Chapter Text
…
In her defense, she was very drunk.
And also, it wasn’t her fault Tiana’s priorities were backwards as all hell.
So she had sent a letter to her, very eloquently detailing the budding relationship between her son and the prince that she absolutely gave no demeaning descriptors to in her letter - that she wrote while drunk and therefore could not be held to full accountability over. Alright, and what of it? She had sent plenty of letters to Tiana going over the war efforts the boy had been involved with and the only thing she got as a reply was that Tiana “knew Khalid could handle it.” She was very clearly confident in her son’s ability to take care of himself if that was the case.
But, apparently, Tiana was not so confident in her son’s ability in this area. That was also very clear, given that instead of a letter coming in reply to Judith’s message, it was the former Riegan herself.
Seeing her so casually walk through the doors of Daphnel, as though they were children again who played together everyday and played pranks on the annoying Gloucester boy and not as though she had up and vanished without a word to anyone well over two decades ago, invoked feelings Judith didn’t think could ever be replicated or topped in its intensity. Anger was there, oh was it there. Shock and surprise. Unbridled joy.
And then Tiana, gawked at by her men and staff, opened her mouth.
“Where’s that Blaiddyd boy?”
And annoyance quickly rose to the top of those emotions.
As Judith walked up to the blond-haired woman, renown for her apparent unrivaled battle prowess and indomitable will and demon-like presence, and pulled her cheeks like the child she is how the hell can you JUST LEAVE TIA DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW WORRIED I WAS NO LETTERS WERE NOT ENOUGH ARE YOU KIDDING ME- with Tiana’s familiar fruitless whining and attempts to pull her off to the utter bafflement to everyone around them, another emotion tingled in the back of Judith’s mind.
A damn war couldn’t make Tiana bothered enough to come check on her son, and yet the mere idea that the boy fell for someone called her over like a hawk to a rabbit. She can only hope that that prince doesn’t get maimed too harshly.
-----
When Dimitri had woken up in the morning, he had expected his day to go about as it usually did. Checking supplies, meeting with merchants, training, paperwork, small talk with Claude and Dedue and the professor and whoever else were available. Maybe the professor will send him out to scout the area, route out any bandits or monsters that had settled down nearby. It was the middle of the month, where rarely anything noticeably strange occurs. He had thought it would be a normal, unnoteworthy day.
Today is not a normal, unnoteworthy day, for he is now in his room sitting face-to-face with the most frightening woman he has ever seen.
Battle-scarred with wounds that told of vicious, hard-fought victories, voluptuous dirty-blonde hair kept in intricate braids when not allowed to simply flow down her shoulders, a sword resting in a sheathe proud of its value hanging by her side, clothes in clear regalia in their beauty, their deep verdant and golden colors, their gorgeous embroidery, their shining jewelry upon her face and hanging off her neck, though nothing Dimitri could readily recognize. Her hard-set glare she laid upon him, laughing at his superior height as her green eyes, strange in their familiarity, looked down upon him as though he were an ant barely worthy of acknowledgement, the older woman before him held a poise and grace rivaling that of gods and devils.
...Unsettling, to say the least. Her presence made the teacups sat before them seem middling and unfitting.
She speaks to him, voice deep in its regality, accented words flowing, “I am told that whom I am speaking with is Prince Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd, First of His Name, Wielder of Areadbhar, heir to the throne of Faerghus.”
He holds back a swallow. He nods once, managing eye contact with the all-encompassing forest. “I am he,” he responds, “Lady…?”
She crosses her arms. “You speak with Tiana,” she answers, giving no surname nor title, continuing, “formerly the eldest daughter of the Riegan Dukedom.”
...R… Riegan…?
He looks at her eyes. Realizes why they struck him as familiar.
“Might you be the mother of the current Riegan duke?” Dimitri asks, blunt in wording but somehow strong in execution, for all that he wanted to faint.
The glare upon the woman’s face somehow deepened. “I am she,” she responds, venom not lightly coating her words.
Oh. Oh many things are making sense now.
Claude had spoken very highly of his mother to Dimitri, on the rare occasion he felt the comfort to do so. It was something that, while Dimitri couldn’t say he could hear without some level of envy, he always loved to hear from the man nonetheless. Claude looked so awe-inspired when speaking of his mother; it was clear he had an extraordinarily large amount of respect for her, something so rarely seen so blatantly from Claude.
He often spoke of her strength of character, how nothing could drag her down despite the world trying, how she bit back against that world that barked at her. Dimitri will be honest - with how grand Claude described her, it was hard to be similarly taken in by her supposed character.
Entirely different story seeing the woman for herself, however.
Perhaps part of Dimitri’s shock is due to him, at least in slight part, pinning Claude’s expressive descriptions of his mother to that of a child understandably glorifying the illusion of their parent’s impossibility. Of course Claude would say that his mother was a force all of her own, one that nothing could break or touch, he was her son. It made sense to take his words with a grain of salt.
Nope. Nope nope nope. No salt needed, thank you.
“I hear word,” she says, pulling Dimitri out of his thoughts, “of you beguiling that very son of mine.”
Years upon years of royal etiquette shot itself to the surface of the being known by the name Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd, preventing him from shooting up from his chair in fierce denial.
B-B-BEGUILE? ME? BEGUILING CLAUDE? ME?
His mind, however, is free to deny as fiercely as it wants.
“To whom do these words belong?” come the calm words from the stationary face of Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd.
She tilts her head ever so slightly. “These words belong to a woman I hold as a trusted companion. Who says that you seduced my son slowly over the course of years, snaking your way into his heart.”
WHO? WHAT? WHAT?
“The Duke of Riegan and I are close,” SEDUCED?? “but I assure you, no such seduction has occurred between us.”
Lady Tiana rights her head. Quirks her brow. “And if any such seduction does occur, Prince of Faerghus? Should you lay your hands upon my son’s heart in full?” One hand leaves Dimitri’s sight, laying suspiciously at her side. “What ought I expect from you, Prince of Faerghus? ”
DOES THAT MEAN CLAUDE LIKES ME- Dimitri takes a breath, willing away wild thoughts. Focus. While she is the imposing, indomitable figure that she is, Tiana is also a mother worried for her son, after being given… questionable information about his and Claude’s relationship. It was only right to ease her mind.
He rises from his chair, walks in full view of her, and knelt, his head bowed and hand placed over his heart.
“Lady Tiana. I swear to you, on my name as well as my father’s, that I, Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd, will do that which could neither ever bring harm upon your son’s heart, nor his dignity, nor his name. I…” he swallows, “treasure him dearly, and should I break this vow to you, know that when you strike me down, you do so in righteousness.”
A moment of silence passes, save for the drumming of Dimitri’s heartbeat pounding against his skull. He barely hears the jingle of the woman’s jewelry as she rises from her seat for how graceful she stands. Barely hears the shiiing of her sword as she draws it from its sheath for how naturally it is pulled.
nononononononononono
“Raise your head, Prince.”
He does. The sword, beautifully crafted, held by an unwavering arm carved with muscles from years of combat, rests its sharp point under his chin.
nononononononononononononononononono
“I know already that I would be righteous in slaying you,” she says, so casual in her confidence. He doesn’t move, still as the arm holding the blade, his body a keeper of his frenzied mind’s truth, as her words hang between them a moment.
Then another.
Then another.
And then. She smiles. A small smile, but one nonetheless.
“But it is good that you are aware of this, as well.” She draws back the blade, enough for him to see the small drops of blood on the tip, and wipes it on his furs before returning it to its sheathe.
He would, perhaps, bristle at least a little at the clear disrespect shown. He is too busy fighting back the urge to sigh in relief, especially as she reaches out her hand to him.
“Arise, Prince Blaiddyd.”
Later he likens it to a moment of madness. Lady Tiana, showing him what could have only been a kind gesture in helping him to his feet, and he saw it fit to ignore it? Rise while letting that hand linger? Perhaps his body did in fact betray his thoughts, revealing how off-kilter the frightening woman made him.
But his madness only made the woman’s smile widen. Give a chuckle, and a wink so strikingly familiar as to push him out of the window.
“How endearing,” she praises. She turns from him and to the door, her dressings singing their quiet, jingling melody. “If he ever brings you home, there’s a chance you could live to see the moonlight.”
With that cryptic message left she leaves, closing the door behind her.
Dimitri waits. And waits. And he waits, and waits, and waits, until he is certain that Lady Tiana could not possibly be near, before he slumps unceremoniously against his mattress, letting out one of the loudest and most self-indulgent sighs of relief his body could allow him.
He will never doubt Claude’s words again.
-----
“Maaaaaan Jhudie, he’swas fine!”
“You jusht haven’t sheen him Tia! He’sa shnake .”
Of course Tiana tried to leave upon her “confirmation” of the Blaiddyd boy’s credentials, and of course Judith nearly beat her to death once she caught her and her loud-ass jewels trying to sneak back to Almyra. She was lucky the taverns were still open to drown her anger towards her close friend so that the floodgates of another anger could come flowing out instead, or Judith might have actually, finally just fucking killed her.
Tiana slammed her tankard down, wasting perfectly good booze as it swashed out and drenched her hand and the counter. “My boy’s mayda shtronger shtuff’en that!” She puffed out her chest in pride. “I raised ‘im good!”
“Ya didn’t raise shit!” Judith splashed Tiana with the rest of what’s in her tankard, getting a gasp out of her, since apparently who needs to drink anyway. “I raised tha'boy more’an you ever did!”
Tiana glared, and promptly returned the favor by pouring out the rest of her drink over the top of Judith’s head. That bitch! “Oh ho ho, ya look after’im fer a few years ‘n suddenly yer th’momma now?” She pointed at herself with her thumb, thumping her fist against her chest with an audible bmp! jingle jingle. “‘Least I gave the boy tryna take’im a real talkin’ to!”
Judith pointed her finger at Tiana, flinging some more booze at her face. “Ya mean yer new son now? All you talked to’im, pah!”
“Oh yeah yeah yeah, I fergot I had’ta write to’is mommy instead.” Tiana turned to the counter and pretended to write, bobbing her head side to side like a dumbass . “”Wah wah Tia, the boy’s bein’ seduced, wah wah what do I do Tia, wah wah!”"
“Oh Goddess forbid I tell m’ friend somethin’ about her shon! Not like I thought you’d ackutually get yer ass over here for once!”
“Y’know I can’t jus’-”
“Don’ worry don’ worry, I know yer too good for lil’ ol’ Judie!”
“Piss off!” Tiana slammed her hand on the counter splashing more wasted booze on the both of them.” “Y’know what m’ not too good for?! A fight!” She threw the stool under her away towards the very rapidly growing crowd who very quickly scrambled out of the way of the suddenly flying piece of wood and cushion.
Not like Judith cared! Fuck it! Fuck the war, right now she wants to beat Tiana’s ass! “‘Bout the only thing ya’ are good for!”
And when Tiana threw a punch out the gate cuz she’s a bitch and Judith threw her on the ground and the crowd started cheering on the barfight between the ~legendary~ Lady Judith and the ~strange woman~, Judith couldn’t help but think that wow. She’s really gonna miss Tiana. When’s the last time anyone’s just fought her?
Damn Almyra. It should be closer.
-----
Claude rubbed his eyes.
Judith’s a grown ass woman. There is a war going on. Why is he hearing reports of her getting into barfights? And with strangers at that?
He recalled the poor servant's words again, how she watched in horror an argument between Lady Judith and a woman covered in jewels got more and more heated (from what the servant could picked out from the garbled speech) until they just started beating each other. Great! Just what Claude needs right now.
Though, there was something weird about the “strange woman’s” description. Jewels, green and yellow fancy clothing, a nice sword, braided kinda-blonde hair, green eyes… That sounded just like…
Claude shook his head. Nah, couldn’t be. No way in hell she’d be here. Must be a weird coincidence.
He sighed. At least his plans with Dimitri were coming up soon. That’ll likely cheer him up.