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The murky gray of dawn cast over the Nohrian countryside, yet the cold of night had not yet receded. A bitter wind swept the land. Azura sat at the edge of camp, not knowing if the wind was the cause of the chill she felt or if it was her mounting sense of dread.
Ever since the incident at Fort Dragonfall a few days prior, she had become increasingly convinced that her life was drawing to a close. She had always thought that it would eventually come to this, that the burden left to her by her bloodline would one day claim her, as it did her ancestors. She had made her peace with it, but her reasons for being at peace with her end had changed over the course of the war against Nohr.
For years, she had only made peace with it because she knew she didn’t have the power to change her fate. That had changed. Now, she was more than ready to die if it meant dying so Corrin could live, and therein lay her dread. She made him a promise that she knew she couldn’t keep. She would have to break her promise, as well as his heart.
Suddenly, arms wrapped around her from behind. Despite the cold, Azura’s entire body tensed. She was ready to fight or, barring that, at least call for help, but there was no need. As quickly as the arms wrapped around her, they withdrew.
“Oh, gods. I did it again, didn’t I?” A familiar - and very apologetic - voice sounded from behind her. “I really need to work on that. Sorry…”
“What are you doing up? You should be resting. You need your strength.” Azura already knew the answer. They shared a bedroll practically every night, and she had fallen asleep on top of him the night before. There was no way she could have left their tent without waking him.
“I came out here to ask you the same.” Corrin said with a chuckle. He lowered himself to sit at her side and wrapped an arm around her, draping a blanket over her shoulders in the process. Azura gladly allowed him to pull her to lean against him. Her head rested against the crook of his neck and he angled his head against hers.
"More nightmares?” He asked. She nodded against him. She hadn’t told him what her nightmares entailed but, ever since she first started developing feelings for him, her dreams would be haunted by visions of him beaten, bloody, and broken. These nightmares came to her more and more frequently as the war waged on and got worse over time as well. And there lay the other source of her dread: that he was going to die before she even had the chance to die saving him.
“You’re shivering so much.” Corrin shifted to pull her even closer and wrap his other arm around her. She sat between his legs, with his head on her shoulder. “You should’ve come back to bed if you were cold.” He pressed a kiss to her neck and heat flared through her cheeks.
Azura gently shook her head. Oh, Corrin. You sweet, naive - “Listen…”
“I’m listening.”
“No matter what happens…” She had already been keeping her voice low, but Azura knew that she would lose control if she spoke any louder. “...you have to survive.”
“Hmm?” Corrin hummed groggily. “Are your nightmares-”
Azura found one of his hands and squeezed it. “You have to survive, my sweet prince. You have to.”
“Azura, you’re scaring me.” Corrin hugged her even tighter - any tighter and he was going to start hurting her.
She wanted to tell him everything. About how her promise was a lie. About her wish to die for him. But, at the very least, she could give him the half-truths she always had.
“I’m terrified that I’m going to lose you.” She confessed. “These nightmares I’ve been having...almost all of them are of you dying in my arms. But some nights, I’m not even fortunate enough to have that. Some nights, you’re already...when I find you, you’re already…” She couldn’t even say it. Her vision blurred with unshed tears.
Corrin was uncharacteristically quiet, and that only made things worse. Normally, he wouldn’t so much as hesitate to comfort her on the rare occasions when she opened up to him. So, for him to regard her with silence hurt.
Behind her, Corrin let out a shaky breath. “Me too…” He murmured. He buried his face in her neck. Her back was flush against his chest but still, he tried to pull her closer. It hurt but, compared to her aching heart, it was something she could bear easily.
“Ever since Fort Dragonfall, that’s practically the only thing that’s been on my mind.” Much like her, he kept his voice quiet to try to stay in control. He was much worse at that than she was, however. And, considering she was already failing to do that, it spoke volumes of how pained he was.
“I can’t unsee you writhing on the ground in agony.” Corrin took a shaky breath in.
“Corrin, I promised you that I wouldn’t-”
“I need to hear it again.” Never before had he interrupted her. Azura’s heart twisted trying to imagine just how much he was hurting. He must have been falling apart inside. “Promise me again. Please.” Please was spoken with such quiet desperation that she didn’t think she could bear it.
“Only if you promise to survive.” Azura squeezed his hand again, but she didn’t let go this time. She clung to him like a lifeline.
“I promise.” He whispered against her skin before pressing another kiss to her neck. Azura squeezed her eye shut and breathed in sharply. He knew how weak it made her when he did that. He wasn’t being fair.
She didn’t think she could bear to lie to him again but, still, she did. “Then I do, too.” Azura joined her other hand around Corrin’s. “I promise to survive.”