middaeg | and i know the wonders that my hands can make

[ byleth slept for a solid twelve hours after edelgard brought her home. even after that, she took it easy, spending the hours before the emperor woke on reading and tea. she'd tried some magic exercises, but without the dream providing a boost, she realized fairly quickly that she needed the foundations of this system before she could get started. the conversation with corrin when the princess had come by left her... troubled, she thinks. that sounds right, anyway.

after sundown, as promised, the two of them had gone to the coven. in the aftermath of a new round of mirrorbound arriving, the coven seems... perhaps not strained, especially with the time that's passed, but still with its priorities largely elsewhere. a staff member they had managed to flag down gave an estimate of about twenty minutes, and most of that has passed.

it would be a lie to claim she feels fully prepared for this. how, in any world, could she be? even if she completely knew what she might be giving edelgard access to, and she doesn't, it's a concern. would the flame emperor see that her wings had been an empty husk all along? or would new parts of her emerge over time that might drive her away? not to mention the things that byleth has kept from her for as long as they've known one another, simply because in her previous state she never found it relevant.

as they sit and wait, she keeps a placid mask in place, but there's tension in her jaw, her hands. she wants this, but as she is now, she finds herself overthinking it. ]

[Following in the aftermath of the previous evening, Edelgard had sank into a dreamless sleep for the first time in what seemed like forever the moment dawn hit. It was a good sleep, something she sorely needed, it seemed. She rose early, just as the last rays of the sun were turning to embers on the horizon, snuffed out like a dying candle. Crawling out of her blankets, she'd almost scurried to her washroom and showered and gotten dressed properly before making her appearance downstairs.

Intent on making good on her promise to bond her friend immediately, she'd led Byleth to the Coven and reached out to the staff there. It was going to be fine, well, and good. Byleth likely knew what she was getting into, and Edelgard knew well what she was in for at this point. Still, it was hard to wait, as excited as she was. It practically showed on her face...in the form of a warm smile that she didn't bother to mask.

The spartan waiting room was not the best place for her to pace, so she simply sat, keeping a close proximity to her partner.]

Hopefully we don't have to wait too much longer.

[ that smile melts whatever defense byleth had put up, and she lets go of some of her tension with a breath, reaching for edelgard's hand. ]

Hopefully not. [ she smiles, a fractional thing, eyes on her now instead of looking at nothing in particular. ] You're excited?

[ she may not look it, but she's a bit surprised. that hadn't quite come through to her before. ]

[Edelgard takes it, closing her fingers tightly through Byleth's and twining them together.]

I am.

[She absolutely is. She has that smile that could light up a room hidden away, right now, but it'll come.]

You don't...understand...maybe what this link is like. It feels incredible, being connected to someone else. It's a profound experience, and I sincerely am glad to be sharing it with you.

[ oh. byleth likes it when people smile, but especially when edelgard smiles. especially when it's That smile. she squeezes her hand, her own smile widening a bit. ]

I'm... glad too. [ she nods, slowly, shifting so that their knees touch. ] There's no one else I would rather do this with. I'm just... [ she exhales, shaking her head and lowering it, avoiding her gaze. ] I hardly know who I am, El. I don't know what you ought to expect, or...

[ she pauses. again, she's getting too caught up in her own head, again, there are tangled feelings that she doesn't know how to place into words. byleth presses her mouth into a line, shaking her head again. ]

There I go once more. No. Never mind that for now.

[ a witch opens the double doors before them, looking to each of them in turn. ]

Miss von Hresvelg? Miss Eisner?

It will be fine. I swear it.

[She can handle Hubert, and she can handle Corrin. Byleth is no more extreme than either of those two. She may be just figuring herself out, but that isn't something that Edelgard can't assist with, she feels. couple that with the notion that Byleth needs an anchor, and Edelgard can easily and happily fill that role...and it seems necessary, all things considered.]

Yes? Coming.

[Edelgard rises, smiling at the witch, who by now is a familiar sight. Turning to Byleth, she pulls gently on her hand.]

Ready?

As I ever will be. [ byleth rises to her feet alongside edelgard, maintaining her grasp on her partner's hand. the witch nods and turns to head back into the chamber, and as the two of them move to follow, her gaze naturally falls to the magic circles etched into the floor. the witch's turnskin partner is there, as ever. ] Apologies for the delay, dears! With the new arrivals, things are always a bit chaotic for a spell. Now, Miss Eisner, Lady Hresvelg is an old hand at this process by now, so never fear! You both have your oaths in mind?

[ byleth's throat goes dry. she hadn't given much thought to that, but... she thinks she's got it. maybe. give her a moment. ]

I think that I'll manage.

[Striding confidently into the room, Edelgard gives the friendly witch a quick nod of greeting and a murmured word of thanks. She really has appreciated the woman's willingness to look the other way when it came time.]

Of course. Thank you. I am almost ready, if you could please...

[The witch nods and for a third time, Edelgard peels back her gloves, giving Byleth her first glimpse of the damage done. Scars run along them, up and around them, some short, some long. Immediately she steps forward, pulling Byleth's hands up into her sleeves so that the scars won't be exposed to open air.]

...Thank you, Miss Mayweather. I'm ready.

[With a matronly nod, the woman looks to Byleth.]

Are you?

[ anger on edelgard's behalf burns in her chest at the sight of the scars. byleth had guessed that the marks left behind must be significant, but seeing it is still something else entirely. she squeezes both of her hands in an attempt at reassurance—or at least confirmation that the damage done to her wasn't a problem to her—tracing her thumb over one of the longer marks near her knuckles.

all the same, byleth nods, but: ]

... I think I may need to think on mine a bit more, El. Would you mind going first?

[With a dip of her head, Edelgard nods.]

Not at all.

[The witch, Miss Mayweather, begins her spell. Runes light up along the floor, surrounding them in a circle of glowing energy. A line of it shoots out, flying up between them and coiling around each of their wrists.]

My oath to you, Byleth Eisner, is to always support you in your personal endeavors, to stand alongside you should you wish or need me to follow you, and to offer you my trust, protection, guidance, and friendship. I swore as Emperor of the Adrestian Empire that I would serve and protect my people, and I included you in that oath, but here things are more personal. I once accepted your oath and your aid in my battle against the forces plaguing our land.

[She lets her voice rise...soft intensity suffusing her words and her eyes.]

As we endured many hardships, I came to trust and admire you. I came to understand that I could trust you better than I trust myself. I could put my life, my well being, my trust, and my people into your hands and know that you would not disappoint me. I would sooner die than live a life without your companionship. So I offer you my oath, and my unending gratitude.

[ byleth keeps her attention on edelgard in all of this, a searching look in her eyes as her emperor goes on. once it's clear that edelgard is done... she takes a deep breath, locking eyes with her again. she might as well mimic the broad structure of edelgard's oath, she doubts she can string this together coherently otherwise. ]

... My oath to you, Edelgard von Hresvelg, is as it always has been. I've glimpsed worlds where I made the wrong decision, and they mean less than nothing to me. Nothing more than bad dreams, one and all. Here and now, I choose you and our shared path, just as I've always chosen you: eyes forward, with no hesitation, and with my entire heart. I offer you all that you offered me: trust, protection, guidance, aid, friendship, and more. Standing alongside you has never been a matter of politics, or a personal code; I've never had much use for either. I've believed and trusted in you from the moment you first woke me from dreaming through life, and that will never change.

[ her voice doesn't rise, but it softens all the same. ]

After what happened that day in the forest, it felt to me as if... I was more distant than ever, and might never come down. It was you who brought me back down to solid ground again, you who helped me to be more than an empty shell. My heart is my own for the first time, and you... you occupy a central place in it. Undone or not, I offered my life for yours when we first met, and now... I would do that and more. So I offer you my oath, not as a General to her Emperor, or as the tools that anyone has tried to make of us, but as... myself, to the woman who opened my eyes.

Edited 2020-04-08 06:40 (UTC)

[Miss Mayweather nods her satisfaction and the spell releases, streamers and ribbons of light rippling out of the runes on the ground and crawling up both Byleth and Edelgard. They coil around each other's wrists, twisting and knotting together, binding them as surely as a rope, though lacking the physical feel.]

Thank you, Byleth.

[Is all that Edelgard can say as the spell takes hold. It's over in mere heartbeats, and by the time either of them next draw breath, they are bound together. Mind and soul.

A sense of wonder floods Edelgard's end, but also a sense of deep, delighted, contentment. she smiles warmly at Byleth, closing the distance between them without a word and pulling her into a hug.]

[ it's a strange feeling, but not an unwelcome one. byleth had wondered in the past, in rare fanciful moments, if the crest of flames that they had once shared had bound them together somehow, but this is something entirely different. she hasn't felt a connection like this with perhaps anyone but sothis, and even that was... not quite the same. byleth's side of the bond likewise betrays much more than her face shows, a sort of delighted warmth flooding through as her mental self brushes edelgard's. she wraps her arms tightly around her, huffing out a soft laugh.

there's devotion, joy and certainty there, but more than that is love. it's intensely bright even as it's tinged with fear around the edges, inwardly directed at that feeling, at herself. byleth knows that there's no hiding it, and even if there was, she doesn't care to. they've done enough dancing around this since the final push of their campaign, since the dream, and if there had been any doubt left then last night and today had annihilated it. so her heart, young and newly awakened as it might be, is laid bare. byleth presses her face into the junction of edelgard's shoulder and neck, drawing in a deep breath.

she doesn't say anything. she doesn't know what words might accomplish, in this moment. ]

[For Edelgard, accustomed to it as she is, it's something different. It's a comfort, it's a joy, and it's an opportunity to share her true feelings. It is also a chance to finally, finally, give Byleth the comfort that she feels she deserves. There's a sense of Edelgard's mind reaching out, wrapping around hers, pulling her in close. She physically does the same, but it's different inside...where she can be large enough to fully enfold her friend.

She draws in a deep, slow, shuddering breath. This is the end of that final barrier between them. There's no seal on Byleth's heart, and no block to Edelgard's feelings. A sense of deep and abiding respect, curiousity, and delight completely dominate her mental landscape. ]

...I told you it was intense. and...you...you're so warm.

[ byleth happily yields to the gesture, melting into edelgard's embrace both inside and out. actions have always dominated what scraps of a love language she understood, not words, and though she'd managed that much spoken sentiment a moment ago... that had taken a significant amount of thought, and was largely pulled together from things that had come to her over time.

now, in this moment, there's no need for any clumsy intermediaries to express the things that she wants to tell her. no words or actions are truly necessary, for the time being. difficult conversations will come, and probably sooner rather than later. but not yet. and this can only make them easier. ]

This... [ the emotional weight of everything has seeped heavily into her tone, too. that warmth only grows, fed by everything byleth's feeling from edelgard. she's rarely felt truly at ease. in her mercenary days she hardly felt at all, and at the academy things got out of hand far too quickly for her to ever truly let her guard down. during the war, her thoughts were near constantly occupied with the next steps. but now? she feels content in a way she could never have imagined. ]

This feels like coming home, El.

Edited 2020-04-09 07:54 (UTC)

[The profundity of that statement resonates deeply with Edelgard, a chord struck that redoubles her resolve to not flub this up. The warmth she's feeling, along with the that internal light that accompanies true happiness all seep through every fiber of her being, slipping into cracks like liquid gold, solidifying into things that make her feel more whole. She's appreciative of Corrin's light and of Hubert's light, but Byleth's is something different yet. There's no sense of uncertainty like there was with the two of them, the worry that they'll be a bad match, because they've already bonded before this in a less technical sense.]

Home...

[She laughs softly, a giddy sound, tilting her head up to press lips against Byleth's neck.]

Yes, I suppose it is. I know it's said that Home is where the people that you care for live...and if I can hold you close to my heart this way...then, I think I'll always feel at home.

[ byleth grins at that, pulling back just enough to look at her, hoping to convey by touch and expression even a fraction of what she's managing to say through the link. her eyes flick down to edelgard's lips briefly, and there's a flash of want briefly in her mental landscape to go with that. ]

I... knew how you felt, but I never thought... [ she leans forward, touching her forehead to edelgard's. ] I didn't know that it could be like this.

[The feeling is mutual, and Edelgard is far, far less restrained than she once might have been. Her vampiric changes have firmly rooted within her, and Corrin's genuine affection has helped.

So, she has no qualms about leaning forward just a bit, and planting a kiss against Byleth's lips. Quick, gentle...but still very much there.]

It's wonderful. Like no other feeling in the world.

[ happiness and excitement bloom on byleth's side of the bond at the kiss, like she's every bit the inexperienced young woman that she is and not the untouchable figure or stone-faced general she'd often had to be. she simply nods when edelgard pulls back, face red and with a smile that she can't hope to shake. ]

It is. [ she brings up one of her hands, brushing a stray bit of hair out of edelgard's face. ] We'd best go, I think. [ and she doesn't particularly care where they go, whether it's back home or exploring the city. ]

[Edelgard beams, and nods her agreement. Quickly pulling her hand back so she can recover her scarred hand, she gives Miss Mayweather a nod.]

Thank you so much, Miss Mayweather.

[The witch beams, clearly pleased to have done such a service, and waves them on out.]

Don't mention it dear. I wish you both a happy bonding.

[ byleth pulls away fully to let edelgard get her gloves back on, but doesn't distance her mind and soul from her partner's. she tries to push reassurance through the bond at the reminder of the scars, nodding thanks as well to miss mayweather as the two of them make to leave. ]

I've experienced something a bit like this before. In Fódlan. But it was more as if she was along for the ride, than an equal connection like this... it never felt this way.

Oh?

[Edelgard makes tracks for the exit, heading out of the coven at a leisurely pace.]

Who...was this person?

[Based on some...information she's gotten and some inferences, she thinks she has an idea.]

[ once they're leaving, of course, byleth takes edelgard's hand once again.

she's not sure how to answer the question directly, per se. but through the bond comes a flash of a young girl with pointed ears and wild braided green hair, with the crest of flames etched centrally on her clothing. as that fades, there's a voice—again a young girl's—that echoes slightly, as if a dream.

your will and mine are now as one. both sides of time are revealed to you... and you alone. ]

[Edelgard is used to mentally sharing images, though this one is a bit startling. The bond turns...curious...though not pensive or worried. There's a keen interest, as though she's mentally studying the shape.]

...Is this...her? Sothis, or rather...her spirit?

[ there's a bit of relief on her side that this didn't... upset edelgard, somehow. she pulls her a bit closer to her side, drawing in a breath. ]

Yes. She was... a dear friend. I saw and spoke with her, near constantly, from the day you and I met until I... changed. I don't know where any of us would be without her help.

[ a flicker of hesitation. there's more, but she doesn't know how much she ought to say. ]

and i know the wonders that my hands can make

edelgard, 4/2

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