we're flying through the night

[darkseal]

[There are a lot of things Hubert knows for certain.

He knows that Lady Edelgard will take the throne and usher in a new era for Fódlan. He knows that his duty is to serve Lady Edelgard, regardless of personal cost. He knows that he would do anything and everything for her. He knows that his entire being is devoted to her, completely. He knows that nothing can stand in the way of her conquest or of his devotion.

He also knows that he's been coughing up flower petals for exactly a week now.

Hanahaki Disease is certainly not uncommon in the monastery; most of them are a bunch of stupid teenagers, it certainly isn't surprising that several of them have managed to find themselves developing feelings for someone. Such a stupid, pointless thing should have been limited to the dumb teenagers who have nothing to worry about but grades and their stupid, pointless feelings for one another.

This shouldn't be happening to someone like him. Perhaps he would be taking the situation more seriously if his feelings were for Lady Edelgard - although a situation like that is a bit horrifying to imagine. He would never betray her trust in such a way. He loves her, certainly. But not like that. That would only cause problems.

No, these feelings have come from someone else; someone entirely unexpected.

Marianne.

It's been four months since they met. In truth, he doesn't recall much of their first interaction. Claude had called Lady Edelgard over (which meant he had come with her) to introduce the others in his house as they ate breakfast. All he can remember is assessing the individuals to see if any of them could potentially be useful to the future Empress or if they could pose a threat. Marianne hadn't stood out at the time.

She hadn't stood out much when they'd first ended up talking either. It had been during some downtime, when she was tending to the animals and he was doing his usual patrols around the grounds. He'd startled the horses she was tending to so badly it had taken her quite a long time to calm them down. He had lingered a bit - curiosity compelling him to stay and watch - but he doesn't recall much of their conversation that day. Marianne was just as quiet as he had figured.

They met a few times like that, where she took care of the horses and pegasi and he watched. Despite being the most intimidating student in the academy (because he was certainly more intimidating than Dedue), she had let him remain there without much in the way of commentary.

Eventually, she ended up joining their class. Professor Byleth is certainly a skilled instructor (despite their lack of experience in teaching), so it was no surprise that Marianne had eventually left the Golden Deer to join up with them. Not that he's really aware why Marianne had joined - he hasn't asked her. It's the most logical conclusion, though.

From there, they were set to stable duty together. He'd tried to get the professor to change their mind and stick him with Lady Edelgard, but they had refused to budge. Lady Edelgard also seems to be fine with her current job with Dorothea, so he supposes he can't complain too much... Even so, it's left him with a lot of time to get to know Marianne.

Oh, sure, they don't really talk that much. At first, it was difficult to work with her. She was so quiet and he was completely inexperienced at tending to animals, and the whole thing was a mess. But eventually she started explaining how and why she was doing things to help calm the animals, and while they certainly don't like him, they're beginning to warm up a bit.

He would have just left it at that, and maybe this whole Hanahaki disaster wouldn't have happened. But instead, he decided he needed to be three steps ahead - as always - and asked Marianne to teach him to ride. A horse, of course, he wouldn't dare get near a wyvern or a pegasus. Hopefully no one was aware of that little problem.

Marianne had agreed, and riding lessons have been going surprisingly smoothly. Hubert was taught to ride as a child, but his mastery of horses is... lacking. Desperately lacking. If he has to fight on horseback, he'll definitely die. So learning to train a horse and teach it to respond to his commands is important, and Marianne has been helping tremendously.

Well, she was helping. Before the whole Hanahaki disaster thing.

He hasn't seen her in three days. Not that he's avoiding her. Or keeping track of the days. No, that isn't it at all. It's just that he's been terribly busy with Lady Edelgard's plans - they still can't do anything just yet, but every step is another one closer to her victory. It's slow-going, but it's a necessity.

In truth, he's been distant from everyone, even her. He has work to do, certainly. But he also has to keep these stupid petals to himself so no one finds out. Admitting that he has a problem sounds like a horrible idea. It would just cause Lady Edelgard to worry and the other students of the Black Eagles house to tease him mercilessly. So no, he won't do that. Once he has the time, he'll simply track down Professor Manuela and make her remove this stupid thing. The memories he'll lose don't matter to him.

(Never mind that he could do this at any point and waiting only makes it worse.)

Today isn't really any better than any of the days before it. He can usually get through the days with only two coughing jags, and he's been lucky enough to hide it from everyone. Today continues that trend - but only barely.

It strikes him when he's in the library, searching through financial records for information that could assist Lady Edelgard. The near-choking feeling hits him suddenly, and he coughs up more than a handful of delicate, white petals. The fact that they're still white is good - it hasn't been long enough to risk staining them red. Perhaps that's the one good thing about this - at least he's coughing up light-colored petals.

Linhardt is in the library, but even the rough, nearly-pained sounds of coughing up flower petals isn't enough to wake him. Hubert can be thankful of that much, but he's certainly not wasting any more time in here. He puts the books away, grabs the petals, and leaves. Hubert heads back to his room in a hurry, those petals clutched tightly in hand so no one will see them. No one can know about this.

...He's missed a single petal, but surely that isn't important.]

Comments

[crestcurse]

[Marianne's honestly used to her life turning upside down at a moment's notice. For someone with her crest, such a thing was inevitable; all it did was bring misfortune upon those who were near her, and upon herself as well. It was a simple fact of life that was linked to her very existence.

She's just not sure she could have ever expected this little gift from the goddess. If it could even be called that; Hanahaki Disease is something that Marianne has known plenty about throughout her life, the disease of unrequited love a fixture in many stories she's read. It was a hideous disease, really; the flowers that bloomed within the chest of an afflicted person could very well kill them, the longer they were allowed to fester. Of course, there was the legend of confessing your love curing them, but...

Marianne isn't sure she can do that. Not when the object of her affections is Hubert von Vestra.

He was an intimidating presence; the ever dutiful right hand of Edelgard, Hubert cut an imposing figure, that's for sure. Marianne struggled to make eyecontact with most people, but he was by far one of the scariest people in Garreg Mach. Even when they were introduced, Claude giving the introduction with his usual bravado, she had elected to only look once and that was it. He made her anxious, and the less she had to deal with him, she surmised, the better.

But of course, life works in mysterious ways. When they first talked individually, he scared Dorte so badly that she had to spend quite a bit of time calming him down and assuring him of his safety. And then she joined the Black Eagles at the behest of her father, knowing of the powerful nobility of the Empire--but getting put on stable duty with Hubert was even more of a surprise, not helped by just how terrible he was with the animals. It had been a slow going process to even try to speak to him without wanting to recede into herself, but...

Marianne did offer Hubert advice. Good advice, at that; the animals may not like him, necessarily, her friends were warming up to him. She taught him ways to calm them that she knew about for years, due to finding animal companionship far more preferable, and it was...nice, honestly. She didn't actually mind helping Hubert, if they were going to be stuck on this duty forever. She slowly became less anxious around him, and things were actually beginning to get better.

But then Hubert asked her for riding lessons, and that's when the problems began.

It had started as a vaguely stuffed up feeling in her chest whenever their lessons were over, whenever he parted and there was nobody left but Dorte and herself. Marianne was just certain that she might have been getting sick; a little common cold wouldn't be too surprising, and she was certain that she would be fine. But days became weeks, and then she started actually coughing. The small, light blue petals that left her were more of a signal than anything that something was terribly wrong, and Marianne knew exactly what it was. She was falling in love with him.

Perhaps fortunately, Marianne is very good at denying herself her own feelings, in the interest of keeping people at bay and keeping them away from her cursed presence. The riding lessons were simply a matter of helping him out, and nothing more, even if she had been opening up very slightly. It was simply natural, wasn't it?

It's those three days of separation that prove damning for her. The coughing fits of hers were getting worse and worse, and Marianne had long given up on trying to hide the petals or even keep them clean. (She was never a very tidy person to begin with, so that much was. Perhaps inevitable.) It resulted in Hilda and Dorothea catching her in a coughing fit, having seen plenty of those blue petals around, and they tried to needle her to confess to the object of her affections. They came to her as concerned friends, and yet...

Didn't they know she was cursed? Sure, Hilda was her friend--her closest friend, and even Dorothea was managing to get her out of her shell with her friendly, larger-than-life demeanor. But the way they talked about love and how easy it was to confess was enough to make Marianne run away from them both. To confess to Hubert would be unthinkable; a curse upon them both, and even if she was beginning to miss his presence, this was for the best. She'd only bring Hubert--and likely Edelgard as well--misfortune.

If she truly loved Hubert, she'd have to let him go, for his own sake. She could bear this on her own. It was fine. It was completely fine. Even as the petals become more numerous, worryingly so, it's...fine. Surely she can go to Manuela if it gets that bad.

Fate, however, continues to work in mysterious ways. In ways such as a little bird who Marianne was quite friendly with finding a white flower petal in the library, and after getting shooed out by one of the staff, it's prize in it's beak, it flew to her.]

O-oh, hello...?

[The bird dropped the petal into Marianne's open hand, and then flew with purpose; Marianne wasn't sure what it was attempting to do, but when it circled back, Marianne knew what it was trying to do.]

Ah, um...you want me to follow you?

[The bird darting off was it's only reply, and Marianne followed swiftly, clutching the little petal in her hand. She's not sure what exactly she's going to be expecting, really, but Hubert will likely see the bird fly right past his head before Marianne comes out of a corner that she had been following from the bird from, and--

Smacking right into Hubert, okay.]

Ah!

[And there she go, right on the ground. Oh, that could have felt better...it takes a few seconds for Marianne to even attempt to get her bearings, clutching the petal in her hand tightly before looking up to see--

Oh.

Goddess damn it all.]

H-Hubert?

[...Are you okay, dude.]

[darkseal]

[He notices the bird, certainly. It's his duty as the future Empress' right hand to always be aware of his surroundings and—

And then Marianne runs into him. While she lands on the ground, he stumbles, managing to catch himself against the wall with his free hand. The hand still clutching those damned petals thankfully doesn't lose any of them.]

Watch where you're—

[Ah.

Marianne.

...Well, this is awkward. He goes pale (well, moreso than usual) and hesitates for a moment before righting himself and moving to offer her a hand. Part of it is politeness - which is something he does care about, perhaps surprisingly - but part of it is also that it's Marianne. Try as he might to deny the feelings that are quite literally blooming within him, it's a bit hard to do that when she's right here.

She's pretty, he finds himself thinking. She's unfairly pretty.]

...My apologies, I hadn't realized it was you.

[It's not a smooth or delicate recovery, but he's... trying...]

Are you uninjured?

[crestcurse]

[This is definitely awkward. Marianne isn't sure what to think at the awkward silence, but then he's offering her a hand and she...stares, for a moment. At his hand, then up at him, then his hand, and then...him.

Hubert's perhaps surprisingly gallant when he isn't looking like something out of a horror novel, and Marianne winds up quietly taking his hand--perhaps thankfully the one without the petal in it, and she keeps the one with it clutched tightly by her side as she gets up.]

Oh, um...I'm fine.

[...Marianne has never been good at holding conversation, and there's a pause while Marianne tries to work out what else to say and lets go of his hand. Her gaze goes back down to the ground, as if there's something particularly interesting there, but...]

I'm sorry. I should have watched where I was going. I hope I didn't hurt you.

[Marianne fidgets with her sleeve a bit, bringing that clutched hand up a bit, and then moves to...well, at least try to get that unkempt mess of hair out of her face. She's. Not even slightly successful.]

[darkseal]

[He helps her up, then promptly takes his hand back once she's firmly standing again. It wouldn't do to dwell (even though he wants to) because he last thing he wants to do is risk frightening her. Again. Whether he's willing to admit the feelings to himself or not, his actions certainly speak more than his thoughts do.

He nods at her words; it's good she's uninjured at least. The second part gets a soft scoff.]

Surely you don't think something like that would hurt me.

[They aren't particularly harsh words, but they're hardly gentle either. She moves to mess with her hair and he's almost tempted to say something about it - her hair could easily be pulled up in any sort of style to highlight her beauty instead of hide it, but...

Well. He doesn't want to think like that and he certainly doesn't want to say anything like that. So it's best if he just. Leaves it.

...That's about when he notices her other hand and something that nearly makes his heart stop.]

Where did you get that?

[The. The petal. The damned petal— He cleaned them all up, didn't he? Had he missed one? Was it someone else's? No, surely not - it's certainly likely that there are others coughing up petals but they're rarely the exact same shape and color. How did she get that?

Worse - does she know?

The internal panic begins to bubble within and he struggles to keep it out of his expression. No, surely it's just a coincidence, there's simply no way she could know... Right?]

[crestcurse]

I-I suppose that's true. I'm sorry for assuming...

[Marianne's words are as soft as they ever are, and apologetic in tone. Perhaps it was a little presumptious to think that he would be injured, but then again, Marianne is extremely good at assuming the worst. It's fine, surely it's fine.

But then Hubert asks her a question and her look snaps back up to him for a moment, and she seems confused before her eyes go back to her clasped hand, with that petal. She's not sure why he's asking, but that bird zooms by both of their heads once again before settling on a branch near Marianne, and she nods in it's direction.]

This? Um...my friend brought it over to me.

[...The bird. She means the bird.]

She brought it over, and...she wanted me to follow her, and that's how I... [Marianne stops short and looks back at Hubert, beginning to recede in on herself a bit and clutching the petal a little tighter. Her look goes over to his own hands, and...] Is this yours, then...?

[...She's not sure if she should have asked that.]

[darkseal]

[He lets the first part go without comment and glances up when she indicates the bird. How did a bird get in the library...? That's not really important. Why did it pick up that flower petal and bring it to her? It's a very confusing thought, but not a concerning one. He's right - it's a coincidence. He can still play this off—

So naturally, she comes to the (right) wrong conclusion.]

It isn't mine. As though I would be troubled by something like that?

[The words are harsher than they should be when directed to her, but this hits a little too close to home. If he can't even admit it to Lady Edelgard, he certainly can't admit it to her. Just imagine how much of a nightmare that would be. She'd probably flee immediately. The thought's almost funny.

The hand he didn't use to help her up tightens without him really meaning for it to happen. The petals within are crushed even further. He can't let her get a look at them.]

[crestcurse]

[Troubled by something?

...Wait. Wait--Marianne's eyes go wide for a moment, and she brings the hand with the petal clutched in it close to her as she takes a step back at his words. She didn't actually think that he was dealing with that disease--he couldn't be, could he? There's only one person he could possibly like, and that's--

Oh. Marianne's hand goes back to the petal, the realization hitting her all at once.]

N-no, you're right. I shouldn't have said anything. I'm sorry, I should--

[Her look goes back to his hand for a moment, that clutched hand, and Marianne feels like she distinctly knows something she shouldn't. She's more than prepared to flee the scene and put ample space between herself and Hubert, giving a small bow--

Before Ms. Birdy decides she's had enough and takes a dive at Hubert's clutched hand. Marianne's frozen in place when that little yellow blur goes by, and...well, hopefully your reflexes are good, Hubert, because the bird is absolutely going to try and dive at his hand until it lets go.]

[darkseal]

[W-wait, she looks like she doesn't believe him, like she actually thinks—

It isn't often anyone is able to see through Hubert like that and while his reaction was admittedly not great, he still should have been able to get away with that. How has she figured him out so easily?

He doesn't have long to wonder it - because suddenly the bird dives at his hand.

The problem isn't his reaction time, actually. He reacts quickly enough. The problem is that his reflex is to call magic to his fingertips and it would be a horrible idea to throw a spell at the poor damn bird in front of Marianne.

(It would be a horrible idea in general, because if anyone ever found out he'd never be able to live it down. But it's especially a terrible idea in front of someone who loves animals.)

So he forces the spell to dissipate from the fingers of his dominant hand, which leaves the bird free to peck at his hand.

It's not anything particularly painful, but the surprise of it coupled with the absolute absurdity that is nearly blasting a bird with dark magic all because it dared attack him (for some reason) gets him to release his grip reflexively.

Crumpled white petals drift to the ground below as he backs up.]

...

[And just when he thought things couldn't get any more awkward.]

Don't... [it's hissed out, quiet but intense] Don't you dare tell anyone or I will...

[The threat trails off there. Eliminate you was probably how he'd end that, but the words dry up in his throat as he glares daggers at the bird. He should leave. He needs to leave. But he can't leave until he knows she isn't going to say a damn thing because if word of this gets out...

If word of this gets out, he's going to have a much bigger mess to deal with. He can only imagine how Lady Edelgard would react, and that's to say nothing of the other idiots in their house. Ferdinand will probably never shut up. Dorothea will never shut up. He is not going to deal with that.

But even so, he doesn't finish the threat. It hangs there, feeling far too weak.]

[crestcurse]

[Marianne's eyes widen even further, and she feels like she's been frozen in place as she watches a disaster unfold in front of her. There's a brief flash of fear when she sees that magic in his hands, and the knowledge that he could kill one of her friends is almost too much to bare and she wants to stop him--

But then his hand opens, and white flower petals aplenty are released and cast to the ground. Ms. birdy seems satisfied with her work and flies away, as quick as she came, and the two of them are left by themselves. Marianne clutches the hand with that small petal she has close to her mouth, hiding her expression a bit.

...And then that hissed threat is thrown out and Marianne has the very distinct feeling that she's learned entirely too much, and she should express it in the most eloquent way possible.]

I-I'm sorry! I need to go!

[...By which I mean she is taking off like a shot back the way she came, fully resolving to forget this ever happened. It's fine, right? This should be fine. Neither of them will have to deal with each other again and maybe her own feelings will die off. It's fine.

Marianne will take the secret of Hubert's feelings for Edelgard to the grave, as far as she's concerned, and she's genuinely hoping that he doesn't pursue at this point...]

[darkseal]

[Marianne's dancing skills had certainly been a work in progress, but by the time of the White Heron Cup, she was feeling more confident and her movements were flowing wonderfully. Even if she didn't win, she'd be putting up a damn good fight.

Somehow, Hubert hadn't exactly expected her to actually win.

He'd come to watch, of course. It wasn't the sort of thing he'd usually be there for, but given that Lady Edelgard went, he could at least explain his presence there as attending to keep an eye out for Her Highness. If anyone kept an eye on him during the entire thing, that would fall apart entirely too quickly - his eyes were on Marianne and Marianne alone the entire time. She performed excellently, even nailing the dip at the end without even the tiniest hint of her earlier struggles.

So she won, and the next time they had a moment alone together, he'd congratulated her. It had been pretty restrained, all things considered. He figured she wouldn't want him to praise her too much. And besides, praise is just sort of weird coming from him.

But now it's time for the ball, and Hubert is not looking forward to it.

Part of this is because Lady Edelgard pulled him aside to have a serious discussion about Marianne and her place in their plans only the day before the ball. "You need to talk to her about this." She'd said, with that familiar look in her eyes that said she knew Hubert was going to disobey anyway. "You can't lead her on. She needs to know."

He'd said he'd do just that, but given Lady Edelgard's dubious look, she knew he wouldn't. Not yet, at least. Revealing their plans to anyone is a commitment he can't make, even with Her Highness' approval.

But maybe...

Now isn't the time to think about that. Instead, Lady Edelgard is going through his closet while he sits stiffly at the desk. She had taken one look at him and barged into his room to help him find a "better" outfit for the dance. "One that won't make you look like a corpse," were her exact words.

Eventually she's successful, and she waits outside the door until he's changed. As though he would consider not showing up? That isn't an option, and they both know it. They need to play their roles for this dance - she needs to show up and pretend to have a good time, and he needs to be there to guard her; just another pair of students, nothing more.

Lady Edelgard has excellent taste as usual - though the suit she's selected for him is black, the vest beneath it is dark red. The undershirt is high-collared and black as well, though the touches of dark gold here and there serve to make him look less like a corpse and more like... well, a vampire lord, but she said that was suitable enough for tonight. He expects to be teased by half the Black Eagles students and several from the other houses, but a little teasing is nothing compared to the tedium of sitting through the ball.

"You should dance with Marianne," Her Highness had said with a knowing look. "Perhaps someplace private... like say, the Goddess Tower?"

Honestly, he isn't entirely sure why Lady Edelgard continues to push him toward Marianne... She's likely more supportive of his relationship than he is. That's not to say he doesn't like Marianne - he does; far, far more than he should - but his duty to Lady Edelgard will always come first.

Well, there's nothing to be done about it tonight. He holds up the walls and manages to fend off most attempts at dancing... for about ten minutes. Then Dorothea drags him out onto the dance floor (somehow) and then he finds himself leading a string of their fellow classmates, one right after the other, almost as if this was planned (somehow). Petra is next (and she makes him promise to find Linhardt and dance with him at least once), then Caspar jumps in (he lets Caspar lead because he suspects he'll never hear the end of it otherwise), then he's passed off to Ferdinand (he even manages not to irritate Ferdinand too badly for once), and then Bernadetta, surprisingly. She squeaks and flees the dance floor as Lady Edelgard drags him into a final dance, pointing him in the direction of Marianne with a knowing look.

Hubert's certainly been aware of her presence here - he'd blatantly been staring when he first laid eyes on her, at least until Lady Edelgard had nudged him in the ribs to get him to remember his place. Marianne is always beautiful, but her beauty is usually subdued, something that one has to look for. Tonight, it feels like he's seeing her for the first time all over again.

Perhaps he should be more careful about it; their relationship isn't something most people know about, after all. Hubert finds he doesn't care right now. He approaches her and moves to lean back against the wall beside her.]

I hope you haven't been dragged into dancing for as long as I have. Though given that you did win the White Heron Cup, I suppose that's a bit much to ask for, isn't it?

[The words are supposed to be irritated, but for some reason they don't quite make it there. Maybe it's because he's with her now, or maybe it's because he's not really all that annoyed with their classmates.]

[crestcurse]

[Marianne was genuinely not expecting to win the cup, to say the least. Though she'd improved immensely, there were plenty of other skilled dancers--Lorenz was one of them, even Claude was one of them, as well as many others. Still, she would have been happy with her attempt, and it would have been alright, but...

Well, having Hubert's eyes on her the whole time was very nice. It meant a lot to her to see him watching her so intently, and he was honestly very sweet to have done so. It was nice, and when they had a moment to themselves again, Marianne was happy with the restrained praise from Hubert--it made her embarrassed, her modesty all too clear, but it still felt incredibly nice.

(Sure, it felt weird that Professor Byleth had insisted that she change her class, but it was still nice to be able to assist on the battlefield like that.)

Of course, the dance comes and Marianne is only prepared by virtue of Dorothea and Hilda having snuck her off the monastery grounds for a while and into town to get herself something nice to wear. Of course, Dorothea's idea of nice was...well, needless to say, her suggestions caused Marianne's church-going heart to skip several beats from how she wanted to accent Marianne's good points, but thankfully, Hilda knew she appreciated modesty more than anything. The three of them do come to an agreement though, and the dance is going off without a hitch.

...Mostly, since Marianne is sticking towards the walls. Her ensemble is rather modest, but very beautiful; a powder blue dress that covers her nicely, with beautiful roses decorating the fabric, along with lots of white lace that makes it look almost doll-like. Her shoes are very nice too, and the one concession she's allowed Dorothea; nice, powdery blue heels. She's even put her hair down for once, and with Hilda's help, it looks less like a sea monster and more...demure, really. Much like how Marianne typically is.

She's been asked to dance by many of her former alumni (Claude seemed especially eager, Lorenz just as much, and even Hilda got in on it) but even her new alumni danced with her happily (Dorothea long after she'd danced with Hubert, and Bernadetta too), and it wasn't long before Marianne was starting to feel a little overwhelmed and fell off to the side some, trying to gather herself back up.

But when Hubert comes around, any sense of stress on Marianne's face melts away when he joins her on the wall. Marianne's been trying very hard not to stare at him, too--he's incredibly handsome. The black is what she'd expect from Hubert, but that dark red vest is very lovely too--the dark gold is so eyecatching and lovely, and Marianne has had to refrain from staring too much, but...

Well, she's happy to stare now. Marianne winds up giggling a bit, bringing a hand with one of those nice, lacy sleeves up to cover her mouth.]

A little. I've...I've had a lot of people asking me to dance, and I've gotten dragged around a bit too...

[Marianne's not nearly as distressed or irritated either, honestly.]

But, um...it's not bad. I-It's just a bit much, sometimes... [...] But I'm...I'm happy to see you're having fun, too.

[Her words come softly, almost a whisper--enough to be heard over the music, but not for any prying ears.]

[darkseal]

"Fun" isn't exactly how I'd describe it...

[The words still aren't irritated, and he has to wonder if he really did have fun with all of their stupid antics and their dances. Maybe. Maybe, but that's something he's certainly not going to admit to any of them or he'll never hear the end of it.

His expression isn't annoyed at all when he glances down at Marianne. She really is stunning like this. He wants to reach out and touch her, hold her, kiss her, but he wouldn't dare do any of those in public like this. Still, he really should say something...]

You look lovely, Marianne.

[She isn't fond of long drawn-out praise, and he's sure those words alone will leave her nearly dying of embarrassment. So he doesn't say anything further, but his eyes linger over the details in her dress, the way her hair falls down her back, just how gorgeous her expression is when she smiles so easily.]

I'm pleased you're enjoying yourself.

[crestcurse]

Oh? Then, um, what would you describe it as?

[The question comes easily from Marianne, happy and pleased, before he looks down at her and decides to speak up--Marianne's face goes pink all too easily from that tiny bit of praise, and she has to turn away to make sure nobody else sees just how embarrassed she is.]

H-Hubert...that's embarrassing, but, um...thank you.

[Marianne fidgets with her sleeves a bit--though she doesn't sound too put out, at least, and smiles slightly. Her hair displaces itself a bit when she turns her head and she has to adjust it a bit. She's never been a tidy person, but she's trying, okay...]

I'm just doing my best. This is all a little overwhelming...I don't really like these sort of parties. B-but this is okay. [Her voice goes to a whisper, looking up at him.] Especially since...you're here. Y-you look very...dashing, too.

[That much comes easily, but...well, she looks away again, toward the dance floor.]

Um...if it's alright, would you mind...if we danced? Maybe? [Oh, but--] I-If you're too tired, it's okay.

[darkseal]

[She can hide so easily beneath her bangs given their difference in height, but when she looks up at him and her hair shifts just slightly, he's struck with the urge to run his hands through it. It's such a tempting urge, and one he fights back. It would be exceptionally rude to do that to her.

Her compliment gets him to glance away - in truth, he's not much better with them than she is. But his attention is back on her at the question, and the smirk he gives her is just a bit too soft.]

I'm certainly not tired out already. I... would like that, Marianne.

[Conveniently, there's another song starting up. He moves to offer her his hand, bowing just a bit - it's enough to look sarcastic to anyone who might be watching them, but his eyes don't leave her and his expression doesn't match the gesture.]

I'd be honored to dance with you.

[The words aren't sarcastic at all either.]

[crestcurse]

[Hubert's words see Marianne's expression light up in delight--well, in a subdued manner, of course. It's all too obvious in how her eyes practically glitter with excitement, and she looks up at him with a smile before giving him a curtsy.]

Then...then I'd be honored, too. To dance with you. I'd like nothing more...

[Marianne offers her hand to him shyly, though she's more than excited to dance with him. Even if their relationship is a secret, she wants nothing more than to do this with him.]

[darkseal]

Agreed.

[He takes her hand and guides her to the dance floor, moving to take the lead. He has no problems with letting her lead, but this is considered "proper" and he'd rather not try to explain why he let Marianne - a girl he supposedly doesn't know all that well - lead them. He could probably come up with some excuse if needed, but he doesn't want to think about any of that right now.

Right now, all he wants to do is admire her, and have a perfectly valid reason to hold her close. Not that they're too close, of course. They have to be careful.

It's easy enough to guide Marianne through the steps - she's excellent now, and were she dancing with a smaller partner, he's certain she could successfully pull off the dip as well. He can't help but smile, though hopefully no one else notices.]

[crestcurse]

[Marianne's more than happy when Hubert takes the lead--it'd likely be awkward for anyone else to ask questions, and Marianne isn't here for that. She knows Hubert isn't either; they both prefer to be private people, and they've done a good job of doing that.

Even as she wants nothing more than to get close to him, she knows she needs to maintain her distance with him. In public, at least.

She's become so good at dancing, and she's following along with him easily as the music flows and she hums lightly along with it as she smiles softly. The song is beautiful, really; it's waltzy and nice, and Marianne couldn't ask for anything better to dance to with her boyfriend.]

I don't think I could ever get tired of this. This is...this is very nice.

[Marianne's words are soft as they dance, hoping not to attract too much attention as she admires Hubert.]

[darkseal]

[Hubert made the correct decision. He stopped leading Marianne on; he stopped pretending he could be anything she needed.

Of course, that isn't the sort of thing he can actually explain to anyone (except Lady Edelgard) and as such he's had to deal with both Hilda and Dorothea shooting him venomous glances whenever he happens to be in the same vicinity as either. He's a bit surprised neither of them have actually dragged him aside to yell at him.

It's probably because now really isn't the time. Captain Jeralt was killed and everyone's been incredibly subdued since then. Professor Byleth seems completely out of it, and no one else is really doing all that well either.

Hubert's been busy tending to Lady Edelgard and searching for answers for what Those Who Slither in the Dark are doing, but his search has turned up nothing useful. He's getting frustrated, and Lady Edelgard has taken notice, she's specifically asked him not to keep looking into things and while he has no intention of obeying, it certainly says a lot that she's trying to stop him.

That isn't the only thing she's trying to do, and they've had several long and terrible conversations about his relationship with Marianne.

Marianne was there with them on the battlefield, though he doesn't think she was close enough to see what happened with Jeralt. None of them were, he's fairly sure. Marianne had been elsewhere while he stuck by Lady Edelgard's side. He couldn't be near her; not after everything, and certainly not while she's wearing that outfit. He'd nearly gotten hit by an archer while distracted by her in that damned attire.

Initially, he had tried to wave Lady Edelgard off by insisting that this is for the best, that he will no longer be distracted and he won't further hurt Marianne. She had simply responded that Marianne doesn't leave her dorm room unless she's dragged out and had heavily implied she'd done just that to get Marianne to accompany them on the mission. Maybe she hadn't, but he really wouldn't be surprised if Lady Edelgard had done just that.

He eventually gave in and promised that he'd tell Marianne everything and explain himself, but even so it's still taken a few days to work up the courage to approach her room. He stands at the door now, posture perfectly straight as he knocks.

It's probably cruel not to let her know that it's him, but he suspects she won't respond at all if she hears his voice. So it's for the best to see if he can coax her into opening the door.]

[crestcurse]

[Marianne's routine has become a lot simpler, nowadays. Avoiding people is pretty easy when you simply don't want to be seen by others, though it certainly helps that Marianne honestly only leaves her room for three things; praying, taking care of the animals, and food. Anything else she can simply stay in her room for, and as far as she's concerned, that's where she belongs. Locked in here so that she can't bring bad luck to anyone, but especially her classmates.

That certainly doesn't stop people from trying to get her to open up, and she's gotten adept at ignoring people. Hilda's a pretty common knocker, and she does so daily; she still thinks so much better of Marianne than she ever should. Dorothea comes by sometimes too, but her visits have gotten less and less frequent as of late. Ferdinand sometimes tries, and he's one of the few she explicitly tells to go away. Even Bernadetta has come by once or twice, and Marianne has...well, at least tried talking to her, but the conversations never go anywhere.

Even if this whole thing is showing in her grades and the like, it's fine. It's just proof she shouldn't have come here anyway. Marianne doesn't belong here, and she was a fool to ever think she did.

...Of course, she can't exactly deny everyone; Edelgard really has mastered the art of 'incredibly disappointed mother' voice all too well, and it's the sole reason she put on that stupid outfit again and helped them on that mission to save the students. If she'd just stayed in her room, maybe Captain Jeralt wouldn't have died...that's one of the many things that Marianne has convinced herself of, at any rate, as the somber air around the academy grows stifling.

It's just another day for Marianne of laying in bed, hair a mess and all over the place, when she hears a knock at the door. Hubert can likely hear a bit of a sigh--she's in there, at least, but...

He can hear her move, and some stuff move along with her--her room is still a mess as always, but Marianne doesn't open the door. Not right away, at any rate.]

Who is it...? [...] Can it wait?

[...yeah, this is. Where we're starting today.]

[darkseal]

[He had figured she would at least open the door a crack, but no, of course she decided to just ask. There really isn't any getting around it, he's going to have to let her know it's him.]

It's me, Marianne.

[There's something in his voice that shouldn't be there - uncertainty? anxiety? - but maybe that's not a bad thing. If he sounded completely cold and distant, she certainly wouldn't open the door.

Not that he expects her to now that she knows it's him. He's fairly sure she won't respond at all.]

There's... something I need to discuss with you.

[The words are definitely hesitant now. He finds his gaze has darted already, though he takes the opportunity to make sure they're alone. They are, of course. He wouldn't be here if there was a risk of them being caught.]

[crestcurse]

[...Oh no. No, no, no, why is he here.

Marianne doesn't move to open the door or anything, and for a bit it just...seems like she's frozen in place, and she is. What does she even say after all that happened at the Goddess Tower? He shouldn't be here, he should be--]

Please, you need to go. I imagine Edelgard has...something more important for you, anyway.

[Marianne's voice is slightly pleading, honestly. She's not sure if she can deal with this right now, and she certainly doesn't want to try, not when--]

There's...there's nothing more to be said. Not to someone like me. I-I'm only going to bring you misfortune again if you stay here, so...please...

[darkseal]

[Oh no, is she blaming herself for this? What a stupid question, of course she's blaming herself for this. That's how Marianne has always been, and he's not really all that surprised to hear it now.

Still, the words feel like daggers, and the pleading tone only twists them.]

You have never brought me misfortune.

[The words are certain, though perhaps a bit harsh. He doesn't really know how to temper himself, or make it sound firm in a way that isn't intimidating.]

Please, Marianne. I don't... I can't talk about this with you out here. I promise I will say only what I need to say, and then I will leave, if that's what you wish.

[Of course it's what she'll want. If she even lets him in to begin with. He sincerely doubts she will, but he can't let her turn him away. Not now. Not when he's finally worked up the courage to confront this.]

[crestcurse]

Yes, I have. Don't--don't lie, okay? I...I said too much, there, and I'm sorry. The Goddess has already proven that I'm...I'm better off alone, and this is just...more proof. That's just the way it should be. Because all I do is mess everything up, and it's...

[Marianne shuts out any of the uncertainty, especially when his words get harsh enough that she flinches--she's thankful he can't see her right now. That there's a door between them, just as it should be in her eyes.

(She was stupid, she was so stupid to say she loved him, and now he's trying to talk to her again, she doesn't get it, why--)]

Please, just go. I--I don't want to talk to anyone. I don't deserve to, when all I can do is bring everyone bad luck. All I'm going to do is mess things up, and it's...it's better this way. That way you don't have to worry about something happening to yourself, or Edelgard.

[She wants to drive him away, far away, and burn the bridge entirely. And yet...there's that stupid, lovestruck part of her that wants nothing more than to let him in and hear him out]

I'm sorry, Hubert, I...I really am.

[...Her voice cracks a little there, like she is apologizing but it's pretty close to a teary declaration.]

[darkseal]

[Frustration threatens to get the best of him, only growing worse as she continues. This isn't her fault - none of this is her fault - and yet she's over there claiming that this is the Goddess' doing, like he should take such a ridiculous thought seriously.

How can she believe in a Goddess who would be so cruel? How can she continue to blame herself for things that are clearly beyond her control?

He loves her - of course he still loves her - and he hates hearing her despair like this. She's wrapped so tightly in her own insecurities and fears that she won't hear anything he has to say.]

Marianne, I'm not going to give up, and I'm certainly not going to leave. I need to talk to you; it's extremely important. If you're going to refuse to let me in, I will simply have to let myself in.

[There isn't any anger or frustration in it, but it's said like a fact. She can likely hear him step forward and try the doorknob, though he fully expects it to be locked.]

Please. Once I've said all I need to I... I will never bother you again. You have my word.

[I'll never hurt you again is what he wants to say, but he can't promise that. If she turns on them, he'd have to break that promise.]

[crestcurse]

[Why won't he just leave her alone dear Goddess above??? What is this supposed to teach her? Marianne can't even begin to fathom that Hubert's just...going to break in if he can't get her to open the door, like this is somehow okay and--]

F-fine, fine! I'll...I'll open it up, just...please, don't break in, I'm sorry--

[...Yeah, she's. Been sufficiently intimidated. The doorknob doesn't work when he tries it, but Marianne does unlock it for the next time he tries.]

T-there. It's open. You can...you can come in if you really want.

[Marianne's honestly hoping he doesn't, but if he's going to be this stubborn about it...well, it's much like with Edelgard, there's no use in stopping it. Even if Hubert can likely heard Marianne just kind of sit herself on the floor, curling herself into a ball in the hopes that maybe not seeing him will make this easier.

Marianne's room, when Hubert gets inside is...well, a mess. It doesn't appear to be for a lack of trying, at least, and it seems more like she's got a hideous habit of things falling over and making more messes than she can deal with. She's never been very tidy in the first place, but this...well, it's kinda bad.

Much like Marianne herself; even if she's kind of just curled up in on herself on the floor, propped up only by the wall to the right, it's clear she's a mess. Her hair is kind of all over the place, even if it's down, and in general she looks...bad, honestly.

She's not going to stop Hubert from whatever he's doing, though.]