#dreyari

     dorothea stares at the large gaping hole sitting at what was supposed to be an unassuming wall, with some debris still lying in the grass. it looks as if someone had punched through it and decided to leave it like this for whichever souls wishing to make the descent. even more ridiculous is how no one, not a single member of the church, has mended the wall nor polished the entrance. did they really want to leave an opening there, or was this simply how they felt about those in the abyss? dorothea turns her head to edelgard, holding out her hand for her.

     ❝ well, edie? shall we make the deep descent into darkness? ❞ she offers a comforting smile, regardless of whether edelgard’s nerves are running amok as dorothea assumes.

AGGRESSIVELY ROLLS EYES

       SHE ISN’T SURE WHAT SEEMS TO TROUBLE THE PRINCESS SO,  only that she can see a brewing storm of turmoil in her eyes. Perhaps she’d aimed a tad too high in her choice of carolers to inquire to join her on her holiday quest. Foolish, silly girl! There were far better ways that the Imperial princess could be spending her days. Of course Edelgard wouldn’t want to waste her time on something so trivial  —

                               “Alright, Annette. I will join your caroling troupe.”

       ❝  H-Huh? You will?  ❞  WHILE THE ANSWER CERTAINLY CATCHES HER OFF GUARD, she certainly isn’t going to question it…not directly, anyway.  ❝  That’s wonderful, Edelgard  —  thank you so much! I’m sure the children will be super excited to see you of all people singing with us!  ❞  After all, how often was it that youngsters got to see royalty? Let alone in a caroling troupe?! Not often,  (  if ever at all  ——  )  she bets.  ❝  Uh, one other little favor? I promise it’s nothing crazy or anything. Ah…would you mind asking some of your classmates if they’d like to join on my behalf? There’s still so many other people I need to ask, and, well…  ❞  Her cheeks burn in a mixture of shame and slight embarrassment, gaze dropping to the floor.

the cover is emblazoned with the words ‘lifting a finger: what a little effort can do for you.’ and edelgard looks all too pleased with herself. “you’re welcome!” she near-sings, and turns heel and walks away, rather more swiftly than one who wants to see the trap they set erupt would. of course, if hilda actually opens it, she’ll find the pages carved out and three rows of enbarr chocolates tucked into the hole. this is her idea of humour, you see. [2/2]

            “   oh  ─   wow,  thanks!  to  be  honest,  i  had  no  idea  you  knew.   ”

            now,  hilda  is  not  unobservant  ─   and  there  is  certainly  something  about  edelgard’s  coy  smile  that  adds  a  measure  of  caution  to  her  demeanour.  that  said,  it  wouldn’t  be  right  of  hilda  to  dismiss  her  out  of  hand,  and  certainly  not  under  the  pretence  of  birthday  wishes.  what  was  she,  a  spoiled  brat?  coy  or  no,  it  was  the  responsibility  of  every  birthday  girl  to  remain  gracious.

            it  was  genius  of  edelgard,  really.  very,  very  clever,  i’ll  give  you  that.

            “   you  didn’t  have  to  make  an  exception  just  for  me,  you  know,   ”   hilda  says  with  an  easy  smile,  a  careful  little  quirk  to  her  brow  as  she  holds  out  her  hands  to  receive  the  gift.  grace  was  the  name  of  the  game,  after  all  ─

            and  by  the  grace  of  the  goddess,  she’d  been  had.

            “   ah,   ”   hilda  says.  her  easy  smile  turns  wry,  but  accepting.   “   this  is  great,  actually.  now  all  i  need  is  the  sequel  ‘ idle  thoughts:  how  evil  takes  root  in  doing  nothing ’  and  my  collection  will  be  complete.  thanks  for  this,  edel...   ”

            edelgard  is  already  leaving,  looking  like  the  cat  who  got  the  cream.  stole  the  cream,  rather.  stole  it  from  right  under  her  nose.  hilda  huffs  a  sigh,  her  bangs  blowing  back  with  the  effort,  and  tucks  the  book  under  her  arm.

            “   hmph.   ”   enough  said.   “   i  wonder  if  she’s  trying  to  tell  me  something.   ”

         “ do you? ”  hubert questions before he’s even considered the words leaving his mouth.  caught.  it is a rare moment for hubert, to question edelgard’s feelings so openly, but he cannot take it back now.  he has to cover up his verbal mistake with reason for why he might suggest the emperor feels otherwise.  his eyes watch her hand go from ear to chin to throat before they finally rest on her own gaze, the gleaming lavender of them somehow warm against the snowy backdrop of the evening.  

            it  makes  her  think  of  her  father.  he  was  a  bedrock  of  familiarity,  persisting  through  a  life  that  was  otherwise  harrowingly,  relentlessly  liminal,  and  as  she  thumbs  aside  the  old  curtains  and  glances  into  the  empty  field  beyond  them  she  feels  her  stomach  seize  at  the  thought,  wrung  out  like  old  cloth.  𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵  𝘢  𝘸𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦  𝘰𝘧  𝘢  𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥  𝘴𝘩𝘦’𝘥  𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯.  she  was  a  liminal  space  herself,  and  jeralt  had  passed  right  through  her,  holding  out  for  signs  of  something  sustainable.  

            behind  her,  hubert  and  edelgard  exchange  words,  but  they  are  beyond  her  focus  and  ill - defined.  it  isn’t  until  edelgard  addresses  byleth  directly  that  she  smooths  the  curtain  back  and  turns,  her  arms  folded  into  herself,  shoulder  tucked  against  the  edge  of  the  windowpane.  hubert,  as  hubert  does,  has  already  disappeared.

            ‘‘  if  you  have  any  questions,  ’’  edelgard  says,  draping  the  flame  emperor’s  regalia  across  the  back  of  a  nearby  chair,  ‘‘  now  is  the  time.  i’ll  answer  anything  you  ask.  ’’

            she  speaks  so  carefully,  with  such  conviction,  that  byleth  feels  like  a  fixture  in  the  room  compared  to  her,  who  almost  seems  to  stand  in  defiance  of  her  surroundings ;  she  is  all  emperor,  all  horn  and  steel.  

            ‘‘  you  gave  your  men  the  order  to  kill,  ’’  byleth  murmurs,  a  few  beats  after  the  silence  had  worn  its  welcome;  she  speaks  with  a  muted,  wry  sort  of  interest,  searching  edelgard’s  gaze  for  something  familiar.  ‘‘  before  today,  i  wouldn’t’ve  pegged  you  as  the  sort.  ’’