Chapter Text
Vengeance. Retribution. Edelgard’s head. Those were the only things Dimitri had been thinking about when he made his way to Gronder Field that day. He was going to stop the Empire. He was going to kill Edelgard, as the voices had told him. Even though the only man by his side was Dedue, the rest of the Blue Lions having defected to the Alliance long ago, he didn’t care. He was going to kill that woman for everything she’d done, or die trying. After all, he was a disgraced prince who everyone believed to be dead, his fate meant nothing now.
What he hadn’t expected though, was that Claude’s army would be there too. No matter, they were just obstacles to him. He was ready to fight anyone who would stand in his way, no matter what they once were. Nothing mattered aside from that woman’s death.
And so he fought. Empire and Alliance alike, he was willing to strike them down. Just as long as he could reach his prize. But the Alliance was a rogue element. They pushed back her forces, but she remained alive. No matter, he could attack her while her back was turned! Or so he thought. Before he knew it, Empire forces surrounded him. This was it. This was the moment he died. At least he could take out some of her dogs with him, he thought. He didn’t count how many he took down, it wouldn’t matter once he was dead. He felt a piercing sensation in his back, and then another in his chest. Then another, and another, and another. He figured this was it, this was how he died. He stumbled to the ground, gripping his lance to keep him standing as much as possible. Just because this was his end didn’t mean he’d just fall over and die.
The voices berated him, judging him for letting himself die before getting their vengeance. He deserved it, he never should’ve lived in the first place. “Mother... Father... Glenn... I’m sorry…” he muttered, his vision beginning to blur. His grip began to falter, and he was ready for death’s embrace.
“DIMITRI!”
A shout shocked him back to consciousness. A voice had called out his name, but it was not the voices he’d been hearing, nor was it Dedue or any of his former classmates, but he did recognize it. Although his vision was still foggy, he could see someone approaching from the distance. A blurry purple shape had gotten the remaining soldiers attention, and was now striking them down. That voice, could it be…?
He fell to the ground, unable to stay standing any longer. The last of the Empire soldiers fell to the ground, and the person attacking them rushed towards him. “Dimitri! Stay with me! Please, don’t die on me!”
He wanted to tell her that he couldn’t stop himself from dying, that he deserved this anyway, but the words wouldn’t come. He felt weak, out of breath. It’d just be easier if he just...let himself slip away…
------------------------------------
He expected to find himself in the afterlife, burning eternally for the sins he’d committed, but that wasn’t the case. At first, he thought he’d found himself finding peace, but he still felt pain so that couldn’t have been the case. He managed to open his eye, finding himself looking up at a ceiling. It seemed that death had not claimed him, which meant he still had a job to do.
He attempted to sit up, he needed a better look of his surroundings, but he moved too fast. A pain in his torso shot through him as he hissed from the pain. Clutching where he felt the pain, he found that he was no longer wearing his armor. He’d been removed of his clothing, at least from the waist up as far as he could tell, and was wrapped in bandages. Before he could question things further, someone spoke to him.
“Dimitri! You’re awake!” He glanced to the source of the voice, finding Marianne von Edmund looking at him. She let out a sigh of relief before rushing to his side. “Try not to move so quickly, you’re still very injured. We tried our best to heal your wounds, but magic can only do so much.”
He wanted to disregard her words, he had to kill Edelgard, he didn’t have time to sit around in bed. But as much as he hated it, he was in no shape to fight her while he was still so injured. The pain he felt just trying to sit up was enough proof of that. He had to stay here until he could fight again. “...Fine.” he muttered, his voice strained and hoarse. How long had he been unconscious?
His answer seemed to satisfy her at least, as she gave a small smile. “Wait here, I’m sure you have a lot of questions but I can’t answer them. I’ll go get Claude and the professor,” She stood up and gestured to the table next to her. “There’s a glass of water here and some food if you need any. You’ve been out for a few days, so I’d be surprised if you didn’t need any. Feel free to ask me or the others if you need anything.” And with that, she left the room, looking back to see if he did need something before making her way out the door.
Well, at least the time alone would give him the chance to figure out where he was. It didn’t take long though, as he easily recognized the room as the infirmary of Garreg Mach. He was lying in a bed closest to the windows, and on the other side was indeed a glass of water and a tray with bread and cheese. He carefully grabbed the glass, not wanting to break it with his strength, and downed the entire contents. At least that way his voice wouldn’t sound so hoarse. Set aside on the other end of the room were his armor, lance, and shirt, the shirt folded on top of his cape which was also folded. Someone had washed them from the looks of it, as he couldn’t spot a single bloodstain. He felt his stomach rumble, remembering it had been a while since he’d last eaten, and grabbed a piece of cheese off of the food tray. At least he could still taste that.
He wasn’t sure how long it’d been since Marianne had left, but he heard a set of footsteps outside the door, three people from the sound of it. And soon the door opened, but only Claude and Byleth entered. Strange, he knew he heard a third person. Perhaps they went somewhere else?
“Glad to see you awake, Dimitri. We weren’t sure if you were gonna make it.” Claude flashed a grin at him. Some things never changed. Byleth just smiled at him, clearly relieved to see him alive. For a moment, Dimitri thought he saw something move behind them outside of the room, but he couldn’t tell for sure.
“Claude. Professor. So the rumors of you amassing an army were true,” he muttered, voice still a bit hoarse. He spoke not of whether he was thankful for being here or not, he wasn’t sure if he was grateful to be alive yet. “How did I get here?”
“Wow. Straight to the point I see,” Claude said. “After you passed out on the battlefield, we brought you back here and tried to heal your wounds. We’re not just gonna let the Empire claim your life after all.”
That was one question answered. “Is Dedue here?”
“Yes. He helped us bring you back here,” Byleth said. “He insisted on coming with us, we told Marianne to let him know you’re awake.”
Of course. Dedue would never leave his side no matter what. He could try to abandon him and he’d still find him. “How long must I stay in this bed?”
“That’s for the healers to decide, not us,” Byleth answered, crossing her arms. “You’ve been asleep for the past three days recovering from those wounds you suffered at Gronder. Manuela says that you’re lucky to be alive right now, a moment later and you wouldn’t have made it.”
Lucky? He didn’t feel lucky in the slightest. Luck was never on his side. “I see.”
“Don’t worry, we don’t intend on keeping you locked out of our strategy meetings just because you’re stuck in bed. It’s gonna take a while for you to be back in fighting condition, but we want your opinion too.” Claude added.
He wasn’t sure if that really mattered. He wasn’t fit for strategy discussions anyhow. But he was in no real state to argue, so he’d deal with it later. “...Why did you bother saving me?” The question slipped out before he could stop it.
Neither answered him. Claude seemed to glance at the doorway and Byleth looked over her shoulder. Once again, he thought he saw something move out there but he couldn’t see what it was. Perhaps he would never know. The pair looked back at him. “We can’t really answer that.”
That was a strange answer. “Very well. I have no other questions then. You can leave now.” His words came out more venomous than he intended, but it didn’t matter. He wished to be alone for a while so he could sort through his thoughts. And if that meant being harsh, then so be it.
Claude and Byleth frowned at each other before leaving the room, whispering to each other as they did. ...Perhaps he was too harsh. But he wanted some peace. Dedue would no doubt check in on him soon, and the healers would also return at some point. Silence usually invited the dead to haunt him, but he’d deal with it as he was accustomed to doing. He noticed that only one set of footsteps walked away from the infirmary though, meaning someone was still there. He briefly heard Claude’s voice talking to someone, but he couldn’t hear what it was about nor the other person. Perhaps it was the third person from before? Another set of footsteps left, but someone still remained outside.
For once, silence felt deafening. He had no idea who was out there and why they stayed. Minutes passed and no one came in. Knowing there was someone there was irritating him. After what felt like too long, Dimitri called out. “Whoever you are, if you wish to speak with me then get in here and get it over with!”
He heard a gasp, then a deep breath. A few more footsteps sounded until the person entered the room, and he was surprised to see who was standing there.
At first, he thought it was a ghost of his past, as the girl seemed unchanged from the way she was five years ago. Still clad in the female Garreg Mach uniform, brown hair still long, was a student from the Golden Deer house that he recognized easily. “...Katrina?” he muttered, blinking and seeing the way she truly looked. No longer was she clad in the old uniform, but now she wore an outfit of light purple and white fit for a noble versed in swordplay. The only other color was a yellow cape draped over her shoulders. Her hair was shorter as well, where before it had reached her back it now was past her shoulders. The small braid she used to wear on her left side was also gone. He did manage to spot a flower in her hair though, one he instantly recognized as a gladiolus, but he didn’t know if it was real or not. Yet despite the different appearance, it was clearly still Katrina von Richter.
He wasn’t sure whether he was overjoyed to see her after five years, or filled with dread that she’d come to see him.
It seemed she was also conflicted, as her expression was hard to read and she wasn’t looking him in the eye. If he didn’t know better, he’d think she was scared of him. Maybe she was, after the last time they’d spoken. Part of him felt that’d be preferable. She finally looked at him though, a nervous smile and nervous laughter following it. “Um, hello Dimitri.” she said.
Her voice...it’d been so long since he’d last heard it. Wait, no, he had heard it recently. She was the one calling for him before he fell in battle, she’d screamed his name and ran to save him. But why? Why her?
“Katrina, I suspect you are the one who saved me at Gronder Field?” he asked, his tone nowhere near as harsh as it was when telling Claude and Byleth to leave. He hadn’t tried to change it, it just came out that way.
She began twiddling her thumbs, looking everywhere else but him. “Uh, yeah. That was me. I’m surprised you knew it was me though.”
“I heard your voice calling out to me,” he said. “You begged me to stay with you, to not die on you.”
“Oh, you heard all that,” She looked down at her shoes, most certainly avoiding his gaze. Perhaps she was scared of him after all. Or at least that’s what he hoped for. He held no hatred for the Alliance noble, but he couldn’t let her back in. Not when she knew what he really was. She finally looked back at him though. “I meant all that, every word. I didn’t want you to die out there.”
She didn’t want him to die? Well, her saving him was obvious proof of that, but he still found it unbelievable. He had no reason to live, aside from avenging the dead who yelled in his ears. He was practically a dead man walking the earth already. What reason would she have to keep him alive though?
“Well? What reason do you have to see me now?” he asked, wanting to get things over with. The sooner she left, the easier it would be for him.
Katrina began to frown, and for a moment he thought he felt his heart sink at the sight of it. “I just...I wanted to see you again,” she admitted, a sadness present in her voice. “It’s been five years, everyone thought you were dead. And then you appear at Gronder Field out of the blue like that. Is it wrong for me to want to see you after all this time?”
Dimitri ignored the feeling in his chest, it served him no good after all. “I can’t stop you from coming here. Do whatever you wish, it doesn’t concern me,” He turned away towards the window, figuring it’d be easier if he wasn’t looking at her. “But if you have no other reason then leave.”
He thought he heard another sigh, but refused to turn and look at her. “...I see. I’ll go,” Her voice sounded even sadder somehow. Slow footsteps made their way out before pausing. “Let me know if you need anything, I’ll do what I can to help.” He didn’t respond, he simply waited until he was sure she’d left the room.
Katrina von Richter... Of course she’d be here. Of all the people he could’ve been saved by though, of all the people who he had to deal with, why did it have to be her? Hopefully he would have as little interaction with her as possible, it’d be better for them both in the end. He only intended to stay here until his wounds had healed enough, so reengaging things with her was pointless, a waste of time.
Despite it all, he found himself thinking back to the past, back to a time when things were simple…
-----------------------------------------
Dimitri smiled as he stood among his future classmates. It was good to make a first impression after all, and he had an image to uphold as the prince of Faerghus, and as the leader of the Blue Lions. He had exchanged pleasantries with the others, even meeting Edelgard and Claude, the leaders of the Black Eagles and the Golden Deer, but the evening was wearing on him. It was time for him to retire and settle in, he’d be spending a year here after all. He made his way out of the lively dining hall, intending to return to his room, only to run into someone when he stepped outside.
The other person, a girl with long brown hair he did not recognize, had fallen backward after their collision. “Oh goddess, I’m so sorry!” she exclaimed. “I didn’t see you there, I wasn’t paying attention and-” She looked up at him, a look of horror plain on her face. “Ohhhhhh no, I bumped into the prince! Please forgive me, I didn’t mean to do it!”
“You don’t need to apologize, I wasn’t looking where I was going either!” he insisted, hoping to help her calm down. He reached her hand towards her. “It was just an accident, there’s no harm done at all. Here, allow me to help you up.”
His words seemed to calm her, though she wouldn’t look him in the eye. Still, she took his hand and let him help her.
“Still, I should’ve been paying attention. It’s no good for me to go walking into royalty like that.” she said.
“I assure you, I take no offence. I see you know who I am, but I don’t believe I know anything about you. Might I know your name?” he asked.
“Oh, right, stupid me! My name is Katrina von Richter, I’m a noble from the Leicester Alliance! It’s an honor to meet you, Your Highness!” So her name was Katrina, he thought it was fitting for her.
“Please, there’s no need to be so formal with me. You’re not even from the Kingdom, so there’s no need to call me that. Dimitri will do just fine.”
“Oh, yeah, right. Dimitri it is then,” She began using her free hand to play with the small braid on her left side. He couldn’t help but notice how similar it was to the one Claude had. Was it a coincidence? Katrina finally made eye contact with him. “I’m sorry, I know I keep apologizing, but this isn’t exactly how I thought our first conversation would go.”
“Well, such things can’t be planned. You’re from the Alliance then? A shame, I would’ve loved to get to know you better.” He figured it’d be best to change the subject, lest she linger on their meeting any longer. It seemed to do the trick, as she let out a chuckle.
“I mean, it’s not as if that’s gonna keep us from talking to each other. You have a whole year to get to know me!” The awkward air surrounding them was dissipating.
“Well, perhaps you could be persuaded to join the Blue Lions?” He intended it as a joke, but she seemed to take it seriously.
“Ah, I’m afraid I can’t do that. I’m stuck in the Golden Deer, you see,” What’d she mean by that? Before he had the chance to ask, she changed the subject on him. “Are you leaving already? Most people are still enjoying the banquet.”
“It’s simply getting late. I’m starting to get worn out and was going to my room for the night,” he explained. “What about you? You left and now you’re going back in.”
Katrina let out a nervous laugh. “It just got too noisy in there for me, I needed to get out for a bit. Get some fresh air, you know?” Strange, he didn’t feel like it had gotten too loud at any point. He wasn’t going to argue though. He did recall seeing someone rush out earlier, though he hadn't really paid attention to who it was. Perhaps that was her.
“I see. Anyway, I do hope you enjoy your evening, Katrina. And I do hope I get to know you more.”
“Uh, yeah! Likewise!” She began to look down and noticed that she was still holding his hand. She jerked her hand away, looking back at him in embarrassment. “I’ll uh, just be going now! See you later!” With that, she stepped past him and rushed into the dining hall.
For a moment, he could only watch her as she left. Katrina von Richter, what a strange girl she was. Even though he felt it would be a bad idea, part of him wanted to know what was going on inside her head. Perhaps if their paths crossed again, he could learn more about her. But he wouldn’t pursue her, no. It’d be best for him not to get too close to her, for her sake if nothing more. She didn’t deserve to be hurt by his actions after all. He walked back to his room, wondering what the upcoming year would bring.