#Possesses Byleth or Possessed Shez

[oh-cool-a-burning-sword]

I just now realised that the Feh calendar says that we're getting a legendary hero this month, despite getting one last month (Aka Legendary Robin)

Though it does make sense. We very randomly got 2 Mythic units back in January after all (Gotoh and Formortiis who we should be getting a free version of soon? Seeing as he won this year's AHR)

I'm both curious to see who this month's Legendary'll be... but seeing as we're about 2 weeks away from the baby banner and sometime afterwards the fallen banner (which just so happens to be my favourite banner), I'm really hoping it's not a character I'd want.

At the same time I have a bit of bad luck in accidentally predicting where characters I want appear in a future banner. So for all I know this month's legendary could be Male Corrin, Soren, or Male Shez. Like those are the only characters that'll make me summon on this month's legendary banner, I have zero interest in anyone else.

[rorah]

FE warriors 3 hopes is undervalued, It gave us DANCER BYLETH 💃 (and I think it gets a pass solely for it, lol ok kidding but still undervalued, but that's another post)

The king won't admit he has a crush on the skillful mercenary, of course he doesn't know he's capable of such things. Fortunately, he has someone like Sylvain on his team 😊...

Love illustrated stories where you don't need words to know what's happening and it's free to interpretation 🫶

[childofaura]

As much as I don’t care about Byleth, I will say that Hidari’s art of her slaps and it’s also crazy that’s it’s been 4 years since Hidari did anything for FEH.

Also while I’m not familiar with FE7, you’re right on Linus gaining another alt since it’s been already 5-6 years since he’s released and while it sucked that he is a Grail unit, at least Joe Brogie is given more work to improve on Linus so no hard feelings.

Fallen Chrom is kind of the same as Fallen Ike and I’m liking it because of how amazing those concepts are and the fact that Fujisaki Kimihiko drew them is also a plus. (Also it seems like they’re going back to their old art style after their last one at Brave F!Byleth)

Yeah, I'm not really a Byleth fan either. And with F!Byleth, it's pretty clear that it's not her personality that makes her popular, more like two really big reasons for that.

But yeah, I was SHOCKED to see Hidari getting to do more art. They should get some more FEH art more often! I adored their style in Echoes, it was very... I'm gonna say quaint, in a positive way. Something about the style really invoked the medieval aspect of FEH that most of the more recent games haven't been able to really do.

Linus absolutely deserves that alt, and honestly that "Not like this!" is more of a teasing than anything. I just wonder what his art is gonna look like, because Morphs have dark hair and yellow eyes. So are they gonna go the Morph route (that the games never actually got to do probably due to time/graphical restraints) or just give him an aura? I'm curious to see how it'll look. And I think it's funny we were just talking about Linus with Joe Brogie, I'm psyched to hear his performance for FALLEN Linus. And no worries, I'm not familiar with FE7 either, sadly.

I remember hearing people begging for Fell King Chrom and thinking it probably wouldn't come to fruition, but I'm honestly glad it did. It gives us more opportunities for FEH content. And honestly Chrom looks AMAZING! I like to think that Fujisaki Kimihiko doesn't like F!Byleth that much either, lmao. Maybe that's why their art looks so awesome again.

[real-fire-emblem-takes]

I wanna do a run of 3 houses with female Byleth, but male Byleth is so hot. I want him so bad it's unreal. It's weird because I am a straight man, but that cutscene in hopes where Shez and Byleth were fighting? The one where Sothis possesses Byleth? The part where the camera pans up to Byleth holding the sword to the viewers throat? I was staring disrespectfully at that slutty corset. "Femleth belly" this "femleth big titty" that. Male Byleth also has fat tits and a slutty waist. That's just a Byleth thing. Being Byleth means being inherently hot. But god that tasteful corset on male Byleth, highlighting his chest... drives me crazy.

.

[reunionatdawn]

My Analysis of the Best Paired Endings in 3H (Part 9: Caspar/Petra)

Catherine: When I told you I would cut down children with no hesitation, you looked disgusted. I take it that's the part you're struggling to accept? Caspar: Pretty much. I don't think I'd be able to do it, even if that meant disobeying orders.

Caspar and Ferdinand are the two most difficult students to recruit outside of their home routes because they can only get C-Support with Byleth before the time-skip. And this corresponds to how difficult it is for them to leave the Empire from an emotional standpoint. They can't even be recruited in Hopes. Caspar wasn't sure when to obey orders or act on his own morality. He got reprimanded for doing so in his C-Support with Byleth, and that single incident had a huge impact on his development.

Shez: You're taking this awfully well. Weren't you and Caspar childhood friends? Linhardt: Yes, but that is of little consequence now. He is not fighting for honor or any greater purpose. War is just his way of life, and he doesn't have the slightest intention of dying or losing.

Caspar has never known any other way of life but fighting and making a name for himself on the battlefield.

Caspar: Something is kinda bothering me. I was talking to someone the other day about how I want to distinguish myself in battle, and they said that meant I wanted the war to go on forever. Of course, I told them they were nuts… Then I actually started thinking about it. About what I'll be doing when the war ends, I mean. About what I'll even…be. Ferdinand: I do not think you have cause to worry. We may not know what the future holds, but you are delivering great results as a leader. Surely you will be held in esteem for such? Caspar: Sure, but doesn't that just mean my life is about nothing but fighting? I'm not a guy like you who's good at pretty much everything, so… Ha! Listen to me. I can't remember the last time I got in my own head like this.

He was more introspective about his circumstances in Hopes. But that only reinforced how unhappy he was with his way of life. It wasn't fulfilling for him to live only for war, but he had no real sense of identity other than as a warrior.

Caspar: Oh. Hey, Professor. I was just reading this letter from my father. Do you know him? He's a pretty big deal in the Empire. He only writes to ask how my training's going, or how many monsters I've killed. Stuff like that.

Caspar had a strong desire to punish evil in the world, but he possessed a very black-and-white sense of morality. That simplistic view of good and evil probably came from his father, the famous warlord Count Bergliez.

Caspar: My father was responsible for a lot of what happened to the Dagdans! Shamir: Are you responsible for your father's actions? Caspar: Well, no…but kinda? I know I wasn't there, but I gotta—

It is much easier to invade and conquer when you convince yourself that the enemy is evil.

Caspar: After we cross the Great Bridge of Myrddin, we'll be in my father's territory. We actually crossed it five years ago for the Battle of the Eagle and Lion. Remember? Ugh! This is terrifying! What am I gonna do? I gotta get a grip… Byleth: Don't worry, I'll arrange for your funeral. Caspar: You think we'll meet him on the battlefield and he'll kill me? The front lines cover a long stretch of land, you know! We might not even run into him!

Caspar was also terrified of his father. He didn't like the sound of thunder because it reminded him of his father yelling at him when he screwed up.

Caspar: All right! Off to the Kingdom's capital we go! What's the matter? Should I not be excited? I can't help it. Everyone's gotta have something to look forward to!

I was really struck by Caspar's demeanor in CF. He only ever focused on taking out whatever enemies he was ordered to and barely had anything else to say.

Caspar: It's so awful to see the Kingdom capital go up in flames, but at least we made it this far!

He fought alongside the Death Knight and invaded other nations without question. It was as though Count Bergliez was hovering over his shoulder the entire time.

Catherine: You have a strong sense of justice. You have clearly defined ideals. But that's not an asset on the battlefield. Ideals slow you down. They cause inner conflict.

It was truly sad because that wasn't who he was. He had his own ideals and criticized Catherine for submitting her sense of justice to another person. It made me realize that CF!Caspar couldn't do anything else but focus on fighting because otherwise the inner conflict would have destroyed him.

Caspar: I think… I can't deny who I am. I know you were right five years ago when you told me not to chase after that suspicious guy… But I still can't get over the possibility that he might have hurt those kids. I would have regretted not stopping him for the rest of my life. There's no way I could forgive myself. It sounds awful to say, but the safety of those kids is more important to me than the knights we lost.

His character arc was about realizing that it's okay not to follow orders and that he should live according to his own sense of justice.

Caspar: I've been wandering on my own for five years. I won't go back to that house or my father, that's for sure!

And leaving his father was necessary for him to do so.

Caspar: We weren't related by blood, but Randolph was still my uncle… Seeing him end up that way was… Never mind. It's nothing. Byleth: That's how it goes with war. Caspar: This wasn't just about war. It was a grudge. Or are you gonna tell me you're on Dimitri's side? I'm sure he never trusted me, being born in the Empire and all.

Like Ferdinand, Caspar can only access his Paralogue—where he can confront the "evil" Death Knight—if he defects from the Empire. The game incentivizes you to recruit him in AM, too. Not only does he share his Paralogue with Mercedes, but doing so in AM unlocks an additional scene for her to say goodbye to Emile. I'd argue that he has the best arc in AM due to his connection to Randolph. It was important for him to see the war from the side from the Empire's victims, so that he could have his worldview challenged.

Petra: It feels like…a knife against my throat. That I am making my grandfather obey the Empire. Because I am a hostage, it is not an option to be giving up. I must be fighting and winning and staying alive. I must do anything to be making life better for Brigid. To be making Brigid and the Empire stand as equals. That is what my people are wanting from me…and what my grandfather, the king of Brigid, is wanting! Byleth: And what do you want? Petra: My want? I…I am not knowing of that. The wants of my people are something I have power to achieve. Their wants are my own.

As a political hostage to the Empire, Petra fought extremely hard to survive, not for herself, but so that Brigid could live independently and stand as equals with the Empire. But when Byleth asked her what she wanted, she didn't even know. She needed to figure out what she wanted for herself, not just what other people wanted.

Ferdinand: Do you not want to go back to your homeland? Petra: I do have the hope of returning one day, but Fódlan is also like a homeland to me now. I came to Fódlan nine years ago. I have been living half of my life here. My family is living in Brigid, but in Fódlan, I have new family and new friends.

So, what did Petra want? Well, she wanted to return home, but she also wanted to stay connected to her new family, and to use their political connections to improve relations with Brigid and Fódlan.

Petra: When this war is finished, I am wishing for you to be seeing my homeland. Dorothea: You…you are? Oh my. I'd love to, Petra. As soon as the fighting is done, I'd like nothing more than to see Brigid with you.

She wanted to bring her friends back home with her to visit. Whether you go for their romantic paired ending or are content to leave them as friends, her Support with Dorothea showed how important it was for her to maintain permanent connections with her classmates.

Petra: I am not having an obligation. I will only be marrying if I find a good person.

And she also wanted a husband from Fódlan.

Petra: My father was killed. By the Empire. By your father. And so I will be impaling you on this blade to be satisfying a deep wish of mine. Caspar: A deep wish… What are you talking about?! Petra: I am talking about my wish. Of course…I am also having another wish. An even deeper wish. I wish for you and I to keep being friends. To keep fighting and surviving together.

Petra had one other deeply held wish. She wanted to kill Count Bergliez. She always bottled up her true feelings and never expressed what she really thought. She was always gung-ho about fighting and said war fed her body and mind. She may have acted like she was fine with her situation, but she was really not. She didn't want to kill people in the name of the Empire that invaded Brigid and killed her father, and she had a lot of rage underneath her calm surface.

Caspar: Well, I guess even a queen can't push her feeling down forever. I can't imagine what it must've been like to go through what you did. But I think I can still relate. Petra: Umm… Caspar: Hey, here's an idea. From now on, take it out on me. Petra: No. This is silliness. There is no point in killing you. Caspar: I'm not talking about killing, Petra. What I want you to do is unload on me! Tell me off! Just talk to me about whatever it is you're feeling. If all your hate becomes too much, dump it on me. If you wanna hit something, I'm your guy. I just want us to keep being friends, alright?

Caspar was the only character she ever showed that side of herself to. In Hopes, she wanted to kill him, but he offered for her to take her pain out on him. He was the one person she could talk to and be open and honest with because he was the same. And Petra was more raw and emotionally vulnerable with him than anyone else.

Petra & Caspar Petra returned to her homeland of Brigid, and inherited the throne from her grandfather. As ruler, she declared independence from Fódlan, and renegotiated Brigid's diplomatic ties to Fódlan and Dagda on more equal terms. At every step along the way, she was accompanied and supported by her husband, Caspar, who had left Fódlan behind to be with her. It is said that the people of Brigid were initially suspicious of the union, due to Caspar's relation to a nemesis of their homeland, but that his tireless efforts on Brigid's behalf endeared them to him over time. It certainly helped that he made the queen very happy.

Petra didn't have an obligation to get married. She just wanted someone to share all of her heart with. Caspar was never particularly envious of his brother, and he always liked hard work. So, working tirelessly for Brigid is a better way to live than inheriting his father's position and becoming the new Minister of Military Affairs.

I don't think the writers necessarily pushed for either Caspar or Petra to be paired with anyone in particular. Many of their paired endings work just as fine. Still, the Caspar/Petra ending is one where Petra can have everything she wants, including someone who she can be truly open and honest with. And it is the only one where Caspar can directly address the damage caused by his imperialist father. So, I consider it the best one for them.

[fireemblems24]

Scarlet Blaze Ch 10

I don't remember if there's 13, 14, or 15 chapters per route in this game, but here we go with SB Ch 10.

STORY

I keep remembering Ingrid is dead 😭 And we forced Shamir to join us by threatening Catherine 😭

Oh, boy, Claude just became Edelgard's bitch boy. Can't say I didn't suspect this.

Why, though? Edelgard just said in her support with Balthus she intends to conquer all of Fodlan. Does she see Claude as the least threatening? I'd like to know why Claude thinks it's a good idea too.

So I take it this time Claude is getting shoe-horned into Edelgard's story rather than Byleth's? I wonder if we'll see this in AG and GW too. Or if it'll be a bit different.

I'm having Shez be such an ass. He turned down sparing with Holst and made things awkward.

Is Claude still king in this route?

"We'll be invading Fraldarius" no 😭😭.

Edelgard just called it an "invasion" too. So at least she's honest.

I love how Hubert is spinning Dimitri wiping out the Western lords as some evil thing. But, like, those people organized a genocide.

DOROTHEA, my beloved!!! THANK GOD.

Claude, Edelgard, Linhardt and just about everyone else is bemoaning all the people who are going to die in the war. for daring to . . . defend their lives But my girl Dorothea is the only one who seems to realize that her side is the cause of the bloodshed. Not the people who would never have to fight if Edelgard didn't force them too.

"Whatever our intent, we're the instigators here. We can't expect the enemy to do anything less than defend their land with tooth and claw." Dorothea is queen. A hypocrite, but at least the game realizes who's really at fault.

"When people think someone is after what the possess, they respond with fear - even if the thought is all in their head." - Ferdinand. Except, it's not?

Edelgard openly wants to rule their lands with absolute authority. She's already stolen everything from one of her enemies, why should the Kingdom believe they wouldn't get the same treatment Rhea did? I wish the game would make it clear what Edelgard would do to Dimitri and co if they did surrender. Because, like, does anyone really think Hubert would leave them alive? Or Edelgard for that matter? If she wants to rule the Kingdom, Dimitri and most of the Blue Lions would HAVE to die. Wouldn't she throw Dimitri and his supporters out of their homes and replace them with Empire nobility at best? It's not in their heads.

Hey, at least this is the first interesting thing that's happened in SB since the prologue lamo. I hope it's not just back to CF now except Claude is now Edelgard's toady.

CASPAR & FERDINAND A SUPPORT

Ok guys, for anyone who's curious, this is where I picked up after finishing FE Engage. Feels a lot less daunting knowing I'm already a good numbers of ch into every route.

Weird support. Ferdinand is getting respected and admired by a Black Eagle instead of being the butt monkey. Caspar is thinking and questioning having something in his life other than furthering his reputation via killing people. I like it.

Ferdie called himself a master of none and admired Caspar back.

LINHARDT & DOROTHEA A SUPPORT

Wasn't this B support the one where we learned Edelgard had a single sole supply line? Lamo.

Dorothea's not going to keep taking notes for Linhardt lol.

She got hurt, so Linhardt took notes for her. She's surprised, but pleased.

She told him he had his own charm, and he's like "please, no." I love him.

I don't think this support really showed a new side to the characters, though. It felt like an emptier version of their OG one.

SHEZ & EDELGARD B SUPPORT

Shez wants her to trust him. She says she does now.

He feels purposeless and wants to be her bodyguard.

Lamo, one of Shez's response options is "stand there slack-jawed." I forgot how much I liked Shez.

He wants to defend Edelgard because her promoting him changed his life.

HUBERT & HAPI A SUPPORT

Hapi is trying to make nice with Hubert.

They're bonding over coffee.

Now they're having coffee and talking about it. I'm more of a tea person, tbh.

Sorry, but this was boring af. Never thought I'd say that about a Hubert support.

CAMP + SIDE BATTLES

Dimitri took Cornelia down in this route too. Badass.

Ashe is so miserable, poor dude. Mercie isn't happy either.

I honestly really don't like CF!Caspar, but SB!Caspar seems even worse, like he's just his dad's little killing-happy puppet.

Randolph is still a little shit. He WANTS to invade the Alliance. IDK, I just cannot fathom wanting something like that of any country let alone an ally.

Lamo, Edelgard literally just said might makes right.

Shit, I just remembered that Ingrid's dead in this timeline.

Hilda legit just asked Claude why he's made a strategy that limits casualties. Are people from Faerghus the only ones who don't love killing people? She is doubting the Empire at least. She really doesn't like Edelgard, lol.

Not seeing Ingrid with the others hurts. They're really out here just trying to stop everyone else from trying to murder them.

See this is why Dimitri's the best one - "The old ways must die - with that I agree. But shove that down the people's throats, and you risk breaking the very land you're trying to rule." If Edelgard had her way, there'd be nothing left to rule except the Empire.

Yeah, the reason you can't work with the Empire, Dimitri, is that Edelgard wants to rule all of Fodlan. Her alliance with Claude has made it really clear that the Empire still intends a hostile take over of even their own allies. Which, honestly, I do appreciate SB for being a bit more honest than CF.

I really don't want to fight Rodrigue. I do think it's funny that your enemy always hires Jeralt though.

I'm guessing Jeralt gives Byleth his sword in every route.

SHEZ & BERNADETTA B SUPPORT

Starts with her screaming and shrieking about something.

Anna showed up! She's selling something to Bernadetta that will help her with her shyness. Also sells her something shifty. Or tries. Because Bernadetta assumes Anna's up to no good (probably true) and buys nothing.

Shez calls her judgmental lol. He's not wrong.

BERNADETTA & FERDINAND C SUPPORT

This is their only support. Kinda weird given their past history.

She's eating plants. Ferdinand is concerned she's eating bad stuff. Ferdinand wants to have a competition over who collects the most edible plants.

Poor Bernie. His "competition" really reminded me of those guys who are like "oh, prove it, name xxx!" when I say I like this sport or that fandom because I must be lying to impress them or some shit. (except I don't think Ferdie is being sexist here, just annoying af).

Bernie gets hurt and one of Ferdie's plants can help fix it.

Also, he lost.

EDELGARD & MONICA B SUPPORT

I can't imagine this is going to be anything but nauseating.

Haha, Edelgard just said in another world they may have lost Monica forever (to TWSITD).

Edelgard says she only saved Monica because it was the best move lol. And like, we know this is actually true because, well . . .

Ohhh, wow, they really went there. Edelgard tells Monica to her face that she only rescued Monica because it suited her, didn't plan on it, and would let Monica die if it helped her goals.

I know a lot of times people play off Edelgard's harshness as "oh, she's just insecure and saying that!" But here you can't really make that argument because it happens in Houses lamo.

She literally didn't rescue Monica because she needed TWSITD soldiers.

Learning this changes exactly nothing about Monica.

It added some stuff to Edelgard, but Monica is still horribly one-note.

FERDINAND & DOROTHEA B SUPPORT

I know a lot of people like their Houses support chain, but I kinda don't? It's drama over something really silly.

Edelgard is here. Ugh. I want Dorothea, not her.

Oh, good grief, it's going to be about the same annoying thing. Ferdinand is remembering seeing Dorothea and being stunned by her beauty.

(like, imagine getting pissed off that someone stares at you when you're butt-ass naked in public and dripping wet)

Dorothea's a lot more reasonable this time, getting flustered hearing this.

MAIN BATTLE

Every time I log back into this, I remember that Ingrid's dead :(

Oh, God, please tell me that I'm not killing Rodrigue and Felix now.

They go from "oh, bummer, we have to kill people to! Let's go Empire!!!" Bit of a whiplash, but Dorothea's the only one who seems to realize they're killing people and not NPCs lamo.

Same conversation between Shez and Arval. Guessing I'll get it in AG when it's time for recruiting Byleth too.

Ok, like with Golden Wildfire, I'll try to unlock Byleth. But unlike with GW where I reset and tried a few times, I'm only trying once. Because I really want to finish this and get to other games. AG is the only route where I'll put in real effort to get Byleth because I care more about those characters getting a fully happy ending than the rest.

I think I failed again lol. It changed from a side goal to the main goal to fight Byleth. I didn't move around the map fast enough.

God, I love Rodrigue.

Rodrigue died. I'm guessing if I recruit Byleth, that doesn't change? How many other Blue Lions does SB force me to kill?

Cut scene time. So who dies in SB?

LAMO, it's Randolph. OFC it's Randolph. This guy is just allergic to surviving.

Is it bad I'm more upset that Rodrigue died? He's a WAYYYYY better person than Randolph.

In case you didn't read my GW reaction, I was quite pleased to see Byleth actually pissed about someone almost hurt their dad given how little they ask Edelgard about her involvement in that in CF.

I like how they expect us to care about Randolph. Like, Judith, makes sense. She's close to Claude. She's cool. Randolph is really unlikable and has no special connection to anyone except Fleche.

Does this mean Fleche will cause a level where she goes crazy against Byleth?

This conversation falls so flat compared to the GW one. Because in GW, you were talking to Claude. Here, it's . . . Fleche. In GW it was actually an emotional moment (and made me feel a bit guilty). Here, not so much.

I do feel bad for Byleth and Alois though.

Ok, the Sothis-Byleth merging happening.

I love how they go from celebrating the deaths of Faerghus to lamenting their own loses, without any acknowledgment that THEY are responsible for all of this or that the people they killed were just as "alive" as they are.

Haha, even SB lets you recognize that Randolph means very little personally to you or any of the main cast.

xxxxx

[oraclebell17]

(i have a lot of thoughts tonight and i am subjecting my followers to all of them)

i had this nagging wondering sometimes: what the heck is Shez experiencing while they're possessed by Epimenides? and in a similar vein, Byleth possessed by Sothis?

Shez "blacks out" when Epimenides takes control, but with Byleth, they actually fight back against Sothis' control the first time around, preventing her from killing Shez..

i mean, the most plain answer is that "Shez/Byleth is just sleeping," but i still entertain the thought that maybe they're "awake" in a sense, but can't see or feel what's going on.. probably a bit spooky for a thought though hmm

[randomnameless]

If you think about it, Byleth got off easy in terms of who their dad was; sure, Jeralt was a paranoid cunt who thought it'd be better to have his child suffer the horrors of combat from a young age instead of raising them in the peaceful monastery, but Robin got a dad who only saw them as a meatsuit for their god and would have happily killed them if their unnamed mother hadn't run away from Plegia with them, Corrin's dad went cray-cray and goes out of his way to psychologically torture/try to kill them in the hopes that he can possess them and destroy the world, Alear's dad wants to brainwash them into helping destroy the world too, and we have no real idea what Kris and Shez's dads were like. In terms of Avatar dads, Jeralt is the undisputed best father of them all!

We have a saying here that goes "au royaume des aveugles les borgnes sont rois" -

Roughly meaning that when everyone is shit tier, even you're slightly above them, you're still shit.

Robin, Corn and Alear's dads are the token evil dragons of their games - even if I disagree about Anankos, the good Anankos who fucked Mikoto and is Corn's dad enlisted the help of the FE13 trio to help them, knowing his time was coming up, heck, he even died to protect Lilith, the kid of his "other self".

Jerry's just a paranoiac drunkard - who might have initially rejected his kid because they were biracial, but utlimately tried to take care for them to the best of his known shitty abilities.

Jerry gets more flak because Billy's supposed to care and love him - unlike the other avatars - and suffers from the comparison of the other dads/parents/parent figure in his verse (Rodrigue, Seteth, Rhea!, even Judith to an extent in CF!).

[sublimeflowoftime]

snapdragon : is your muse merciful ? why or why not ?

Botanical Headcanons

Warning: I rant about Three Hopes and it is long. Spoilers below. (Likely will be in all of these so just block the tag ‘#{Careful now. — Spoilers}’ if you don’t want Sothis spoilers for Three Houses or Three Hopes I cannot guarantee I will remember to put read more things on the rest)

Sothis and her behavior is something that seems to change drastically depending on the game (Houses or Hopes). In Three Houses, sure she yells at you plenty, but at the end of the day she is your friend, whether she’d admit it or not. In Three Hopes, however all that is really seen of her is her either possessing Byleth for the sake of trying to kill Arval/Shez, or trying to convince Byleth to let her have complete control and let her do exactly that without resistance.

So for TWSITD and those connected to them - unknowingly or not - no. She is absolutely not merciful, and she wants you dead.

As for everyone else, yes, absolutely. Byleth made a million mistakes in Three Houses that they had to fix using her power of divine pulse (unless you never made any mistakes when playing, in which case: no you didn’t don’t lie to me), but never once does she bring up possessing Byleth to just fix it herself at all.

It’s clear she knows it’s an option in some ways, as she knew how to fuse herself with Byleth to give Byleth full control, so reasonably she could assume it would work in reverse. But she never tries, and even in Three Hopes, she never actually goes through with taking full control until Byleth gives her their full consent, even though she literally states outright that she is fully capable of doing so. She still likes Byleth, and she doesn’t want to erase their individuality unless absolutely necessary. Despite verbally saying otherwise, her actions really don’t align with that.

Even as big Sothis without the memory loss, she was originally trying to help the people. I find it hard to believe that the Agarthans just jumped straight into a war without there being any sort of warning, but she didn’t seem to have anything against them until they started killing her children, and then, eventually, her. As far as I know anyway unless I missed something.

Overall, Sothis seems to be extremely forgiving unless someone has wronged her or those she cares about in a deep way, only then does she choose to show no mercy. But even then, she still will if someone else she cares about decides to trust them. (Ex: Sothis giving up and fusing with Byleth peacefully rather than taking control if Byleth is recruited by Shez, even if she still very clearly does not agree.)

Moral of the story: stay on Sothis’s good side, but if you’ve already messed that up, make friends with Byleth. Problem solved.

[iturbide]

I think of this banner, the most interesting to me is Byleth there - like hello?? That sure isn't the typical Fallen Hero, she looks very much the same and Not fallen and with the ominous purple aura. Is it just because she's merged a little too much with Sothis?

Then again, I haven't played or even looked at Three Hopes all that much so LMAO

OH YEAH ABSOLUTELY THE BYLETH UNIT WAS AN ABSOLUTE SHOCK FOR AN OPENER

With the understanding that I haven't played Three Hopes yet, it's my understanding that there's a point in each of the three routes where, depending on how you play it, you can recruit Jeralt and Byleth to Shez' side; this will eventually lead to Arval going Evil Mode just before the final chapter and needing to be defeated. Now, logically, if Byleth and Jeralt's recruitment depends on how you play, that means you can miss that opportunity, too...

...and that's where this Fallen Byleth comes in. It seems like if you don't fulfill the optional objectives that would lead to Jeralt's recruitment, you end up having to kill him -- and that breaks Byleth completely, to the point that they allow Sothis to possess them. So this Byleth isn't really Byleth: it's Sothis using Byleth as a vessel, rather like what Rhea wanted all along.

[coderiderr]

i cant believe they included possessed by sothis byleth but didnt include possessed by arval shez when theyre the protag of the game byleth gets possessed like that in im so mad.

[feel-ix]

Acquiesce (13)

Felix Hugo Fraldarius x F! Shez

Felix could not remember the trip to the battlefield. Shez and Byleth were ahead one of the paths from camp scouting the area when the fight broke out. All the Blue Lions rushed to the site and while Felix's memory was hazy, Sylvain witnessed the swordsman's horse slightly ahead of the king's the whole way, shoulders and neck tense in a way unnatural for him.

The rest of the army was quiet, unnerved by the possibility of their friendly commander becoming one of the enemies they had been fighting for many moons.

The battlefield was worse than anyone could have imagined. The rumors were true: Shez was engaged in combat with Byleth murmuring in a voice unfamiliar to everyone, as if possessed; Claude and the Alliance army were also fighting, and there were supposed sightings of the Emperor. The kingdom army was forced to divide more than usual, with most of the army fighting and ensuring ground against the many enemies, a dedicated unit to track down Emperor Edelgard, and only leaving King Dimitri and Felix to put a stop to Shez in her rampage.

The commander was locked in a stronghold, Dimitri and Felix rushed there to fight the enemies blocking the entrance while an army engineer tried to pry the gates open. Both fighters could not help but to glance at the gates while engaged in battle to intervene the commander at the first opportunity they had. Felix knew that Dimitri's first choice would never be to harm, let alone kill, an ally and friend, he knew this. But knowing that did nothing to stop the nagging feeling of dread crawling on Felix's neck- the king preferred to use lances, which already placed him in advantage against the mercenary swordswoman that was their commander, but this unfamiliar feeling also made Felix recall every time he witnessed Dimitri lose control of the almost inhuman strength his Crest gave him, as a child breaking swords, as a teen crushing training dummies, and in battle as a boar killing enemies with his bare hands. The young Fraldarius felt a bit cold thinking Dimitri could be the end of the commander. If they were going to stop Shez, Felix should do it himself, just in case.

The gates opened just as Dimitri and Felix finished off their opponents, both of them ran into the stronghold as fast as they could.

Inside, Byleth barely dodged a downward swing from Shez and quickly glanced at the fighters coming to their rescue. Felix ran and intercepted the next blow with his sword as Byleth fell back behind Dimitri. Shez's attack was so strong, Felix felt the force reverberate through his sword all the way into his bones- it was almost inhuman.

The commander's face was like nothing he'd ever seen, eyes void of any feeling while the rest of her body radiated anger and power. The next attack was equally as strong and Shez looked bothered that someone had dared to interfere between her and Byleth. Dimitri readied his stance with Areadbhar in hand, and the commander only lifted her swords off of Felix's to parry the king's attack. Dimitri pulled his weapon back and thrust forward again, managing to give Shez a shallow gash on her side- nothing that would bleed significantly but would hopefully limit her movements. Felix took advantage of this and ran to the commander from the other side, he managed another gash on her left arm.

Shez was infuriated. She closed her eyes and the red aura around her seemingly pulsated and grew larger. The commander dodged two more attacks and rushed to Byleth, Felix and Dimitri turned around to engage in battle again, but as soon as they made eye contact with the commander, she disappeared along with Byleth.

The stronghold was left empty while the sounds of battle could be heard beyond its walls. Both men looked at each other in surprise and worry. The only other person they had seen vanish like that before was Tomas back in their academy days, and as much as they hoped their mercenary friend was not like Those Who Slither in the Dark, her trick just now was too reminiscent of their tactics for comfort.

Brief seconds passed between them, the distant clashing of weapons and cries coming back to full focus. The sound of battle heightened suddenly Northeast: Shez must have teleported there.

Felix and Dimitri looked at each other once more before running towards the next stronghold.

Their next encounter with Shez was about the same as the first. They knew what strength to expect this time but the only damage they managed to do were but mere gashes and scratches. And this happened over and over again...

It was at the fourth stronghold that the small wounds were finally wearing Shez down. Pain in her arms legs and torso finally slowing her movements and delaying her reaction time.

Felix saw the opportunity and ran ahead of Dimitri and Byleth, parrying a weak blow from the commander before readying his stance once more. Never in the years he'd known the commander had he seen her look so exhausted, something deep inside nagged at him for being the reason of his friend's state.

Once Felix thought he could and would fight against his closest friends, against his family, and see to it that he survived. Now he wasn't so sure.

The young Duke scanned his opponent closely, ready to react to any move. Seemingly all at once, Shez's magic sword vanished, she looked at Felix as if she recognized him, and then collapsed.

Felix stepped forward to catch her.

[real-fire-emblem-takes]

I really wanna see feh tackle fallen shez. It would be like fallen byleth but with areal possessing shez. Three hopes really just gave us evil fucked up versions who were possessed and I wanna see more of those guys represented in feh

.

[azelfandquilava]

Gonna do this for unbodysnatched Cornelia (since she basically is just an ascended OC at this point).

She has a soft spot for coffees and teas with lots of sugar in them. Helped a lot for pulling all-nighters in her academy days.

Anselma taught her the "more proper" way of dining after the two became friends, so I'm sure Lorenz will be ok with her table manners.

Given the whole nasty business with Cleobulus, Cornelia is much more comfortable staying in the company of friends during night-time. Or anywhere where she isn't alone, really.

She'd enjoy talking and sharing notes with the like of Hanneman, given their shared scholarly history. Likewise she'd enjoy acting somewhat as a mentor to the more nerdy party members like Monica or Linhardt (though she finds the latter's sparse motivation bit of a concern). Conversely she can't stand dealing with hot-heads so the likes of Sylvain, Constance and Balthus would have her steering clear when it comes to being study buddies.

Favourite is organising of any kind, whether its documents or weaponry. Her least favourite is working the street stall.

Shez wins by default here cuz of this AU taking place in 3 Hopes. Though I can't imagine she'd take issue with a recruited Byleth (or if Byleth somehow encountered her lost soul in Zahras during 3 Houses). Either way her previous experience living in her family's mercenary band would definitely be a topic of conversation.

Despite being called a Saint by the people in the kingdom Cornelia was never that religious. Much less-so now after feeling that if there is a goddess, she was abandoned by them.

She wouldn't being taking part, though she'd probably be amused seeing everyone scrambling over it.

The main thing she keeps a hold of is her headband, since it was a gift from the Arundels before she left for the kingdom.

Growing up in a mercenary band is what made her want to become a healer. Its a bloody business after all.

While she prefers fighting at distance as a magic user, she secretly enjoys sparring with swords or very rarely a pair of training gauntlets (not that she'll let you catch her in the act).

She's a dog mom, first and foremost. That said she has a soft spot for dassies (they exist in the warmer parts of Fodlan, just roll with it).

She isn't in a mounted class. But she does give Dorte headpats :3

Function. Simple as.

Morfis, she's heard the rumours of its magic users.

She won a game of chess against Volkhard once. She never let him live it down.

She has a soft spot for Alois' silly puns.

Night Owl. Hence the love for caffeine.

Sweet.

Being alone in the dark freaks her out a lot now, but during the daytime its wasps.

Slight frown lines, not as severe as those appeared when Cleobulus was possessing her.

Her warlock outfit was partly a style choice (to differentiate herself from Cleobulus) and also a necessity because it was one of the few outfits to fit her... you know...

Her ability to cite papers she read over a decade ago. As one can imagine it doesn't have much use during a war.

The night that Anselma first took her to the Opera. It was shortly after she moved to Enbarr to study. Needless to say Manuela made quite the impression :3

Probably a public figure for health advocacy.

Questions for people with FE3H oc's, in no particular order:

1) What's their fave tea, and do they have a fave snack to go with it?

2) Do their table manners live up to Lorenz's standards?

3) Who would they have a sleepover with, and what would they do during it?

4) Who would they most like and most hate to study with and why?

5) What's their fave and least fave chore?

6) Would they get along with Byleth or Shez better?

7) Did they grow up in the CoS faith, and do they follow it now?

8) If at the monastery at the time, would they take part in the fishing tournament, and how well would they do?

9) Do they have any sentimental keepsakes they carry with them?

10) As a child what did they want to be when they grew up, if different to the path they ended up on?

11) What combat class do they secretly wish they could be?

12) What animal would they keep as a pet? (Ignoring allergies, I'm asking what they'd like not what they could have) - mounts don't really count for this

13) If they're a mounted unit what would they name their mount?

14) Do they prefer form or function?

15) If they could visit a country outside of Fodlan, where would they go?

16) Who could they win an arm wrestle against? A game of darts? A game of chess?

17) What sort of things do they find funny?

18) Are they an early bird or night owl?

19) Sweet or savoury?

20) What are they afraid of? Including phobias

21) Are they more likely to get laugh or frown lines?

22) How did they decide on their personal/post skip outfit, and was the price or the aesthetic a bigger factor in their decision?

23) What skill or ability are they proud of that they don't get to show off often?

24) What is their fondest most treasured memory?

25) In a modern FE3H au, what would they be instead?

[kilfeur]

La vengeance de Shez et comment elle se développe (Shez's revenge and how it develops)

Quelque chose que j'ai bien aimé c'est comment la vengeance de Shez est traité dans le scénario. La raison pour laquelle il veut se venger est au premier abord pour la compagnie de Bergliez. Toutefois dans les trois routes, il ne priorisera pas son but que celui du trio, il va suivre les ordres car en allant de champ de bataille, il va finir par tomber sur lui. Ce qui est rafraîchissant ! D'ailleurs j'ai bien aimé comment son idée de vengeance est vu comme une rivalité ce qui contraste la vengeance de Dimitri. Il veut devenir fort car dans le métier de mercenaire, tu dois te démarquer ce qui peut résulter à des entrainements assez extrêmes comme se jeter d'un ravin ou bien se battre contre plus fort que soi. Mais aussi montrer ta loyauté. Dans le soutien de Petra, il explique que si un mercenaire trahit son employé pour une offre alléchante, celui qui a fait l'offre pourrait le trahir et son ancien employé ne pourra plus lui faire confiance. D'après lui, il n'a pas eu de mentor à proprement parler et a apprit seule ou bien avec quelqu'un qu'il ne qualifiera pas de mentor. Ce qui est différent avec Byleth qui a été entraîné par son père, je plaisante sur le nombre de fois où il faut prendre un shot où il parle de son métier de mercenaire. Or j'ai bien aimé son point de vue par rapport à son métier.

Arval le soutient dans sa quête de vengeance car même si il affronte Byleth, il a l'impression que ses efforts ne sont pas suffisants pour le vaincre. Bien qu'Arval est bien plus enthousiaste à l'idée de vaincre le démon cendré que Shez. D'ailleurs dans le jeu, Byleth fait très mal si tu essaies de l'affronter au début bien que ça devient plus simple avec le temps. Ce qui montre qu'il n'a pas volé sa réputation. A un moment, il songe à le recruter et si on le fait, on sent qu'il n'est pas à l'aise et s'excuse auprès d'Arval vu qu'iel le soutenait. Jusqu'à ce qu'Arval prenne possession de son corps et décide de tuer Byleth. Mais Shez affronte Arval devenu Epimenides est mort de la main de Shez adressant ses dernières paroles comme quoi il est devenu si fort. Même la relation entre Byleth et Shez est plus calme tandis qu'avec Jeralt il parle de son ressenti au sujet de la compagnie Bergliez bien que Jeralt faisait que son boulot. Toutefois si on décide d'aller jusqu'au bout de la vengeance, c'est nous qui tuons Jeralt ! Ce qui rend Byleth furieux et veux nous buter, lorsqu'on essaie de l'atteindre on voit le nombre de cadavres mais aussi la mort d'un personnage montrant les conséquences de notre vengeance. Chez les cerfs d'or, ce sera Judith, chez les lions ce sera Rodrigue et dans les aigles ce sera Randolf. Quand j'ai fait le chapitre, j'étais choqué ! Par contre dans 3hopes, Sothis se rappelle de qui elle est et veut nous tuer et a une relation plus conflictuelle avec Byleth que dans 3houses. Après la mort de Jeralt, Byleth accepte que Sothis prenne possession de son corps. Et lors de la bataille, on peut voir lors de l'affrontement qu'il essaie de résister mais au final, Shez finit par tuer Byleth. Je pensais qu'il allait avoir une raison bullshit pour arrêter leur affrontement mais non ils sont allés jusqu'au bout du thème de la vengeance. (Ce qui me fait penser à Byleth qui voulait tuer Kronya par vengeance pour son père mais se retrouve coincé dans Zahras et doit fusionne avec Sothis pour sortir d'ici. D'ailleurs c'est le même sort qu'Arval utilise quand il possède le corps de Shez pour emprisonner le trio et Shez) Quand il a enfin tué Byleth, c'est enfin terminé et Arval le remercie bien qu'iel ne comprend pas pourquoi iel ressent cette gratitude.

Toutefois il y a un truc qui me dérange c'est qu'au final, on en saura pas plus sur les origines de Shez malgré les indices laissés par le jeu. Après je pense que la raison pour laquelle est que peu importe ses origines, ce qui est important est la personne qu'il est devenu et c'est soutenu par la relation entre lui et le trio. Je peux comprendre où ils veulent venir mais c'est frustrant que le scénario nous donnera pas vraiment de réponses concrètes ! Même Epimenides nous donnera pour seul info qu'on devait être son réceptacle. Ainsi qu'une quête annexe nous montrant son point de vue nuancé face à Nabathéens et envers de son peuple. 

One thing I liked was how Shez's revenge was handled in the script. The reason he wants revenge in the first place is for Bergliez's company. However, in the three routes, he won't prioritize his goal over that of the trio, he'll follow orders as he goes from battlefield to battlefield, eventually running into him. Which is refreshing! What's more, I like how his idea of revenge is seen as a rivalry, which contrasts with Dimitri's revenge. He wants to become strong, because in the mercenary profession, you have to stand out from the crowd, which can result in some pretty extreme training, like throwing yourself off a ravine or fighting against someone stronger than you. But you also have to show your loyalty. In support of Petra, he explains that if a mercenary betrays his employee for a tempting offer, the person who made the offer could betray him and his former employee would no longer be able to trust him. According to him, he didn't have a mentor to speak of, and learned on his own or from someone he wouldn't call a mentor. This is different from Byleth, who was trained by his father - I'm joking about the number of times you have to take a shot where he talks about being a mercenary. But I really liked his point of view on his job.

Arval supports him in his quest for vengeance, because even though he faces Byleth, he feels that his efforts are not enough to defeat him. Although they is far more enthusiastic about defeating the Ashen Demon than Shez. In fact, in the game, Byleth hurts a lot if you try to fight him at first, although it gets easier with time. Which shows that he hasn't stolen his reputation. At one point, he considers recruiting him, and if you do, you sense that he's uncomfortable and apologizes to Arval for supporting him. Until Arval takes over his body and decides to kill Byleth. But Shez kills Arval, who has become Epimenides, and dies at Shez's hand, uttering their last words about how strong he has become. Even the relationship between Byleth and Shez is calmer, while with Jeralt he talks about his feelings about the Bergliez company, even though Jeralt was just doing his job. However, if we decide to go through with the revenge, we'll be the ones to kill Jeralt ! This makes Byleth furious and wants to kill us, and when we try to get to him we see the number of corpses, as well as the death of a character showing the consequences of our vengeance. Among the golden deer, it will be Judith, among the lions it will be Rodrigue and among the eagles it will be Randolf. When I did the chapter, I was shocked ! On the other hand, in 3hopes, Sothis remembers who she is and wants to kill us, and has a more conflictual relationship with Byleth than in 3houses. After Jeralt's death, Byleth agrees to let Sothis take over his body. And during the battle, we can see that he tries to resist, but in the end, Shez ends up killing Byleth. I thought he was going to have a bullshit reason for stopping their confrontation, but no, they went all the way with the revenge theme. (Which reminds me of Byleth, who wanted to kill Kronya in revenge for his father, but ends up trapped in Zahras and has to merge with Sothis to get out. Incidentally, this is the same spell Arval uses when they possesses Shez's body to imprison the trio and their receptacle.) When he finally kills Byleth, it's finally over and Arval thanks him, although they doesn't understand why they feels this gratitude.

However, one thing that bothers me is that, in the end, we don't find out more about Shez's origins, despite the clues left by the game. After all, I think the reason for this is that whatever his origins, what's important is the person he's become, and this is supported by the relationship between him and the trio. I can understand where they're coming from, but it's frustrating that the storyline doesn't really give us any concrete answers ! Even Epimenides only tells us that we're supposed to be his receptacle. As well as a side quest showing us his nuanced point of view towards the Nabataheans and towards his people.

[oraclebell17]

CRYING. SOBBING. LOUDLY

DO YOU EVER THINK OF THE AWAKENED RIVALS TRAILER OF THREE HOPES WHERE. WHERE THYE PLAY AN EPIMENIDES LINE WHILE THEY SHOW THE CUTSCENE OF SHEZ POSSESSED BY EPIMENIDES TRYING TO KILL BYLETH. AND THEN THEY PLAY AN ARVAL LINE RIGHT AFTER. I AM GOING TO EXPLODE /POS