days blend into one another in the weeks and months that pass , royal duties taking paramount presidence in the war to come . the attack of johan ❛ greatblade ❜ dürer and his hunters was a 𝐒𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐄 𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐍 , testing the princess regent-turned-queen in ways that she had failed to anticipate . already there was word from their alliances abroad of the azure knight’s return and ostrheinsburg amassing with the presence of evil more once . it is only a matter of time until that very same evil is at their doorstep to devour her ancestral home . to avoid such a damning fate , hilde becomes 𝚆𝙷𝙰𝚃 𝙸𝚂 𝙽𝙴𝙴𝙳𝙴𝙳 ; her own 𝙿𝙴𝚁𝚂𝙾𝙽𝙰𝙻 𝚆𝙸𝚂𝙷𝙴𝚂 are of little consequence . there are moments , however — fleeting occasions in the dark hours of the night — that she permits her mind to briefly linger to lighter thoughts .
it is these moments where she thinks of he who commands the silver wolves ,
truthfully , for many a year since the evil seed unleashed its ruin onto the world , she had thought him lost to her ; so distant , so cold — surely , the disparaging remarks against their kingdom and a strictness with all of her decisions ( or lack thereof ) meant an undeniable hatred for the ineffective ruler . his recent endeavours , however , had cause for her to consider otherwise . they were of a like mind when dürer proved treacherous , and he found other uses to his title and connections when his dominant arm no longer served in his favour . garibrand spoke highly of him , and even gerhilde — 𝙵𝙸𝚁𝚂𝚃 , and admittedly 𝙼𝙾𝚂𝚃 𝚅𝙾𝙲𝙰𝙻 , to doubt the captain’s intentions — offered praise where credit was due . but could it be out of love , as her closest confidants suspected ? her betrothal to lord wilhelm was decided by their fathers ; she was not so childish as to presume he would commit to more than what honour pledged . their union was a political arrangement , not the happy end to a fanciful fairy tale . the most she could hope for was 𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐌𝐈𝐒𝐄 . perhaps he may grow to hate her less . her evening introspection clashes with the harsh reality of day when lo and behold , he appears before her like a dream . or a memory . to say he catches her off-guard is a vast understatement .
❝ w-wilhelm ?! ❞ she almost doesn’t recognise him without his regal armour , but the more she stares , the more she realises her own worn state : disheveled from a morning’s sparring session , sweat beading against her brow and the back of her neck —— she appeared more warrior and less wife-to-be . with a discreet dismissal of a few of gerhilde’s sisters who had kindly offered to train with her ( all while suppressing 𝙰 𝚃𝚆𝙸𝚃𝙲𝙷 𝙾𝙵 𝙰 𝙶𝚁𝙸𝙼𝙰𝙲𝙴 as they giggle on their way out ) , hilde resumes the subject at hand , ignoring her newfound sensitivities . ❝ a compliment from the lightning lance himself ? i fail to recall what special occasion would warrant such flattery … ❞
Auburn eyebrows raise in response to her reaction to him and he inwardly feels himself growing self conscious with the giggling of the women leaving. Did he look silly? Or did he perhaps say the wrong thing? Still though he would keep going, doing his best to keep his composure though waiting for any prying ears to leave before continuing.
“I hardly think it honorable to reserve flattery of my wife-to-be only for special occasions,” he responded matter-of-factly. “Perhaps when my arm is healed we can have our own spar, just the two of us. Like the old days,” he suggested idly. The two certainly had gone through a lot together, despite still being rather young themselves. So many years lost to his own inner struggle barred him from being the kind of person she needed him to be over the years. He wondered if he could ever make amends for that. At least it seemed that they would have a lifetime together for him to try.
Wilhelm shook his head dismissively. “Anyway, I’ve spoken to Garibrand and the rest of your advisors and they have agreed to shoulder your responsibilities for the day to give you some time to yourself. I had hoped you might allow me to take you into the village today. It could be a good way to decompress from the stress of all your duties. And it might be a good opportunity for you to interact with the very people you have spent these past years serving and protecting,” he suggested. It would also be a good opportunity for them to bond, and spend time together, however that part he would keep to himself. Conversations of the heart we still foreign to him however he hoped he could show her today through his actions what she meant to him.
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