It took a while to find the princess, since Dimitri had insisted on checking every room to ensure they did not miss anything, but Edelgard finally found her, at the highest tower in the palace. Of course she would be there—for such a tyrant ruler, where better for her to stand than a place where she could oversee all like a god?
The princess did not turn around when Edelgard burst into the room, continuing to stand by the window, watching her kingdom crumble around her.
Oh, how Edelgard had dreamt of this moment for so long! To unleash her anger on this demon who killed Hubert, to finally obtain justice and let his soul rest. She gave up so much to gain the strength she needed to confront her. And here she finally was, but the princess would not even look at her. Even now, Edelgard was far beneath her.
She could not stop the anger from spilling into her voice. "Byleth von Eisner!" Edelgard shouted, clenching her fist around the axe in her hand.
That seemed to catch her attention. She turned around, and Edelgard froze.
This was not the princess.
They were wearing her clothes and they even had her face. But Edelgard immediately knew this was not the person they were looking for.
The princess' stand-in seemed to realize too, as their face expression hardened. Don't question it, they seemed to be willing. Go along with it.
Edelgard opened her mouth. There was so much she wanted to say, but in this moment, the only word she could choke out was, "Why?"
The proxy did not have time to answer. Down the hallway, the thundering of footsteps could be heard. Moments later, Dimitri barged into the room.
"Did you find her?" he asked. When he spotted the person standing by the window, his strained expression contorted into animalistic rage. "You!" he shouted.
Could he not see that this was not the person they were looking for? Edelgard tried to say something, but it was like she was not even in the room. As far as Dimitri was concerned, the only other person here was Princess Byleth.
He pointed the bloodied lance at her. "You...You Ashen Demon..." he growled. "I will separate your head from your neck!"
Edelgard waited for the proxy's face to pale, for them to start shaking. She waited for them to back out. There was a mistake. I'm not the princess. She made me switch with her and she ran away. Dimitri was always a force of nature, but this time the rage had infiltrated his brain—he was more terrifying than ever. Edelgard would not blame them for being afraid.
But they did not. In fact, they almost looked bored.
"How dare you speak to me in such a way, you boar?" they said.
Edelgard did nothing as Sylvain held the proxy's hands behind their back, leading them out. Ingrid followed behind them closely, making sure the princess did not get away, but the captured princess did not struggle or show any signs of wanting to escape.
Dimitri was seated on one of the chairs, Dedue attempting to calm him down. He wanted to execute them then and there, and it took three other soldiers to hold him back.
"That woman!" he roared. "I will tear you apart, limb by limb..." He was not like this when Edelgard first reached out to him, but it did not matter. She did not expect to rely on him for long, anyways. She only needed him and his army to break into the castle.
Edelgard followed them out of the room. "I need a minute to talk," she said. "With the Princess."
"Oh, I could give you a few minutes of my time, princess," Sylvain chuckled, before letting out an "ow" of pain when Ingrid jabbed him with his elbow.
"We can't," Ingrid said.
"I only need a minute," Edelgard insisted.
"No."
"Please, I—"
"I understand what you're feeling. We can't allow you to talk here, but believe me, justice will be served. Now, if you will excuse us." Ingrid nudged Edelgard out of the way.
Edelgard clenched her fists. No. She did not understand. Ingrid and Sylvain were knights from Fargheus. They did not understand the pain or helplessness Edelgard felt when the Ashen Demon snatched Hubert away from her and threw his headless body back at her. They did not understand Dimitri's rage, but Edelgard understood him completely. There was nothing more she wanted to do than hack away at Princess Byleth until there was nothing left, but this was not the person they were looking for.
As they passed by, the proxy lifted their head and gave Edelgard a look. It was not a look of someone who needed help, nor was it the look of sadness or anger. Their expression was completely blank, and in that moment, Edelgard knew that even if she did talk to them, they would never tell her what she wanted to know, what she wanted to hear. They would not reveal the truth, nor would they reveal where the princess really was.
Whoever took the princess' place, they were made from the same cold bones and blood that she was.
Ferdinand poked his head out into the hallway. "Ah, that's where you were, Edelgard. What's the matter? We did it!"
No, we didn't.
"What, something wrong?" he asked.
We have the wrong person.
"No," Edelgard responded. "Everything's fine."
Byleth reached for her hair, cut shorter than it ever was before. They had changed clothes, and while Beleth distracted her with one last hug, he sliced off her shoulder length hair until it was even shorter than his own.
Byleth had begun to protest, but the unnervingly peaceful expression on her brother's face silenced her. He pushed her past the door tucked away behind the bookshelf, and before Byleth could say anything, closed the door, and she was never able to open it afterwards.
She did not remember much afterwards. She vaguely remembered running down the hallways, pitch-black. She was grasping her way through the dark, and for the first time in a long time, she felt lost.
It must have been an eternity before she saw cracks of light shining through the door. She flailed her hand out, and finally managed to find the cold door knob and opened it. The light was heavenly, and she felt like she could finally breathe, but it was not the same air as when she was a princess. It was like she opened the door into a parallel world: similar, but not the same.
Byleth did not remember where she went afterwards, or even falling asleep, but she must have, because she awoke in an alleyway to the smell of smoke. She was disoriented at first, wondering why her room felt so daft and cold, when the memories of the day before flooded back into her mind. She bit her bottom lip.
"It's okay to cry," a female voice said, startling Byleth. She had not noticed, but a young woman with curled hair donning a red dress was standing at the doorway beside her, a lit cigarette in her mouth. "Anyone would cry after losing everything."
"...You know who I am?"
She huffed out a breath of smoke. "Who in Fodlan hasn't heard of the Ashen Demon? You're quite infamous, you know. Even citizens of Brigid know all about you. A tyrant." She dropped the cigarette to the ground and stamped it out with her feet.
"Are you going to turn me in?"
"No, and you can thank my wife for that. And as far as the revolutionists are concerned, they have you in jail and are going to execute you later today."
They're going to execute Beleth. Before Byleth realized, she had leapt to her feet.
"Are you going to attend?" the woman asked.
"I have to."
"Not like that, you're not. Wait a second." She disappeared inside, coming back out a minute later with a black cloak in her hands. She draped the cloak around Byleth's shoulders and pulled up the hood. "I'm sure people will be distracted, but better safe than sorry. You don't want to get noticed by anyone."
Byleth touched the cloak, surprised by her kindness. "Thank you."
"I already said, don't thank me. The execution is going to be held at three in front of the palace. You'll want to leave now if you want to get there in time."
Dorothea watched as the girl ran off, a burning feeling in her stomach. How much she wanted to take her wife's sword and slice her up until there was nothing left. Maybe even then, she would still not feel satisfied.
"Dorothea." Dorthea turned around, meeting her wife's eyes. She looked surprised. "You let her go?"
"Isn't that what you wanted me to do?"
"Yes," Petra responded. "But I did not have expectation you will."
Dorothea smiled softly. "What can I say," she said, kissing her on the cheek. "I guess I just have a soft spot for fallen princesses."
Was it worth it?
They did not tell Beleth when he was going to be executed today, but he knew it was coming.
He clenched his fists, the chains around his hands clinking. Of course it was. After today, he will have fulfilled his duty. He protected her. Although he would not be able to be around anymore to make her happy, at least he ensured no one would be out looking to hurt her.
They cursed her by calling her the Ashen Demon. A hurtful nickname, but a fitting one. But they were twins—if she was a demon, then surely, he was one as well.
Ashen Demon. No, that was not a fitting nickname at all. Beleth did not think of her as some emotionless monster—far from it. When he thought of Byleth, he could only conjure the image of her soft smile in his mind. The quiet joy that showed up on her face when she saw him. The smile she could not keep away when she took a bite of sweets. He could never get enough of that smile.
It's all for the sake of that smile.
Tears wet his cheeks and dripped onto the dirtied dress. He quickly wiped them away, just as the cell door opened.
"It is time." A large, dark-skinned man with white hair stood at the doorway. He was more than a head taller than him. They must have thought that even if their prisoner tried to run away, she would not be able to escape him.
But Beleth was not thinking of escape. He summoned all the dignity and grace he could muster, mimicking the gait of royalty as the guard led him out of the dark cell and into the world.
He flinched as a gust of cold air blew past him, his dress flowing in the wind. Carried along with the wind was the roars of the crowd that shook him to his core. The greatest number of people he had ever seen was during rush hour on the streets of Enbarr, or even in Derdriu. But this collection of people was a sight Beleth had never seen before: hundreds of citizens, perhaps even thousands, their faces brimming with anger.
It overwhelmed him first, but he quickly found his footing. Here was another reason he was glad it was him and not Byleth walking to the guillotine. This was a frightening sight, enough to make anyone break down and cry, demon or not.
The guard nudged him forward, and he walked, ignoring the crowds. As he approached the guillotine, the church bells rang.
Ding.
Ding.
Ding.
The announcement of a tragedy.
Beleth was pushed to his knees, his head shoved into the lunette, holding his neck in place. How open and bare his neck felt, open and vulnerable to the giant blade that would soon end his life.
The onlookers cursed him, shrieking, screaming bloody murder. Beleth did not pay them any mind.
I will do whatever it takes to protect you, my lady.
A peculiar movement caught his eye. A small figure pushed their way to the front, out of breath. Although they were hidden under the black cloak, Beleth recognized their face immediately—after all, it was the same as his own.
She looked exhausted, and in that moment, Beleth found himself clinging on to life. Not because he was regretting his decision, but because he was worried for her. What will she do now, without him? Who would keep her away from harm?
But all of Beleth's doubts disappeared when Byleth smiled.
Ah, that's right. This is all for her.
He tore his gaze away, instead looking up at the sky. It was a beautiful blue, not a cloud in the sky.
Goddess, if you can hear me, please...
Look after my sister for me.
Beleth heard the guard shout, signalling for the end. He cleared his throat.
"Oh," he said, as the blade plunged down. "It's tea time."
Besides the sound of the ocean, the morning was quiet.
Byleth wadded into the water, until it was just up to her knees. In her arms, clutched close to her body protectively, was a glass bottle.
Please, Goddess.
My greatest wish...
She hesitated for a moment, unwilling to part with the bottle, before gingerly setting it into the sea.
If we could be reborn...
Byleth watched as the water cradled the bottle, carrying it further and further away from her, until it was swallowed by the sunrise.
Please let us be twins again.
FIN.