Work Text:
Byleth never got to attend the festivals during harvest time. She was a nearly non-verbal child who did not interact with others and shut down all too easily. So even when her father’s mercenary company was garrisoned in a market town during harvest season, Jeralt had never dared to take her to attend the festivities.
If Byleth wanted to be bitter, she might have thought Jeralt did not consider her worth the effort it would have cost him to take her to a crowded festival with loud noises, myriad of smells and confusing visuals. But Byleth knew her father did the best he could with a child that was far from normal.
In contrast to Byleth, Dimitri had many happy memories of harvest time with his own father. “The pumpkin tarts are my favourites,” Dimitri was telling her as they got dressed together in the antechamber of their bedroom, “I wish I could still taste them but even now, the smell and texture is enough to make my mouth water.”
Oh, what Byleth wouldn’t give to be able to turn back time on Dimitri’s body and heal his myriad of injuries, give him back his eyes, his sense of taste and remove the scars, even the ones he was proud of but course, Dimitri would not let her, even if she could. He did not believe in erasing history.
“Mama!” cried Rodrigue as he rushed into the room, “Look, look, look!” her little boy said excitedly as he turned in circles to show off his blue lion costume.
“Oh! You look wonderful!” Byleth exclaimed. It was hard for her to exaggerate her emotions like this but she knew that kids needed the exaggeration to aid with understanding. It was a small pain to take for her lion cub.
“Come here my little lion,” said Dimitri as he scooped him up, “You look great!” he looked towards the doorway where Mercedes stood watching them with a soft smile on her lips, “Thank you!”
“The pleasure was mine,” she replied, “I love dressing the kids!” she had supplied costumes not only for Rodrigue but all the children of her classmates, “You two look great too!”
“Thank you,” Byleth smiled as she gave her witch costume an unnecessary brush.
“You really think a vampire suits me?” wondered Dimitri, looking at himself sceptically in the mirror.
“Of course it suits you, my sexy vampire king,” Byleth teased bluntly because Rodrigue wasn’t the only one who benefitted from exaggerated praise.
Dimitri blushed, “Beloved!” as he cuddle covered Rodrigue’s ears.
Mercedes laughed, “Well, have fun you three but don’t have too many sweets! You wouldn’t want a tummy ache!”
“We’ll be careful,” Byleth assured her, “Come now my lion cub, let’s go to the harvest festival!” the first for her boy, the first for herself, the first for them as a family but hopefully, the first of many to come!
