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On the eve of what would have been the millennium festival, after helping Claude and Byleth route the bandits that raided the monastery over the last five years, Marianne found herself wandering the old goddess tower. It was the one thing that had miraculously not fallen to ruin. She dragged her hand through the stone walls as she climbed the staircase, remembering all too well the familiar feeling of rushing up the steps in her academy days, hurrying to escape the crowds and flair of the winter ball.
She heaved a sigh of relief when she finally reached the top of the tower. "Finally... A moment of peace." She muttered to herself as she leaned against one of the tower's large arched windows. Back then she felt anxious from the party that rang in full swing below her; now, she was anxious from the coming battles ahead against the Empire. She decided to do the only thing she could think of that would help calm herself down: She closed her eyes and began to sing a soft tune, one that her birth mother used to sing to her long ago.
Do you hear the birds singing for you?
Don't you think it is lovely, how much they adore you?
Your heart was spun from gold, my dear
You heal my soul whenever you are near
You warm up my life, winter melting into spring
You are my treasure, my dear, my everything.
Marianne sighed again when she finished the last verse, smiling to herself as she remembered singing the same song in this very spot five years ago. Her moment of peace, however, was abruptly disturbed by a low whistle from an all-too-familiar voice.
"Wow, Marianne, you've got some lungs on you."
She snapped her eyes open and whipped around, meeting the gaze of Hilda Valentine Goneril. She was hit with a wave of deja vu, remembering her companion appearing in the tower and saying almost the exact same thing.
"H-Hilda?!" She shrieked, her hand flying over her mouth in a show of embarrassment. She turned away in the fleeting hope that her friend wouldn't catch the hint of pink creeping across her cheeks. "Just how long have you been, um, standing there...?"
"Oh, I just got here." Hilda replied, nonchalantly swinging her arms behind her back. "This is really uncanny, you know. I can't believe we were here five years ago, wanting a break from the festivities of the winter ball. Don't get me wrong, I love a good party, but I got bored of dancing with the same bland noble boys. I wanted to do something more... exciting. So I thought coming up to the goddess tower would be fun, and then I heard a certain someone's sweet voice echoing through the staircase."
Marianne flushed a deeper shade of pink. She could feel her ears burning. She didn't dare look at Hilda now; instead she fixed her gaze on the blanket of stars and moonlight that swathed the land. "Well, um... don't let me keep you from being able to have a moment to yourself. I can, um, leave..."
Hilda shook her head and took a few steps closer, chuckling a bit. "No way, Marianne! Sure, having some Me Time is always nice, but when I heard your singing I simply had to come alllll the way to the top to give whoever it was my biggest compliments. Just as I've done before. And speaking of, your singing is nothing short of angelic! You don't have to be shy about it! I think we've been together for far too long for you to still be nervous about that."
Marianne twirled one of the long, wavy locks that framed her face nervously, hoping that her heart would calm down and stop beating so fast. "W-well, um, I wouldn't say it's that good... but thank you."
Hilda crossed the remaining distance between them and placed a gentle hand on the taller woman's shoulder. She was close enough to see how the moonlight illuminated Marianne's porcelain face, and the flush of pink that tinted her cheeks. She wouldn't comment on that, of course, knowing how easily flustered Marianne became when complimented.
"It's okay to feel embarrassed." She assured her, rubbing her hand over Marianne's shoulder and leaning in to peck her cheek. "But it's just me. We're the only ones here. And I wouldn't tell you something if I didn't mean it. That's not quite my style, you know."
Marianne nodded and finally turned to face Hilda. She reached up to rest her hand over the other's, flashing a shy grin. "I know. I should have thought to ask you if you wanted to come up and reminisce with me. I could never forget the night we shared up here, and the wish we made..."
Hilda grinned, recalling how they swayed to the rhythm of their own music inside the tower while everyone else was waltzing inside the monastery. Marianne had insisted she wasn't much of a dancer but Hilda insisted that they at least try, and soon enough they were swaying and humming a made-up tune. Their pink and blue ball gowns swept across the floor as they playfully twirled around. And when the dance concluded, their hands lingered on each other's waists for just a moment longer than necessary before parting. It was then that Hilda decided that she would clasp Marianne's hands within her own, not wanting to let go of the moment so easily like she was used to doing with chores or responsibilities.
'Marianne, you've heard the stories of the goddess tower haven't you? How if two people come up here and make a wish, the goddess would make it come true?'
'Yes,' Marianne nodded, stepping closer to Hilda and squeezing her hands tighter. She smiled, feeling her cheeks heat up when Hilda squeezed her hand back and returned her smile. 'What would you, um, wish for?'
'Hmmmm, well besides having an endless wardrobe or the prettiest jewels in all of Fòdlan...'
'Hilda...'
'Kidding! I would wish to be with you five years from now, long after we've graduated from the academy and started to live our lives the way we've always dreamed of. You mean a lot to me, and I think a future without you would be, well. Not a fun one, that's for sure. What about you?'
Hilda's confession left Marianne breathless for a moment. She looked down at their joined hands and whispered, 'It's funny you say that, because... I was going to wish for the same thing. Nothing would make me happier.'
Marianne was so lost in thought that she didn't notice Hilda reach out to hold her hands until she felt a pair of lips smack the corner of her mouth.
"Earth to Marianne! Hello? You okay there?" Hilda teased, smirking up at her beloved.
"Ah, s-sorry!" Marianne stammered, and Hilda laughed as the mage's cool composure crumbled. "I just... um... what was your question, again?
Hilda's shook her head, her smirk relaxing into a loving smile. "It's okay, repeating myself is too much work. I just wanted to say that I'm glad we're still together like this. The past five years of war have been so crazy, you know, it's like tomorrow's never guaranteed. The tide could change without warning. But we're still here."
"Yeah... Well, I had made a wish I wanted to see come true." Marianne loosened one hand from Hilda's grip so that she could run her fingers through her long pink hair. "I told you I wanted the same thing as you, to be with you on this tower again five years from now. That was a future I was willing to fight for."
"You were willing to fight for me, huh?" Hilda murmured, resting her free hand on Marianne's hip. She leaned into her touch, inching closer to her face. "Well, what do you say to fighting for another five years? Let's win this war and come back here when it's all over."
"Why fight for only five more years when we have the rest of our lives?"
Hilda chuckled, her breath warm and sweet like honey on Marianne's lips. "My dearest Marianne, where is this coming from? Making a proposal when tomorrow is not even guaranteed?"
Marianne simply shrugged. "Maybe it is foolish, but... I mean it. I want to spend my life with you, Hilda. So I'll protect you, no matter what happens, and even if this war tears us apart I will always keep these memories of you safe. You will always have my heart."
In truth, Hilda did not like to think about what could or couldn't happen in these difficult times. It was better to focus on the here and now than to worry about gloom and doom. But she had to admit... the idea of spending her life with Marianne sounded really nice. And if they had made it this far, what's to say that they couldn't make a long future of love and happiness come to light?
She closed the gap between them and kissed her lover in earnest, and they held each other close inside the goddess tower once more.
I'll protect you too, Marianne. You're a future with fighting for.