Work Text:
When the professor dismissed the class, Ferdinand was already mentally making plans to go to the stables and take his favorite horse out for a leisurely ride. He was about to collect his books when he heard Dorothea lamenting about the abysmal date that she’d had the previous weekend. As she recounted the kiss that the noble had forced upon her, Ferdinand felt disgusted at the man’s lack of chivalry.
Petra’s fierce expression surprised Ferdinand. He knew that she was protective of her friends, but there was an underlying emotion in her expression that Ferdinand couldn’t quite identify. As Dorothea placed her hand on top of Petra’s and smiled affectionately at her, Ferdinand’s cheeks went pink at the realization.
“Wait, so what was your first kiss like anyway?” asked Sylvain, his tone curious. Dorothea launched into an animated explanation, but it was drowned out by the ringing in Ferdinand’s ears as the memories of his own first kiss came to his mind unbidden.
A shrill shriek brought Ferdinand back to the classroom. Bernadetta was running out of the room as Petra turned to ask Ferdinand about his first kiss. With everyone’s eyes staring expectantly at him, Ferdinand’s face began to heat up.
“Well, it…it really was…it was…” Ferdinand stammered. “A boy, we were so young though! I-I knew not that kisses, well, kisses on the lips…that they were different from those on the cheek.” Ferdinand was staring pointedly at his lap, and he did not need to look up to know that Hubert was staring at him. “He…he did not…appreciate it…” Ferdinand chanced a look over at Hubert, who was staring impassively as usual. He looked as though he hadn’t payed attention to a word that Ferdinand had said.
Dorothea patted Ferdinand’s back sympathetically before having mercy on him and letting him know that they could move onto someone else. Ferdinand sighed in relief; he hung his head, letting his bangs fall forward into his eyes.
“I owe no information to any of you,” Hubert said flatly. Ferdinand peeked out from behind his bangs to see the slightest hint of pink dusting Hubert’s cheeks. He blinked and shook his head minutely before looking at Hubert again, but the blush was already gone. Ferdinand cursed himself for being so foolish as to believe that Hubert would really have blushed over him.
Mercifully, Sylvain began talking about his own first kiss and took the attention off of Ferdinand. He wasn’t nearly as theatric as Dorothea, but he was certainly thrilling to watch. Felix, however, looked the very opposite of thrilled as Sylvain reminisced.
As Sylvain asked Felix about his first kiss, Ferdinand winced in sympathy. Felix was growing redder by the second; when it was from anger or embarrassment, Ferdinand wasn’t entirely sure. When Sylvain asked -- far too loudly -- if Felix had never been kissed before, the young Fraldarius heir fled the room. Sylvain quickly ran after him, and Dorothea sighed.
“Well, that’s a mood killer,” Dorothea lamented. “I think I’m going to head into town tonight. If you’d like to join me, Petra…” Dorothea held out her hand to Petra, who graciously accepted it. The room was rapidly emptying, and Ferdinand slipped into a throng of students -- not that he was trying to avoid Hubert.
As Ferdinand’s feet led him toward the stables, he couldn’t shake the memory of his first kiss.
Ferdinand was sitting at a small desk, listening to his etiquette instructor lecture about propriety. At eight years of age, Ferdinand was unlike most boys his age; while many of the other nobles’ children were interested in games or swords, Ferdinand wanted to be the best noble that he could be. His father would surely be impressed if he were to master etiquette before any of his peers. Closing his eyes, Ferdinand pictured how it would feel to hear his father say that he was proud of him.
A flat, wooden stick smacked Ferdinand’s hand. He yelped in pain and pulled his hand back as his instructor frowned disapprovingly at him. Her reprimands -- did he want his father to hear about how poor his attention was? -- were more painful than the smack to his hand. Ferdinand apologized meekly with a promise to do better.
“I do hope that you at least paid attention to something today,” the instructor sneered. “After all, it would not do if your father were to hear about how Lady Edelgard’s capabilities far exceed your own.” Ferdinand hugged his shoulders to his neck and ducked his head. The instructor sighed before dismissing Ferdinand, sending him out into the cloudy afternoon.
The sky was overcast, and gray clouds hung low on the horizon. Ferdinand sat down on the soft grass and pulled his knees up to his chest. He placed his chin onto his knees and tried not to sniffle.
Two voices disrupted Ferdinand’s thoughts. He looked up to see Edelgard and Hubert walking toward him, although they did not look like they had noticed him. Wiping the back of his hand across his eyes, Ferdinand jumped to his feet and began waving at the pair.
“Hello!” Ferdinand chirped. Despite his instructor’s unkind words, Ferdinand could not find it in himself to be upset with Edelgard. He ran over to meet Edelgard and Hubert where they were standing. Edelgard gave Ferdinand a polite smile while Hubert merely scowled -- which was no different from his usual expression.
“I trust that you are doing well today, Ferdinand,” said Edelgard, her tone as prim as ever when speaking with Ferdinand. Hubert, however, said nothing at all. Ferdinand tried to hold back his disappointment with Hubert’s silence.
“Of course!” Ferdinand responded brightly. “I am about to attend riding lessons.” Although he feared his harsh etiquette instructor, Ferdinand absolutely adored his riding instructor. He was a kindly old man who loved horses perhaps as much as Ferdinand did.
Edelgard’s polite, yet detached, expression did not waver, but Ferdinand knew better than to expect otherwise. Ferdinand did not understand why, but other children rarely took to him. It was possibly the reason why Ferdinand was so desperate for Hubert to notice him. He had seen how the other children ostracized Hubert, and he had hoped that they could have formed a friendship based on that kinship.
Looking up at Hubert, Ferdinand hoped to see some glimmer of friendship in his eyes -- but all he saw was Hubert looking toward the horizon, no doubt checking for threats against Edelgard. Perhaps there was not enough room for both Edelgard and Ferdinand in Hubert’s eyes.
As Ferdinand’s mother’s voice called off in the distance for Ferdinand to come to the stables, Ferdinand remembered a piece of etiquette training that he had heard from his instructor.
A kiss is reserved as a gesture of affection.
Leaning forward onto the tips of his toes, Ferdinand closed his eyes and pressed his lips against Hubert’s. He pulled back immediately when he heard the sound of Edelgard giggling -- something he had never heard before. Looking up to see Hubert’s stunned expression, Ferdinand’s face erupted in red. He was not sure what he had done wrong, but he knew that he had made some sort of mistake.
Ferdinand bolted. He ran until he reached the horse stables, and he nearly crashed into his riding instructor. He apologized profusely -- saying over and over that he should know better as a noble -- until the old gentleman placed his hand onto Ferdinand’s shoulder gently and told Ferdinand that there was no problem too great that a horse could not fix.
Ferdinand approached the stables and froze as he saw a familiar pair of boots. He forced himself to look up and met Hubert’s gaze. Ferdinand stammered out a hello and attempted to walk past Hubert into the stables, but Hubert was standing directly in the doorway. The pair stood in silence, and Ferdinand began to fidget nervously under Hubert’s scrutinizing gaze.
“I must confess that I am curious about something…” Hubert said. “Despite the many years, I have not discovered the reason for your…what shall I call it? Your awkward gesture of affection?” Ferdinand’s face was scarlet. He wanted nothing more than to rush past Hubert and take his horse out for a ride to get as far away from his problems as possibly.
“Please, Hubert…” Ferdinand mumbled, already feeling humiliated.
“I merely wish to have my answer,” Hubert continued on. “It is not often that I found myself unable to answer something. Answer me, and I shall leave you to your riding.” Ferdinand cursed himself for being so predictable. Of course Hubert would have found him at the stables.
“I admired you,” confessed Ferdinand. “I had wished that you and I could become friends, as foolish children are wont to do.” Ferdinand was still blushing as he attempted to sidestep Hubert and escape into the stables. Hubert, however, seemed to be expecting the move and maneuvered himself in such a way that Ferdinand backed himself up against the wall to avoid getting too close.
“And do you still admire me?” asked Hubert, his tone low. Ferdinand looked up at the older male, feeling intimidated by how close he was.
“I…” Turning his head to the side, Ferdinand trailed off. “I do admire you. I admire you as one advisor to another. This is, of course, a strictly professional relationship that we have.” Hubert laughed, although Ferdinand noted that it was not the same laugh that he used to scare their classmates with. Regardless, the laugh unnerved Ferdinand.
“You are a terrible liar, Ferdinand.” Ferdinand’s eyes widened, and he could feel his chest tightening as he considered how much Hubert had figured out. He wanted to escape, but Hubert had placed his hands on the wall above Ferdinand’s shoulders, effectively trapping him.
“Please, Hubert, do not humiliate me,” whispered Ferdinand. “I know that I am not your favorite person, but I do not believe I deserve to be humiliated for how I feel for you.” Ferdinand tried to shrink in on himself, but it had no effect in lessening his mortification.
Hubert’s gloved fingers reached out and tilted Ferdinand’s chin up. Ferdinand had barely enough time to recognize what was happening before Hubert’s lips descended onto his own. The kiss was chaste, gentle in a way that Ferdinand had not known Hubert was capable of. Ferdinand’s hands shook nervously as he placed them on Hubert’s chest to ground himself.
Ferdinand had not had much practice with kissing since his first kiss. If he was being honest with himself, he hadn’t had any practice at all since that first kiss. When out with young ladies, Ferdinand had stuck to polite kisses on the cheek and nothing more. This kiss, however, was certainly more.
Ferdinand tilted his head to the side and moved his lips hesitantly. He was unsure if he was kissing the way he was supposed to, but the way Hubert’s arms wrapped around his waist and pulled him closer told Ferdinand that he must have been doing something right. Ferdinand pulled back and blinked his eyes open, half expecting that he had merely imagined the entire situation.
Ferdinand was pleased to see that Hubert was still standing in front of him. Pale pink dusted Hubert’s cheekbones, and it made Ferdinand want to kiss him again. Ferdinand was about to lean in again when a question struck him.
“Why did you kiss me?” asked Ferdinand. The soft pink blush on Hubert’s face deepened, and Ferdinand felt mildly more at ease, knowing that Hubert was not as unflappable as previously expected.
“I wished to confirm your feelings before confessing my own,” said Hubert. “I recognize that I am not the most…pleasant individual. The nature of my work frightens people, as it should. You, however, do not shrink away from my blood-stained hands. I wonder why that is…” For a moment, Hubert looked like the lonely child that Ferdinand had been so desperate to befriend -- but just as quickly, his guard was back up, and he looked as though he had never been vulnerable at all.
“I know that you are so much more than that…” Ferdinand breathed out. “You may think of yourself as a tool that Edelgard can use, but you are not a mere tool. My affections for you are not based upon your skills or your usefulness, but upon the man that you are.” Feeling a surge of courage, Ferdinand leaned onto his toes and pressed a soft kiss against Hubert’s lips, a facsimile of the original kiss so many years ago.
This time, when Ferdinand pulled away, Hubert’s expression almost bordered on affectionate rather than stunned. A ghost a smile graced Hubert’s lips as he took a step back to allow Ferdinand to move.
“Perhaps I could persuade you to accompany me to tea?” asked Ferdinand.
“Only if coffee will be provided as well,” Hubert replied. Ferdinand nodded as he promised to brew it himself. He reached out to link his arm with Hubert’s as they headed toward the tea gardens. As they walked together, Ferdinand reflected on his former etiquette instructor and recognized that she was right about kissing; it was certainly a proper gesture for expressing one’s affection.