#crestrot

maybe the empire wouldnt fall apart if you werent playing minecraft.

  “of course.” you rarely wear jewellery, but this - this is an exception. everything about beleth is an exception. you never thought you were capable of lov - of caring about someone like this, until she came along. you never thought you’d see this day, with the world at peace, on the surface. you still have a lot to do, the two of you. those who slither in the dark are still at large, and you have so much work before there will be true peace.

 but - this ring on your finger means something. it means that beleth wants to be with you. the two of you might not have talked about things, but… no matter what you feel - no matter what you think, she’s going to be with you. she is. whether it’s… romantic, or not, she’ll be beside you. and that’s what matters. 

 you’re almost certain beleth feels the same way… your… confession, if you could call it that, was rather bare bones, but there was some kind of unspeakable emotion in her eyes as she slipped that ring into your hand. and you felt something like it when you slipped it on your finger. 

 so you’ve spent almost every waking hour together since, and you still haven’t got a name for this thing that the two of you have, the warmth bubbling up inside you whenever she touches your hand, or leans on you, or kisses your cheek, or even your mouth. it should be obvious, and you should have a word for it, but you don’t. 

  “of course i am. i love… it. i love it.” something almost jumped in your throat there, that fear, that hook that keeps you from saying those words, that you should say, but are too scared to let out. so you keep them locked up, like a bird in a cage, calling to be let free. but you, who have stared down god and death, are afraid of telling beleth that you love her. “it’s… you are important to me, beleth. what it means… it means everything to me. you… mean everything to me.” is that enough? you promised to always be with her. does she understand?

              he didn’t like the implications of the others words.  it made it sound like she was going to leave  --  seperating the three for the first time since birth.  ‘  sister.  ‘  he voiced,  clearing his throat.  ‘  please.  i don’t like...  what you’re saying.  ‘  his voice remained calm,  but a bit stern.  ‘  you’re not going ...  to leave,  are you?  beleth,  they will find you,  what if they hunt you down?  you  ...  you can’t leave,  you can’t.  ‘

HUG  SILVER  YOU  COWARDS   /   @crestrot

you  have  only  known  of  the  professor  for  a  short  moment  of  time   /   yet  they  have  shown  kindness  to  you   (   &   so  you  stuck  to  their  side   /   she  looks  at  you  with  a  smile  in  her  eyes   /   you  get  the  feeling  it  must  have  been  a  long  time  since  she  could  feel  like  that   ).   you  too  understand   /   for  when  the  world  all  but  tears  you  at  your  seams   &   forces  you  into  a  life  of  tragedy   (   a  blue  bird  flutters   /   you  could  only  chase  after  it   /   knowing  your  hands  would  never  achieve  it   ).   so  a  simple  smile   /   was  enough  to  keep  going.

she  kneels  to  your  level   &   pulls  you  close   /   resting  your  chin  on  her  shoulder   (   &   you  try  your  best  to  wrap  arms  around  her   /   she  seems  like  she  has  already  been  through  too  much   /   as  though  she  is  ready  to  break   ,   but  she  can’t   /   she  must  be  strong   &   you  too   /   know  of  that  feeling   ).   she  tightens  her  grip   &   you  stay  unflinching   /   simply  letting  her  be.   you  believe  that  she  was  deserving  of  this   /   &   you  know  that  you  too   (   deserved  this   /   to  be  held  by  someone   /   it’s  been  far  too  long  since  you  knew  of  what  it  felt  like  to  be  wrapped  in  someone’s  arm   ).

catherine’s  got  blood  on  her  hands  and  splattered  over  her  armor.  she  recalls,  with  dim  clarity,  the  face  of  a  student  who  she  told:  you  should  never  stop  fighting  on  a  battlefield, do  whatever  you  can  to  survive  –- but  surviving  has  become  a  game  of  strategy,  and  catherine  was  only  ever  good  at  following  orders.

laughing  lightly,  the  red  of  thunderbrand  glows  underneath  catherine’s  unfaltering  grip,  but  her  knuckles  are  white  and  her  body  aches  with  the  harsh  reminder  of  days  gone  by  with  her  feet  placed  firmly  on  the  reddened  ground.  the  air  weighs  heavy,  her  mouth  tastes  of  iron,  and  although  the  swing  of  her  sword  is  rhythmic  it  only  makes  her  more  weary.

a  fugitive,  again,  and  neutral  as  she  was,  enamored  and  loyal  as  she  was,  in  the  middle  of  war  returning  to  her  home  no  longer  seems  like  an  option.  all  she  knew  was  lady  rhea.  all  she  knew  was  her  loyalty  to  lady  rhea.  all  she  knew  was  her  love  to  lady  rhea  –  until,  skin  cold  with  a  mixture  of  confusion  and  repulsion,  catherine  defected,  church,  seiros,  rhea  feeling  dirty  on  her  tongue.but  what  is  she  without  her  duty?  (  lost,  lost,  lost,  lost  —  )

catherine  swings  and  the  sharp  sound  of  a  clang  makes  her  eyes  refocus;  makes  her  expression  stutter. “professor…?”  she  asks,  her  tone  light  but  it  aches  with  a  rasp,  with  confusion.  her  smile  feels  strange,  even  when  she  wears  it  with  something  familiar. “i  didn’t  think  i’d  see  you  again.”she  lowers  her  sword  –-  hesitation,  after,  like  the  way  a  feral  animal  brandishes  its  claws  when  pushed  into  a  corner  –-  and  looks  out  at  the  students  who  have  become  soldiers.  ah. 

“are  you  going  to  kill  me,  beleth?  ha,  don’t  worry  about  it,  no  hard  feelings.  after  all,  i’ve  got  nowhere  left  i  can  go.”  her  smile  creases  around  its  edges,  her  posture  straightened;  tightly  wound  and  tense,  fingers  twitching. “well,  what  do  you  think,  professor?  one  last  duel…?”

the  palms  of  catherine’s  hands  sweat  and  her  body  shudders,  but  beleth  just  shakes  her  head,  a  soft,  albeit  bewildering  rejection. “no,  catherine,  you  could  stay  here.  with  me,”  she  says,  a  usual  impassive  face  broken  by  the  traces  of  a  smile,  and  catherine  can  feel  the  poignancy  of  those  words  make  her  body  sag,  sword  slipping  through  the  pads  of  her  fingers. 

“ha  …  ha  …  what?”  thunderbrand  is  lowered  and  sheathed,  but  catherine  can’t  meet  beleth’s  eyes. “why  me?  all  i’m  good  for  is  swinging  my  sword.”

beleth  offers  out  her  hand.