Three Houses Supports/Dedue Gilbert

C Support

Gilbert: Ah, hello. Dedue, yes? Finished praying?

Dedue: I am, yes.

Gilbert: You have grown much since I saw you last. You are a man now.

Dedue: You barely know me.

Gilbert: True. I suppose we did only meet a handful of times.

Dedue: As haggard as you look now, you were even worse when I last saw you in the capital.

Gilbert: Haggard, eh? True enough.

Dedue: Still weighed down by the same regret, I see.

Gilbert: I was unable to protect the king. That is the ultimate failure. One I must atone for.

Dedue: If you have the spare time to beg forgiveness,then pick up a lance and train.

Gilbert: That would do nothing to atone for the dead.

Dedue: Your prayers are mere self-indulgence.

Gilbert: You do not understand.

Dedue: No, I do not. Faerghus needed you. His Highness needed you.

Gilbert: There was no other choice but for me to leave. What would you have done if you were in my place? If His Highness had died due to your failures?

Dedue: If he commanded me to live, then I would live. Otherwise, I would die with him. I have nothing left to lose other than His Highness.

Gilbert: Home, family—all but that man, I have already lost.

Dedue: ... You were a knight in service to the king for decades. Not only did you excel in bravery, wisdom, and tactics, but in matters of character you were an ideal knight. Utterly above reproach.

Gilbert: That is what His Highness has always said.

Dedue: I have only come this far by modeling my conduct after his stories of you. But now...

Gilbert: Forget those words spoken by His Highness. I am no different a man than I was before... Beaten down by sin. Alone and weak. I am lost and irredeemable.

B Support

Gilbert: Impressive that you made it back, Dedue. It was you who saved His Highness from prison... We—all of us—thought you were dead.

Dedue: My wounds were severe, but I managed. So long as I draw breath, I fight for His Highness.

Gilbert: Is that so...

Dedue: But in my absence, you have protected him. Thank you, Gilbert, for returning to us.

Gilbert: Stop. I left once... I have wondered if I will be forced to leave once more, after this battle is done.

Dedue: Would you accept that? I imagine not.

Gilbert: Of course not.

Dedue: You are still Gustave at heart, even now. I am not fit to replace you. Not yet. I still have a great deal more to learn. For now, all I can do is continue to be a shield for His Highness.

Gilbert: It is unlike you to be so talkative.

Dedue: I could not be silent.

Gilbert: So long as you understand... I will leave the Kingdom some day. It may not be until the day I die, but the time will come... This war... I'm a much older man than I was when it began.

Dedue: ...

Gilbert: Sooner or later, someone must take my place. Do not try to carry the weight alone, Dedue. There are many talented and well-trained officers. Work together with them to assure our king's future. Do that, and when the time comes, I will rest well.

Dedue: Thank you for the advice. However...

Gilbert: Yes?

Dedue: It is too soon to treat you like an old man. You still have at least ten years of service in you. Faerghus—no, His Highness—needs you. As do I. Save the old man talk for when you are truly senile.

Gilbert: A fair point. There's no reason to let old age make one timid.

Dedue: Even as I work to surpass you, I still rely on you.

Gilbert: Is that so? Well then, we have more fighting ahead of us, Dedue. We should get to it... For the future of Faerghus.