All This Time

Broken Promises

His Teach was not one counted of the dead.

For that, Claude was grateful. There was no confirmation that she had bit the dust.

But...she was also not accounted as living, either.

Missing.

"Hey, boy. How are you holding up?"

Claude jumped in his seat, startled as he turned to see Judith. She was regarded as the Hero of Daphnel, and she never bothered to knock on his doors. Claude sighed, running a hand through his dark hair.

"Y'know, there is such a thing called knocking," Claude shook his head from side to side, sitting back down. "And don't call me that."

"Knocking takes too long," Judith's eyes crinkled with laughter, but her face soon sobered. "But really. Are you alright?"

"Me? Why wouldn't I be?" Claude knew he had to keep up a strong exterior. His grandfather was in declining health, and he was going to have to step up as the leader of the Leicester Alliance. Claude couldn't do that if everyone knew he was grieving.

"I heard about your professor," Judith started, and then cut herself off abruptly. Judith restarted her sentence with a different wording, as if it somehow reduced the severity of it. "She's missing, isn't she? I knew how much she meant to you from the letters-"

"She was my Teach," Claude shrugged, averting his gaze to his desk. His Teach. He had seen how the term had gotten Byleth flustered, so he kept calling her it just to see her frustrated. He wondered just when he had fallen in love-

Claude, she's gone, He had to repeat to himself. There's no point in despairing. You have to move on.

He laughed, confusing Judith. Claude knew he couldn't move on. No, his Teach wasn't dead, but she also wasn't alive. If he was right, then she had never really been truly alive in the first place; well, not until she had met him. She'd said it herself. It was too early to start despairing.

She was still out there.

"My boy, are you-"

"I'm fine," Claude reassured her with a wave of his hand. She's not dead. She's missing, and she'll come back to me when she can. I know it. She won't stay down for long, not with a war coming. "Don't worry, Judith. I just needed some time to think things over."

"You say not to worry," Judith sighed, disagreeing with him. "But I can never believe you when you say that."

"Everything will be okay. I know it."

———

"No matter how hard you look, you won't see what I'm scheming."

Claude smirked as he took a sip of his tea. His Teach kept sneaking glances at him, and he placed his teacup down. She had somehow managed to find his favorite tea, the one with Almyran pine needles. Claude wondered if she knew about his actual heritage, or if it had been a lucky guess.

Either way, Claude folded his hands in front of him and watching her calculatingly. He found her so mysterious; she walked around with a blank stare, and seemed to have little emotions. Yet, Claude also sensed that she had more than that to her. Behind her stone gaze, he could tell that she had feelings that were just waiting to be unlocked.

Maybe Claude was able to read her because he was the same. Well, not so much on the lack of emotions part, but Claude couldn't remember the last time someone truly understood that he was putting on a mask. Everyone just assumed that he had no worries.

In reality, all Claude did was worry.

Claude turned his attention back towards his Teach, chuckling as she mindlessly gazed at his face.

"Is my face really that interesting?" Claude felt his cheeks redden at his own question. She snapped out of it, looking down.

"I zoned out."

"C'mon, answer the question Teach!" Claude teased her playfully. He wasn't expecting her to actually blush.

"N-No, it's not," Byleth quickly regained her blank composure, but her little tell showed Claude that she did actually possess emotions. "I was just lost in thought."

"Clearly. Ah, I'm afraid I stayed too long," Claude winced after watching the sunset. "Let's do this again sometime."

They'd had tea so many times throughout the year, it might have been unhealthy.

At first, it was just because Claude was trying to get on her good side. Gradually, he just wanted to learn more about his Teach. She began to open up to him too, actually speaking about herself sometimes.

He wished that he could talk to her over tea right now.

Claude didn't want to take over responsibility of the Leicester Alliance. If, no, when he had to, he wouldn't be able to focus all his energy onto locating his Teach.

He'd have to put blind faith into her coming back. Claude detested hoping and relying on destiny, but it almost seemed like there was no choice.

Can we go back to simpler days?

———

"I promise."

She leaned into him, embracing him in a slow, gentle kiss. Claude pulled her closer to him, enjoying how a wave of heat ran through him. She was intoxicating, and Claude couldn't get enough.

His Teach pulled away from him, abruptly standing up. Confused, Claude followed her as she walked away. Eventually, she made her way to an iron sword in the training ground.

"I'm sorry, but I have to keep my promise."

She gripped the iron sword in her hand, and promptly lunged right at him-

Claude awoke in a cold sweat.

Just another nightmare, Claude shook his head. Every now and then, he'd have nightmares about his missing Teach. Her death was prominent in most of them, but this was the first time she'd ever really betrayed him in a dream. That's what you get for finally trusting someone.

She didn't betray me. That was just a dream.

She betrayed my promise! Claude's more skeptical side yelled back at her. It was practically the same thing as being pierced by a sword.

Not wanting to argue with himself any longer, Claude settled back down and sighed.

She'll come back. He knew she couldn't stay down forever.

i just wanted to say thank you so much for reading. i know i have many more popular books but this one means the most to me :)

seriously tho. i'm obsessed and i love writing this book

thank you so much for reading and i hope you'll continue!