autumnal ache .

favorite color:    blue 💙 reading:    last book i finished was a reread of ATTWN by agatha christie. i started reading the bell jar by sylvia plath this week though. last song:    slow dancing in the dark last series:    i just finished my gilmore girls rewatch last movie:    the sea beast  sweet/spicy/savory:    where is the salty option??? but out of these sweet. currently working on:    writing a yuriashe fic  😔✌️ that’s why my activity has been slow

A deer in lion’s clothing? What did he mean by that?

It’s no secret that Ashe stands out amongst his fellow housemates. In fact the divide in class & education was the first thing that Ashe noted upon enrolling in the academy. It was a little awkward at first, but he’d done his best to not let it discourage him too much. Even if everyone else came from noble families, or had crests, or royal affiliation, Ashe still wanted to be here as much as everyone else. Whether or not he deserved to be may have been questionable, but nobody seemed to look down on him for who he was. Even if they had every right to. With few exceptions, the blue lions were kind & chivalrous. They did everything a noble could do to make a commoner like him feel welcome. 

Yet he still did feel out of place, didn’t he?

Despite Claude’s standing as heir to the head of the alliance, Ashe didn’t feel this same divide when in his presence. While Dimitri carries an otherworldly air to him in everything that he does, Claude bears a warm homeyness Ashe can’t quite describe. Like the morning sun, or bread fresh out of the oven. He felt completely comfortable in the house leader’s presence, like Claude was an old friend Ashe doesn’t remember having.

The archer is still somewhat lost in his thoughts when the apple is tossed in his direction. Therefore his response is delayed enough that should someone else be expected to catch it, it would likely fumble in their fingertips. Ashe however is quick, nimble & an expert of close counters. The apple is caught in his deft hands, only the boy’s surprised expression giving away that he hadn’t been paying attention. 

“  On my head?  ”  He asks stupidly, shock melting into confusion as he blinks at Claude incredulously. “  This feels a little showy, but alright.  ”  Were Ashe training with one of the lions, he would have hesitated. While good intentioned, Dimitri’s strength would make a trick like this too risky. Annette is too accident prone, and Sylvain would’ve pretended to have a close call to scare him. While Claude definitely is the type of person to keep his cards close to the chest, Ashe doesn’t believe he’d hurt him on purpose. Nor does he know of any super human ability that would make him hurt him by accident.

So he complies & places the apple on his head, standing upright to make sure the fruit doesn’t topple over. 

“  You know in the moon knight’s tale, one of the characters does a trick like this when he’s posing as a performer to hide from the enemy.  ”  He wonders if Claude’s ever read the story. Unlike the stories of Loog the king of lions, there’s a great deal of Leicester history as well as Faerghus history. Maybe when they’re done here, Ashe can loan him his copy. 

He’s completely silent at first, expression blank yet with an air of thoughtfulness in his eyes. Truthfully he ought to have anticipated this outcome. Babygirl doesn’t exactly sound like a respectful means of address & yet -- Ashe had deemed Ferdinand a trustworthy ally, someone he was certain would never lead him astray. It would seem he’d been mistaken albeit only on a technicality. 

Racy? Flirting?...He’d...Claude...

Oh, sweet goddess he’s made a mess. 

He needs to find Claude.

His entire face breaks into an expression of panic, the weight of the situation finally crashing down on him. Ashe breaks into a sprint, completely neglecting to think of saying something to Dorothea until he’s halfway out of the room. “  Ah! -- Thank you Dorothea! I’m sorry for the trouble!  ”

“  Is something wrong, Idia?  ”  There’s an air of tentativeness in Ashe’s demeanor, as the second year raises his eyes from the shounen magazine he’d been reading. “  You’ve been pretty quiet today.  ”  He doesn’t mean to pry. He just wants to make sure his friend is alright, especially since things have been pretty rocky for them as of late.

“  why,  what  a  wonderful  gift  !  oh  goodness  ..  how  can  i  ever  thank  you,  ashe  ?  ”

                                     `   this is our destiny .   `  

the book in particular is something special to ashe. not only is it a memento of his adoptive father that he loves & his favorite book, but it’s also a symbol of how ashe’s life changed after attempting to steal that book. 

given that the merc whistle, special accessory & the letters are meant to work as a sort of s support in this game, i’m going to keep that it’s this copy of the book that ashe gives to shez if the whistle is given to him. for him it would be a way of saying “this book and the person who gave it to me, changed my life forever for the good. i want you to have it because you have also changed my life forever for the good.” 

it’s a very heartfelt & meaningful gesture to ashe like the other gifts. to him it can have a lot of romantic implications. though giving an old book without telling them the true meaning of it & then going on about how much he wants shez to stay his friend for the rest of his life...definitely doesn’t have the message come across clearly. 

which just. kinda confirms my interpretation that ashe isn’t someone who will confess to someone unless it’s forced out of him. however he isn’t subtle & no amount of accidental friendzoning will change how he behaves around someone he loves. 

“ What’cha reading there, Ashe? Don’t tell me it’s another one of your — ”