school: byleth

[shaft]

how many of byleth's pcs use this image

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[shaft]

[ He hesitates for a moment, before moving to sit next to her.

He wants to make a comment about how it's rare to see heartbreak on her face, but that sounds callous, even to him.

So he just closes his eyes and sighs. ]

[divineimpulse]

[it'll be a few moments more before she finds words for it all. or for any of it.

so, as she sits, sorting her thoughts, she leans on to claude's shoulder, just a few inches higher than her own, and closes her eyes.

hard to believe anything happened here when it's like this.]

[shaft]

[ He doesn't mind, leaning back, letting himself rely on the contact when Byleth is one of the only people here he lets himself be like this with.

Into the quiet, ] What now?

[divineimpulse]

Hmm. [she shifts her weight slightly, so they're both balanced against each other.]

Keep going.

[shaft]

That's it? No revenge?

[ ... ]

Do I sound too much like Dimitri?

[divineimpulse]

Hmmm.

[it's a quiet noise, thoughtful, and perhaps even a shade amused.

...]

Revenge doesn't work well without a defined target.

Otherwise, it flies off blind, and you shoot at shadows.

[she closes her eyes.]

I'm angry. But until I know what I'm aiming for, I'll keep my arrows in the quiver.

[shaft]

What an analogy.

[ He laughs, dryly. ]

It's difficult. I've always turned my anger in a plan, but here, I don't know what path to take.

[divineimpulse]

[she nods, truly sympathetic.]

I understand.

Nothing is clear-cut.

And the place is designed to toy with emotions.

[shaft]

It's certainly teaching me a thing or two about feeling defeated. Edelgard would be envious.

[divineimpulse]

[okay, well. that definitely elicits an amused exhale.]

All this time, she only needed to trap us in an inescapable realm of torment.

[...]

Again.

[the absolute irony of this garbage,]

[shaft]

[ ...

Well, they might as well have this conversation now. ]

Dimitri and I have different memories of our time back in Fódlan. I don't know if he mentioned it to you.

Have you noticed?

[divineimpulse]

Different in what way?

[slowly straightening back up, she brushes the hair out of her face with a hand.]

[shaft]

He mentioned a battle at Gronder, and not one we fought as kids. Said that I had sabotaged attempts at an alliance, but...

I don't remember any of it.

What's the last thing you remember?

[divineimpulse]

[she closes her eyes.]

The night after the battle at Gronder Field, on the thirtieth day of the Great Tree Moon, 1186.

[she opens her eyes again, fixing Claude with a gentle look.]

And I don't think you're the one that sabotaged the alliance.

[shaft]

[ Of course, she wouldn't. ]

Gronder... It seems like a poetic end to the battle we began five years ago.

[ ... ]

I won't deny I'm curious to know who won.

[divineimpulse]

[...]

We were.

[shaft]

Against Edelgard?

[ He doesn't seem... shocked. More disbelieving, like it's hard for him to grasp after so long. ]

[divineimpulse]

[she nods, once.]

Against both of you.

[and gives that just a moment to digest.]

But not by much.

We were certainly the underdogs.

[shaft]

[ ...

His lips quirk into a small smile. ]

Of course. There's no way you could lose, teach.

[divineimpulse]

[she shakes her head, watching him thoughtfully.]

I'm only human, Claude.

Nothing is guaranteed on the battlefield.

[shaft]

I'm pretty sure you're the closest thing to one.

But don't worry, no one is putting the burden of fixing this place on you.

[divineimpulse]

[...]

I'd still like to.