[ that hollow, piercing stare remains for a long moment. then she takes a breath. one, two, in and out. her gaze finally softens. her posture straightens slightly and she nods, gesturing to the seat next to herself. she's firmly general eisner now, the hegemon's wings, not the shambling remnants of the ashen demon.

maybe edelgard would be better off telling him what's happened... but if byleth's being honest, she worries how dimitri might react to hearing some of this from the flame emperor herself. ]

You may wish to sit back down. Much of this won't be easy to hear, and I'll have to explain... a good deal that happened long before our war against the Church began. I'd ask that you bear with me, and listen to all I have to say. [ maybe easier said than done. ] Please.