The Bright Star [Fire Emblem: Three Houses AU]

The Power of Crests (Jeralt)

Jeralt, Byleth, and Edelgard sat at one of the spare tables in the ballroom. The tables in the ballroom that the students used to sit down and eatcircular shape, covered by a white cloth. Some tables were larger than others and were able to support more people than the smaller ones, and those tables had a small candles on top of them. The table where the three sat down was a smaller one.

"So you two were dancing, huh?" Jeralt asked. "You two seemed nice from afar."

Edelgard nodded. "Yes, we were. Your son's footwork is excellent. Reminds me of how I used to be a dancer as well. Now it's a casual thing for me."

"Well, you're the imperial princess, so I would expect you to be taught some dancing. You know what I mean?"

"All of my sisters knew how to dance, so they taught me as well."

"Must be nice having older siblings to help guide you," Byleth said.

"Some were, some weren't," Edelgard explained. "I'm the heir of the Empire because I have a Crest, and all of my older siblings were Crestless. Some despised me because I got the most attention from our father, or that's how they say it. But others were understanding in knowing that I guess I just got lucky, and they didn't."

Jeralt paid close attention to Edelgard's wording. "Were?" he asked. "They ordered the Knights to stay out of that during that Insurrection in the Empire. Did they not find any of the Empire's other children alive after all?"

She nodded solemnly. "Unfortunately. I was the only survivor, and it was thanks to the power of my Crest." 

Byleth looked at Edelgard. "I never understood the situation very well. Why did Duke Ludwig want to take over the Empire?"

"That I don't know myself in detail, but I guess he didn't agree with several of the Empire's rules," Jeralt answered. "He's been by the side of Emperor Ionius IX ever since but has more power than him. Ionius only is just a figure for House Hresvelg."

"I am already of age to become the emperor of Adrestia, so when I graduate from the academy, I plan to succeed my father, defeat Ludwig, and restore peace to Adrestia." Edelgard looked to Byleth. "May I ask if you're available any time soon, Byleth?"

"I'm going to spend some time with the Blue Lions tomorrow as per their request, and Lady Rhea might need me for the next few days," Byleth replied.

"You also still have some training to do," Jeralt added. "You're almost done, though, and after you complete your training, I'll appoint you to the high ranks of the Knights of Seiros. You've done well all these years."

"Yes, and that too. What do you need me for?"

"I'd rather we talk about this in private. Are you willing to come to my dorm after school sometime to discuss this?"

"Yeah, I don't mind. I'll try to find some time to do so."

"Hey, Edelgard!" Ferdinand called from another table. "Do you think you can come over here for a second?"

Edelgard turned. "Yes, Ferdinand!" She looked back to Jeralt and his son. "Ferdinand needs me. Catch you guys another time?"

"Catch ya then," Jeralt said as Edelgard left to see Ferdinand. He turned to his son. "She looks seems determined. But it seems odd that she would want you to come and discuss with her about something. I'll give you some time before your knight training to go talk to her the day after tomorrow. You can talk to her about it. But it seems odd to me for her to ask you about that, so can you tell me what she told you?"

"Of course," Byleth said. "There's a separate corner where they're serving drinks to attendees that are of age to drink. Would you like to get something to drink?"

"As if you'd think I'd say no to that question." Jeralt smiled and stood up. "Come with me, kid." Jeralt went with his son to get a beer each and sat down once again to enjoy their drinks. Byleth preferred smaller portions of alcohol, while Jeralt didn't hesitate to go full-on out with his portions.

"Oh my, Father," Byleth said. "You gonna be alright?"

"Relax, Byleth," Jeralt said, taking a large sip. "I've been able to tolerate this for quite a long time. Haha, my Crest might have to do with that."

"Even if a Crest were to help me, I'd still prefer my smaller portions." Byleth took a sip.

"Yeah, we always were never able to tell if you had a Crest or not. It's like... Well, as Rhea said, it was 'difficult to tell'."

"What made her say it was so difficult to tell if I had a Crest or not? I thought it was simple and easy to tell at birth if one had a Crest. Wouldn't ply to me?"

"I had returned back to the monastery after a long mission that took the Knights and me several days to complete. When I returned, Rhea notified me that Sitri had given birth to you a couple of hours prior. She escorted me to Sitri, and on the way, I asked her if you had inherited my Crest. She looked at me and told me it was complicated. After that, I saw Sitri and asked her about it. She said that Lady Rhea told her she wasn't sure. A couple of days later, I asked Rhea again, and she told me that it was 'almost interchangeable. I wasn't sure what she meant, but every time I asked her she would give me the same answer and pretty much refuse to elaborate further. Eventually I got tired of asking her about it knowing I would get the same response everytime, so I just gave up and it didn't often cross my mind. When it came up though, it was like I knew you have and don't have a Crest at the same time."

"I see. So not even Lady Rhea knows."

"I thought she talked to you about your green hair and eyes. Maybe she explained your Crest had something to do with it."

Byleth looked to his father. "I need to speak to you about this in private."