Chapter Text
When Lorenz had blacked out after Byleth knocked him from his horse, he'd expected that to be the end. He couldn't have asked for a nobler death, dying to protect his family name. All he could ask for was a burial fitting of a noble.
So bright light pushing underneath his eyelashes came as a surprise. Was this what one saw after death? Was the Goddess coming to collect him? Did he deserve her attention?
When he opened his eyes, Lorenz found that the light was ordinary sunlight, filtering in through the open curtains. Shifting, despite the pain that shot down his side, he tried to take in the space around him. He was on a bed, the sheets had been pulled up to his chin almost. There wasn't much to see out of the window, nothing but blinding sunlight. There was nothing he could see on the one wall and attempts to sit up just made the pain worse, almost unbearable.
"Be careful. Marianne patched you up well enough, but it takes a while for bruised ribs to heal. And you've got plenty of bruises."
That voice was painfully familiar. Lorenz wasn’t sure whether that was a blessing or a curse. He supposed there were worse places to be or people to wake up to. Despite the urge to disobey, just for stubbornness’ sake, Lorenz lay back down, settling on his back this time rather than his left side. He looked around for Claude but still couldn’t see him. “The least you could do if you’ve come to torment me is let me see your face.”
Claude laughed, a deep rich laugh. Claude had always laughed so openly, so freely, as though life were easy and stress-free, though Lorenz knew better than that. “And here I thought you wouldn’t want to see me. But torment? Do you really think I would do that to you?”
Claude finally came into view. It had been some time since Lorenz last saw him. The beard was certainly new and Lorenz had to admit it suited him. To himself, never out loud. It made him look more mature, more like a proper leader, rather than a boy who couldn’t take things seriously. Lorenz knew Claude had never really been like that, it was a facade he put on, to keep spirits high and avoid questions. “Judging by our time at the academy, torment sounds just like you.”
Claude grinned. Oh Lorenz hated that grin. “I suppose I did put you through a lot back then, but you were just so fun to mess with. All the dramatics without any of the danger of Hilda.”
Now Lorenz couldn’t blame Claude for the choice in target. He’d seen the results of Hilda’s revenge several times before since Claude couldn’t always resist himself despite the risks. “Where, pray tell, am I? And how did I get here?”
“One of my family’s estates. As for how, Byleth sent for me to retrieve you.”
“Why didn’t they just kill me?”
Claude raised an eyebrow, the familiar look he gave when Lorenz asked what he thought was a silly question. “You know the answer to that.”
Lorenz did. The professor, despite not teaching their class, had gotten close to all of the students at the officer’s academy in one way or another. They considered themselves responsible for all of them. No doubt they had seen right through him, to find that he did not want to fight, but he couldn’t risk disappointing his family either. “Who retrieved me then?”
“I did.”
If Lorenz could have sat up in disbelief he would have. Instead, he leaned up onto his right shoulder, quickly sinking back down as another jolt of pain ran down his side. “Alone?”
“On my Wyvern, but yes. Ashe and Ingrid met me about halfway.”
“Are you stupid? We’re in the middle of a war. You aren’t just some common soldier.” Never mind that they were on opposite sides.
“Neither are you.”
“I’m an enemy, Claude.” Lorenz didn’t point out that he was as good as dead back then and hardly worth the risk, even if he’d been an ally.
“Of my portion of the Alliance, yes, but not of me.”
“How can you be so sure?”
Claude smiled at that, not a teasing one, but a knowing smile. The sort of smile he wore when he had information he wasn’t going to share. “Get some rest. I’ll have Marianne check in on you later and bring you something for the pain in a bit.” He paused for a moment at the bedside, as though he wanted to say something else or do something, before leaving the room without a word.
Lorenz heard the lock click into place. He supposed that was to be expected.
Years later and Claude was still as infuriating as ever, playing games only he knew about and avoiding giving any answers.
Lorenz didn’t want to rest. He wanted to get up, though he had no idea what he would do, his body simply would not let him. He fell back asleep before he had even a moment to resist.
*********
This time when Lorenz awoke the sun was much lower and no longer blinded him. The view outside his window didn’t contain much that he could see laying down, just some trees in the distance. His side didn’t seem to hurt as much, but there was only one way to really be certain. Slowly Lorenz pulled himself up into a seated position, gritting his teeth as the muscles complained, though it wasn’t the stabbing pain from earlier.
The room hadn’t changed much, but there was a glass of water by the bed along with some medicine, which meant Marianne had already come to visit. He would have to thank her later, but he appreciated being left to sleep. She was an excellent healer and Lorenz had no doubt he would be feeling much better in no time.
The door’s lock clicked and soon after the door swung open, revealing a tray of food. Rather than Marianne as Lorenz had hoped it was Claude. The brunette smiled at him, pushing the door closed with his foot before heading over to the bed. “I brought you something to eat. Thought you might be hungry.” He set the tray off to the side, then moved to prop up some pillows for Lorenz to lean against.
“I’m not completely helpless, you know.”
“That doesn’t mean I can’t be nice.” Once Claude was satisfied with the pillows, he nudged Lorenz to settle up against them. After Lorenz was settled, he set the tray over his lap.
The food was rather plain, but considering he was essentially a prisoner it was far nicer than Lorenz had expected. A bowl of chicken stew was the main course, accompanied by a chunk of bread and some fresh fruit. Rather than another glass of water, there was a cup of steaming hot tea. That caught Lorenz’s attention first and he brought the cup to his lips, taking a deep breath. He recognized the smell at once, the rose petal blend he’d kept back at the Academy. It wasn’t just any rose petal blend, but the exact one. He’d recognize it anywhere. A sip confirmed his guess.
“I can get you a full pot if you’d like. It wouldn’t fit on the tray.” Claude had moved a chair so that he could sit beside the foot of the bed.
Lorenz looked up briefly from his drink, took another sip, then carefully returned the cup to the tray. “Rather generous fare for a prisoner, don’t you think?”
“Not for a friend.”
There he went again. Lorenz had clearly chosen his side, yet Claude decidedly ignored it. They weren’t at the Academy anymore. Life wasn’t as simple. One had to consider all of their allegiances, not just friendships from five years before. Part of Lorenz wasn’t even sure if they had been friends then, given how much they argued and bickered, but he supposed Claude might have seen them as such.
Rather than reply, Lorenz set to eating his food. Despite its plain looks, the soup was actually quite delicious. The chicken was tender, as were the vegetables, and it was clear that the broth had simmered for some time before the bones were removed. The bread wasn’t fresh from the oven, but couldn’t have been more than a day old. The orange slices were sweet with just a hint of tartness.
“I suppose it's to your liking, seeing as you’ve eaten most of it.”
Lorenz paused to take another sip of tea before replying. “Perhaps I was just near starved considering how long I was unconscious.” They both knew it wasn’t true. Lorenz would have to be on the brink of death to eat something he didn’t like and even then the odds weren’t great.
“If you say so.”