Chapter Text
“Tch! To hell with tradition!” Felix’s voiced echoed down the hall “This is stupid, you’re telling me I can’t see her!?!”
“I’m sorry, it simply cannot be allowed”
Sylvain let his grip around his friend’s arms tighten a little as Seteth spoke anticipating Felix’s desire to punch his lights out. Predictably so, Felix lurched towards him with only the redhead stopping his rage.
“ON WHOSE ORDERS” he scrambled about in Sylvain’s arms. He would look frightening if he wasn’t in his finest ceremonial clothes.
The day had come, Felix & Byleth’s wedding & inauguration. Today they would become both Lord & Lady Fraldarius and The Archbishop & blessed consort. It was a massive event set to draw hundreds from across the country and beyond. Preparations had taken months and now, finally, it was time...except...
Felix had been preparing himself in his old dormitory when a knock came at the door. Seteth, with a message that the bride and soon-to-be-archbishop had taken ill.
“I understand you are upset but we must obey the goddess’s will”
“BULLSHIT” he used all he could to break out of his best man’s arms and barge past the Saint in his doorway.
“Lord Fraldarius I-“
“Say Seteth” Sylvain quickly slid between the green-haired man and the door “Is Flayn seeing anyone at the moment?”
Felix ran through the monastery, passing many confused guests and friends without much acknowledgement. He had to be with Byleth. The night before had been hard even with all the wine Dimitri and Sylvain had forced him to drink; he could deal with being apart if that was what she wanted, but now he needed to see her. In all his time with the professor she had never once coughed, never caught a cold, she seemed immune to even the most contagious flus. Byleth didn’t get sick.
His thoughts spiralled as he ran up the stairs; what if she was nervous? Was she having second thoughts? Maybe it was all a ruse and she’d secretly ran off with somebody else? No, she wouldn’t do that. Still, the thoughts lingered. He was anxious too, scared for the future, worried that he wasn’t good enough for her.
As he reached the second floor Byleth’s bedroom door was open-
“Felix!”
-until Ingrid promptly closed it.
He ran towards it and fought the urge to pound on the door. If Byleth was poorly he didn’t want to startle her more.
“You shouldn’t be here” his friend said from behind the door. She didn’t seem certain of her words which gave Felix a little hope.
“Give me a good reason that isn’t the word ‘tradition’ or some bad luck madness”
The door opened just a crack and Ingrid peaked her head around it.
“Well, she’s in a bit of a state and I’m sure she wouldn’t appreciate y-AH! FELIX”
The dark haired groom barged his way through the door not willing to hear any more. He found her on the floor of her ensuite, still in her nightdress. Her eyes were red and swollen, a stark contrast to her pale skin. She was shaking, leaning against the bathroom wall with her hands curled around her stomach. The sight, paired with the stench of vomit, made him uncomfortable to the core.
“By...”
Felix was sat with her in an instant, taking his cloak and wrapping it around her. Holding a hand to her forehead he noticed it was a lot warmer than normal.
“F-Felix...don’t worry about me”
He looked her dead in the eyes
“Are you kidding me By?” his tone was serious but still soft. Byleth was so fragile he didn’t know what it would take to make her shatter completely, he was as gentle as he could be. “I’ve never seen you like this, of course I’m worried”
“You...sh-shouldn’t be here”
“Are you going to tell me to leave?”
She smiled and curled up against him.
“No”
The young man sighed and looked over his shoulder to see Ingrid standing in the doorway.
“Did Manuela say anything?”
She shook her head “It was strange, she said Byleth would have to tell me”
This only furthered Felix’s confusion. Had Byleth known about this before? How long had she been ill? Should he have noticed? Whatever this was, Manuela had only told Byleth, bizarre for a woman who spread gossip like it was butter on several yards of toast. He ran a hand through his fiancé’s hair “Byleth” and gently coaxed her to look up at him “Will you tell me?” he cupped her cheek and used his other hand to gently wipe the tears from her eyes “Will you tell me what’s wrong?”
Byleth blushed, losing herself in Felix’s brown eyes. Just as she opened her mouth to speak she gasped and spun over to the toilet bowl. Felix held her hair away from her face, rubbing gentle circles on her back as an interesting thought came to his head. The last week he’d noticed Byleth was paler in the mornings but he hadn’t thought much of it. It was still early now and...goddess when had she last bled?
He turned his attention back to her as the sickness seemed to slow. She slumped back into him, groaning in discomfort.
“Byleth...are you...” he didn’t even know if he could say what he was about to, surely he must be imagining things. There was no way they’d already... “Are you pregnant?”
A gentle nod confirmed his suspicions.
Felix sat there stunned, holding onto Byleth like she was the life raft stopping him from drowning in his thoughts. A baby.
“OW” “AH CAREFUL” “THAT HURTS THAT HURTS” “STOP TUGGING LIKE THAT”
“Then don’t fidget you big baby”
“Sylvain hold still, I’m just trying to help”
Felix and Sylvain sat side by side in a back room of the cathedral, the gentle buzz of the guests seeping through the walls. Behind Felix was Annette armed with hair ties and pins for her war against Felix’s hair. In front of Sylvain was Mercedes with a damp cloth.
“I can’t believe Seteth punched you” Felix smirked at his friend, blood still running from the redhead’s nose.
“I kinda deserved it, called Flayn a SILF”
“...a what?”
“Saint I’d Like to Fu-“
Mercedes slapped him round the face with the cloth. “Not in the cathedral Sylvain!”
Felix winced as Annette continued with her creation before finally patting him in the shoulder and declaring him a ‘masterpiece’. Maybe so, but could he be a father? He wanted to tell them, console in his friends, but Byleth had made him swear to keep it a secret. At least Ingrid knew, she could understand his dread too having known him and his family longer than anybody else. After what his father did to him...how could he say with certainty that he would be any better? The monastery bells rang out signalling time for him to put those thoughts aside and worry about something else; his wedding.
He could have sworn he heard Mercedes swear as she hurried to tidy up Sylvain, he’d really gotten himself in a mess. Annette yelled at him and tugged him up from his chair, straightening both his clothes and her own. All his friends had really made an effort and he was thankful for that. His other groomsman, a certain king of a certain country appeared in the doorway looking flustered.
“Are you coming? I can’t stand out there alone for much longer, people will think it’s my wedding”
“Relax Dimitri” Sylvain got up, a bandage now securely on his broken nose “Everybody knows your wedding is 6 months from now, we all got the invitations”
6 months... not long really but...quite long if you’re-
“Really you should be out there Felix”
He nodded and followed after his friend, poor broken Sylvain following suspiciously happily behind him. The cathedral was packed, everyone he’d ever spoken to was there, mingled among faces he wasn’t sure he recognised. He had to remember that this was also a major political event, there would be guests here just to be won over. Felix smiled lightly to Seteth as he walked to stand by him. The Saint would be officiating the ceremony, he hoped his newly bandaged hand wouldn’t get in the way of it. Everyone was staring at him, Byleth had warned him about this. He hated the spotlight, she’d reassured him “Just this one moment and then you will never need to do anything like this again”. Need...sure he wouldn’t need to, but he knew Byleth would have to hold regular ceremonies and even though he didn’t need to be there...how could he not? He hoped this wouldn’t be a baptism of fire. He hoped she was okay.
The bells rang out again and the choir began to sing. Seteth motioned to the crowds to stand as Felix’s heart began to race. She was here. He would hear the crowd reacting, the aws and mutterings; he could hear her shoes on the cathedral floor, and Alois’ much heavier steps. Sylvain and Dimitri had immediately turned to her and were beaming beside him.
“You’re so lucky Fe, you’ve caught a good one” Sylvain winked
“A true beauty if ever I saw one” Dimitri didn’t take his eyes off her
He didn’t want to turn around. He was scared that if he turned around it would stop being real. The nerves rampaged through him, could he be a husband? A father? Pure panic set in but he tried to remain calm, obviously not working as Seteth shot him a concerned glare. The world seemed to phase out as he got lost in worries but then-
A hand tapped him on the shoulder. She was here.
He turned and time seemed to stop as he took in her beauty. All his anxieties slipped away and there was only her. He didn’t care where they were or who was looking, she was perfect, she was beautiful, she was his. Byleth’s hair was woven with white roses, strands cradling her face like the goddess had styled the look herself. Her dress was simple but stunning. Plain white and fitted with long sleeves but it fell away from her gently at the waist, a small train of fabric running behind her. Her veil lay softly over her back and shoulders, a light white with an intricate flower pattern stitched in. She was perfect.
“Hi”
“...Hi”
“Are you ok?”
“...I think so, are you?”
She smiled and blushed “I think so”
He took her hand and turned to face Seteth. It was time to move forward and begin a new life with Byleth, his soulmate forever.
“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to celebrate the union of this man, and this woman....”