“ good ! and since you’ll keep it a secret, i’ll keep you in the know about the weather . . . i won’t let you go out when it’s gonna storm!”

bernadetta nodded their head in a determined manner.

gray eyes lit up slightly— he was really depending on her? HER?

two blinks , and the start of a rosy blush.

“ r - right ! . . . you will be the cutest lion ever! and still give the people morale! “

“ hmm . . . am i really gonna learn how to do this? aw, but — if i learn a skill like this , they’ll want me to go out for SURE on the battlefield ! “ her voice became a bit more of a whine as this fact came over her .

“ then it has to be our secret ! you can’t tell anyone , ashe ! “

She tapped her foot impatiently .

“ you can be a cute lion! not everything has to be so scary all the time , dimitri . . . “

grumble , grumble . .

“ i . . . can crochet you one , too. so you have a little one to match.”

“ p - predict the weather !? that’s like — a superpower! bernie the meteorologist, hmm . . . then , that would mean i get to pick and choose when i get to go out! on the nice days only.”

bernadetta was focused, crossing their arms in thought.

“i get to stay comfy and warm inside on rainy days!”

“ mmm . . . a cute mascot! forget rabbits, maybe a real blue lion!”

“ w - what !? they would . . . ?”

a rosy blush spreads over their cheeks .

“ mmm . . . but i don’t wanna be made fun of! the weather just needs to be more predictable. “

“ of course you can ! unless you want a full rabbit costume ? “

“ well . . . this is my typical attire for the easter season! maybe something like this! “

her hand was on her chin in thought . . .

“ this is just ONE of the reasons i don’t like going outside! the weather is always unpredictable! what if , the one day i decide to go out , i’ m not dressed for it!?”

“ the king dressed as a rabbit . . . !? did you have a particular outfit in mind?”

bernadetta is lazing about ,
mindlessly humming a song . . . not paying attention to their surroundings as they attempt to paint some of the outside scenery , their purple hair flowing freely in the breeze , tied up in a ponytail to see the canvas better .

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐟 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮
𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞, 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞
𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐝 ׅׅ𖤠

“ t - thank you, lindhart ,, i appreciate it, i really do . . . “

“then . . . you don’t live in it anymore!”

“my friends live in this fort!”

“ and neither is a castle! or a town! or land! “

“ sorry . . . i know you didn’t mean it like that. “

“annette said i can have my own room in the fort! that way , i can lounge and be comfy all day, right by myself. you can probably govern most things! why not a pillow? if it’s yours, you can rule it!”

“ maybe. . . the one who spends the most time there in the fort gets to be pillow princess. or pillow prince? it would probably be me, since i wouldn’t want to leave! but ruling over a whole fort . . . sounds like an official headache.”

“maybe they have every right to laugh. . . thanks, lindhart. that made me feel a bit better.”

• 𝐀𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐔𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐭 •

#FERP / #FE3HRP

“ what if i think of someone as a friend and then i tell them , and then they laugh at me or something!? augh , stupid bernie!”