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okkefac · 1 year

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Now that the DLC is out, I’m going to go into Alfred’s new support :)

As for where I’d rank it, I’m not certain yet, but above Ivy’s and potentially as high as second only to Céline’s.

SPOILER WARNING FOR THE ENGAGE DLC STORY

Alfred/Rafal

Honestly this support is almost exactly what we needed out of a new Alfred support. It basically patches all the major gaps we got out of his main game supports, covering a lot of new ground for the character in a way that still feels natural and in character.

Starting with the C support, this is a fairly typical Alfred being an adorable comic relief goofball support, but with an added twist that I think is really interesting. This is the first time, outside of Alfred/Soren’s bond conversation, where we see Alfred actually dealing with someone being quite negative towards him - and unlike a bond conversation this is a significant amount of interaction between the two. Alfred gets along with pretty much everyone, so seeing a side of him having to navigate someone who dislikes him is really interesting. Of course, Alfred in his good nature just brushes it off and continues acting like a goof.

There is one line in the C support that interests me, and that’s when Rafal commands Alfred to stop working out, he says “I can’t just stop working out” with an obvious sad expression - one that Alfred rarely has, especially not with a line said with such serious delivery. Obviously we know by now that Alfred started working out to save his own health, but it’s been so rarely alluded to in his supports, that this was a nice little bit look into his views on the matter of workouts.

And then we get to the B support, which is basically what we needed out of an Alfred support.

This is the first actual support where we see Alfred explain his history with his illness in some detail. Now, we know Alfred doesn’t exactly like to talk about it, and thankfully this support doesn’t have him reveal that he’s still ill, because that would be very out of character for Alfred to just admit - the Céline support stays the only one that covers it, because she coincidentally found out. However most people already know in universe that Alfred had a past history with illness, after all he’s the Crown Prince of Firene, and his father died when he was young due to illness/sickness which surely had political ramifications, so aside from the Emblems (where Alfred does mention his illness) he never really had a reason to bring it up, because the other person already would know, and he wouldn’t want to go into detail. So having someone new to the world like Rafal finally lets us have a situation where Alfred’s history with illness is naturally brought up.

For the first time we hear Alfred’s actual perspective growing up ill, with him revealing it in a defensive manner, due to Rafal calling his workouts pointless. “My workouts aren’t pointless. My body is living proof of that.” We get to see how Alfred views his own body, a very healthy mindset. Most of the time we see the himbo character he puts up, complaining about a lack of muscles, but with this we hear him actually appreciate his body for how far he’s come, which is a very important message and really shows his maturity about the situation.

Another line from the B support that really gets to me is “No one thought I’d live a long life.” Alfred rarely talks negatively about anything, especially not himself. Ever one for optimism, imagining a small child Alfred having to hear these things, hear common talk that he’d die young, must be terrifying and depressing to say the least. The fact that he’s come out of it with such a mindset only goes to further show how great a person he truly is. For him to say no one, suggests it very much wasn’t a vocal minority having doubts about his health, but potentially most people around him. It’s also definitely likely that this was so relevant due to him being the heir to a nation with an already unwell king. Having a support where he reveals a bit of this, even in just this small part of the conversation, is such a breath of fresh air. The support then ends with Rafal apologising to Alfred for doubting his workouts, and finding it relatable how Alfred pursues health for the sake of his sister (and mother).

Funny enough, unlike most support conversations, I do think this one peaked in the B support rather than the A support (although my bias for seeing this from an Alfred perspective helps that), but that doesn’t stop the A also being incredibly good. Again getting a support of Alfred being mostly serious is a nice change of pace, since unlike most of his support partners, Rafal is unabashedly serious. This support is more about Rafal than Alfred, but Alfred hearing Rafal’s backstory and finding it relatable is really interesting. It’s again the sort of behaviour we’ve not come to really hear much out of Alfred, but he also hasn’t really had someone else with a similar backstory to play off of before now. His illness is usually so kept in the dark, a past event he doesn’t need to focus on, that seeing him bond and relate with someone over that is really sweet. Rafal then uses this to further explain why Alfred is a wonderful person, which I’m sure we all know by now. I really love the line “My heart is no match for yours.” when talking about Alfred. And seeing Alfred’s character positively influence someone else’s outlook is truly beautiful, and a message that can go beyond the prospects of a silly little game’s support.

The support ends kind of humorously again. Rafal questions why Alfred enjoys being around him, considering being Firenese Alfred should deteste fell dragons (little does he know about Alfred, huh), and we get a real sweet line from Alfred “I don't like to label people that way. I’d rather go by what I see.” which just further shows how good a person he is, and him looking past prejudices is a whole other point I can make in a whole other write up, but definitely aligns with his character. He then goes on to say “Besides, we’re cut from the same cloth.” which is incredibly sweet, and definitely gives the vibe that Alfred really appreciates having someone around who can actually understand the situation he grew up in, rather than just know about it and pity him. There is then a cute argument about who gets to be the older brother of the two, which occurs just as the support started getting a little too gay, haha.

Overall this support chain is honestly really, really incredible. It’s right there as one of Alfred’s best supports, in my opinion. A lot of his other supports are very surface level, purposely as Alfred likes to keep it that way, but this one we get a natural progression to the Alfred underneath the “spirited prince who loves working out” in a way that doesn’t tarnish his character and make him unnecessarily open about a past we know he doesn’t like to go into much. Finding a kindred spirit in this matter was a very smart way to get around this, and allow us to see a side of Alfred that has been very sorely missed due to Engage’s wacky and fun cast not really allowing the topic to come up.

It shows us a bit more of the Alfred that his fans already knew was there, but in the open this time, rather than subtext.

FE Engage: Alfred Support Analysis [Spoilers]

On twitter I asked if I should really make an analysis and tier list of every Alfred support in Fire Emblem Engage, because the briainrot is real. Well, I was encouraged for some reason, so thought I may as well post it to tumblr as well.

I’ll be analysing them from the bottom up, but I do genuinely like every Alfred support!

WARNING: SPOILERS. For playable cast, as well as end cards.

Alfred/Amber

I’d say this is probably Alfred’s weakest support, which is to say it’s still good, but has nothing really going for it in particular. It’s what you’d expect - two fairly dumb characters going on a fairly dumb adventure together. It’s very straight forward, to the point, and sweet. It’s full of typical Alfred optimism - it’s a great support to help solidify his character, but doesn’t really do much more than that other than comic relief.

Alfred/Boucheron

Another support that is mostly surface level without much more going on. Surprisingly my two favourite characters, but still ranked this low. It’s very predictable, and the C and B supports are basically identical to Boucheron/Etie’s C and B supports. The A support ends sweetly but in a predictable manner. I’d again say this is a good support to learn of both Alfred’s and Boucheron’s characters, but is mostly just surface level and comic relief.

Alfred/Bunet

This support is basically the same as the other two in that it’s surface level and mostly there for comic relief - the only reason it rates higher is because Bunet is such a force for chaos that the comic relief is incredibly hilarious. The support literally starts with this banger of a line:

Bunet: Prince Alfred. Might I ask you for a quick lick?

And then contains these beauties:

Alfred: Speaking of which, Bunet, you’re looking pretty beefy.

Bunet: Beefy, you say. Do you mean you would like to have a quick lick yourself?

Alfred: Uh, no, I’m good. I was just paying you a compliment.

The A support ends weird, which is to be expected of Bunet, and is surprisingly gay for a non Alear support. Again very surface level, but its humour puts it above the other two for me personally.

Alfred/Veyle

An Alfred support where he “breaks character” so to say is always going to rate highly for me, as I’m a sucker for typically happy characters showing their true colours and thoughts. This support starts very generic, and the C support is hilarious, but has some really good points throughout it. Generally Alfred’s A supports are his strongest point, and this one holds up to that. You go into the C and B thinking it will be another surface level Alfred support where he’s going on about exercise, and Veyle is going on about spicy food and feeling insecure, but then the A support has a few little gems in it. In particular this line really struck me when reading it for the first time.

Veyle: Oh, Alfred. I don’t think my problems can be solved by push-ups…or crunches.

Alfred: Of course. You know that, and I know that.

His soft voice and change of tone when he says that - that’s his happy self taking a step back to let Veyle know that her problems are valid, he is taking her concerns seriously, this is just how he does so.

Alfred: If you don’t set your troubles down every now and then, they’ll crush you.

This line also sticks out once you think about Alfred’s backstory a little bit more, and read a certain support that I’ll get to.

Alfred: I’d be happy to push you so hard, you can’t think of anything else. It’s what I do best!

This line summing up his beautiful character is honestly so touching. This support really pleasantly surprised me once I got to the A rank. Really lovely.

Alfred/Diamant

So I want to love this support, I really do. Once I saw these two could support, and then that all the main royals supported each other, I was so excited because Diamant is one of my favourite characters, and his personality is very different from Alfred’s.

And for the most part, this support is as great as I’d hoped it would be. The C support fascinates me, I remember thinking how strange Alfred was acting during it - we usually see him as the cheery muscle guy, so seeing him actually act princely was a real surprise, and I’m really a sucker for characters acting parts and changing their personality to do so.

I’m even more of a fan when this breaks down, like Alfred so beautifully does so here.

Alfred: I was trying so hard to keep up the act, but I guess I blew it with that question.

Seeing him play the formal part and then break down and B support and upwards act like his normal self was such a refreshing change of pace from his other supports. It made me super excited to read this. The B support continues much on in the same manner, and these two are simply just cute together. It’s great seeing them bond, and Alfred being adorable and saying how close they are. It’s all so wonderful.

Shoutout as well to the beginning of the C support basically being that meme where the early risers and night owls meet up because they’re both awake. Love that for them.

But then we get to the A support, and I have to be honest this A support kind of frustrates me. At the same time of grinding this support out, I was also grinding and achieving the Diamant/Ivy support line, and got their A support shortly before Diamant and Alfred’s - and the Alfred/Diamant A support really confused me because it goes against not only Diamant/Ivy but several other Diamant supports. Diamant is always adamant that he will change Brodia’s ways, that he wishes for no wars, and he will deal with the political outfall to do so (Citrinne/Diamant support goes into this as well) - and yet suddenly in his A support with Alfred he can’t commit to not invading Firene? It reeks of forced drama because these two were too wholesome together. It’s wild that Diamant will go fight nobles to not invade Elusia, but will tell Alfred to his face that his people might make him invade Firene. Of course Alfred is wonderful about this, but this detail just struck me as so weird on Diamant’s part - and brings the whole support down for me, which otherwise was one of my favourite Alfred support lines.

Alfred/Etie

This was actually the final support chain I got for Alfred, and it started similarly predictable and disappointing as Boucheron’s. There’s nothing really to say about the C and B supports for me, it’s Alfred and Etie being muscle heads. It’s good generic character build up.

Then you get the A support, and it takes a wild left turn that genuinely I’ve been thinking about for around a day now, because I am incredibly pathetic. In Engage most supports are almost passionately platonic, characters do not even mention romance. Some supports are flirty, but again, genuine joining of relationships is rarely mentioned - and as I said this was my final Alfred support, so I can confirm outside of his S rank, Alfred is nowhere near the realm of even mentioning romance.

So when he casually mentions his queen, and his mother thinking he’d marry Etie, I was actually gobsmacked. That’s a surprisingly serious topic for Alfred to talk about, especially in a support that I was expecting to be generic from the C and B ranks. It gives some much needed personality to Éve that I wish we had more of, some backstory for Alfred and Etie’s relationship. I was worried, because my biased shipping heart can’t take it, that it would go a romantic route between Alfred and Etie, but I loved that both of them very sincerely seemed to find the idea completely ridiculous.

I am a sucker for a gay romance including inheritance drama if one of them is a noble, and knowing that Alfred’s queen has been a talking point gives me some damn good ammo for some family drama. Basically this support gave a different side to Alfred’s relationships, even if someone isn’t an Alfred/Alear (especially Alfred/M!Alear) shipper, or especially if they are an Alfred/Etie shipper (and you interpret this differently to me), this support gives a totally different side to his relationships that I find really fun to think about.

Alfred/Timerra

Funny enough, despite this being higher ranked than the others, I have less to say on it to be honest. This support is fairly simple and nice, but just felt more fulfilling than the supports I listed initially. I always find Alfred in new situations interesting, and I liked how he wanted to pick Timerra’s brain over dinner. The B support is basically nothing, and the A support is sweet enough. Sharing culture and learning more about each other is a very Alfred way to do things, and makes sense considering he has said before how he knows very little of Solm due to distance, so it’s nice seeing that referenced in this chain.

Shoutout to Alfred being the only royal who doesn’t sing in their Timerra support chain though, very sad. I guess Timerra knew he’d be too supportive. What a good boy.

Alfred/Vander

This was one of the last Alfred supports I got, and my opinion on Vander wasn’t stellar beforehand, but this support very pleasantly surprised me. Much like Timerra’s, this support doesn’t have loads going for it, but is just of a consistent quality and very nice for both characters. Alfred is rarely self conscious, and again this is a sort of bias that I have in that I love the happy go lucky characters going through mild angst, so starting with Alfred’s guilt did immediately draw me in. I did love getting a support that talks a bit more about Lumera, and Firene’s close relationship with her. Knowing Lumera gave Alfred flowers for his birthday is honestly such a damn cute mental image, especially since Alfred presumably would have been quite sickly at the time, so probably saw great treasure in it.

This support is overall just adorable, and these two play off of each other very well. A very subdued Alfred support, but a really good point.

Alfred/Ivy

So when I got this support, it was mostly because I had suddenly decided to use Ivy and needed everyone in my army to support Alfred as soon as possible. This support very pleasantly surprised me, and made me love Ivy especially. Again like the two before, it’s just an overall great support with nothing much surprising going on Alfred is of course very trusting and kind, as he always is, and I love Ivy’s teasing. These two play off of each other very well. The B support is a change of pace from most Alfred supports, where Alfred sort of has the upper hand, which is rarely the case for him, and he gets to tease Ivy in turn.

The A support is predictable, but has a great line from Ivy.

Ivy: This is unacceptable. I demand that you be troubled immediately!

This support chain highlights both of their characters in really great ways, and I adore the dynamic these two have together, which is not something I expected!

Alfred/Yunaka

I think this was my first Alfred support that I got to A rank, so revisiting it for this write up was so much fun, and reminded me how much I loved it at the time. This support shows Alfred at his best, a genuinely lovely and friendly person, who is willing to trust and support whoever needs it. The C support starts in a way that makes you think the whole chain will be obvious, Yunaka is sneaky, Alfred trusts, he slowly over time pries info out of her, they get closer, bla bla - but then the B support completely subverts that. Where most characters, honestly understandably so, would question Yunaka’s motives and not like that she is openly willing to lie, Alfred takes her completely at face value and doesn’t even try to pry - when he accidentally asks too deep a question he backs up and lets Yunaka take the reigns of their friendship. Rereading this I was reminded why I love Alfred so much.

Their A support continues and again I was expecting to gain some info on Yunaka, but Alfred respects her boundaries, something more people should do in general, and it just ends with Yunaka genuinely in awe of this - and you can tell she appreciates it.

Alfred: From one weird bird to another, I hope we stay friends for a long time.

What a fitting end to such a lovely conversation. This was such a different support than I expected these two to have, and I loved every moment of it.

Alfred/Alear

Okay and here is where my obvious biases come in. The main reason this support is so highly rated is because of the S rank, not just because I ship these two like mad, but because I appreciate learning of a character’s romantic side. The topic of romance is also why I loved Etie’s A support so much.

This chain is again for the most part fairly formulaic - but does have that added twist that I said before where Alfred is surprisingly out of character, he’s incredibly self conscious in a way that is only seen in a handful of other conversations of his, and this stays throughout the whole support conversation. The C support reads very much of “and they were roommates”, and the B support is probably their weakest one where it just reads as wacky things Alfred does to show his support. Since at this time I was also getting the Clanne and Framme Alear supports, it wasn’t super exciting to read at the time.

The A support is for the most part a logical conclusion to the B and C supports, but does have an extra bit of information that I think about a lot. Alfred mentioned how he visited Alear a lot as a child during his slumber, and saw Alear as a friend during that time, and how that explains his clingy behaviour. This again can read as just Alfred being Alfred, but once you learn more of his backstory and think more on his person and history, actually becomes incredibly touching if not quite sad. Alfred grew up very sickly, we can probably conclude from this that he didn’t have many friends as he was likely in recovery a lot, I can only imagine what kind of friendship he might have imagined with his deity - someone he probably prayed to to fix his condition, and to now be able to have a real genuine friendship with, is so interesting.

Now, their S support is absolutely everything I wanted it to be. If I’m going to romance someone, I want romance dammit! And boy does this deliver. If anyone wants a non-platonic Alear S rank, please look no further than Alfred. This again is a natural conclusion, and makes reference to their old supports, whilst being very explicitly romantic. The exchange of gifts is touching, and Alfred dares to use the word love. His confidence gained from this and his S rank wake up convos are such a delight, he’s honestly quite flirty and I gotta say I adore it. These two are just so cute together, that I might scream just thinking about it.

Alfred/Céline

Oh boy. Okay, let’s get into it.

My initial tier list calls this required reading, and to be honest it really is. This support underpins basically Alfred’s entire character, and in retrospect makes every other support of his so much better. If you don’t romance Alfred yourself, his ending is basically so incredibly left field unless you do the Céline support - and if you do the Céline support, it’s just mind shatteringly depressing. I would be as bold as to say this is one of the most important support chains in the whole entire game - especially considering how major a character Alfred is to the plot at large.

Alfred/Céline’s support chain starts innocently, as many of Alfred’s otherwise do. His C and B supports are him digging and Céline essentially calling him a himbo. It’s really funny, and it’s nice to see Céline teasing him, as it was difficult to gauge what their relationship was like just from the main story alone, since Céline doesn’t appear in it for long.

Then you get to their A support. I didn’t count but this support seems to be much longer than any other Alfred support that there is, and for a very good reason.

There is often a saying of if something is too good to be true, it probably is, right? Alfred is such a lovely person, he’s always so happy, so carefree, he was sickly as a child but worked through it, he’s doing amazing now! This A support takes all that and tears it to the frigging ground. Alfred’s illness has returned. Now, if you had only done Alfred’s supports, you probably know that he was ill as a child, but it’s not really brought up, been there done that y’know? But it’s a common theme in Céline’s supports, and she mentions it so much, and it’s obvious she has a lot of trauma and anxiety from genuinely fearing for her brother’s life for so long. For Céline to find him like this is literally one of her biggest fears come true.

And you have to wonder, if this was such an important part of Céline’s life, and if Alfred was truly *that* sick, wouldn’t we have heard about it? Well, I think this line that he says to try and stop Céline getting him medical help explains it well.

“As far as they’re concerned, I want to be the spirited prince who loves working out.”

And this is where my heart sank. God am I a sucker for tropes like this, but it genuinely hurt because Alfred doesn’t deserve this. It’s an act, of course it is. Of course he can’t be this airheaded wonderful man who’s just undeniably sweet - of course he’s actually aware of what’s going on. Of course he’s putting on a brave front so others don’t worry about him. Of course! Because he’s a goddamn amazing character, and I love him.

This broke me, this truly broke me, because when I think of how he must be feeling, how Céline must be feeling, how his whole dumb muscle shtick started just to save his damn life, I get depressed knowing that it’s returned and that his arguably-more-canon ending has him frigging dying from it. It’s not enough. All the work he did is not enough. I don’t think I have the heart to not S rank him, because that ending just hurts so much man.

These lines later on in the A rank, because this A rank is long, also made me sad in that it shows a mindset that to my knowledge is quite common amongst those with chronic conditions.

Alfred: Well, what about you, then? What brings you true happiness?

Céline: Nothing.

Alfred: Really? You’ve got good friends, you got your health─none of that does it?

“You got your health” - Céline has all that Alfred could want, all that he needs. Most people don’t value health as a baseline form of happiness, most people take it for granted. But it’s been this big part of Alfred’s life looming over him. Something that, unless you S rank him, he never gets to truly understand.

And because this support keeps on giving, Alfred then goes back to his cheery self, saying how happy talking to Céline makes him, and points out a four-leaf clover. They talk about how they always used to look for happy little things as children, and Céline used to be better, but at one point Alfred got better. Céline’s mental health struggles are honestly another talking point I could go into massively, but the idea that the person who has suffered, the kind older brother, is so selflessly looking out for joys to make his worrying sister feel better, and has done so since childhood, is just so beautiful.

One more line that sticks out, knowing how Alfred’s solo ending goes.

Alfred: Hey… I’m not gonna die, OK? I’ll be fine if I stick with my training.

This pair of siblings honestly has such a tragic story and end. This support chain is so stunningly beautiful, again pretty much entirely in the A support. It ends with Alfred later saying he can’t guarantee anything, but that they must work together for Firene. It’s bittersweet, and how bitter or sweet it really is depends on if you S rank Alfred, but even with his health improving, his history has had such a profound effect on both of them, and is truly explored in this support.

This support reveals information that underpins both characters core personalities, and makes both of their other supports so incredibly better. It’s honestly one of my favourite supports not only in the game, but in the Fire Emblem series as a whole.

Absolutely beautiful.

#fe engage #fe engage spoilers #fe17 spoilers #fell xenologue #fire emblem alfred #fe alfred #fell xenologue spoilers #fe17 dlc #fire emblem nil #fe nil #fire emblem rafal #fe rafal #spoilers #dlc spoilers

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okkefac · 1 year

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Ichibancha [An Alfred and Céline fic about his feelings for Alear]

Ao3

Fire Emblem Engage, Alfred & Céline sibling fluff, mentions of Alfred/Alear

[Spoilers for Alfred and Céline’s A support, and chapter 16 of Engage]

Words: 3483

Chapters: 1/1

Summary: Céline notices Alfred not quite acting like himself, and takes it upon herself to support him in his struggles of the heart.

🌼

Céline is stopped in her tracks as she walks towards the café terrace early in the morning one day.

Alfred is sitting at a table, a teacup and pot in front of him, with his head in his arms. Ever since she found out that her brother is still suffering from his childhood illness, Céline has been wracked with worry, although usually she is able to steel herself and keep it at bay. However, now faced with her brother, in a situation very much unlike himself, bile starts to rise up in her throat.

Forcing her feet to work again, Céline hurries towards her brother, calling out. “Alfred!”

Immediate relief flows through the princess, as Alfred quickly perks his head up. It’s obvious he isn’t terribly unwell, and doesn’t appear to look like he just awoke - both being situations that would suggest he is far worse than he let on. He gives Céline a smile, but at this point Céline questions if it’s even real. Their conversation a few months past has honestly put a lot of her brother's actions and intentions into question, and she isn’t sure how often he’s genuinely happy versus putting up a front.

“Hi Céline!” Now that definitely doesn’t sound happy, no matter how obvious it is that Afred is trying hard to appear peppy.

The thought that something is wrong fills Céline up with the familiar feeling of dread, even if not as urgent as before. She swallows and pauses for a moment, kind of afraid of the answer.

“...Why were you sat with your face against the table? That’s very unlike you.” Alfred doesn’t look particularly surprised at this question, and Céline continues before he can reply. “...Is it your illness?”

Alfred shakes his head at Céline, “No! No. I had an attack a few weeks ago, but it only lasted about half an hour. I’m fine, Céline, I promise .”

That seems genuine enough, but Céline is still wary. After all, Alfred never participates in tea time for pleasure’s sake, not like she does. Taking a look at the pot and teacup, Céline braces herself to lift the teacup and brings it to her lips to try a sip. Perhaps someone else offered him a pot of tea and he simply accepted out of politeness, it’ll be easy enough to tell.

Immediately a few things are obvious. The first is that this is not a weighted teacup, which wouldn’t be too strange if someone else had brewed this tea, but it is also obvious that Alfred himself brewed this. Being an expert in all things tea related, Céline finds it easy to tell who brewed a tea based simply on its taste, as long as that person has brewed tea for her before on multiple occasions. The tea leaves are both brewed at too low a temperature and not for long enough, the flavour mild and rather dull, compared to the richness that these leaves usually produce. That is in simple Alfred fashion, he’s never liked precise work - especially not things that require patience and standing still waiting for a pot to boil, so he’s had this problem with his brewing for years.

The next thing that surprises Céline about the tea is that it is obviously sweetened. Some people who are passionate about tea have strong preferences for sweetness and how others should drink their tea - Céline isn’t a snob however, and she often provides sugars for her tea party companions. But as long as Alfred has been working towards bettering his health, he stopped having sugars in his tea, despite being fond of it as a child. So for him to not only brew himself tea, but to sit here drinking it with sugar, is continuing to rack up the growing concern Céline has for her brother.

“What’s wrong?”

Alfred raises an eyebrow at her, a smile still spread across his face. “Nothing’s wrong, Céline. I already told you that.”

Céline shakes her head. “You brewed yourself tea, which is already very unlike you, and not only did you not use your weighted teacup - but you added sugar to it. It seems you’re bothered by something.”

“My health is fine.”

She’s getting nowhere, so with a sigh Céline decides to put a bit more sharpness in her tone. Alfred can take it, after all. “I never said it had to be about your health.” This causes her brother to look surprised. Softening her tone, she continues. “Something is obviously wrong. Tell me about it, please.”

Alfred maintains eye contact for a few seconds before looking down towards the table. He reaches over the teacup - not to drink it, but to fidget. He runs his finger along the rim, tracing around the tea. Not for the first time, Céline feels like the older sibling, but something is different this time. This isn’t an expression Céline is used to seeing on her brother, and it makes handling this incredibly difficult - she isn’t quite sure what to do.

“Are you worried about your health?”

Her brother jumps slightly at the question, his finger slipping and landing in the tea. He pulls it to his lips, and shakes his head, eyes still wide. “No. Well, that’s not what’s bothering me right now.”

Nervous . That’s the emotion Céline realises she’s reading from him. When has Alfred ever been nervous? She genuinely can’t think of an example. He’s been the excited kind of nervous, anticipating a visit to the Divine Dragon, or testing a new workout technique, but an actual negative kind of nerves, it’s unsettling to say the least. Even when their nation has been at risk, Alfred’s response to that is usually anger mixed in with nerves, compared to this quiet nervousness that’s before her.

“What is it, Alfred?” She wants to help him. Not just as his princess, but as his sister. Alfred is too good of a man to be hung up on something, and whilst Céline herself likes to bottle up her emotions, Alfred’s never been one for it, or so she thought.

He takes a deep breath, and moves back to fidget with the teacup, but this time focusing on running his fingers along the saucer. “I… I’ve been…” another sigh, and he finally frowns. That hurts Céline more than she thought it would.

Trying to stay encouraging, Céline doesn’t say a word, but reaches her hand across the table, smiling at Alfred. He takes her hand in his, playing with her fingers one by one.

“I've been… dealing with some new emotions… I think.” That surprises Céline to say the least. Alfred continues on. “I’ve been figuring some things out about myself.”

Céline nods. She doesn’t really understand, but it doesn’t sound life threatening, so she finds it easy to be calm. When Alfred doesn’t continue, she squeezes his hand slightly, trying to make eye contact.

Finally, he reciprocates, smiling at her - a genuine smile this time, even if small, before looking away again and fiddling with her hands yet again. Slowly his face turns pink, something that Céline definitely isn’t used to seeing.

“I…” another deep breath. Céline squeezes again, and he squeezes back, but still refuses to look her in the eye. “I think… I might be in love.”

Instantly all the tension leaves Céline’s body, so fast it stuns her for a moment. Full of pent up energy at this point, Céline has to will herself to not shake. Thank goodness .

Céline doesn’t know much about love, not yet at least, but her brother is a few years older, so it seems if anything late for him to be having his first crush. Alfred loves people easily, but that has always been in a platonic manner; he’s never so much as broached the subject of romance before, at least not with her. Céline then remembers a conversation she and Etie had a few weeks ago.

“Is it Etie?”

This breaks Alfred out of his trance, letting go of Céline’s hand and returning back to his regular colour.

“No… no.”

Céline believes him, but just to make sure. “She told me that you told her that mother thought she would be your queen. You never told me that.”

Alfred laughs. “I also told her I could never see her as my queen.”

“She did mention that… You know I wouldn’t mind.”

Alfred looks nervous, but not in the same way as before. He chuckles, to himself Céline would imagine. “Thank you for your blessing, but I promise it’s not her.”

“Okay…” Céline leaves the word hanging, encouraging Alfred to continue on.

He starts babbling a few moments later, voice hitching in places where it usually doesn’t. “I- I don’t know. I’m so… confused and… and…”

This time Céline sighs, although she tries to make herself sound sympathetic. “Does she make you happy?”

Céline watches as Alfred’s face scrunches up - it would almost be funny if it wasn’t the most uncomfortable she’s ever seen him look. He sounds almost on the verge of passing out when he croaks out one small word: “he”

Oh. Oh .

Oh that explains a lot of things that Céline doesn’t have the time to unpack right now, not when it’s obvious Alfred is having some sort of crisis.

Funny enough, the main thought running through Céline’s head at this point is what would Alfred do if this situation was reversed? Caring for Alfred’s emotional needs is a whole new experience she’s not really had any preparation in - that sort of thing is much more Alfred’s speciality.

An immediate person comes to mind, but Céline decides to not let that cloud her judgement, so she gives Alfred as bright a smile as she can muster.

“You should tell me about your feelings for him.”

Another long pause, Alfred licks his lips and looks around the terrace. It’s early, but not incredibly so, and others will likely start to come in any time now, or at least that’s what Céline presumes is at the forefront of Alfred’s thoughts when he replies.

“Sure. Okay… But can we talk about this somewhere more private?” He looks desperately at his sister.

Céline chuckles, standing up from her seat. “Of course, but let me brew a new pot of tea, this one will simply not do.”

🌼

The water must reach a boiling point, and still be bubbling when adding it to the black tea leaves - which must then sit for 4 minutes exactly. This is how one properly brews black tea. As she nears the 4 minute mark, Céline takes the teapot and cups onto a tray, adding milk and sugar dishes in case Alfred is still in the mood for that, then carries them towards his private chambers.

Living on the Somniel is a strange experience. Everyone gets their own living quarters, the royal families were offered more premium rooms, although to no one’s surprise Alfred refused his and decided instead to be housed next to his retainers. Céline followed suit, her main point of priority being that she is easily able to host tea parties in her room if desired. It’s nice being in a fairly secluded and private living area, unlike in her home of Firene she is able to walk around freely - no guards needed for extra protection. It’s very freeing.

Alfred said they could meet in his room, so Céline arrives and knocks on his door. A few moments later he opens it, usually Alfred greets his guests before opening the door, but it seems he’s still in an odd kind of way.

Wordlessly, Alfred opens the door and motions for Céline to come in. Once inside, he shuts it and watches and Céline brings the tray to the one table in the room. It’s small, and otherwise empty, thankfully with two chairs beside it. Céline has been in here a few times before, usually just to check up on her brother or casually chat, but every time it surprises her how bare the room is. There are a pile of weights in the corner, and a lot of royal clothing, but other than that there is very little adorning the space.

“You should sit. I brewed one of your favourites. Rose and vanilla black tea.”

Alfred looks relieved, and nods before sitting down. Céline pours out two cups, and decides not to add any sugar or milk to hers. She raises her eyebrow at her brother.

Getting the picture, Alfred slumps into his seat a little more. “Sugar and milk please… it’s one of those days, I guess.”

Céline nods and prepares his tea, moving the cup towards him. Tentatively he takes a sip and sighs.

“Your tea always makes me feel better, Céline.”

Taking advantage of the situation, Céline grins. “Talking about your feelings will also make you feel better.”

Alfred barks out a genuine laugh at that, putting down the cup. Céline reaches into her pocket and hands him a flower - if he’s going to fidget again, he may as well not risk spoiling the tea she brewed for him. He smiles and takes it, twirling it around in his fingers.

“I… I don’t know where to begin.”

“You could begin by telling me who you have feelings for.”

The room goes quiet, aside from the sound of Céling sipping at her tea. It becomes almost deafening, before Alfred decides to finally break it.

“It’s… um.” he sighs, moving his fingers over the edge of the petals of the flower. He’d never dare hurt a flower, Céline can see the care he’s taking to simply feel its smooth petals. “The… divine… dragon.” He goes red again, refusing to look at Céline.

It’s obvious in hindsight, really. What Céline had often chalked up to Alfred being Alfred, showing great love and passion for the Divine One, was likely a man unsure of how to handle his budding feelings. It makes her laugh. She wonders if Alfred too had misconstrued his affections until realising the true cause - that would explain his sudden apprehension, as Alfred has never been one to usually hold back feelings.

“That’s wonderful, Alfred.” She means it, truly. She hadn’t realised until she voiced it, but she’s watched Alfred interact with the divine dragon on many occasions, and she can hardly imagine a time he seemed happier - even before he got ill, even before their father died.

He smiles weakly, taking another sip of the tea and looking back at Céline. “He… he makes me so happy, Céline.” He pauses, licking his lips again, and talks with a bit more vigour. “I always looked up to him. I’ve always loved him, in a manner. But… but it’s different now.” He hums to himself, closing his eyes for a moment in concentration. “We became friends, and I felt truly happy. I feel truly happy. But then I realised… realised that, that maybe there’s something else going on.”

Alfred pauses for a moment, and takes another sip of tea. Céline lets him continue. “I think about him all the time, Céline. And not like how I used to. I used to just want to look at him, bask in his beauty. But now…” he looks truly mortified as he holds his head in his hands. “I want to do things like hold his hand… and… and… and I don’t know what to do.”

“I told him we’re regular old friends, not that long ago in fact. And - And now I don’t want that anymore. I want to be with him all the time. It’s… it’s so overwhelming.” He takes a deep breath, calming himself. “Sorry, you didn’t ask for all the details, huh.”

Céline is somewhat stunned. She isn’t one for romance per se, but she is one for wanting her brother to be happy, and it’s obvious that he’s fallen deep for the Divine One. Céline chuckles, and reaches out to Alfred again. Usually his hands are cold, but not now.

“I wanted you to talk to me about him. There’s no need to apologise.” Alfred nods. “You should tell him.”

That causes panic to flush through Alfred’s face. Céline understands why, she knows from many a story from Chloé that this is common amongst budding romance, especially amongst friends.

“I can’t do that! We’re friends , Céline. We’re finally friends, and I don’t feel weird about it anymore. I know he cares about me, but I don’t… I can’t risk that.” His voice warbles a bit again. “I can’t risk ruining what we have.”

“This is causing you pain, Alfred. Do you really think the Divine One would cut off your friendship over romantic feelings?”

That seems to get him. Alfred slumps down, taking another sip of tea. “Of course not. But it’s still…” he sighs. “It’s scary.”

“Scary…” the word bounces off her tongue as if it’s foreign. It’s not something she’s used to Alfred saying. Especially about matters of the heart. “Alfred. You’re going to be King. You’ve survived many hardships, our father, your illness, the palace being ransacked. Invasions from the corrupted. Mother being held hostage.” She puts on her most supportive smile again. “I think you can cope with this. You’re strong enough.”

Not getting a response, other than Alfred squeezing her hand tight, she continues her point. “You’ll never know if he returns your feelings unless you tell him.” Céline can’t read the Divine Dragon all too well, but she knows he holds Alfred in great regard - greater regard for any other of their allies. She wouldn’t be surprised at all if he returned Alfred’s feelings, which is why she wants to encourage him. The potential happiness is too great. “Think about it.”

“I have.” Alfred’s voice sounds hollow, foreign almost. He gets up quickly, going over to a drawer by his bed and pulling something out, before sitting back down. Céline recognises it immediately.

“... That’s the embroidery mother gave you.”

“It is.” Alfred plays with the piece of fabric in his hand, delicate as ever. He’s not adorned his own design to the piece yet, the intricate details are stunning beyond belief. Céline herself hasn’t even been allowed to look at the fabric up close much. “I… I was thinking of giving it to him.”

“When did you get it here?”

“When we returned to mother after the corrupted attacked Florra. I went to my private chambers and retrieved this.”

“So this isn’t sudden, then.”

Alfred shakes his head. “No. It’s not. I’ve just been… well. Scared, as I said.”

“Scared doesn’t suit a barbarian like you.”

Alfred laughs heartily, holding the fabric close to his chest. “You’re right, it doesn’t.”

“He makes you happy, you should go after that happiness by telling him how you feel.”

“So I can chase happiness, but you cannot?”

That makes Céline frown. “I do not see happiness as a life goal, but I see your happiness as one.”

Her brother closes his eyes again, laughing wetly. “My heart feels like it’s about to leave my chest.”

Céline realises another approach she can tackle this by. “This would be the greatest small joy you could find.”

Opening his eyes again, Alfred laughs again, sounding much more like his usual self. “I think it would be a little bit more than a small joy.”

“Then all the more reason to search for it.”

“Okay.” That one word brings Céline so much happiness that she has to stop herself from feeling too much. She’s not allowed to feel this way. She can’t be satisfied. She wants this for Alfred’s sake. Alfred is allowed to be happy, not her. “I will. I’ll give this to him.”

Feeling lightheaded from the sudden emotion, Céline nods slightly. “Good. I’m glad to hear it.”

Alfred gets up again to put the embroidery back in his drawer, and locks it up, putting the key in his breast pocket. He then walks back over to the table but doesn’t sit back down. Céline looks up at him, raising an eyebrow.

“Thank you, Céline. For everything.” He reaches for her hand, and Céline lets herself get lifted up. Before she can think of anything else, she’s being pulled into a tight hug.

Quickly, Céline reaches around and squeezes Alfred tightly, enjoying the warmth of his embrace.

Somehow, deep down, she knows things are going to be okay, and that thought both terrifies her and gives her a frustrating amount of joy. Céline shuts those thoughts out for now, she can think about happiness later; for now she wants to enjoy her brother’s blossoming romance, and support him wherever she can.

Like she always has, and always will.

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