I want so badly to write a fic where Seteth has to teach Byleth to read. (Since realistically she wouldnât be able to read very well, and wouldnât have maths skills, because Jeralt is a single father, running a mercenary crew trying to make ends meet, and most villages donât just have libraries. I.E. See Ike from Path of Radiance. Pretty much same boat, but Ike was lucky to have a mother to teach him rudimentary reading skills before she passed)
Imagine Byleth working so hard to bluff that she cannot read. Trying to skirt around any assignments that would require her to grade any essays, or anything too wordy.
Imagine Seteth putting pressure on her to give her students more bookwork and less practical/hands on lessons.
Seteth discovering she cannot read when he catches her lugging around a dictionary and sounding out the bigger words when she has to grade papers.
Seteth almost running to Rhea to use this as further evidence why sheâs unfit to teach.
Something making him decide to help her rather than use it against her.
Imagine late night lessons, with Seteth teaching her reading skills after her students have gone to bed.
Byleth being extremely resistant to accepting lessons from him because she thinks heâs just trying to demean her, or hold this over her.
The two of them trying to hide her illiterateness from the students, and instead it looks like they are hiding some sort of secret relationship.
Claude finds them out, because first he suspects a secret relationship, but then realizes itâs teaching lessons, and thinks this is the worst twist revelation. But decides to keep their secret.
Jeralt is so confused why Seteth has stopped making scathing comments to him about his daughter.
Eventually a romance blossoms for real, and Claude finally feels vindicated when he catches them.
I keep rolling this idea around in my head, but I cannot write it because Iâve never played the game, and I donât wish to play it. But I want this story.
Been art blocked the last couple weeks, so I decided to use my fe3h rimworld save as basis for some low effort sketches, to see if I could shake off the worst of it. It helped a little, but I guess Iâm just between muses recently
Im in a very strong mood of pinning Seteth on his desk so he can rest for once
....
Either him or Rodrigue
(If I pinned Rodrigue to his desk Felix would walk in by accident and be scarred for life)
The level of skill it took for someone to become half as absorbed into their work as Seteth was insurmountable. No one had the stamina, focus, or patience to wade through the torrential ocean of paperwork that grew every second.
But for the prime minister, and the Archbishopâs closest confidant (among other things), he never wavered. He seemed to enjoy the punishing volume of work, and took pride in completing it.
While he succeeded in plowing through most of the mess each day, it did not please you. This was mainly due to the fact that Setethâs slavish devotion to his work meant little time left for you.
Perhaps it was selfishâŠbut you were busy, too! And when you finally trudged to bed in the dead of night, Seteth wasn't there. You'd sometimes go to his office beforehand; but Seteth was far too busy to even notice you in the doorway.
So you surrendered to your fate, knowing Seteth would not be in bed that night. He remained buried in paperwork until he had to join you at some ceremony or gathering or whatever was expected of such an important public servant.
Since the war's end two years ago, this was your life. But unlike Seteth, you had reached a point where you could carve out peaceful times of day, and could get more than four hours of sleep at night.
While the reconstruction of Fodlan was top priority for most of that time, the demand of the job had finally started to slow down.
Seteth could also afford to slow down now, you thought. If the Archbishop could find time to breathe, surely her second in command could, too.
Such was your reasoning while heading to his office one rainy afternoon.
The weather was dull and dreary; perfect for an afternoon nap. With your own duties cleared until later that night, you planned to have Seteth join you.
A couple inquiries along the way confirmed he was toiling away in the office. When you arrived, the closed doors did not deter you.
Two polite raps against them didnât get a response. You sighed to yourself; he was definitely buried deep in his work.
Testing the handle led it to open without resistance. And the scene that greeted you was your belovedâŠburied under the parchment, as always.
âForgive the intrustionâŠmay I come in?â
Your voice did the trick. His hunched shoulders suddenly straightened, brows raised when sharp green eyes locked on yours.
âByleth!â His surprise gave way to a pleasant smile, âApologies, I didnât hear the door. By all means, come in.âÂ
âThank you,â The doors clicked shut behind you. Seteth rose from his chair with a stretch that resulted in an audible pop- startling you both.
âI take it youâve not stood up in a while, dear?â
âPerhaps Iâve been sat here longer than I thought.â He replied, sheepish from his bodyâs complaint. âNothing some stretches canât fix.â
âWould you consider taking a break?â You asked as he rounded the desk, leaned against the wood frame. He opened an arm to welcome you to his side, which you were glad to accept.Â
It was something of an open secret that you were together. You maintained a polite distance in front of students, but behind closed doors you could be a bit more affectionate.
Well, as much as Seteth would allow before his shyness got the better of him.
For now, though, you were glad to settle against him, wrapping an arm around his waist.
â...Hm. You feel a little thinner, Seteth. Have you been eating properly?
âWell-â He hesitated, though he grew flustered when you glared. âI have not missed any meals on purpose! I simplyâŠyou know.â
âI can see how that might have happened.â You gestured to the stacks of parchment all around you. â...Are you certain I canât take some of this off your hands? This is far more paperwork than any one man should do. Especially if itâs interfering with your health.â
âI have suffered through worse, I assure you.â He sighed, âBut I would be lying if I said this wasnât a bit overwhelming.â
âSo I can help?â
âNo, no. Itâs fine, I assure you. It simply means I must work harder to clear it away!â
âDearestâŠâ You felt him shift under your warning tone. âYou've been working hard for several days. I suspected you were overdoing it again, but now itâs clear. Which means you donât get to say no to any of my plans for the day.â
âOh, no. You have plans for us?â He frowned, dreading the derailment of his schedule. âI have several deadlines due tonight, Byleth. I cannot afford to shirk my duties. And if I recall correctly, you have meetings this evening.â
âI do- which is why my plot need only occur this afternoon.âÂ
â...Plot?â
âIndeed. My plot to drag you to bed and nap with me.â
âNap-?â He repeated with a scoff. You pulled back to look at him indignantly. âWe aren't children! Why would we do that?â
âBecause you hardly come to bed at a decent hour, and I havenât seen you outside of meetings in days. You are gone before I wake, and youâre in bed after Iâm asleep-- assuming there are days you get there, at all!âÂ
âI supposeâŠyou are not wrong, but-â
âI want to spend time with you outside our obligations. Not just for me, mind you, but because you need to before the work finally buries you!â
Seteth did attempt to brush off your warning, though it was ineffective.
âI would love to spend time with you too, dearest, honestly. But I need to prioritize some of this before I even think of doing anything else. Would you be open to a compromise?â
âA compromise?â You echoed, âWhat do you have in mind?â
âIf youâll allow me one hour to finish my more pressing tasks, I swear to set aside the rest of my afternoon for you. Is that amenable?â
â...And it will be a single hour, nothing more?â You stepped closer, your hands on either side of him against the desk.Â
You were awfully close- he felt slightly trapped.
âYesâŠnot a second more. Then I will be wholly yours to force into a nap, even if it is unnecessary.â
Your eyes narrowed, assessing his offer. â...Very well. I accept your terms.âÂ
He hummed in surprise when you kissed him then, sealing the deal with a teasing little peck.
At least he thought it was; then the floor fell out from under him.
The hum turned into a muffled squawk when you pinned his arms over his head.
In a single move you swiped his legs from the ground with one boot, and pressed your chest atop his, pinned fully against the desk.
When you broke the kiss, you were so close your noses touched.
You were both blushing, but where there was confusion, excitement and a hint of fear in his eyes- yours were much more dangerous and calculating.
â...But it would be unwise to keep me waiting.â
You released him as suddenly as you toppled him.
It was as if he blinked and you were across the room, already moving to open the door.
He was still leaned against the desk, though more out of fear his knees would give out if he did not. And the discomfort in his trousers was--
âI will see you in an hour, dear.â You smiled as if nothing happened.
He stumbled to his feet, just as the door opened wide and saw students walking past.Â
He could only nod, and watch lamely as you disappeared from the room. He was rooted to the spot, utterly stunned by your daring behavior. The excitement swirling in his head-- gods, had he actually enjoyed you pinning him like-
He shook his head violently, banishing the impure thoughts from his mind.
No, he would not allow himself to be distracted from his work. He had negotiated an hour, so he would fill that hour properly!
Numbly he sank back into his seat, and the quill returned to his trembling hand.
âWork for the hourâŠuse the full hour, otherwise Byleth willâŠâÂ
The image of Byleth pinning him to the bed flashed in his mind.
He'd barely made it through a single sentence before he rocketed up from the desk.
He made a beeline for the door and strode after his minx of a wife. There would be a conversation about proper etiquette and intimiate behavior in his office late, but he had much more pressing matters to deal with.
Perhaps his work could wait an hour longer, after all.
âŠPerhaps until tomorrow.
(His wife would be sure to employ similar tactics in the future after learning how effective it wasâŠdespite his poor attempts at protesting it.)
help me choose which ships to draw for my valentines challenge! dimileth was omitted because it will most likely win the dimitri poll ;)
special thanks to @broilmage who helped me come up with this list!
(this is the last one, at least for now. i'll see the end results of all the polls then decide if i wanna do another one. thanks a lot for participating! sorry if your fav ship isn't included! there are just too many of them)
we are now allowed to post this, so hereâs the page art I did for @/setlethzine on twitter!! it was an amazing project and I feel incredibly lucky that I got to participate on it đ„șđ
