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Byleth’s long coat fluttered behind her and her shoes clicked steadily on the floor as she made her way up the stone stairs towards the monastery’s infirmary. It had been two days since she and her class managed to locate and fight off the death knight in some dusty underground catacombs and managed to rescue Flayn as well as—to everyone’s surprise—another girl who apparently went missing a whole year ago.
It had been a long two days.
The air around the monastery was still tense, even now. Everyone was frantically wondering how something like this could happen directly under the careful watch of what was widely considered to be the most renowned order of knights in all of Fódlan and how many more possible weak points could be hidden in their defenses. Byleth herself had been roped into extra patrols which had taken up a good part of her free time between her usual duties and left her utterly exhausted.
Today, however, she made it a point to carve out some free time during lunch hours to visit Flayn in the infirmary. She hadn’t had a chance to see the girl since they carried her unconscious body out of the dark caverns. Seeing the little girl weakened and vulnerable like that instilled emotions in Byleth which she had a rough time putting names to. A lengthy discussion with Sothis that evening, when she was unable to sleep anyway, helped her in that regard. Though she still had no concrete idea on how to handle these new feelings.
It was anger and rage at the people responsible.
It was relief at finding the girl alive after her being gone for almost an entire month, at the chance of seeing her run around Garreg Mach again all chipper and rolling her eyes dramatically at whatever her brother was saying at any given moment.
It was helplessness at not being able to find her sooner, not being able to prevent this from happening in the first place.
As she reached the top of the stairs she could only imagine how Seteth must’ve felt during all of this. She had seen how it had taken a toll on the normally so put-together man. At first he still seemed to try to hold himself together; organizing the knights into search parties and mobilizing everyone available and willing to help him find Flayn. But Byleth could see his restlessness, his shaking hands and rushed speech. After that he seemed to throw himself into his work, rarely being seen outside his office, only letting in those who’d report updates on the success—or lack thereof—of the search parties. Whatever poor squire would be sent to deliver the message would then find himself at the receiving end of Seteth’s misdirected rage, having him shout at the messenger until he seemed to deflate and just tell them to 'get out'.
Byleth had heard one of those poor messengers tell her friends about one such incident in the dining hall, mentioning that it was one of the scariest things she’d ever encountered.
Byleth’s own scariest encounter with Seteth that month, however, was one evening after returning from the library. She, much like everyone else, was reaching the end of her wits and she had spent the past few hours looking at old blueprints and notes about the monastery, hoping to find some little detail she had missed that would somehow help her find the little girl. When she found that she could barely keep her eyes open and would just read the same thing again and again without taking anything in, she decided to call it a night and made her way back, down the same corridor she was now entering from the other side. As she passed Seteth’s office that night she heard something that made her stop dead in her tracks, clutching the notes that she had taken during her time in the library in her hands.
She heard someone crying.
Byleth pressed an ear up to the wood of the office’s door and, sure enough, she could hear faint sobbing from the other side.
Backing off, Byleth could feel an emptiness fill her as she struggled to come up with how best to react. She felt like she should go in there and help Seteth somehow. But she also knew that she had no right to do so. The man already didn’t trust her much as is and barging in on a moment as private as this, even with the intention to help, would probably not be welcome. Also what would she even do once she disturbed him at his most vulnerable? She barely knew how to deal with her own emotions. What made her think that she’d have any idea how to help someone else with theirs?
Stuck between knocking on the door and running away, Byleth stood there for what felt like an eternity, listening to the soft sounds of Seteth crying in the darkness before she finally got a grip on herself and decided on running, rushing down the stairs and taking what she witnessed that night with her.
Back in the present she stood before the now-open door of Seteth’s office and took a peek inside. It looked much like it always did and betrayed nothing of the troubled emotional state of its usual occupant. Safe for the bigger-than-usual pile of papers and books on his desk. Apparently, despite all the time he had spent in there last month, he did not get much work done.
Byleth was taken out of her deep thoughts by the sound of the infirmary door opening and closing. She looked over to see Manuela standing in front of the room, a stack of papers in her arms and obviously ready to head out.
“Oh hello, Professor!” she said as she noticed Byleth standing down the hall.
“Hello, Manuela,” Byleth said as she made her way towards the woman. “I’m glad to see you up and about again.”
Seeing her fellow faculty member unconscious and bleeding from a stab wound on the ground that day was another memory that made breathing just that much harder for Byleth as she remembered it.
“I was lucky enough to receive the tender loving care of the best medical professional in this monastery, who is me by the way in case you didn’t know, so I’m happy to be back on my feet!” Manuela said with a smile.
Despite her chipper speech, Byleth could tell that the whole situation hadn’t just passed the other woman by without a trace. She was still holding herself so she was sparing her injured side, although she did her best to not let it show and it was only due to her own experience with such injuries that Byleth recognized the stance.
Wanting to leave Manuela her pride for the moment, Byleth decided to change the topic.
“I wanted to ask, is Flayn still here? I didn’t have a chance to visit her these past few days and... and I wanted to see her.”
“Why, Professor!” the former diva stated theatrically, pressing one hand against her sternum in a dramatic gesture, “And here I thought you were here just to see me!”
Byleth just looked at the other woman, her eyebrows raised slightly in uncertainty. Despite having known Manuela for a good few months now and generally liking her, she had yet to learn quite how to deal with her theatrics sometimes.
Before Byleth could come up with an answer, Manuela continued in a softer tone, “Don’t worry, dear. Yes, she’s still here and yes, you can see her,” she leaned against the wall next to the door with a smile, “she’s about ready to leave, too. She’s been recovering magnificently!”
Byleth felt a weight lift off her shoulders that she hadn’t even quite realized was there and relaxed a little.
Manuela smiled softly at the Professor as she continued, “she’s strong that one… even though she has been through so much she's already up on her feet again.”
“That’s nice to hear. I’m... glad,” Byleth found herself replying. Her own lips turning upwards into a slight smile at the realisation that, yes, she really was feeling glad at the thought of Flayn being well after all that had happened.
“Now there’s a sight we need more of these days!” Manuela exclaimed upon seeing her smile, startling Byleth. Manuela pushed herself off the wall she’d been leaning on and straightened the papers she was still clutching in her arms.
“I was actually heading out to the dining hall to grab a sandwich and hopefully get some work done. Seteth is visiting his sister right now and I wanted to give them some time alone,” the songstress continued.
Byleth felt something in her stomach region sink at the mention of Seteth. She hadn’t been able to talk to him properly these past few days either. The last time she saw him he was wrapping his arms around Flayn, repeatedly muttering 'Thank you' and 'I’m sorry’ to her and to Flayn respectively. Ever since then she had been sucked into a whirlwind of duties. Patrolling, investigating, and still somehow having to manage her classes had left her no chance to catch so much as a glimpse of the man.
Manuela placed a hand on Byleth’s shoulder, effectively getting her back into reality.
“I’m sure you’re more than welcome in there though, Professor,” Manuela squeezed her shoulder with a warm smile. “I’ll leave you to it now before all the best sandwiches at the dining hall are gone,” she said winking and turned away with a wave which Byleth returned before she was left standing all alone in the hallway.
The former mercenary looked at the door which suddenly felt like facing an unknown opponent on the battlefield.
"I’m sure you’re more than welcome in there"
The words echoed in her head, making her wonder if that could really be true. She certainly wasn’t welcomed by Seteth when she had first arrived at the monastery. Though he had slowly seemed to warm up to her, she still couldn’t quite tell where she stood with him.
Would she have been welcome in his office the night she heard him cry?
The thought made Byleth’s stomach twist and she quickly forced herself back into the present.
She noticed something move in the corner of her eyes and when she turned she saw Manuela, standing at the end of the hallway and giving her a thumbs up before finally rounding the corner towards the stairs.
Byleth scoffed amusedly at the gesture.
And knocked on the door.
“Come in!” came the reply from behind the door.
Seteth’s voice.
She took a deep breath and opened the door a crack to peek in.
Flayn was sitting on the bed closest to the door, already dressed in her usual attire again and with her feet dangling off the side of the bed. Her face lightened up considerably as she saw Byleth’s face appear behind the door.
“Professor!” she exclaimed excitedly.
Seteth was standing next to her bed, one arm propped up on the other and with his hand holding his chin as if he had been contemplating something just as Byleth had interrupted them. He looked better than he had for the entirety of the past month, though weeks of constant anxiety and little to no sleep were still visible on his face.
“Please, come in!” he reiterated, more lightly this time after recognizing Byleth as their surprise guest.
“I’m sorry to intrude,” she stated, finally entering the room completely and softly closing the door behind her. “I just wanted to see how Flayn was doing.”
She turned to the girl fully and saw that Manuela was right in her assessment that Flayn had been recovering well and was already sporting a bright smile on her face again upon her entering the room.
“You’re not intruding!” Seteth spoke up, a tired but genuine smile on his face. “I appreciate you taking the time to stop by. I know how busy everyone has been...” He met Byleth’s eyes and she could see an intense gratitude in his gaze that was so different from his usual stern glances and that seemed to settle deep within Byleth’s chest, spreading warmth throughout her.
“I’m glad you’re here, too!” Flayn chimed in, directing the attention of the two adults away from each other and back to her. “It has been rather boring here, I’m afraid. Despite everyone being exceptionally kind and visiting me there have been long stretches without anyone around.”
Byleth noticed Flayn’s bedside table, which was absolutely covered with little gifts, flowers, and letters from students and faculty alike. There was what looked like a little drawing of a cutesy wyvern with the caption 'Get well soon!!' in what she recognized as Bernadetta’s handwriting. She smiled slightly at the thought of the girl braving her fear and making her way all the way up here to deliver it.
Then something struck her and she looked around the infirmary noticing that it was, indeed, empty except for the three of them.
“Where’s Monica? Shouldn’t she also be here?” she asked.
“It’s weird, Professor. She already left on the first day of her return, absolutely insisting that she stay with Edelgard,” Flayn answered, drifting off at the end before continuing. “Though her and Edelgard seemed to be acquainted with each other. So perhaps she just wanted to stay with someone she’s familiar with...”
Byleth hummed in agreement, pondering Flayn’s words.
“The monastery’s healers have been keeping an eye on her, however, and she seems to be in good physical condition as well," Seteth added. “She has already decided she’ll be rejoining the black eagle house and continue her education at the academy soon.”
“Oh, brother!” Flayn called out at that, sitting up straight on her bed with excitement and startling Seteth. “I think now is a good opportunity to tell the professor what we were discussing before she came in, right?”
There was a glee in her eyes that had Byleth raise her eyebrows in a questioning manner before turning to the perplexed Seteth with a questioning “Oh?”.
“Ah, yes, of course,” he started before clearing his throat and looking at Byleth, crossing his hands behind his back.
“Flayn here has brought up some, ah... excellent points about how your students have grown into capable fighters over the past few months and could probably be trusted with keeping an eye on her. Of course you yourself have also-” Byleth had raised a single amused eyebrow at this point, silently urging him to get to the point.
“I want to join your class, Professor!” Flayn interrupted him impatiently and visibly excited.
Byleth stared at her and then back at Seteth, who had closed his eyes and taken a deep breath before opening them up again.
“That is what it would boil down to, yes,” he stated.
Byleth looked back to Flayn, who seemed to have her nervousness catch up to her as she said, with slightly less confidence, “I-if you would have me, that is.”
But her eyes were still wide with excitement and Byleth found that she couldn’t have said 'no' to those eyes even if she would’ve wanted to. (Honestly she didn’t know how Seteth did it. Though even he seemed to have lost this particular battle.)
“Of course, Flayn. You’re more than welcome to my class and I’d be very happy to have you, ” the former mercenary said. And soon found herself caught up in a bright green blur when Flayn jumped off the bed and threw her arms around her new professor, knocking the air out of the woman with a greater strength than Byleth would’ve expected from the girl.
Once she had recovered from the sudden attack she relaxed into the hug and gently placed her hands on the girl’s shoulder.
Growing up in a band of rough mercenaries, Byleth hadn’t been overly familiar with physical affection of any kind. There have been the occasional hearty shoulder slap and hair ruffling after a battle well fought, but none of her father’s gang was much of a hugger and neither was he, preferring to show his affection for his daughter in different ways.
So when she arrived at Garreg Mach and won that first mock battle with her students, some of whom threw themselves at her in euphoria at their first shared victory afterwards, it certainly was a tad overwhelming for her. But over the past few months she had grown to appreciate these kinds of gestures. They were another part in her journey of trying to deal with all these new sensations and feelings she had been experiencing recently.
Byleth looked up from the girl in her arms who was still gleefully expressing her happiness and how hard she’s going to work for class and how well she’s going to do. She found Seteth still standing besides the now empty bed. He smiled softly at her, even though she could still see the exhaustion of the past month in his eyes and she found herself smiling back as something fluttered in her stomach.
Another novelty sensation for Byleth to add to the list of things she’d need to try and understand at a later point.
She looked down at Flayn again and squeezed her shoulder to get her attention.
“Hey…You know, Manuela told me that you’re about ready to leave before I came in here. So why don’t you go to your new classmates and tell them the news?”
“Truly?” Flayn exclaimed, her eyes impossibly bright and with an enthusias that was positively contagious. Byleth nodded with a gentle smile.
At that Flayn leaped out of the professor’s arms and out of the room, just barely getting a “See you two later!” out as she slipped out of the door in a hurry and left Seteth just enough time to switch into worry-mode again and shout after her to “Be careful and don’t run down the stairs! ”
Once the noise of the green whirlwind subsided he slumped his shoulders with a sigh and looked apologetically at Byleth who just shrugged and said, “I’m just glad to see her so energetic again.”
“Me too,” he muttered his reply. “During the past month I’ve imagined way too many scenarios in which I never saw her again… I’m just…” he choked up and swallowed before continuing softly, “Thank you.”
Byleth looked into his eyes and, trying to lighten the mood a bit, asked “Do you maybe need a hug as well?”
Seteth scoffed and looked at the floor before murmuring, “Maybe I do, actually.”
She had not expected him to agree to her offer but instead to deflect by saying something about them both being busy and needing to return to their work. But now he had agreed and his defeated voice sent a pang of sadness through Byleth. Stepping in front of him she gently touched his shoulder as if to ask permission with that first contact before slowly moving in when he didn’t protest and wrapping her arms around his—surprisingly strong—form. She initiated the hug with way more care and less confidence than Flayn had with her just minutes prior and held her breath as she could feel Seteth tense in her arms. Panic started to rise within her as she feared that she had misread the situation and overstepped Seteth’s boundaries. After all he had never agreed to a hug from her and-
Her mind came to a stop when strong, warm arms came to rest around her and she felt the archbishop’s advisor relax against her. He took in a deep, shuddering breath.
Somehow this hug felt different than the ones she had shared with her students thus far. It felt like it held more meaning and she was all too aware of the man against her, of his height, his warmth, the rise and fall of his chest as he slowly breathed in and out. Standing up on the tips of her toes to rest her head on his shoulder she relaxed against him and idly wondered if he was finding as much comfort in her arms as she was in his. The infirmary smell of fresh linens and healing concoctions is mingled with Seteth’s smell of tea and candle wax. Without much thought she turned her head to bury her nose in his soft hair. In response one of his hands came to rest at the back of her neck and started to idly move through her locks. Byleth tightened her grip around him and felt like never letting go.
They stayed like this for a while, just enjoying each other’s presence. Byleth had taken to soothingly moving her hand up and down Seteth’s back, feeling the strong muscles beneath even through the thick fabric of his robes. After what felt like forever, Seteth took in another deep breath before he carefully started to extract himself from their embrace. Cool air rushed between their bodies as he began to pull away and Byleth had to resist every urge to not pull him right back in, to enjoy his warmth some more. She knew she had probably already overstepped her boundaries with the usually so stern man and she didn’t want to make him uncomfortable when her goal had initially been to comfort him. His face was still close when she looked up at him and she was fascinated by the blush on his cheeks and the slight wetness in his eyes which he quickly blinked away.
He cleared his throat as he took another step back, fully disconnecting himself from her and avoiding eye contact.
“Thank you,” he said, undisguised and sincere gratefulness in his voice. “I think I really needed that.”
He was back to his upright posture, hands behind his back. But there was still some red on his cheeks and Byleth still had some new feelings to add to her ever growing pile.
“You’re welcome,” she managed to say after a few seconds, hoping that she didn't sound quite as breathless as she felt.
Seteth nodded curtly, returning more and more to his usual role. “I should be returning to work. I have a lot to catch up on.”
Ah, there it was.
“I understand,” Byleth replied with a small smile. “I should probably join my students in the dining hall and see what they are up to. Knowing them they probably have organized a feast to welcome Flayn in their midst by now.”
Seteth’s eyes lit up at the mention of his sister. “I shall not keep you any further then, Professor.”
She had to bite back a remark that he could address her by her name instead of her title. This didn’t seem like the right time and place. Maybe another time, over tea. Byleth found that she quite enjoyed the thought of inviting him to tea sometime.
Instead she just thanked him as he held the door open for her and they both emerged into the hallway. It must have been less than twenty minute since she had entered through this door and yet she felt as if a lot had changed. They stopped by Seteth’s open office door and turned toward each other.
“Well… I suppose I will see you around," she said.
“Yes…” He crossed his arms in front of his chest. “And I am looking forward to your reports on Flayn’s progress in your class.”
“I’m sure she’ll do amazing, enthusiastic as she is,” she smiled at him and he returned the gesture. Seteth’s softness and worry whenever it came to his little sister fascinated Byleth and it reminded her of how little she still actually knew about the two siblings.
She hoped that would change someday.
A few more seconds passed before Byleth cleared her throat.
“I’ll be on my way then.” She stated.
“O-of course. See you soon, Professor.”
They both nodded their heads in good-bye before she turned around, still mulling over what had just happened between them.
Before rounding the corner of the hallway she chanced a glance backwards and found Seteth, still standing where she left him, seemingly lost in thought before he quickly turned on his heel and disappeared in his office.
And as she quickly made her way down the stairs, Byleth wondered if she would ever get another chance to be held by Seteth.