Work Text:
“Byleth, I’m not sure if you quite understand the situation. Based on the information that I received from Rhea, you are like us, and your lifespan will be a very long one. I know that you and the King have gotten quite close, but the rumors swirling around you two are becoming a problem.”
Byleth turned away from Seteth. He was acting Archbishop now, since she had refused the job. She didn’t want it, didn’t want any of this. It’s not like she hadn’t heard the rumors too, and maybe she fed them too often with how often she would come so close and take his hand like she had done when he tried to look back after what happened in the Imperial palace, or that night in the rain when she offered her hand to him then too.
Dimitri still had not taken a wife, and while he hadn’t asked her she could see the way his lone eye would follow her when she was nearby, how he would open his mouth to say something and then let it twist into a firm line. She had no idea how to broach the subject either, and now... what hope did she have? She wouldn’t watch Dimitri grow older while she stayed the same.
“Then am I supposed to live alone for the rest of this cursed existence?"
"When you find someone you cannot live without, you only need to give them your blood to drink down and they will stop aging. That said the king is too prominent a figure, and people will notice. If we are to keep our secret then you will need to find someone else."
Byleth crossed her arms. The only people that really even came to mind were those she fought alongside during the war, but only Dimitri made her pulse race just at the mere thought of him.
"Can't I just go back to mercenary work?"
"Do you really think that would stop Dimitri from coming to find you and inquire about where you are or what you're doing? If he came to you at some inn or out in the middle of nowhere the talk of secret trysts would only magnify. You need to be taken off the board and I have taken the liberty of finding you a few potential suitors that you can get married to that will allow you to live a protected closed life so you can disappear whenever the need will arise. You need to let him go."
Seteth may for all intents and purposes be her Uncle, but that did not give him the right to do this to her.
Seteth must have noticed the slight change in her face. Even she knew that her rage was seeping through. He put a hand on her shoulder.
"Byleth, this is what is best for both of you. He needs to find a proper queen, and you wished to stay out of the public eye. You have no title, and with the complications that come with our kind it's best that you follow this plan of ours."
"I don't want to."
Seteth sighed. "We will not force you, but Byleth please, if you care for him then think about what is best. He will be hurt for a little while, but this will be the push he needs to find someone else and live happily. Please think about it."
It was a few days later that word came from Faerghus that Dimitri had fallen ill. The Kingdom was in a panic and more rumors and whispers. Byleth wanted to go to him, but Seteth told her that it was best that she didn't.
Byleth realized then how much the thought of his mortality scared her. The truth that she could die at any time while on the battlefield was one thing, but with all of these years seeming to endlessly stretch before her, the thought that Dimitri was dealing with the possibility of having his cut so dangerously short made her feel hollow inside. When she heard the severity of the illness, he was not supposed to be able to leave his chamber for up to a month. Every source she talked to had a different story as to what was wrong with him. She suspected an attack, but she couldn't get any proof that her theory was correct. They would keep that a secret and if he was vulnerable right now, they wouldn't want their enemies to know exactly how he was injured, if he was at all until they took out every link that led to an assassin getting inside the castle in the first place.
It was alarming, to say the least. She wanted to be at his side, the feeling tightened around her throat and made it hard to swallow. It was when she had someone directly ask her if she was carrying the king's bastard that she knew the extent of the rumors. They told her that she needed to step forward so that way there was at least someone who had the possibility of carrying the Blaiddyd crest to give some stability to the Kingdom if the King died.
It made her feel sick. Seteth was right, just ending any contact with him wasn’t enough. People already had it in their minds that she was Dimitri’s woman on the side. She was told that kings would have consorts on the side as well as a wife. No, she couldn’t do that to whoever he found to love and care for.
Seteth approached the noble that was questioning her with the same deadly look he would pin any man within a few feet of Flayn. “Byleth will be married soon, do not slander her or the king with such depravity. The King will recover, and once he finds his own wife, I’m sure there will be joyful news following the union.”
Byleth withered internally as Seteth asked her if that was correct. He was giving her a chance to revoke the claim, but her throat was dry. All she could do was nod, Dimitri was out of her reach, and he would be able to find someone much more suited than a woman who’s heart couldn’t even beat. She had been there for him when he needed her, now it was time for him to stand on his own.
“Seteth is right.”
-----------------------------------------
Dimitri paced his room like a caged lion. How long did it take to catch one man? He had killed the one that had tried to poison him, but the other assassin managed to get out of sight when they realize how they had utterly failed.
What worried him more was that this had to happen while Byleth was at Garrag Mach. If someone was after him they might be trying to assassinate the Archbishop too. Byleth had refused the position, but she would still be viable for a replacement if something were to happen to Seteth. She would be a high priority target as well. It had already been a week, but his advisors still told him to stay put and let his knights handle the matter until the culprit could be caught. Dimitri was under the thought of let the dastard try again, that one would find death at his hands just as his accomplice did.
Frustrated and needing to move, Dimitri opened up the secret hallways that he assumed was left behind by Cornelia and her people. If the assassins hadn’t tried getting in through the window then that would be his main thought for where the attackers had come from or fled to, but it seems that this was still his secret for now.
As he paced the hallway he wondered how long Cornelia had access to this. She had eyes and ears everywhere. Dimitri found himself following a path that he had made many times before. He had given Byleth a room in the eastern wing, telling her that it was the safest place he had other than his own room.
The thing he would never admit was this room had the best view towards the bed. Even now as he stood on the other side of the mysterious full length mirror he knew that he could not be seen from this side. He left an object on the other side one day before he joined her for tea times and had used the mirror to adjust something on his clothes while she got the table ready and looked for any sign that the cloak was on the other side.
The moment he realized that he succumbed to other temptations. At first he only used the passageway to keep an eye on her and see if she was in her room so he wouldn’t disturb her, but soon when he found when he couldn’t sleep at night that he would come here just to bask in her presence. Byleth looked so peaceful when she slept, and he wanted nothing more than to be right there beside her.
Some nights she would be up late reading, but it was the night that he wandered onto her using her fingers on herself to masturbate that would be forever etched into his mind. The way that her breasts moved in time with her breathing, the way her back arched when she came, and he noted just how she held up her breasts and how much pressure she used to pinch and tug at her nipples. He took in the sight before him and couldn’t help but salivate.
The talk about choosing a queen and having an heir never felt more real then when he took his cock in hand and matched his strokes in time with how her fingers went in and out of her. Even his own fingers would satisfy her so much better. The difference in their hand sizes was something he loved seeing when her slender fingers would grace his hand from time to time. Byleth always seemed to have something to say, but then her words would die on her tounge and they would bask in the silence for a while.
Dimitri had tried more than once to tell her how he felt, but he had been working too hard on taking out the advisors that were against having her as his bride. It was maddening hearing the rumors and knowing that he hadn’t touched her yet, but oh how he wanted to. The stain on the stone next to the mirror showed how often he would come here and climax at the mere sight of her. The moment that he could claim her as his he would.
She still wasn’t here so he moved on to the great hall where the nobles gossiped. He had hoped to hear a rat talk about details they should not know, but instead he heard something that he would never have expected to hear.
“Have you heard that the Archbishop’s niece is to be married off? Seteth himself arranged the match. I was certain that Byleth and His majesty were an item, but I guess that I was mistaken.” One of the nobles on the other side said.
Those words made him halt as the blood in his veins froze. WHAT?
“The wedding isn’t even going to be that large. The lady said that she wanted a quiet affair. I heard that it’s a closed ceremony, but it will be happening in a few days at Garreg Mach,” another answered.
“Closed ceremony, pah, usually those kinds of weddings are ones where the bride is not amiemiable to the situation, and they don’t want others to know about it.”
“Do you really think the Archbishop would wed her if she wasn’t willing?”
“The Archbishop is the one that arranged the match. I had hoped that the corruption within the church would be stamped out with this new rule, but seems that some things will never change.”
Every word had Dimitri’s fists clenching as his teeth ground until his jaw hurt. Byleth was strong enough in both will and power that she would not be able to be forced to do something that she didn’t want, so why?
“It is sad though. With all of the rumors swirling around her and his Majesty, I had really hoped that they were true and even if it was from an illegitimate source, that her rare crest would create an heir worthy of taking the throne once they were old enough.”
“The lady has denied that she and the king have done anything of the sort. The Archbishop takes her side on that, but could it be that this wedding is perhaps to quiet the fact that she has already been deflowered?”
Dimitri wanted to find the nearest exit and execute both of these nobles for their blasphemy.
“Even if he had the king could have just claimed Jus Primae Noctis, and the lady would not be disgraced.”
“Rufus might have seen that archaic tradition brought back, but for some reason, I doubt that His Majesty would do that, however it might be something to mention to his advisors.”
“You two should watch your tongues, or else you’ll lose them.” Felix walked into the room flanked by Dedue and Sylvain.
“Oh, um we were just…”
“Save it, we heard it all. You two are under arrest for deformation, and the King will be the one to decide your fate.”
Dimitri would be making sure that both of these rats were eradicated. They did have a good point in that he could invoke his right as king to get Byleth before anyone else could touch her and no one could stop him. He’d be able to talk to Byleth without anyone else around, and all of this rage and jealousy would have an outlet. If she thought for a moment that he was going to let anyone else touch her, he would show her just how foolish that thought would be.
-----------------------------------------
Byleth was brushing the tail end of her hair in front of the vanity mirror. Flayn had braided it beautifully, and the wedding dress was nothing more than one of Rhea’s old Archbishop’s dresses with a white shawl decorating her shoulders. The veil was attached to her hair and she was going to reach for it with shaking fingers when the door opened and shut behind her. Seteth said he would come to fetch her when it was time.
“I know what you said Seteth, but I don’t know if I can do this. I know Dimitri is better off without me, that he needs to find someone that can be a proper queen, that I can’t be with him, but…”
Those footsteps coming closer weren’t Seteth’s and it made her snap her head up towards the door. Dimitri was there, his single eye blazing with fury as he stepped towards her. Her first instinct was panic, she should just turn back time and take away those stupid words, but he was here. Somehow he was here, and she needed to know why and the fact that he knew those thoughts would only help her gleam more information.
“And why would you let Seteth tell you those lies? Who says that you cannot be a proper queen, Byleth? I have not worked these past few months to get my advisors amicable to the idea just for you to throw all of those plans away for someone else. There is no one else in my mind that I want.”
Hope fluttered in her chest for a moment, before reality came crashing back down. It wasn’t a good thing that he was in love with her. He needed to let her go, and she needed to do the same. “Why are you here?”
She normally didn’t have a problem keeping her voice eve, so why did she sound so broken?
Dimitri lifted up her chin with his fingers. "To take what belongs to me. I’ve evoked Jus Primae Noctis."
Byleth’s eyes widened as his lips descend on hers. She’s only heard of the term, but she knew that, as king, Dimitri couldn’t be refuted by anyone for this. Uncertainty plagued her. She’s not sure what to do, she knows she can't argue, but part of her wants this, a selfish part of her that wants to know what it’s like just once.
It’s the selfish part that has her humming as his arms encircled her and his tongue plunged into her mouth. It was a crushing kiss that took all of her breath away. He’s dressed in his white armor today, looking as regal as a king should be. Her fingers gripped the fur at his shoulders. Dimitri quickly loosened the shaw off of her shoulders and it slipped to the floor as she started to kiss him back. Her will to turn back time faded as he reached to remove his gauntlets and gloves so he can touch her skin. His fingers trail the lace of the veil as he pulled back.
“Has this man you chose been able to do that?”
Byleth could only shake her head. “I don’t even know who he is. I was to meet him at the alter.”
There look on his face is too dark for one whose nickname is the Savior King. She had thought that expression was gone after Gronder.
“Then you chose to do this, to give yourself to someone that you didn’t even know.” The growl in his voice sent goosebumps down her spine, or perhaps that was his fingers slipping into the fastenings in the back.
“You need a queen…”
A sharp tug on her dress had her breasts exposed as the fabric slipped down over her hips and pooled at her feet. She was still wearing her smallclothes. They were made of white lace, like she was told she should wear. The dress tried to catch on her wrists, but another tug was all it took to have her standing there in only a veil, white boots, and her smallclothes.
“I see a beautiful queen right in front of me.”
Dimitri moved around her, his eyes roamed over her body as his fingers traced over her skin. Another tug at the back gave way to the sound of ripping fabric. Her brassiere gapped in the front as it attempted to slip down. She was going to catch it, but his hand snaked out to catch her wrist and she let it fall.
“Do not hide from me.” His voice was right in her ear, and the cold bite of the metal of his armor pressed against her back, making her gasp.
“So beautiful…” Then his hands were on her breasts. “Do you know how long I’ve waited for this? All you had to do was ask and I would have knelt down at your feet and begged you for a chance to let me treat you as my queen. I would have given in to your every whim just to get the chance to touch you. You were going to throw all of that devotion away, so instead tonight I am going to show your body exactly who it belongs to, and you will never leave my side again.”
Dimitri pinched her nipples at the last statement and Byleth moaned at the contact. His lips sucked a mark into her neck as his fingers pinched and played with her breasts. The contrast between his warm hands and cold armor made her squirm. When his fingers trailed down to swipe against her entrance and dig his fingers inside of her. Just one of his fingers was almost double the thickness of hers, and she was surprised by how wet just the few kisses and touches had made her.
Her underwear was removed next before she was unceremoniously tossed onto the bed. Dimitri started to undo more of his armor as she flipped around to watch him. There was already a prominent bulge in his pants, and with every piece of metal he shed she could see the hunger rise.
After he shed the last of the metal encasing him he got onto the bed over her. His weight sunk them both further onto the mattress. “Tell me Byleth, why did you think that someone else would satisfy you better than I could?”
His fingers resumed toying with her slit as he waited on her answer.
“That wasn’t why…” Her breath was taken as Dimitri suddenly entered his fingers into her.
“Do you know what it’s like to be stuck inside a room for your safety, worrying terribly that the same bastards who attacked me might be after you, only to hear from vile gossip that you were getting wed to someone else?”
She was right, he had been attacked and the illness story was just a cover. He had still come here despite the danger. “I’m sorry,”
“Not yet you aren’t my beloved Professor. By the time the night is over, you will be so exhausted and sated that you won’t dare let any of these treacherous thoughts into your mind.”
When his mouth enclosed her nipple, she couldn’t help but arch into him as his fingers started to move their way in and out of her. His eye never left her face as she started to squirm from the familiar buildup. His other hand was working on getting himself out of his own pants. His breathing was getting more excited as she climbed higher on the feeling.
The dark grin on his face after she came from his fingers paled in comparison to the way he threw back his head and moaned as soon as his cock was inside of her. He chose to push himself in while her body was still convulsing from the previous orgasm, and there was discomfort for being stretched so wide. He pushed himself deeper with short strong strokes that had his hips pistoning into her. She was still sensitive and his advance had her quaking by the time he was fully seated inside of her.
A brush of his thumb against her clit, while he was that deep in her, had her climaxing again. “No one else will claim you, or see your face twist with such a lovely expression. You’re all mine beloved. You fit me so well.”
He had faced her towards the door, telling her that there was a part of him that hoped that someone would walk through and see the two of them together, to let the world know who she belonged to. He wanted to hear her screaming his name, and he wasn’t quiet about moaning out her name when he climaxed inside of her.
“I still haven’t had my fill, beloved. I hope you are prepared for what you’ve unleashed. No one else will be able to come close to satisfying you even a fraction of what I have.”
Every time his name left her lips she wondered why she fought this so hard. It felt wonderful, and his stamina in bed was just as prominent as it had been on the battlefield.
After that, the night was a blur. She couldn’t count how many positions he took her in. The whispers in her ear every time he climaxed inside of her made her shudder. His teeth had sunk into her flesh multiple times until she would cry out his name. His fingers left bruises on her hips, and her body was surely molded to his shape by now. He had her on her hands and knees at one point while he drove into her. His warmth had cloaked her completely while he whispered in her ear and nipped at the shell of her ear. Oh the things he told her that had her shivering underneath him. Every time that she thought he was done with her he flipped her into a different position and only seemed to take her harder. Surely he should be getting as exhausted as she was feeling.
“You won’t be leaving me again beloved. Consider this arrangement of yours null and void. I will be having a word with Seteth, and you shall be mine, just as you were supposed to be.”
“I’ll have something to tell you later. There’s a reason…”
Dimitri snorted. “Did you not learn your lesson?”
Byleth was in no place to argue, but she needed to let him know before he sealed his fate. “Dimitri, my lifespan… it’s not human. I’ll outlive you.”
That seemed to make him pause as he stared down at her. “And is there a way to keep that from happening?”
“You’ll have to drink my blood, but as king they’ll notice and you’ll be stuck in the position…”
“Is that what started this treachery?”
All she could do is nod. She felt so tired. Dimitri’s chuckle reverberated in her ear. “You should have told me and let me make my own choice. I will always choose you, beloved.”
Byleth couldn’t stay awake, but the words sunk in well enough. She fell asleep with her legs tacky and his cock still inside of her, plugging up his last load within her.
-----------------------------------------
The Kingdom of Faerghus rejoiced at the reveal of their new queen. As a war hero that fought beside him with a rare crest his advisors had finally saw his way to let her by his side. Then there was the other joyous news that the Queen was expecting. It seemed to be a match made by the Goddess herself as they were wed in the capital. The arranged marriage was said to be a trap for those who would defy the union. That the wedding never existed, and the unnamed lord was just some simpleton that never existed either.
There are some that would say otherwise, that the Queen was an unwilling counterpart in this. Those rumors are quickly silenced when they see how the Queen dotes on her husband, and how he will lavish her with affection and often be seen on the throne stroking her stomach as he leaves whispering kisses on her neck and shoulders. The only question on most gossiper's lips now, is what took them so long to become this attached, because anyone can see, even at a distance, just how in love with each other they truly are.