Are they alright?”

“They should be for now,” Dimitri said. “I’m working on it.”

Sylvain groaned. “Of course the first chance we have to get an interesting story out of you it turns out you were just being a nice guy again. Can’t you be rebellious at least once?”

Dimitri vividly remembered his rebellious stage. It involved a lot of murder and not enough showering. He definitely didn’t plan on doing that again. “No thanks,” he said instead of voicing that. “We really should be getting to class.”

***

“Uh, you sent for me?” Dimitri shifted awkwardly in Seteth’s doorway.

“Please, take a seat,” Seteth said, gesturing towards a chair. Dimitri obliged, sitting stiffly. “I’m sure you’re aware of the rumors that have been circulating the monastery as of late. I hope I don’t need to remind you that-”

“It’s not like that!” Dimitri said quickly. “I, er, I had some friends that were in a tough spot. I just let them stay with me until it was safe for them to return home. Nothing happened!”

Seteth frowned. He must not have believed him. Then again, this version of Seteth didn’t know Dimitri, hadn’t fought alongside him.

“Dimitri,” Seteth’s voice was calm. “Why wasn’t it safe for them to return home?”

Dimitri blinked, startled by Seteth’s soft tone and worried eyes. Of course he knew that the Doctrine of the Church of Seiros condemned abuse of all forms, but he certainly wasn’t expecting Seteth’s reaction. Of course, knowing that it was a cardinal of the church perpetrating the abuse made Dimitri hesitant to tell him. Who knew what Seteth would think? After all, Abyss was an exception to many rules, and with a high ranking church member being the cause of everything, the last thing Dimitri wanted to do was make it worse by involving Seteth.

Then again, if Seteth really was going to help it could give them the authority to confront Aelfric early on. They may not even need to get the Chalice of Beginnings in order to reveal Aelfric’s true nature. He’s doing a good enough job of that himself.

Dimitri looked at Seteth and saw someone he trusted, someone that five years from now Dimitri knew could watch his back.

Dimitri needed to talk to Yuri about this. Which meant Seteth needed to let him out of his office without an interrogation.

“I lied,” Dimitri lied, trying to look properly ashamed. “I was sneaking them in. For, uh, sex reasons.”

Wow Dimitri, great job. That sounds believable. He resisted the urge to facepalm. He really wished Byleth were here, he was starting to realize how much she acted as his impulse control.

Seteth’s jaw clenched. Clearly, he didn’t believe him and wanted to press him for more information. Information that Dimitri just made it clear he wasn’t willing to give. “For safety purposes we can’t allow you to have guests in the monastery without first informing us. I understand wanting to help your friends, but please reach out to us next time.”

He really, really needed to talk to Yuri about this.

***

“Do you trust him?” Yuri asked. They were sitting in the Ashen Wolves’ classroom. Balthus, Hapi, and Constance were here as well. Aelfric was out for business, which meant things in Abyss were calm for the moment.

“I do,” Dimitri said. “Seteth may be uptight, but he has a kind heart and always seeks to help. I really do think he’d help if we brought this to his attention.”

“I don’t like it,” Hapi said with a scowl. “Isn’t he the Archbishop’s advisor? He must already know about us.”

“He probably does,” Balthus said. “But if he’s trusting the Archbishop to handle things then maybe he doesn’t know what it’s like down here.”

“Ignorance does not beget innocence,” Constance said. “Would he leave things be if the Archbishop asked him to? Is he that kind of man?”

“I won’t tell him anything if you would prefer I don’t,” Dimitri said. “I understand if you don’t trust him considering who Aelfric is. However, I promise you, he is not the kind of man that would let this stand.”

No, Dimitri didn’t think Seteth would allow this to continue. After all, he has a little sister around their age, and Dimitri knew that he tended to be overprotective over all the children of the monastery. He certainly wouldn’t let Aelfric continue to be here around his sister after he learned he was harming people in his care.

Yuri hummed, sitting on the desk. “I think that the worst that could happen would be that he ignores us,” he said. “Which would mean little. The benefits outweigh the costs.”

“It is true that it’s unlikely he could make anything worse,” Constance said. “And it will help us ascertain his true colors.”

“All right,” Hapi said with a scowl. “But if he turns out to be another church official that’s all kind smiles and evil hearts, you owe us Didi.”

“If Seteth turns out to be an asshole I’ll buy you some of the nice treats from town to compensate you for your time,” he promised. “Should I tell him now?”

“No,” Yuri said. “Aelfric isn’t even here, which means we don’t have any evidence that he’s hurting us. Wait until he gets back, then I can piss him off and-”

“Whoa hold on,” Balthus said, standing up from his chair. “Why do you get to be the one pissing him off? You’ve already taken enough beatings from him!”

“Let us take the brunt of his ire for once,” Constance said. “You’ve done enough.”

“I think you’re forgetting how much he hates me,” Yuri said. “He still blames me for turning you guys against him. All I have to do is be in the room when he gets back and it’ll piss him off. Not to mention I send my gang to screw up his plans, so he’ll be gunning for me once he gets back.”

“Of course he will be,” Hapi muttered.

“Just, er, tell me when he gets back,” Dimitri said. “And I’ll get Seteth for help.” He wished that Byleth were here. They’d be leaving to get her soon, so maybe it would work out. It would be even better if they could avoid the Chalice of Beginnings mess altogether. Dimitri really wasn’t looking forward to fighting the golems and phantoms again.

He did, however, have a bad feeling about what was coming next. It was probably just his old friend, paranoia. He pushed it back. They had everything under control.

***

Over the course of the past two months, he, Claude, and Edelgard had worked to try and figure out what reforms needed to be made in the church. Throughout those meetings, he’d almost say that they’d become friends. Maybe. Claude still acts a little oddly around him, but Dimitri does think he’s warming up to him.

Finally, after two months of working to unify the houses, it was time to go get their professor. Dimitri didn’t know how Byleth always did it on her own. Even with Yuri’s help, he found that he was looking forward to seeing her and having her input on everything.

“You ready, your highness?” Claude draped an arm across his shoulders, dragging him towards their meeting point.

“Yes,” Dimitri said. “You seem excited.”

“It’s about time we got out of this stuffy monastery. I’m looking forward to some fresh air not tainted by Lorenz’s noble aspirations.”

Dimitri snorted. “I’d rather have Lorenz’s noble superiority than Sylvain’s constant skirt chasing. Did you know he once hit on Ingrid’s grandmother?”

“Of course he did.” Claude laughed. “Who do you think is the bane of the princess’s existence?”

“My money is on Ferdinand,” Dimitri said. “He’s constantly trying to one up her.”

“I don’t know,” Claude mused. “Imagine trying to live your life with Hubert as your constant shadow.”

They quickly dissolved into a discussion (which quickly became bickering) about various members of their houses and who annoys who. That’s how they met up with Edelgard at the exit of the monastery. The journey was meant to be a bonding experience, bringing the leaders of the three houses together. Of course, last time around, it went so poorly that it only served to cause more problems, and the Church never risked sending the three of them out as a group again.

Now, since they’re already friends, hopefully everything won’t completely go to hell. At the very least, El had no reason to send the bandits after them this time, right?

Of course, Dimitri should have listened to his gut when it said it wouldn’t be that easy. He’s changed so much, he should have realized not everything would change for the better. So when he woke up, instincts screaming at him to move, he barely managed to dodge the Death spell that destroyed the cot he’d just been sleeping on. He let out a shout and Claude shot up, clearly a light sleeper. His eyes were quick to focus on what had just happened, looking between Dimitri’s smoldering bedroll and the mage gearing up for another attack. He reached for his boot, probably going for a concealed knife, but Edelgard was the one to strike first. Dimitri grabbed his lance, getting to his feet quickly. There were another half a dozen dark mages about to descend on them. Shit. Last time it had been bandits, who did he piss off enough to send a group of dark mages after them?

“Run,” Claude said, shoving Dimitri slightly to get him moving. Dimitri didn’t argue, slowing just long enough to make sure that El was following them. “Should we split up?”

“No,” Dimitri said. “There’s a village nearby. Remire.”

“We can’t lead them there,” El said. “There are civilians there!”

“Are you thinking of those rumors about the mercenary troupe?” Claude asked. “Think they’ll help us?”

“I don’t have much gold,” Dimitri admitted. “But I have some, and it’s not like we’re asking them to travel.”

He blinked, something flashing before his eyes. He saw Edelgard being hit with Banshee, stumbling and not able to outrun the other mages. He blinked again and they were still running. There was a mage just barely close enough to attack.

Dimitri didn’t think, he just acted, grabbing Edelgard and dragging her out of the way just as the spell hit the spot she would have been in.

“How did you…” She trailed off, eyes wide. “Dimitri, your eyes are glowing.”

“Less talking, more running,” Claude said, taking Miasma to the shoulder like a champ. A hit like that must have hurt, but Claude kept running with barely any faltering in his steps.

There were more mages waiting to ambush them as they got closer to the city, clearly trying to prevent them from seeking help. Dimitri barely dodged what he quickly recognized to be Dark Spikes, only to stumble straight into the path of another mage’s Death spell. His vision went black, then white, before fixing itself, remaining slightly blurry.

“Dimitri!” El yelled, slamming her axe into the mage’s head.

He took a quick inventory. He could still stand, and he could still see. “Keep running,” he said. He stumbled as he tried to make his way to the city gates, but managed to avoid being hit again. Edelgard’s shirt was smoking, clearly she’d been hit as well. None of them looked great, granted these mages were a lot harder to fight than common bandits. Damnit what had changed?

El. Edelgard wouldn’t have sent bandits after them now, which meant that Those Who Slither in the Dark would take matters into their own hands. If she had access to mages like this, why hadn’t she used them? Had she actually not intended for them to die?

There were a few of Jeralt’s mercenaries talking together outside the town walls. They noticed them running at them and shared some quick, alarmed words with each other.

“Are you kids alright?” They asked.

Dimitri, with his adrenaline starting to fade, was starting to feel more of the negative effect of the Death spell that had hit him earlier. “Help,” he managed to croak out as the dark magic continued to erode his health. The dark mages were gaining quickly, and the mercenaries acted quickly, dragging them inside the town walls.

Curse Dimitri’s nonexistent resistance.

One of the mercenaries stayed with them, while another ran to get help. Dimitri vaguely remembered this. Hadn’t he said something here? He couldn’t remember.

“Please forgive our intrusion,” he said. “We’ve been attacked by a group of dark mages. We can only hope that you would be so kind as to lend us your support.” He reached for his pockets, cursing when he realized that he didn’t actually have his gold pouch on him. “I have some gold back by our camp, however we had to retreat too quickly for me to grab it. I would be happy to compensate you for your time.”

Byleth (Oh thank the Goddess finally, he’d missed her) was looking at him oddly. Huh, so he must have said something different. Had he not offered to compensate them last time? How rude of past him. Or maybe she was freaked out because they were attacked by mages instead of bandits.

“It’s true,” El said. “They attacked us while we were at rest in our camp.”

“They’re after our lives and who knows what else,” Claude said. “We were separated from our other companions, and we’re outnumbered.”

Jeralt looked at them suspiciously. “I’m impressed you’re staying so calm despite the situation. Wait…that uniform…”

As if to save them from an awkward conversation about being from the one place Jeralt was avoiding, a mercenary rushed in. “There’s a group of dark mages approaching the village! Damn, there’s a lot of them…”

Dimitri grabbed his lance, getting ready.

“Hey, are you sure you should be fighting right now?” Claude asked. “You took a really bad hit back there.”

“I’m alright,” Dimitri said. “I can barely even feel it anymore.”

That was a lie, he could definitely still feel the dark magic in his veins, making him feel weaker in a way only fixed by the restore spell. Unfortunately, that wasn’t a spell available to them, and his crest should make up for any strength currently being sucked away by the magic.

“Let me,” Byleth said, and the warmth of Recover washed over him. Right, Byleth knows healing magic. The ache in his bones started to fade, and he felt as though he might actually be able to fight well.

Byleth sent Claude and Edelgard to the left to handle the few mages on that side, once again having Dimitri stick close to her and heading towards the right. There was a dark bishop hidden further in the trees, and his robes looked vaguely familiar. Had he been at the final battle with Edelgard? He’d been the leader of the other mages, which meant he was probably in charge of these ones. If they defeated him, surely the mages would retreat.

One of the nice things about dark mages is that they were slow and their defense was easily overcome with his own strength. Dimitri successfully managed to take out two of the mages with Byleth helping him with the others. The air crackled in a way that Dimitri knew was only possible for siege magic. And if these were only dark magic users…

“Bohr!” Byleth screamed, dodging to the side. Dimitri barely managed to avoid the debilitating spell. It was known for weakening someone’s defenses so thoroughly that even an unarmed strike would be enough to kill the victim. Byleth curse. “What the hell is going on?”

Dimitri stayed close to the trees, hoping their cover would make it easier for him to avoid the siege spell. He barely dodged out of the way of another attack. Why did it feel like they were only aiming for him?

There were only two dark mages left and the dark bishop. This would be fine, he and Byleth could easily dispatch a few of them. The dark bishop snarled when Dimitri emerged from the trees. “You!” Dimitri expected the spell, which is the only reason he isn’t dead. He managed to avoid the full hit, instead getting hit in the left arm only. He’d only seen this spell used a few times, when Hapi was fighting a particularly harsh opponent.

Hades.

His left arm was useless now, charred and blackened and numb. He would need to see a professional healer if he wanted to be able to use it again. If it was even possible.

Not that it mattered. The other two mages, to their own personal detriment, aimed to kill Dimitri, leaving them open to Byleth’s blade.

Dimitri was dead before he hit the ground.

Chapter Text

Dimitri still remembered what it felt like to have the Goddess’s power send him back in time. It felt like his very blood was burning, like every part of his body was changing.

It felt like that now, and Dimitri wondered if this is what death was like.

Then, the burning faded and he was back on his feet.

The dark bishop snarled when Dimitri emerged from the trees. “You!” Dimitri didn’t hesitate. He wasn’t in range to hit him with his lance, so he reached back, crest flaring to life, and threw his iron lance like it was a javelin. It pierced the bishop in the shoulder, sending him stumbling so that his spell missed.

“Damnit,” the bishop muttered. There was a buzz in the air and Dimitri feared it was going to be Bohr again. Instead, the dark bishop warped away, leaving Dimitri standing there weaponless with two other mages about to hit him.

Why why why were they gunning for him? What had he done? Though he’d rather they be trying to attack him then Edelgard or Claude, but he didn’t understand why.

Byleth wasn’t moving, staring at him in shock. Dimitri rolled to avoid one of the Banshee spells, though the other one hit its mark. He felt his movements slow and he tried to stumble to his feet, seeing Claude and Edelgard running from in the trees, only to see a spell already in the air, inches from his face.

Damn. Twice in one day. That has to be some sort of record. Or maybe not, he thought dryly. After all, how many times had he died during the war, when his own life was the last thing on his mind?

There was the sound of something shattering, and the spell stopped just a few centimeters from his face. Now that he wasn’t dead, he was able to take a moment to appreciate what was happening. Byleth had called it divine pulse, hadn’t she?

Byleth was pacing, muttering to herself. He strained himself to listen. “-after Dimitri for some reason. Should I start over and bring Edelgard to the right with me? But then I won’t be able to see if something happens with him. And how did he know to dodge this past time? It was almost as if-”

“Er, Byleth?” He said, causing her to jump nearly a foot in the air. She let out a string of curses. “Sorry, I, uh, suppose you’re not used to having company at this bit, huh?”

Her eyes were wide. “What the hell?”

“Oh, uh, future you, the one that lived through this version of events, sent me back in time,” Dimitri said. “I guess this means that I get to remember your Divine Pulses too.” She still hadn’t said anything, so Dimitri kept talking, ignoring the way his body still burned from the Banshee spell he hadn’t avoided. “So, uh, I’ve been trying to get things prepped for you. But also I’m so glad you’re here because doing this alone is awful and I don’t know how you did this so many times. Also I told Yuri everything, I hope you’re cool with that. You do know Yuri, right? He was in our house last time. So was Hapi, actually. Constance and Balthus didn’t join, but they had their own reasons for that I’m sure. Am I rambling? I feel like I’m rambling. I also reminded Edelgard that we were used to be friends and I think that’s helped a little bit, also-”

He hadn’t even realized how close Byleth was before she leaned down and pulled him into a hug. He froze for a moment before he leaned into it. He loved his friends, but Byleth…she’d always been different. But…this Byelth wasn’t in love with him, of course she wasn’t. The other Byleth had spoken of Claude so fondly, had mentioned the many times she’d married him but found she still had to try and fix things. It would make sense that that’s what she would seek now as well. There was a longing in him that he shoved down. He knew when he came back in time that he would be working with a Byleth that didn’t love him. Besides, there was still the very likely chance that he would be dead in less than a year. No, it’s best that he remained alone. After all, beasts weren’t meant to consort with humans.

“How long can you keep doing this for?” Dimitri asked.

“I’ve never found the limit,” Byleth said. “Start from the beginning.”

And he did. Sort of. He managed to avoid any mentions of the closeness of their relationship in the future, but he did explain how she’d helped him curb the boar and realize that there was more to life than revenge. He told her everything he could remember.

“You know there’s a lot of things you failed to mention,” he said with a scowl. “I get that we’re on a time crunch and you probably figured I’d be able to talk to you sooner, but I expect you to get me fully caught up on what to expect.”

“I will,” she said, and she wasn’t exactly smiling, not quite, but there was something happy about her that made Dimitri feel light. “But first we need to get through this battle without you dying.”

“Just go back a few moments, right before I get hit with Banshee,” Dimitri said. “They aren’t paying any attention to you. I can draw their fire, and so long as I don’t get hit with anything else I’ll be fine. You can dispatch both the mages easily.”

“Are you sure?” She asked. “Getting hit with Banshee couldn’t have felt good.”

It didn’t. It still didn’t feel good. “I don’t think we should risk going back to before the bishop warped away,” Dimitri said. “It’s better this way.”

Byleth frowned, but didn’t argue. The same feeling from before, of his blood boiling and his skin tearing happened as Byleth turned time back.

He grimaced, wondering how Byleth could do this so easily when it hurt this badly. Nonetheless, when time began again, Dimitri dodged as he had before, but managed to roll out of the way of the Miasma spell that would have killed him originally, giving Byleth just enough time to kill them. He laid on the ground, staring up at the sky. Claude and Edelgard were running over to them.

“Dimitri,” El said, kneeling down to check on him.

“Ow,” he said, because, you know, ow. He felt the familiar warmth of healing magic as Byleth cast Recover on him. After a moment, he actually felt like he could stand up. “Anybody have any idea why someone sent a bunch of dark mages to kill us?”

“You,” Claude said. “Sure, Edelgard and I made great collateral damage, but these guys were definitely gunning for you.”

“I can tell,” Dimitri said. “I need to work on my resistance.”

“Very funny,” Edelgard said. There was fear in her eyes, and Dimtiri realized that as much as these mages were trying to kill him, they were here for Edelgard. This was meant to be a lesson for her.

“If I had a silver for each time a road trip has turned into an assassination attempt I would have two silver,” he said, ignoring the way everyone was looking at him with worry. His head was starting to feel light and he definitely needed to see a healer. “Which isn’t a lot, but it is weird that it happened twice.”

Claude helped him sit up, continuing to stare at him with worry. Huh, maybe they were better friends than he thought.

Jeralt was riding over to them, concern radiating off of him. He never was great at pretending like he didn’t care about people. “Hey, did you just-”

Alois burst in from the eastern side of the clearing, brandishing his axe. “The knights of Seiros are here!”

Jeralt groaned. “Why him?”

Dimitri, Claude, and Edelgard gave the mercenaries and the knights their space to discuss things. Claude had to help Dimitri walk away, though Dimitri figured Edelgard might have been a better option. Claude’s face was red in what Dimitri assumed to be exertion. Luckily they only walked a few paces away and Claude was able to set him down.

“Seriously, are you okay?” Claude asked.

“I’ll be fine,” Dimitri said. “The walk back to the Monastery will be hell, but I’ve had worse.”

“Duscur?” Edelgard asked, and he nodded because that made more sense than talking about injuries that this body had never actually sustained. Claude was looking at something off to the east, so Dimitri shouldn’t have been surprised when he waved Byleth over.

“Hey, over here!” He called to her, and she wandered over.

Once she arrived Edelgard smiled at her. “I appreciate your help back there. I would have been sad to see Dimitri die in a place like this. Your skill is beyond question. And your father…that would be Jeralt, the Blade Breaker? Captain of the Knights of Seiros. Oft praised as the strongest knight to ever live? Have I missed anything?”

“I didn’t know he was a captain,” Byleth said. El’s eyes gleamed, clearly excited about her answer.

“Oh?” She said, “How curious. I’d wager the explanation for that is fascinating indeed.”

“You are coming back to the monastery right?” Claude asked. “We definitely owe you one. Without you at the very least Dimitri would have been mincemeat.”

“I would have been fine,” Dimitri said.

Claude rolled his eyes. “Try that again when you’re actually capable of standing on your own and maybe we’ll believe you.”

Edelgard smiled teasingly. “You’ll prove a lacking ruler if you don’t learn how to take a break every once in a while.”

Dimitri smiled. “You’ll prove a lacking ruler if you’re so quick to assume someone is defeated just because they can’t stand.”

Claude grinned. “Oh great, a royal debate between their highnesses. I wonder how being completely predictable affects one’s ability to wield power. As the embodiment of distrust, I’d be happy to show you a thing or two.”

Dimitri smiled, turning to Byleth. “Anyway, I really do appreciate your help there. You held yourself well against the bandits. It was captivating. I certainly still have much to learn.”

“Your skill is precisely why I ask you to consider lending your services to the Empire,” Edelgard said. “I may as well tell you now, I am no mere student-”

“Halt, Edelgard,” Dimitri said. “If you’re going to request someone in the mercenary troupe join you, that’s a request you should make to their leader.”

“Or, instead of trying to recruit someone we just met, we could build a lasting relationship with them as we go to the monastery,” Claude said.

“All right, that’s enough small talk,” Alois said, walking back over to them. “It’s time to head back to the monastery.”

Dimitri accepted Claude’s hand to help him to his feet. He stumbled slightly, nearly falling on top of Claude, but he managed to catch himself.

The trip to the monastery was easy enough, Dimitri just had to remind himself that he was fine and perfectly capable of walking. Alois, when he wasn’t chatting with Captain Jeralt, was hovering over Dimitri. About halfway back, Dimitri had stumbled and Alois had picked him up, deciding to carry him the entire way back. Dimitri had protested a bit, but he was exhausted and also in a lot of pain, so he eventually allowed it. There were a few horses, but they were currently burdened with other injured knights who were apparently much heavier than Dimitri.

As they walked Dimitri’s body was starting to feel more numb, which wasn’t a good sign. Maybe getting hit with both Banshee and Death in the span of a single hour was a little much for his body. Once they arrived at the monastery, Alois set Dimitri down and asked Edelgard and Claude to take him to Manuela while he reported to the Archbishop.

Byleth walked past him and he smiled. “Good luck, Professor,” he said, slipping back into the old name by habit. She smiled at him and nodded, taking long strides to catch up to her father as he led her to the audience chamber.

“Professor?” Claude asked, looping Dimitri’s arm around his shoulder. “Where did that come from?”

“Huh?” Dimitri asked. “Oh, I must have just misspoken. My bad.” Edelgard looked at him suspiciously, but they both dropped it, which Dimitri appreciated since the migraine that had thankfully abated for the battle had returned full force.

They dropped him off at the infirmary, leaving Manuela to fuss over him. Thankfully, Manuela managed to get him to the point that he didn’t look like a corpse by the time all the blue lions burst into the infirmary.

“Someone tried to kill you?” Sylvain asked, eyes wide. “When I said to spice things up a little I meant get a girlfriend!”

Now that Dimitri’s head was clearer he was able to remember a little more. For him, the tragedy of Duscur was almost ten years ago. But he still recognized those robes.

“Who were they?” Ashe asked. “What did they want?”

“I recognized their robes,” he said quietly. “One of them, his voice. He was in Duscur.”

It was like all the air had been sucked out of the room and a chill overcame them. The door slammed as Felix left the room. Sylvain winced. “I’d better check on him. The rest of you better not let him out of your sight,” he said, pointing to Dimtiri.

“You mean pick a fight with him to distract him from being upset,” Ingrid said, but she was already pulling a chair up next to his bed. Ashe and Annette were settling in too, and Dedue had decided to loom over all of them.

“I’m sorry for worrying you,” Dimitri said.

“It’s not your fault,” Mercedes said, smiling at him. “How are you feeling?”

“Good, Manuela took good care of me,” he said. “I can barely even feel the remnants of dark magic.”

“Dark magic?” Annette asked. “That’s so dangerous! That magic can have lasting implications!”

“It’s alright, I can already mostly feel my fingers again,” Dimitri said, wiggling his fingers as if to prove it. Now that he wasn’t as focused on revenge and finding those responsible for Duscur, he realized he could actually enjoy his school days. He could actually be a kid again, maybe he should take Sylvain up on the idea to be a little less responsible for once.

He chatted with them until Manuela finally released him. He wasn’t back to full strength, but he was capable of wandering to their classrooms to take a seat there and talk with his friends. Claude and Edelgard both tracked him down to check in on him.

“I’m alright,” he said. “It was just a couple spells, I’ll be back on my feet in time for the mock battle.”

“By the way, we were supposed to tell you but that blue haired mercenary is supposed to be a professor here,” Claude said, and his eyes were sharp. He was definitely searching for some sort of secret. “How did you know?”

“Know what?” Dimitri asked, because he really didn’t want to have this conversation right now.

“That she would be our professor,” Claude said.

“The same way you were able to save me,” Edelgard said, her eyes lighting up. “Your eyes glowed. You can see the future! Are you an Oracle?”

Well, Dimitri wasn’t sure he was actually seeing the future. That thing with Edelgard may have been a fluke. But this may be a way to excuse things later, if Byleth needed help changing things. Oracles were notorious for seeing the future and dying young. He did fit the bill quite well.

Disturbingly well. He really should have Byleth talk to Sothis and see if she knows anything about the others.

“Yes,” he sighed. “I only started seeing things recently.”

Edelgard looked pale. “Aren’t Oracles notorious for their short lifespan?”

“What?” Claude asked.

“There’s more information about it in Fargheus,” Dimitri said. “Once they start to see visions they typically don’t live much longer than a year.”

“A year?” Claude’s voice was strained. “What the hell Dimitri?”

“I don’t know for sure yet,” Dimitri said. “I’ve only seen a couple things.”

“That probably means it’s just starting,” Claude was starting to look frantic. “A year?”

“I still don’t know much,” Dimitri said. “I’m researching it now.” He wasn’t, but he should probably start. Yuri is from Fargheus, maybe he has some information about them that the Church doesn’t spread. “Aren’t we supposed to be meeting our new professor?”

“You’re right,” Edelgard said. “We can talk about this later.”

Or never. Hopefully. They greeted Byleth as a group this time. This time, when Dimitri was talking about his housemates, Claude piped in occasionally, making jokes about Ingrid’s strict nature and Annette’s songwriting skills. In a similar vein, Dimitri was able to give some insight on Marianne and Raphael. Both of them were able to talk about the few Black Eagles they knew as well, though Dimitri wasn’t very familiar with them.

Byleth was clearly surprised by this. After all, the houses didn’t exactly mingle last time around. At all. Not until Byleth convinced a few people to join their house.

***

Dimitri wasn’t nervous. He wasn’t.

Look. Byleth only chose the Blue Lions last time as a last ditch attempt to stop the war. He knows this. He’s fully aware of it. He knows she’ll probably choose the Golden Deer or the Black Eagles.

He’s aware of this. He’s not going to get his hopes up. He knows how Byleth feels about Claude. She told him that she fell in love with him every time she followed him. Of course she’ll pick the Golden Deer. Or even the Black Eagles. Maybe if they can both influence Edelgard they can stop the war. It would be the smartest move.

So imagine his surprise when she chooses neither, and picks the Blue Lions instead.

“What?” Dimitri found himself gaping.

“What, you didn’t see that coming?” Edelgard grins, elbowing him in a move that he would attribute more to Claude.

“Yeah, I'd pick Dima too,” Claude said, stretching his arms behind his head. Dimitri really needed to find a time to corner him and ask where that nickname came from because it’s showing up more and more. Then again, why can’t Claude give him a nickname? His friends aren’t really nicknames kind of people so Dimitri isn’t really used to it, but maybe Claude likes giving people nicknames? He should stop before he overthinks it. “I can’t even blame you.”

Dimitri finally managed to pull himself together enough to bow slightly and say, “I look forward to working with you, Professor.”

***

Later, when it was just the two of them, he asked her why.

“I already knew I was picking the Blue Lions even before I met you,” Byleth said. “Finding out you came back with me just made the decision easier.”

Easier. Not easy. Of course it wouldn’t be easy for her to choose someone else. He could see it now, the way that she looked at Claude when she saw him again. She must have missed him.

“Well I look forward to working with you again,” he said, and managed to smile. It was true, Byleth was the best teacher he’d ever had. Sure, he was proficient enough with a lance that there was little Byleth could teach him there, but he’d always wanted to work on his swordsmanship. “What’s the plan for the mock battle?”

“I want Ashe in there,” she said. “He’d got the best accuracy out of anyone in the class. If he can take potshots at the other students to help us take them out that will go a long way. I want Mercedes in as well. Her magic may not be very strong yet, but it’ll do more against Ferdinand and Hilda than anything else. You’ll be there of course. I think I’d like to bring Dedue as well, though I’m not very familiar with him.”

Ah, right. Byleth had mentioned that Dedue had always followed him. He was the only person Byleth hadn’t worked with while teaching the other houses. And she hadn’t gotten the chance to work with him after she met up with them again five years later because…

It wouldn’t happen this time. Dimitri wouldn’t let it. He never wanted Dedue to die for his sake ever again.

“He uses axes,” he said. “It would round our team out well. Him or Sylvain definitely, they’re both proficient with axes. Dedue is capable with gauntlets as well.”

Byleth hummed, a small smile on her face. “He would do well as a war master, then?”

Dimitri nodded. “Either that or an armored knight. He trained as a war master last time, until he died.”

Byleth froze, eyes wide. “He died? And I didn’t stop it?”

“It was while you were sleeping,” Dimitri said. “A little over a year from now. It’s…” he trailed off. “It won’t happen again, I assure you.”

“I’m sorry,” Byleth said. “I know how much the two of you mean to each other.”

Did she? This version of Byleth, who had never actually gotten to know them, could she really claim that she understood? That when Dimitri was most alone, when he’d lost himself, Dedue was the only person that hadn’t left. The only one that Dimitri knew would have stayed by his side through anything.

“Thank you,” he said instead, because he knew what he was getting into when he agreed to this. And as much as he loved Byleth, sometimes he couldn’t look at her without being reminded of everything he left behind.

***

Dimitri sat up quickly, chest heaving and sweat dripping down his face. What was that nightmare? He could barely remember it, only bits and pieces. Was he back at Gronder? There was someone dying, but it hadn’t been Rodrigue this time. Dimitri parts of his vision, and he remembered that he’d told Rodrigue to stay back.

Who had jumped in front of the knife?

Felix’s face flashed in his mind, and he leaned over and threw up in the trash can beside his bed.

He shakily stood up, getting dressed and pinning his hair back. The mock battle was supposed to be later that day, wasn’t it? But the sun hadn’t even started rising, which meant he had time to sneak to Abyss.

Aelfric still wasn’t back. Whatever complications Yuri had sent his way had done their damage, which meant when he got back he would be furious. Dimitri just hoped that they were going to be able to mitigate that disaster when it came.

“Visions huh?” Yuri leaned back in his chair. They were meeting in the Wilted Rose to talk. “Well, congrats I guess. The Goddess must really like you.” Dimitri glared up at him. “I’m joking, obviously, you have the worst luck.”

“Do you think this is why I keep getting migraines?” Dimitri asked. “They’ve been practically non stop since I got here.”

“I’d say yeah,” Yuri said. “At least now everyone will be expecting you to die in a year. So now you don’t have to have that awkward conversation.”

Dimitri groaned, leaning on the table. “I need alcohol.”

“You’ve come to the right place,” Yuri said. “No one here gives a shit that you’re only seventeen as long as you’re willing to pay double.”

“I wish,” Dimitri muttered. “Unfortunately I have a battle later and I’m trying to be better about not fighting battles while impaired.”

“How often did you fight drunk in the last timeline?” Yuri asked, clearly intrigued.

“During the five years Byleth was gone?” Dimitri sighed. “A lot. It felt like a nice way of letting myself die, but the Boar wasn’t ready to go.”

“Well no more of that,” Yuri said. “I don’t care if you get drunk off your ass, but if you try to fight that way I will knock you out and drag you to the sidelines.”

“And you claim you’re not a mother hen,” Dimitri said teasingly.

“Not letting your friends fight drunk is not being a mother hen,” Yuri said. “It’s this thing I know you’re lacking called common sense.”

“Of course I don’t have common sense,” Dimitri said, trying to channel his inner Lorenz with his posture and facial expressions. “I’m a noble.”

“I’m gonna smack you.”

***

Dimitri easily snuck back to the monastery. He should be able to catch the last bits of breakfast at this rate, and having talked with Yuri his appetite has finally returned.

He walked into the dining hall to find that, for some reason, there weren’t very many people here.

“Huh,” he said after he grabbed a plate and sat next to Hilda and Marianne. “Where is everyone?”

“Looking for you,” Hilda said. “Apparently when you weren’t at breakfast at your usual time, someone went to check on you and found you missing. What with the recent assassination attempt and all, everyone freaked out. There’s talk of an official search.”

“I was gone for like, two hours,” Dimitri said.

“Everyone split up to search and I called dibs on the dining hall. I figured I could take this chance to make Marianne actually eat something,” she said.

Marianne looked paler than normal. “Claude was talking about having me help in the battle,” she said quietly. “I don’t think that’s such a good idea.”

Huh, Claude hadn’t brought Marianne along last time. Weird. Maybe Dimitri talking about the importance of having a healer on the battlefield finally stuck with him.

“You’ll do great!” Hilda said. “I, for one, don’t understand why Claude wants my help! I’m a delicate flower, you know?”

Dimitri thought about Hilda single handedly taking on half a dozen heroes on her own and stopgapping the way to Claude in Deridru.

Yes. A delicate flower indeed.

“I should probably stop whatever rumors managed to spread in the few hours since I left my room.”

“Good luck!” Hilda said. “See you in the battle!”

He ran into Claude next. “Dima!” He said, checking him over. “Where were you?”

“Out,” he said. “I was gone for a couple hours. What happened?”

“Well, Mercedes went to check on you and found out you weren’t in your room,” he said. “Then Sylvain said that you recognized those guys that attacked us from Duscur, so now everyone thinks that there’s a dark organization hell bent on trying to kill you.”

“Great,” Dimitri said dryly instead of claiming that there wasn’t because technically there was a dark organization hell bent on killing him.

“Which, of course, sent everyone into a frenzy and a lot of people started to worry that you’d been murdered or kidnapped,” he said. “I’m glad to see that’s not what happened. Where were you?”

“I was with a friend,” he said evasively. “Who do I have to talk to so that we can call off this search?”

“Probably Edelgard, she is the one who organized it. Man, when she found out you went missing she freaked out.” Claude gestured for him to follow him. “I think she’s by the classrooms.”

She was, in fact, by the classrooms. Her eyes widened when she saw him. “Dimitri!” She ran over. “I thought-” Her worried eyes checked him over. “It doesn’t matter. You’re okay?”

“I’m okay,” he said. “Just a little concerned. I wasn’t gone for very long.”

Edelgard shifted. “They want you dead Dimitri. Maybe next time leave a note?”

“I can do that,” he said. “Now, since I assume none of you ate breakfast before coming here, may I suggest we share a breakfast between our houses to foster unity?”

Claude smiled at him. “Works for me. Let’s meet in ten minutes after we’ve tracked down all our housemates.”

“Hilda and Marianne are in the dining hall,” Dimitri said.

“I think Felix went to the training grounds,” Claude said. “I’ll wrangle anyone that I see on the way.” Dimitri promised to do the same and headed in the direction of the training grounds. As expected, Felix was there, demolishing dummies with a training sword.

“Felix,” Dimitri said, causing his old friend to stop in his tracks. “We’re all gathering in the dining hall as a class before the mock battle, if you’d like to join us.”

Felix scoffed. “Go away, just looking at your face makes me want to retch.”

Dimitri smiled. “I understand.”

“You understand?” Felix asked. “You’re a beast pretending to walk on your hind legs, you understand nothing!”

“Trust me, Felix,” Dimitri said. “You cannot begin to hate me as much as I hate myself.”

“You won’t even deny it?” He asked, and while his tone seemed angry, there was something there that the previous Dimitri had missed when they had this conversation. What had he said then? I deny nothing.

How could he say that, looking at Felix, whom he once saw as a brother, searching desperately for any semblance of the friend he once knew? You won’t even deny it he had asked, as if begging him to prove that there was more to him than a beast. Dimitri didn’t know. He's spent so long as a monster, he still feels as if he’s a monster, but if there’s one thing the last five years taught him, it’s that no matter how monstrous he may be, he is human at heart.

“There is a part of me,” he said, closing his eyes and leaning his head back, feeling the Boar pacing in the back of his mind. “A part that wants revenge, that wants to slaughter those that would or have harmed those I love. If left to run rampant, I’m sure eventually I would resemble nothing more than a wild boar.” He opened his eyes, staring at Felix and for once letting his emotions bleed out of him. “However I didn’t die that day in Duscur. I was the only one to survive. In a way, wouldn’t it be selfish for me to do anything but keep on living?” How ironic, considering he’s going to be dead in less than a year. “The boar, as you call it? It may be a part of me, but the Dimitri you know is a part of me as well. Men are complicated people, Felix. I struggle with my emotions, and yet that does not change the fact that you’re my brother.” He turned to leave.

“Dimitri,” he almost believed he imagined Felix’s quiet words. “I’m glad you aren’t dead.”

Dimitri thought about telling him about his time limit, but now wasn’t the time. Not when their friendship still felt close to breaking in his blundering clumsy grip.

Dimitri successfully tracked down the rest of his house, leading them in a group to the dining hall where the other two houses were waiting for them. Felix walked in soon after, scowling at Dimitri but still taking a seat at their table.

“There’s the man of the hour!” Hilda sidled up next to him. “I see you managed to track everyone down!”

“I did,” he said. “We figured we’d spend some time working on our inter-house bonding.”

“I love inter-house bonding!” She said, turning. “Ooh! Ferdinand! Over here!” She left quickly, whirling around the entire party like a tornado. Dimitri couldn’t help the smile twitching on his face. It was nice to be able to mingle and get to know everyone without worrying about war.

When was the last time Dimitri had let himself relax?

“Hey! You’re smiling!” Claude’s voice was right next to his ear, his arm practically draped around his shoulder. “Are you ready to get trounced, Dima?”

“”No,” Dimitri said. “I’m a sore loser. You may as well just give up now.” He took a sip of his drink to hide his smile. Claude was looking at him with an expression Dimitri couldn’t read, but his face quickly smoothed out into its usual smile. Edelgard came over to join them, and the three of them happily discussed training regimens.

This…was amazing. Dimitri couldn’t think of anything that could destroy this moment.

***

Byleth was nervous. Dimitri didn’t know why. This was a mock battle, no one was trying to hurt one another at all. After years of fighting actual wars, he was excited for a battle without stakes.

“We’ll win this,” he said, trying for a comforting smile. He hoped he got it across well, either way the tensions in her shoulders seemed to ease.

“Thanks,” she said. “We’ll head down the middle. Dedue, you focus on dealing with the Golden Deer. I don’t want you working with the Black Eagles with Hubert and Dorothea over there. Head to the left. Ashe, go with him to back him up. Mercedes, how is your resistance?”

“Better than most,” she said. “I can take a hit from any of the mages here, I’d say.”

Byleth nodded. “You and Dimitri head to the right to handle the Black Eagles. I’m going to hang back and see which group needs more help and give my assistance there.”

Ashe’s jaw dropped. “You want us to fight two against five?”

“I have utter faith in all of your abilities,” Byleth said calmly. “Keep in mind, so long as you don’t let your enemy cluster together, you and Dedue can handle them.” Ashe looked pale and shaky, but he nodded. “Good luck.”

Dimitri nodded to Mercedes right as the battle started, letting her be the one to draw Dorothea closer. Her thunder spell seemed to have little effect on Mercedes, and Dorothea had come close enough that Dimitri was able to take her down with one hit, leaving her on her back with his lance at her throat.

Claude’s voice echoed across the battlefield. “Are you really going to fight two houses at once? Heh, an impressive display of confidence.”

“It’s no matter,” Edelgard said, and she was already heading in Dimitri and Mercedes' direction. “Our only choice in this situation is a direct attack!”

Dimitri doubted his ability to handle Edelgard in lone combat. With both Ferdinand and Hubert backing her up, he didn’t like his chances.

However, he had forgotten something of note. He was expecting to fight Edelgard as he’d last fought her. As the empress of Adrestia. This wasn’t that person, not yet. Instead, she was a young girl still learning.

It wasn’t a fair fight. Even with the superior weapon, Dimitri blew past her defenses and knocked her down, pointing his lance at her throat.

Her eyes were wide as she stared at him. “I suppose we finally answered the question of who’s stronger.”

Dimiti shifted awkwardly, feeling like a cheat. Was it even fair for him to be participating in this mock battle after years of experience on the battlefield?

“Your highness!” Dimitri moved on instinct, honed from many years of listening to Mercedes on the battlefield, rolling out of the way of Ferdinand’s lance.

“Were you trying to distract me?” He asked, unable to help his grin. Edelgard had stood up, leaving her axe on the ground to signify that she’d already been defeated. She merely gave him a sly smile and departed from the battlefield.

Dimitri should be able to handle Ferdinand, but more than anything he needed to find Hubert. His range with dark magic was good enough that he could probably hit Dimitri without him seeing it coming. Where had Mercedes gone?

An arrow flew through the air, hitting Ferdinand’s arm. Blunted as it was, it still must have hurt. It bought him enough time to find Hubert hiding in the trees. He raced forward. Hubert hit him with Miasma, but considering that Dimitri knew what it felt like to be on the other side of Hades, he was able to push through and knock the mage to the ground.

That left Ferdinand and Manuela as their main enemies. He briefly wondered how Dedue and Ashe were doing, but since the Golden Deer hadn’t ambushed them yet, he figured they were still fighting.

Ferdinand had already discarded his lance by the time Dimitri made his way back to Mercedes. He raised an eyebrow at her.

“I got three hits in,” she said. “But he got the second hit on me. How many do you have?”

“One,” Dimitri said. “Is Manuela still on the fortress?” She nodded. “Let’s go.”

Manuela didn’t come out to greet them, choosing to stay on the fortress. Dimitri didn’t blame her, the extra defense and the healing capabilities of it lends itself well to a camping spot. Not to mention that Manuela’s range is greater than Dimitri’s, and Mercedes probably isn’t proficient enough with her bow to aim around the fortresses defenses.

“Let me enter his range first,” Mercedes said. “While she’s distracted with me, you can burst through and take him down!”

He didn’t have a better plan. Having already taken a hit from magic today, Dimitri wasn’t looking forward to dealing with another. But Mercedes already had two hits…

She was already moving, though, and with Manuela sufficiently distracted, Dimitri approached the east end of the fortress and knocked Manuela down as gently as he could. She landed on her back with a gasp and held up her hands in surrender.

“I almost wound up a patient in my own infirmary,” she said, accepting his hand as he reached out to help her up. “Well done!”

After helping Manuela off the fortress where she and Mercedes left the field together, Dimitri made his way over to where the Golden Deer had been camping out. He passed an unarmed Ashe on the way, who sheepishly informed him that after defeating Marianne and Lorenz, he and Dedue were overwhelmed by Claude and Hilda.

“The professor showed up to help, but not before Claude got the third hit on me,” he said.

“You did wonderful,” Dimitri assured him. “I should probably go and help, however.”

He arrived just in time to see Dedue hit Hilda. Hanneman was already retreating, his hands in the air. Hilda pouted, she must have just been defeated. A training arrow hit Dedue’s shoulder and he slumped. Byleth was nowhere to be seen. Had she been defeated as well? That made no sense.

Claude grinned at him, eyes sparkling. “Shall we dance?”

This wasn’t good. Claude was fast and he had range. With Edelgard, Dimitri was able to overpower her because she was in close quarters with him. But if Claude got two shots on Dimitri before he could get close…

He wasted no time, choosing to sprint around the trees to make his movement faster. The extra coverage of the forest wouldn’t do anything against Claude’s accuracy. An arrow hit his knee and as he stumbled, Dimitri tumbled forward, taking out Claude’s legs and slamming him into the ground. Dimitri lost his lance somewhere along the way and he cursed. They rolled for a moment before Dimitri, practically straddling Claude, grabbed an arrow from his opponent’s quiver and pointed it at his throat.

“Damn Dima,” Claude said, holding his hands up in surrender. His voice was strained and his face was red. Was Dimitri crushing him? He quickly got up and helped him to his feet, ignoring the way his knee twinged.

Dimitri couldn’t help but smile as Jeralt announced the Blue Lions’ victory. Byleth came trotting out of the trees, an odd look on her face. Was she still in the battle? Had she just wanted to see what Dimitri could do? A part of him hoped he impressed her, but the more rational part of his mind reminded him that she was in love with Claude.

It dampened his mood slightly, but not enough to stop him from smiling.

“Good job,” he said to Claude.

“You hit hard,” Claude said in return. “But if you help me convince Edelgard to throw a feast with us, I’ll consider you forgiven.”

Dimitri smiled, all the problems of the future far from his mind. “Deal.”

Chapter Text

Dimitri thought he’d get to ride the high of winning the mock battle for a little bit longer. Sure, he was still worried about Yuri and the other Ashen Wolves, he hadn’t heard from them since before the battle, and he was starting to wonder if something had happened. But when he’d gone to check on them, he discovered that Aelfric was still gone.

Yuri, of course, didn’t like it. “I bet he’s gathering help right now. When he comes back, shit’s going to go down.”

“We’ll be ready,” Dimitri said. “Any timeline?”

“A couple months?” Yuri said. “Based on what you said, I bet he’s going to start causing problems around the time of the fake assassination plot against the Archbishop.”

“It’d be the perfect time to do it too,” Dimitri said. “If his allies get caught, they’d be connected to the Western Church, and he’d get away with no repercussions.”

“Exactly,” Yuri said. “I’m worried. He’s going to be a pain in the ass when he gets back.”

“Let me know the moment he gets here,” Dimitri said.

“I will,” Yuri said dismissively. “Honestly, things around here are pretty nice without him. I bet you no one in Abyss will object to us ousting him from leadership.”

“Good,” Dimitri said. “I need to get going, I’m supposed to meet with the Archbishop soon.”

“Good luck,” Yuri said. “And don’t forget to visit, you don’t need to use this plot as an excuse, you can just admit you like us.”

Dimitri grinned.

***

“What’s your mission for the month?” Claude asked on the way to breakfast.

“We haven’t been given our mission yet,” Dimitri said with a frown. “What have the Golden Deer been assigned?”

“Apparently some bandits have holed up in Zanado and we need to get rid of them,” Claude said casually as if he hadn’t just flipped Dimitri’s entire worldview on its head.

“What?” He asked. Why did that change? Was it because the bandits hadn’t attacked the three of them? But if that’s what the Golden Deer are doing, what the hell are the Blue Lions going to be doing this month?

“Yeah, it seems pretty hardcore for a first time mission,” Claude said. “They’re sending the knights with us but they’re still expecting the students to do most of the work. It’s weird.”

“That is weird,” Dimitri agreed, though he was barely listening, his mind racing. “Professor Byleth and I are actually supposed to be getting our assignment right now.”

Claude clapped him on the shoulder, his brilliant smile blinding and bright. “Well good luck in there Dima.”

Claude dropped him off at the Audience chamber. Byleth was already waiting for him inside. Every time he saw her with blue hair he felt as if he had to do a double take, to remember that this wasn’t his Byleth. This Byleth was watching Claude go with an expressionless look on her face that Dimitri had learned to read a long time ago.

She misses him , he thought. And that was a thought that made him ache . He understood, of course. Dimitri may not know Claude as well as Byleth, but he’s a remarkable man. He earned the name Master Tactician, and unlike Edelgard and Dimitri, he never lost himself.  Not to mention he’s not exactly unattractive and-

And Dimitri is getting off track.

“You want to send the Blue Lions after the mages that attacked the house leaders?” Byleth asked. Her voice may not have had much inflection, she’s clearly still adjusting to being able to feel emotions again, but Dimitri could tell she wasn’t happy. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

“I have faith in your abilities to keep the children safe,” Rhea said. “We’ve seen evidence of them hiding in the sealed forest. With how close it is to the monastery, it’s clear they’re planning something. We need to strike first.”

Byleth didn’t quite scowl, but she may as well have. Dimitri figured he should step in before this turned into an actual argument. He bowed. “Thank you for the trust you’ve placed in my house, Archbishop. We will not disappoint you.” He didn’t have to drag Byleth out of the Audience Chamber, but it was a close thing.

There was a shattering noise as Byleth froze time around them. “Is she crazy?” She asked, running a hand through her hair. She started storming up and down the hallway on the second floor. “The leader of those mages knew Bohr, Dimitri! The only two people in the Blue Lions that I’m sure have seen battle are you and Felix!”

“And Dedue,” Dimitri said. “But go on.”

“The point is that she’s asking for you all to get killed!” Byleth said. “Why would she make this your first mission?”

Dimitri rested a hand on her arm, stopping her anxious pacing. He tried to smile reassuringly at her, but it probably looked a lot more besotted than he would have liked. Seeing Byleth passionate about something like this never failed to remind him of how he felt about her.

This isn’t your Byleth, her heart belongs to another .

“Have faith in us,” he said. “And remember, you’re not doing this alone anymore. I won’t leave your side.”

Her face visibly softened. “Thank you,” she said, reaching up and grabbing his hand, squeezing it before letting it go. “Between Divine Pulse and your skills as a fighter, we should be able to do this.” She sighed. “I’m just used to things going a certain way. I don’t like not knowing what’s about to happen.”

“Isn’t this better though?” Dimitri asked. “If everything were the same, then that would mean that we’re still approaching the futures we left behind. This means we’re changing things.”

“I’m glad I sent you back,” Byleth said. “How has your head been feeling?”

Dimitri grimaced, leaning against the wall. He looked around at their frozen surroundings, seeing knights mid conversation, Manuela and Hanneman were arguing further down the hall. “Not good. And the nightmares have been getting worse. If it’s true that I’m seeing the future now, it doesn’t bode well for after the war starts.”

Byleth reached out, healing magic at her fingertips. She pressed her palms against his head and for just a blissful moment, the pain in his head eased almost entirely. He closed his eyes, savoring the momentary reprieve. He must have visibly relaxed, because Byleth’s face was just barely pinched in concern when he opened his eyes again.

“Did the other me have any ideas on how to stop you from dying?” She asked.

“She thinks we need to visit the Holy Tomb,” Dimitri said. “Right now there’s no way we could break in without getting caught. But we have time.”

“Do you think it’ll work?” She asked.

Dimitri shrugged. “Most of the futures that I see have me in them,” he said. “But that’s no guarantee.”

“We’ll figure it out,” Byleth said. She was using her professor voice, the one that left no room for argument. Dimitri knew better than to tell her that it didn’t matter, that his life was worth little anyway. “We should tell the others about our mission.”

Time crawled forward once again. Dimitri winced once Manuela’s loud voice started to echo down the hallway, his headache already beginning to return with a vengeance.

The other Blue Lions were about as happy as Byleth when they received news of the mission. Which is–not at all. At first.

“Is that a good idea?” Dedue asked. “Wasn’t his Highness the target of their assassination attempt?”

“That wasn’t officially confirmed,” Dimitri said. “I recognized the leader and he recognized me, but that doesn’t mean that they were there for me.”

Felix rolled his eyes. “So long as I can run them through with my blade I don’t care what their intent was.”

Sylvain nudged him. “Come on, aren’t you the least bit worried about Dimitri?”

“If he lets some random thugs do him in then he should have trained harder.”

“Felix!” Annette said. “That’s so mean!”

“If Lady Rhea thinks this is a good idea then she must believe we can do it,” Mercedes said. “The Goddess will be on our side.”

“These people attacked Dimitri,” Ingrid said. “They went after one of us. We can’t let that stand.”

Wait, what.

Ashe nodded. “Yeah, and if they’re planning something we need to put a stop to it!”

“Maybe Dimitri should stay here, just in case,” Sylvain said. “Between Duscur and the more recent attempt throwing you in front of this guy again would just be tempting fate.”

Dimitri blanched. “I’m not staying behind!”

“Sylvain has a point,” Ingrid said. “This man has almost killed you twice now.”

“You’ll just hold us back,” Felix said. Annette elbowed him and he scowled but didn’t take back his words.

“I don’t think his highness would hold us back,” Ashe said. “But I am worried about him.”

Dimitri opened his mouth, but for a moment no words came out. “I’m not letting you fight these dark mages without me!”

“We’re just saying that we want you to be safe,” Mercedes said. “We don’t want anything to happen to you.”

“Dimitri is going,” Byleth said, stopping the argument before it could gain traction. “He’s the house leader, he’s not allowed to stay behind.”

Felix grumbled something that Dimitri couldn’t hear, but everyone else seemed happy to accept this. He relaxed, grateful that he didn’t have to argue his spot on this journey.

“When do we leave?” Dedue asked.

“Three weeks,” Byelth said. “We’re going to be doing some training battles with the knights. A few professors will be doing seminars as well, please attend at least two that interest you.”

Byleth started the lesson soon after that, teaching them all that they needed to know in order to pass their beginner exams.

“I want you all to be ready to pass your exams before we go to fight the mages,” Byleth said. “If you have a specific test you’d like to take please let me know, otherwise I’ll choose for you.”

Dimitri had taken the soldier exam last time, and he figured he’d be doing that again. So he figured he didn’t have to talk to Byleth about what he needed to do.

“You’ll be taking the fighter exam,” Byelth said.

“What?” Dimitri asked. “But, I took the soldier exam last time!”

“Dimitri, I'm your professor,” she said. Her lips were twitching, which meant she wanted to smile, but wasn’t yet capable of it. “What would be the point in me having you take a test that you’ve already passed?”

He floundered for a moment. “But I don’t know how to use axes! Or gauntlets! And I break every bow I touch!”

“Then I suggest asking for help from someone who’s good at them,” she said, her lips twitching again. She was definitely enjoying this. “Can you send Felix in?”

“But-”

“Dimitri.” He slumped, standing up to go send Felix in.

It could have been worse, she could have made him a monk.

***

“Don’t the other classes usually only participate in one battle?” Sylvain asked. He was leaning on his lance, out of breath. “Why did we just do two of these?”

“Get up, we have one more,” Byleth said and Dimitri snorted. “I requested extra practice time. Look at Dimitri, he’s not even out of breath.”

“Neither is Felix,” he said, because Felix has perked up at the thought of more fighting. Byleth nodded.

Ashe and Annette were already lining back up at their starting positions. Ingrid was waiting already. Sylvain groaned and traipsed back to the spot, Mercedes patting his arm sympathetically.

“Again!” Byleth said, and knights started to advance.

***

“I heard your professor is pushing you pretty hard,” Claude said. Dimitri and Ashe were at the training grounds, with Ashe trying to give him pointers on shooting a bow.

“You’re pulling the string too tightly,” Ashe said. “It’s going to-” SNAP .

Dimitri cursed, the bow string crumbling in his hand and leaving an angry red mark behind.

“She had us do three practice battles instead of the usual one,” Ashe said. “It was good though, because I needed to work on my stamina in battle. But I’m sore in places I didn’t know I could be.”

“You guys are leaving in a few days, right?” Claude asked. “You should get some rest, you don’t want to be collapsing mid battle.”

“Professor Byleth wants Dimitri to pass the fighter exam tomorrow,” Ashe said. “I’ve been trying to help him learn how to use a bow.”

“I’m sorry,” Dimitri said, because he’s been completely hopeless. “Claude’s right, you should get some rest. Maybe I’ll be a bit less hopeless with gauntlets.”

“Not axes?” Claude asked. “I figured with your strength you’d be pretty good with them?”

Dimitri smiled wryly. “I always underextend with axes. I’m too used to using lances which give me extra length.”

“Gauntlets will be even worse,” Claude said. “Unless you’re used to using your hands in battle?”

Dimitri did have some vague memories of crushing his enemies’ skulls with his bare hands, but he wasn’t sure if he could do that now. It was like he was recovering from an addiction. Using his hands to kill and tear people apart…

It felt like inviting the Boar out to play.

“I should use a bow,” he said. “But I keep breaking them.”

“Ashe, why don’t you get some rest, and I’ll help Dimitri with his bow,” Claude said. “Our mission isn’t for another week since Rhea wants some of the knights to accompany us too. I can spend as long as it takes to make Dimitri acceptable with a bow.”

Dimitri smiled wryly. “Thank you, Claude, but I couldn’t possibly impose on you like that.”

Claude waved his hand as if batting away Dimitri’s words. “Don’t worry about it, I need to work on my aim a little anyway.”

“If you're sure,” Ashe said. “I really should keep working too, right? I can always keep improving.”

“Ashe, I say this as respectfully as possible,” Claude said. “You look like you’re about to drop. When was the last time you took a break?”

Unfortunately, Claude was right. Ashe had gotten a letter yesterday that had left him distracted in class. Dimitri had hoped that getting his help with his bow would be a sufficient distraction, but Ashe’s eyebags were worse than ever. Dimitri suspected that Lonato’s rebellion was already in the early stages. He’d seen him speaking to Catherine and Lady Rhea recently. Dimitri hoped that this month set a precedent, and maybe next month it wouldn’t be the Blue Lions sent to handle the uprising in Gaspard territory.

“I, uh, I guess I can go take a break,” Ashe said. “Are you sure?”

“Go on,” Dimitri said, smiling at him. “I’m sure Claude can at least help me pass the beginner exam.”

Ashe nodded, leaving the two of them in the training grounds. Dinner had finished a couple hours ago, and the sun was starting to dip low in the sky, but Dimitri was determined to pass his exam tomorrow.

“Okay, all you need to be able to do to pass the fighter exam is hit the target,” Claude said. “What are you struggling with the most?”

Dimitri held up the broken bow, and gestured to the small pile of broken bows tossed off to the side. Claude laughed.

“Okay. You just have to remember that a bow is a lot more fragile than your lances,” he said. “You need to find the balance. Start low with strength instead.”

He handed Dimitri a new bow. “Try again, but this time aim low.”

“I’ve tried that,” he said. “Why are bows so fragile?”

“They need to be able to bend,” Claude said. “And geez, Dima, I knew you were strong, but I didn’t realize you were this strong! Just try using no strength at all, bows aren’t about power, they’re about accuracy. They’re not meant to hit as hard as axes or lances, because they’re purpose is to find chinks in people’s armor.”

“Okay,” Dimitri said, brow furrowed. He pulled the string back slightly, feeling no push back.

Claude reached out, placing his right hand on Dimitri’s elbow and his left hand on his shoulder. His hands were gentle as he moved him around. “Pull back a little more and widen your stance a bit.”

Dimitri could feel Claude’s breath on his neck. It had been a long time since he was in such close proximity with someone. His brain seemed to blue screen for a moment and he released the arrow. It flew through the air, hitting the outermost ring on the target.

“See, I knew you could do it,” Claude said. “And look, the bow is just fine!”

Dimitri turned around excitedly, so happy that he’d finally hit the target. He was nose to nose with Claude when he did so, pausing awkwardly when he realized just how close they were.

“Oh, uh, thank you,” Dimitri said, taking a step back. Was his face red? It felt like his face might be red. The tips of Claude’s ears were pink, and dammit he really did look attractive in the fading light.

“Of course,” Claude said, and his smile was still so calm and easy going. How could he possibly be so casual when Dimitri felt like he was going to burst into flames?

You really have a type, don’t you? And that type is unavailable.

Dimitri wanted to curse himself, the Goddess, and love in general for good measure. He really was a masochist, wasn’t he? Even his unconscious feelings could do nothing but cause him pain.

“Let’s do a few more shots,” Dimitri said. “If I can get five to hit the target in a row, I think I’ll be ready. I only have to make three of five during the test tomorrow.”

“Okay, show me your stance again,” Claude said.  Dimitri pulled the bow string back, trying not to tense when Claude reached out to adjust his stance again. “You need to pull your shoulders back a bit more.”

By the time Dimitri made five shots in a row, the sky was dark. When the fifth arrow thunked into the target Dimitri and Claude both jumped up in excitement.

“You did it!” Claude said, wrapping his arms around him in a tight hug. “You’ve got this Dima!”

***

Dimitri passed his fighter exam the next morning.

“I’m impressed,” Byleth said. “You made all five shots.”

“Claude and Ashe helped me a lot,” Dimitri said. “Please don’t have me use a bow in battle.”

“I don’t know,” Byleth said, with the same almost smile twitching at her lips. “All your shots hit the target.”

“Barely,” Dimitri said. “They’re all in the outer ring.”

“You could have Claude spend more time with you,” Byleth said.

Dimitri dropped his face into his hands. “Professor, please just let me take the cavalier test.”

“But you would make such a good archer,” she said. Her face was blank, but he was sure she was joking.

She had to be joking. Right?

“Professor it’s hard to tell if you’re being serious or not when you look like that,” he said. “You are joking, right?”

“I guess you’ll find out when it’s time to take intermediate exams,” she said.

“Very funny,” Dimitri said. She blinked at him. “You’re hilarious.”

“I’ve been accused of a lot of things Dimitri,” Byleth said. “Being funny is not one of them.”

Dimitri paled. He really hoped she didn’t hand him a bow in battle.

***

As their class walked to the Sealed Forest, Dimitri could tell that some of them felt more ready than others. Ashe kept nervously checking his quiver, and Felix was practically running ahead; he was so excited to battle.

“Hey,” Dimitri leaned over to Ashe, “it’ll be okay. We’ll all look out for each other.”

Ashe smiled shakily. He looked better than he had at the training grounds. He’d seen Byleth talking to him yesterday, hopefully that helped. Dimitri prayed every day that they could spare Ashe the experience of helping kill his father.

“Dimitri, take Ashe, Annette, and Ingrid to the left,” Byleth said. “Do not engage with the leader of the mages, I’ll be taking the other Blue Lions to handle him. Just make sure to handle the mages on the left so we don’t get caught in a pincer attack.”

Dimitri raised an eyebrow at Byleth. Was she sending him to the left to try and protect him from the dark bishop? She looked away from him and he resisted the urge to scowl. He would have been fine!

But he couldn’t exactly argue with her right now. She was his professor and he had to set a good example for his other classmates. And just because in the future Dimitri could argue about assignments didn’t mean he could now.

Besides, Byleth is right. They did need to prevent a pincer attack, and Dimitri is the best bet to lead the second squad, even if he didn’t like missing the chance to face off against the Dark Bishop.

As their little squad of four started to move towards the mages, Dimitri sent out a silent prayer to the Goddess that things would be alright. Ingrid unsheathed her sword, which Byleth decided to have her use for some reason. Dimitri wondered briefly why, since last time she’d had Ingrid train to become a Falcon Knight. Most of them wield lances. And was it just him or did he see Byleth having her work with Mercedes and Annette to learn magic the other day?

“There are four mages up ahead,” Ashe said. Dimitri didn’t know how he could see them already, then again sight had never been Dimitri’s best sense. Ashe, on the other hand, was known for being able to reliably hit people from more than three times further away than Dimitri could. “Do you want me to lure them closer?”

“Can you hit them and still stay out of their range?” Dimitri asked. Ashe nodded and took a stance that Dimitri didn’t recognize. He could see the mages in the distance now as they continued to move forward. Ashe released his arrow and it slammed into one of the mage’s shoulders with enough force to knock him down. “Was that the Deadeye stance?”

“Helping you work on your archery helped me improve a lot too,” Ashe said. “And the professor had some really good pointers as well. Heads up, they’re coming over.”

Ashe and Annette stood behind Ingrid and Dimitri respectively, acting as their range while they moved forward in a frontal attack. Dimitri slammed into the first mage quickly, cutting him down without hesitation.

“I know they were planning to harm us, but still, it never gets easier for me,” he said as the mage’s body fell to the ground.

 One of the mages prepared a spell, aimed right over Dimitri’s shoulder. An arrow cut past first, slamming into the mages throat and sending him to the ground with nothing more than a bloody gurgle. Dimtiri turned to quickly check on Ashe. His face was pale and drawn, but he had a determined glint in his eyes.

“If I’d hesitated, that would have been me,” he said softly, and Dimitri focused back on the battle, sure that his young friend would be alright. Ingrid had a burn on her arm, but she managed to hit the mage back. Annette finished him off with a wind spell.

“See, I did it!” She said, clearly trying to sound more upbeat than she felt. “I’m a great fighter.” She sounded more like she was trying to convince herself. Ingrid dispatched the last mage decisively.

“We can’t relax here,” she said, shaking off the pain from the burn on her arm. “We must prepare for our next battle.”

“Hold on, the Professor had me learn some healing,” Annette said, and she touched the burn on Ingrid’s arm. It faded quickly. “Okay, now we can go.”

“Ashe, continue to act as our lookout,” Dimitri said. The Sealed Forest may be familiar territory for him, but with how dense the trees are, he wouldn’t be surprised if some other mages managed to sneak up on them. “Let me know the moment you notice someone nearby.”

Ashe nodded, some of the color already returning to his face. The continued in the direction of the old fortress, taking the longer route around in order to avoid being slowed down by the trees.

“Six mages up ahead,” Ashe said, his voice quiet. “What should we do?”

Dimitri cursed, not liking their odds. Ingrid and Annette have decent resistance at least, but Dimitri may as well paint a large target on himself that says “I’m weak to magic,” because mages tend to aim for him every time. With them being outnumbered like that, it could go poorly fast.

He closed his eyes, thinking for a moment. Just like with Edelgard in Remire, something flashed in his vision. He watched them get barely overwhelmed by the six mages, successfully killing five of them when they clashed only for the sixth to kill Ashe.

He opened his eyes, mind racing. “We need to get rid of one of them before we draw them over. Ashe, do you think you can kill one of them in one hit?”

“I don’t know,” he said, shifting nervously. “It’s not just about hitting the right spot, it’s about hitting it hard enough to pierce their robes, and they’re thicker in fatal areas.”

“Hey,” Annette nudged him, smiling brightly, “you can do this! Hold on, I’ve been working on some charms. They’re not exactly spells, but…” She concentrated, a hand on Ashe’s arm. His skin seemed to glow slightly. “Now try!”

Ashe got in the Deadeye stance, focusing hard. His arrow flew true, slamming into the closest mage hard enough for the arrow to pierce completely through his throat. He was dead before he hit the ground. As expected, the other five mages started to move towards them, and Dimitri’s squad moved to meet them. Just like before, they stood in a square formation. They were efficient, taking two of the mages out with ease. Just as Dimitri started to feel like everything would turn out alright, the hair on his arm seemed to raise, as if the air was full of electricity.

Siege magic. Shit, how could he have forgotten?

He didn’t even have time to scream before the spell slammed into him with full force. He bit through his tongue as the entirety of the Bohr spell hit him with full force. There was the sound of shattering glass and Dimitri took a moment to breathe through the lingering phantom pain.

“Dimitri!” Byleth’s voice was nearby, and she was already running into his line of sight. “I heard the Bohr spell, what happened.”

“I’m fine,” he said. “You know the Bohr spell doesn’t actually kill, right? It just sucks away your life force. Once you get to a skilled enough healer, you’ll be fine.”

“Except there’s three other mages ready to finish you off,” Byleth said. “I wasn’t over here, what needs to be done?”

Dimitri took a moment to think. His head still hurt, and every time Byleth stopped time it felt like his blood was burning. “I think if I can take out one of the mages in one hit, Ashe might be able to kill one with Annette’s help, and Ingrid is fast enough to take out another. That leaves only two.”

Byleth frowned. “Do you think you can dodge Bohr?”

“I can try,” Dimitri said. “Give us a little extra time and check on us again to see if we all survived.”

“I don’t like it,” Byleth said.

“Hey, trust me, okay?” Dimitri said. He was already starting to feel better, his skin no longer buzzing. “I’ll be okay.”

“Okay,” Byleth said, letting out a breath. “How far back should I go?”

“Fifteen seconds, give or take,” Dimitri said. Byleth nodded, and Dimitri felt time turn back, the feeling of his blood burning returning. Time resumed and Dimitri moved fast, taking the Tempest Lance stance and killing the mage in one blow. As expected, Ingrid hit one of them twice, dodging his counterattack and killing him with her second blow. This allowed Ashe and Annette to tag team the third mage, leaving only two left. The air seemed to still once again and Dimitri looked up, hoping to catch a glimpse of the spell so he could dodge it, but to no avail.

Bohr hit him full force once again. Even though he expected it, Dimitri still dropped to his knees. He rolled, dodging the two miasmas that were aimed at him.

Ingrid moved fast, attacking the mage nearest to her. She hit him once and as she was going in for her second hit he counterattacked with Banshee. Rather than dodge, she powered through it and sliced him clean open. Her face was singed, but she barely stumbled. Ashe stepped out of the other mage’s range, pulling his bow back for extra range enough that the arrow curved through the air, and hit him. Annette finished him off before he had the chance to do anything in response.

And Dimitri laid on the ground uselessly, trying to remember how to breathe.

“You Highness!” Ingrid knelt down, checking him over. “Are you okay?”

“Fine,” Dimitri wheezed. “Bohr doesn’t kill. It’s meant to set up a killing blow, not deal it itself.”

“Here,” Annette crouched and the faint blessing of her healing magic helped ease the pain somewhat. At the very least he felt like he could think again. Ashe helped him sit up, fretting anxiously.

It took a few moments, but Byleth froze time again, running down to check on him.

“I’m okay,” Dimitri said. “If you and the others can finish up, I’m sure Ingrid and Ashe can help me meet back up with you. Annette’s healing is already helping a lot.”

“Promise?” Byleth asked, and there was worry in her eyes, even if her face didn’t show it.

“I promise,” Dimitri said. “We’ll be there soon. Just handle that Bishop for us.”

Time crawled forward once again.

“Should we keep moving forward?” Ingrid asked, glancing at Dimitri with concern. “What if he attacks again?”

“Let’s wait it out,” Ashe said. “The professor and her squad should be finishing up soon, right?”

“We should meet with the professor,” Dimitri said. “It’ll be okay.” His three friends shared a look, none of them very happy.

“Okay,” Ingrid said. “Um, do your eyes do that a lot? That glowy thing?”

“You’re an Oracle, right?” Annette said. “I thought I overheard Claude and Edelgard mention it once.”

“You were eavesdropping on the house leaders?” Ashe asked, scandalized.

“It was payback for Claude listening in on my singing,” Annette said, pouting as she cast another healing spell on Dimitri.

“Yes, I’m an Oracle,” Dimitri said. “It’s still relatively new.”

There was a beat of silence. Typically in Kingdom lore claimed that becoming an Oracle was a great honor, a gift the Goddess only gives her most precious subjects.

“I’m sorry,” Ashe said.

“I get that it’s an honor,” Ingrid said, “but I’m kind of upset. How are you supposed to rule and help the kingdom get back on its feet if you die before you’re ever crowned king?”

“And there’s no way to extend your lifespan?” Annette asked. “Have we explored all the possibilities already?”

Dimitri shrugged, then winced because ow . “The professor and I are working on it.” He had one arm around Ashe and another around Ingrid as they helped drag him to meet up with the others. Byleth was scowling, which wasn’t a good sign.

“What happened?” Annette asked.

“He got away,” she said. “He won’t be coming back any time soon, but I don’t like it.”

“I’ve never seen an enemy warp away like that,” Sylvain said. “Did someone rescue them? But they would have had to be close by, unless they had a stave. But those are rare.”

“I don’t know,” Byleth said. “But if they know dark siege magic, I bet there’s more that these mages know that we might have previously thought  impossible.”

“Speaking of dark siege magic,” Mercedes said, rushing to check Dimitri over. “Is that what happened to you?”

“Yes,” Dimitri said. “I wouldn’t recommend it, it hurts and I can barely stand.”

“You can’t stand,” Felix said. “That’s why people are holding you up. We should get you back to the monastery before you keel over. It would be annoying to have to lug your dead body around.”

“Thanks Felix,” Dimitri said genuinely, because that was the closest he was going to get to an expression of concern. Dimitri climbed onto Dedue’s back without protest because even with Mercedes’s healing magic he still ached deep in his bones. Dark magic hurt, and siege magic was more dangerous than most. And looking into the future the way he had earlier had made his headache that he’d been nursing the whole day escalate into a full blown migraine. 

He leaned against Dedue’s back as they returned to the monastery, happy to be close to his best friend and also exhausted. It took very little time for his eyes to slip shut. He was out in minutes.

***

Edelgard sat in front of him, soundly defeated. Finally, after five, nearly six years the battle was over. They’d won.

She looked so small now that she was no longer a demonic beast. She was looking down, and a part of Dimitri ached for the sister he loved so much. He reached out a hand, hoping that she wouldn’t make him kill her.

She looked up, and this felt different. What was different? She would attempt to kill him, and he’d have to kill her. He’d had this dream before, over and over, where he’d be forced to relive one of his greatest failures.

Her hand reached up and he twitched, preparing himself for her attack. But instead…

Instead she took his hand. Stunned, he helped her to her feet. His eyes burned. She collapsed against him, shaking. How did she get here? What had they done to her? There were scars on her body that he hadn’t put there in their final battle.

“Thank you.”

He opened his mouth, not sure what was going to come out. “El-”

Dimitri’s eyes snapped open. He was still on Dedue’s back, they were almost to the monastery. He pushed himself away, his head feeling like it was splitting itself in half. He collapsed on the ground, his vision only half working. He leaned to the side and emptied the contents of his stomach. Everything burned .

“Your Highness!” Dimitri coughed, only half aware of Dedue’s presence as he vomited again.

“Is it the residue of the siege magic?” Ingrid asked. There was a cold hand pressed against his forehead. Healing magic washed over his body. The pain eased slowly, and he closed his eyes, the blurry vision only making his vertigo worse. That had been a good vision, why did it hurt so badly?

“Dimitri, can you hear me?” Even though her voice was quiet, it still made Dimitri’s head pound. But at least he could think again. He didn’t nod, knowing it would only hurt more, instead just trying to make a grunt of assent. “Is the healing magic helping?”

It was, even if only a little bit. He grunted again, and once again the healing warmth of Recover eased his pain. He managed to open his eyes without feeling like he was about to vomit again.

“Better?” Byleth asked.

“Much,” he said. “How close are we to the monastery?”

“About ten minutes,” she said. “Do you need more time to rest?”

“No,” Dimitri said, though that was probably hard to believe considering he still didn’t think he could stand. He could feel the concerned eyes of his classmates, but he didn’t want to look over there. He could probably pass this off as being the residual effects of Bohr, but half the Blue Lions were already aware of his low time limit, so he should probably just come clean.

Later, though, when he didn’t feel like there was someone hammering a nail directly between his eyes. For now though, he really wanted to get some sleep.

“Let’s get you to Manuela,” Byleth said. “Are you going to pass out again?”

“Probably,” Dimitri said, because he could already see spots in his vision again. As expected, the moment he was on Dedue’s back again, his vision faded until he slipped into unconsciousness once more. He hoped he could go back to that dream at least. He so rarely got to see something so nice when he was asleep.

Chapter Text

Dimitri missed the days when he didn’t wake up every morning with a migraine. The curtains, thankfully, were drawn when he opened his eyes to see the infirmary, so the light in the room was dim. His head was pounding, of course, but it wasn’t as bad as it was earlier that day when he’d thrown up.

There was someone else in the room, and it took a moment for Dimitri’s vision to even out enough to tell that it was Felix.

“Good, you’re up,” he said. His face was stormy. “Want to explain why you didn’t tell any of us that you’re an Oracle?”

“It’s really new,” Dimitri said.

“You’ve known for almost three months,” Felix said. “That’s not new. Try again.”

“I didn’t want you to worry,” Dimitri said, which was partially true. Dimitri may not care about much about his own life, he didn’t fear death. But one of the things that Byleth had practically drilled into his head was that his life may mean little to him, but it means something to others. “The professor and I are working on it.”

“Oh, so long as you’re working on it,” Felix said, snorting derisively. “I don’t know why I even try.” He stood up storming out of the room, but his outward aggression was marred slightly by the gentle way he closed the door so as to not aggravate Dimitri’s head.

He closed his eyes again and waited a few minutes. Felix must have told people that he was awake, because the door opened and Manuela walked in.

“How are you feeling?” She asked. She was speaking quietly, which meant she’d been informed about his migraines. Probably by Byleth.

“I’m alright,” he said. “Am I good to go?”

She sighed. “I’m going to be honest, Dimitri, as far as I can tell with a routine checkup you’re perfectly healthy. There’s no reason for me to keep you here.” She rubbed her face. “But you got hit with dark siege magic which is something that we’ve never seen before, and I’m concerned about what the Professor told me about your migraines.”

“I’m alright, I promise,” Dimitri said. He was sure he was capable of standing again at least, which was an improvement from earlier.

Manuela didn’t look happy, but she did eventually let him go with the promise that if he started feeling dizzy that he would come back.

Dedue was waiting outside the door to the infirmary. He was leaning against the wall, and he straightened up the moment Dimitri exited.

“Your Highness,” he said. “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine, Dedue,” he said. “What have I missed?”

“We got back yesterday,” Dedue said. “The Golden Deer left for their mission earlier, and the Professor gave us the day off.” Dimitri nodded following Dedue down the stairs. “You’re just in time for dinner.”

“I was out for a whole day?” Dimitri asked, frowning. He was already low on time as it is, he didn’t like the fact that he passed out for an entire day after having a vision.

Your symptoms were exacerbated by the dark magic , he told himself. You have time .

And yet, as he followed Dedue to the dining hall where the Blue Lions and the Black Eagles waited to greet them, he couldn’t help but feel like time was the resource he had the least of.

***

“Look who’s back on his feet?” Claude said when his class returned from their mission. Dimitri had met them when they arrived, anxious to make sure the Golden Deer were okay since they went to Zanado to handle the bandits. There were some scrapes and bruises, and Claude was limping slightly with an arm around Raphael, but everyone was alive, so Dimitri breathed out a sigh of relief. Claude wrapped an arm around Dimitri’s shoulder, probably half in greeting and half using him for support, releasing Raphael. “You should have seen how freaked out everyone else was when Dedue carried you into the monastery. Some people thought you were dead.”

“But not you?” Dimitri asked, feeling his lips twitch up into a smile.

“Of course not,” Claude said. “You didn’t let that bishop kill you in Remire, why would you let him kill you now? Come on, you’re Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd, you’re not going to die.”

Dimitri’s heat felt warm at the unwavering faith that Claude had in him. He smiled. “Thanks.”

Claude nudged him. “You could have a little faith in me too, Dima. I saw you running out here to make sure everyone was okay.”

“I can’t be excited to see you?” Dimitri asked, even though a part of him was worried. Last time around Byleth had been there, and while Dimitri couldn’t remember Divine Pulse on his first run, a part of him wondered if someone would have died had she not been there to intervene. But the Golden Deer were fine, and a part of Dimitri relaxed at that knowledge.

“Alright, sure,” Claude said. “Do me a favor and get me to the dining hall? I heard they’re serving sauteed jerky today.”

“Claude, I'm taking you to Manuela,” Dimitri said. “You’re limping.”

“I can go to Manuela after I eat,” Claude said. “Come on, you like the Sauteed Jerky too, right? Are you really going to drag me to Manuela and deny a man his last meal?”

“A last meal?” Dimitri asked. “Ah, I thought I wasn’t supposed to be worried?”

Claude elbowed him. “Just take me to the dining hall! It’s not that bad, Marianne would have healed it if she weren’t so exhausted. It can wait thirty minutes for me to eat my favorite food.”

“Alright,” Dimitri said. “We can eat it together and you can tell me about your mission. And then afterwards I’ll take you to Manuela.”

“Alright, alright,” Claude said. “You know, I bet you left the infirmary the moment you woke up. You aren’t exactly Mr.Medical Attention yourself.”

Dimitri laughed. “I suppose you have a point. I think it took me less than ten minutes to convince Manuela to discharge me. But I didn’t have any broken bones.”

“It’s not broken!” Claude said. “Probably.” Dimitri snorted, helping Claude limp to the dining hall. He dropped him off at the table and went to pick up two plates of food. It was sauteed jerky, and Claude was right in assuming that it was one of Dimitri’s favorites.

It was nice to eat with Claude. He was funny and nice and when he told Dimitri the story about their mission he made it sound like it was written in a storybook. He was captivating, and the dinner was over all too quickly. Dimitri dropped him off with Manuela and found himself hoping that they’d do it again sometime soon.

***

Dimitri had hoped that, with the Golden Deer being assigned to handle the bandits, they’d be able to avoid going after Lonato as well. But, just like last time, they were being sent to help clean up in the aftermath of the rebellion.

Dimitri shifted, uncomfortable with this turn of events, and Rhea noticed. “Is everything alright, Prince Dimitri?”

He wanted to say no and beg her to give this mission to anyone else. He’d seen what it had done to Ashe last time. “Yes,” he said. “It’s nothing, just a bad feeling.”

He was sure rumors had reached Rhea about his status as an Oracle, so she could press and ask for answers if she so desired. But she didn’t, instead choosing to dismiss them. Dimitri managed to keep the scowl off his face until they were out of the audience chamber, but it was only barely.

“You’re glaring at the floor pretty hard,” Byleth said, her voice flat. “Are you getting revenge on it for tripping Annette?”

That caused Dimitri to crack a smile. Byleth was cracking a lot more jokes recently, she'd clearly been spending too much time with Sylvain, or maybe Claude. “Of course,” he said. “No one hurts the Blue Lions and gets away with it.”

“Hey,” she nudged him. “He’s going to be okay. He’s got all of you.”

“I know,” Dimitri said. “Do you think we could convince him to stay behind?”

Byleth shook her head. “I’ve tried to talk him out of it before when he’d joined my class, and that was when I wasn’t teaching the Blue Lions. There’s no way he’ll stay behind now.”

Dimitri trailed behind her as they made their way to the Blue Lions classroom. Ashe was already aware that Lonato was in the midst of a rebellion against the church. Dimitri had been there when Catherine was obliged to ask him what he knew about it. (The answer, of course, was not a damn thing.) Ashe had been distraught to find out that the Knights of Seiros were being sent to quash the rebellion, and he'd spent most of his time praying shakily in the Cathedral to the point where Annette and Mercedes often had to drag him to meals.

It was an exact parallel to his first run, and it didn't surprise Dimitri at all. He'd just do what he could for him to help Ashe stay distracted from what they were going to do.

Dimitri poked his head into the Blue Lions classroom, all his classmates were already there thankfully. “Ashe, can we talk to you?”

Ashe nodded, leaving his conversation with Ingrid to meet Dimitri and Byleth outside the classroom. “What do you need, your highness?”

“Call me Dimitri,” he said almost automatically even though that wasn't what they were supposed to be talking about. Ashe shifted uncomfortably. “Actually, we can argue about that later. We just received our mission for the month. We will be going to Gaspard territory with a small squadron of knights. We are merely meant to help with the cleanup but…” he frowned. “I want you to stay here.”

“I can't!” Ashe said, looking stricken. “If…if the knights really do have to kill Lonato, then I should be there to help. I want to be there to help. I have to do what I can.” His eyes were suspiciously shiny, and a part of Dimitri wanted to pull him into a hug, but the more emotionally constipated part of him didn't know how to do that. “Lonato has done everything for me. I have to be able to repay that.”

Dimitri gave into his base instincts and pulled Ashe into an awkward hug. It seemed to help.

“I won't force you to stay behind,” he said. “Just know that I understand how hard it can be to lose your father. I just don't want to cause you any unnecessary pain.”

“Thank you,” Ashe said, his voice slightly muffled due to the fact that his face was buried in Dimitri’s shoulder. Dimitri awkwardly patted his back. “We can go back in, it’s okay.”

“Do you want to take the day off?” Byleth asked.

“No,” Ashe said. “I want…” he took a breath. “I want to be ready. I don’t want to hold us back. I don’t know what Lonato is thinking, what he’s dragged everyone into. But I do know where I have to stand and that’s with you guys.”

Dimitri blinked, his eyes stinging suspiciously. “Thank you, Ashe. It means more to me than you know.” What had he done to inspire this kind of loyalty? He didn’t feel as if he deserved it, was it loyalty because he was their future king? Or as their house leader? As Dimitri walked into the classroom alongside Byleth and Ashe, a part of him vowed to earn that loyalty.

***

“Seriously, we’re fine,” Yuri said when Dimitri went to visit him in the library in Abyss the next day. “I already told you we’d come get you once we need your help.”

“Sue me, I like spending time with you,” Dimitri said. “Besides, as the future king of Faerghus don’t you think I should get to know the people here? And I should be informed, even if it means going behind the backs of the members of the church to read censored material.”

Yuri shook his head, though he had a fond smile on his face. “You really are something else. I don’t think any other Fhirdiad noble would see Abyss as anything besides a place full of undesirables that deserve to die.”

“Trust me, I know,” Dimitri said dryly, skimming the shelves to see if there were any books that stood out. “I grew up with them. Rodrigue did what he could, but he had his own territory to run and his own son to look after as well.” He smiled wryly. “Don’t you know? The tragedy of Duscur was an inside job. Sure, those who slither in the dark pushed for it, but Faerghus nobles helped plan it and organize it. And then they placed the blame on Duscur and it was all too easy to lead a massacre on their people because of the previous racism that Faerghus perpetuated through the doctrine of Seiros.”

“That should surprise me more than it does,” Yuri said. “Then again, I spent a good amount of time in House Rowe. I certainly heard plenty of treasonous remarks against the king while I was there.” He reached out, tugging a book off the shelf. “Try this one, it has a lot of information about Nemesis and the Ten Elites.” Dimitri hummed, taking the book and slipping it into the bag he brought with him. It would be good to read up on them. In a perfect world, they would prevent their awakening, but Dimitri knew better than to hope for the best.

“Maybe I should have some people I trust investigate Count Rowe,” Dimitri said. “Though now may not be the best time to do it. I’m trying to avoid any scrutiny from the nobles in Fhirdiad right now.”

“Why?” Yuri asked.

“If they find out I’m an Oracle they’ll demand I return home and sire an heir,” Dimitri said. “Since my lifespan has been greatly shortened, they would claim that it’s my duty to prolong my line and create an heir with my crest.”

“That’s…gross,” Yuri said.

“That’s Faerghus,” Dimitri said. “It’s one of my goals, to change the way they view crests. Children that have crests are often treated more like bargaining chips than actual people. And noble children that don’t have crests are cast aside and often aren’t even allowed to lead their territory. For someone like Ingrid, her crest may save her family from financial ruin, in exchange for her being sold like an extremely rare animal to the highest bidder.”

“Trust me, you don’t have to remind me,” Yuri said. “The only reason Rowe took me in was because of my crest. I had plenty of lessons on what it meant and how lucky I was that he’d taken me in.” He rolled his eyes. “At least we can say for sure that Lonato isn’t the same way. It seems when he takes kids in, it’s because they need a home, not because he’s hoping to make a profit off of them.”

“Lonato’s actions only make it harder to justify killing him,” Dimitri said. “But he’s allowed himself to be manipulated in the wake of his son’s death.”

“And someone that’s capable of being manipulated is dangerous,” Yuri said. “Or exactly what you want, depending on what side you’re on.” He crouched down, pulling another book out of the bottom shelf. “Do me a favor and give this to Riegan. He seems like the type to appreciate it.”

“Claude would appreciate any book from this library,” Dimitri said. “He practically hunts me down whenever I disappear like this because he’s started to realize that I tend to have an interesting and possibly illegal book with me when I turn back up.”

“I have the feeling he and I would get along,” Yuri said, his smile widening slightly and becoming slightly more real, if just for a moment. “Be sure to bring him with you when you finally introduce us to the rest of your friends.”

Dimitri tried to imagine for a moment what a friendship between Claude and Yuri would look like. Last time around, the classes rarely interacted, and since Yuri spent most of his time with the Blue Lions, it meant Claude and Yuri didn’t interact. Trying to imagine them as friends was actually a terrifying thought.

“I think the two of you should never interact,” Dimitri said. “I’ve also decided that Constance and Linhardt are never allowed to meet.”

Yuri hummed. “Is Linhardt the one with an obsession with learning about crests?”

“Yes.”

Yuri thought for a moment, then went pale. “He and Constance would destroy the monastery with their experiments, wouldn’t they?”

“Undoubtedly.”

***

Dimitri, in a desperate effort to help Ashe take his mind off of what would be occuring at the end of the month, was attempting to help him with wielding his lance.

“I know you're used to axes,” Dimitri said, “just remember not to overextend yourself, or you'll end up hitting your enemy with your pole rather than your blade.”

“Right,” Ashe said, his face set in determination. Dimitri was currently trying to teach him how to swing for maximum effectiveness in a move known as Tempest Lance. He was so close to getting it. Byleth only had so much time to individually teach each of her students, so Dimitri did what he could to help anyone he could.

“I should have known this was where you'd been hiding out all day,” Claude said, startling Dimitri slightly. He hadn't even heard him approach. “Do you ever do anything but train?” His voice sounded exasperated, but the smile on his face actually reached his eyes for once, so he was clearly teasing them.

“Sometimes I fight in actual battles,” Dimitri said, keeping his mouth in a thin line rather than smiling like he wanted to. “And sometimes I eat.”

“Was that a joke?” Claude asked. “I can never tell with you. Or Teach, for that matter. Are you taking lessons from her?”

He absolutely was, but he definitely wouldn't be telling Claude that. Byleth was very adept at making jokes with a completely straight face. While Dimitri hadn't quite mastered it, he had managed to mess with Claude a few times.

“You're working with lances?” Claude asked, wrinkling his nose in disgust. “Why?”

“It is my preferred weapon,” Dimitri said, finally letting his smile break forth the way it normally did when he talked to Claude.

“I failed to convince you to take up the bow then?” He asked and Ashe actually let out a quiet laugh. Dimitri wanted to hug Claude then and there for managing to do something that Dimitri had been working towards all day (of course, Dimitri isn't exactly known for his jokes, so many of them fell flat).

Instead of doing something embarrassing like that, Dimitri groaned. “Laugh it up, I still can't tell if the Professor is joking or not about having me take the archer exam.”

“Maybe Ashe should be helping you with your bow instead,” Claude said. “I heard he can already shoot at point blank range.”

“I only figured out the technique for when a melee attacker approaches,” Ashe said, rubbing the back of his neck, his ears slightly red. “I know there's a volleying technique you can do at point blank range, but that seems a little bit beyond me.”

“Hey, don't sell yourself short,” Claude said. “Leonie is working on that one right now, maybe she can help you out. I bet she'd be willing to do it if you would be willing to help her learn how to deadeye. She's always cursing her lack of range.”

Ashe actually had a smile on his face, and Dimitri figured Claude deserved something nice for this. Maybe some jerky? Or some tea? Did Claude like tea? He should ask Byleth, she would know.

“You know, if you ever want to take the wyvern lord exam, you'll have to learn how to use lances,” Dimitri said. Claude's face morphed into a look of horror. “I never did repay you for helping me pass the fighter exam.”

“Oh no, I couldn't ask you to do that,” Claude said, glancing around as if trying to find an escape route. Ashe was glancing between them, seemingly amused. “You're so busy.”

“I'm never too busy to help a friend,” Dimitri said, keeping his face as serious as possible. He definitely understood why Byleth does this, he's having fun.

“He looks just like the professor,” Ashe said. “I don't think he's joking.”

Claude sighed. “You know, most people just buy someone a gift as thanks for someone helping them out. Is there any way I could convince you to not embarrass me like this?”

“Nope,” Dimitri said, handing him a training lance. “Ashe and I are working on the combat art Tempest Lance. He's improving rapidly, I'm sure you'll do the same.”

About ten minutes later, Dimitri realized he may have to take his words back.

“You are notoriously bad at this,” he said. “How did you even wind up holding it like this? I swear I corrected your grip thirty seconds ago!”

“Okay, let's bring out the axes and see how well you do,” Claude said with a scowl.

“It is nice to know that you aren't effortlessly good at everything,” Dimitri said. Before this, Claude seemed to be able to do anything he set his mind to with an effortless smile. Seeing Claude struggle with something for once, it reminded Dimitri that they were actually the same age.

Wait, were they the same age? Technically Dimitri is five, almost six years older than he is now, right? But he had to admit that he was enjoying himself now that he didn't have the weight of the entire kingdom on his shoulders yet. And he often felt more like his seventeen year old self than his twenty three year old self while here. Maybe it was because he was spending time with his younger classmates, or maybe it was because he was actually allowing himself to cultivate friendships.

If he kept thinking about this then his head was going to start hurting. More than it already was, at least.

“Your highness?” Ashe asked. “Are you okay?”

“Please, call me Dimitri,” Dimitri said instead of responding to his question. Ashe shifted awkwardly. It had taken them a long time to get to the point of Ashe speaking to him casually in the last timeline, but Dimitri missed it. Ashe still tended to treat Dimitri like he was above him, when really all Dimitri wanted was for him to be his friend.

“I don't think I can do that,” he said. “You're going to be king someday, and I'm a commoner. Lonato would be furious with me, I'm sure!”

Ashe seemed to deflate slightly at his mention of his adoptive father and Dimitri internally screamed as he searched for a way to stop him from completely disappearing on his head.

“If Lord Lonato says something to you, I'll write him a letter of protest,” Dimitri said, which probably wasn't the best way to take the conversation.

“If I can call him Dima without getting beheaded, I'm sure you can call him by his first name,” Claude said.

Ashe's face seemed to spasm as he tried to figure out how to respond to that. “Uh, I could try?”

Dimitri relaxed. “That's all I ask.”

At the very least, it was progress. And it seemed to be happening earlier this time around. He smiled at Claude in thanks, and his friend dropped his lance.

He really was so bad with them.

***

“Are we doing more practice battles?” Sylvain asked with a groan. “Didn't we do those last month?”

“That's the thing about practice,” Byleth said, her face passive. “You have to keep doing it.”

“I think it's great,” Ingrid said. “The more we practice and train the better prepared we'll be for our mission this month.”

“We aren't even supposed to fight on our mission,” Sylvain said. “We're just helping clean up in the aftermath.”

“So you're saying that you need practice cleaning instead?” Byleth asked and Sylvain paled.

“No, I definitely need to work on fighting!” He picked up his lance. “Let's go!”

Dimitri snorted but didn't object. He didn't mind the extra practice battles at all. Byleth had made some noise about using two of their free days for battles, and Dimitri was sure that Sylvain was the only one who would object.

“I want you to be able to take your intermediate exams at the end of the next month,” Byleth said. “The best way to learn is through hands-on experience and practice.”

Sylvain may have pouted about the battle, but he did stick closely to Felix and he didn't hold back during the practice battle. Rather than having Felix use a sword like he would have expected, Byleth equipped Felix with a pair of gauntlets. Ingrid was using a sword instead. Was she planning to have Ingrid become a sword master? Or maybe eventually a mortal savant. She is having Ingrid work with her magic.

Ashe’s skill with his bow was improving rapidly, the same as Sylvain's skill with a lance. Dimitri was still struggling to get much better with his bow, despite Byleth working with him and claiming that she would be having him take the archer exam.

Dimitri really hoped she was joking.

***

Dimitri was hardly paying attention to the conversations amongst his classmates as they walked towards Gaspard territory. His mind was so focused on the ambush ahead and on making sure that everyone survived. He was just grateful he could use his visions as an excuse to tell everyone to pack torches.

“It’s the Garland Moon,” Felix said, looking at him with disbelief. “Why would we need torches in Gaspard territory?”

“Just pack them,” Dimitri said, and for once Felix didn’t argue.

He tuned back into the conversation only to hear Catherine say, “You should know more about that than any of us, Ashe.”

Dimitri bristled right as Ashe replied. “Well I don’t! Lonato never mentioned anything of the like to me.”

“Probably because he was smart enough not to involve you in his personal vendetta,” he said. “If he wanted you involved in this, he would have kept you close to him. Instead he sent you away.”

Ashe didn’t look comforted by this in the slightest. “If anything, it probably has to do with Christophe.”

“Christophe?” Annette asked.

“Lonato’s son,” Ashe said.

“His blood son,” Dimitri corrected, because as far as he was concerned, and by Kingdom law, Ashe was Lonato’s son. “He was accused of being involved in the Tragedy of Duscur.” There was a beat of silence after his words, as if everyone was afraid to speak. “My father was attempting some major political reforms, and there were many people in the kingdom that didn’t like that. Christophe was one of the few accused of being involved, though I don’t know how much I believe that. House Gaspard had little to gain from the Tragedy of Duscur, not like House Kleiman.”

“You’ve thought about this a lot, haven’t you?” Sylvain asked.

“Every day,” Dimitri said. “For a long time I couldn’t recall the faces of those that were there, but now they’re growing clearer.” He rubbed his head, closing his eyes for a moment. He could still see Solon’s face in his mind, haunting his nightmares. He didn’t know who it was that killed his father, but having actually met some of those who slither in the dark had jogged his memory, and he could remember Solon holding his father’s severed head, he remembered pale faced soldiers in the crowd slaughtering his friends and family.

He felt a soft hand on his arm, and he opened his eyes, not even aware that he’d closed them. Ashe was smiling weakly at him, and Dimitri actually managed a weak smile back.

“Whatever the truth of the incident may be,” Catherine said, “Lord Lonato has harbored resentment over the church ever since.”

A part of Dimitri could understand. He himself had been lost in grief and revenge for five years, only dragging those around him down with him. He felt as though he could sympathize with Lonato, a man who had lost his family and saw revenge as the only way to make things better. A part of him wanted to try and get through to Lonato, the way that Byleth and Rodrigue got through to him. But Lonato had no reason to trust Dimitri, he had no reason to believe that his Prince had his best interests at heart. No, if anyone would be able to get through to Lonato, it would be Ashe.

But could Dimitri ask that of him? He suspected Ashe already wanted to try and talk to Lonato, last time around it had taken a great deal of effort to keep him away from him. Back then, Dimitri was trying to spare him the pain of watching his father die. But had he actually condemned Ashe to a lifetime of wondering what if? What if he had just had the opportunity to try and save him? What if he could have done more?

As they walked, their surroundings slowly started to grow foggier.

“Oh my,” Mercedes said when the fog grew thick enough that they could only see a few paces in front of them. Dimitri was having a hard time seeing the entirety of his class at this point. “It’s a good thing you convinced us to bring torches, Dimitri.”

Catherine was giving him a weird look. A part of him was worried she’d think he was the traitor, but with word going around that he could see the future, it’s also possible she’s just evaluating him based on those rumors.

“Go ahead and light your torches,” Byleth ordered. “Even if we aren’t supposed to be battling, in case of an ambush it would be better not to have to waste precious time lighting them while under attack.”

No one hesitated to listen, and soon their surroundings were lit up with their torches. Dimitri always felt awkward trying to hold a torch and wield his lance, which is a common problem. It’s why mages are often the ones holding torches on a battlefield, though over time he’d grown capable of carrying his torch alongside his other backup weapons.

As they continued to trudge through the fog, their torches making their vision only slightly better, a knight approached them quickly.

“Report!” He said, gasping. He didn’t seem injured, though his armor was scraped and the tip of his lance was red with blood. He’d clearly come from battle. “The enemy is approaching! They can’t be avoided. Their numbers are far greater than we predicted and they used the fog to slip past the knight’s perimeter!”

Catherine cursed. “It looks like our mission just changed. Everyone, prepare for battle!” Dimitri put his torch to the side carefully to make sure none of his clothes or hair caught on fire. These torches were enchanted at the monastery to be safer to wield in battle, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

Just like last time, the first assault came from Lonato’s archers. There was already shouting within the fog.

“The knights are already battling,” Dimitri muttered to himself. A soldier (he can’t call them soldiers, not when he’s fought entire battalions of trained knights, these are farmers and tradesmen) came running out of the fog, brandishing his lance.

“Lord Lonato doesn’t deserve such sadness and anger!” He yelled as he swung his lance at Dedue, who blocked him. “Now it’s your turn to suffer!”

Ashe let out a sad noise next to Dimitri as Dedue cut down the man in front of him. Did he know him? How many of these people were Ashe’s friends and comrades? How could they ask him to fight in this battle? Dimitri knew Ashe wanted to be here, that they hadn’t made him come, but a part of him wanted to whisk him away from this.

“Why Lonato?” He asked. “Why did you drag so many others into this?”

Everything went to hell pretty quickly after that. Out of all of them, only Dimitri and Byleth had any experience fighting in fog. They needed to take care of the dark mage creating it, but Dimitri was probably the worst option to do so. His resilience is horrible, as evidenced by the several mages that were sent to murder him at Remire. He saw Byleth heading in that direction, so he pressed forward, heading in the direction he hoped Lonato to be in. Ashe and Felix stuck close to him, rushing forward. It seems like Annette was with Byleth, and Mercedes and Ingrid were close behind Dimitri. He didn’t know where Dedue and Sylvain were, but there were no attackers coming from behind, and he suspected it was in large part because of them.

 They were probably about halfway across Magdred Way when the fog started to dissipate. Dimitri could see Lonato now, standing back on a fortress while his people ran forward to be slaughtered. Catherine had been going the wrong way, instead on the southern end of the area where there was another group of villagers distracting her.

Why wasn’t Lonato fighting with his men? Why was he hiding back here while his people, the people that love him, die for him?

Dimitri took a breath, trying to steady himself. He could feel the boar raging in the background, begging to be released, to fight this Lord for his crimes against his people. But Dimitri didn’t know the bigger picture. Lonato was in pain, he was hurting, and that was something Dimitri could understand.

“Lonato,” Ashe said, his eyes trained on the man sitting astride his horse. He started running forward, and Dimitri raced after him, cursing as he tried to keep up. Sure, Dimitri was fast, but Ashe was faster, and he wasn’t weighed down with heavy lances. He got to Lonato first, and Dimitri stayed back, keeping his eyes trained on their interaction, ready to act in case anything went wrong.

Lonato’s eyes widened when he saw Ashe, but his face was otherwise stoic. “Stand down, Ashe. I must destroy these evil doers by any means necessary!”

Ashe ran right up to Lonato, and Dimitri wanted to grab him and drag him back. He’s an archer, damnit! Why would he put himself in point blank range of an enemy?

Lonato is his father , Dimitri reminded himself. He won’t hurt him.

“Please surrender, Lonato,” Ashe’s voice was pleading. “Whatever your reason for doing this, we can still talk it out.”

“Rhea is an infidel,” Lonato said, his voice hard, Dimitri nearly stepped into a fighting stance just from that alone. He won’t hurt Ashe, he reminded himself. “She has deceived the people and desecrated the Goddess! We have virtue and the Goddess herself is on our side!”

“Even if that’s true, dragging the townsfolk into this isn’t right!” Ashe stepped forward and Dimitri stepped forward in time, still keeping himself slightly back. He didn’t want to overwhelm Lonato and make him feel cornered.

“Enough!” Lonato had a look in his eyes. It was hard to tell from far away, but Dimitri could swear that the man had lost his mind. “If that’s how you feel, prepare yourself. I’m putting an end to this!”

Dimitri moved, running forward, but he was too slow. Ashe had placed himself in a bad spot, he didn’t have the room to step back and use his bow. By the time Dimitri reached Lonato, his lance was already through Ashe’s chest.

He killed him . Dimitri’s thoughts were jumbled. He called out for Byleth and his blood burned as time stopped. How could he kill his own family?

Byleth cursed when she saw what happened. “I’m too far away to do anything,” she said. “Do you think you can stop it?”

Dimitri nodded numbly, his eyes still trained on Ashe. Of course he knew that Byleth had probably stopped all of their deaths at some point. But up until now, Dimitri had only witnessed his own deaths. How does Byleth do it? How does she watch the people she cares about die and still have the ability to focus?

He blinked, and his vision was filled with Byleth. Her hands were on his face. “Hey, you can save him still. Don’t forget that.”

“Does it get easier?” He asked.

“No,” she said. “But so long as you remember that you can save them, it helps.”

He closed his eyes, taking a breath. “Okay, I’m ready. Just give me ten seconds.” Byleth didn’t question him, rewinding time. She was back on the other side of the battlefield, and Dimitri was running the moment time started again. He caught the lance when it was inches from Ashe’s chest, and he could see Ashe’s face. The fear and betrayal and hurt in his eyes.

Lonato was his family. And he’d killed him .

The steel lance shattered in his grip.

“How dare you?” The Boar hissed. “He was practically unarmed! Your own son?”

“I’m doing this for my son!” Lonato did not seem deterred despite watching Dimitri break his weapon in half. “For my child and for the people of Fodlan. If you will not stand aside then I will cut you down!”

“Ashe is your son,” The Boar said, and look how much progress he had made, that even with the Boar here, he was still thinking of others. “You raised him and his siblings, and you threw that away because of a revenge plot doomed to fail? You don’t deserve to live!”

Dimitri had tried to empathize with him, but not even the Boar could look at someone who loved him like family and cut him down with no remorse.

“Boar,” Felix said. “You’re scaring Ashe.”

Dimitri blinked, staring at the warped lance in his hand and turning to see Ashe. He didn’t look afraid, he looked worried. Dimitri turned back to Lonato, who was reaching for his spare weapon. He saw the other Blue Lions, who looked just as angry as Dimitri felt, and he knew that he didn’t need to be the one here.

The Boar picked Ashe up. He weighed nothing. “You don’t need to see this.” They passed Catherine as he pulled Ashe away, and Lonato was worked into a frenzy just seeing her. Dimitri ignored it, determined to get Ashe away, to prevent him from watching the man he sees as a father die. Dimitri had done that twice, once with his own father, and once with Rodrigue. He can’t do that to him.

“He was going to kill me,” Ashe said. “You saw him kill me, didn’t you? That’s why you stepped in. Your eyes were glowing again.”

The Boar was back to pacing in the back of his head, and it was Dimitri that said, “I’m sorry.”

“I don’t understand,” Ashe said, his voice quiet. “He wasn’t like this when I left.”

“Sometimes people are hiding more darkness beneath the surface than even the people that love them the most can see,” Dimitri said. “It’s not your fault that he hid it, and it’s not your fault that you couldn’t convince him to stop. You haven’t failed anyone.”

“I know that’s not why we’re here, but I’m worried about my siblings,” Ashe said. “And I want answers. A part of me is hoping that there’s something he left behind that will make this better somehow.”

“Do you want to go home?” Dimitri asked.

“It’s not part of the mission,” Ashe said.

“The professor would understand,” Dimitri said. “Besides, I don’t typically like to throw my power around, but I’m the prince of Faerghus. I think we can get away with a quick detour.”

“Should we tell someone where we’re going?” Ashe asked. Dimitri didn’t want to head back in the direction of Lonato, not when there was a possibility of Ashe seeing him die. But Sylvain and Dedue had been staying behind to handle anyone that may try to pincer attack them.

“Let’s head around,” Dimitri said. “If we run into someone we’ll let them know, but we won’t be gone long.”

They did manage to run into Sylvain while he was heading towards the fortress. He agreed to inform Byleth of their departure, and Dimitri and Ashe continued onward. It wasn’t a long trek to Ashe’s home, and Dimitri stayed back while he greeted his siblings. He turned away as Ashe whispered to them, the three of them crying together. This wasn’t for him. He waited outside castle Gaspard, knowing that if it were him he’d want his space to grieve.

After about a couple hours, Ashe returned to him, eyes red, with a stack of papers in his hand. “These were in Lonato’s office,” he said. “I…I want to look at them first before we hand them over to the church.” His eyes were scared, like he was worried Dimitri was going to turn him in. Like Dimitri would look at him and see Lonato, a man against the church.

“Okay,” Dimitri said, because as much as he loved the Goddess, his loyalty was to his family. And the Blue Lions were the family that had stayed with him, even when he was nothing more than an animal.

And later, when Catherine tells them about the note, about the plan to assassinate Lady Rhea, Ashe’s eyes flicker over to Dimitri. Dimitri doesn’t say a word.

Chapter Text

Dimitri’s eye twitched as he walked through the monastery. His head was pounding, and he’d barely slept because he’d been plagued with visions and nightmares. Once he’d left his room, the entire monastery was filled with people running around, everybody bustling and making noise. He could feel the way his head was reacting to this noise and craziness, and he needed to get somewhere quiet.

His feet were already taking him to Abyss before he even realized it. He paused, trying to make his brain work. Didn’t they want him to leave a note? But his room is all the way upstairs, upstairs past the bustling monks trying to prepare for the assassination attempt. The thought of traveling back up to his room among the chaos of the monastery made his stomach churn.

He knocked on Byleth’s door. Her room is close to the entrance to Abyss, so he didn’t have to go very far out of his way, thankfully. He closed his eyes as he waited for her to answer, silently begging the Goddess to make everything just a little quieter .

Byleth’s door swung open quickly. “Dimitri?” She asked. She looked closer at him, and her mouth twitched downward. “You look terrible.”

“Everything is too loud,” Dimitri said. “I’m going down to Abyss until I can think again. Please.” He probably sounded really rude, but he was starting to see spots and he was worried he was about to have another vision even though his head already felt like his brain was pressing against his skull.

“I’ll tell them,” Byleth said. “Don’t worry about being in class, okay?” Dimitri managed to smile, or at the very least grimace. She reached forward, cold fingertips pressing against his temples. Whatever she did helped everything ease just long enough for him to stumble through the entrance to Abyss.

The lights in Abyss were much dimmer than on the surface, and Dimitri immediately sighed in relief. The Abysskeeper was arguing with the knight of Seiros assigned to keep watch with them, but he did pause and greet Dimitri, which was nice.

“Yuri’s in the classroom,” he said, because usually Dimitri was here to see Yuri. He was pretty sure there were rumors that the two of them were dating, then again, there were tons of rumors about Dimitri’s love life since he’s been sneaking around so much. Dimitri thanked him for the information and actually did head for the classroom.

“Didi?” Hapi asked, pausing her conversation with Constance, who was gesturing wildly about whatever they were arguing about. “What are you doing here?” Instead of talking, he just groaned, dropped into a chair and laid his head on the table. “That bad, huh?”

“Are you okay?” Yuri asked. “Is it your head again?” Dimitri groaned again in response. “You’re going to miss class.”

“I’m excused,” he said, though it was partially muffled by the table. “What do you guys do down here during class time? Do you have a professor?”

“Technically Aelfric is in charge of us, but he’s still not here,” Yuri said. “Normally we try to keep some semblance of a schedule, but recently there have been a few attacks on Abyss that have ruined the atmosphere of learning we try to cultivate.” Yuri’s voice was dry and sarcastic, but even Dimitri’s rattled brain could pick up on the danger of what he was saying.

Dimitri looked up so that Yuri could see the horror on his face. Already? Damnit.

“And they’re looking for a treasure?” Dimitri asked. Yuri nodded and the other Ashen Wolves were silent for a moment.

“Wait, did you actually see that?” Balthus asked. “I heard rumors that you could see the future, but I just figured it was because Yuri was sneaking you information.”

“Oh no, Dimitri here can actually see the future,” Yuri said. “Everyone says it’s a blessing from the Goddess, but I personally think giving him migraines and a year to live is hard to quantify as a blessing.”

“You’re such a cynic,” Dimitri said before he dropped his face back on the table. “Can I hide here until the Goddess stops hitting my brain with a hammer?”

“Of course you can,” Yuri said. “Do you want to take a nap in the boys’ room?”

“I think I should just come live down here,” Dimitri said. “It’s so nice and I don’t have to deal with Faerghus nobles.”

“Oh yeah, how did that whole thing with Lonato go?” Yuri asked.

Dimitri snorted. “You probably already know more about it than I do. Ashe, as expected, is struggling with everything, but I think letting him visit his house gave him some closure.”

“Was there any word on why Lonato decided to start a rebellion?” Hapi asked. “I’m just saying, he may have had a good reason.”

“He was insane,” Dimitri said. “I wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt, but when he tried to skewer his own son in the name of revenge there was no reason good enough to justify it.”

“He tried to kill Ashe?” Yuri asked. “Damn, and to think I thought he was one of the good ones.”

“He did have an assassination plot for the Archbishop with him,” Constance said. Yuri shrugged.

“I’m friends with like, half a dozen people who wanted to assassinate the Archbishop once upon a time. It’s not really a deal breaker for me.”

“You guys need to be quiet, Didi looks like his brains are about to start leaking out of his ears,” Hapi said. Dimitri would have defended himself, but his head was only building pressure, which he’d started to realize only ever happened when he was about to have a particularly nasty vision.

“He looks pretty pale,” Balthus said. “Hey Yuri, grab a bucket.”

“There’s one behind-”

Dimitri didn’t exist in this vision, which was odd. Normally every vision he had, he saw the world through his own eyes. But he wasn’t doing that here, he felt as if he were a floating specter, facing off against Claude and Edelgard.

Edelgard and Claude were fighting together. What were they fighting, what was going on? This was five years in the future, he could see that much, and Edelgard was the emperor. Were they fighting those who slither in the dark?

“It’s your fault!” El said. “Your reign of tyranny must come to an end!” Dimitri turned, expecting to see Tales, or maybe Solon. Instead, it was a dragon. Was that the Immaculate one? Dimitri hadn’t seen it since the battle where Byleth went missing.

He felt like he was missing something here. Byleth had told him something about the Immaculate One, right? What was it? Where was Dimitri? Where was Byleth?

“You had no right,” Claude said, and his voice was angry, angrier than Dimitri had ever heard it. He hated this, he had no context to explain what was going on. “People aren’t things, and you aren’t a god.”

Edelgard looked at Claude, and there was a faint smile on her face. Had they been working together these five years? “When people reach out their hands to one another, there is no need for Gods.”

Between the might of Failnaught and Amyr, the Immaculate One didn’t stand a chance. Claude aimed a shot, directly in the air, and Dimitri didn’t know what he was thinking until, right as Edelgard was going in for an attack, the arrow pierced the Immaculate One’s eye, leaving it wide open for Edelgard to crack its skull open.

Claude and Edelgard stood there, the dragon dead on the ground. They were crying.

“I wish they were here,” El said. “Why did she have to-

Dimitri could feel something in his hands. He leaned forward and threw up in the bucket in his lap. He still couldn’t really see, his head hurting so bad that he thought if he opened his eyes he might pass out.

“Didi? You okay?” Hapi’s voice was quiet. Dimitri opened his mouth to respond, but only wound up vomiting again. He hoped that with the vision having come and gone that things would be a little bit better, but the pressure in his head only seemed to be getting worse. Yuri’s hands were on his head, casting Recover, but it didn’t seem to help.

“His eyes are still glowing,” Constance said. “Do you think-”

He, Claude, and Edelgard were standing together with Byleth. Nemesis was dead on the ground.

“We did it,” Claude said. His face was completely different from the last vision. “People will refer to this day as the new dawn of Fodlan.”

Many of their classmates were around them, sending up a cheer. They’d done it, they’d finally won. They-

“-things wrong! Go get a healer!”

“Where? We don’t exactly have those down here!”

“I don-”

Dimitri was reaching out his hand. He’d seen this one already. Edelgard reached back and grasped it and-

Dimitri’s vision came back quickly. He heaved over the bucket, but nothing came out. His headache had faded slightly, at least, though his entire body hurt and it felt like his eyes had been open, staring at nothing for several minutes.

“Are you back with us for good this time?” Yuri asked.

“How long was I out that time?” He asked.

“About fifteen minutes. You threw up twice and at one point you just stopped breathing,” Yuri said. “Balthus ran to see if one of the sages is at the pagan altar and if they’d be willing to help.”

“I’m okay,” he said.

“You stopped breathing for like thirty seconds Didi,” Hapi said. “That may not sound like a long time, but it is.”

Balthus came running back into the room breathlessly. “There wasn’t anyone there. Should I go to the sur-” He cut himself off. “Hey, you’re awake!”

“And feeling much better,” Dimitri said, which was mostly true. At the very least, the light in Abyss wasn’t hurting his eyes anymore. He can’t say for sure if it would be the same on the surface, and he wasn’t keen to try, especially since Byleth told him he could have the day off. “Sorry for throwing up in your bucket.”

Yuri shrugged. “It’s a bucket. That’s one of its purposes. Just don’t blow chunks on the floor unless you plan on cleaning it up.”

“I still must insist that you  see a healer,” Constance said.

“I’ll check in at the infirmary when I head back up,” Dimitri promised. “The Professor would probably make me anyway, since I was too ill to attend class. Besides the people attacking Abyss and claiming you’re hiding some sort of treasure from them, how are things doing here?”

Dimitri spent the rest of the morning visiting with the Ashen Wolves and trying to make sense of what he’d seen. But eventually, Dimitri did have to go back to the surface.

***

“Look who’s back,” Claude said when Dimitri walked into the dining hall later. “Do you have a book for me this time?”

“I do,” Dimitri said. “I’ll give it to you later, when it’s less likely to be confiscated by Seteth.”

“Oh, speaking of Seteth,” Claude said as they got in line together, “apparently he was looking for you. Rhea wanted to talk with you.”

“Me?” Dimitri frowned. “Why? Shouldn’t she be busy with preparations, what with the assassination attempt?”

“Who knows,” Claude said. “My bet is that Catherine saw what you did with Lonato and managed to convince Rhea that you’re an Oracle instead of Rhea just hearing rumors. She probably has some questions for you.”

Dimitri grimaced. He had a certain amount of respect for Rhea, though after hearing about everything Byleth knew he wasn’t sure how much he trusted her. Especially knowing that there was very little she wouldn’t do in the case of bringing her mother back from the dead.

“Do you want me to slip a little something to her to distract everyone?” Claude asked.

Dimitri wasn’t sure what concerned him more, the fact that Claude was talking about poisoning the Archbishop of the Church of Seiros in the middle of the dining hall, or the fact that Claude was offering to do so on his behalf.

“No it’s alright,” Dimitri said, unable to keep the smile off his face. “It would only prolong the inevitable.”

“So what had you so busy that you weren’t in class today?” Claude asked as they took a seat at an open table.

“I had a bad morning with visions,” Dimitri said. “I had three in a row. And I’ve noticed that the further in the future they occur, the worse they make me feel.”

“How far into the future were these ones?” Claude asked.

“Five years,” Dimitri said, and Claude winced. “It took me most of the morning to recover. Luckily I’m ahead on my studies so the professor was able to excuse me from class, but if this keeps up I’m worried about falling behind.”

“Well if you need anyone to help you with your bow skills just let me know,” Claude said. “I’d be happy to help.”

“Ugh, don’t remind me,” Dimitri said. “Byleth is still talking about me taking the archer exam. I’m starting to worry that she’s actually being serious.”

“There there,” Claude said, patting his arm sympathetically, though his face was far too amused to sell the act. “I’m sure she’s just messing with you.”

Edelgard sighed, dropping down next to him. “Ferdinand is getting on my last nerve,” she said. “I understand healthy competition, but it’s getting a little out of hand.”

“I wonder if he just needs to branch out more,” Claude said. “He probably sees you as his greatest competition since he uses axes. I bet we could redirect him by sending him Dima’s way for a while.”

“I wouldn’t mind that,” Dimitri said. “Send him our way. Or maybe we can have him and Lorenze spend some time-”

“NO!” Edelgard and Claude said in unison.

“Oh man, can you imagine what Ferdinand would be like if he and Lorenz were friends?” Edelgard asked, shoving food in her mouth as she started rambling.

“Lorenz would be insufferable!” Claude said. “They can never meet!”

Dimitri nodded. “I’ll add them to my list of people who are never allowed to meet.”

“You have a list?” Claude asked. “Why is this the first I’m hearing of this? Am I on it?”

“Yes,” Dimitri said. “And that’s all I’m willing to say on the matter.”

“What, Dima!” Claude nudged him and Dimitri laughed. The three of them finished their meal together, and Dimitri hoped they were heading towards the future where they all stood together, rather than apart.

***

“Lady Rhea,” Dimitri said, bowing slightly. Rather than having this meeting in the audience chamber, Rhea had Dimitri come meet her in her office. It was only the two of them in here, and Dimitri found himself wishing Byleth were here. At the very least she could Divine Pulse if Dimitri said something completely offensive. “You called for me?”

“I recalled something you said before you went on the mission to Gaspard territory,” Lady Rhea said, her voice soft and her face kind. “You said that you had a bad feeling. And Catherine told me about how you stopped Lonato seconds before he killed one of your classmates. She told me that your eyes were glowing.” She smiled at him. “How long have you been an Oracle, Dimitri?”

“A few months,” he said.

Her smile turned sad. “So you’re already experiencing the side effects?”

He nodded. “Do you know what may have caused this?”

Dimitri prided himself on being able to read people. And so when Lady Rhea shook her head and said, “Only the Goddess knows,” he could tell that she was lying. But he couldn’t outright accuse her of lying, that would only cause problems.

“Is there any information that the church has that I could look into?” Dimitri asked, leaning forward. “Maybe old records or journals?”

“Unfortunately not,” Rhea said kindly. “But rest assured, you can tell me anything that may be bothering you. Did you have any strange dreams before you became an Oracle?”

“I’ve been having lots of strange dreams,” Dimitri admitted. “They’re starting to get jumbled and confused. Lately I’ve been dreaming of a room with a green throne.” He had been dreaming of the Holy Tomb lately. Sometimes it’s Edelgard there stealing the crest stones, other times it’s those who slither in the dark. But maybe by telling Rhea about the Holy Tomb would encourage her to let Dimitri go there 

“Really?” Rhea’s eyes were shiny. “Tell me more about them.”

Well he definitely couldn’t tell her about Edelgard’s role in the matter. That would quickly get Edelgard executed, and Ionius would declare war on his daughter’s behalf. No, this required more finesse.

“There were people with pale faces and dark robes,” Dimitri said slowly and carefully, worried he’s going to ruin something. “They weren’t supposed to be there. They wanted something.” He looked down at his hands. “I’m sorry, Lady Rhea, it really is all jumbled. I keep seeing a mausoleum as well, there’s a knight in black armor holding a scythe.” He grimaced. “I’m sorry I can’t be of more help. The professor and I are working on helping me decipher my visions.”

“There’s no need to apologize,” Rhea said. “I only want what’s best for you, child.”

Even as she said it, a part of Dimitri felt as though she were already making plans that didn’t have his best interests in mind.

***

“The professor thinks that the enemy isn’t really after the Archbishop,” Felix said.

“They’re not,” Dimtiri said absently, then paused. “Um, I think.”

The rest of the Blue Lions turned to stare at him. Ashe shifted. “Did, uh, did you see something?” Dimitri nodded.

“I’ve already discussed this with Seteth,” Byleth said. “He can’t spare any of the knights without any other proof, but he’s given us permission to stake out the Holy Mausoleum on behalf of Dimitri’s vision.”

Dimitri blinked, surprised. He hadn’t actually spoken to Byleth about this, and technically he didn’t have any visions of the Holy Mausoleum, though he supposed it made sense to do this. After all, maybe the knights will arrive faster to help, though Dimitri wasn’t too worried about what was coming. Last time around, it wasn’t exactly an easy fight, but the Death Knight never left his perch and the other mages and soldiers there were soundly defeated. But if Byleth thought it was better to warn everyone about what was coming then Dimitri wasn’t going to stop her.

“The Holy Mausoleum?” Annette asked. “What would they want there?” Everyone turned to Dimitri and he shrugged.

“Don’t lie to us,” Felix said, eyes narrowed. “You know something.”

“Come on Dimitri,” Sylvain nudged him. “Don’t hold out on us, tell us all the dirty secrets.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Dimitri said, but his voice was flat and he could tell that no one believed him. He turned to Byleth.

“You need to learn how to lie if you want to keep secrets,” Byleth said simply. “In preparation for this, I want all of you to take your intermediate exams.”

“Professor, none of the other classes are trying to do their intermediate exams yet,” Ingrid said. “Are you sure that we’re ready for this?”

“Of course,” Byleth said. “But to help prepare for these exams-”

“Don’t say it,” Sylvain said.

“-we’ll be doing more practice battles with the knights,” Byleth finished and Sylvain groaned.

“Professor, we won’t have to worry about whoever’s at the Holy Mausoleum, because you’re going to kill us first!” He complained.

“If you’re too weak to live through practice we don’t want you at the Holy Mausoleum with us,” Felix said.

“Felix!” Annette scolded. “Stop being so mean!”

“Um, have you already decided what exams we’ll be taking?” Ashe asked.

“Yes,” Byleth said. “You’re more than welcome to take any extra exams, but I have an exam scheduled for each of you.”

Dimitri raised his hand. “Uh, professor? Which exam will I be taking?”

Byleth’s lips twitched. “Which one do you think?”

Dimitri smiled. “The cavalier exam?”

Byleth actually smiled slightly, and Dimitri almost forgot to be upset at her response in the face of that. She’d mentioned that she struggled with feeling her emotions until she got to the monastery, and just the fact that she was already able to muster up a small smile filled Dimitri with joy. “We’ll talk later.”

He groaned. Sylvain patted his arm. “Same.”

***

“Professor Byleth tells me you’ve seen something about the Rite of Rebirth?” Seteth asked. He and Dimitri were both in the Cathedral, and Dimitri was helping Seteth fix up the Saint statues.

“It’s not entirely clear,” Dimitri said. “There will be an attempt on the Archbishop’s life, but there will be another attack as well.”

“She mentioned the Holy Mausoleum,” Seteth said. He looked troubled. “Have you seen why they’re targeting that specific place?”

“No,” Dimitri said. “Most of my visions are focused on a knight in black armor. He wields a weapon the likes of which I’ve never seen before.”

“I see,” Seteth said, picking up a few pieces of debris. “Thank you for the warning. Do you think we need to send more than just your class to help with this?”

Dimitri shook his head. “From what I saw, there were very few enemies there. I wouldn’t be worried at all if it weren’t for the knight in black. The Blue Lions should be fine, I would focus your attention on the attempt on the Archbishop’s life.”

“Okay,” Seteth nodded. “Thank you, Dimitri. We’ll be sure to let some of the other clergy know, so that they can have their healing magic on standby.”

Dimitri grimaced at the thought. Of the clergy, he knew for a fact that Thomas couldn’t be trusted, but he was sure there were others that worked with the Agarthans as well. But he doubted their plans would change knowing that the Blue Lions would be patrolling the Holy Mausoleum.

At the very least, he hoped so.

***

When the time came for intermediate exams, Dimitri spent more time than he should praying to Sothis that Byleth wouldn’t make him take the archer exam.

In the end, Byleth let him take the cavalier exam. Dimitri wanted to cry; he was so relieved.

He was much less relieved when she handed him another intermediate exam seal and ordered him to take the archer exam as well.

***

By the time the Rite of Rebirth arrived, the monastery was crawling with knights. It seemed like every available Knight of Seiros was working today. There were also dozens of priests and bishops wandering about, and Dimitri couldn’t help but think that it would be rather simple to sneak into the monastery at this time. All they’d need is a white robe and no one would pay them any mind.

“All right, let’s stick to the plan,” he said. “We need to watch over the entrance to the Holy Mausoleum. If anyone suspicious enters, we’ll follow them in and take them down, alright?”

“Don’t worry, we’ve prepared for this,” Mercedes said. “We’ve trained hard with the professor.”

Just like last time, they gathered together to watch the entrance to the Holy Mausoleum. And, just like last time, around the middle of the ceremony the enemies started to arrive. Ashe gasped when a few of them passed by, and Dimitri wondered if he recognized a few of them. It’s something he had barely even considered originally, but he was starting to wonder how many members of Lonato’s court were involved in this mess. Were they people Ashe knew, people that had interacted with?

“There’s so many of them,” Annette whispered as they stepped closer to the Holy Mausoleum. Now that she mentioned it, Dimitri did count several more enemies than he remembered there being last time. Was he just forgetful?

The sound of shattering glass indicated that no, he was not just forgetful.

“There are three times as many enemies there than usual,” Byleth said, her voice bland in the way that Dimitri realized meant she may have been scared. “What the hell?”

“The entire monastery knew we were staking out the Holy Mausoleum this time around,” Dimitri said. “Which means that the moles knew as well.”

Byleth cursed. “Do you think we can take them?”

Dimitri scanned the room. The Death Knight was on his normal perch. There were a few groups of thieves in the onslaught formation, and one group of mages in the resonant fire formation, but those gambits were usually easy to dodge, especially if their members are inexperienced with leadership.

“If we can avoid the Death Knight then we should be fine,” Dimitri said. “Most of my classmates would be capable of taking on a small battalion such as these ones.”

“There is the possibility that more enemies are hiding further in,” Byleth said. “You don’t think the sheer number of them will be overwhelming?”

“No,” Dimitri said. “The nine of us should suffice.”

The feeling of time resuming was always slightly disorienting, but Dimitri was slowly getting used to it. They burst into the Holy Mausoleum, readying their weapons.

The mage by the casket cursed. “They’re here, buy me some time while I open the seal on the casket!”

And just like that, the battle began.

***

Byleth had them split up. She sent Dedue and and Mercedes to the left and Ingrid and Felix to the right.

“The rest of you follow me down the middle,” she said. “And at all costs do not engage with the knight in the center of the room.”

Felix grumbled something, but didn’t argue, heading to the right alongside Ingrid. Sylvain watched him go with worry in his eyes, but he took his place next to Ashe. Dimitri stood with Annette behind him, pairing up as a melee and ranged attacker, and Byleth led them forward.

“Death Knight!” The mage by the casket called. “Prove your strength and scatter these fools!”

Dimitri tensed, but just as before, the Death Knight didn’t move, instead scoffing and saying, “I don’t take commands. Or waste my time on weaklings.”

Despite the many more enemies, they fared well, just as Dimitri expected. He and Annette managed to defeat a mage and a brigand before the enemy even had the chance to react to them. As expected, an enemy mage aimed for Dimitri, but he dodged out of the way quickly. 

The next few moments almost seemed to happen in slow motion, to the point that Dimitri wondered if Sothis’s latent power was working to try and warn Dimitri of what was to come. Annette dodged out of the way of an axe, but she wasn’t able to avoid the battalion formation that attacked her. Dimitri recognized it as Onslaught, and Annette was shoved back. She stumbled right into the path of the Death Knight, who had uncharacteristically left his perch.

“Like moths to a flame,” the Death Knight said, right as his scythe sliced cleanly through Annette’s throat. Time shattered, pausing just before Annette's head hit the ground.

“Damnit, I’m on the other side helping Ashe and Sylvain,” Byleth muttered. “They got overwhelmed with a few dark mages, I don’t know if they can handle it on their own.”

“Just go back ten seconds,” Dimitri said. “I’ll make it work.”

The disorienting feeling of time rewinding overtook his senses, and once time resumed he moved quickly, killing the leader of the battalion before he had the chance to use his gambit on Annette. But doing so left himself open to the mage he’d killed originally, and fire seared his face, leaving him momentarily blind. He cursed, rubbing at his face with his left hand while his right still held his lance. But he was too blind to see the brigand behind him, and time shattered again right as his axe pierced his flesh.

The next time, Dimitri attacked the mage and tried to push Annette out of the way, but he wasn’t fast enough, and the Death Knight killed her again. The third time, Byleth came to help them, but Ashe and Sylvain were overwhelmed by the mages on the other side. Neither of them had great resilience, just like Dimitri, and there were more mages by them then on this side. The fourth time, neither of them managed to stop the gambit in time, and Annette died once again.

“How many more times can you do this?” He asked when she froze time for the fifth time.

“Without consequences?” She asked. “Twice. Maybe three times.”

Dimitri took a deep breath. “Okay, this next time rather than stopping Annette from ending up in his range, I’ll get between them. I’m going to try and knock the Death Knight over. If I survive, even if I’m injured, press forward with the others. I didn’t expect him to outright attack us, but clearly something is different here.”

“He hasn’t done that before,” Byleth said. “Are you sure you can take him?”

“No,” Dimitri admitted. “I’m not as strong as I used to be, but I do know some effective techniques to knock someone off their horse. Combined with my crest I may be able to force him to retreat.”

“Okay,” Byleth said, taking a breath. “One more time.”

They let it play out the same way as it had originally. Annette was thrown back with the Onslaught gambit, and Dimitri ran, shoving her forward. She stumbled out of the way and Dimitri rolled, barely avoiding the Death Knight’s scythe.

“I told you that if you fled I would not chase you,” the Death Knight said. “But it seems you wish to die.”

Annette’s eyes were wide, but she didn’t falter. There was a brigand behind her, but an arrow slammed into his throat, taking him down from across nearly a third of the room. Dimitri has no idea how Ashe could aim from that far away, but it gave Annette the opportunity to kill the mage that would have hit Dimitri while he was down.

Dimitri didn’t wait, calling upon his crest and using the Knightkneeler combat art to knock the Death Knight off his horse. To his credit, the Death Knight didn’t seem fazed by being suddenly bucked from his horse. He lashed out and Dimitri jumped back. The Death Knight’s scythe barely grazed Dimitri, leaving only a small cut behind. An arrow flew past Dimitri, somehow finding a chink in the Death Knight’s armor.

The Death Knight stepped back, and the air buzzed. For a moment, Dimitri was afraid that someone was about to cast Bohr, and things were going to get much worse than they already were. But instead, the Death Knight simply warped away.

“Oh thank the Goddess,” Byleth muttered. There were still several enemies around them, but without the Death Knight here, it was actually possible to win. Dimitri could have let out a sigh of relief, but his chest felt tight, and his body felt like it was burning.

Why did it hurt to breathe?

They fought the enemies closest to them until there was a moment of brief reprieve, and Dimitri looked down, feeling slightly woozy. Hadn’t the Death Knight barely grazed him? Why was the wound deeper than before?

“I didn’t realize he’d cut you so badly,” Annette said. “Hold on, the professor taught me how to cast Recover.” She focused for a moment, and the warmth of healing magic washed over him. Dimitri welcomed it, but it did little to help the burning feeling in his chest. Annette’s focused face quickly grew worried. “The wound didn’t close,” she said. “Professor!”

Byleth hurried over. It looked like she’d been hit with a fire spell, her clothes were slightly singed, but she was otherwise fine. She cursed. “There must have been something different about his weapon. The best way to fix it would be with the Restore spell. Mercedes knows it, but she’s on the other side of the building. I need someone to go get her.”

“I’ll go,” Ashe said. “I’ll be fast, don’t worry.”

“Be careful,” Byleth said, and even though she was still having trouble emoting Dimitri could tell she was worried. “You won’t have any backup.” Ashe nodded, his face set in determination. Byleth closed her eyes for just a moment. “We need to stop the mage from opening the casket, but Dimitri needs to stay here.”

“What?” He asked. “But I’m fine!”

“You’re pale and I can hear you having trouble breathing,” she said. “Annette, when you healed him did it help at all?”

“A little bit,” she said.

“Okay,” Byleth said. “Someone needs to get to the casket. Hopefully killing the man in charge will convince the others to surrender. Someone else needs to make sure Dimitri doesn’t bleed out before Ashe gets back with Mercedes. And someone else needs to make sure that whoever is healing Dimitri doesn’t get ambushed.” Byleth let out a breath. “Annette or I can heal Dimitri. Annette, what do you want to do?”

To her credit, despite how terrified she looked, Annette’s voice was firm when she said, “I’ll heal.”

“Sylvain?” Byleth asked.

“I’m not confident in my ability to break through the enemy on my own,” Sylvain admitted. “I’ll cover Annette.”

Dimitri felt a rush of respect for Byleth. She’d come up with a solution quickly and also managed to make sure that everyone was comfortable with their assignments.

“And Dimitri?” He glanced at her, ready for whatever she wanted him to do. Her face was soft, and her eyebrows slightly scrunched up. “Don’t die.”

Don’t die. He’d always hated that command, he thought as Byleth ran off in the direction of Saint Seiros’s casket. For a while, one of his main goals in life was to die. And now that he actually wanted to live, he was starting to realize that trying not to die was a lot harder than he thought. Such as now, with his chest burning as whatever poison was on the Death Knight’s scythe actively forces the wound to open further and all Dimitri can do is wait and try not to feel the pain.

It took about thirty seconds for his vision to get so blurry that he nearly collapsed. He vaguely heard the sound of battle, Sylvain must be fighting. But the healing warmth of Annette’s magic didn’t fade and even helped Dimitri to focus slightly better.

Sylvain was fighting right now, but there were only a few stragglers. He managed to handle them well, getting nothing but scrapes and bruises in exchange for his deadly blows. Annette’s full concentration was on Dimitri’s wound, which was still rapidly growing.

Dimitri didn’t think he was going to die, he knew there was too much he still had to do. But as he watched Sylvain fight, a part of him worried that maybe he’d changed things too much. Maybe he and Byleth had pushed the boundaries of time too far, and they were about to pay the price for it.

“How are you doing?” Annette asked when Sylvain had a moment to catch his breath.

“Don’t tell the professor this,” he said, breathing hard, “but I think she may have had a point when she made us do all those practice battles.”

Dimitri’s head was cloudy, and he jaw was clenched due to the pain he was in. Damn, what was in the Death Knight’s scythe? Was it made of the same metal as the knife that killed Jeralt? His torso was slick with blood already, and he was sure that had Annette not been focused on healing him, he would have already been dead.

“Shit,” Sylvain said. “They called reinforcements.” Dimitri followed Sylvain’s gaze from his spot on the floor. There were three dark mages that had just entered the room. If it were three brigands, Dimitri was sure Sylvain could have handled it, but Sylvain doesn’t have a javelin, and his resistance is much worse than his defense.

Sylvain, to his credit, didn’t back down, and for a moment Dimitri feared that he was about to watch his friend die without being able to do anything about it. He urged himself to get up, to do anything but lay here uselessly. But it was taking everything he had in him to stay conscious.

“Leave me be,” he told Annette. “Sylvain needs your help.” Her eyes flickered up to where Sylvain was about to attack the three mages, and she bit her lip.

“No,” she said. “This is my job, I need to have faith that Sylvain will do his.” Her voice was quiet when she said. “Dimitri, you aren’t doing good.”

He could tell. He didn’t know if he’d ever bled this much before, and he didn’t know what magic Annette was using to keep him alive. Without her help he was sure he’d be dead, but somehow she was replenishing his blood fast enough that he wasn’t bleeding out despite the large wound on his chest. At the very least, thanks to Annette’s efforts, it wasn’t getting any bigger.

Dimitri couldn’t tear his eyes away from Sylvain. As expected, he killed one of the mages quickly. But his attack left him open. Dimitri could see it now, one of them would graze him enough to slow him down so that the other one could…

Dimitri swallowed, wishing that there was something he could do. He didn’t know if he could do it, he didn’t want to have to watch anyone he cared about die. What was the point of coming back in time if he couldn’t save everyone?

As if out of thin air, Felix appeared, tackling the mage that was about to kill Sylvain and killing him with a single punch. Felix had been furious when Byleth had him stop his sword lessons, even though Dimitri knew he was fond of gauntlets. Dimitri didn’t know how Byleth convinced him to work towards becoming a grappler, but he’d taken to training with gauntlets with a ferocity that Dimitri hadn’t quite expected.

“Where is everyone?” Felix asked. “What happened?”

“Ashe went to get Mercedes,” Sylvain said. “And the professor is trying to end this.” Sylvain was leaning on his lance. The hit from the other mage earlier must be hurting more than Dimitri realized. His left side was burned deep with dark magic, and it probably hurt to move. Felix himself looked worse for wear. He wore little armor in favor of moving quickly, and it looked like he had paid the price for it. There was a scar on his side that was likely healed courtesy of Ingrid, but there were other less severe wounds that were probably slowing him down.

“Is Ingrid alright?” Sylvain asked, and Dimitri was glad he had because the longer they went without seeing her the more worried Dimitri grew.

“She’s fine last I checked,” Felix said. “She’s handling the last of the enemies, she said she would be fine and we saw dark magic over here so she sent me to make sure you were okay. And it’s a good thing she did, since you were an idiot that was about to die.”

Sylvain looked mildly offended. “I wasn’t being stupid, I was trying to be heroic.”

“Heroes die,” Felix said. “If becoming a legend is more appealing to you than living, then you’re more stupid than I thought.”

It seemed like they were about to get into an entire argument on the subject when Dimitri felt the burning in his chest fade.

“Are you alright?” Mercedes asked, and Dimitri could have sworn she was bathed in a heavenly light. Then again, that was also likely the bloodloss talking. She’d probably already cast Restore, which was why he could actually breathe again. Annette took a breath and cast Recover and they all watched anxiously as the wound finally closed.

“Oh, that’s good,” Annette said before collapsing limply. She was extremely pale, and Dimitri realized that she’d been continuously healing him for nearly five minutes. She’d probably overused her magic to the point where it was dangerous.

Dimitri glanced around briefly, trying to keep track of everyone. Mercedes was here, and so were Dedue and Ashe. Dedue was limping and had several magical burns on his person. The right side of Ashe’s body was red with blood, and he had an arrow sticking out of his shoulder. Nonetheless, the both looked more aware than Dimitri felt at the moment. Mercedes looked nearly as pale as Annette, so she’d probably nearly overworked herself as well.

Ingrid and Byleth seemed to approach them at the same time, and Dimitri assumed that they met up near the casket. Byleth’s side was bloody, but she wasn’t walking as if she were hurt, so Ingrid must have healed her.

Everyone was here. Everyone was alive, though everyone seemed at least moderately injured. And with that realization, the adrenaline that had been keeping him conscious faded, and Dimitri let his vision go black.

Chapter Text

Seteth knew he was a worrier. He worried about Rhea. He worried that she often placed herself in danger, he worried that he’d lose the only sibling he was still able to talk to. He worried about just what she was capable of, of what exactly she knew that he didn’t.

He worried about Flayn. Constantly. His daughter was the single most important person in his life, and every day he worried that someone would hurt her, that the Agarthans would find her, that he would lose her.

As of late, he’d wound up with new worries. He worried about Byleth Eisner, the new professor who had come from nowhere and who Rhea had decided to allow around children in their care without even an interview. He was starting to realize that she meant well, but the absolute trust Rhea placed in her was dangerous.

And finally, the newest addition to his worries, Prince Dimitri from the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus. More particularly, this was connected to his worries about Rhea. He loved her, she was his sister, but he worried about what she may be capable of in the name of bringing their mother back.

The best way to explain his worries occurred two days before the Rite of Rebirth. Seteth came across some journals that Rhea clearly never intended for him to find. He hadn’t even been snooping, they were on his bed when he entered his room to go to bed that night. A part of him was suspicious, he didn’t know where this book came from, or who left it for him. Whoever it was clearly had access to his room somehow. But then he picked it up and skimmed the opening page, he realized it was an old journal. And as he read the journal, he realized quickly it was the journal of a previous Oracle.

He confronted Rhea that same night.

“Rhea,” he said, gripping the journal tight in his hands. “What did you do?”

He could see in her face that she recognized the journal in his hands. “Where did you get that?”

“What did you do?” He asked. “You gave someone Mother’s heart?”

“I just wanted to bring her back,” she said. “I want her back, Seteth.”

“Rhea, you gave these people her heart without warning them of what it would do to them,” he said. Reading through the Oracle’s journal, he’d realized that Rhea had implanted their mother’s heart into one of her loyal followers, telling them it would bring them closer to the Goddess without warning them that it would kill them. They’d gain the ability to see the future and by the time they realized their fate it would be too late.

“Once I realized it wouldn’t work I stopped,” she said. “That’s why there hasn’t been an Oracle in hundreds of years.”

“Until now,” Seteth said. “The crown prince of Faerghus Rhea? What were you thinking?”

“I didn’t create him,” Rhea said, and there was a look in her eyes that Seteth didn’t like. The same look in her eyes as when Seteth found her, kneeling in Nemesis’s blood, cradling his mother’s bones. It was a look that never failed to scare him. “Mother sent him to us. She’s blessed him with her power, if I gave him her heart it would work, I’m sure of it.”

“Rhea these are people’s lives you’re messing with!” Seteth snapped. “What you’re talking about, if anyone found out it would start a war!”

“But we could have Mother back.” Rhea reached out, placing her hands on his. “He’s going to die anyway.”

Seteth ripped his hands away, feeling as though his blood were burning. “Rhea, you’re acting crazy. Mother is gone. You can’t do this.”

She closed her eyes, for once looking older and slightly more her age. “You’re right,” she said. “I won’t do anything rash.”

“Thank you,” Seteth said, though a part of him still felt rattled at the knowledge that Rhea had knowingly endangered people’s lives in the interest of resurrecting their mother.

“I don’t know what I would do without you here,” Rhea said, her eyes shiny with unshed tears. “I just felt so alone until you got here.”

“I know,” he said. “But I’m here now. You aren’t alone. Don’t do something you would regret.”

***

There were very few people that showed up during the attempt on Rhea’s life, and that was when Seteth knew he made a mistake. There were almost no injuries, and no one got within thirty feet of Rhea.

Which meant this wasn’t their main force. Seteth knows the Agarthans, he knows how they work, and he knows how much they plan. There is no way that they would fail this severely if this was their main goal.

“Shamir, gather whatever forces you can as quickly as you can and go to the Holy Mausoleum,” he ordered, his heart racing. What was he thinking, keeping their main forces here? It was so obviously a trap, and the only people they had in the Holy Mausoleum was a classroom full of children!

Shamir was already giving orders, but Seteth didn’t wait. His feet were already taking him in the direction of the Holy Mausoleum, he vaguely realized that a few knights were following him, Catherine and Alois were both here as well.

The first thing Seteth noticed upon arriving was that the Holy Mausoleum reeked with the stench of blood. He could see the Blue Lions class gathered in the center, huddled together. Felix was holding Annette in what Seteth quickly realized was the seizure recovery position. Her hands were soaked in blood up to her elbows. Dimitri was pale on the ground in a puddle of blood that was far too large for him to be alive and Seteth, for a moment, was afraid. But Dimitri’s chest was rising and falling, somehow, and Mercedes was kneeling next to him, healing magic at her fingertips.

It was a scene straight out of a nightmare. Dedue, Ashe, and Sylvain all looked like they were seconds from passing out. Professor Byleth and Ingrid were doing what they could, but neither of them were dedicated healers and there were more injured than there were not.

Seteth turned to his right, ordering one of the knights to fetch Manuela. He sent a prayer to his mother that everything would be okay. And then he saw the Sword of the Creator, on the ground next to Professor Byleth as she placed a hand alight with healing magic on Ashe’s shoulder.

Rhea was keeping that here?

No, now wasn’t the time to freak out about this. There were eight children and their professor that needed immediate medical attention.

“What happened?” Catherine asked. She was experienced enough that her face was set with determination and very little of her concern was showing. Though Seteth could see from her tense shoulders and clenched fists that she was worried.

“There was a knight in black armor,” Byleth said, and even in the impassivity of her face Seteth could tell she was exhausted and barely keeping herself upright. Her voice held no emotion, and she proceeded to give a mission report with little emotion. “He injured Dimitri. It took all of Annette’s concentration to keep him alive while Ashe ran to get Mercedes. With three of our people out of the way things got dicey fast. Sylvain protected Annette and Dimitri, and I pushed forward to stop the enemy from achieving their goal.”

Seteth didn’t know healing magic, that was always more Rhea and Flayn’s forte. He wished, now, that he had an affinity for faith magic. The side of Ashe’s body was slick with blood, and the arrow was still in his shoulder. It made sense, taking it out right now when there wasn’t a ready healer nearby would likely kill him. Sylvain had burns severe enough that Seteth worried he may have permanent damage and he only hoped that Manuela’s precision would be enough to prevent those wounds from affecting him for the rest of his life. And Dedue looked as though he’d spent the entirety of the battle taking hits and continuing onward. Now that the adrenaline was fading, he looked like he was seconds away from passing out. Felix was still holding Annette tightly, his entire body wound up. Mercedes hadn’t even seemed to register their presence, and Dimitri hadn’t stirred.

Seteth shakily knelt on the ground. Dimitri somehow looked even worse up close. It must have been an Agarthan weapon, Seteth knew how dangerous they could be.

“Let’s get you to the infirmary,” he said, reaching out. “May I?” Mercedes was pale and her hands were shaking, but she moved back and allowed Seteth to pick Dimitri up. He cared little for the blood coating his clothes. The other knights followed his lead, either fully picking up the injured students, or helping the others walk out of the mausoleum.

And as Seteth carried Dimitri to the infirmary alongside the other Blue Lions, he realized that he was going to worry a great deal for a very long time.

Chapter Text

Dimitri had been badly injured at several points in his life. There was the time he’d lost his eye, the time he’d barely escaped the imperial capital, when Dedue had given his life for him. And many times over the five years Byleth was missing Dimitri had thrown himself into a battle that he hoped not to win and left aching and injured in a way that would affect him for several days after.

The point is, Dimitri is intimately familiar with waking up in pain. So when he started to regain consciousness and his entire body ached, he wasn’t surprised. He cataloged his injuries, mentally noting that his chest hurt the most, though every one of his joints was sore. For once, there was a different part of his body that hurt more than his head. It was kind of nice, even though it meant he was probably in the infirmary again.

Right. He’d been hit by the Death Knight. Byleth had always ensured that none of them had ever been hit by him, and Dimitri understood why. Everything hurt, and from such a small scratch? Had Dimitri not been as durable as he was, he likely would have died. He probably still should have died, but he vaguely remembered Annette kneeling over his bleeding body with a look of such intense concentration that he knew deep down that he’d be alright. If Dimitri had learned anything about Annette over the years, it was that once she set her mind to something, she achieved it.

He hoped everyone else was alright. That battle had been much harder than he was expecting, and he was worried about his classmates. Were they okay? Had anyone else been hurt?

He peeled his eyes open, blinking blearily at the infirmary ceiling he was starting to grow incredibly familiar with. He tried to blink the blurriness away from his eyes and mostly managed to. He tilted his head, seeing Ashe’s familiar form in the bed next to him, either asleep or unconscious. It looked like they had crammed a few other beds in here as well, and Sylvain and Dedue were both awake, whispering to each other.

“You’re making a weird face,” Sylvain complained. “What did I say?”

“I believe I’ve misjudged you,” Dedue said. “I was under the impression that you only cared about women.”

“That’s because that’s what he wants people to think,” Dimitri said, his voice raspy. Both of his friends turned to look at him with wide eyes. “Sylvain would hate it if everyone knew how smart he was.”

“I can’t believe you’re in a coma for two days and the first thing you do when you wake up is expose me,” Sylvain said, though the relief on his face is palpable.

“How is everyone?” Dimitri asked.

“They’re okay,” Sylvain said. “Dedue and I are getting released later today and I’m thinking about throwing a party or something. Manuela is still a little worried about Ashe’s range of motion since the arrow was so deep in his shoulder,  so she’s been a lot more careful about his healing. He’ll be here for a little bit longer. Annette’s been ordered not to lift a magical finger for another two weeks, and everyone else was back on their feet within a day. Honestly, you had it the worst out of all of us.”

“That’s good,” Dimitri said, letting his head fall back on his pillow. He was already exhausted again, which is ridiculous considering he’d apparently been asleep for two days.

“Don’t go back to sleep yet,” Dedue said. “I’m going to get Manuela, she’ll want to check you over.”

Dimitri stubbornly kept his eyes open long enough for Manuela to arrive. “You’re awake,” she said, sounding relieved. “How are you feeling?”

“I’ve been better,” Dimitri said. “I hurt in a lot of places, and I’m more tired than normal.”

“Does it hurt to breathe?” Manuela asked. Dimitri shook his head. “Good, we were worried your lungs had been damaged. Take a deep breath for me.” He did, and his chest ached a little, but it came out clear. No rattling breaths. “Good. It sounds like you should be able to recover fully, and with the amount of healing your classmates were able to do immediately after your injury, you’ll probably recover quickly.”

Dimitri felt a part of himself relax. He hated being trapped in the infirmary, but even he couldn’t claim that he didn’t need to be here considering he wasn’t sure if he could even stand right now.

Manuela left him soon after, and Dimitri tried to keep up a conversation with Dedue and Sylvain, but his eyes started drooping far too quickly, and he fell asleep before anyone else even had a chance to visit.

***

“Why would you do this?” Sylvain asked. He was kneeling on the ground, grasping Ingrid’s hand. Her blonde hair looked like a halo surrounding her head. There was blood, a lot of blood. What had happened, what was Dimitri seeing?

The Immaculate one was here, and there were other demonic beasts as well. This was the empire’s attack on Garreg Mach. But Ingrid was the only one here besides Sylvain, where was everyone else?

He glanced towards the empire’s main force, and his fears were confirmed. Nearly every student from the officer’s academy had sided with Edelgard. Even Dedue. But why? What had happened?

“I think it would have made him happy,” Ingrid said. “My loyalty was always to him, not to the kingdom.”

Sylvain’s eyes were shiny. “He wouldn’t want you to die.”

Ingrid smiled, her eyes hazy. “Death’s not sad. Not really. Glenn…I’ll see you soon.”

***

Dimitri barely remembered waking up, bile in his throat, screaming. There was a set of hands on his face, comforting hands. It was Dedue’s voice that lulled him back to sleep.

***

The infirmary was dark when he woke up again, and Sylvain and Dedue were gone, their beds removed from the room. They must have been officially discharged. Dimitri felt significantly better now, and he actually managed to sit up.

There was enough light for him to make out Ashe’s form. He was sitting up as well, and his right shoulder was wrapped in thick bandages. His arm was hanging in a sling as well.

“Oh, you’re awake,” Ashe said. “Sorry I missed you earlier, how are you?”

“Better,” Dimitri said. “How’s the arm?”

“I can barely feel it,” Ashe said. “They’ve got all kinds of numbing spells and medications, but they’ve been knocking me out pretty hardcore. I can sleep through pretty much anything right now.”

“Good to know,” a voice said from over by the window and Dimitri nearly shot to his feet. Of course, a wave of nausea and dizziness stopped him from actually doing so. And it gave him enough pause to realize it was a voice he actually recognized. “Geez, sorry, didn’t mean to scare you. Don’t get up on my account.”

Ashe was on his feet, though he seemed shaky as well. He’d had an arrow deep in his shoulder less than two days ago, and getting up like that probably didn’t feel good.

“It’s okay,” Dimitri said. “He’s a friend.” He turned to Yuri. “What are you doing here?”

“I can’t visit a friend in the infirmary?” Yuri asked, stepping a little further into the light. “Moreover, I can’t make sure that my friend who has several people trying to kill him isn’t going to get murdered in the middle of the night? Seriously, they don’t have anyone keeping an eye on you?”

Before Dimitri had the chance to respond, Ashe finally got his bearings. “Yuri? Is that you?”

The room was silent for a moment. Eventually, Yuri said, “I know you, you’re the one Lord Lonato adopted. Isn’t that right?”

Ashe, at the fresh reminder of Lonato, seemed to shrink a little bit. “Where have you been? People have been worried sick!”

Yuri scoffed. “As if. Maybe don’t go talking about things you know nothing about. Not all of us were lucky enough to have someone like Lonato adopt us. Or at least, I always thought you were the lucky one. Maybe Lonato wasn’t the man everyone thought he was, huh?”

Ashe bristled and Dimitri figured he’d better step in before Ashe aggravated his injury trying to fight Yuri. Lonato was a sore subject for Ashe still, and Yuri usually wasn’t this callous.

“Thank you for checking on us,” Dimitri said. “How are things in Abyss?”

Yuri was still giving Ashe the side eye, but he accepted the change in subject easily enough. “Fine. The attacks are getting more frequent and Aelfric is still nowhere to be seen, so nothing has changed since the last time you were there.”

“Are you guys handling everything okay?” He asked.

Yuri snorted. “We kind of have to be. I have a certain amount of respect for the Archbishop, but she’s not exactly eager to remember we exist when we need her.”

Dimitri frowned. “At this point, for the sake of Abyss, it might be better to act now even if it means we don’t have evidence that Aelfric is behind it. We can’t keep letting you guys get hurt.”

Ashe was keeping silent, and Dimitri knew he had to be burning with questions, but he was smart enough to realize that the best way to get information was to let Dimitri and Yuri keep talking. He didn’t mind if Ashe got involved with this. After all, he was really helpful last time around when they were in Abyss, and if Dimitri remembered correctly he and Hapi became pretty good friends.

“I didn’t come here to complain about my problems,” Yuri said. “I came here to make sure no one managed to kill you in the middle of the night considering the church’s lackluster efforts at keeping you alive.”

“I’m sure it would have been fine,” Dimitri said. “If it makes you feel better, almost every future I see has me in it.”

“Which means there are futures without you in it,” Yuri said. “I’d like to prevent those, if possible. You’re too valuable of an asset to just let die at some pathetic assassin’s hands.”

“You can just say that we’re friends,” Dimitri said. “None of your criminal contacts are here to realize you’re actually a softie deep down.”

“I’m the lord of the underworld,” Yuri said, scowling. “I have a reputation to uphold. Now I know you just woke up, but you genuinely look like shit, and it’s the middle of the night. Get some rest.”

Dimitri could admit that he was already starting to feel exhausted.  He glanced between Yuri and Ashe warily. They didn’t exactly not get along in his future, but they rarely spoke at all. This first meeting looked like it was going to be a disaster.

But his body was making its needs known, and he was slipping back into slumber before he knew it. One of the last things he heard before he fell asleep was Ashe asking Yuri about his supposed role as lord of the underworld.

Yeah. This is going to go poorly.

***

Surprisingly, when Dimitri woke up, there was no bloodshed. Yuri was nowhere to be seen, and Ashe said that he’d left right as the sun was starting to come up.

“Did you stay up all night?” Dimitri asked. “You’re still healing!”

“I slept all day, and unlike you I’ve actually been here and awake for the past couple days,” Ashe said. “Besides, Yuri and I had some things to talk about.”

Dimitri blinked, completely caught off guard by the scowl on Ashe’s face. Not even Felix managed to annoy him this much, and Felix actively tried to annoy people as much as possible.

“What’s with the face?” He asked.

“It’s just annoying,” Ashe said. “He’s one of the smartest people I’ve ever met, and yet somehow he’s still an idiot. Does he care about his own well being at all? He’s such a hypocrite! And throwing everything away to pursue a life of crime? What’s wrong with him?”

“That’s a story only he can tell,” Dimitri said. “Keep in mind, Yuri has a crest.”

Ashe blinked, the scowl fading. “Wait, really?” Dimitri nodded, and Ashe started to look contemplative. “That actually explains a lot. So Count Rowe adopted him for his crest and probably treated him the way most nobles in Faerghus treat children with crests. It’s no wonder he left.”

Dimitri nodded. Not many people knew the ins and outs of nobility in Faerghus, but Lonato had probably taught Ashe a great deal considering he was set to inherit the territory one day. Without a crest, Ashe probably hadn’t experienced much more than snobby lords in Gaspard territory claiming he wasn’t fit to govern, but he had probably heard the stories. Hell, Sylvain and Ingrid were walking examples of crest society in Faerghus. Annette avoided a lot of it because of her father and uncle, though even she was probably affected a great deal by crest society. Dimitri’s father, and later on Rodrigue, would protect him from most of it, but Dimitri heard the stories.

Children with crests were often viewed more as objects than as people. In certain families like Sylvain’s, those without crests would be forgotten, and those that had crests would be treated like prized cattle.

“He’s had it rough,” Dimitri said. “And the nature of his crest makes it worse.”

Ashe hummed. “It sounded like something pretty bad was going on. Is everything okay?”

“Have you ever heard of Abyss?” Dimitri asked.

Ashe hesitated for a moment before: “Do you remember those papers I picked up last month? From Castle Gaspard?” Dimitri nodded. “Some of them mention a group of people living beneath the monastery. Is that what Abyss is?”

“Yeah, and Yuri is kind of in charge,” Dimitri said. “He takes care of people there, and lately there have been attacks and Yuri and a few of his friends have been struggling to protect the people.”

“That’s horrible!” Ashe said. “We have to help them!”

“Yuri and I have a plan,” Dimitri said. “It’s almost time to put it into action, but we’re waiting on one of our targets to return. None of us know where he is, but wherever he is he’s setting up something bad.”

“I want to help,” Ashe said.

“You’re injured,” Dimitri said.

“You’re injured,” Ashe said. “If you’re helping I want to help too. I’m not turning my back on them. I’m sure everyone else would like to help as well.”

“I’ll talk to them about it as soon as we’re released,” Dimitri said. “But there’s not much we can do about it now.”

And there really wasn’t. Dimitri knew that it would be at least another two days before Manuela would discharge him, and he was sure Ashe was the same way.

“What other things have you found in the papers?” Dimitri asked.

“Not a lot,” Ashe admitted. “It’s confusing and I’m not sure how much of it is a conspiracy theory or not. There’s a lot about an organization hell bent on destroying the church, and there’s a lot of information about what happened with Christophe all those years ago.” He shifted. “I’m thinking about talking to Catherine about it.”

“You should,” Dimitri said, because as far as he could remember Ashe and Catherine were actually close last time around. He hoped that maybe this would encourage them to rekindle that friendship.

“There’s definitely something weird going on,” Ashe said. “Maybe one day I’ll figure it out, but right now I need to focus on graduating from the academy. If I want to have any claim over Gaspard territory then I need to become a knight.”

“Do you want to take over the territory?” Dimitri asked.

“Not really,” Ashe said. “But anyone else who takes over wouldn’t hesitate to throw my siblings out. I want to give them the same opportunities I got.”

“Well you’re going to be a great knight,” Dimitri said. “And if there is anything you need, all you have to do is ask.”

“You’re going to be king one day,” Ashe said. “I can’t exactly ask you for favors.”

Dimitri forced himself to sit up, forcing Ashe to look him in the eyes. “Ashe, I want us to be friends. I don’t want you to worry about coming to me for anything just because of my blood.”

Ashe smiled shakily. “I can try, but that’s unlearning a lot. You know how Faerghus is.”

Dimitri was intimately familiar with the problems in Faerghus. He wanted to break the class barriers that existed, because nobles shouldn’t be able to treat commoners the way they were.

Whatever his response would have been was interrupted by visitor hours starting and the infirmary doors burst open as nearly a dozen people piled into the room.

“You’re awake!” Claude said. “That’s great! How are you feeling?”

“Good,” Dimitri said, and he was surprised to find that he actually meant it. Sure, he was tired, and his body ached, but the pain in his chest was easing and he was slowly starting to feel more and more like himself.

“Why didn’t you ask for our help?” Edelgard asked. “We would have been there!”

“The Archbishop was aware of my vision,” Dimitri said. “The church put their forces where they felt it was necessary. No one could have known what was coming.”

“Except you,” Felix said, his voice dry. “But then, you said there were more people than what you saw in your vision, right?”

Dimitri nodded. “I bet they heard we were planning to be there, it wasn’t exactly a secret.”

“So you’re saying there’s a mole,” Claude said. “Someone in the monastery is working with the Western Church.”

“Maybe,” Dimitri said, because while there certainly were spies from the Western Church in the monastery, he also knew that the Western Church wasn’t actually behind the mess in the Holy Mausoleum. Claude gave him a look that Dimitri was starting to realize meant “We’re going to talk about this later.”

The room quickly became chaotic, with more people trying to squeeze in. Dimitri wondered if everyone from the three classes was here. Things were getting crowded, but Dimitri found that he didn’t mind. With all these people around, his fears about the future seemed far away.

***

Dimitri watched a Golem impale Seteth. Why, what was happening? Yuri was nearby, would this be Seteth’s fate if he brought him to help with Abyss?

***

Ingrid’s hair was spread out, surrounding her head like a halo. “Death isn’t sad, not rea-

***

“You had no right,” Claude said, and his voice was angry, angrier than Dimitri had ever heard it. He hated this, he had no context to explain what was going on. “People aren’t things, and you aren’t a god.”

Edelgard looked at Claude, and there was a faint smile on her face. Had they been working together these five years? “When people reach out their hands to one another, there is no need for Gods.”

***

What did it all mean?

***

“I don’t know Dimitri,” Byleth said. They were sitting in the infirmary, time frozen so they could talk in private. “What you’re describing sounds a lot like how things ended up whenever I chose to join up with Edelgard. But Claude always fled to Almyra before that.”

“What do you think happens?” He asked.

“Rhea is a complicated person,” she eventually said. “She’s lost a lot of her family, and it’s left her shattered in ways that I don’t think will ever heal.”

Dimitri grimaced. That was something the two of them had in common. “So?”

“If what you said is true and your vision of Seteth’s death is connected, it’s possible losing him sends her over the edge,” Byleth said. “I don’t know what exactly she would do to bring back her family if she lost everything she had left.”

Dimitri rubbed his face, his mind racing. “So should we not include Seteth when we confront Aelfric?”

“I don’t know,” Byleth said. “His help would be good, but I don’t know if it’s worth the risk. Besides, him being there could help prevent Aelfric from getting as far as he did last time. Maybe we should bring him with us but keep an eye on him. He’s strong, he probably wouldn’t get killed by anything less than a surprise attack. With Divine Pulse, we could stop it.”

Dimitri nodded. “We can do this.” There was a faint upturn to Byleth’s lips, and he couldn’t help but smile.

***

The next couple days passed by normally. Byleth stopped by to let them know their mission for the month, and Dimitri wished that he were back on his feet so he could track Sylvain down and make sure that he’s doing alright. Knowing his friend, he was probably putting on a brave face despite the turmoil he was likely feeling. He silently promised to himself that the moment he was released from the infirmary he’d track him down.

Ashe was doing much better, and Manuela cleared them both to leave the infirmary after three long days. It was late, and she actually released them in the middle of dinner, so there were very few people milling about.

Which meant that there were very few people there to notice Yuri tug Dimitri into the shadows.

“Aelfric is coming back,” Yuri said. “One of my scouts just reported, he’s only a few hours out. He’s also reported that a large force of bandits are en route to Abyss, enough that we can’t hold them off.”

“Shit,” Dimitri said. “Okay, did you still want me to get Seteth involved? We’re bringing the professor, obviously.”

“Bring him,” Yuri said. “I need to go, I don’t know how far out the attack will be, just try and be quick.”

And with that, Yuri practically melted back into the shadows. Dimitri turned to go try and find Byleth and Seteth, only to immediately run into Ashe.

“Is it time?” He asked.

“Ashe, you just got out of the infirmary,” Dimitri said. “Manuela said you were allowed to do light physical activity.”

“I seem to recall she gave you the same instructions,” Ashe said, and his gaze was so firm that Dimitri knew this wasn’t a fight he was going to win.

“Fine,” Dimitri said, because honestly he did want Ashe with him. “Can you go get the professor? Tell her that Yuri said it’s time. I’m going to go get Seteth.”

Ashe nodded and ran off and Dimitri went running in the opposite direction, ignoring Manuela’s voice in his head telling him light physical activity only .

“Prince Dimitri?” Seteth asked when Dimitri burst into his office. “You’re not supposed to be running, what are you doing?”

“Do you remember those friends that I told you about?” Dimitri asked, and wow Manuela had a point about not pushing himself because his chest was starting to hurt again. “They need help.”

Seteth, to his credit, despite probably having a lot of questions, didn’t hesitate. “What do you need?”

“They’re from Abyss,” Dimitri said. “And the church official that is meant to be taking care of them is causing them harm. There are also attacks coming from an outside source that they need help with. They’re being attacked right now.”

“Now?” Seteth asked. “Take me to them, I’ll help in any way I can.” He stopped Dimitri before he could run off, staring at him intently. “You are not to participate in the fight.”

Dimitri bristled. “They’re my friends! I have the right to-”

“You just got out of the infirmary,” Seteth said. “I’m not sending you back.”

Dimitri grit his teeth but didn’t argue. It’s not like Seteth would be able to stop him once he got there. “Fine.”

“Ideally we’d have more help,” Seteth murmured. “I wonder if we have time to get Catherine or Shamir.”

“I sent Ashe to get Professor Byleth,” Dimitri said. Seteth did relax a little at that sentiment, and Dimitri led him towards Abyss. Ashe was waiting where they’d split, Byleth with him, as well as Felix and Bernadetta.

“What are you doing here?” Dimitri asked, immediately feeling bad for the way Bernadetta shrieked. “Not that I don’t want you here, I just didn’t expect you.”

“They were in the training grounds with the professor,” Ashe said. “Apparently she was trying to stop Felix from fighting Bernadetta.”

“He was going to kill me!” Bernadetta looked like she was about to pass out, and Dimitri and Seteth both turned to glare at Felix.

“I just want you to show me that technique again,” Felix said. “And then Ashe said there was going to be a fight, so-”

“What has all of you gathered together?” Claude’s voice rang out and Dimitri turned to see him and Edelgard approaching them. “Seriously, it looks like you’re gearing up for a mission.” It’s true, Ashe had clearly had the foresight to grab some weapons whilst in the training grounds, which was good because Dimitri didn’t currently have a lance.

“It’s a long story,” Dimitri said, and Claude immediately perked up.

“Well you can catch me up on the way. Where are we going?” He picked up a bow from the pile of weapons Ashe (and probably the professor, Felix, and Bernadetta considering he didn’t think Ashe could carry all this) brought,  and slid up next to him.

“The secret undercity of the monastery,” Dimitri said.

Edelgard, rather than looking at him, was peering at something over his shoulder in the direction of the greenhouse.

“Hilda, Linhardt,” she called. “I can see you! Come here.”’

Linhardt rubbed his eyes, looking distinctly unimpressed. Hilda was staring longingly in the direction of the dining hall. “This feels like we’re about to start an adventure,” Hilda said. “Unfortunately I’m SO busy, so I can’t-”

“You’re coming,” Edelgard said. “I’m not sure what’s going on, but I’m sure that it would be more beneficial to have extra help. You as well, Linhardt.”

“I’ll come without complaining in exchange for a one on one conversation with Prince Dimitri,” Linhardt said.

“Deal,” Dimitri said before anyone could protest. Linhardt was a smart man, and Dimitri suspected that he would have some ideas on how to help him. Then again, Linhardt was also well known for his tendency to experiment, and Dimitri was fully aware that he may be signing up for something uncomfortable. But they were in a hurry and didn’t have time for Linhardt and Edelgard’s arguing. “Let’s go, this has already taken too long.”

He was happy to see how many more people they had this time around. Bernadetta looked like she’d rather be anywhere else, though she relaxed slightly when Linhardt started a conversation with her.

As expected, they heard the sounds of battle before they arrived at Abyss. Dimitri didn’t hesitate to try to run forward, his lance gripped tightly in his hands. Before he could burst into the room, however, he was stopped by someone grabbing the back of his shirt.

“I said no fighting,” Seteth said. “You and Ashe are to stay back, and if things take a turn for the worse, you will go get help. Understood?”

Dimitri didn’t have time to argue, because everyone was already running into the fight. The Ashen wolves were clearly overwhelmed, and their timely arrival saved Balthus from taking a sword to the gut. It was Claude who saved him, clearly seeing someone fighting a horde of bandits and realizing that’s probably who they were there to help.

Ashe stayed back with him, his eyes on the fight. He was good enough with his bow that he could probably hit someone from where he was standing, so it made sense for him to be watching to see where he was needed. He was going to make a good sniper.

Dimitri scanned the battlefield, quickly finding the other Ashen Wolves. Hapi and Constance were on the other side of the clearing, using their increased range to handle anyone getting too close. Yuri was slipping between enemies with relative ease, cutting them down and disappearing into the chaos before anyone could attempt to hit him back.

Hilda slammed her axe into a guy about to sneak up on Balthus. He turned to her, eyes wide. “Hilda?”

She blinked, looking at him. “Baltie?”

Felix huffed, cutting down a bandit that would have killed Hilda. “Stop getting distracted. You can have your weird reunion after we’re done here.”

Honestly, the bandits were clearly planning on being able to easily overwhelm four exhausted children. Now that a horde of fresh enemies had shown up, several of them were retreating.

Straight in the direction of Dimitri and Ashe. Wonderful. Dimitri grimaced. If it were one or two enemies, that would be fine, but Ashe is a ranged fighter and Dimitri knew that once they were in melee range that their attacks would be focused on him as the perceived weaker target.

The air crackled. Suddenly, a giant bolt of lightning pierced the air, killing several of the bandits and leaving nothing but stragglers. Ashe managed to handle a few of them before they got too close, and Dimitri was easily able to take care of the rest.

Right. Constance knew the Bolting spell. That was certainly useful.

“Are you okay?” Claude asked. “We should have left you a guard, of course they would have come after you guys standing here alone.”

“We’re fine,” Dimitri said. “Despite all your worries, we were released from the infirmary before this.”

“For light physical activity, if I remember correctly,” Yuri said, sheathing his sword. Bernadetta was a couple feet away from him, staring at him openly and clearly trying to decide whether or not she should flee. “I don’t think this counts.” He turned to the others. “Thanks for the help back there, that could have been messy.”

“Why did they attack you?” Edelgard asked.

“There’s rumor of a secret treasure here,” Yuri said. “And for some reason these guys think we have it. They don’t seem to understand that most of the people here wouldn’t be here if they had some sort of secret treasure. This isn’t exactly a place for people that are well off.”

Seteth frowned. “What could they possibly think you’re hiding down here?”

Yuri grinned. “Have you ever heard of the Chalice of Beginnings?”

Seteth twitched. “What do you know?”

“Honestly?” Yuri asked. “Just what Dimitri told me, and the small amount of information I was able to find in various journals. There’s not a lot about it, though. Whoever hid it did a great job of trying to make the world forget it existed.”

Seteth turned to Dimitri. His face was pale. “What do you know about the chalice?”

“Only what I’ve seen,” Dimitri said. “The blood of the four apostles is meant to be combined in the chalice, and it is supposed to be able to resurrect the dead.”

“But the four apostles are dead, and their crest lines are broken,” Linhardt said. “Unless there’s a bunch of people running around down here with secret crests, there’s no reason to believe that the chalice is even capable of being used.” There was a moment of silence and Constance shifted and Balthus was clearly trying to avoid eye contact. Yuri and Hapi, at least, were better than hiding it. Nonetheless, Linhardt actually smiled. “Well, this just got interesting.”

“Hold on,” Claude said. “The four of you just happen to have the crests of the four apostles? Doesn’t that feel a bit fishy to you?”

“Oh absolutely,” Yuri said. “And you don’t even know how we all got here. It was definitely by design. Come along, there’s a lot we have to catch you all up on.”

***

“So, to summarize, the church official that has been taking care of you has only done so because he plans to kill you and use your blood to resurrect a woman he’s in love with, even though she was married to someone else?” Claude asked.

“To think that Aelfric has fallen so far,” Seteth murmured. “Where is he?”

“Oh, that’s the kicker,” Balthus said. “He’s completely abandoned us for the past few months. I think he’s trying to make us desperate. Or at the very least, force Yuri to convince us to go get the chalice of beginnings with whatever he’s holding over his head.”

“He’s blackmailing you?” Seteth, somehow, looked even more horrified.

“Please,” Yuri snorted. “There’s very little he could tell anyone about me that I would care about them knowing. No, he kidnapped my mom.”

“That’s horrible!” Bernadetta said, and when everyone turned to look at her she immediately shrunk back. “I, um, that must be awful.”

“It doesn’t matter anyway,” Yuri said, not fully taking his eyes off Bernadetta. There was recognition there, did they know each other? “I love my mom, and I’d do anything to protect her, but if the four of us tried to get the chalice on our own, we’d die. But Aelfric was getting impatient, so he went into hiding and started sending these people to smoke us out.”

“Do you think if you got the chalice Aelfric would stop attacking Abyss?” Edelgard asked.

“I think so,” Yuri said. “But-”

“Then we’ll help you get the chalice,” Byleth said. “At the very least, it will force Aelfric out of hiding and we can put a stop to this. Besides, I’m sure the church would appreciate having such an object returned.”

Seteth hummed. “It would be nice to have it somewhere safe, though I'm concerned about the possible traps in place.”

“I'll come along,” Dimitri said. “That way I can see them coming and warn you.”

Seteth looked at him, his face slightly pinched. “Alright, you can come along. But no-”

“Strenuous physical activity yes I know,” Dimitri said, knowing full well that he would be doing strenuous physical activity.

“I'm coming too!” Ashe said. “I can be helpful from far away, so it shouldn't be a problem.”

Both Seteth and Byleth didn't look too happy at the thought, but they didn't argue. Byleth merely pursed her lips and asked, “How long until Aelfric is back?”

“My scout’s put him at a few hours,” Yuri said. “And that was an hour ago.”

“There’s no way we’ll be able to get the chalice and get back in two hours,” Byleth murmured.

Yuri grinned. “So you need me to buy you some time?”

“We need you to lead us to the chalice,” Constance said dryly. “Unless you have a way to buy time without handing it yourself.”

“I have a gang, Constance,” Yuri said. “They’ll handle Aelfric. We’ll have to hurry, though. Let me talk to my second and then I’ll meet up with you by the southernmost entrance. Give me ten minutes.”

They dispersed quickly after that, all choosing to prepare for what was coming next in their own ways. Dimitri took a breath, reminding himself that this time around they had extra hands, it would be much easier to handle the Golems with Felix, Bernadetta, and Seteth here.

He just hoped that it wasn’t going to be a repeat of the Holy Mausoleum.

***

“I wanted to talk to you about something,” Edelgard said, pulling him aside a couple minutes after they split up. “In the Holy Mausoleum, how did you get injured?”

“There was a knight in black armor,” Dimitri said. “Their leader called him the Death Knight.”

He watched her face closely. After all, if Edelgard had wanted to get rid of him, if she’d been playing a game this whole time, now would be the best time to figure it out. But instead, she paled, and there was a distraught look on her face. As good of an actor as El was, he didn’t think she was making this up.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “He, I didn’t think-” She took a breath. “I told him not to interfere.”

“It’s okay,” Dimitri said, smiling kindly at her. This version of Edelgard had done nothing compared to the other version, if she thought he wouldn’t be willing to forgive her for letting the Death Knight help the Western Church, she was mistaken. “We all survived just fine.”

“You believe me, just like that?” She asked. “Even when you know who I’m working with?”

“El of course I believe you,” he said. He reached out, taking her hand in his. It was shaking. “You’re in an impossible position. You have to make hard choices, I’m not mad that things got a little risky. Everyone lived.”

“I’d feel better if you got mad at me,” she murmured.

Dimitri watched Seteth and Yuri talk as they walked to the meetup point. His mind flashed to a vision he had a couple days ago. “How about this? If you can keep an eye on Seteth today, we’ll call it even?”

Edelgard followed his gaze. “Is he in danger?”

“Just a vision,” Dimitri said. “It leads to a future I need to prevent.” It was ridiculous to think that preventing one death would ensure that the awful future wouldn’t come to pass. The future where he and Byleth were missing, and every student opposed the church. And yet a part of him knew, if he stopped Seteth from dying, he would prevent that future.

“You’re really worried about this,” she said. “I’ll do it. I’ve been working on my heavy armor recently, and Alois was helping me with guarding. I’ll keep an eye on him.”

“Thank you,” Dimitri said, his mind still thinking of Seteth dying at the hands of the golem, at Ingrid, holding Sylvain’s hand as she fades away, at-

“You had no right.”

-at Claude and Edelgard’s anger. All he could do was speculate, but if Seteth were to die, what would Rhea be willing to do? How far would she be willing to go to bring her family back? Especially if they handed the Chalice of Beginnings over to her immediately after.

As he and Edelgard walked to meet up with the others to depart, a part of him wondered how much he and Rhea had in common. Was she lost like he was, desperate to make the ache of loss fade? He tried to fill the gap with killing and revenge. Was she trying to do the same, only with desperate experiments meant to resurrect her family? And if that were the case, did he have the right to judge her, knowing his hands were just as stained as hers?

Chapter Text

“How long have we been walking now?” Linhardt asked. He brushed his hair out of his eyes, wet with sweat. “I’m guessing at least a week.”

Dimitri turned to stare at him incredulously. Hapi snorted. “A week? It’s been like, two hours.”

“Exaggerations aside, we are on a time crunch,” Edelgard said. “We need to hurry.”

“It’s not much farther,” Yuri said. Linhardt asked Constance about her focus on the chalice, and Dimitri tuned the familiar conversation out. A part of him wanted to try and stop this conversation, mostly because he really didn’t want Linhardt and Constance to be friends. He’s not sure Garreg Mach would stand in the force of their experiments.

They walked for a few more minutes, arriving at the bridge underneath the monastery. Dimitri looked up, wondering what everyone was doing right now. Had they realized they were gone yet, and if so, were they looking for them?

“This should be the right place,” Yuri murmured.

Dimitri watched Edelgard, who’s eyes were focused on Constance. “Constance, what are you doing hiding over there in the shade?” She asked. “Come enjoy the sun with the rest of us!”

“Fine, if you insist that I join you, then I shall! Satisfied.” Constance said, stepping out of the trees and visibly pulling in on herself. She hunched over and Dimitri winced. It was never fun to see Constance become so depressed in the sunlight. Edelgard, at least, looked incredibly alarmed at the switch. “Oh my…I was quite rude just now. Please accept my humble apologies for treating you so foul. I..” She brought her shaky hands together to rest on her chest. “I presumed too much to stand by such noble paragons. Allow me to dig a hole to bury myself in.”

“That’s not necessary,” Edelgard said, starting to look alarmed. “Please, you have not offended us.”

“What happened?” Claude asked.

“This is what Coco’s like in the sun,” Hapi said.

Constance tugged on her hair. “Surely we’ve wasted our time. It would be better to hand me over to the bandits to slaughter rather than to have me slow you down.”

“Enough with this self-doubt, yeah?” Balthus nudged her. “Just put one foot in front of the other.”

“Yeah, we need you Coco,” Hapi said. “Come on, I bet it’s around here somewhere.”

Bernadetta reached out and tugged Constance forward. “Let’s keep following Yuri, okay?” Her hands were shaking almost as bad as Constance’s, but they kept moving forward in a show of bravery that Dimitri couldn’t help but smile at.

“Stop smiling, you look creepy,” Felix muttered as he passed by him, but Dimitri felt like his smile only widened as he took his place with Ashe at the back of the company.

Dimitri heard the golems before he saw them, and he wasn’t the only one. Several members of their party reacted, looking around.

“That would be whatever’s guarding that chalice,” Seteth said, gripping his lance tightly. “We should be wary from here. Dimitri, Ashe, it might be better for you to stay behind.”

“If I see something I need to be close enough to inform you of it,” Dimitri said. “We won’t get involved in the fight. I’m not eager to wind up back in the infirmary.”

Seteth didn’t look like he believed him (probably because Dimitri was absolutely lying) but he moved forward. As they came to the top of the hill, Claude let out a quiet whistle.

“Yikes,” he said. “What is that thing? It’s like some kind of gigantic toy.”

“You’ve seen this before,” Edelgard said, turning to Dimitri. “You weren’t surprised at all.”

“Don’t even bother trying to use magic on it until its barriers are broken,” Dimitri warned. “It won’t do anything to it.”

“That’s…not ideal,” Yuri said. “This doesn’t bode well.”

“I dunno,” Balthus said. “It could be fun. It’s been a while since I’ve met an enemy that could put up a good fight.” Felix seemed to snort in agreement. “Hey, you! Meet your master, pal. I’m gonna pummel you into my own personal shield!” He slammed his gauntlets together, sending sparks flying. Knowing that the hero’s relics on his hands were made bones made something in Dimitri’s gut twist. A part of him was thankful he wasn’t allowed to wield Areadbhar right now.

The golem whirred and Dimitri yelled “Scatter!”

The piece of green they were standing on was blackened from the golem’s attack and several phantom soldiers appeared.

“Great,” Yuri groaned. “Constance, Hapi, handle the soldiers. They're going to be way less resilient than the beast. Everyone else help handle the giant creature.”

Dimitri stayed back, knowing everything was only going to get worse. This golem wasn't even the most powerful one, that would be the one with the key, further down the stairs. The golem went down rather easily with the efforts of everyone. Felix and Bernadetta actually helped Constance and Hapi with the phantom soldiers. Of course, once those enemies were defeated, the enemies on the other side emerged from the forest.

“What's the deal?” Balthus complained. “No matter how many we squash, more just take their place.”

“Hm,” Linhardt muttered. “If those things were created to protect the chalice, there may be a way to deactivate them.”

“If I may presume to offer my opinion,” Constance said softly, still refusing to look them in the eye, “the statues may warrant scrutiny.”

A screeching voice erupted from down the stairs and Dimitri winced. That voice hurts so much worse when he's already sporting a migraine.

“You who befoul this sacred place,” it said, “leave now or perish!”

“I think I might have found the key,” Hilda said, leaning over the small cliff side to see what they were dealing with. “This thing down here is carrying it.”

“But where do we take the key?” Hapi asked. “I don't exactly see any doors nearby.”

Ashe stepped up next to Hilda, scanning the horizon. “It looks like there's three different possible keyholes,” he said, somehow able to see them. Dimitri never failed to marvel at Ashe’s incredible eyesight. “I'm not sure which one is the correct one.”

“It's safe to say the wrong ones are a trap,” Yuri said. “But we'll deal with that once we have the key.”

Dimitri hummed, trying to remember which one was the correct keyhole. Byleth probably remembered, but she couldn't exactly say anything. He's pretty sure Claude was the one carrying the key last time around, Dimitri was too busy drawing enemies away. He had no idea which direction Claude ended up going.

Guessing it is. He'll let Byleth handle that.

“Stay with the group,” Seteth told him and Ashe. “If reinforcements appear up here and none of us are here to help you that would be bad. But do not interfere. Dimitri, let us know if you see anything. Ashe, you may attack from afar so long as you promise not to strain yourself.”

And with that, the battle quickly grew chaotic. Dimitri tried to keep track of everything, but with so many enemies it was hard to know where he needed to watch most. Ashe was tracking the mages, making sure to mark anyone getting near them with a quick hit so Constance, Hapi, or Linhardt could finish them off. Edelgard was sticking close to Seteth as promised, and the two of them were successfully defeating a golem with Bernadetta’s help. 

Meanwhile, everyone else was pressing forward down the stairs. Dimitri followed them, keeping ahold of his lance just in case. He was already exhausted from the walk, and while a part of him knew that his body was still healing and throwing himself into combat was a bad idea, it didn't make it any easier to watch everyone struggle to win this fight.

Byleth fought these golems with practiced experience, ordering people to attack them in specific ways to maximize damage. Seteth seemed to be finding perfect chinks in the armor with his lance, however if Dimitri was correct there were no chinks in the armor of the one carrying the key.

“Dimitri, Ashe, I want you to get into the blaze battalion formation with Yuri,” Byleth ordered. “As soon as you break one of its barriers, retreat.” Yuri was holding what appeared to be a small bomb, the fuse lit. Dimitri and Ashe positioned themselves behind him, and right when Yuri threw the bomb, they attacked.

The Golem reared back and Dimitri lept away, trying to make sure to stay out of its path. Ashe rolled, avoiding any counterattack the golem may have sent at them. Dimitri could see Felix, Byleth, and Hilda also forming a battalion on the golem’s other side.

“Everyone strike now while it’s stunned!” Byleth said, and Dimitri assumed she included him and Ashe in that everyone, swinging a lance at a beast that can't fight back isn't exactly strenuous physical activity in Dimitri's opinion.

The golems didn't stand a chance under their combined might, not when Seteth, Bernadetta, and Edelgard had come to help them.

Seteth retrieved the key, and Dimitri could see it now, could see him running ahead without backup and getting in over his head. His head was starting to hurt again, and he was starting to recognize what it felt like for his eyes to glow.

“Your highness?” Ashe asked. “What are you seeing?”

“If Seteth takes the key he'll die,” Dimitri said, everyone was already off fighting, even Seteth himself, making his way to the southwestern side of the battlefield.

Ashe's eyes were wide as he tracked him, the key strapped to his belt. “We have to stop him!”

“He'd never let us help him,” Dimitri muttered, but Ashe was already running Seteth’s way. Dimitri almost called out to him, but rather than drawing Seteth's attention, Ashe used the trees and the chaos of the fight as cover, and Dimitri watched as he easily picked the key off Seteth’s belt, leaving him none the wiser.

“Will this help or should we stop him?” Ashe asked. Dimitri scanned the battlefield, noting how Edelgard seemed to be tracking Seteth as well. She would keep an eye on him.

“This will help,” Dimitri said firmly. Without the key, reinforcements won't show up when Seteth places it in the wrong keyhole. Since Seteth was heading west, that left the center and the eastern keyholes as possibilities. The center was too obvious, Dimitri suspected it was the keyhole to the east. “Follow me. If everyone else is keeping the other enemies occupied we may be able to take care of this without our enemies realizing we're the ones with the key.”

“I have the feeling whatever we're about to do doesn't count as light physical activity,” Ashe said, but he was smiling and following Dimitri to the east.

There were so many enemies on the battlefield, Dimitri wasn't surprised that there was little focus on them. He doubted anyone was paying enough attention to realize-

“What are you guys doing?” Dimitri cursed, turning to see Claude standing there, eyebrow raised. “Why do you have the key?”

“Seteth was going to get himself killed,” Ashe said, and rather than arguing Claude took the information in stride. He hummed, scanning the battlefield.

“Dimitri, you take the key. Ashe and I will cover you to the best of our ability, but don't be afraid to fight back if we get cornered. I bet if we get many more people over here it'll draw too much attention to us, so the three of us will have to suffice.” Claude's eyes were sharp, and Dimitri was starting to see the beginnings of the Master Tactician he'd be in the coming years. “Dimitri, I assume you know where we need to take the key?”

The moment Dimitri touched the key, he saw himself moving east. So he was right, the correct keyhole was to the east. “Yes,” he said. “It's in the southeast corner of the clearing.”

“Okay,” Claude said. “Not as bad as it could be. All right, Dima. Lead the way.”

Claude and Ashe working together were a force to be reckoned with. With their sharp eyes and range effective weapons, many enemies fell at Dimitri's feet long before he needed to be worried. They traveled as quickly as they could without alerting the enemy to their movements. Stealth has never been Dimitri's forte, but Claude was a natural, and Dimitri was fully aware of Ashe’s past and the skills he's gained from it.

They were about halfway to the keyhole when Dimitri heard the sound of warping magic.

“Dimitri dodge!” Dimitri immediately got low to the ground, rolling away from the assassin that had seemingly appeared from nowhere. If Claude hadn't warned him, he certainly would have gotten skewered. Instead, Ashe sent an arrow through the assassin's chest, sending him fading into light like the other phantom enemies. Claude was handling the other assassin that had appeared, but there was a cavalier unit racing towards him.

Dimitri rushed forward, taking the knightkneeler stance and knocking the cavalier off his horse, sending him tumbling to the ground where Dimitri easily finished him off.

“Wonderful,” Claude said, sarcasm lacing his voice. He picked his arrow up off the ground where it had clattered after the assassin disappeared. “They can appear out of nowhere and wherever they want. Think this means they've caught on to our whereabouts?”

“I'm not so sure,” Ashe said, looking over Claude's shoulder. “It looks like reinforcements showed up on both sides.”

“How the hell can you see that far?” Claude asked, squinting. “I can barely see Teach, Felix, and Hapi fighting a golem near the center.”

Ashe blushed. “It's something I'm good at. I'm certainly no Ignatz.”

“I've seen the shots Ignatz can make,” Dimitri said. “His accuracy is unparalleled. I'm sure if you work hard you'll be able to get there.”

“As grateful as I am for the compliments,” Ashe said. “We really should get going.”

Thankfully, there were few problems. Dimitri had to adjust a few times because Byleth used her power on the other side of the battlefield, and it was odd to feel like he was running the same path over and over. He kept his lance handy, and managed to handle the cavaliers so that Ashe and Claude could take down the warriors they met in his path. They were so close to the keyhole when…

“Shit,” Claude said, staring at the golem that was standing between them and the blissful end of this awful battle. “My arrows definitely won't pierce that armor, and that's not even taking its barrier into account. Does it have any weak spots?”

“It doesn't matter,” Dimitri said. “Can you distract it?”

“I can try,” Claude said. “Please tell me you aren't planning-” Dimitri was off like a shot, sprinting with everything he had. “Damnit Dima, warn a guy!”

Dimitri barely dodged around the golem, praying that he was fast enough on foot and dearly missing the horse he'd bonded with to pass the cavalier exam. He could hear the golem creak as it moved, could hear Claude shout in alarm, but he didn't look back, slamming the key into the keyhole and turning it.

He turned around, the golem’s lance less than a foot from him, but completely frozen. It powered down, and the other phantoms that were heading their way faded to dust. Dimitri wheezed, holding onto the large structure of the keyhole for support.

“No one tell Manuela,” he said, coughing slightly.

“Oh I won't have to worry about that,” Claude said cheerily. “Between the wrath of both Teach and Seteth, you're a goner.”

Byleth was already running through the trees to greet them, and she certainly looked furious. Dimitri couldn't help but admire the open emotion on her face, even though he was fully aware her ire was directed at him.

“What the hell were you thinking?” She asked, reaching out to check him over, then doing the same with Ashe and Claude. “What if you'd gotten in over your heads, you didn't bring any backup with you!”

“Backup would have gotten us caught,” Claude said. Dimitri was sure that if anyone else had said it, Byleth would have sent them a piercing glare. But her glare softened the moment she saw Claude, and Dimitri was once again reminded of his predicament. He pushed the thought away. They had far greater problems than Dimitri’s love problems.

For example, if he remembered correctly weren't they going to have to run back to Abyss?

***

“We’re both fine,” Dimitri said when Byleth stopped time to both give him a scolding and make a plan for what was coming next. “It’s not like either of us is hurt. We were way safer than if we’d been sticking close to you and drawing all the enemies our way.”

“I know,” Byleth said. She looked tired, likely from the knowledge that what was coming was much worse than the fight they’d just had. “I’m just worried about you two. Dimitri you’re not in your best shape, and neither is Ashe. That’s two less fighters than we had before.”

“But we have Seteth, Bernadetta, and Felix here this time,” Dimitri reminded her. “That’s extra help that we didn’t have last time.”

“That’s more people to keep track of,” Byleth said. “How are we supposed to keep them all safe? The last time I did this everyone had taken their advanced exams, and you were much more experienced.”

“Aelfric also had a lot more time to prepare,” Dimitri said. “And we have Seteth, he’s like an army all by himself.” He reached out. “Remember, we can change things. That’s why I’m here, between the two of us, things will be better. We won’t lose anyone ever again.”

Byleth sighed, letting time resume and Dimitri stepped back. He watched from the rear as they found the Chalice. Constance was still suffering from the sunshine, Dimitri noted, and he was looking forward to seeing her act a bit more like herself once they were back underground.

Edelgard was looking at her with a frown, and Dimitri wished that he could see in her head, to know what she was thinking. “I’m still not used to hearing you speak in such a manner,” she said.

“Forgive me, your highness,” Constance said, her head bowed. “If I have displeased you, please take my life as a small gesture of atonement.”

Claude was clearly able to see more in this interaction than Dimitri could, because he smirked and said, “Oh, Your Highest of Highnesses, I doth humbly beg of thee to find forgiveness within your royal heart!”

Rather than get angry, Edelgard’s cheeks flushed and Dimitri was struck with the realization that he was definitely missing something. “Stop fooling around, Claude,” she said, turning away from the group, which only let Dimitri get a better view of her flushed face. “And Constance, I assure you, there is nothing to forgive.”

Constance, however, was distracted from Edelgard’s assurances as she looked up at the sky. Yuri frowned, and Dimitri heard the tell tale rumbling of thunder.

“I hear thunder,” he said, hoping that perhaps he could urge everyone to move away faster to get a head start on the enemies about to chase them down. “Rain is sure to follow.”

“We’d better head back to Abyss before the storm picks up,” Yuri said. The clouds were rolling in quickly, and Dimitri made to follow everyone, only to notice that Constance hadn’t moved away yet. She seemed to become more lively the moment the clouds blocked out the sun.

“Ugh,” she said, shaking her head. “It happened again! Why must my good intentions always-”

Something creaked, and the golem that had previously almost killed Dimitri started to move. He grabbed Constance by the arm and started dragging her away. “Run!” He called out, and Claude turned, the smirk on his face fading away to abject horror. Dimitri could hear the sounds of warping behind him, but he didn’t take the time to look back, racing to catch up with everyone. Constance got her feet underneath her quickly, and actually managed to keep up with Dimitri.

He didn’t know how long they spent running before Constance stumbled. “Oh my poor abused legs,” she gasped. “I have been remiss to neglect my lower body exercise as of late.”

“Don’t give up now,” Yuri said, grabbing her shoulder and hoisting her back onto her feet. “We’re almost back to Abyss,.” He cursed. “What a damn mess we’ve gotten ourselves into.”

“I’d say we should just give up, but if we want to get rid of Aelfric we need this thing,” Hapi said. “What do we do?”

“Dimitri, any advice?” Yuri asked.

“At some point we will be outside the range of magic for the golems,” Dimitri said. “They’ll only follow us so far, if we keep running eventually they won’t be able to follow.”

“Great, a big chase,” Linhardt said. “I hate running.”

“I bet you hate dying more,” Hapi said dryly. “Should we leave our weapons behind? They’ll only slow us down.”

“No,” Dimitri said. “Depending on timing, we might have bandits intercepting us.”

“Bandits?” Bernadetta asked. “How could they already know that we have the chalice?”

“Let me guess,” Felix said, “Aelfric hired them?”

“Aelfric has a great deal to answer for when we return,” Seteth said.

“Okay,” Yuri said, “let’s keep running then. There’s a gate further down, I bet if we make it there the dolls will stop chasing us.”

“Oh the gates,” Balthus said. “Those are sturdy! I nearly broke my priceless fists on them once!”

Dimitri turned to look at Balthus incredulously. His breathing was labored, and the scar that he gained from the Death Knight burned.

“Balthus,” Yuri’s voice was dangerous. “If you broke the gate, I’m sacrificing you to the creepy doll.”

“Are you okay?” Byleth asked softly.

“I’m alright,” Dimitri said, glancing over at Ashe to see that he was rubbing his shoulder, a look of discomfort on his face. “It’s just running, right? What are the chances Aelfric managed to rally the bandits to intercept us so quickly?”

Judging by Byleth’s face, she wasn’t so sure. “Let’s go,” she said. “We don’t want to fall behind.”

The gate behind them closed, locking the golem in the large cavern with them.

“Great,” Dimitri said. “Not even I could force that gate open.”

Yuri laughed dryly. “This is bad. And I bet there’s more where that came from too. Let’s go!”

“There’s what I believe to be a shortcut up ahead, but the way seems closed,” Constance said.

“Who wants to do us a favor and pull the lever?” Hapi asked. “Though you’d better be speedy or risk getting left behind.”

“I’ll handle the lever,” Yuri said. “Everyone else focus on moving forward and making sure I don’t get ambushed.”

“Thank the Goddess these monsters are slow,” Linhardt said. “At the very least, it makes it easy to stay ahead of them.”

“Less talking and more running,” Edelgard said. Her movement was hampered by her heavy armor, but she was still managing to stay ahead of Linhardt. She seemed to be sticking close to him, which made sense. Linhardt could help protect her from mages, and Edelgard could protect Linhardt with her high defense.

A pair of assassins and a brigand were the first to approach them. With Balthus, Seteth, and Felix up front, none of them stood a chance. Especially not with Hapi, Constance, and Bernadetta providing them ranged backup. Dimitri tried to stay close to Ashe, both to watch his back and so that Ashe could watch his.

“Yuri is either going to have to take time to unlock the door or he’ll have to come back around once he uses the lever,” Ashe said. “Let’s head to where the door is.”

Dimitri didn’t question him, following him as they arrived near the gate. The moment the gate opened, Ashe rushed forward. Several more enemies seemed to appear, and there were even more waiting for them once the gate opened. But Ashe wasn’t watching any of them, instead racing to the door. Dimitri watched him pick the lock quickly enough that he could barely even follow it.

There were six or seven enemies on the other side of the door closing in on Yuri, but he managed to outrun them easily enough. He looked surprised to see Ashe on the other side of the door, who had possibly just saved his life. Ashe didn’t seem to notice, dragging Yuri further in.

“Over here!” He said. “The others are clearing a path.”

“Thanks,” Yuri said. “I didn’t expect you of all people to save me. I thought I was a villain?”

Ashe didn’t look impressed by the taunt, and Dimitri once again wondered what they talked about while he was passed out in the infirmary. “Just because I don’t agree with the way you're using your talents doesn’t mean I want you dead. If you aren’t going to look out for yourself then I guess I’ll have to look out for you instead!”

Yuri managed to shake out the shock of both Ashe’s rescue and his declaration, and they tumbled into the new clearing with everyone else.

“Glad to see you didn’t get left behind,” Hapi said cavalierly, though there was genuine relief on her face. The gate closed behind them.

“Seteth is heading to hit the lever for that gate,” Balthus said, and Dimitri panicked, turning to see Seteth running for the lever, unaware that-

He paused. Edelgard was running beside him, struggling to keep up, but clearly not willing to let him outrun her. She must have taken Dimitri’s words to heart.

And when the Golem showed up, Edelgard jumped in between Seteth and its lance.

“El!” Dimitri yelled, and his blood burned as he heard the sound of Byleth shattering time.

“Damnit,” she said, clearly gearing up to rewind time and run after them.

“Wait,” Dimitri said, jogging over to them. Rather than taking the full brunt of the hit, Edelgard had managed to half dodge, the lance primarily hitting her shield instead. “She’s not dying.”

“But with her injuries-”

“Give her a little more credit,” Dimitri said. “I think we should see what happens. We may need your power more later, and El is a fighter. You’re already exhausted from the fight earlier.”

Byleth let out a breath, and time resumed, Dimitri finding himself back next to Yuri, Ashe was closer to Linhardt closer to the far wall, checking in with him. The gate was opening, and they moved towards it.

And, almost in response to their minute progress, the bandits showed up.

“You’re not getting away you hear?” One of them said, “Fork it over!”

“You have got to be fucking kidding me,” Dimitri said, and Claude actually stumbled, likely both surprised by his language and equally exhausted. Ashe and Linhardt were backing away while Felix and Hilda stepped forward to fight them.

And then two more phantom soldiers appeared, both assassins,  and Linhardt was dead before any of them could react. Edelgard and Seteth were already nearly back, but neither of them would be able to get there fast enough to stop the assassin from killing him. Felix and Hilda were closest, but they stepped in to fight the two warriors that showed up. Maybe Hilda could handle both of them?

Byleth was likely running the same scenario in her head, because after she finished rewinding time she yelled, “Felix cover Linhardt!” The blue haired brawler immediately stepped back, blocking the sword from cutting Linhardt down, but the warriors overwhelmed Hilda. Her dying scream echoed in Dimitri’s ears even after Byleth shattered time again.

She went back further this time, before Edelgard took the hit from the golem. But that only caused one assassin to appear somewhere else, killing Bernadetta instead, who was all by herself by the gate. Felix held his own against one of the warriors, but Hilda took a hit from their axe, leaving her bleeding sluggishly, while Byleth handled the other assassin.

Byleth cursed, turning to Dimitri with wide eyes. She looked afraid. “I don’t know what to do.”

“I don’t know how we would stop Hilda and Edelgard from getting hurt,” Dimitri said. “But we have healers, and they aren’t going to die. We need to do something about the assassins.”

“But if we go where we expect them to show up, then they'll only appear somewhere else,” Byleth said. “Do you think if I go back further that you can be next to Bernadetta?”

“I can make it,” Dimitri said firmly. And he did, waiting for the assassin to show up, only to hear Constance scream instead. Time shattered. Byleth was starting to look pale, Dimitri didn’t know how many more of these she had in her. Hapi and Constance were next to each other, and the image was frozen of Hapi’s retribution on the assassin. But it didn’t matter, Constance was already dead.

“We could try warning Linhardt and Ashe,” Dimitri said. “They’ll believe it if it comes from me.”

“Okay,” Byleth said, and she closed her eyes, turning back time. Dimitri’s blood burned.

Byleth was guarding Constance and Hapi, Dimitri was running towards Bernadetta. One assassin showed up by them, the other by Ashe and Linhardt. “Ashe, Linhardt, dodge!”

Linhardt wasn’t used to Dimitri’s visions, but Ashe grabbed him and shoved him out of the way. The assassin’s strike missed Linhardt entirely, but Ashe didn’t manage to dodge all the way. It cut deep into his leg, deep enough that Dimitri was sure that he would bleed out in minutes if nothing was done. He took point blank posture, barely getting the arrow out before collapsing on his injured leg, but his arrow struck true, and the assassin faded to dust.

Dimitri’s blood burned as time shattered again.

“Don’t,” Dimitri said. “Everyone lived.”

“Edelgard, Ashe, and Hilda are all hurt,” Byleth said. “Ashe can’t run, and I doubt Hilda can either.”

“You know Hilda better than me,” Dimitri said. “But I said it with El, and I’ll say it again. Have more faith in us, professor. We just need to get everyone into the next room. We have enough people to handle the bandits, and no more phantom soldiers will appear once we get through the door. Felix or I can help Ashe, Linhardt or Yuri could heal him well enough. We need to keep going or people will die and you’ll be too exhausted to do anything about it.”

“You’re right,” Byleth said, sagging slightly. “Thank you.”

“It’s why I’m here,” Dimitri said, nudging her arm. “Sometimes you need another perspective.”

Several more bandits started to appear once time resumed, but they were further away, far enough that at the very least no one was going to die in the next five seconds.

Seteth was half supporting Edelgard as they outran the golem, arriving just in time to regroup with everyone piling into the other room. Yuri unlocked the door for them, and Balthus and Claude were the first two out, drawing the most attention to them.

Linhardt was pale as he looked at Ashe’s leg, but his hands were steady as he healed him, his crest activating and leaving the wound much smaller than before. Dimitiri marveled at how effective Linhardt managed to make a simple healing spell, the crest of Ceathleann really was life saving. Dimitri wasted no time, picking his friend up. It would take very little time for Dimitri to get them past the gate, but he suspected that there were bandits in the other room waiting for them, and if Dimitri ran there now, he and Ashe would be immediately overwhelmed.

“Set me down,” Ashe said, and Dimitri didn’t hesitate. Ashe may be selfless in nature, but he wouldn’t ask Dimitri to leave him behind. The moment Ashe was steady, he dropped into a shaky version of the Deadeye stance, clearly trying to keep his weight off his injured leg as much as possible. Nonetheless, his aim was true, and an assassin that was about to sneak up on Felix fell to an arrow in the shoulder, allowing Yuri to finish him off. More and more bandits showed up, and Dimitri stepped into the fight, doing his best to cover Ashe since he couldn’t move. Balthus’s open shirt and little armor left him open to an attack from an assassin, leaving him stumbling away. As the assassin moved forward to finish him off, Constance’s hands crackled with lightning magic from halfway across the battlefield, leaving the assassin a victim of her Bolting spell.

“You okay Baltie?” Hilda asked. Her face was pale, but she was still moving fast. Linhardt must have healed her.

“Oh yeah,” Balthus said, slamming his fists together. Despite the bleeding wound in his gut, he stood tall. “Nothing gets the adrenaline flowing like a good hit like that!”

“Are you seriously implying that someone stabbing you made you stronger?” Bernadetta asked. “You’re crazy!”

“Trust me, we know,” Yuri said. “Everyone keep moving! There are two more gates to pass through!”

Claude was already passing through the nearest checkpoint. He cursed. “Bad news everyone, we have more bandits incoming!”

Hapi let out a string of curses, some of which Dimitri recognized, many of which he didn’t. “There’s more coming from the rear too.”

“A pincer attack?” Yuri asked. “Great. Just what we needed. Balthus, you and Constance head towards Claude, start clearing a path. Hapi and I will watch the rear.”

“Felix, Bernadetta, and Seteth follow Yuri and Hapi,” Byleth ordered. “If you’re injured, stay towards the middle of the group. Everyone else push forward.” No one argued or hesitated, everyone moving to their respective positions. Dimitri once again helped Ashe move forward. As time went on, he was starting to look worse. Hilda was starting to sway, but Byleth was doing her best to keep her steady, healing magic at her fingertips.

Claude was already bleeding by the time they caught up, though it looked like whatever weapon had injured him only managed to graze him. He was retreating to cover from a range, both because of his injury and because of his weapon.

Dimitri blinked, their current battlefield shifting for a moment. This vision was clearly showing him something that would happen in a few moments. Constance lay dead, it was a pegasus knight that killed her. She must not have been able to kill it with its high resilience.

He blinked, his vision blurry. His head was pounding. How many visions has he had since the start of the battle? He needed to do something, now.

“What did you see?” Claude’s voice filtered through the haze in his mind.

“Pegasus knight, Constance,” Dimitri managed. He could still feel the way his hand was wrapped around Ashe’s arm, supporting him. Though he suspected at this point they were equally supporting each other. He blinked the stars out of his eyes just in time to see Claude’s arrow fell the pegasus knight that would have killed Constance. He turned to check on the rear. They appeared to be doing well, though there was a brigand that had broken through and was rushing Bernadetta. His axe was practically as big as she was, and Dimitri knew that she wouldn’t have the chance to dodge or kill him before he struck. He was about to signal Byleth when the area around her warped, and Yuri stood in her place instead. He caught the brigand’s axe on his sword, but the sheer strength of the brigand still sent Yuri down, his sword clattering to the ground as he barely rolled out of the way of the axe’s blade. There appeared to be something wrong with his arm, but he picked his sword up with his left hand and finished him off.

“You okay?” Claude asked. “Your nose is bleeding.”

Dimitri reached up to swipe at his face, his hand coming away to reveal that his nose was, in fact, bleeding. “Oh,” he said, not entirely sure what else to say. Byleth was currently cutting through the bandits, an army all on her own, though Constance and Balthus were helping a great deal. Linhardt had stuck close to the middle, doing his work as a healer. Edelgard was already starting to look less like she was about to topple over where she stood.

“I wish I knew the fortify spell,” Linhardt muttered. “I can only heal one person at a time and it’s kind of making this difficult.”

“I hear Flayn knows the fortify spell,” Claude said. “You should ask her for pointers.”

“Or Mercedes, if you don’t want Seteth assigning guards to watch your study sessions,” Dimitri said. “I’m sure she’d be happy to teach you if you helped her learn Warp.”

“Ugh, that sounds like a lot of work,” Linhardt said, the healing magic not wavering from his hands.

“Careful,” Dimitri said. “If you overexert yourself I’m not sure how many of us are still in good enough shape to carry you.”

“I’m fine,” Linhardt said with a scowl. “Though I could certainly use the crest of Lamine right now, I’m not sure how much magic I have left in me.”

“Be grateful for your own crest,” Edelgard said. “Its healing abilities are some of the only reasons we’re all alive right now.”

“Everyone let’s go,” Byleth said,blood on her face and looking radiant. “We need to pass the final checkpoint.”

They pressed forward, beaten and bloody but with everyone still standing. Bernadetta seemed to be deciding whether or not she wanted to fret over Yuri, whose arm was definitely broken. Felix was covered in blood, but Dimitri was pretty sure most of it belonged to the enemy. He was, however, limping, and Hapi, who seemed uninjured, though her hands were shaking, likely from overusing her magic, was helping him along. Seteth was holding a broken lance, and there was blood on his face that appeared to be the result of a hit on the head. None of them looked their best, but they were all alive. Edelgard seemed to be standing strong, though Dimitri wondered how much of that was a front for her desire to not look weak. Linhardt, for all his claims about being fine, looked nearly as worn out as Hapi and Constance. Hilda and Claude were in a position similar to Dimitri and Ashe, clearly supporting one another as they stumbled past the checkpoint.

The gates rumbled closed behind them, and Dimitri’s relief was palpable. His head was still pounding against his ears, and as far as he could tell, his bloody nose had yet to cease. But they were here, they’d made it, and they stumbled back to Abyss, where only more problems would await them.

Chapter Text

Dimitri could count on one hand the number of times he’d come to the end of a battle feeling this awful. Sure, when he was more animal than man he cared little for his well being, but there were also few beasts that could stand up to him in battle.

 When they finally stumbled back to Abyss, they were first greeted by the Mockingbird’s second in command. He looked worried, and Dimitri couldn’t blame him. They were in quite the state. Constance was slipping away, the Chalice of Beginnings in her hands. She was clearly planning to hide it away before Aelfric saw them with it, and Dimitri had to admit he agreed with her line of thinking. The less Aelfric knew about it, the better.

“Aelfric wants to speak with you,” the man said, and Balthus and Hapi were already straightening, clearly getting ready to argue, but Seteth beat them to it.

“Absolutely not,” he said. “If Aelfric has anything he’d like to discuss with any of the Ashen Wolves, he can do so in your infirmary, where all of us will be going. Please tell him that this information has come directly from the Archbishop’s personal advisor, and that I would like to speak with him when I have the opportunity.”

Dimitri couldn’t keep the smile off his face. He was sure he was quite the sight, smiling madly while the bottom half of his face was covered in blood. The man didn’t react the way one would expect, instead he smiled madly as well, clearly happy to have the opportunity to tell Aelfric off as well.

“You didn’t have to do that,” Yuri said. “I can handle him.”

“You’re swaying on your feet,” Byleth said dryly. “Go lay down.” Yuri scowled, but he must have actually been exhausted because he didn’t argue, instead just leading them to the small run down infirmary that Abyss has. It didn’t really have the ability to house all of them, but there were a couple people there with a small amount of medical knowledge. Since most of them only had minor injuries, they helped bandage them up. People like Ashe, Edelgard, and Hilda were set on the beds where they’d receive more consistent care, though Dimitri suspected as soon as possible they’d be moved up to the monastery’s infirmary.

They had probably only been there for about five minutes before the door swung open and Aelfric walked in. Dimitri resisted the urge to pick a fight with him right here, he could acutely feel the boar’s presence in his mind. It hadn’t appeared against the golems, or against the bandits, but now, staring at the man he knew to be behind it all, the boar seethed.

“What on earth happened?” Aelfric asked, and his face looked worried, his shoulders tense. For all but those that knew, he was the perfect image of a worried caretaker. “Are you all alright?”

“We’re fine,” Yuri said dryly. “Where have you been?”

“I’ve been doing research to see what I can do about curing Hapi’s…ailment,” he said. “You know this. Unfortunately I ran into some difficulty on the way back with bandits.”

“Of course,” Yuri said, and he was smiling in a way that Dimitri knew was fake. “What can I help you with?”

“Oh, I just wanted to check in with you now that I’m back,” Aelfric said. “I heard you all got into some trouble while I was gone.” Yuri’s face remained impassive, a clear show of the immense control he had over his emotions. If Aelfric had spoken to Dimitri like that, had treated him like an insolent child after everything he’d done, Dimitri wouldn’t have been able to keep his rage off his face.

“Nothing too crazy,” Yuri said. “I didn’t even need the help of my gang.”

“And yet you decided to get the church involved,” Aelfric said. “What made you think that was a good idea?”

“Why wouldn’t I get the church involved in the search for one of their sacred artifacts?” Yuri asked, leaning against the wall. His arm was in a sling, no one had healed it yet because all healing magic was being saved for those with more fatal wounds. He was unarmed in front of a man known to be violent with him, and yet he didn’t waver. “We’re going to give it to them, aren’t we?”

“You should let me inspect it first,” Aelfric said. “I wouldn’t want to hand the church something without making sure it is what we say it is. The last thing I want is to give them another reason to target Abyss?”

“Another reason?” Seteth asked, and Aelfric’s face froze, his smile twitching. “I wasn’t aware the church was targeting Abyss at all?”

“Bishop Seteth,” he said. “I wasn’t expecting you to personally oversee this adventure. I’m grateful to you for looking out for my Wolves.”

“Of course,” Seteth said. “I plan to continue doing so. My first order of business is to launch a full investigation on your behalf. I’ve heard things recently that have been concerning. And due to the nature of the investigation, you will be unable to inspect the chalice. My own inspection should suffice.”

Aelfric was much worse at hiding his true emotions than Yuri, though he was still a practiced actor. He smiled widely at Seteth. “I’m happy to accommodate your investigation however you see fit. Personally, I’m glad the church is starting to finally take more action regarding Abyss.”

When the door closed behind Aelfric, Hilda frowned. “He seems like a dick.”

“You okay?” Hapi asked. Yuri was still tense, staring at the door.

“Yeah,” he said. “Come on, let’s finish here. I want to make sure he doesn’t corner Constance.”

***

Dimitri waited for Yuri to track him down. He didn’t wait long, he was just petting the cats near the entrance to Abyss when Yuri came to get him. He led him down a secret passageway, clearly wanting to avoid being overheard at all costs.

“How much have we already changed?” Yuri asked.

“Not much,” Dimitri admitted. “Last time around, Aelfric was missing. There was a ransom note demanding his safe return in exchange for the chalice. Obviously that won’t work this time around. If we return the chalice to the church, he would have to do something drastic to get it in his hands. That would take time to plan, time in which Seteth would be able to find evidence of his misdeeds.”

Yuri sighed. “You’re an optimistic guy, you know that Dimitri? You’re lucky you have a guy like me watching out for you.”

“What can Aelfric still do?” Dimitri asked.

“I don’t know,” Yuri said in a tone that Dimitri recognized as his “I do know but I’m not going to tell you” voice. “But don’t let your guard down. If he’s going to strike, he’s going to do it soon.”

“I won’t,” Dimitri promised. “Yuri, do you know-”

“I trust you,” Yuri said, cutting him off. “I need you to trust me. Can you do me a favor and try to figure out where Aelfric is holding my mother? Maybe that professor of yours has some idea. He’d have a lot less leverage if I wasn’t so worried.”

“Absolutely,” Dimitri said. “I’ll talk to the professor as soon as we’re done here.”

“Thanks,” Yuri said. “I should go, I have a few things I still need to set up. Just in case, I mean. You’re a good friend, you know that, right?”

“Thank you,” Dimitri said, smiling slightly. “You’re a good friend as well.”

Yuri smiled at him and slipped out of the secret passageway, and Dimitri was left with the ominous feeling that he was missing something.

***

When Dimitri woke up the next morning, it was because Balthus was dragging him out of bed.

“Did you know?” He asked, and Dimitri blinked, trying to figure out what Balthus could be referring to. Did he somehow find out that Dimitri was from the future? There was a lot that Dimitri was keeping from everybody, and he really couldn’t figure out what was happening. He glanced around, Constance and Hapi were both glaring at him, and it looked like Felix was getting ready to tackle Balthus. This could turn into a nasty fight really quickly, where was Yuri?

“Know what?” Dimitri asked. Balthus was strong, sure, and Dimitri was at his weakest right when he wakes up, when his dreams are still close to his mind and leaving him feeling woozy, but if it came down to it, he was sure he could push Balthus off of him.

“Don’t bullshit me Dimitri,” Balthus said. Dimitri racked his brain.

If he’s going to strike, he’s going to do it soon .

Last time, Aelfric had held himself hostage. But that wouldn’t work this time, not when he didn’t have the love of the Ashen Wolves. Yuri had known something was coming.

“He took Yuri, didn’t he?” Dimitri asked. Balthus’s grip on him loosened.

“You really didn’t know, did you?” He asked, and Dimitri shook his head.

“I don’t control what I see,” Dimitri said. “I promise, I didn’t know.”

“And you’re just going to believe him?” Constance asked. Her hair was wild, she must have woken up recently. She stormed up to Dimitri, eyes flashing. “You know far more than what you’re telling us. You have no right to be keeping secrets, who gave you the authority to play Goddess and decide what we deserve to know!”

“I can’t tell you everything,” Dimitri said. “There’s-”

“No!” Constance said, waving her hand in front of her to cut him off. “We’ve trusted you far too much when it’s clear you have your own agenda. You came down here out of the blue one day and we still don’t know the reason why. You exposed Aelfric’s true colors and left us to deal with the aftermath, and even now you’ve dragged us into a disaster without truly warning us of what the consequences will be!”

“Coco that’s enough,” Hapi said. “You need to cool off.” She tugged at Constance’s arm, bringing her out of the room. Dimitri watched them go, his head pounding and struggling to keep everything straight. Yuri was gone, who knows where, and Dimitri couldn’t even blame Constance for being upset at him for this. What was the point of being able to see the future if he couldn’t prevent things like this?

“You okay?” Claude asked.

“I’m alright,” he said, rubbing his eyes. “We need to find him.”

“You can’t seriously be blaming yourself for this,” Felix said. “You don’t control what you see.”

“But she’s right,” Dimitri said. “Things got worse because I interfered, everything always gets worse when I try to change things.”

“That’s not true,” Claude said. “Surely there’s at least one thing that you’ve changed that’s made the world better.”

Dimitri looked at Claude, really looked at him, and thought about the future that he left behind. The future where everything still felt so divided, where Claude left and Dimitri was sure to never see him again. And yet now, everyone at the academy was bonding, they were building friendships that transcended borders, even the borders of countries themselves. He thought about how Edelgard seemed to be branching out and making friends, how she was no longer so isolated that she could only rely on Those Who Slither in the Dark.

Was it worth it to go through more pain if, in the end, everyone was together?

“Yes,” Dimitri eventually said. “I think there is.”

***

Byleth was pacing, muttering curses under her breath as she and Dimitri discussed what to do with all the changes.

“It’s been so long since I haven’t known what to expect,” she said. “I forgot what it was like to have to handle new things as they come up. What should we do?”

“First things first,” Dimitri said, “we need to find Yuri’s mom. He won’t be able to fight back against Aelfric so long as he’s holding her hostage. Has he ever told you where she was?”

“Yes,” Byleth said. “Aelfric kept her close because he knew Yuri wouldn’t expect that. She told him after being rescued where she’d been held. It was another one of the secret passages connected to the monastery.”

“Are you capable of finding it?” He asked, and she nodded. “Okay, that’s our first move. Next up, we need help for this confrontation. I don’t want to cause a bunch of chaos on the battlefield with monsters this time. If you want to take a couple people to get Yuri’s mom, I’ll head to the Monastery to get help there. Ashe, Hilda, and Edelgard should probably be moved to the Monastery’s infirmary anyway, since they don’t really have any healers down here.”

“I'll take the Ashen Wolves, saving Yuri’s mom should be something to take their minds off the fact that Yuri's missing,” Byleth said. “You take everyone else back to the surface and inform the monastery of what's happening.”

Dimitri frowned, thinking back to his argument with Constance. It must have shown on his face, because Byleth flicked him in the forehead.

“Stop that,” she said. “There's no way you could have predicted this, you can't blame yourself for the way the future goes, especially if you want things to change.”

“How do you do it?” He asked. “How do you live with the guilt of knowing what's to come and not telling people everything?”

“There was once a run I did where I did tell Rhea what was coming,” Byleth said, closing her eyes. She looked old then. “All she could focus on was that I could hear Sothis. When I finally convinced her to listen to me, she acted rashly, killing Edelgard and bringing the wrath of the empire down on the church. I've told Claude before, and I trust him. He's always reacted well. But outside of him, I've never found anyone that I trusted enough to try again.” She looked at him, her eyes soft, even as her face remained impassive. “Not until you.”

For a moment, it was like Dimitri had his Byleth back. He wanted to reach out, wanted to hold her in his arms. He missed her, and he desperately wished that she could have come back with him. But this wasn't the same Byleth as the one that had pulled him out of his lowest moment, and how could he expect her to be?

“In the end,” she continued, “you just have to make judgments, and trust yourself. And trust me too, Dimitri.” She took his hand. “With both of us here, we can be each other's pillars. I know you'll pull me back if I go too far, and I will do the same for you.”

How could she know? How could she expect Dimitri to stop her from crossing the line when he'd obliterated it years ago?

Live for what you believe in .

Right. Because he'd already been pulled back across that line.

Byleth must have seen something in his face, because her grip on his hand tightened. “Trust yourself, Dimitri. You're a better person than you give yourself credit for. It takes a truly good person to suffer so greatly on the behalf of others.”

How had he done it? How had he tricked her into thinking he was anything but a monster? He'd told her everything about what he's done, all the bad and the worse. How could she listen to that and still think he could be good?

“Thank you,” he eventually said, because if he voiced any of that to his Byleth it would have started an argument, and he wasn't ready for that. A selfish part of him wanted to let her keep seeing him this way, as a man instead of a monster. “And I trust you.”

At the very least, he knew that so long as Byleth was by his side, Dimitri wouldn't tread too far.

***

Dimitri finds Constance later. She's in the scrap heap, and had clearly come here to be alone. Dimitri almost leaves when he sees her, but he forces himself to take a step forward.

When she realizes he's there, she straightens, looking much less gloomy than before. “Dimitri,” she says in greeting.

“Constance.” He nods. “May I sit with you?” She nods stiffly, and he takes a seat next to her. They sit there for a few moments while Dimitri gathers his thoughts. “I'm sorry. I should have expected Aelfric to pull something like this.”

“I should be the one apologizing to you,” Constance said. “Your gift from the goddess isn't an answer to all our problems. Seeing possible futures does not prevent bad things from happening.”

Dimitri smiled, relief flushing through him as he realized that she was no longer angry at him. “We'll get him back.”

“Of course we will!” Constance said, tilting her head back hautighly. “Aelfric won't know what hit him! He should have known better than to mess with I, Constance von Nuvelle!”

“With what's coming next, I'm going to need you to trust me,” Dimitri said. “I have a plan, and for it to work I need you to be willing to answer me when I call. Can you do that?”

Constance smiled. “I believe you may be one person I wouldn't mind taking orders from.” She turned away. “Don't get used to it, however. When I restore my noble house I'll be the one giving people orders!”

“I look forward to it.” He leaned back. “So, how has your training with faith magic been going?”

***

Dimitri took charge of carrying Edelgard to the surface. She looked much better, the night's rest must have helped alongside what little healing magic they could muster in Abyss, but she certainly still needed to see Manuela, and Dimitri knew better than anyone how deeply her trust issues ran. Claude was helping Hilda stagger her way to the infirmary, while Ashe was propped on Felix’s back, his leg still looking rather mangled, the bandage seemingly doing little to help. Despite the amount of pain he must be in, he was still happily keeping up conversation with the other members of their group.

They exited Abyss the same way they came in, through the entrance next to Byleth’s room. Dedue was passing by, seemingly on his way to his room, when he caught sight of them.

“Your Highness!” He rushed over. “Where have you been?” He moved to take Edelgard from Dimitri’s arms, but Dimitri pulled away even though he still felt exhausted and honestly wasn't sure he could make it to his room entirely on his own. Of course, everyone else looked just as bad as he did, even with the night of rest.

“It's a long story,” Dimitri said. “We're going to need a lot of help. But first, the infirmary.” Dedue thankfully nodded, hovering anxiously as they all stumbled up the stairs to the second floor. They passed a few monks on the way, all of which went running to the Cathedral, likely to inform Rhea of their return.

Manuela had clearly heard about them before they arrived, running to intercept them with Hanneman, Alois and Jeralt. Alois took Edelgard from Dimitri, and this time Dimitri couldn't protest, at the very least he knew he could trust Alois with her, even if Edelgard couldn't feel the same.

Dimitri smiled sheepishly at Manuela. “I'm afraid I may have done more than just light physical activity.”

“I assumed so,” she said. “How many of you are in need of immediate medical attention?” Alois was already taking El to the infirmary, which left only Ashe and Hilda.

“The rest of us can heal on our own,” Claude said. “They got the worst of it, so they're going to miss what happens next.”

“What's happening next?” Dedue asked.

“If we play our cards right,” Dimitri said, “hopefully an easy fight. We should get everyone together before I explain.” Dedue, thankfully, just nodded, turning to follow Dimitri’s unspoken request to gather the rest of the Blue Lions.

Dimitri watched Manuela order some of the priests around, he’d rarely spent time in the infirmary where he himself hadn’t needed to be there. It was interesting to watch from the side of a concerned friend rather than from the infirmary beds themselves.

Felix was standing next to Dimitri, scowling. “He won’t be coming on the mission to Conand Tower with us.”

Dimitri glanced to where Ashe was, seeing the way his leg looked without the bandage and winced. It made his shoulder injury from the end of last month look like nothing. Thankfully they were at the monastery, so Ashe wouldn’t lose his leg, but it had been nearly a day since he’d been injured, and despite their care to make sure the wound didn’t get infected, very few people in Abyss were capable of using healing magic.

Ashe definitely wouldn’t be joining them to fight Miklan. Losing him would make things difficult. Even with Gilbert with them, he didn’t like their chances. Ashe was their only person who could reliably hit a demonic beast and damage it while staying out of its attack range. Besides, that left only eight of them, not counting Gilbert, to fight against a demonic beast alongside all the bandits. Maybe if they go fast enough they can stop Miklan from turning into a demonic beast? Or is that one of the few things in the timeline that are set in stone?

“What are you thinking about?” Felix asked. “Don’t hurt yourself.”

“Just something I saw coming for the fight at Conand tower,” Dimitri said. “We’re going to want an archer.”

Felix grimaced. “I can use a bow, though the professor already has me working with gauntlets. If I’m going to pass the grappler test I’m not sure how much effort I can put into my archery.”

“That’s okay,” Claude said. “Dimitri can be your archer. He passed the exam, didn’t he?”

“Please don’t say that where Byleth can hear you,” Dimitri said. “She might just decide to do it.”

“I’d offer my own services as an archer, but I have my own class to lead. With Hilda out of commission though I’m worried about how we’ll fare,” Claude said. “I think the Black Eagles might have it the worst though. With Edelgard injured there’s no way Hubert will leave her side.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Felix said. “The monastery will just send knights to help. Besides, those are over a week away. We should be focusing on the battle that’s approaching much faster.”

“What battle?” Ingrid asked, veritably announcing the presence of the recently arrived Blue Lions. “Where have you three been?”

“What happened?” Mercedes asked, rushing forward to offer her assistance. Manuela accepted her help in stride, and Dimitri wasn’t surprised. Mercedes was just as good with healing magic as any priest in the monastery.

“Hey what’s going on!” Leonie’s voice filtered in from outside the door. “Are they back?”

“Maybe we should take this somewhere bigger,” Linhardt said dryly. “What about the audience chamber?”

It took only a few minutes to get everyone gathered together in the audience chamber. Dimitri heard Marianne approach Claude and ask after Hilda. When he told her she was in the infirmary, Marianne left, Dimitri assumed she meant to join Mercedes in helping out wherever she could. Hubert hadn’t even followed them to the audience chamber, and Dimitri could see him down the hall, lurking outside the infirmary door. Seteth had gone to speak with Rhea, and Dimitri assumed he could count on his help, as well as maybe Catherine and Shamir’s.

“What’s going on?” Ferdinand asked. “Where have all of you been?”

“It’s a long story,” Dimitri said. “To sum up, there is someone who wishes to harm those of us in the monastery by using an ancient holy relic. He’s kidnapped a friend of mine in an effort to ransom him to me in exchange for the relic. We just need a little extra manpower in case he decides to fight us when we confront him.”

There was a beat of silence as everyone in the room processed his words. And then, chaos erupted.

***

Byleth met up with him later, her face bruised but otherwise looking perfectly fine.

“Was there a fight?” He asked.

“Just a few of Aelfric’s people standing guard,” Byleth said. “With Constance, Balthus, and Hapi with me it was easy. Yuri’s mother is officially in the care of the monastery.”

“Thank the Goddess,” Dimitri said. “With that, Yuri shouldn’t see the need to betray us as he did last time...”

“Which will prevent Aelfric from getting the chalice,” Byleth finished. “And hopefully stop him from turning into a giant demonic beast that we aren’t ready to fight.”

“Exactly,” Dimitri said. “We just need a way to get Yuri away from Aelfric. If he’s backed into a corner I don’t trust him not to seriously injure Yuri to force us to do as he asks.”

“If he hurts Yuri and tells the Ashen Wolves that he’ll heal him if they come with him they’d do it,” Byleth said. “Do you have any idea how to get him away from Aelfric without risking his life?”

“Just one,” Dimitri said. “When I first started visiting the Wolves, I had Constance and Hapi start working with Faith magic. Neither of them excel at it, but with a good base in Reason, they were able to start picking things up quickly. Constance recently learned the Rescue spell.”

“A useful spell,” Byleth said, looking as proud as she could with her lack of expression. “Though its usefulness is limited when rescuing allies that are being directly held hostage. If she rescues him and Aelfric is holding onto him, it’ll just bring Aelfric along.”

“Which means we need to get him to let go of Yuri,” Dimitri said.

“How do we plan on doing that?” She asked. Dimitri grinned.

“We give him what he wants.”

***

Dimitri demanded to be the one to hold the chalice. Yuri was mistrustful by nature, and the only way he’d trust someone at their word about his mother would be either Dimitri or one of the Ashen Wolves being the one to bear the news. And they weren’t letting any of the Wolves near Aelfric, not when his current goal is to drain them of their blood as a sacrifice to resurrect a woman that doesn’t love him.

Claude hadn’t liked it, and neither had Seteth. Dimitri couldn’t blame him, since he still wasn’t fully cleared by Manuela, but a part of him knew that he had to do this. After all, he was the reason Yuri was in danger. Besides, if Byleth had to divine pulse then Dimitri would be able to change the script without anyone judging him, all they’d have to do is take a look at his glowing eyes.

“You know you don’t have to do this because I yelled at you,” Constance said.

“I wouldn’t feel right asking someone else to do this,” Dimitri said. “It’s my plan, so I should be the one putting myself at risk.”

“I know a lot of nobles in Fargheus that would claim otherwise,” Balthus said.

“Have a little more faith in Didi,” Hapi said. “He wouldn’t just throw his life away.” Dimitri took a deep breath and turned to face the group of soldiers that Aelfric had brought with him. They parted, allowing Dimitri to easily walk through them.

“They sent the Prince of Fargheus to parlay with me?” Aelfric asked. Yuri was next to him, his arm tightly casper in Aelfric’s hand. He wasn’t bound, likely because he was meant to attack. If it were like last time, Aelfric planned to have Yuri turn on them.

“I volunteered,” he said. “The chalice for Yuri, that’s what you said in your note.”

“I have to inspect the chalice,” Aelfric said. “I’m sure you understand.”

“Of course,” Dimitri said, holding the chalice out. Yuri sent him a questioning look, and Dimitri nodded subtly. Not that Aelfric was watching him, his eyes were on the prize in Dimitri’s hands. As expected, Aelfric released his grip on Yuri to grab the chalice with both hands. Dimitri whistled and the air hummed with magic. Yuri disappeared in a flash.

Aelfric didn’t seem worried. In his eyes, Yuri was still under his control. No, he was still inspecting the chalice. The soldiers around him were tense, waiting for his command. The air hummed with magic again, and Dimitri blinked, arriving next to Constance, her face focused in concentration. Yuri was letting Hapi and Balthus check him over, but he didn’t appear to be injured any worse than when they last saw him.

“Think he took the bait?” Yuri asked. “I assume it was a fake, right?”

“Of course,” Dimitri said. “I don’t even know where the real one is. Constance is still saving it to use as a bargaining chip to restore her house.”

“The right to claim such an honor is far beyond what I deserve,” Constance said, her head tilted downward and shoulders hunched. “I presumed too much, and shall hand myself over to our enemies so I may hinder them instead of you.”

“Come on Coco,” Hapi said. “Let’s get you out of the sun.”

Yuri snorted. “So where’s my mom?”

“Last I heard she was having tea with Rhea and the two of them were talking about you,” Byleth said. Yuri made a face, and Dimitri couldn’t help the laugh bubbling up in his throat.

There was a shout of anger from several feet away. “I think Aelfie just realized we gave him a fake,” Hapi said. “We have a fight coming our way.”

“You have nothing,” Seteth said, his face stern. “I understand wanting to be involved, but the four of you being here will only cause problems. I’m sure you’re capable of holding your own, but you being here is exactly what he wants.”

“I can’t believe you’re pushing us out of the fight,” Balthus grumbled.

“Dimitri, please escort Yuri to the infirmary to be checked over by a healer,” Seteth said. Dimitri got the feeling he shouldn’t argue. It was probably best that he didn’t join the fight anyway. He still hadn’t fully recovered from recovering the Chalice in the first place, and to go even further, he wasn’t sure he’d fully recovered from the hit he took from the Death Knight.

“I think we’ve earned the right to a well deserved break,” Hapi said.

“No kidding,” Balthus said.

“How is everyone?” Yuri asked.

“Everyone is back on their feet for the most part,” Dimitri said. “Hilda, Edelgard, and Ashe are all out for a while. None of them will be participating in missions for the rest of the month, but they’ll all recover fully eventually.”

“So did it turn out better than you saw?” Yuri asked.

“I’d say so,” Dimitri said. “For one thing, Aelfric never touched the Chalice of Beginnings, so he never turned into a giant demonic beast that would have probably killed all of us.”

Yuri nodded, accepting his words, but the other three Wolves were looking at him in alarm.

“That wouldn’t have actually happened, right?” Hapi asked.

“I thought you didn’t see Yuri get taken,” Constance said.

“I didn’t,” Dimitri said. “In my original vision, you all trusted Aelfric, so he faked his own kidnapping. When you showed up to rescue him, Yuri helped him capture you because Aelfric was holding his mother hostage. He activated the ritual which we interrupted and the chalice reacted accordingly.”

“Geez,” Balthus said. “I’d definitely say this turned out well, even if it did look like a shitshow for a while.”

They wandered to the infirmary, letting Manuela fret over Yuri. Ashe was asleep on a bed tucked in the corner. Linhardt was sitting in here as well, clearly trying to avoid joining in on the fight, but Dimitri couldn’t exactly blame him. Hubert was standing vigil by Edelgard’s bed, and Marianne was sitting by Hilda’s bed, clearly fretting over her. Hilda was the only one of the injured awake, and she beamed at them when they walked in.

“Welcome back!” She said. “How did it go?”

“They’re still fighting,” Dimitri said. “You might have some company soon.”

“I’m surprised you didn’t try to join in,” Hilda said.

“Seteth was adamant that we not participate,” Constance said.

“Yeah, he can be kind of overprotective,” Hilda said. “His poor little sister can’t even make any friends without him breathing down their necks.”

“What are we supposed to do now?” Hapi asked. “We don’t exactly have a lot of options for places to go. I guess we could go back to Abyss.”

“Why don’t you just join us up here,” Hilda said. “It’s not unheard of for people to join classes. Claude would love to have you all in the Golden Deer.”

“I’m not sure I’m welcome up here,” Hapi said. “They stuck me down there for a reason.”

“Just because you summon monsters when you sigh?” Linhardt yawned. “Anyone who has a problem with that can mind their own business. Besides, I bet the reason for that is fascinating. I frankly don’t see what the problem is.”

Hapi looked bewildered by his words, but she didn’t get the chance to say much before the door to the infirmary burst open and Claude walked in, a concerning amount of blood on him.

“Dear Sothis what happened to you?” Hilda asked.

“Oh it’s not mine,” Claude said. “We won by a landslide. Aelfric has officially been arrested and awaits Lady Rhea’s final judgment.”

Dimitri blinked, trying to wrap his head around it. Even as he walked away, a part of him wondered if things were really going to turn out alright. He half expected everything to go to hell just like anything else he’d tried to change. But Byleth hadn’t even had to divine pulse. They’d done it. Byleth had never been able to change the outcome of a battle before, and had never been able to stop this.

It really was possible to change things for the better. And as Dimitri sat in the infirmary as they waited for everything to calm down, he could feel his hope for the future finally start to take hold.

Chapter Text

“How are you doing?” Dimitri asked. He was seated by Ashe’s bedside, Hilda and Edelgard were both asleep and Hubert wasn’t shadowing for once. He did still have to attend classes, after all, and Hanneman was holding a lecture for those studying reason today.

“I’ve been better,” Ashe admitted. “I feel like I may have smashed a mirror on accident. How much bad luck do I have stored up? First my adoptive father practically declares war on the church and gets himself killed, then I nearly die from an arrow in the Holy Mausoleum, and now this.”

Dimitri opened his mouth to tell him it would get better, that things would improve, but the words wouldn’t come. Could he promise that? There was a part of Dimitri that worried that the worst was yet to come. He just hopes it was the paranoid part of him rather than the part that could see the future.

“Any updates on your leg?” He asked.

Ashe grimaced. “It’s not good. Manuela said I have to stay here for our end of the month mission. I might not even be able to help out next month either, it depends on whether or not I take the time to heal.”

“I’m sorry,” Dimitri said. “I can’t help but feel like somehow this is my fault.”

Ashe’s grimace dropped into a frown. “It’s not your fault! I argued my way into this and you tried to talk me out of it!”

“Still, I feel like I should have been able to prevent this,” Dimitri said.

Ashe snorted. “Seeing the future doesn’t mean that you can magically fix all our problems. All it can do is make things a little easier for us sometimes. I’d be dead if it weren’t for you. Stop being so hard on yourself, or I’ll tell the professor.”

The rest of the Blue Lions had recently started to realize that if they wanted Dimitri to do anything (which usually involved caring about himself in some way) they just had to bring Byleth into it. Dimitri struggled to say no to her. Even though he knew this wasn’t the person he left behind, wasn’t the Byleth that he had loved and subsequently lost, a part of his guard will always be down when he looks at her.

“Fine,” Dimitri said. “I hate to ask this of you, but there’s something I saw, and the rest of us won’t be here for it.”

“What is it?” Ashe asked.

“I think someone may be trying to harm Flayn,” Dimitri said. “It’s just a vision I had. I know if I told Seteth about it he would do everything he could to protect her, and possibly to her detriment.”

“I can do that,” Ashe said, smiling brightly. “I hear she likes to fish, I bet we could do that together!”

“That would be wonderful,” Dimitri said. “Thank you, Ashe. It means a lot to me that you’d be willing to do this.”

“Of course!” Ashe nodded, a serious look taking over his face. “Flayn’s really sweet. It would be terrible if something bad happened to her. If I can do something to prevent it, then I will.”

“Be careful,” Dimitri said. “Whoever is after Flayn likely has no reservations about killing you. Your presence may deter them for a time, but please don’t throw away your life.”

“I won’t,” Ashe said. “Once you guys get back from your mission maybe we can investigate this more together.”

“We will,” Dimitri said firmly, but there was a sinking feeling in his gut that everything might not work out the way he hoped.

***

Sylvain groaned when he noticed Dimitri enter the Knight’s Hall. “I was hoping I’d be able to avoid this for a little while. We leave tomorrow, do you really want to do this right now?”

“I was hoping to do this earlier,” Dimitri said. “But circumstances didn’t allow it. How are you doing?”

“I’m fine,” Sylvain said, his jaw clenched. “Miklan hasn’t been my brother for a long time.”

“Sylvain, I’ve known you for many years,” Dimitri said. “Don’t lie to me about this.”

Sylvain looked at him, staring for a moment, and sighed. “He got himself into this mess. Why does he always go too far? Why did crests have to matter so much to my dad?” He closed his eyes, leaning against the wall. He looked tired. “It all just feels so fucking pointless.”

“I’m sorry,” Dimitri said. “I’d ask you to stay here, but I know how important this is to you.”

“Yeah,” Sylvain said. “Just another one of Miklan’s messes for me to clean up.”

“It won’t be this way forever,” Dimitri said. “One day, Fargheus will change, and crests won’t be the biggest deciding factor in those that rule.”

Sylvain laughed. It was a bitter sound. “When? Are you going to do it somehow in the next eight months? Or are you down to six now? Because Sothis knows your uncle won’t make that change.”

Dimitri frowned. “Sylvain-”

“Save it,” he said. “I know it kind of sucks to be mad at you since you didn’t ask for this, but you were kind of our ray of hope, you know? I always figured that, as awful as nobility in Fargheus is, it wouldn't last because one day you’d fix it. And now that future’s been ripped away.” His eyes were shiny now, and Dimitri looked away, knowing that Sylvain would appreciate the privacy if he were to cry. “And more than that, how am I supposed to deal with you dying? It’s not just about Fargheaus to me.”

Dimitri forwent pretending to not notice Sylvain’s distress and pulled him into a hug. He was trembling. “For what it's worth,” Dimitri said. “I'm trying. And most of the futures I've seen have had me in them.”

“It's not your fault,” Sylvain said. “I'm sorry you got dealt such a shitty hand.”

Dimitri smiled wryly. “I'm not the only one. Look at our house and you'll see a deck full of shitty cards.”

“No kidding,” Sylvain muttered. “Will things get better?”

Dimitri closed his eyes, thinking past the gruesome dreams that have haunted his sleep for the past few months, thinking towards the moments where he stood with Claude, Edelgard, and Byleth, victorious on the battlefield.

“Sometimes,” he said. “And I hope we're working towards one of them.”

“Well let me know what I can do to keep us on track,” Sylvain said.

“Unfortunately what's coming next is likely to happen while we're gone,” Dimitri said. “Luckily, Ashe offered his help.”

Sylvain grimaced. “His luck is almost as bad as yours, are you sure about this?”

“Of course,” Dimitri said. “What's the worst that could happen?”

***

He eventually found Byleth over by the blacksmith, looking over their weapons. The blacksmith had only recently been able to start fixing weapons, since they'd needed to acquire some equipment. She held an upgraded silver lance in her hands and was clearly inspecting the work done on it.

She glanced at him and must have seen something in his face, because his blood burned and time shattered around them.

“What's going on?” She asked.

“My visions have been getting worse recently,” he said. “The good futures are still there, and thankfully I've stopped seeing the future where we suspect Rhea stole your heart to give to me, but the number of possible futures has expanded. In some of them we all die, in others just a few of us, but each one appears worse than the last. And some of them don't even make sense!”

Her face twitched and her lips tugged downward slightly. “Like what?”

“Like Sylvain standing as Cornelia’s right hand man,” Dimitri said.

Byleth's eyebrows twitched, the only indication Dimitri had of her surprise. “I can't see that ever happening.”

“Neither can I,” Dimitri said. “There are futures where you and I fight, where we fight Claude and Edelgard. They're all starting to get so jumbled I can't seem to keep track of them.”

“You're getting worse, aren't you?” She asked. “How is your head?”

“It hurts,” Dimitri said, which felt like an understatement since he currently felt like someone was trying to pry his skull open in order to bludgeon his brain. It felt odd to say that he missed his previous migraines, but these headaches made him feel much worse. He was starting to forget what it felt like to have his head not hurt.

“You look pale,” she said. “Are you sure you want to go on this mission?”

“I'm going,” Dimitri said. “We're already down a house member, and demonic beasts were difficult to fight even when I was fully grown.”

“I may have a solution for that,” Byleth said. “The Black Eagles' mission was canceled, so I was thinking about asking for some of their help. Don’t push yourself too hard Dimitri.”

“I promise you, I’m good to go,” Dimitri said. “I probably just need to get some rest.”

Her hands were soft where she touched his face as she searched his eyes, looking for any deception. He’d never been a very good liar, not to her, but he wasn’t lying right now. At least, he didn’t think he was lying. Of course, a part of him certainly wasn’t looking forward to the journey to the tower and sleeping on the ground in the rain, but it couldn’t exactly make his headache worse, could it?

He really ought to know better than to tempt fate, because he suspected that somehow, it would indeed get worse.

***

“Hey Dima,” Claude said, jogging up to greet him as they headed towards the dining hall. “You look terrible.”

“Hello Claude,” Dimitri said dryly. “You need to work on your greetings.”

“I said hello first, didn’t I?” Claude nudged him. “Seriously though, aren’t you leaving to stop that relic thief later today? You look like you didn’t sleep at all.”

Dimitri wasn’t sure what he did counted as sleep either. He certainly laid in his bed, eyes closed, but he vividly recalled living through several nightmares that he couldn’t seem to wake himself up from. His head pounded-

“We require the use of your Death Knight,” Solon said. He was not currently disguised as Thomas, so this clearly was nowhere near the monastery.

“No,” Edelgard said, in full flame emperor regalia. “I let you use him for the Holy Mausoleum, and it turned out terribly. He could have been caught.”

“It doesn’t matter if he’s caught,” Solon said. “If we can get that girl’s blood-”

Dimitri blinked, coming back to himself quickly. There was vomit on the ground, and he was kneeling. Claude was beside him, a hand on his shoulder. His head was still pounding, and he could hear his blood rushing.

“-causing problems.” This time it was Thales’s voice that was filtering through Dimitri’s head. “Get rid of him.”

“I will,” Solon said. “But if you’d let me run a few tests-”

“Do what you want,” Thales said. “So long as he’s dead by the time I get back.”

Dimitri didn’t know if he could stand. His hearing was starting to come back, and he could vaguely hear Claude’s whispered assurances. This was the first public vision he’d had in a while. He hardly counted the Ashen Wolves classroom as public, since here several monks and knights were looking at him in concern. Claude shifted, blocking Dimitri’s vision so he was the only one he could see.

“Don’t mind them,” he said. “That was a pretty bad one huh? What happened?”

“I don’t know,” Dimitri croaked, letting Claude help him stand. The pressure in his head hadn’t lessened, it never did anymore. “It was all nonsense, the people that killed my father talking with someone in red armor. But there was nothing of use.”

“Damn,” Claude said. “Dima, you look even worse than before. Are you sure you can leave?”

“I’m fine,” Dimitri said. “I just need to get some breakfast.” Actually, the thought of breakfast made Dimitri’s stomach church. It’s not like he’d find much enjoyment in it, considering that he can’t even taste the food. But if Byleth found out he hadn’t even been able to eat food, she’d never let him come along with them.

Claude clearly wasn’t convinced, not that Dimitri was surprised considering he still needed Claude’s help to walk up the stairs to the dining hall. He managed to have enough strength to grab food and collapse at a nearby table.

Edelgard was sitting at the table with her food already, concern etched on her features. Hubert was shadowing her closely, never far from her side as she recovered. “Bad night?” She asked.

“And day,” Claude said. “He had a vision on the way here. Some guy in red armor talking to the people that killed his dad.”

Edelgard looked away, poking at the food on her plate. Hubert was glaring at them, but Dimitri couldn’t be bothered to care. What was significant about the red armor again?

Oh. Right, It’s Edelgard. How could he have forgotten? She knew that he knew, right? He’d told her? At the very least, she knew he knew that she was in charge of the Death Knight. Why did it feel like all his memories were chopped and thrown about, leaving him to try and gather the pieces?

“You should stay back from your mission today,” Edelgard said. “You aren’t in any shape to be fighting bandits.”

“I highly doubt bandits are capable of bringing Dimitri down, even in this state,” Claude said. “But the princess does have a point. Isn’t Ferdinand joining your house for the mission? Maybe it would be better for you to stay back.”

“I’ll be alright,” Dimitri said. “I need to go.”

Edelgard and Claude both looked worried, but neither pushed further, which he appreciated. Throughout breakfast, he did start to feel slightly better, as he often did the further he got from sleeping. By the time they left midday, he was sure that he’d look as close to normal as he could.

***

As Dimitri walked to the exit of the monastery, he passed by the fishing pond. Ashe was there with Flayn, helping her bait her line. She was beaming, clearly happy to be spending time with someone. Seteth was subtly watching them from the greenhouse windows. Just as planned. With Ashe spending extra time with Flayn, Seteth won’t let them out of his sight.

The rest of the blue lions were waiting by the exit. Ferdinand was here as expected, as well as Dorothea and Bernadetta. Sylvain was clearly trying to talk to Bernadetta about something, but she looked like she was one step away from a panic attack. Dorothea came to her rescue, dragging Sylvain away by his ear. Ingrid watched happily, Dimitri was sure she was grateful that she didn’t have to be the one stepping in for once.

“I just wanted to talk to her about her book,” Sylvain complained, rubbing his ear. “I’m not putting the moves on her!” Dorothea didn’t look convinced.

“Claude told me you almost passed out this morning,” Byleth said, stepping up beside him.

“I’m alright,” Dimitri said. “It was just a bad morning. I’m already feeling much better.” She laid a hand on his forehead, casting a healing spell on it. For a blissful moment, the pain receded, only to come back again so forcefully it made Dimitri stumble, forcing Byleth to catch him lest he collapse.

“Are you alright?” Ferdinand asked, looking like he wanted to check Dimitri’s forehead.

Dimitri tried to smile. He was never very good at it. “I’m fine.”

“I’m only letting you come so I can keep an eye on you,” Byleth said. “I’m not letting you push yourself into an early grave.”

“It would be kind of hard to make his grave any earlier than it already is,” Felix said dryly and Annette elbowed him. “What? I’m just being honest.”

“You don’t have to be mean,” Annette said. Felix scowled, but didn’t argue. Gustave was the last to arrive, awkwardly avoiding eye contact with Annette. With him here, they could finally set out on their mission.

“Any advice for us about what’s coming?” Dedue asked. Dimitri sighed.

“We’re going to want to do this fast,” he said. “Because if not, it’s going to get messy.”

Dedue nodded, and Dimitri smiled. He felt like he hadn’t spent much time with him lately, though that was likely mostly because he wasn’t there for the mess in Abyss. It was nice to have him back by his side. A part of him was afraid that he wouldn’t be able to stop his death. He’d seen dozens of realities in which Dedue would sacrifice himself to save Dimitri.

A part of Dimitri wondered if the only way Dedue would be able to live was if Dimitri himself died. After all, every time Dimitri watched Dedue die, it was to save him. Was it possible to prevent it? Was there a future where Dedue lived and stayed by his side, where the two of them would get to grow old together as brothers?

If that future existed, Dimitri would make it so.

***

Dimitri didn’t sleep that first night, hoping by doing so he could push the visions away. In a space like this, he worried about waking the others up with his distress.

Mercedes joined him halfway through the night.

“You need to sleep,” she said. She had clearly only woken up to get water, and she looked tired and groggy.

“It’s alright,” he said. “It’s better if I don’t.”

“You’re going to make yourself more ill than you already are,” she said. “If you don’t take the time to rest now, your body is going to make you do it later.”

“I’m going to wake people up,” Dimitri said. “I’m not exactly a quiet sleeper anymore.”

“Dimitri, you're among friends,” she said. “If any of us were in your place, would you want us to stay up all night to avoid causing you problems?”

“Of course not,” Dimitri said. “But that’s different. You’re not-” He cut himself off, grimacing.

You’re not a monster, he wanted to say. He turned away from her. “It’s just different.”

“Would you rather rest now and risk waking us up, or stumble in the middle of the fight because you haven’t slept and risk letting us die?” She asked.

“That’s not fair,” Dimitri said. She just smiled and held out her hand. He took it and let her lead him back to the tents.

***

“Your Highness!” Dedue was half dragging him away from the palace. There was an arrow in his shoulder. Dimitri wanted to beg him to stop, to leave him behind. He remembered this, was this a memory or a vision? “You need to go, I’ll lead them away.”

“No,” Dimitri said. “No you can’t die for me. Dedue please-”

“You must live on,” Dedue said. “Go.” Dimitri tried to stumble after him, but he was hurt, he could barely move. Dedue was gone before he knew it. Gone. Again. How could he stop it? What did he have to do?

He stumbled away from the city, mourning the loss of his friend. At the gates, instead of sneaking out like he did originally, Dimitri was met by a platoon of soldiers.

“Here he is!” This was different. This wasn’t what happened. That meant this was a vision. No, that meant that Dedue would die for him again. No, not again, never again. Dimitri won’t let it happen.

How can he make it not happen?

Dimitri shot up, feeling as though his brain were melting out of his ears. Someone shoved a bucket into his lap and he curled around it, dry heaving. There was nothing in his body to throw up at this point, but his trembling body kept trying anyway. Cool hands touched his face, not Byleth’s, but still familiar. The familiar feeling of Recover passed through him and he counted the seconds of blissful relief before his head started to ache again.

1…2…3…4…

“That looked bad,” Annette said. “Are you okay?” Dimitri nodded, though he couldn’t stop his body from trembling.

Several of the Blue Lions were looking at him with varying degrees of horror. He supposed he was quite the sight. After all, the last time they’d seen him this distressed was after he’d been attacked by siege magic, and even then, he suspected he looked worse now.

“You really are dying,” Dorothea said, frowning. “Aren’t you?”

“I’m alright,” Dimitri said. “It’ll pass in about an hour. I just need time to shake it off. I’m sorry for waking you all.”

“Shut up,” Felix said. “It’s not like you can control it. Apologize for stuff that you can actually fix.”

“Oh, Bernadetta since we’re both up, can you tell me more about your book?” Sylvain asked, turning to the wide eyed girl who looked about ready to bolt. “Your characters are just so compe-” She screamed and ran to the other side of camp. “-lling.” He frowned.

“You should stop trying,” Ferdinand said. “Bernadetta isn’t going to fall for your cheesy lines.”

“But I’m not even trying to-” Sylvain cut himself off with a sigh, heading to the center of camp where Dimitri was starting to realize breakfast was being prepared.

“Do you need any help getting up?” Ingrid asked him. Dimitri thought for a moment, and clearly he took too long, because she started helping him off the ground before he could answer.

“What happened in your vision?” She asked. “If you don’t mind talking about it.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Dimitri said. “I’m not letting it happen.”

She sighed. “That bad?” Dimitri closed his eyes, still seeing Dedue leaving him behind. The last view of his brother he ever had, and it was of him walking away in an effort to protect him.

“Yes,” Dimitri eventually said.

***

“There’s a storm coming,” Dimitri said, staring up at the sky.

“Please tell me you’re not trying to be some cryptic fortune teller,” Sylvain said.

“I’m talking about rain,” Dimitri said dryly.

“Do you have any advice for us about what’s to come?” Ferdinand asked.

“If we don’t finish this quickly it’s going to end poorly,” Dimitri said. “We need to get the lance away from Miklan as quickly as possible.”

“So what we already knew,” Felix said. “Want to clue us in on why we need to do that?”

“If you use a relic without a crest for long enough it’ll turn you into a demonic beast,” Dimitri said. His comment was met with silence.

“What?” Sylvain asked, his voice flat. “Please tell me you’re joking. This is a joke, right?”

“Miklan is going to turn into a demonic beast?” Ingrid asked. “We don’t know how to fight one of those.”

“If we get the lance away from him fast enough it won’t be a problem,” Dimitri said.

“Are all your missions like this?” Ferdinand asked, looking slightly pale. “Besides our mission to protect the Archbishop last month, all we’ve been doing is fighting bandits or escorting nobles.”

“It’s not that we’re being assigned difficult missions,” Mercedes said. “It’s that they often go wrong.”

“Like the ambush on the Holy Mausoleum,” Annette said.

“And the fact that we actually had to fight at Castle Gaspard,” Dedue added.

“And the fact that that dark bishop knew siege magic,” Felix finished.

“And now demonic beasts,” Ingrid said. “We really have the worst luck, don’t we?”

“Dear goddess, we’re doomed aren’t we?” Ferdinand asked. “We’re going to have to fight a demonic beast.”

“Ingrid, you just learned the Seraphim spell, right?” Annette asked. “Isn’t that effective against monsters?”

“Yes, but my magic stores aren’t exactly impressive,” she said. They were coming up to the tower itself now, and it was time to start getting ready to fight. Byleth approached him, a blank look on her face that was starting to make Dimitri think she was up to something.

She held out a bow to him, and he groaned. “Professor, this joke isn’t funny.”

“I’m not joking,” she said. “You and Bernadetta will act as our ranged support. I’ll need Ingrid to help Mercedes heal, and Annette will assist the two of you.” Dimitri accepted the bow with a frown, tugging at the string to test it out.

“Fine,” he said. “But I’m also bringing my lance.”

Gilbert’s armor clinked together loudly as they entered the tower, making stealth much more difficult. Dimitri could hear bandits sounding an alarm, and before they knew it, several bandits were running in their direction, brandishing their weapons.

It was fascinating to see the Black eagles fight in tandem with them. It reminded Dimitri of the days during the war, fighting alongside Bernadetta and Dorothea to stop the empire.

“Ingrid and Sylvain stay back and watch the door,” Byleth ordered. “Ingrid, your job is to stay back and attack from a range and to act as an emergency healer. Sylvain, you’ll be the main force attacking any reinforcements. Everyone else continues on with me.”

Sylvain looked mildly offended. “Professor if this is about the leader of the thieves being my brother, you really shouldn’t-”

“Someone needs to stay at the back to prevent a surprise pincer attack,” Byleth said. She was in full battle mode, her eyes sweeping the area, watching for possible ambushes. “Are you up to the task, or do you need more help?”

Sylvain didn’t look happy, but he didn’t argue, at least. Ingrid laid a hand on his shoulder, and Dimitri knew that at the very least, he was in good hands. Dimitri followed the rest of their group as they pressed forward. Gilbert held up the rear, protecting Annette and Mercedes. Annette was clearly trying hard not to look at him in an effort to avoid being distracted, which Dimitri couldn’t blame her for, with-

Gilbert was dead. Why was he dead, what had happened?

“This is my fault,” Annette said. “If I hadn’t run off-”

-their history.

“Whoa there,” Dorothea said, stopping him from tripping. “You okay?”

“Yes, sorry,” Dimitri said, shaking the vision off. His head hurt, but then again when did it not? What could he say to excuse his glowing eyes that would actually be helpful. They were coming upon a turn in the tower. Wasn’t there a false wall here? “People are waiting to ambush us further up.”

Dorothea called out a warning to the people in the front, and when the bandits popped out of the wall, Ferdinand and Dedue were waiting for them. The rest of them continued to race forward, coming across a large grouping of bandits.

The Blue Lions (plus their friends from the Black Eagle House) were a force to be reckoned with. The bandits didn’t stand a chance. With their formation allowing the most physically adept units up front, it kept their ranged attackers and healers well protected.

Did Byleth make me one of the archers to keep me off the front lines? Dimitri frowned. Is she that worried about my capabilities?

He pulled the bowstring back carefully, keeping Claude’s advice in mind as he aimed for a nearby armored knight. His crest flared, and the arrow flew through the air, piercing through the knight’s armor much more easily than it should have. He watched Bernadetta take on another armored knight on her own, her single arrow multiplying into three others raining down, leaving the knight dead on the ground.

Right, she has the crest of Indech, doesn’t she? There was a brigand sneaking up behind her, but Felix was watching her back, and he knocked the brigand down with ease, slamming his fists into his face. Byleth had sent Annette off to a random corner. Dimitri worried for a moment since she’d be on her own, but Byleth had been here much more often than Dimitri had, so she would know better than him if she were to get overwhelmed.

The six of them leftover continued to press forward, and all too quickly they managed to finish climbing the tower, seeing Miklan holding the lance on his fortress.

“Bernadetta do you know the deadeye combat art?” Byleth asked. Bernadetta shakily nodded.

Miklan sneered as he approached. “So you think you can take the lance from me, huh? I’ll kill you, I’ll kill every last one of you!” He stepped off his fortress and Bernadetta shrieked.

“Stay away!” She let her arrow fly and it slammed into Miklan’s armor. He stumbled back.

“Not bad for your kind,” he said angrily, “a bunch of spoiled rotten children!” Ferdinand and Dedue were approaching from behind, finally catching up. Ingrid, Sylvain, and Annette were further down, but they’d be with them soon. The lance of ruin pulsed in Miklan’s grip.

“Get back!” Dimitri ordered. “He’s changing!” Felix tugged Bernadetta back as she stared at Miklan in open mouthed horror. Dorothea was stumbling backward, her face pale as black tendrils erupted from the Lance of Ruin, engulfing Miklan.

“It’s like watching a bad dream come to life,” Sylvain said softly.

“Everyone regroup now!” Byleth said, her voice urgent and almost panicked. Dimitri suspected this was one of her least favorite missions considering how unequipped they all were to fight demonic beasts. “Ingrid, prepare the seraphim spell, Sylvain watch her back and make sure she doesn’t get ambushed. Dimitri, lead a wave attack gambit with Ferdinand and Dedue. All mages to me, I’ll walk you through Resonant Flames. Everyone else watch for the correct time to attack, do not enter his range unless you know you won’t be hit back.”

No one argued and Ferdinand and Dedue immediately flocked to Dimitri’s side. He went first, the three of them overwhelming the beast with their numbers. Byleth didn’t waste any time, magic crackling at her fingertips as she, Mercedes, Annette, and Dorothea sent several balls of fire at the beast. It collapsed to the ground for a moment, and Byleth called out, “Now!”

Everyone rushed forward to attack, sending everything they had at it in the hopes that they could kill the beast before it could recover its senses. But they were still young and inexperienced, and the beast stood up, roaring.

“Felix!” Sylvain shoved him to the side, the beast’s tail slamming into him full force and sending him over the edge out the hole in the side of the wall and tumbling to the ground. Dimitri’s blood burned.

“Damnit,” Byleth said. “No matter what, that beast is going to hit someone. You definitely can’t handle a hit from a beast right now.” Dimitri wanted to protest, but his hands were shaking, and the longer they stayed in time limbo the more exhausted he felt. “I could try to take the hit, but I’m on the opposite side of the room.”

“Let me try to run interference,” Dimitri said. “I promise I won’t let the beast hit me.” Byleth nodded, and a part of Dimitri felt warm at how easily she trusted him.

She rewound ten seconds, and Dimitri lunged forward just as Sylvain was hit with Miklan’s tail, and barely managed to grab ahold of his shirt collar before he could fall out the broken wall.

“Ow,” Sylvain said, looking pale. The beast roared, likely because the others had defeated it. Dimitri tugged Sylvain back into the tower, collapsing on the ground. Mercedes was already rushing over to them. Sylvain was coughing, which meant the beast had likely damaged his ribs.

Miklan’s body was on the ground, the lance of ruin still held tightly in his grip. A part of Dimitri wondered what Miklan could have been had someone only given him the chance to truly prove himself. Would he have been a strength to the Kingdom? Would he have been loyal to those that were kind to him?

This is what Dimitri wanted to work for, a world where people like Miklan didn’t have to become a bandit just to find people that appreciated his strength. He could only hope that he lived long enough to make that wish a reality.

Chapter Text

Dimitri didn’t know what he was expecting to greet him when they got back to the Monastery. Perhaps Seteth, frantic and terrified. Maybe knights standing guard. But instead, they were met with normal Monastery activity. They passed through the lightly guarded marketplace, and Dimitri only realized why it was so normal when he saw Ashe and Flayn sitting next to each other at the fishing pond again.

Dimitri’s blood burned.

“I don’t understand,” Byleth muttered, looking at the frozen monastery. “How did-”

“I’ve been working with El,” Dimitri said. “I wonder if they weren’t able to kidnap her without the Death Knight’s help.”

“Maybe,” Byleth said, her eyes trained on Flayn. This moment seemed important for her, so Dimitri stayed quiet. “I’ve never…this has never happened.” He didn’t move, and she brought her hands up to cover her mouth, her eyes shining. “We, we changed it. For the better.”

He hesitated for a moment, worried that if he reached out he would overstep. This wasn’t his Byleth, should he even comfort her the same way? This Byleth didn’t know him, hadn’t worked with him as long. He was practically a stranger to her.

He laid a hand on her shoulder, and she turned to him, a smile on her face. It was small, just a faint upturn of her lips, but it was radiant.

“And we’ll keep doing it,” he eventually said, when he remembered how to speak. They stood there for a moment longer, but they couldn’t keep time paused forever.

Once time resumed, it took less than a minute for people to come running to greet them. Felix and Ingrid were helping Sylvain to the infirmary. Mercedes had helped a lot, but the hit from the demonic beast’s tail had left his insides rather scrambled, and they figured it would be best to let Manuela make sure he’s alright.

“Dimitri, is that you returning from a mission uninjured?” Claude’s voice filtered through his thoughts and Dimitri turned to greet him. He was coming down the stairs from the dining hall, the sun rising behind him. Seeing him there, shrouded in light, for a moment Dimitri forgot how to breathe.

How did he wind up falling in love with the two people that he knew for a fact were completely unavailable? Byleth, he understood. He’d loved her for a long time, and that love was lost to time. But Claude? They had spent so much more time together this time around, planning and scheming and training. Dimitri hadn’t realized how much he enjoyed spending time with him until now.

He remembered the way that Byleth spoke of Claude, of the look in her eyes. Dimitri knew she loved him, and he knew Claude well enough to know that Claude loved her as well. Dimitri was dying, and even if they fixed it, even if he lived to see the visions that plague him…

He shouldn’t interfere.

“Hey.” Annette nudged him. “Are you okay?”

Dimitri blinked, looking at the short girl. He forced a smile. “I’m alright,” he said. “Just tired.”

“I’m not surprised,” Annette said. “You looked pretty bad after the fight at the tower. You had a lot of visions, huh?”

Dimitri nodded. “I might go to my room for a little bit,” he said. “We don’t have any classes today, right?”

Byleth made a noise of affirmation. “Go get some rest,” she said.

“Here, I just finished breakfast, so I’ll walk you,” Claude said, and two halves of Dimitri warred with himself. He likes spending time with Claude, but half the reason he’s running off to his room is to wallow about his feelings. In the end, Dimitri just didn’t have it in him to protest. “You guys got back early.”

Dimitri grimaced. “I had a vision about an hour before dawn and no one saw any reason to go back to bed. In close quarters like that, I woke everyone up.”

Claude frowned. “How are you feeling now?”

“It gets better throughout the day,” Dimitri said. “And then worse. Around midday I should be just like my normal self.”

Claude’s concern didn’t ease, but he smiled at Dimitri, and he was reminded of earlier, when Byleth finally got her smile back.

Damnit. This wasn’t helping.

Cyril was waiting for him by his room, a letter in his hand. Dimitri blinked, racking his brain and trying to remember what it was about. If he remembered correctly, hadn’t there been an uprising in Duscur that Viscount Kleiman was putting down. Dimitri vaguely remembered feeling horrified, but with the search for Flayn, they weren’t able to leave and Dimitri had to let the slaughter happen.

“Hey Cyril,” Claude said. “Whatcha got there?”

“A letter for Prince Dimitri,” he said. Dimitri accepted it, and, as expected, it was the news of the uprising. He opened the letter, skimming it even though he already knew what it would say. He stared at the paper for a long time, thinking. He had wanted to go last time, but the timing was bad. But Flayn was here and safe, and there was no mission this month originally. Maybe he could convince Lady Rhea.

“Dima?” Claude nudged him. “Everything okay?”

“I need to speak with the Archbishop,” he said. His head ached, but it was already fading slightly.

“Weren’t you going to rest?” Claude asked.

“I’ll be okay,” Dimitri said, smiling slightly. “This is something I need to do.”

In the last timeline this was one of his greatest regrets. Another massacre that he was unable to prevent. He’d always wondered if he could have done something. The thought that this was possible, that this time he could do something where he last felt helpless…

“Alright,” Claude said. “I can see in your face this isn’t an option. Let’s go.”

Dimitri didn’t know if she wasn’t busy, or if Lady Rhea heard he wanted to speak to her and cleared her schedule, but it only took a moment for him to be seated in her office.

“Hello Dimitri,” she said, a wide smile on her face. “What did you want to talk with me about?”

“Viscount Kleiman has sent a request for aid in suppressing a rebellion in Duscur,” Dimitri said. The Archbishop's face was impassive. “I have my concerns about the level of force he is executing in response to this resistance. The…prejudice against Duscur is still very rampant in the kingdom, and I don’t want to be a part of unnecessary bloodshed.”

“You want to take a group to help with the rebellion suppression,” she said, “but to avoid killing the Duscur soldiers?” Dimitri nodded. “Suppressing a rebellion is dangerous, Dimitri, even more so if you aren’t fighting to kill.” She looked at him, and she must have seen something in his face. Her smile didn’t waver. “Very well. You may go and take any who wish to join you.”

“Thank you,” he said, bowing his head.

“There is no need for you to bow to me, Dimitri,” she said. “We’re all friends here. Before you go and speak with your friends about this mission, why don’t we talk more about your visions?”

Dimitri swallowed, but did his best not to show his discomfort. Rhea hadn’t done anything, not truly, and they’d prevented the future where she had. So why was his skin crawling?

***

A part of Dimitri wanted to talk to Dedue about this first, to get his opinion on the matter. They haven’t spoken much lately. Every time Dimitri got close to him and thought about talking to him, he couldn’t help but see the visions where Dedue sacrificed himself for him.

So instead, Dimitri went straight to Byleth.

“I thought you were getting rest,” she said, her eyes immediately focusing on his hand where the letter was still crumpled in his grip. “Is everything alright?”

“How much do you know about the state of affairs in Duscur?” He asked.

“More than you’d think,” she said. “I know that their land has been largely seized, and that it’s mostly survivors from outside the land that gather to rebel.”

“And yet Viscount Kleiman has an entire army dedicated to defeating them and has asked for further assistance from the church,” Dimitri said, something dark stirring in his heart. Seeing such acts of hatred and evil always made the boar pace in the back of his head. “Lady Rhea has given us permission to take a group to assist.”

“Understood,” Byleth said. “I’ll gather everyone together and we’ll leave after dinner.”

Dimitri blinked. “So soon?” There was a rush of gratitude that flushed through him. “But we just got back.”

She laid a hand on his shoulder. “I may not know you as well as my other self,” she said, her voice soft, “but I know you aren’t the kind of person to stand for needless bloodshed.”

Dimitri could have laughed. What had he said at Gronder? Kill every last one of them!

He turned away from her, his chest aching for something lost. There were stories of soldiers that still felt pain in the area of lost limbs. Phantom pain, ghost pain, the pain of something lost that can never return.

Is that why his heart hurt?

“I’ll spread the word to the others,” he said, turning away. “Thank you, professor.”

***

Dimitri was passing by the entrance hall, looking for Sylvain, when he heard Bernadetta babbling.

“Can I join your class?” Her voice was frantic, and she nearly said the words so quickly that Dimitri missed them. He peered around the corner, seeing the way that Bernadetta shifted awkwardly in front of Byleth.

“Of course,” Byleth said, smiling. “Come on, why don’t we make a plan for your progress? The Blue Lions are about to leave on another mission, but I bet we have time to have you take the pegasus knight exam.”

“Wh-what?” Bernadetta continued to stammar as she followed Byleth out of the room. Dimitri smiled, happy that Bernadetta had joined their house again, and even earlier this time around. Having her on a pegasus would be monumental for them, since Ingrid isn’t working with lances.

He wondered if they’d be able to convince anyone else to join the Blue Lions. He certainly missed having Marianne in their house, but he’d feel bad taking Claude’s only healer.

He shook his head, leaving the entrance hall. He needed to find the rest of the Blue Lions for this mission before he spent too much time thinking about the other houses, no matter how useful Linhardt’s warp ability would be on this mission.

He paused, thinking for a moment. Maybe Hapi would like to come.

***

Dedue was bleeding out in his arms. He’d helped Dimitri escape again. This time they’d stayed together. This time, the soldiers caught up with them, likely because Dedue hadn’t run interference.

This time, Dimitri got to hear Dedue’s last words.

***

This time, instead of Dedue walking away he helped Dimitri out of the walls of Fhirdiad. There were soldiers there waiting for them.

“Go!” Dedue ordered, but Dimitri didn’t run, he couldn’t, wouldn’t leave Dedue behind to die. There was a hand on his shoulder, dragging him back. Dimitri didn’t know who it was, but he was dragged away with just enough time to see a sword slit Dedue’s throat. He was dying all over again, why couldn’t-

***

“You guys have been back for less than two hours and you’re already getting ready to leave again?” Ashe asked.

“It’s a bit time sensitive,” Dimitri admitted, fully aware that Sylvain wouldn’t be able to join them either. He’d already enlisted his help to continue keeping an eye on Flayn while they were gone. “How is your leg?”

“Not great,” Ashe admitted. “If you were leaving in a week, maybe. But there’s no way Manuela would allow me on a cross country trip like this.”

“Have you noticed anything odd when you were hanging out with Flayn?” Dimitri asked.

Ashe frowned. “She’s really sweet, it’s hard to imagine someone wanting to hurt her. Lately Thomas has been talking to her a lot. I think he’s lonely.”

Dimitri grimaced. “Do me a favor, Ashe. Don’t let Flayn go anywhere alone with him. Call it a hunch.”

Ashe nodded, not even questioning him. “Do you think she’s still in danger?”

Dimitri nodded. So long as Solon was still at the monastery, Flayn would be in danger. He frowned, his mind flashing back to a vision he’d had a little while ago. Solon and Thales wouldn’t hesitate to kill Ashe if it meant getting to Flayn. “They aren’t planning to kill her. Don’t die, if you can live and make sure people know what happens, it would be better.”

Ashe frowned. “I can try, but running away isn’t something I’ve ever been very good at.”

“It’s hard,” Dimitri admitted, thinking of Dedue refusing to leave him behind. “But living to get help can be more important than dying for honor.”

***

Dimitri invited Hapi to ride with him. Normally, he’d want Dedue to ride with him. Normally, he wouldn’t be haunted by dreams of his best friend dying for him. Normally, he would be able to look at Dedue without seeing him dead on the ground, without feeling blood on his hands.

“You okay Didi?” Hapi asked. “You’re shaking.”

“Just a little tired,” he said.

“Are you sure you should be going?” She asked. “You aren’t exactly healthy right now.”

“I know,” he said quietly. “But this is something that I need to do.”

“If you say so,” she said, though she sounded skeptical. “Just don’t throw up on me.”

Dimitri’s stomach churned and his head ached. “I make no promises.”

***

Byleth was determined to still have them learn despite being on the road, so when they woke up the next morning, she had them start planning for their advanced exams.

“I will be having many of you take several advanced exams,” she said. “Hapi, you’ll be taking the Valkyrie and the Bishop exam.”

“Not the warlock?” She asked. “I’m better with Reason than Faith.”

Byleth shook her head. “Warlocks excel in black magic and you use dark magic. It simply wouldn’t be helpful for you. Bernadetta, you’ll be taking the sniper and the paladin exams.” Bernadetta squeaked but didn’t argue. Dimitri suspected they’d already had this conversation. “Ingrid will be taking the swordmaster and trickster exams, as well as preparing to obtain the dancer certification-”

“What?” Ingrid’s voice was uncharacteristically high. “Professor, I'm not a dancer!”

“You still have a few months to practice,” Byleth said. “I have complete faith in your abilities.”

“Can’t I just prepare to take the falcon knight exam?” She asked, sounding miserable. “Isn’t that why I’m working with flying and swords?”

“Working on flying helps you with evasive maneuvering, which is something that will be useful for you as a dancer.” Bernadetta was patting Ingrid’s back in commiseration as Ingrid groaned and rested her face in her hands. The two of them were riding Bernadetta’s pegasus together. “I’ve been having you work with magic too, remember?”

“I thought it was to have me take the dark flier exam,” she said. “I don’t know how to dance.”

“I’ve already spoken to Dorothea about giving you pointers,” Byleth said. If anything, Ingrid only looked more miserable hearing that. “Felix will be taking the swordmaster, grappler, and warrior exams.” Felix nodded, seeming happy. Dimitri suspected that he was just happy Byleth was allowing him to take the swordmaster exam. Though having him work on three different skills was certainly expecting a lot. “Sylvain will be taking the wyvern rider, paladin, and fortress knight exams-”

“You want me to work on my heavy armor?” Sylvain asked. “But I already have to learn flying and riding!”

“You’ve been slacking off lately, which means I haven’t given you enough to work on,” Byleth said, her tone even. “If you work hard, maybe I won’t make you take it.”

Dimitri was getting a bad feeling. Why did he suspect that she wouldn’t let him take the paladin exam?

Annette was expected to take  the dark flier, warlock, and bishop exams. Mercedes was expected to take the bishop and warlock exams. Dedue was supposed to take the warrior, grappler, and fortress knight exams.

“If you have extra time I want you to work on your riding,” she said. “Then you can take the paladin exam as well.” Dedue looked faintly ill at the thought, and Dimitri couldn’t blame him. Dedue had a difficult time around most animals. He didn’t put up a fight however. “Ashe isn’t here, but I already told him that he’s going to be taking the assassin, wyvern rider, and sniper exams.” Her lips twitched. “And Dimitri will be taking the sniper, paladin, swordmaster, and assassin exams.”

“Professor, please don’t make me an assassin,” Dimitri said. A sniper is bad enough, but Dimitri isn’t the kind of person who’s capable of being stealthy.

“You’re good with swords and you’re already proficient enough with a bow to pass the exam,” she said. “By the way, you brought a bow right? Bernadetta will be using lances and we don’t have Ashe so you’ll be our archer today.”

Dimitri and Bernadetta shared a brief look of horror. “Are you sure we can’t trade?” Judging by the look on her face, she wasn’t willing to allow it.

Great. Byleth handed him a killer bow, and he tested it out. It was sturdier than some other bows, and it’s string packs an intense power that’s meant to pierce even the thickest armor.

She was serious, then.

It was a long journey to Duscur, and Byleth had them practicing the whole way. Dedue was even starting to get comfortable around horses after the long journey. But after a little over a week, they made it to Duscur.

Dedue’s eyes were sad as he looked at the battle as it was starting to begin. The Duscur soldiers were running straight to their deaths. “The kingdom’s vanguard has already arrived,” he said. “Just as we feared, they far outclass the Duscur forces. We cannot stand by and allow another massacre. But we cannot obstruct the Fargheus army either. Our best hope is to force the Duscur troops to withdraw before the kingdom soldier get to them.”

Dimitri nodded. “We’ll need to quell this uprising before the main body of the kingdom army gets here. We have to move fast, because once they get here, we’re out of options.”

“How do we stop those up top from running straight at the kingdom vanguard?” Felix asked. “They’re angry, and they hate House Kleiman.”

“There may be one person that could distract them,” Byleth said. “Hapi, warp Dimitri over there. Bernadetta, be ready to follow on your pegasus. Ingrid, you know the stride charm? That will be helpful as well.”

Dimitri blinked, vaguely feeling the weight of his weapons lighten, just enough to allow him to travel unencumbered. He’d probably be able to nearly double his movement like this. “Wait, wh-” The world around him turned and he suddenly found himself on the other side of the clearing. He raced up the steps, finding three Duscur survivors getting ready to run straight at Viscount Kleiman’s forces.

“Is that the prince of Fargheus?” One of them asked. He let out a battle cry in the Duscur language and came running at him. Dimitri stepped back, his mind racing. Where could he shoot him that would count as nonlethal?

He let the arrow fly into the soldier’s knee, wincing at their howl of pain. One of the other Duscur soldiers paused in his assault to help his friends.

“Please, there is no need to fight here,” Dimitri said. “There is a large army heading this way, retreat so you may live another day.”

The other enemy came to attack Dimitri, but a white pegasus got in his way. It knocked the man back. Dimitri turned to Bernadetta.

“Thank you,” he said. “I’m going to try and convince the Kingdom army to retreat. I want to try and work something out with them. I may not have the right to give them orders, but I may be able to convince them not to attack soldiers that have withdrawn.”

Bernadetta nodded. “I’ll stopgap here. No one will get past these stairs.”

Dimitri headed in the direction of the vanguard. The soldiers clearly recognized them, several of them bowing as he approached.

“Your highness,” the general said. “We weren’t expecting you to arrive to give assistance.”

“You sent a letter to the monastery,” Dimitri said. “I wanted to make sure that the Kingdom didn’t take things too far.”

“They’re the ones that started the rebellion,” the General said, his jaw clenched. “We’re merely protecting our land.”

“So long as that’s how this remains, I see no problem,” Dimitri said. “But there is no honor in killing those that seek to withdraw from battle.”

The General didn’t say something for a moment, his eyes narrowed. “Very well,” he eventually said. “I hadn’t expected you to be so concerned about…our honor. Are you sure you should be here? The last time you were in these lands…well let’s just say I’m sure these soldiers would be happy to finish the job.”

Dimitri’s hands shook. Standing here in this land, he couldn’t help but taste blood and smoke. “I have no intention of falling here today. I merely want to prevent needless bloodshed.”

“Kings do not always have the ability to prevent bloodshed,” the general said. “You should remember whose blood you wish to preserve more. We will allow you to take point here, but if any kingdom nobles die here, we will have to retaliate.”

Dimitri grimaced. He knew that the chances of anyone dying here were minimal, but he disliked the way this man desired to commit another genocide. “Thank you.”

“Kings are not meant to be kind, your highness,” he said. “If you let your kind heart rule you, you’ll be destroyed before you ever reach the throne.”

They retreated, heading back to meet up with the approaching army. There was another group from the right that was retreating as well. Clearly whoever the professor had sent to handle that area had done their jobs.

Dimitri jogged down to help Bernadetta again, trying to forget the general’s words. He wanted to dismiss them, but to a point, he was right. Where had Dimitri’s kind heart led him? It created a monster more interested in killing than running his kingdom. When the world became too cruel for him to bear, the boar had been more than happy to take over.

Dimitri needed to be king in order to facilitate change, but did he have the heart for it? To make those difficult decisions?

“Are they gone?” Bernadetta asked when Dimitri got back to her. He nodded. “Good, there’s an archer out there, and I’ve barely been able to stay out of his range. Can you help?”

Dimitri took a breath, pulling his bowstring back. If it was an archer, then hitting him in the arm should be enough to make him withdraw, right?

Judging by the loud cursing and the way he backed off, it worked well enough.

“Thanks,” Bernie said. “Are you alright?”

Dimitri grimaced. “I don’t know how I’m going to convince the kingdom to forgive Duscur, let alone agree with all my reforms. They’re so stubborn, and enforcing change is only going to cause problems. I don’t want to force people to agree with me, I want them to want this as much as I do.”

“Well, they can’t start thinking about it unless you tell them it’s what you want,” Bernadetta said. “If the change has to happen slowly, then maybe it would be better to start now rather than waiting until later. You may not have the power to really start to change things, but you have the ability to start to change people’s minds, right?”

“You think I should start speaking to the people?” He asked.

“That’s who matters, right?” She asked. “Not those stuffy noblemen. If the people agree with you, then you have the moral high ground in enforcing change.”

“How do the people in charge make decisions that lead to people getting hurt?” He asked.

“Sometimes there’s no other option,” Bernadetta said. “Right?”

Dimitri nodded. “Thank you. I think this is just something I need to think about more.”

By the time they got to the bottom of the hill, the Professor and Dedue were already there. The Duscur general looked at Dedue, confusion in his eyes.

“Is this how our dream ends?” He knelt on the ground, his leg injured to the point where he couldn’t stand. Dedue held out his hand. “Why? Why save us?”

“I will not abide by the needless deaths of my people,” Dedue said. Dimitri turned to Bernadetta.

“I’m going to check on the status of the Kingdom’s troops,” Dimitri said. “Once they know we’ve won here they’ll retreat and…” he turned back. “My presence will not help here.”

Bernadetta grabbed his arm, stopping him. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you run from something before,” she said. “Why would you do it now?”

Because this is where he always failed. Dimitri has never been able to save the people of Duscur. Last time around, Viscount Kleiman’s men killed everyone here because Dimitri didn’t come to their aid. Last time, Dedue died to save the prince of the kingdom that hated his people.

Because Dimitri was dying, and it felt wrong to try and give the people of Duscur false hope of a king that would give them peace. Because when the kingdom came to kill the people of Duscur for a crime they didn’t commit Dimitri couldn’t stop them.

Dimitri had bad luck with protecting the people of Duscur.

He walked down to join them, and the general looked at him, vitriol in his gaze. “Prince of Fargheus! You monster!”

Dimitri smiled wryly. You have no idea . “Can you still run?” He asked. Byleth was healing his leg, so he should be back on his feet in a moment. “Then I suggest you do so now. Your people are waiting for you on the other side, and the kingdom army will not be attacking them.”

The Duscur general looks at him thoughtfully for a moment. Is he going to attack? Is his hatred for Dimitri that deeply ingrained in him?

“May our paths cross again,” Dedue said, releasing him now that he can stand on his own.

I certainly hope not,” he grumbled. “But remember one thing. The people of Duscur never forget their grudges.” He paused, looking at something behind him and Dimitri turned. It was Ingrid, healing one of the injured Duscur soldiers so he could retreat. “Nor do they fail to honor their favors.”

Dimitri watched him leave, unsure what the feeling in his gut was. What would come of this? Was this really such a big deal? The chances that this would change anything were miniscule, but a part of him hoped that maybe this was the first step to reconciliation. He knew the Kingdom still had much to atone for, but at least for now they were headed in the right direction.

“Thank you,” Dedue’s voice was soft. “Your highness. This means a lot to me.”

“This was my wish as well,” Dimitri said, trying his best to smile. Dedue was alive here, and yet Dimitri can’t help but see his retreating form, never to return. How can he fix this? What could he change?

Dedue looked like he wanted to say something else, but Dimitri turned away. “We should head back. If we leave now, we can be back more than a week before the end of the month.”

***

“Are you avoiding Dedue?” Byleth asked.

Dimitri winced. “Is it that obvious?”

“You went from basically inseparable to sending each other looks when the other isn’t looking,” she said. “Sylvain is convinced that he confessed to you and you rebuffed him.”

“Do you gossip about me with other students?” Dimitri asked.

“Claude and I talk about you all the time,” Byleth said. “You’re often the topic of conversation when I invite him over for tea.”

Dimitri blinked, not sure what to do with that information, so instead he says the only thing he can think of. “Do you two have tea often?”

She nodded. “He’s a good friend. I trust him.”

Dimitri nodded. “Me too. You don’t have to hide your feelings from me, you’ve told me before how much you care for him.”

“I do love him,” Byleth admitted. “But it’s hard. He’s not the Claude I left behind.”

And oh, did Dimitri understand that. He nods again, this time more of a jerk of a head. “Do you think you could love this version of him?”

“I do,” she said. “I’ve fallen in love with him over and over. What about you?”

“Me?”

“You left people behind that had changed, do you think you could grow to care about them the same way?” Dimitri heard her unspoken question, he’d never been very good at hiding his emotions. She had to know he loved the Byleth he left behind.

But she hadn’t asked that specifically. He thought about the Felix he’d left behind, a fragile relationship strained further by the death of his father. About Annette and Ashe and how they’d struggled for five years of wartime. About how after everything Sylvain and Ingrid had to return to their noble houses even though neither of them wanted to.

“I think,” he said, “that the reason we change things is so that they don’t have to become the people we left behind. And if you truly loved them, then a version of themselves that hasn’t endured as much pain is just as special to you as they were.”

She smiled. “I couldn’t have said it better myself.”

***

Dimitri’s last memory was going to sleep, which is how he knew this was a vision. They were trying to flee the capital again. It was the same nightmare that plagued him. They were being pursued, where were they going?

They fled north.

“Go,” Dedue said, and Dimitri hated that word. “Go” as if it were an option to leave him behind.

“No,” he could feel the words as they left his mouth, he felt more tangible in this vision. There was the sound of a bowstring and Dimitri doged, the arrow lodging in his shoulder instead of his neck. Pain blossomed in his shoulder, and he screamed. It hurts, normally he doesn’t feel this pain, why is he further in this vision than the others?

“They’ll kill you,” Dedue said.

“She wants me alive,” Dimitri said, and he doesn’t understand, who is she? It can’t be Cornelia, she wants him dead. She had no reason to keep him alive last time. “Please Dedue-”

His hands were strong as he rested them on Dimitri’s shoulders. He was quick, tying a tourniquet. “You don’t know how long that will last.”

Dimitri looked at him. “You know what I think.”

Dedue closed his eyes. “And you know how I feel about that. We don’t have long. We go together or not at all.”

When the soldier caught up with them, Dimitri fought as hard as he could. There was something different about this.

He couldn’t see with both his eyes.

Dedue had a gash in his arm, there was blood on his face, and he was stumbling. Dimitri felt himself stumble as well. There was a sword wound in his side.

There were hands on him, dragging him back to the capital. Dedue was on the ground, blood pooling around him, and Dimitri could do nothing. He was dead, he was going to die again and Dimitri wouldn’t be able to do anything-

Dimitri shot up, his scream silent. The room was spinning, but no more than normal. He pushed himself up, leaving the campsite they’d set up. He managed to hold himself together just long enough to avoid waking everyone up. He collapsed just outside the camp, dry heaving long enough that he was starting to struggle to breathe.

“Your Highness?” Dimitri felt Dedue’s hand reach out to him, helping him adjust his position to help him breathe better. 

“Dedue,” Dimitri said. “Did I wake you? I’m sorry.”

“I couldn’t sleep,” Dedue said.

Dimitri took a moment, Dedue’s several deaths flashed the moment he closed his eyes. “Can we talk?”

“Of course,” Dedue said. “Do you want to head back to the camp?”

Dimitri shook his head. “I don’t want to wake anyone else. First I wanted to apologize. I’ve been avoiding you.”

“I know,” he said. “You don’t have to apologize. I’m assuming you saw something in your visions that caused this?”

Dimitri felt something in him unravel slightly. It was soothing to talk to his best friend, someone who knew him possibly even better than he knew himself. “You keep dying for me.”

They sat in silence for a moment. Dimitri didn’t know what else to say, so he kept quiet. “I don’t understand,” Dedue eventually said. “I thought it would be obvious. Of course I’d die for you.”

“I don’t want that,” Dimitri said. “You’re my best friend Dedue, my brother. How would you feel if I sacrificed myself for you?”

“That’s different,” Dedue said. “You matter too much to die. I’m your vassal-”

“You are much more than a vassal,” Dimitri said. “You are cherished. Whatever you think of me you have to understand that I think of you in the same way!”

“I can’t do that,” he said softly. “In this world, the way it is, we can’t be friends.”

Dimitri frowned, hurt flashing through him. “Why? Why do we have to cater to this world? Why can’t you accept that you matter to me?”

“I just want to protect you,” Dedue said.

“If you don’t want me getting hurt then don’t die.” Dimitri lets out a harsh breath. “That’s the best way to protect me.”

“If I have to choose between your life and my own, I will always choose your life,” Dedue said.

“I can understand that because I’d do the same,” Dimitri said. “But don’t act like your life is worth less than mine, or anyone else’s here. Promise me you’ll always look for another option first.”

Dedue was silent for a moment, clearly mulling over Dimitri’s words. “I promise.” He said. “But only if you promise the same. I know you’re getting sicker. Swear to me you aren’t going to give up.”

“I promise,” Dimitri said, and it was an easy promise to make. After all, he wants to see things through, he wants to see the future he created.

Rather than needing to live to make things better, Dimitri found that with time, it was something he wanted as well. After all, what was the point of creating a future worth living in if he wasn’t there to enjoy it?

***

The monastery was bustling when they returned, and there was a growing feeling of unease in Dimitri’s gut. Sylvain came to greet them, his face pale.

“What’s going on?” He asked.

“Ashe and Flayn are gone,” he said. “It happened last night. The entire monastery is losing their minds.”

Fuck.

Chapter Text

If Ashe were being completely honest with himself, he really struggled to understand Dimitri. Really, he struggled to understand most of his classmates in the Blue Lions. Ashe had spent most of his life on the harsh end of nobility until Lonato had taken him in. Rowe territory wasn’t kind to commoners, and it was even less kind to thieves. Ashe knew the professor was aware of his capabilities, and he suspected Dimitri knew as well. They had to have suspicions of his background, but neither of them seemed to mind.

The academy was just…different from the rest of the world, he supposed. Though, if Dimitri viewed the world this way, a part of Ashe hoped that maybe one day Fargheus would change to be more like the vision of the world that Dimitri had. It’s the kind of world Ashe wants his siblings to grow up in.

And if Ashe can do anything to make that easier, he would. Which was why he was currently sitting on the dock with Flayn trying and failing to help her fish. Seteth was in the greenhouse pretending to water the plants, but mostly just watching them through the window.

“Ashe look!” She was pointing at the water, eyes wide. “Remember the fish that escaped a few days ago? That has to be it! Its shadow is enormous! We have to catch it!”

Ashe grinned. “Great! Time to put what you’ve planned into action!” They didn’t have to wait long before Flayn had to start tugging on her fishing rod. Ashe coached her through reeling the fish in. She tugged hard at the final moment, just as he encouraged, and pulled out a fish that Ashe had only seen in books.

“We did it!” She said, turning to Ashe. She was still moving from the momentum of pulling the fish out of the water, however, and nearly toppled back into the lake. Ashe managed to grab her arm and tug her a few inches away from the edge of the dock.

“Careful,” he said. “You almost let the fish catch you!” Ashe didn’t dare think of what Seteth would do to him if he’d let Flayn drop in the water. Did Flayn know how to swim? She had to, right? Ashe actually didn’t know much about her and where she was from. Not many people in Fargheus knew how to swim. Ashe didn’t remember who taught him, but a part of him was sure it was his mother. Not that he remembered much of her, at this point.

Seeing how eager Flayn was to cook the fish and how excited she was about the catch only served to make Ashe miss his siblings. He wondered how they were doing, with Lonato’s recent death. Were people giving them trouble?

His mind flashed back to the papers he’d smuggled out of Lonato’s study. There were some there that, had Ashe not gotten to them immediately, he was sure would have been gone by the next time he managed to visit. Papers detailing deals with secret organizations and correspondences with other nobles in Fargheus. He hadn’t managed to finish reading through them yet, but by now he knew enough that when Dimitri returned from Duscur he’d need to share it with him. This was a lot bigger than some unrest about the church.

“Ashe, are you okay?” Flayn asked, halfway up the stairs to the kitchen.

Flayn…in a kitchen.

He snapped out of his stupor. “Yeah, I’m fine. Why don’t you let me help you with that?” Flayn beamed, waving the Goddess Messenger at him.

“What should we make?” She asked, and Ashe followed her into the kitchen, secret organizations and dark plots far from his mind.

***

“How’s operation ‘Get on Seteth’s Hitlist’ going?” Sylvain asked while Ashe fed the horses. The professor had encouraged the two of them to bond with the horses and practice their skills as a rider while the others were gone. Sylvain complained a great deal when he was given the task, but he had yet to leave Ashe hanging on one of their assigned days.

“It’s going well, I think,” Ashe said. “Much easier for me than you, certainly.”

“I tried to talk to her and she acted like I was some kind of demon,” Sylvain complained. “She didn’t let me get within three feet of her!”

“I guess I’ll have to stick around closely to her and you’ll have to keep her safe from afar,” Ashe said, unable to stop the grin on his face.

Sylvain sighed. “The one time I’m given an assignment that requires me to get to know a pretty girl and I’m not even allowed to do it.” Ashe snorted. “Have you noticed anything weird going on?”

Ashe hummed. “The librarian, Thomas, has been around a lot, even when we aren’t at the library. Dimitri didn’t like that when I told him.”

Sylvain nodded. “Got it. Since I can’t hang out with Flayn, I’ll keep an eye on the creepy librarian. Between the two of us and Seteth there’s no way anyone is kidnapping Flayn.”

Ashe certainly hoped so, though he couldn’t help but think of those that slither in the dark. They’d worked in the shadows for decades at least, and if anyone could make someone disappear, it would be them.

***

“Oh Ashe, it’s been a while since I’ve seen you without your little shadow,” Thomas said, a kind smile on his face. As far as Ashe was aware, Flayn was currently spending time with Ignatz in the cathedral, which meant Ashe had a moment to himself. He found himself wandering to the library without even realizing it. It used to be one of his favorite places. He could always come here and hide away from people while he read any number of stories.

Of course, a part of Ashe also wanted to see more of Thomas, to try and discern his intentions. He smiled at the old man, trying his best to hide his nerves. The best thieves were the ones that could keep calm no matter how close they were to being caught.

“Yes, it’s been nice to get to know Flayn,” Ashe said. “She’s sweet, and she helped out in the infirmary a lot while I was healing over the past few months.” That wasn’t even a lie. Flayn was a near constant help to Manuela in the infirmary and Ashe had spent more time there than anyone except perhaps Dimitri. “I think she’s just glad that her brother is finally allowing her to have friends.”

“Well, make sure to take time for yourself as well,” Thomas said. “How have you been doing? I’m sure things have been difficult, what with the incident in Gaspard territory. Have you been able to see your siblings since it happened?”

It seemed like an innocent question, and it was hard to picture an old man like Thomas being a danger to anyone, but Ashe trusted Dimitri’s instincts more than he trusted appearances. “I’ve been doing much better now that I can walk through the entire monastery without being fatigued. Manuela has finally given me a clean bill of health.” Thomas didn’t say anything, clearly waiting for Ashe to answer his other question. Ashe weighed his options. He could attempt to lie, or rebuff him. But Ashe didn’t know how much Thomas already knew, and if he was dangerous, it was better for him to think that Ashe didn’t suspect him. “I was able to visit home before we returned from our mission there. They were doing well enough, and their letters indicate that they’re still being treated well.”

“That’s good,” Thomas said. His demeanor had changed slightly, as if he’d gotten what he wanted. “You never know how adopted children will be treated when their benefactor is gone. I’m happy Gaspard territory is taking care of them.”

Ashe smiled, but it felt tight. “Me too.”

“It’s been a while since I’ve seen you in here,” Thomas said. “I found a book that I thought you might enjoy.” He held it out to him. It was a collection of old knight tales, exactly the kind of book that Ashe loved.

“Thank you,” he said, and Thomas nodded leaving him to read it alone. The conversation itself seemed friendly enough, but, more than just Dimitri’s warning, Ashe’s instincts were screaming at him. Something was off. And he needed to figure out what.

***

Ashe was halfway through picking the lock on the library door when a voice behind him said, “Geez, didn’t you already spend the whole day here?” He jumped, turning to see Claude behind him.

“I left something here earlier,” Ashe said.

“And you couldn’t wait for it to open tomorrow morning?” Claude asked. “Come on, I have eyes. You haven’t let Flayn out of your sight since the Blue Lions went to Conand Tower, and Thomas has been watching the two of you almost non-stop. He’s subtle, but I’ve been looking for a mole in the monastery since the whole mess at the Holy Mausoleum. I caught on to him pretty quickly.”

Ashe could feel his shoulders lose some of their tension. “Dimitri doesn’t like him either. He warned me about him specifically.”

“So you’re breaking into his office?” Claude asked, and he was grinning, so Ashe wasn’t as worried as he probably should be about getting ratted out. “Come on, finish picking the lock so we can be quick, the guards will be coming back here in about twenty minutes.”

“Why do you know the guard schedule?” Ashe asked.

“Please, I’ve broken into more places than you could dream of this school year,” Claude said. “You’d be surprised how easy it is. They assume that they’ve prevented enemies from getting into the monastery, so their security once you’re in is a total joke.”

Ashe pushed the door to the library open and he and Claude crept through. It was nice to have some help with things like this for once. Thomas’s office door was locked, but the lock itself was simple.

Ashe shuddered as he stepped into the office. Something about this man just felt off. Claude looked vaguely uncomfortable as well.

“Everything here looks unassuming,” Claude said, glancing around the office. He had a point. Nothing was out of place, it looked like a picture perfect office. “Let’s see what’s under the surface.”

The more time they spent looking, the more glad Ashe was that Claude was here. He’d clearly done this before, and Ashe had no problems going along and not asking questions. After all, he had his own secrets.

It was Claude that found the secret compartment in the wall. It was hidden well enough that Ashe would have passed over it, as well as nearly anyone else, but Claude’s eyes were sharper than even your average archer. There were a few documents that they weren’t sure they had time to read, but Ashe let Claude skim through them while he went through the rest of the cupboard. There was a knife made of a kind of metal that seemed to pulse with danger. Ashe didn’t see much of the Death Knight that day in the Holy Mausoleum, but he was sure his scythe was made of the same material.

There was a symbol on a pendant as well. And Ashe recognized it.

“What is it?” Claude asked, because Ashe must have gasped or shown his surprise audibly.

“Proof,” Ashe said. “He’s working with the secret organization.”

“Guess we found our mole,” Claude muttered. “What gave it away?”

Ashe held up the pendant. “Lonato drew this symbol. I stole the papers from his office after we were sent to help…” He swallowed. Talking about what happened with Lonato was always difficult. Knowing that Dimitri had had to step in to stop his adoptive father from killing him seemed like the start to a string of bad luck that Ashe felt wouldn’t stop until they’d dealt with what Lonato referred to as “Those Who Slither in the Dark.”

“That was smart,” Claude said. “If you’d waited until your next chance to visit, chances are some of the really important stuff would have been missing.” He flipped through a few papers, his eyes widening.

“What is it?” Ashe pressed.

“A location, I think,” Claude said. “Or something similar. It’s a recent correspondence, complaining about unrest in the Alliance and how it’s affecting their home base. I bet we could use it to discover where they’re stationed.”

“We need to take this with us,” Ashe said. “We’ll need a lot of time to go through them.”

“Except Thomas will immediately notice that something is missing,” Claude said. “And with all the Blue Lions gone, backup is scarce. Do you think this will push him to act?”

“I don’t know,” Ashe said. “But we can’t afford to let him get rid of this.”

Claude nodded. “He’s going to assume it’s you. You’re already getting in his way, so he knows you don’t trust him. It’s not a secret that you know how to pick locks and he probably already suspects you took the papers from Lonato’s house. We need to find somewhere to hide these so we can take time to understand everything they’re talking about with their experiments.”

“I’ll take them to Abyss,” Ashe said. “Hapi may not be there, but Constance is, and she’s smart enough to know what these notes are talking about. Yuri can use the notes about the location to work with some of his men to find something more exact.”

“That might be our best bet,” Claude said. “They’d never expect that, at least.” He handed Ashe the papers. “We’re running low on time, you should head to Abyss now. And once you have, lay low. Dimitri and the others should be back in a couple days to help keep an eye on Flayn. Let Sylvain take point on that and avoid running into Thomas.”

“Don’t worry, I will,” Ashe promised. It’s not like he was eager to get himself killed by a secret shadow organization.

***

Ashe had never been more grateful that his room was right next to the entrance to Abyss. It made it easy to stop by and grab the papers he’d swiped from home two months ago. As expected, Abyss was nowhere near as deserted as the monastery. With no access to the sun, many people didn’t adhere to a typical schedule.

He’d been in Abyss for less than a minute when Yuri was already coming to meet him. Ashe couldn’t help but notice that he looked great despite the fact that it was the middle of the night. Ashe had been awake for far too long, and he was sure it was showing. Not that it mattered, since, as far as Ashe could tell, Yuri didn’t like him much anyway.

“I’m trying pretty hard to figure out what you’re doing here, but for the life of me I can’t figure out why you of all people came to Abyss,” Yuri said dryly.

“Can we talk in private?” Ashe asked. “It’s kind of important.” To Yuri’s credit, he didn’t even blink, leading Ashe through several hallways until he found one where they were sure to avoid being overheard.

“What’s this about?” Yuri asked. Ashe shoved the papers in his hands.

“Can you keep these safe for me?” He asked. “And maybe have Constance take a look at them? And Hapi too when she gets back.” He waited while Yuri skimmed through the first few papers, watching as he grew visibly more surprised as time went on.

“Where did you get these?” He finally asked.

“I stole some of them from Lonato’s office when we went to…suppress the rebellion,” Ashe decided on instead of “kill him.” “I found the rest of them when Claude and I broke into Thomas’s office earlier.”

“Why would Claude ask you to help him break into Thomas’s office?” Yuri asked, raising an eyebrow and looking altogether way too pretty for the middle of the night. Ashe was doing a very good job of not thinking about his childhood crush when he wasn’t sleep deprived, that just didn’t happen to be the case today.

Ashe flushed, feeling a little awkward. “He didn’t. Uh, I was breaking into Thomas’s office. Claude had a similar idea and offered to help me look. Which was good since he was the one who found these. He thinks we may be able to do some research and find where they’re located from what they’ve said here. And if Constance and Hapi can discern what they’re planning based on the experiments they discuss here, that would be helpful too.”

“Why are you trusting me with this?” Yuri asked. “How do you know I’m not working with them?”

Ashe scoffed. He’d certainly spoken with Yuri enough to know that he wasn’t a villain. Maybe in another world they would have awkwardly avoided each other, but if both of them were going to be working closely with Dimitri, Ashe figured they needed to hash out their issues. And he knew Dimitri wouldn’t trust just anyone, he saw something good in Yuri, and that was good enough for Ashe. “Please, you do what you do because you want to protect the people important to you. You have no interest in actually hurting people just for your own gain.” He paused, thinking about whether or not he wanted to say this next thing before deciding he may as well. “Besides. I trust you And Dimitri trusts you. You’re not a bad guy, Yuri.”

In the dim light, it almost looked like Yuri was blushing, but Ashe blamed that on his sleep deprivation. This was not the first night he’d spent sneaking around the monastery, and since his days were spent keeping an eye on Flayn, Ashe could really use some sleep.

“Come back tomorrow and we can make a more official plan once I’ve finished reading through these,” Yuri said. “You should get some sleep, you probably have places to be tomorrow.”

Ashe nodded. “Thanks. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

He’d barely crawled into his bed before he was out like a light.

***

Thomas absolutely suspected that Ashe was behind the theft, and it had definitely been discovered. He’d been watching him all day, even when Ashe wasn’t with Flayn. At the very least, it made Ashe feel a bit better to know that Flayn was safe for the time being.

“What did you do?” Sylvain asked. “He’s been glaring at you for the past ten minutes.” Ashe had kept to public areas for most of the day, trying to avoid any sort of confrontation. They were in the dining hall now, and while Thomas was being rather subtle about his ire, both Sylvain and Ashe had been keeping a close eye on him in the couple weeks since Dimitri had left.

“I’ll tell you later,” Ashe said, avoiding making eye contact with the old librarian.

“How worried should I be that he’s going to kill you in your sleep?” Sylvain pressed.

Ashe took a moment to think about it. Chances are, Thomas wants those papers back. They’re not only incriminating for his character, they also give his enemies a hint about their plans and could be used to find their secret base. So long as Thomas doesn’t suspect Claude’s involvement, Thomas’s only lead on where the papers were is Ashe.

“Low,” Ashe said. “Though the chances of me going missing are significantly higher. But I should be fine for tonight.” He’d be in Abyss tonight, far away from any issues with Thomas. “And the Blue Lions will be back tomorrow. They can help us figure out what to do.”

“If you’re sure,” Sylvain said. “Promise you’ll meet me for breakfast so I can make sure you’re not dead?”

“I promise,” Ashe said. “We can even greet everyone when they get back together. And you’ll keep an eye on Flayn, right?”

“Yeah, but I’m starting to wonder if I should be sticking around you instead,” Sylvain said.

“I’m staying in public areas. Besides, Claude’s been keeping an eye on me too.” Ashe glanced over to where Claude was whispering with Edelgard, casting continuous glances over to their tables.

“If you’re sure,” Sylcain said. “I’m just saying, your luck is almost as bad as Dimitri’s. I feel like you might be tempting fate.”

A part of Ashe couldn’t help but agree.

***

“Did you get any sleep?” Yuri asked. “You look terrible.”

Yuri, of course, looked fantastic. Ashe chose to ignore that. “Thanks,” he said. “I got some. What did you learn?”

“Not much, the science in the experiments is more Constance’s forte,” Yuri said. “But we can definitely get their location, I already sent out a few scouts. I didn’t tell them what they were looking for, just that I heard rumors of something stirring in the area. They’re to report back to me in a few weeks.”

“That’s great news!” Ashe said. “If we can drag these guys out of the shadows, that will help a lot.”

“It’s already great that you found proof of their existence,” Yuri said. “Everything else falls into place once you know that there’s a threat. They’ve lost the element of surprise.”

“Do you have any idea what they want with Flayn?” He asked. Yuri shook his head.

“Like I said, that kind of stuff tends to go over my head. But they need it soon. Whoever is writing to Thomas is already upset at how long it’s taken.” Yuri leaned back. “Dimitri and the rest of the Blue Lions get back tomorrow, right? That means if he’s going to try something, it’s going to be tonight. They really hate Dimitri. He’s ruined several of their plans now.”

Ashe stood up. “Then we need to go! Someone needs to keep an eye on Flayn!”

“Relax,” Yuri said, waving a hand half heartedly. “I already sent people to watch over her. They’ll protect her from any creepy librarians trying to steal her blood.”

“They’re trying to steal her blood?” Ashe asked, starting to feel ill.

“Yeah. They’re the kind of evil you read about in your storybooks,” Yuri said. Ashe scowled, and Yuri scoffed. “Oh please, you honestly can’t tell me all those knightly stories you love so much aren’t just black and white, painting guys like me into the irredeemable villain.”

“You’re acting pretty judgemental for someone who hasn’t read them,” Ashe said. Normally he wouldn’t bother rising to a barb like that, but he was tired, and a little hurt that Yuri was still acting like Ashe was an idiot. “I don’t care if you don’t like to read about knights, but you shouldn’t act like I’m naive just because I do.”

“I don’t think you’re naive,” Yuri said. “I think you’ve forgotten what it feels like to be stuck wallowing in the mud with no option but to get your hands dirty.”

“If you’re just going to be a jerk I’m going to bed,” Ashe said. “We can figure this out when Dimitri gets back tomorrow.” This was about how most of Ashe’s conversations with Yuri ended. It seemed he was always determined to pick a fight with him. Ashe just wished he understood why, because when they weren’t fighting they’re conversations were always so nice. Yuri was clever and he was a better person than he claimed to be, so it always drove Ashe crazy when he picked a fight like this.

On the off chance that someone was keeping an eye on one of the more well known entrances to Abyss, Ashe exited through one of the other many places that connected Abyss to the monastery. He snuck around the guards keeping watch easily. The guards were certainly more alert than they used to be, what with the recent attack on the Holy Mausoleum, but Ashe used to make a living out of being sneaky.

He pulled the door to his room open, looking forward to getting some semblance of sleep. He hadn’t even thought about the repercussions of what he’d done over the past few days.

There was someone waiting in his room when he opened the door. He didn’t have time to react before there was a spell aimed at his face and his vision went black.

***

He woke up, which was a good sign. Or maybe not. Waking up means they want him alive for something, which is definitely not a good sign.

He forced his eyes open, trying to figure out where he was. They were underground, in an unfamiliar place. The room they were in looked like a cell. His head was killing him, though taking magic directly to the face tended to cause issues like that. Flayn was sitting on the ground next to him, looking terrified.

“Flayn?” He groaned, forcing himself to sit up. Wherever they were, there was no one else here, though Ashe doubted it would stay that way. “Are you okay?”

“I am uninjured,” she said. “Just scared.” Ashe tried to smile in an effort to comfort her, but he wasn’t sure how successful he was.

“It’s going to be okay,” he said. “Do you know what time it is?”

She shook her head. “They picked me up right before dawn. That was probably an hour ago.” Ashe closed his eyes, leaning back against the wall. The pain in his head lessened slightly. He had no idea how Dimitri managed to function with a migraine, Ashe could barely think with this concussion.

“Was it Thomas?” Ashe asked.

“How did you know?” Flayn asked.

“He’s been watching us the past couple weeks,” Ashe said. “And Dimitri doesn’t like him.” Without any light and with his head addled the way it was, Ashe didn’t know how long it was before someone arrived, the door to their cell opening with a creak. There was a dark mage on the other side, his face shrouded by his robes.

“Both of you up,” he said, and Ashe helped Flayn to her feet. A part of him wanted to just attack and try and escape. Except he didn’t have a weapon, didn’t know where they were, and didn’t know how many other enemies could be waiting for him. Playing nice was the safer bet.

He was happy he’d made that choice when he exited the cell and found three other mages waiting for them. He was less happy when two of the mages took Flayn and started walking while the other two attempted to herd him in the other direction.

“Don’t make this harder than it has to be,” the mage said. “Solon wants to talk to you, that’s already bad news. Try to avoid making it worse for yourself.” Ashe took one last glance at them leading Flayn the opposite way down the hall. He thought back to what Yuri said, about them wanting her blood. Were they going to kill her?

He knew that he couldn’t fight four mages on his own, especially without a weapon. He needed to be smart about this. He wouldn’t be able to help Flayn if he got himself killed trying to break them out.

And who was Solon? The name tickled something familiar, and Ashe was sure he’d read it somewhere in the notes in Thomas’s office, but he’d barely skimmed those notes.

They walked down the hallway until they arrived at another door. The mage knocked on it before turning the handle. Ashe wasn’t sure what he’d expected, probably some sort of torture chamber, but instead he was led into an office with an unfamiliar man sitting behind the desk.

“Sit,” the man, clearly this was Solon, said. The other mages left without being told, and Ashe took a seat. The man across from him looked like he’d never seen the sun, his skin pale and white. “You know why you’re here.”

If he’d learned anything from his younger days as a thief, it’s to never implicate himself. “No,” he said.

“Where are the papers you took from my office?” He asked, and Ashe had to take a moment to grapple with the fact that this was Thomas. Solon must be an alias. Or, Thomas was likely his alias.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Ashe said.

“They weren’t in your room,” Solon said. “I’m sure you’ve already read them, which means you’ll have to die regardless. But it could be relatively painless. I would recommend telling me soon, or things will be rather uncomfortable for you.”

Ashe tried not to swallow visibly. He already knew he’d never tell Solon where the papers were. After all, Solon made it clear he planned to kill Ashe no matter what. That meant, should Solon know who was involved, at the very least currently Yuri, Claude, and Constance would be in danger. That made this an easy choice.

“There’s nothing to tell,” Ashe said. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I’d hoped you wouldn’t say that,” Solon said, but he was smiling. It was all teeth, something vicious.

Chapter Text

Dimitri watched Byleth pace back and forth while the rest of the monastery was frozen around them.

“This isn’t good,” she muttered. “Why would they go after Ashe?”

“I asked him to keep an eye on Flayn,” Dimitri said. “He knew I didn’t trust Thomas. Maybe he got caught trying to stop Flayn’s kidnapping?” But that didn’t make sense. Why take Ashe alive instead of just killing him?

“We’re missing something here,” Byleth said, clearly picking up on what Dimitri hadn’t said. “But do we need to investigate, or just storm Jeritza’s quarters?”

“Doesn’t he work for Edelgard?” Dimitri rubbed his eyes. He vaguely recalled a vision he’d had recently. Edelgard wouldn’t have allowed them to use Jeritza. Did she change her mind?

“Every time I’ve lived through this, we find Flayn in the secret passageway through Jeritza’s room,” Byleth said.

“We should start there,” Dimitri agreed. “Once we get Ashe and Flayn back we can figure out more about what happened.”

The monastery was in chaos. Seteth was in shambles, just like last time. The other Blue Lions had already gotten into three fights with various people who claimed that Ashe was the one behind Flayn’s disappearance. Ashe’s room had been ransacked during the night, to the point that several stones had been taken from the walls. Ignatz was the one that discovered that Ashe was missing and raised the alarm. Flayn was taken in the chaos.

Dimitri gathered the others and followed Byleth to Jeritza’s room. They entered the corridor and made their way down to the secret passageway, only to find it empty.

Jeritza wasn’t behind it. Which meant that they had no current leads.

Byleth turned back time to before they got everyone together to storm Jeritza’s room and froze time once again.

“Okay, no leads,” Dimitri said. “That’s alright, we can figure this out. They’ve been missing less than a day, they’re probably still in the monastery. How long did it take you to find Flayn the first time?”

Byleth frowned. “Almost a month,” she said. Dimitri grimaced. “And if Ashe is still alive right now, I doubt he’ll be that way for long. Flayn lived the first time, but barely, and I’m not willing to risk her life either.”

“We should talk to Yuri, see if he has a map of Abyss,” Dimitri said. “We can hopefully rule out other places to look.” Byleth nodded, but her eyes looked frantic. Dimitri took her hand. “It’s going to be okay, Byleth. We’ll find both of them.”

“I have bad luck with the Blue Lions,” Byleth said quietly. “Even when I convinced Ashe to join my house, he always left to join the empire and we’d end up against each other on the battlefield. Nothing I ever did was enough to save you. Dedue shows up at Enbarr and dies. Everyone else I manage to save, but the Blue Lions always die.” Her hands were trembling. “Ashe is going to die, if he’s not already dead. Why can’t I ever save everyone?”

“We’ll manage it,” Dimitri said firmly. “We’re going to save Ashe and Flayn, even if we have to try this day over and over again. I know that it’s stressful that we don’t know where they are, but think about how significant it is that Jeritza isn’t helping them. Edelgard is on our side here.”

Byleth let out a breath. “You’re right. We can do this. You go talk to Yuri, I’ll see if anyone else knows anything.” Time started to crawl forward, right after they’d gotten back and discovered that Ashe and Flayn were missing.

“I’m going to talk to Yuri,” Dimitri told the other Blue Lions. “Everyone else, ask around, see if anyone noticed anything suspicious. And try not to get into fights, Ashe doesn’t need you to defend his honor. He’ll be able to defend himself when he gets back. Our focus should be on finding Ashe above all else.”

Hapi came with him down to Abyss while the rest of the Blue Lions scattered. Dimitri waved to the guard at the entrance and headed towards the Ashen Wolves’ classroom. Yuri, Constance, and Balthus were there, poring over some scattered papers.

Yuri glanced up. “I’m assuming you’ve heard?”

Dimitri nodded. “What happened these past couple weeks?”

“Let’s talk in private,” Yuri said, leading Dimitri out of the room. “I’ve been down here for most of it,” he said. “But two nights ago Ashe brought me these papers after he and Claude broke into Thomas’s office.”

“Ashe broke into Thomas’s office?” Dimitri asked.

“Yeah, I was as surprised as you,” Yuri muttered. “He doesn’t strike me as the ‘breaking into a clergyman’s office’ type.”

“Oh, I wasn’t surprised about that,” Dimitri said. Ashe was the kind of person who picked fights with anyone that bad mouthed Duscur but wanted to give every criminal and thief they met a second chance. Dimitri had no trouble believing Ashe was capable of and willing to break into Thomas’s office. “I’m mostly just surprised he didn’t wait until we got back. Do you think that’s why they took him too?”

“If it helps, they’re going to keep him alive,” Yuri said. “There’s no way that Thomas will kill him unless Ashe tells him who he gave these papers to.”

“And Ashe will never give that information up since it would lead him here,” Dimitri said.

“If I were Thomas, I’d kidnap his family to use them against him,” Yuri said. “That would take time, however. I’d say we have less than twenty-four hours before he gets impatient and tries something drastic like that.”

“Do you have any idea where we should start looking?” Dimitri asked.

Yuri shook his head. “There are so many different corridors and secret passageways in Abyss that even I haven’t managed to map them all. They could be anywhere.” Dimitri sighed. “I have people looking into it, but…” Yuri sighed, looking tired for a moment. “I’m worried.”

Dimitri sighed, his head pounding. “Me too.”

***

“Any leads?” Dimitri asked when he finally got back to the surface, meeting Byleth in the library.

“None,” Byleth scowled. “Just a bunch of people throwing accusations around wildly. One of the monks even claimed Dedue was behind it despite him not even being here.”

“Yuri doesn’t have any idea where they are either,” Dimitri said. “But he did have insight about why Ashe was missing too.”

“Yeah, Claude said they broke into Thomas’s office,” Byleth said. “Do you think they kept him alive?”

“Considering they haven’t stormed Abyss yet to retrieve what they stole, I think he’s still alive,” Dimitri said. “Yuri agrees. Neither of us knows how long they’ll be patient.”

“We need to find them now,” Byleth said. “But I don’t even know where to start looking. Thomas is behind it, but Claude’s already looked for secret passageways near both his office and his room. Yuri, our resident expert in the tunnels beneath the monastery, has nothing for us. We have no leads!”

Dimitri sat at one of the tables, staring at the several monks and guards investigating the area. He wished that his visions could actually show him something useful, rather than just sowing doom and gloom. A part of him wished he could find some way to weaponize these visions against their enemies.

“Byleth, do you think we could force a vision in order to get a clue or a hint about where they are?” Dimitri asked.

“Dimitri, even if we could do this, that could seriously hurt you,” Byleth said. “These visions are already killing you.”

“Not as fast as they’re killing Ashe,” Dimitri said. “Do you think we could convince Rhea to let me sit on the throne in the Holy Tomb?” Byleth hummed, and her eyes seemed to have a green glow around them. She must be talking to Sothis, then. He waited, wishing for a moment that he could hear the Goddess as well.

“Sothis says you could probably force a vision by going somewhere associated with faith magic,” Byleth said. “We could go to the Cathedral, and if you prayed or sang you could probably force a vision.”

Dimitri stood up, hope flaring. “Then let’s do that!”

“It’s not that simple,” Byleth said. “There’s no guarantee that the vision you have will have anything to do with Ashe and Flayn.”

“Then I’ll make myself have another vision,” Dimitri said, already heading for the door. Byleth sighed, letting time resume and chasing after him.

“Dimitri, there's a reason you haven’t been attending any church services,” she said. “You’re dying, we shouldn’t be trying to speed it up!” Dimitri raced down the stairs, turning the corner and slamming into Claude.

“Whoa there Dima,” he grabbed Dimitri before they could both tumble to the floor. “Where’s the fire?”

“I have to get to the Cathedral,” Dimitri said. “I have an idea on how to find Ashe and Flayn.”

“A stupid idea,” Byleth said, finally catching up to them. “He’s going to get himself killed!”

“Not yet at least,” Dimitri said. “We still have time to find a solution for me and Ashe and Flayn are running out of time!”

“What is going on?” Claude asked. “I thought we still had a few months to find a solution before Dimitri was in real danger?”

“Not if he runs into the Cathedral and forces himself to have visions until he dies!” Byleth said.

“I won’t go that far,” Dimitri said. “But it’s something we should at least try.” Claude looked pensive, glancing between Dimitri and Byleth.

“I say we let him try,” Claude said. “So long as we’re there to keep an eye on him.”

Dimitri grinned. “Thanks!” He grabbed both of their arms and dragged them the rest of the way to the Cathedral. “Do you think we should pray at the saint statues?”

“Pray at the Saint Cethleann statue,” Claude said.

“Why?” Dimitri asked.

“Just a hunch,” Claude said with a grin. “Come on, if it brings our friends back I’ll pray with you.”

“That would be great!” Dimitri said. “It’ll be nice to have the Almyran gods on our side as well.” Claude stumbled.

“How long have you known about that?” He asked. Dimitri opened his mouth, but realized that he really didn’t know how to answer that. He couldn’t exactly say “You gave my sort of girlfriend a legendary weapon, which in Fargheus could be considered a proposal, then proceeded to fuck off to Almyra to enter a succession war I didn’t discover the outcome of before my now wife sent me back in time.”

“A while,” he eventually said. “Come on, we can talk about it later.”

“I just want the record to show that I’m against this,” Byleth said. “But I won’t stop you.” Dimitri took a breath and knelt in front of the Saint Cethleann statue. His knees had barely touched the ground when his head was overcome with a blinding pain.

Someone was screaming. He was in Enbarr, and someone was screaming. He looked around, but he could barely see, the room he was in was so dim. Finally, he could make out the image of a young girl with brown hair, curled up.  The door to the room burst open, light pouring through the doorway and illuminating the figure of a young Edelgard.

“Your turn,” the figure in the doorway said, and stepped into the room—

Dimitri wasn’t in Enbarr anymore, he didn’t recognize this place. It was shrouded in technology that he’d never seen before. There were large beasts, just like the ones that guarded Cornelia in Fhirdiad. There were explosions, and the Immaculate One was being brought down by large javelins of light in the air—

Now Dimitri was on the Tailitan Plains. He was standing on a fortress. Byleth was in front of him, bringing the sword of the creator down on his head—

He could feel himself slipping. Someone’s hand was on his shoulder, they were trying to pull him out of it. But he could feel it, he was so close.

Sothis, help me, please, he begged.

He was in a dark corridor. He could see Flayn, strapped to a table. There was no sign of Ashe. This wasn’t it, they were in the secret passageway through Jeritza’s room. This was what Dimitri already knew. He was so close—

Dimitri heard screaming again. He saw a flash of green hair. He focused, trying to glean whatever information he could from the image, Where were they? His head was swimming, but he could see the area. There was a set of stairs leading up to a secret door that was in the midst of opening. He could feel himself slipping from the vision, but he held on, focusing on what was on the other side. The trapdoor opened, and he found himself in a gazebo, where Byleth often held tea sessions. There was no—

When he came back to himself, he was choking. Someone helped him lean over while he vomited. His vision was still blurry, but he could see enough to know that he was vomiting blood.

“Get Manuela,” Byleth’s voice was calm, she was casting healing magic on him. “Dimitri, can you hear me?”

Dimitri tried to choke out what he’d seen, but he felt like he had no control over his body. His whole body shuddered, and his head hurt more than it ever had before. He wanted to dig his fingers into his head and crack his skull open to relieve the pressure.

“Dimitri stop, you’re going to hurt yourself.” There were hands on his wrist, pinning him to the ground. He took a breath to remind himself that this wasn’t an attack, it was Byleth.

“The gazebo,” Dimitri said, finally getting control over his vocal cords again. “Secret passage underneath the stones. Go, Claude’s got me.”

“Are you sure?” He could barely see, but she looked beautiful in the light of the Cathedral.

“Go,” he said. Her face disappeared, and Dimitri curled up, trying desperately to curb the tremors in his body until Claude got back with Manuela.

***

When his vision faded, he assumed he was going to wake up in the infirmary. Imagine his surprise when his eyes flew open and he was already standing upright. He stumbled, passing through a nearby wall.

Was he a ghost?

“Dimitri?” An unfamiliar voice asked, and solid hands reached out to grab him and steady him. He blinked, surprised at how little everything hurt. That made sense though, if he were dead. The woman in front of him had green hair all the way down to her feet, wearing clothes Dimitri had only ever seen in ceremonies. Her ears were pointed, and despite how young she looked, Dimitri knew she was old, older than perhaps anyone he’d ever met.

“Sothis,” Dimitri breathed, his heart hammering. Seeing the Goddess definitely wasn’t a good sign for him. He tried to kneel, but her grip on his arm was too strong and she held him up, shooting him an unimpressed look.

“Don’t even try,” she said dryly.

“Am I dead?” He asked.

Sothis shook her head. “You’re in the in-between right now, kind of like me. But since you have a body to return to, the monks at the monastery should have no problem tethering your soul back to it.” She brushed his hair back in a motherly gesture, something Dimitri hadn’t felt in a long time. “You’re going to be alright. You gave us quite the scare, though.” Dimitri took a deep breath. “Now, we’re in a limbo spot right now, but do you want to go check on Byleth?”

“Yes,” Dimitri blurted out. “Yes, I need to see what happens! Where are they?”

“They’re just now entering the secret passage,” Sothis said. “Come on.” The world around them warped and Dimitri’s vision blurred. When he could see again, he and Sothis were standing next to Byleth, who was leading a large group into the tunnels. Dimitri saw almost every single one of their classmates, even Hubert and Lorenz were here helping them. Dimitri searched through the faces of the students and the knights, but couldn’t find Claude or Edelgard. Where were they?

“Byleth,” Dimitri said. “Can she hear us?” The sound of shattering glass echoed in his ears.

“No,” Byleth said, staring at him. He could feel his blood starting to burn, the first thing he could feel definitively since waking up in this spirit form. It was so much worse than anything else he’d felt since coming back, so much worse than any other time Byleth had used Divine Pulse.

“Byleth no!” Sothis’s voice echoed in Dimitri’s head and Byleth froze. Dimitri crumbled, gasping. “Byleth, you can’t use Divine Pulse again until Dimitri is retethered in his body or it will kill him.”

Byleth was staring at him, her face screwed in horror. It was easily the most expressive Dimitri had seen her in this timeline. “He’s alive?”

“I’m alive,” Dimitri said. “Sothis said I would be okay.”

Byleth reached out, her hand passing through his face. Her eyes were glistening. “Okay,” she said. “Okay. As long as you’ll be okay.”

“That means we’ll have to do this fight without Divine Pulse,” Dimitri said. “Are you sure?”

“There’s no other choice,” Byleth said firmly. “I’m not going to kill you.”

“How far away from Byleth can I get?” Dimitri asked Sothis.

“I can never get more than a few feet,” Sothis said. “But you may be able to get further.” Dimitri jogged ahead, passing through walls and scouting forward. He started to feel slightly uncomfortable when Byleth was no longer in his sight, like his heart was being squeezed, but it was bearable. He ran back to them. “I can scout ahead,” he said. “Give me fifteen minutes and I’ll tell you where Ashe and Flayn are and what enemies you can expect.”

“That’s great!” Sothis said, clapping her hands. “It’ll make it easier, since you can’t turn back time and you’ve never been here before.”

“And you feel okay?” Byleth asked.

“Honestly, I feel a lot better than I have in a while,” Dimitri admitted. “I hadn’t realized how sick I was starting to feel constantly until I was here.” That only made the worried furrow on Byleth’s brow deepen but Dimitri pressed forward. The enemy hadn’t realized they’d been found yet, still milling about doing their own thing.

“The girl doesn’t have much left in her,” one of the dark mages said. “Solon is rushing the process since the Oracle has returned. They’ve nearly drained her entire life force.” Dimitri followed behind them until they brought him to the room Flayn was in. She was laying on a stone slab, looking pale. There were three mages surrounding her, their hands glowing. Dimitri searched the room, but Ashe was nowhere to be seen. Where had they taken him? Flynn looked like she didn’t have much time, but if they pushed forward fast then that would put Ashe in danger.

“Come on,” he murmured, sprinting through the halls. “Where are you?” He wound up back at the room Flayn was in and he scanned it. There was a door off to the side that seemed to lead even further underground. The area was pitch black and impossible to see through, but Dimitri could smell blood. He followed the smell, barely managing to figure out what was open space versus the wall. Eventually, he heard voices.

“—reconsidered? I’m more than willing to make a deal.” Solon’s oily voice made Dimitri’s blood run cold.

“No.” Ashe sounded terrible, his voice quiet and raspy..

“What a shame,” Solon said. “I was hoping we wouldn’t have to involve anyone else, but if you won’t tell me where those papers wound up maybe your siblings will.” Ashe didn’t say anything, and Dimitri doubted this was the first time Solon had threatened him with this. They definitely needed to send some people to check on Gaspard territory.

Dimitri stepped closer. The room was dimly lit, and Ashe was in a chair, but something seemed a little off. Peering closer, Dimitri realized Ashe had actually managed to loosen his wrists from the manacles, so he’d be able to break out quickly if needed, and, as terrible as he looked, his eyes were still sharp. They definitely needed Ashe conscious to give them the information they were looking for, though Dimitri knew the only thing keeping him up right now was adrenaline. And hope. For as little time as they’d been missing, Ashe was probably hoping for a miracle. Thankfully, they’d managed to create one.

This was definitely a lot better than it could have been. He rushed back to tell Byleth everything.

“We need to get to Flayn first,” Byleth said.

“She’s on the way to get Ashe anyway,” Dimitri said. “And the only person in the room with Ashe right now is Solon. If we hit fast and hard, we should be able to save them both without casualties.”

Byleth nodded, letting time resume. She turned to Catherine, who was sticking close to her. “Dimitri managed to tell me a few things. Flayn is down the hall to the right.”

“What about Ashe?” Annette asked, wringing her hands.

“He’s a little deeper into the tunnels,” Byleth said. “But we should be able to find Flayn on the way.”

“We need to be fast,” Yuri said. “Otherwise they’ll turn their captives into hostages.”

“The enemy knows we returned recently,” Byleth said. “And they would expect Dimitri to be an obstacle to their secrecy. They’re wary.” She took a breath. “Let’s go.”

The hallways were crawling with dark mages and other Agarthan soldiers, but they had so many people here to overpower them that it didn’t matter. They crashed through the halls like a whirlwind, but Dimitri kept his eyes peeled for any surprises.

“Byleth, they’re heading further in, to where Solon will be waiting,” Dimitri called out as he watched a mage wrench the door open and several enemies scurry away.

“Shit!” She called out, causing several people to glance her way. She was too far away, but she gestured to the door where even more Agarthans were escaping. “Ashe is through there!” Several other people cursed, but Yuri leapt forward, easily killing the mages closest to the door and sprinting through.

“Dedue, Ignatz, and Linhardt stay with Flayn,” Byleth ordered. “Take some of the knights with you to bring her to the infirmary. Catherine, stay with them just in case there are any enemies gathering out there. Everyone else is with me!” Dimitri was already pushing through. Yuri was a force to be reckoned with, a whirlwind making his way through the hallway with ease. The fetters on his wrists glowed as he teleported around the room. Dimitri kept up with Yuri, leaving the rest of the group behind.

“Shit, he’s gonna get himself killed,” Dimitri said. “Yuri, slow down!” Yuri, of course, didn’t hear him. Byleth was calling out as well, but Yuri was ignoring her as well. He was on a mission.

Yuri froze the second he burst into the dimly lit room Ashe had been kept in. Ashe was still strapped to the chair, but Solon was standing next to him, a knife to his throat. There were nearly a dozen other enemies in the room, ready to attack.

“Ashe,” Yuri said, his eyes flickering to glance between Solon and the hostage.

“I don’t recognize you,” Solon said. “Which means you’re not a student at the monastery. You wouldn’t happen to be the person that he gave my belongings to, would you?”

For a moment, Dimitri wondered if Yuri would try to swap places with Ashe, essentially sacrificing himself. But Yuri was smart, his eyes flickered down to where Ashe was, his eyes lighting up with an idea. He must have noticed that Ashe was loose too, because he raised his hands and threw an Aura spell on the other side of the room. It certainly caught a few of the mages, but Yuri’s magic has never been his best ability and they have a high resilience.

Solon frowned, staring at the spot Yuri hit with the spell. “What was that—” Ashe’s elbow slammed into his nose and Ashe rolled away. He was still far away, still just a bit out of reach. Yuri was blurring around the edges, and in a moment he and Ashe had swapped places. Ashe crumbled to the ground nearly instantly, not that Dimitri could blame him. He looked terrible, and Dimtiri could only imagine the horrors he’d experienced in the day since he’d gone missing.

The mages converged on Yuri. He was fast and agile, but even he couldn’t dodge all their hits. There was a Hades spell bearing down on him when Dimitri heard Constance call out and Yuri disappeared behind them. Byleth was already leaning down to pick Ashe up, and Yuri was pushing through the crowd. Constance must have rescued him.

“Is he okay?” Yuri asked, reaching out tentatively, as if afraid to touch him.

“He’ll be alright,” Byleth said. “We just need to take him to a healer, just like with Flayn. We should—” The world around him warped, and Dimitri’s vision turned blurry. Everything twisted and his body felt wrong .

Then he woke up in the infirmary.

“Oh thank goodness,” Rhea said. She looked tired. “I was worried it wouldn’t work.” Dimitri could feel her running her hand through his hair.

“What—” He coughed. Having just spent so much time in spirit form, not affected by physical ailments, it made the weakness of his body that much more noticeable. Everything hurt. His chest ached, and his head hurt so bad he felt like thinking was beyond him. Edelgard was already grabbing a cloth, and Claude was pushing Rhea out of the way to get a good look at his face. Had they stayed with him this whole time instead of going to rescue their friends?

“Shhh,” Rhea said, smiling serenely. “Just rest. You’ll be alright.” Dimitri’s eyes slipped shut.

***

Byleth paused time later, after he’d woken up again, and caught him up on everything he missed after his soul reconnected to his body.

“Solon escaped,” she said. “But I wasn’t sure how stopping time would have affected you, you were already in really bad shape Dimitri. It was more important to me that everyone got out safely than that we stop him.”

“How bad was it?” He asked.

“Dimitri, I thought you were going to die,” she said. “You were seizing on the ground and throwing up blood and then you asked me to leave you.” Her voice wavered, and Dimitr’s heart clenched. She looked like she was about to cry. He couldn’t do that, couldn’t be the reason she shed tears for the first time in this timeline. “Promise me you’ll be careful. No more pushing yourself, not until we’ve figured out a solution.”

Another time, when Dimitri woke up in the middle of the night, it was to Yuri sitting next to Ashe’s bed.

“Everything okay?” He asked, and Yuri jumped.

“Dimitri, I didn’t realize you were awake,” Yuri said. He glanced over to Ashe. “I’m fine. I just…felt bad.”

“Why?”

“He got caught leaving Abyss,” Yuri said. “We kind of fought beforehand, so I didn’t send someone to keep an eye on him like I should have. And then my people failed to keep an eye on Flayn during the chaos of his abduction. I feel like I failed.”

“I guarantee you that Ashe doesn’t feel that way,” Dimitri said. “And no one else would either.”

“I just feel like he thinks I’m a better person than I am and I have to prove him wrong,” Yuri said. “He came to me with those papers and said he trusted me, Dimitri.”

“I trust you,” Dimitri said. “You’ve never had a problem with that before.” It may have just been something about Yuri’s face, but Dimitri suspected that Yuri was concerned about Ashe trusting him with something a lot more precious than some papers.

Matters of the heart, however, were not Dimitri’s forte. So when Yuri asked to drop it, Dimitri acquiesced.

***

“I can’t believe we’re back here,” Ashe grumbled. He was sitting on his bed playing cards with Dimitri, Flayn, Sylvain, and Byleth. Mercedes was also here, spending time fussing over them.

“I’m putting a “days since Ashe or Dimitri wound up in the infirmary” counter on the board in our class,” Byleth said.

“We should throw a party if it ever hits the triple digits,” Sylvain said.

“My luck has been seriously terrible lately,” Ashe said. He picked up the cards Dimitri just finished dealing and made a face. “And it’s not getting any better.”

“At the very least, my brother trusts me to hang out with you now,” Flayn said. “He thinks you’re nice.”

“I’m assuming he still hates me?” Sylvain asked as he sorted his cards.

“Yes, but that won’t change anytime soon,” Flayn said. They continued the game in silence, with Ashe easily winning.

“What happened to having bad luck?” Sylvain complained as Ashe grinned and accepted the pot.

“Luck has nothing to do with winning,” he said. “So, any updates on whether Dimitri and I get to help out during the Battle of the Eagle and the Lion? I feel fine.”

“You’re not,” Flayn said. “You’ve just grown accustomed to being hurt worse when things go wrong.”

Dimitri couldn’t help but snort. It was uncanny how bad Ashe’s luck has been. Besides Dimitri, he’s been the one to suffer the most from the changes to the timeline. Sure, all the Blue Lions have been taking a beating, and Dimitri really hoped that would end soon.

“They can’t exactly hold the Battle of the Eagle and Lion without the leader of the Blue Lions,” Sylvain said. “I’m sure they’ll postpone it until Dimitri can participate. And Seteth isn’t going to let anyone do anything until Flayn is safe again.”

Ashe frowned. “I’m sorry, Dimitri. I said I’d protect Flayn from Thomas.” The atmosphere in the room changed immediately. Dimitri was sure he’d never seen Sylvain look so flabbergasted, and Dimitri and Byleth both looked ready to immediately defend him, but none of them were the ones that spoke up first.

“Absolutely not!” Mercedes said. “You have nothing to apologize for, Ashe! Yes, you were a little reckless, but you also got us proof of a secret organization that managed to infiltrate the monastery ! You found concrete information about their plans!”

“Exactly,” Dimitri said. “Ashe, you did great, and everything worked out in the end. We’ve exposed a serious danger and forced Solon to flee. Now Rhea is aware of the danger and she has to do something about it. She may trust my visions, but this is actual evidence. And even I don’t know everything they have planned.”

Their words did seem to ease Ashe’s anxiety. Dimitri’s anxiety only continued to fester. The Battle of the Eagle and Lion. In an ideal world, he’d never see the fields of Gronder again. He’d been so far gone until the end of that battle, until he lost Rodrigue. How could he step foot in that place again and face the demons he’d left behind?

***

Manuela had encouraged Dimitri to take walks around the Monastery, and Byleth often accompanied him.

“There’s something on your mind,” Byleth said. “Care to share?”

“My demons are my own,” Dimitri said with a grim smile.