Title: The Ashe(n) Wolf
Fandom: Fire Emblem: Three Hopes
Characters/Pairings: Yuri Leclerc/Ashe Ubert. Background Christophe/Catherine. Lonato Gaspard, Rowe.
Rating: R
Warnings: Minor character death (villains). Alluded to SA and CSA. Cannibalism. (Does it count if it’s a werewolf eating a person?) Non-explicit nudity, allusions to sexuality.
Notes: Written for spook_me, prompt was ‘werewolf.’
Word Count: 3,670
Summary: Rowe warns Yuri about the Ashen Wolf before his arranged marriage to House Gaspard. Of course, Yuri knows who the real monster is.

“Christophe, I love you, but of all the times to follow your heart,” Lonato said with a heavy sigh.

“He didn’t know—and I don’t think anyone has a chance against his love for Cassandra and vice-versa,” Ashe reminded his father gently. “Our plan will still work. I’ll just need to play more than one role, that’s all.”

Lonato gazed at him sadly. “You’re already doing too much. Not to mention—”

“The mission will be over by then. And I know Yuri. He’s got better things to do than be chained to me all his life. He’ll fly the cage the second it’s safe to make an escape.”

Lonato turned his attention to the moonless night sky. “I hate this subterfuge. It’s unknightly.”

“I do as well. But it is the only way to stop Rowe.”

--

Yuri was in no mood to read his letters, but he was going to have to at some point. So, he steeled himself for another count of Rowe simping as he opened the envelope—and yep, it was another pamphlet of papers telling Yuri about all of his lewd fantasies and/or begging him to learn everything about Lonato Gaspard after he married the heir, Christophe. As much as Rowe ‘loved’ Yuri, he had no qualms with arranging a political marriage for him in a slow attempt to wrestle Gaspard back under his control. Of course, Yuri didn’t mind, either. Not only was he escaping a sleaze and snagging someone that his intel assured him was a decent man, he would also be in a position to take down Rowe once and for all.

Rowe ended his letter begging Yuri to watch out for the Ashen Wolf, a mysterious monster that gobbled people up every full moon. Yuri rolled his eyes as he tossed the letter into the fireplace. Yeah, some creepy nobles and murderers have been killed brutally in the woods, but every single one of them had been way more monstrous that a wolf. If it weren’t for his allergies, Yuri would have found the wolf (if they even existed) and offer them a Rowe-shape treat.

Whatever. He tousled his hair one more time and made sure the slinky top he was wearing revealed just enough skin to wow Christophe. He needed to make a good impression if he wanted his scheme to work, after all.

--

“Yuri.” Lonato smiled warmly. It was unusual for lords to answer their own doors, but Lonato had always been an unusual lord. He’d risen on his own merits rather than birthright. Despite his strict Western Church beliefs, he was socially progressive and had friendly relations with the Empire—partly for their reforms since Emperor Edelgard had assumed the throne, partly because it made sense to do trade with territories so close to one’s own. No wonder the people here seemed to worship the ground Lonato walked on. “It’s good to see you after so long.”

“It’s good to see you as well, sir.”

Lonato laughed as he led Yuri to the chapel. “Oh, please. I’ll be your father-in-law in a few moments; I think you can call me Lonato now. Come. Let’s get you married already, so you can get started on making yourself home here.”

Yuri nodded. “I’m looking forward to meeting Christophe.”

Lonato’s smile faded. “I thought Rowe told you.”

He probably did, but I didn’t notice because I was trying to avoid reading his gross fantasies about me riddled throughout his prose. “Perhaps the letter was lost in the mail?”

“Perhaps. Well, I should tell you before the ceremony. Christophe eloped with his old schoolmate, Cassandra.” Lonato sighed heavily. “The lad is pure-hearted, but also strong-willed. But don’t worry—Ashe is of marriageable ago, so he’ll marry you instead. As annoyed as I am with Christophe, I am glad it worked out this way—Christophe is a good boy, but I know Ashe will truly treasure you.”

… No. Not Ashe. Not obnoxiously moral and even more obnoxiously observant of Yuri’s misdeeds Ashe.

“Yuri!” Ashe was all smiles as he entered the room. “Wow, I can’t believe we’re getting married!”

Think of your schemes, think of taking down Rowe. “Me, too.”

--

The ceremony was thankfully simple. Rowe loved spending money he didn’t have to make their surrounding opulent to impress visitors that never came. At Gaspard, it was just him, Ashe, Lonato, and the priest. Ashe’s kiss was somehow chaste and earnest at the same time.

After the ceremony, the three of them had dinner with Ashe’s siblings. To Yuri’s shock, not only did Sophia and Duran remember him, they had seemingly ceaseless questions about his life in Rowe territory, what he was going to do in Gaspard, if he still had allergies, if he still liked sweets, and would he take them to go see the mime tomorrow? Yuri hadn’t meant to let his mask of civility drop and smile as he answered their questions—Rowe sucked, he was going to help Lonato and Ashe run Gaspard, unfortunately animals still made him sneeze, and he still loved sweets, so he hoped that Duran would save him a slice of pie. And course they were going to see the mime! She’d trained with some of the most amazing puppeteers in the Kingdom.

“You look like you’re having fun,” Ashe said as Duran handed him a plate of pie, then Ashe handed it to Yuri.

“I actually am—just please promise me no lectures on morality in our marriage.”

Ashe gave him a look. “Yuri, that’s like asking you to not be snarky.”

“Ugh. Touche.” Yuri dug in—at least the pie was good. “Did you make this, Ashe?”

“I did. The pheasant roast, too.”

“Oh, cool.” Yuri grabbed himself a plate. “Hey, do you want some?” Ashe had loved the stuff growing up.

Ashe smiled guiltily. “I don’t really eat meat anymore.”

“You’re a vegetarian now. Got it.” That would be important to know in the future. Their marriage was political, not romantic, but he still wanted to treat his new husband well.

--

Yuri eyed his reflection critically. Their marriage was political, but so was sex. Ashe was a cornball, but he was also a young man who would want to enjoy his new prize—ugh, his time with Rowe had colored Yuri’s look on everything. Ashe wouldn’t think like that… but he was a young man, and not too bad on the eyes. And he knew how consent worked. It wouldn’t be like Rowe. Yuri might even have some fun.

He hopped onto their bed, making sure his robe showed as much leg as possible. “I didn’t expect to see you here, you naughty man, you” he leered at Ashe when he entered the room… in plain pajamas. And a book in hand.

“Oh!” Ashe’s face turned red, contrasting with the silver-white hair. “I’m sorry; I’ll leave—”

“Ashe, this is your room. And also I’m posed this way to have sex with my husband on our wedding night. That’s kind of a thing.”

Ashe nodded frantically, clinging to his book for dear life. “Yes, but…” He took a deep breath. “I’m definitely not opposed to making love. You’re gorgeous, after all.”

Yuri smirked and flipped his hair. “I know. I do appreciate the ego boost, though.”

“Any time. But our marriage is based on friendship and a desire to help the people of our respective territories, not passion.” He was still blushing, but managed a smile. “At least not yet. That said… the choice is yours if we consummate our union tonight.”

“I don’t want to have sex,” Yuri surprised himself by saying. He was so used to fooling around being part of the deal that it had never occurred to him that they wouldn’t be making love tonight. “Not because I think you’re ugly or awful—I won’t admit this out loud, but I’m damn lucky to have snagged you as a spouse.” He fell on the mattress. “But I am dead on my feet after all that traveling. Just going to bed sounds divine.”

“Okay,” Ashe said without missing a beat. “May I sleep with you in the bed, or would you prefer I take the futon?”

Wow, Ashe really was too virtuous for his own good. Just like when they were kids. “For Goddess’s sake, Ashe, get in bed with me.” Ashe slid in next to Yuri, tucking them both in. Yuri was too tired to protest—he’d hidden it from everyone, even himself, but he was this close to passing out.

“Hey, I’m reading a travel journal,” Ashe whispered. “Do you want me to read it out loud?”

“Why not.” Ashe began to describe the travels of some lucky lady that got to visit Morfis. Yuri was too exhausted to notice the details, but he found comfort in how it reminded him of how the Elder used to read him stories before bed.

--

The next few weeks went so smoothly that Yuri would have expected a trick if it were any other house than Gaspard. Lonato’s military strategy and annoyingly rare ability in the nobility to see commoners as fellow human beings made for a good ruler and man… and someone that Rowe could only manipulate so much. Which was why Yuri was here: seduce the kid, off the old man, and then be Rowe’s power behind Ashe’s throne. Except the joke was on Rowe. This bird was going to sing a very different tune. Once his contacts found the evidence, he would present it to Ashe and Lonato, and Rowe would enjoy a long life in prison.

But for now, he watched and waited. He watched Ashe play with his baby siblings. He watched Ashe train with Lonato and struggle with his math lessons. Finally, even Yuri couldn’t bear to see Ashe near tears over an algebra problem and he helped him out. If his past ‘consorts’ could see him now, in a sexless but tender marriage, they would have died from the shock or something.

But like every marriage, it was not perfect. Ashe loved to scold. Sometimes it was cute (“Don’t scare the butlers by hinting that you’re a vampire anymore”). Sometimes it was damned annoying (“Listen to me for once and stop sneaking out to talk to rogues, I don’t care if you claim it’s for the good of Gaspard”). It probably didn’t help that Yuri refused to listen to either one.

The other problem was… well, technically, it wasn’t a problem. They agreed on no sex unless they both wanted it. They both slept in the bed, but neither one was chained to it. Ashe was a grown man, and could spend the night out if he wanted to. He didn’t worry about it too much, until that one morning.

Yuri had just woken up when Ashe stumbled in, clothes ripped, covered in mud, and almost supernaturally pale. Yuri cursed under his breath and went to help him, but Ashe shoved him aside. “I’m fine. Just need to sleep.”

Yuri was about to snark back that he was not fine at all, but decided to observe for now. Ashe collapsed on the bed and curled up into a fetal position. He reminded Yuri too much of the homeless kids back in Rowe territory for his comfort. “Ashe, I’ll get you some food—”

“No food,” he growled. “Please. Let me be.”

“Okay. But I know you like to read before sleep. How about I read you a travel journal for a change?”

“… That would be nice. Thank you.”

After Ashe emerged later that afternoon, clean and dressed, he refused to speak to anyone but Lonato. Yuri wouldn’t admit it out loud, but the experience had chilled Yuri to his core. That… that wasn’t how his Ashe was supposed to be like. In those moments, he was closer to Yuri’s darkest days, and that was a fate Ashe did not deserve.

Ashe didn’t drink. He loathed violence. And no one was coming over to the castle demanding vengeance. So, what could it be? He’d tried asking, but Mr. “I’m so honest and love chivalry and hate lies so much” was vexingly adept at deflecting. It didn’t help that Yuri’s intel was taking longer than he’d expected, and he could only ‘misplace’ Rowe’s demands for updates for so long. He had to keep his focus on Rowe, and hope that Ashe would hold out until then.

At least that had been the plan. Then he got one more letter from Rowe. One that said that he couldn’t wait for Gaspard to fall any longer. That he regretted putting his ‘precious Yuri’ in danger for so long, and how he was going to fix everything by taking care of Gaspard and his heirs.

“Fuck,” Yuri breathed. He would have loved to burn this letter, but he needed the evidence. To be honest, he was astonished that Rowe could be this bold. Either Rowe was ‘missing Yuri so much’ it had destroyed what was left of his sanity, or he knew that Yuri was plotting against him. But none of that mattered currently. Ashe and Lonato (alongside newlyweds Christophe and Cassandra) were scouting Gaspard’s borders. It would be all too easy for an assassin to take them out. Even Cassandra was mortal.

He was already sneezing when he hopped on the horse, but he didn’t care. He needed to get to the others, and now. Rowe had already taken so much from Yuri, and he refused to let his husband and in-law be among that.

--

Yuri had assumed that his snot-covered face would be the grossest thing anyone could look at today. But then he got a look at what remained of the body. Nothing of the face remained, so there was no luck identifying the guy that way. His clothes, however, looked pretty similar to fashions in Enbarr.

“Hi, Yuri,” Christophe looked dashing even under duress as he handed Yuri a handkerchief. “I’ll do my best to explain… whatever just happened.” He ran a hand through his dark brown hair. “We were ambushed. Dad took a hit, um, for me. Cassandra was trying to hold him off, but then. Well.”

“Well?”

“Well, have you heard of something called the Ashen Wolf?” Christophe cast a worried glance at his father’s unconscious form while Cassandra patched him up. “I was scared he’d go for Dad since he’d be an easy kill, you know? But no, he ate the assassin alive.”

“Then he ran off into the early dawn,” Cassandra finished. “Leaving us with this wanna be political usurper named Metody.” She frowned at Metody’s corpse. “He deserved to die, but not in this way. But not much we can do now but let the wolf be.”

“Got it.” Yuri blew his nose. “Now that you filled me in, we can all just admit that Ashe is the Ashen Wolf, yeah? I mean, come on. He’s been sick the whole full moon, he’s missing from the party, and conveniently the only one that died was the sleaze working for Count Rowe? And if you need evidence that Rowe was behind this ‘clever scheme,’ here you go,” he said as he handed Christophe the letter. “I’d be insulted if you kept trying to convince me otherwise when all the clues are in my face.”

Lonato groaned. “You—you don’t need to forgive me.” Despite Cassandra and Christophe’s protests, he sat upright. “But please, forgive Ashe. He cares for you—that’s why he wanted to save you from Rowe before we made our move.”

“I see.” Yuri knelt next to Lonato. “First, there’s nothing to forgive. You guys ain’t the only ones trying to take that bastard down.” He clasped Lonato’s hand. “And don’t worry, sir. I’ll find Ashe and talk him down.”

Lonato’s eyes were filled with fear. “When he’s in this state, he’s not always himself.”

“Understood. But he’s never killed a good person, so I know I’ll be fine.”

Cassandra’s hand was on her sword. “Yuri, I’ll go with you.”

Yuri shook his head. “Knowing Rowe, he might have another jobber or three up his sleeve. I think you two should protect Lonato.

Christophe’s hand was on an arrow in his quiver. “Yeah, but Rowe—”

“Seeing the Ashen Wolf, even from a distance, would have put the fear of the Goddess in him. He’s more likely to attack you three again than try to take on the Wolf.” And if the Count tried to capture Yuri? Then he could enjoy a dagger between his eyes. Yuri was not going to hide any more.

--

Oddly, being near the Wolf didn’t trigger Yuri’s allergies. Thank the Goddess for small favors. It was easier to track him than Yuri could have imagined. He just had to follow the blood scent and the sound of tears. Oh, Ashe. If he had just known sooner… well, what mattered now was what he did next.

“Hey,” he whispered to the wounded creature hiding in the shadowy woods. Even with a full moon, he could only see the outline of something large and menacing. “Let’s go home. I promise no food, but I’ll make you tea if you want. And we can finish that travel journal.”

The creature made a noise somewhere between a howl and a sob.

“I’m your husband,” Yuri reminded him. “I’m here, waiting for you. So is your father, your brother, and your sister-in-law. And your siblings. We’re waiting for you to return to us, like you always do.”

There was another howl, but this one sounded almost like Yuri’s name.

“Yep,” Yuri chirped, holding out a hand. “It’s me—”

“Yuri, my pretty little bird!” Rowe crowed.

You have got to be fucking kidding me! Yuri reached for his dagger, but the Ashen Wolf was quicker, gobbling down the Count head first.

(Yuri had fantasized about Rowe dying brutally in front of him tons of times, but never quite like this.)

But there was no time to celebrate or even be shocked as the Wolf turned back into Ashe, naked and far too still for Yuri’s liking as he stood over the last bits and pieces of what had been Count Rowe just a few seconds ago. He removed his cape and wrapped it around Ashe’s shoulders.

“I’ve been like this since I was a child,” Ashe said, not looking at Yuri. “My parents were going into town to get supplies. I was old enough to help them, so they left the babies with the local priest and we all went together. A beast attacked us. My parents didn’t survive. I did, but the beast succeeded in turning me.

You wouldn’t have recognized me, Yuri. I was feral, living off of rage and instinct. I had no qualms with killing and feasting on animals or humans. Through luck or fate, I attacked a nobleman with two children—my siblings. Lonato had met them at the Church and decided to adopt them. Seeing the babies again broke the spell, and I changed back. I’m not sure how Lonato found the courage to not only reach out to me, but adopt me and educate me, but I am so thankful he did. The beast still emerges and has to feed. But Lonato has helped keep enough of myself that I only kill the worst people. I just—no, I need to stay calm and explain things.

As for Rowe, Lonato has had his suspicions of his poor governorship and moral reprehensibility. His man on the inside, Gwendal, confirmed all of them. Lonato wanted to take Rowe out quietly, and I wanted to help you ever since I met you. So, we agreed to this whole plan. I am so sorry we couldn’t tell you, Yuri. Especially I know you loathed the Count. But there could be no loose ends.”

“I get the need for secrecy, friend,” Yuri said carefully, standing next to Ashe. “That, um, was a lot of exposition you just gave. I’m a little surprised since you were never one to talk about yourself.”

Ashe almost smiled at him. “I didn’t want to share, but you would’ve kept bothering me until I did. You always were very curious.”

Yuri almost smiled back. “Yeah, that’s true. So, um. Is our marriage a lie or something?”

Ashe fixed his unearthly green eyes on Yuri. It was surreal how someone could look so spectral yet so sweet (even after eating a guy) at the same time. “I care for you, Yuri. I… I’m pretty sure I’m in love with you. But this is who I am. I can control myself as long as the moon is not full. But when it is, the beast and its urges overwhelm me.” He closed his eyes to stop the tears. “I’m sorry that I’m not good. I really try to be, but I’m not. Not deep down.”

Yuri kissed Ashe on the forehead. “Listen. First, the only reason I didn’t kiss you on the mouth is because you just ate a guy.” Ashe actually laughed a little at that. “Second, I’ve done things I regret as well. And yeah, they didn’t involve eating people. But it left me feeling gross, inhuman, and unlovable. Maybe this is part of you. But the parts that help your dad, your siblings, and me are you as well.”

The relief he felt when Ashe hugged him was palpable. He really wished he could magically fix this—even now, he was coming up with ways to help Ashe control the best during full moons. Maybe some of them would even work. But in this moment, he just needed to get his husband back home and safe.

“Tell you what,” he said, stroking Ashe’s hair. “Let’s get you to bed. After that, you can help use figure out how to PR spin this whole thing?”

“Yeah.” Ashe relaxed against him. “Okay.”

“Good, because I’m pretty sure I’m in love with you, too.”