Chapter Text
Six months before this story begins, the war had ended at last, and the process of rebuilding the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus had begun. But nothing ever comes that easily, as the new king and his allies well knew.
Faerghus was now a much bigger kingdom than it had once been, as now it contained the former Adrestia and Leicester territories as well. And all three territories had been ravaged by the war. The new ruler, King Dimitri, had a long road ahead of him in his work to restore peace and prosperity.
Not that he minded his work. In fact, he practically embraced it. He saw his work as a way to redeem himself for the terrible things he had done during the long years of the war, and he loved his people greatly.
But he had so much work, and he was so easily caught up in it, that he had never learned the art of taking breaks. His friends were growing worried about him and his inability to take care of himself, particularly his nearest and dearest—the ones who lived with him in Fhirdiad Castle.
The first of these was his wife, Queen Byleth, who had gone from professor to confidant to beloved. She was very busy herself; she was the new archbishop of the Church of Seiros, which had suffered greatly from the war as well. Byleth worked to restore the power and strength of the church, and also to make it into a more forgiving, open-minded power than it had been under the previous archbishop’s regime. And so she knew the importance of work as much as her husband did…but she worried about him, especially as she knew full well that moderation had never been his strong suit.
The other was the king’s best friend and close ally, Dedue. He lived to serve the new king and queen, and was protective enough of them to make them shake their heads at times. And his overprotectiveness made him agree wholeheartedly with the queen: the king needed a break, regardless of the state that Faerghus was still in.
Dimitri had two advisors, to be sure, but they had not truly taken part in the war, nor had they been former students at the Officers Academy. They did not know the king the way his friends and allies did.
This story truly begins when Byleth made up her mind that Dimitri could not go on much longer working day in and day out, and Dedue quietly agreed with her.
And so, this is the story of how King Dimitri learned work-life balance—more or less.