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The foul stench ran through her nose, smelling of rot and decay.
Around her were corpses, dismembered and slashed in ways that revealed their insides.
The thick pools of blood were never-ending as she walked through the field, surrounded by death.
As Byleth walked, her legs began to feel heavy, causing her to slow down and come to stop. She raised her head slightly, eyes glazed over as she looked at the grey sky and the swirling, dark clouds above. Where was this? What happened? Questions were creeping into her mind, although clouded, as she stared at what looked like a forming storm in the distance. The smell was getting stronger as the air grew thick and humid with moisture, and rain began to come down in thin, scattered drops against her face. She closed her eyes, her expression serene despite the grotesque scene around her.
A sudden sound made her open them again, looking back to see a sprawled out body being devoured by someone that looked disturbingly familiar; Rhea hunched over one of the dead bodies, the sound of wet smacking and hunger echoing across the battlefield. Her back was turned to Byleth, covered in tattered robes, her hands looking claw-like as they dug into the grey skin of the corpse below her. Byleth didn't know what to say, watching in an uncomfortable silence until there was a deep growl from the woman across from her.
"You've come home," Rhea's voice was low and almost distorted, the tones of her usual melodic voice shifting in ways Byleth had never heard, "At last."
Fear began to make Byleth breathe harder, the smell getting stronger as she watched Rhea get to her feet, revealing the body to be none other than Jeralt's, causing her throat to tighten with emotion. Rhea's sullied robes were slipping messily down her shoulders as she faced the other with a bloodied face, the smeared aftermath of what she just consumed splattered all over her. Byleth stared back, wanting to run but her legs felt like lead when she tried. Rhea began to walk towards the other, her face blank as she raised her disfigured claws to Byleth. "You've come home."
Byleth shook her head -- it was all she could do, her body frozen as Rhea finally was close enough to move her palm against her face, nails scraping Byleth's cheeks as she smiled down at her. It was silent again, but Byleth could see every detail on Rhea's deranged face, unable to look away until suddenly the woman let out a pained scream, her back arching as she threw her head back towards the sky. Her skin began to shed into a scaly texture, rippling as she writhed with another monstrous screech.
Finally, Byleth could move her legs again, and she turned as fast as she could to run, trying to not trip over the scattered body parts around the field. The smell. The smell. The rotten, sour air that burned its way down Byleth's throat as she heard Rhea's shrill cries fall behind her. Again, her legs began to feel heavy, as if she was trying to run through water. Just like that, her feet began to sink through the earth, roots and vines grabbing at her legs and tugging her down. Byleth gasped, trying to grab onto something, anything, until a hand grabbed onto hers. Blood started to drip onto her face as she struggled to grip the hand; she looked up, and saw a headless figure looming over her, wearing a mangled uniform of the monastery. Something in her mind told her it was Sylvain, even without his face being there. The knowledge made Byleth shriek, trying to pull her hand away as terror overtook her, sending panic throughout her body. More of her former students were behind him, coming closer, surrounding them, all with different wounds, staring at her as she continued to be taken by the collapsing ground.
"At last."
Byleth snapped her eyes open, a cold sweat on her neck as she stared at the ceiling, panting heavily. A hand was on her shoulder firmly, belonging to her husband who was laying beside her, looking at her with a tired but worried expression in the darkness of their room.
"Dimitri," she managed, her eyes brimming with tears as she looked over at him. Instinctively, he moved his arm around her waist, carefully pulling her close as she pressed her face to his chest, letting out a breathy sob against his skin. The images were still burned into her mind, the pain like a fresh wound. How Ingrid's torso had been struck through with multiple lances, the way Felix's eyes glared unforgivingly at her as he had clutched onto his missing arm, seeing Ashe crawling on the ground with dislocated, bloody limbs. Everyone, settling to blame her for their downfalls, their injuries, their deaths.
"It was-" Byleth choked out, her voice trembling, "They were dead-"
"It's alright, Beloved." His voice was a low, soothing rumble, like distant thunder at night. "It was just a dream... You're safe."
"Everyone else-"
"Everyone else is probably asleep at this hour..." He paused for a moment before continuing, "They're all safe, Byleth."
Byleth bit her lip as her tears began to slide down her cheeks, a small cry escaping her before she nodded against him; even though she was still shaken, she knew he was right. It was just an awful, horrifying dream. It wasn't real, no matter how vivid it had been. Dimitri's hand began to glide through her hair as he held her, listening to Byleth's muffled sobs begin to slow and subside as they laid there in silence. He knew the tricks that painful memories could pull on one's mind, how it seemed as though the deepest of fears could even plague the subconscious relentlessly. Often he would look back on every moment Byleth had held onto him when he was the one in tears after being tormented in his sleep; the amount of times that had happened was not a number he was proud of, but nonetheless felt everlasting gratitude to her for staying at his side in moments of weakness. He wanted to do the same for her. After a moment, Byleth sat up a bit, looking at Dimitri with reddened eyes. He moved his fingertips over her bangs to push them aside, bringing her face in to kiss her forehead.
"Shh...It's alright..." he repeated lovingly, his other hand stroking small circles over her back, tracing over her shoulders. Byleth closed her eyes and swallowed dryly, the worst of that feeling starting to pass as she remembered everyone was indeed fine.
Everyone was okay.
"I'm sorry for waking you," Byleth murmured, closing her eyes as she took in Dimitri's gentle touch, "I didn't want to disturb your sleep as well."
"Don't be silly," Dimitri had a way of sounding amused at her words despite being incredibly sleepy.
"I mean it, I... I really am sorry."
"Beloved," he said, leaning in to lay a kiss on the crown of her head, "I promised to take care of you for the rest of my life. And this is absolutely nothing compared to some nights you have pulled yourself out of slumber to soothe me instead."
His words gave Byleth some reassurance, a small hint of a smile crossing her lips at that. She let out a deep sigh, letting Dimitri caress her sides with his warm, slight coarse hands, the moonlight shining through the crack between the closed curtains. Her breaths slowed as she listened to Dimitri's heart beating soundly, bringing her arm up to hug around his torso and press herself closer to him. Feeling his fingers play with her hair, hearing his soft, even breaths, all of it started to lull her back into sleep.
"Thank you."
Everything was okay.