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Magician's Apprentice | Hubert von Vestra

"Please?"

"No."

"Pretty please?"

"No."

"Pretty please with a cherry on top?"

Hubert sighed, using his fingers to press up against the bridge of his nose. "Do tell, (Y/N), why do you want to learn magic so badly?"

"Because!" You replied, "I'm already good with white magic- healing and all that shit, but I wanna learn some dark magic too. You know, to get the hang of it all."

"There's got to be some ulterior motive."

"There isn't," You laughed, trying to not be suspicious. "I genuinely just want to fight better."

"Fine," Hubert replied, "Meet me in the library tomorrow before breakfast."

Your eyes widened, "Before breakfast? That's so early-"

"Do you want to learn or not? I am not taking time out of my regular schedule just to teach someone like you. Lady Edelgard needs my assistance." He huffed.

"No, no," You waved your hands frantically, "Before breakfast in the library, I'll be there."

You turned away and your smile faded a little. Yeah, you wanted to learn dark magic, but you really wanted to get closer to Hubert. Something about his unavailable nature just intrigued you. You wanted to get to know him and eventually, your interest blossomed into a small crush. But was it really worth waking up so early for?

Yes, it was.

— — —

No, it wasn't.

You rubbed the sleep out of your eyes as you trudged to the library, cursing yourself. The sky was still dark outside the windows. Your head hurt slightly from having to force yourself awake, but you couldn't back out after the first day. What would Hubert think of you then?

Rounding the corner into the library, you spotted said man already sitting at one of the tables. He had a pile of books surrounding him and he was immersed in one of them, not noticing you standing in the doorway. You started to walk quietly forward, careful not to startle him. Finally, his eyes lifted from the book to look over at you.

"You look messy."

"Gee, thanks." You rolled your eyes, pulling out a seat beside him. "It's totally not like I only got like 3 hours of sleep."

"That's ridiculous." He replied, "Whatever reason you had for staying up so late is invalid. Sleep is needed to get stronger."

You only nodded, yawning. "Thanks dad, what do we do for day one?"

"You'll be reading up on the tomes, first. No magic until you know the logistics."

"Ugh, fine."

Days went by and every day, before breakfast, you got up early and began studying with Hubert. He'd scold you about your sleeping habits every day, telling you that you would get sick or injured if you didn't take better care of yourself. You paid no mind to it, though, instead turning the tables back on him. He was getting up just as early as you were, he should be worried about his own health as well. On the seventh day of lessons, you just couldn't keep your eyes open any longer. Your head nodded down for the fifth time in the span of 30 minutes, your eyelids heavy.

Hubert looked up from his own book, ready to give you more instruction, but instead, he found you slumped over, your head quite literally buried in a textbook. He shook his head, feeling a small smile creep onto his face. You were a hard worker, and you were really serious about learning this magic, but he hated how you were neglecting your sleep. He knew that you had been staying up late studying and practicing on your own in order to improve more outside of his teachings. It was endearing, really, how serious you were about learning.

Plus, you had been working for a week, nonstop. He wouldn't think so with anyone else, but Hubert believed that you deserved a little bit of rest. Stable magic comes with a stable mind, after all. Especially dark magic. You wouldn't be able to do much if you were sleep-deprived.

Hubert placed a bookmark in his book and closed it, standing up and picking you out of the library chair. He cradled you close to his chest, trying to ignore the small swarm of butterflies that erupted in his stomach.

Swallow them, Hubert. He thought. There is no time for feelings right now.

But, seeing you in his arms, sleeping peacefully, he couldn't help but think about a time when war wasn't a threat. He walked you back to your room, bashfully fantasizing about a happy future where he was serving Lady Edelgard in the day and came back to you for the evenings.

As Hubert shifted you in his arms to open your door, you suddenly awoke. You looked around, trying to regain your bearings before looking up and making eye contact with Hubert. He looked into your eyes as well and you noticed a certain softness that had never been there before. The two of you continued to stare for a bit until you decided to break the silence.

"I'm sorry for falling asleep during our lesson."

"Don't worry about it," Hubert responded, "You deserve rest, I believe. You've been working very hard lately."

You laughed, "I could do more. I just want to be better."

Hubert carried you into your room and laid you on your bed. "You're doing fine, but you also need to take care of yourself. Sleep for a few more hours, I'll tell Lady Edelgard that you weren't feeling well and I'll have Caspar bring you breakfast."

You flushed a little, not used to seeing Hubert treat anyone so nicely. "That's not necessary-"

"It is. You are going to rest today. My orders."

"Oh, okay," You grabbed Hubert's hand, pressing a small kiss to the top of it. "Thank you, Hubert."

"Don't- don't mention it." He pulled his hand away to stroke your hair for a second before turning and leaving.