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raxistaicho · 4 months ago

Text

To spork a hatefic

Hey all! A while back I became aware of an anti-CF shortfic that attempts to analyze Edelgard and Hubert's treatment of Byleth in Crimson Flower. The long and short of it is the author (hereafter referred to as "Function", to shorten their AO3 username) interprets Byleth as a Human/Nabatean mixed-race individual, and so takes personally what they perceive to be some anti-Nabatean sentiment espoused by Edelgard and Hubert.

I'm not going to get into that issue during the course of this sporking; I've made a post on this ages back, but I personally interpret Byleth's dichotomy more as a split between mortals and the divine. The game proper focuses more on the Nabateans as a divine family than it does a race.

In any case, it's far more interesting to analyze why Byleth reacts to the things Edelgard and Hubert say, since there's a great deal of groundwork that Function just ignores in favor of detailing why Edelgard and Hubert are awful people. They've kinda forgotten that their shortfic gets into a story that didn't just begin where the shortfic does. That's more what I want to focus on.

Before we continue, do not go looking for this fic to bug the writer, I implore you. I didn't link it, name it, or name the author for a reason.

With that out of the way, let's get started!

*Byleth goes by they/them in this fic

Noted. And honestly it's easier that way, I'm already used to calling Byleth they/them as it is.

*This fic is not favorable towards CF

That's fine, I won't be favorable toward the fic either :)

We open up with,

“I will save this world from those creatures and give humanity its freedom back!” The words strike a discordant cord in Byleth’s chest.

Byleth remembers how Edelgard used to be and how unusual it is for her to speak so openly, capping off with,

Was she always so… comfortable?

No, not until treehouse got hold of her.

A lot, and I mean a lot of the times Edelgard calls the Nabateans "creatures" was an invention of the localization. In the original JP, what she says here is either,

I will bring down the lies of the Goddess, overcome countless sacrifices, then grasp and show everyone the true meaning of a world of man.

or,

I’ll defeat the false goddess, overcome our many sacrifices, and seize a world that’s truly for humanity.

The sources are linked in the quotes.

Now while Edelgard does bring up specifically humanity at the end of both quotes, it's in direct contrast to the falsities of the goddess. It's that human/god contrast I mentioned earlier with regards to Byleth.

To give another common example, the lines that spawned the dialogue Edelgard's haters always point to as an example of her being an evil racist, "Should the one leading the people of the world be someone with humanity or a creature that can merely masquerade as a human at will?" started as,

[Seiros and Nemesis fought to decide] whether those who stand atop humanity should be human, or non-human…

or,

Should the one who rules over humans be a human, or should it be something that is not a human…?

Again, Edelgard's issues are with the church and its false teachings of the goddess. It's more humans v gods here.

Rhea, and Seteth, and Flayn… they have made their stance against those three clear now, but enemies as they may be… creatures? Has Edelgard always been so… willing to speak of them in such a way?

Yes, she has.

(Interestingly, this is one of the few times the localization didn't make up Edelgard calling Rhea a monster! I'll go into the interesting implications a little further down)

You know, right after Rhea declared,

And then transformed into a frankly horrific-looking creature.

Rhea ain't a fluffy divine dragon ala Tiki, she's covered in spikes, she's got claws as long as a man is tall, she's got white pupil-less eyes, and her maw is lined with a jagged "beard" of spikes.

Speaking from experience, it's not easy to disregard things I know but my characters wouldn't when I write, but Function hasn't tried very hard at all to dispense with the Audience Awareness Advantage. They know dragons are generally forces for good in Fire Emblem, especially in modern games, but the characters in Fodlan would only have experience with them in the form of Demonic Beasts, which rampage mindlessly and slaughter people. The word "dragon" doesn't even exist in the game's script, just in UI elements and the name of one weapon.

We see Rhea and think, "oh, divine dragon!" while the people in-universe would think, "she's a white Demonic Beast!"

In any case, it's a definite strike against canon that Byleth would just forget the things Edelgard said previously and what Rhea said, did, and tried to do that prompted Edelgard's harsh description.

If someone viscerally declared their intent to rip out the heart of someone I loved, I'd be pretty liberal with dehumanizing them, too. That's serial killer behavior.

Her words are spoken with such a fervor, a vigor and vitality she would usually reserve for her ambitions and ideals, something dear to her, important to her, close to her heart, and yet… this… This feels different. This feels deeper.

No they weren't and no it doesn't.

Tara Platt didn't even slip into Edelgard's "speech-voice" when giving that line, she speaks it calmly and softly. This is especially bad since you can easily check the voice lines now, this took me about a minute to confirm.

And just to be sure, I checked the original line in JP. Ai Kakuma, Edelgard's jp va, also gives the line calmly.

Now, for contrast,

If you dare walk this path with me, take your first step. It's now or never!

THAT was spoken with vigor and vitality.

Anyways, Byleth gets uneasy,

That resolution, that drive, that heart - it’s so close to sounding right. So close to being something they can believe in. But under the sincerity lies… No. No, they were thinking too much. They look into Edelgard’s eyes and see that same softness they remember her having, and they know that everything is fine. Everything is fine.

Judging by what we'll see later on, the implication is clearly that Byleth is catching on to the notion that they might be included in the list of "creatures" who need to be removed. This is an exceedingly common claim from Edelgard's more outspoken detractors, that she should turn on and kill Byleth once Rhea is out of the way, because she's just that much of a hater of the Nabateans.

This is just straight up mistaking Edelgard for Thales. Her haters' (mis)understanding of her character is that because she's willing to use violence, violence is her only answer when life asks her a question. It also ties into the nonsensical "she never tried diplomacy!" argument. It's also mistaking why Edelgard fights Rhea and her kin to begin with; it's not because of who they are, but what they do and have done to Fodlan. She has no reason at all to fight Byleth, they're on her side. Even the quotes Function uses later in an attempt to bury Edelgard only supports her point!

But to raise another point, why would Byleth be internalizing Edelgard's supposed anti-Nabatean arguments to include them? This isn't Silver Snow, Byleth hasn't learned anything about Sitri. Though they do know via Sothis that Rhea caused them to live a joint life, that doesn't necessarily mean Byleth themself is even part Nabatean. For all they know, they're just a normal human that Rhea tampered with during the mysterious passing of their mother.

Anyways, the scene then cuts to a rendition of Hubert's A support. I've gone into this support in great detail in a recent post and I encourage you to read it to get the context Function is going to deny us. I'll keep things brief(er) here, but tl;dr: what Hubert's about to say is a sign of trust, not distrust.

“It's absurd to preach to others what you cannot practice yourself.” A conversation with Hubert, after reconnecting. Talking of Rhea’s hypocrisy, of the need for Edelgard to rule in her place; ironically, they speak in the cathedral, the unrepaired hole in the roof letting in dim sunlight.

All right, so Function has just completely denied us all context and the fact that Hubert's saying gods have no fight to be hypocrits, great. It's much easier to frame a conversation the way you want it when you remove all context from it, after all.

“Sometimes it’s necessary.” Sometimes the circumstances call for hypocrisy - isn’t that concession something they all had to live with, for Edelgard’s war? How the only way to stop the need for sacrifices in the future is to indulge in the need for sacrifices now? How the true peace they build on this necessary suffering will erase the false peace Rhea had built? It is hypocritical, but… that can’t always be avoided.

No, what Edelgard's doing isn't hypocritical. It'd be hypocritical if she decried violence and killing in all circumstances while using violence and killing to achieve her ends.

You know, that thing Dimitri does constantly!

“That is logical, but I am afraid your logic is informed by your humanity. That is not the case for inhuman creatures with lifespans well beyond our own.” The cord is struck again. They look at Hubert - he is staring them directly in the eye.

Again, Function removed the context behind this; he's contrasting humans against the goddess. Gods and mortals.

And again, Byleth doesn't have a reason to internalize what Hubert's saying.

“We must fight to preserve what makes us human.” They feel the hairs on the back of their neck rise. A chill races up and down their spine. Hubert still has that neutral smile, that calculating stare, that even tone.

No, he's actually rather agitated when he says this, because he's discussing his enemies. Rhea and her kin who've abused their long lives and great powers to force laws upon people that they don't practice themselves.

"What makes us human" is just the fallibility, the excuse to make logical mistakes and hypocrisies. Byleth has already compared what Edelgard's doing to being a hypocrite, and they themself are on her side. This Byleth has chosen their human side; they should be agreeing with him.

“You are the one closest to the enemy. I wonder if you will be able to maintain your humanity to the end.” They don’t swallow. They breathe in, then out, as they always do. They blink. They look at Hubert. “If I’m unable to…” Then Hubert - and Edelgard, and the Black Eagles - they would bring them back, right? They would help them. They would stay by them, just as Byleth has always come back to them. Or Hubert will say not to worry about such an impossibility - that it would never happen, because he knows them, and knows they would never… lose their humanity… even if Byleth didn’t understand what Hubert means they would never let that happen, and he knows that-

Let's not forget what it would mean for Byleth to lose their humanity. Because Function was obsessed with race to the point of being blinded by all else while writing this, they seem to think that Byleth failing to preserve what makes them human would mean Byleth just... becoming more of a Nabatean or something. Living too long, or changing into a dragon.

But, again, Edelgard and Hubert are concerned about what the Nabateans are doing, not what they are. Where Byleth losing their humanity leads, based on how Hubert discusses it, is the path of becoming an eternal despot over the people, abusing powers they can't hope to match or understand and forcing them to live in a manner Byleth themself wouldn't.

Byleth fearfully wonders if the Black Eagles would "bring them back, right?" Function means "bring them back from being a Nabatean," when in reality it means "bring them back from being a tyrant." And how does Fire Emblem handle characters fearing their own power and their ability to wield it wisely?

Well, look to Anankos. When he understood he would become a mad dragon, he didn't bleat, "set me back on the straight and narrow, okay?" he empowered his own would-be killers. Which is precisely what Byleth does in this scene if you choose to take that dialogue option, as a final logical evolution of Hubert's threats to kill them earlier in the support line. "If I become corrupted by my power like Nemesis and Rhea did, stop me. Whatever it takes."

Of course, there's a dialogue option here in which Byleth just asserts they'd never do that, and Hubert admits they make him want to believe them, but that doesn't fit Function's narrative so we're ignoring that.

“Does that mean you know I will do what must be done? You must trust me a great deal.” His smile becomes relaxed. His posture loses tension. His gaze is warmer. As if they passed a test. They want to ask what he means. What must be done - what must be done? What does he plan on doing? If they- if they lose their humanity, if they become too close to the enemy, if they- if they what?

So yeah, Function is not remotely interested in any of the context here. They just want to demonize Hubert for being so very racist :(

Also, I'm to believe this Byleth's been interacting with Hubert for a year and change? This Byleth taught him, understands his mindset? They're acting like they've only just met him.

Hubert’s mouth keeps moving. He- he must mean he would help them, right?

"He'd help me stop being a tyrant, right? :( He'd give me a good tongue-lashing and make me knock it off?"

Function's Byleth comes across like... I don't know what. They just can't follow a conversation to save their life.

He wouldn’t- but why phrase it like that? What does he mean closest to the enemy,

Function, you'd know the answer to that if you knew anything about the support that takes place than the part where Hubert implies he'll kill Byleth!

This would be like me picking a random line in Dimitri's A support and going from there. I could probably make him look weird if I did that, too!

they- they left the Church of Seiros! The one safe haven they’ve ever known! They went right back to Edelgard, stayed by her, fought by her side, fought by everyone in the Black Eagles’ side,

The fact that Byleth immediately goes to them leaving the Church of Seiros as if to lay Hubert's concerns to rest exposes Function's thought process and what they think Hubert's talking about.

For Function, "You are the one closest to the enemy," runs like:

Byleth is half-Nabatean

Nabateans are associated with the Church of Seiros

Hubert thinks Byleth might rejoin the Church of Seiros before the battle is over.

For one, it wouldn't make any sense at all for Byleth to even try to rejoin Rhea, given Rhea's vow to brutally kill them, but even setting that aside, Hubert doesn't just ignore threats if they aren't likely to manifest within the next five minutes. He sees further than most people, and he knows once the war ends it will be his responsibility to help safeguard the world Edelgard is trying to build.

"You are the one closest to the enemy," means that once Rhea and her church is gone, Byleth will be the most powerful individual in Fodlan. Will they use their power wisely, as the Church of Seiros says people should but fails to do itself, or will they become the next Rhea? That's why Hubert isn't going to be just be instantly assuaged by Byleth being on Edelgard's side right now; he has to look further ahead.

Is it cold? Yes, but that's just how Hubert is. The fact he's speaking frankly with Byleth about this and is willing to accept Byleth's assertions that they won't fall prey to their own power demonstrates a lot of growth on Hubert's part.

Also, this Byleth wouldn't think of the Garreg Mach of 1180 as necessarily a safe haven anymore, they'd think it as the domain of the woman who tried to groom them into an obscure ritual that would have done something unknown to them and now wants to brutally murder them for protecting their student.

They went right back to Edelgard, stayed by her, fought by her side, fought by everyone in the Black Eagles’ side, against the pleas and cries of students who once looked to them as a guide, killing those students who refused to see Edelgard’s dream,

We're no further than Derdriu, so none of the students so far have been required kills.

Ignatz and Leonie are optional targets in ch13 even if unrecruited, and when Judith falls Edelgard calls for a cessation of hostilities over the bridge. Judith has to die, but why would Byleth care about Judith? They don't know her, she's just another noble to them.

Lysithea can be spared and recruited even if encountered as an enemy in ch14, and Hilda is both optional and easily avoided in the same.

Look, Function, if you wanna play Crimson Flower like the Genocide Route in Undertale, knock yourself out, but don't turn around and blame Edelgard if named characters start dropping like flies.

They’ve done everything they could to stand by Edelgard. What else could they do? What does he mean? What does he mean?

He means it's time to crack open a book about philosophy and see what absolute power absolutely does, Byleth.

Next is the intro to... Linhardt and Leonie's paralogue.

We all know where this is going, folks.

A lot of this can be skipped, but Byleth mentions that the days have been muggy recently, so I guess Function just forgot this is taking place in the middle of winter. A definite strike against canon.

But. Just before they try to leave to inform Edelgard, Linhardt places a hand on their shoulder. “If we're going now, I do suggest leaving Edelgard and Hubert innocent of our quest.” His words are spoken in that casual, disinterested tone that they’ve long grown to find endearing. But there‘s a look in his eye - oddly serious, oddly grounded, for the man Byleth knew to often visit the land of dreams. “Lake Teutates is a place that concerns the saints of the Church of Seiros. It may become bothersome should the two of them find out…” And Byleth wants to protest that idea - Edelgard and Hubert, they have their deep grievances with the Church of Seiros, yes, but surely… surely not so bad as to need to leave them out? Whatever awaits them in this visit was clearly of no harm to anyone - they’ve received no reports of Lake Teutates being dangerous, no bandits or enemy scouts. They may not even engage in any fighting, so, surely, it would be fine…

He starts to yawn as he gets to "the two of them", which really says everything about why he doesn't want Edelgard to know; he just doesn't want to bother getting approval for a trip to church grounds. He even says Byleth should tell her about the trip once it's over.

Leonie… yes, they nod and agree, because yes, yes, after. Edelgard and Hubert can know of this deviation after it is done. After Linhardt used up all of his motivation to find Saint Indech. After he, the one person who knows the way, would remember the way, will ever want to say it again.

Wait, what? Finding Indech didn't even come up in this scene! The only time Indech is even mentioned is when Linhardt vaguely alludes to a legend about him and that the bow ties into it. Linhardt doesn't even piece together the truth and hypothesize that the Immovable is him until he encounters him in the flesh. This is one of the worst examples of Function applying their knowledge onto the characters in this entire fic, and that's saying something.

Also, "the one person who knows the way"? Lake Teutates is on maps of Fodlan. All you have to do is find the lake, and you'll find the shrine after looking around.

Edelgard won’t get mad at them for investigating this legend about a likely child of the goddess behind her back.

Edelgard does not utter "children of the goddess" often. Just in a battle dialogue in Enbarr and late in Crimson Flower. That's another strike against canon.

Hubert won’t accuse them of growing closer with the enemy and… do what must be done...

Yeah, see? Function thinks Byleth losing humanity means rejoining the Nabateans. I understand they think this is supposed to be all about race and that's why this fanfic is obsessed with race and blood, but that's not what the game itself is worried about. And that's why it's so easy to knock all these points down.

They wouldn’t have regardless, of course, Byleth trusts them to know that they wouldn’t, but… now they can’t. Now, Byleth is… Assured.

Press X to doubt.

Next we jump ahead to chapter 15, the Garreg Mach defense.

“The time is now! As long as we stand here, you shall not pass!” There she is. Flayn.

You know what this means, dear readers!

Sweet, kind Flayn. Small, weak-bodied Flayn. Flayn, fainted and pale from blood loss, kidnapped in her own home. Flayn, bright and shining, holding up the fish Byleth had reeled up to make her feel better. Flayn, shocked and joyous, over having won the White Heron Cup. Flayn, supportive and happy, when they had first come back after merging with Sothis.

Fuck, I think that gave me diabetes. But remember this glowing detail Flayn gets for later on, because the contrast against Byleth's other students will be stark.

Small, weak-bodied Flayn.

Who are you calling frail!?

Flayn, fainted and pale from blood loss, kidnapped in her own home.

You're gonna mention how Edelgard helped you rescue her and willingly gave her up, right, Byleth? No? Okay.

Flayn, bright and shining, holding up the fish Byleth had reeled up to make her feel better.

Pfft, I reeled that fish up for the renown, thank you very much.

Flayn, shocked and joyous, over having won the White Heron Cup.

Oof, Byleth's out a dancer. Poor planning there, Teach. Also of course it was Flayn, can't let Dorothea have anything, heheh.

Flayn, supportive and happy, when they had first come back after merging with Sothis.

Given the implication that Flayn knew about Rhea's inhumane experiments to revive Sothis, this isn't the cute little thing you think it is, Function.

They swallow. Their hands are shaking so hard they can barely hold their sword. They can’t stop blinking. They- they can’t do this. They can’t do this. Flayn, she- they saved her, brought her back to Seteth before he had broken down completely,

Yeah, shame she's choosing to fight on Rhea's side against the future of Fodlan. Maybe get her to knock it off?

helped her gain some closure in killing Solon, and now…

What? Flayn doesn't even come up in regards to Solon's death. But of course Byleth killed him for her, and not for his other victims, past and potentially in the future. Flayn is important.

Now they have to kill her?

No? Do what Edelgard does, try to get her to surrender.

Function, Byleth jumping right to thinking they have to kill her isn't a good look.

End her kind, precious life? Destroy Seteth’s one reason for living, after giving her back to him? It’s- it’s cruel, they’ve bloodied their hands so, so much in this forsaken war, but, they just can’t-

Ah, yeah, who cares about all the people you've killed so far, they weren't main characters! But this is Flayn and Seteth, we mustn't hurt them :(

Function, Byleth only giving a shit when it's people they know personally and they, in the context of this fanfic, share a race with is. Um. It's like. Ah. Terrible.

No seriously, Byleth comes across as kinda racist. "Who cares about all the humans I've killed so far, there's plenty of those and I didn't know them, but this time it's different, they're my people :("

“Come at me, so that I may put you out of your misery!” They. Turn to Edelgard. She’s glaring- no. She’s glowering.

Oh baby.

So in the context of this fanfic, she's saying that to Flayn, but in the game itself she just says it to whichever group of hidden enemies spawns first. One of them, the closer of the two, pointedly doesn't have Flayn mixed among them. Just Function, again twisting things to make Edelgard look worse.

She isn’t seeing the sweet, kind girl that had once been her classmate. She isn’t seeing Flayn holding a fish in her hands with an unbridled happiness. She isn’t seeing Flayn smile brightly at being given the traditional dancer garb.

Yeah, she's seeing an enemy commander leading troops to retake the monastery and kill her soldiers, men and women who she has a responsibility for and for whom she cares about. Unlike Byleth.

She… sees her victim that got away. From the kidnapping she sanctioned.

Oh, never mind.

And yeah, I guess Byleth did forget how Edelgard helped to rescue Flayn in the first place. And also how Edelgard didn't take Flayn captive at the Holy Tomb when she could have.

They rush ahead, sprinting to Flayn, Edelgard tries to keep up but her armor wears her down and Byleth is running, their grip becomes sweaty and loose and they are running, their eyes burn and their sight blurs and they are running- And before they knew it, Flayn was in front of them.

Very dramatic. Where are all Flayn's soldiers, having a smoke break? Did Byleth just mentally blot out killing them because they're not Nabatean and thus mean nothing to them?

Her stare grows more wavering; they could swear her eyes are shining more of what little light shines through the clouds than they should.

That map isn't overcast, Function, Empathic Environment isn't in effect.

Unless it's cloudy from all the smoke the church caused with its fire attack.

They exchange Flayn's battle dialogue, then Byleth beats the shit out of Flayn, holy crap.

They make it quick; Flayn was always better known for her healing than her fighting. The pommel of their sword, the flat end of their blade, fists and kicks - it is violent. It hurts. Try as they might, they still hear the distinctive crack of bone from one strike to her arm, Flayn’s petite body simply too weak to withstand the blow. They see her bite down hard on her lip, the blood trickling to her chin, her eyes squinting past the pain, they hear the muffled whimper, the soft thmp of her staff hitting the ground, her quiet sniffle.

Don't you dare try to blame that one on Edelgard, Function, that was all on Byleth for going full Doom Slayer on Flayn, jesus christ.

Oh and also, I guess Edelgard's also having a smoke break, because she vanished.

She looks at them, and suddenly, her eyes go wide. Understanding seems to dawn on her in that moment, and she takes a step back. “Farewell, Professor. I do not imagine we shall ever meet again.”

Flayn's understand is that Byleth is letting her go, but in the game it's just presented that Flayn and Seteth choose not to fight to the death if they encounter Byleth. All the power is in their hands, it's just a question of whether or not they intend to needlessly throw their lives away for Rhea.

And she retreats. Bruised, bleeding, and battered, but alive. They can only hope Seteth does the same. Those two, they… They don’t deserve this.

Everyone else can fuck off and shut up and fuck off and die, though.

It’s fine. They defeated her, and will defeat Seteth.

I wonder how Function feels about how Byleth doesn't need to be the one to defeat Seteth and Flayn to get them to back off? Yeah, in case you didn't know, having Byleth engage in battle with them once is all it takes. After that, anyone, even Edelgard, can finish them and they'll be just fine. That revelation seriously upset some of the Edelgard antis, given I'm still seeing them trying to argue against it even to this day.

Those two will never be seen again, hiding away from the world Flayn had so desperately wanted to see, and that’s… okay.

Sometimes, in Fodlan, you end up in Abyss. That's the world Rhea made. Flayn shouldn't be special just because she's cute and has a name.

That’s good. It makes it okay to spare them, and Byleth won’t hear anything from Edelgard or Hubert for this.

This is written as if to be defiant, but Byleth won't hear anything from Edelgard or Hubert for this because they don't react negatively to the pair surviving, because killing them is not a goal for the war. Hell, killing Rhea isn't, either. Just removing her from power is all that's needed.

Thank god that's over!

“You, like Rhea, share a bloodline with the so-called goddess. Your mother likely had some connection to the goddess, whose power has always been sleeping within you. Five years ago when your power awakened, I was afraid you would choose to join with Rhea.” They don’t know. They just don’t know.

You've made that abundantly clear, Byleth.

They had never talked with Rhea more than they had to.

Good thing, too, otherwise you'd have to endure her sexual harassment and getting punished for trying to assert boundaries in her A support!

They had always spoken to Edelgard at every opportunity. They had done everything to push Rhea away from them despite her open arms,

This is portraying Rhea as being oh so very kind, but I've see it argued with some credence that her behavior throughout White Clouds is her lovebombing Byleth.

Right from the start, she strongly suspects Byleth of being the child who escaped from her twenty years ago, so she gives them a job to keep them nearby and showers them with compliments and praise. Then, after Byleth demonstrates they can wield the SotC and thus appear even more likely to be Sothis reborn, suddenly her C support opens up, and she offers Byleth weed herbal remedies to give to give to the students, targeting a major point of Byleth's affection.

It's easy to read Rhea's shows of affection as carefully planned and controlled to get Byleth to open up to her to better steer their course.

and everything to stay with Edelgard despite her radical ideals.

Maybe we should improve society somewhat is radical in Fodlan, I guess.

When Edelgard had tried to kill them and the Black Eagles in the Holy Tomb, they didn’t kill her.

Don't mind me, just dropping those.

Function seems to have forgotten that this Byleth is supposed to be a Byleth who experienced the story as it exists, not as they (Function) headcannon it to be.

They barely hurt her. They did everything to simply incapacitate her, to hear her out, to understand why she would do this.

If Byleth experienced every moment they could and would have experienced with Edelgard, Dorothea, Bernadetta, Petra, and many others, they would know why Edelgard would do this. Despite what her antis would have you believe, what you see really is what you get with Edelgard when she's talking about her ideals. She's very open with Byleth.

“You thought I would join her?” And Edelgard will say that of course she did, because she had done something so drastic. She had brought in an army - her army - and gave the order to kill them and the Black Eagles. She had brought in mindless Demonic Beasts, after Miklan, after Remire’s massacre, after the chapel and their father’s murder. She betrayed them, in every sense of the word - of course, that was why she had thought they would have joined Rhea.

What Function is missing here is that breaking away from one's "intended" path is a major theme of Crimson Flower, and this scene is directly pointing that out.

Edelgard was "meant" to be Thales's tool, but with her connection to Byleth and the other students, she escapes this fate.

Byleth was "meant" to be Sothis reborn, but by connecting to the students and the people of Fodlan, they choose to keep their humanity and not become a god.

As Fantasy Invader loves to say, you're "changing the story", and that reflects in breaking away from Edelgard and Byleth's appointed fates, where the other three routes see both embracing them, to Edelgard's death and Byleth's fated loneliness of immortality.

“I did. As you know, my goal is to free our world from the control of Rhea and the other children of the goddess. I seek to obliterate her, as well as those around her who use the church's power to control Fódlan. I swore to free the people from Rhea by striking her down, whether or not it meant making an enemy of you.”

Emphasis mine.

Again, the subject of Hubert's A support with Byleth is not about which race they choose to be, but how they use their power after Rhea is no more. It's all about abuse of power, not having too-pointy ears.

And the world starts spinning. Their chest pangs. Their spine chills. Their gut churns. I will save the world from those creatures That is not the case for inhuman creatures Rhea and the other creatures, she means. To obliterate her and those creatures around her. And she thought they would join Rhea, because they are a creature like Rhea.

The creatures who abuse their power, Byleth, you really need to try paying attention when you talk to people.

But yes, given how Byleth seemed all set up to become an avatar of the goddess's will, it seems natural for Edelgard, sworn enemy to the church, to assume Byleth would choose not to walk at her side.

“And yet...you came to my aid and chose to walk with me on the path against Rhea. I was overjoyed of course, but I was also confused. I thought that perhaps it wasn't the path you were meant to take. But I chose to trust in you, to rely on you and your strength. And now, here we are.” They chose to trust in Edelgard. And they were given this in return.

Love? Trust? The freedom to choose?

A trust Edelgard tentatively gave to this… creature.

Oh, of course, Function is obsessed with race so they think Byleth and Edelgard should be as well, right. Where did Byleth get the idea that Edelgard's trust was tentative in that speech? Hubert's is, based on the choices Byleth makes going forward, but that's not the case with Edelgard.

This creature that should be distrusted, despite everything it's done for her, despite opening its heart to her.

...No? At no point did Edelgard say her initial uncertainty was correct. Just that it was how she felt.

This creature that Hubert will do what must be done should it lose its humanity, damn whatever friendship and love it held before.

If anything, it's because Hubert considers Byleth a friend that he has to do it, now. Who does Hardin trust to set him straight if he loses his path? The Wolfguard, the men he trusts most.

“Thank you for listening, my teacher. I'm glad I finally had the chance to talk to you about it. After Rhea is gone from this world, I don't know what will become of you." They want to laugh. They want to cry. They want to run away screaming. They want to strangle her. All this time. All they’ve done for her. All they��ve given to her. All they’ve lived for her. All they’ve loved her completely. And she doesn’t know what will become of them. Does she doubt what will become of Hubert? No; it wasn’t even a question. Anyone could tell how much she trusts the man. He has proven he will walk off the ends of the earth for her. She has no reason to doubt his dedication to staying by her side.

Function chooses the weirdest times to just forget that they played Crimson Flower.

Edelgard's worry here is meant to foreshadow Byleth collapsing after Rhea falls. She knows Byleth is tied to the goddess through their mother, so she fears what will happen to Byleth should they take the final step in defying Rhea. Fear of loss tied into her future is one of Edelgard's main character traits, Edge of Dawn is all about this. Her instincts tell her something dangerous might happen to Byleth, and it very nearly does.

I know exactly what Function is getting at: Edelgard antis love to rant about how Edelgard should totally kill Byleth the minute Rhea goes down, but she obviously doesn't, because she trusts them in Crimson Flower, and her trust is rewarded.

Edelgard doesn’t know them. And… they didn’t know her.

Yeah that'd be because you're operating off Function's probably 5 years old memories of the route and their poor;y-constructed headcanons.

Didn’t know the depths to her hatred.

Man, if hearing Edelgard say mean things about Rhea is enough to count as hate, just imagine if Byleth heard half the rancid shit Dimitri says!

Didn’t know how lowly she must have thought of them, all this time.

Edelgard wept and hugged Byleth when they returned. She said her heart felt broken to think Byleth had fallen. This whole fucking scene is about how deeply Edelgard cares for and trusts Byleth, but sure, Function.

“But whatever happens, I hope you know that you're very special to me. You are the one person in this world who can share the heavy burden I must carry. Someone without equal who I can always speak my mind to…” And her eyes are so soft, her voice so gentle. Admitting to having been willing to kill them so easily and so casually,

She never said she felt she could easily kill you, you really need to try paying attention, Byleth. She only said she was willing to risk making an enemy of you.

that she hadn’t thought they should be here,

Past-tense, Byleth, as in, directly after you made the choice. She was briefly and understandably confused, but that was five years ago.

All for some blood connection to this woman that they have never done one thing for that hadn’t been forced upon them by obligation - a connection based on an assumption about a mother they’ve never met and never seen…

The cognitive dissonance coming from Function is wild. Yes, it does seem remarkably petty for Edelgard to distrust Byleth based on some familial connection not even they are fully aware of, it's almost like that's not actually how she feels!

But they’re special to her. So, so special. Special for a human? Or special for a creature?

No, you're just special, Byleth, because you're you. Fixating on race is Function reading way too far into Edelgard's motives.

They look out one of the many holes in Garreg Mach’s walls.

(sigh)

This scene doesn't take place at Garreg Mach, Function.

It takes place at Fhirdiad. This is immediately after a scene showing the BESF arriving at Fhirdiad.

Another bonafide strike against canon, and another sign that Function only read the game script and probably doesn't remember the route nearly as well as they think they do.

The clouds are heavy and gray, turning the air a thick orange.

It's not cloudy either! Empathic Environment isn't in effect, Function!

Come the night, there will be nothing but darkness.

Yeah, that's what happens when the sun goes down.

Also, Darkness of the Unknown Goalposts, again.

Walking that darkness with Edelgard, treading the ocean of blood that was her righteous ideals - it had once been as easy as breathing. They loved her. They did everything for her. They had known that path would be easy, as their hand would always be locked with hers. They… can’t. They can’t. Not anymore. It’s too much. The flashes of hatred that switch so quickly to loving gazes, the willingness to kill them, the needling words, the need for secrets, they… they can’t do it. They can’t do it anymore.

So it all became too much once it started personally impacting you, Byleth? Function, it REALLY doesn't look good that you consistently write Byleth as crumpling like a paper tiger the second the war starts to hurt them personally.

Edelgard turns and walks off. She leaves. They stand there. Alone.

I mean if you want to be alone then don't whine when you're alone. Also, Edelgard wouldn't just tromp off, leaving Byleth alone.

The Sword of the Creator as a weapon cannot be sheathed, so they take a blanket and curl it inside.

That's... sheathing it... If the SotC will passively cut through a sheath, it'll cut through a blanket. This reminds me of how in Bleach, Nimaiya had to keep Sayafushi in a jelly-like liquid because its edge is too sharp and its sides too slick to be sheathed, only stupider.

Anyways, we jumped back to Garreg Mach and Byleth is planning to run away from Edelgard.

It was easy enough to find a secluded, unused alleyway that led to an unmanned section of the outer walls. Once, the entirety of Garreg Mach’s outer layer was heavily manned and heavily armed, preparing for any siege that may befall it; now, there is nothing. No one.

What? Is the war already over? Did Edelgard abandon Garreg Mach again for some reason? What's going on!

Edelgard will look for them, they know; they’ve heard of her frantic searchings for them during those five years they slept, how absolutely desperate she was to find them. Before it had moved their heart, knowing of her devotion; now it is a warning, letting them know they will be hunted.

Yeah, duh Edelgard will look for you. You're running off without warning in the middle of the night during a war, that's going to look like enemy assassins kidnapped you, of fucking course Edelgard will be desperate to save you!

Function's so incredibly self-defeating.

She couldn’t find them when they were sleeping, however. As good as it is to know she will be searching, there is nothing she can do against the flow of time itself fighting her.

...What? Is Function/Byleth under the assumption that Byleth will get whisked off to some negative hole in space if they go into another long sleep? That's not how it appears to work. Also this reads like Byleth's happy she'll outlive Edelgard, so that's a lovely image. If I may quote Engage,

Living an immortal life is consistently portrayed as very sad when the only relationships a person can hope to hold is with mortal beings who'll grow old and die, leaving you behind. Rhea herself was tortured by this very loneliness.

If not also… lonely, already, knowing that they'll likely never again experience Caspar’s rambunctious shouts or Dorothea’s lovely singing, Ferdinand’s confident boasts or Bernadetta’s silent gratitude. Petra, talking about her homeland; Linhardt, as they last saw him, napping in places strange and forgotten. They will likely never see Leonie and Alois again, the last living memories of Father. Hubert’s private longings to fly pegasi. Edelgard’s loving and warm gaze. It hurt. It all hurts, leaving everything, every one, behind. But they have to.

Oh, hey, nice of Byleth to finally think about the Black Eagles, I was starting to wonder if she gave a shit about them!

Also, really? Is that how Byleth chooses to remember them?

Caspar fails and falls, but he never gives up, he always gets back up and tries again. That part of him is inspiring. Byleth remembers him for being noisy.

Dorothea's whole support line with Byleth is about how she yearns to be loved for something deeper than her voice or her looks. Byleth doesn't think about her incredible compassion that came from a background of unfettered cruelty and loss, they think of her voice, just like all the other shallow nobles who showered her with gifts.

Ferdinand's boasting hides a deep unease, but he grows past that and comes to embody in spirit and in truth the nobility he once claimed. Byleth remembers him for the shallow bravado.

Bernadetta grows so much over the Crimson Flower route, getting out of her room and exploring the lands in one of her CF-exclusive endings. Byleth remembers her as the quiet, demure little lady Count Varley wanted her to be.

Petra comes to view Fodlan as a second home, and the people she met there, her family. Byleth remembers her only thinking of Brigid.

Linhardt proves himself much more than the sleepy dreamer he first seems, but Byleth only sees him as the forgotten sleeper.

And Leonie and Alois? Byleth doesn't even think of them; they think of Jeralt.

This Byleth doesn't seem to have a genuine relation with any of the Black Eagles at all!

Besides, Edelgard said she wants to be rid of all of the indomitable enemies, these creatures plaguing humanity. What place would they truly have, in her pure human world?

Function is trying to convey Byleth as unjustly prejudiced because of their part-Nabatean background, but all they've done is demonstrate Byleth as very lacking in character and incapable of connecting with humans. Oh how they weep for poor Fwayne while recounting what a bright ray of light she was, but with the Black Eagles? Byleth knew them for much longer than Flayn, but even still they can only think of the most basic character traits as they're about to leave them forever.

They don't care about normal people, just themselves and the Nabateans they have to fight. Hubert's right to distrust them, and not because of their blood, but because of their actions.

So yeah, maybe it's best they go away, they won't have anyone to care about but themselves once Rhea is gone.

Byleth shakes their head; it's too late to linger on such thoughts. It's too late for anything to matter anymore, in truth, but... they still look to the sky. It barely lets any light through the thick, heavy, gray clouds hiding away the stars and moon, just as they had thought, casting the very air around them in darkness... Except for one, sole ray of light. A small, small gap in the curtain, allowing in a blinding trickle of moonlight. A sword, cutting through the ink that has coated everything, the trees and leaves and grass blessed enough to bask in this splendor bursting alive against all else damned to the shadows. It is fleeting; the clouds threaten the edges, ready to consume the light at a moment's notice. That doesn't matter. It is something more. And Byleth walks, lighter, hopeful, free, having now seen all they need.

Empathic enivronment again! I mean sure, Byleth is leaving Fodlan in the hands of a villain (Function's thoughts, not mine), but they'll be safer separated from her, and that's all that matters, right?

And really, poor Edelgard. Seeing as how she and Hubert acted in accordance with their canonical characterization, I can't help but picture her wracked with worry about what the church assassins did to Byleth, never learning that they just didn't get non-Nabateans and worked themselves up into a fit of paranoia before running out on her.

There's a darkfic in there, frankly.

We're almost done, but not quite. The author's notes are still left.

so yeah as a mixed-race person i fucking hated playing through CF and having to put up with Edelgard and Hubert's open and unashamed racism going uncontested

So yeah, that's really where this all came from. Because of their personal stake in the matter, Function failed to be objective, which is why a story about ideals and the loss of connection to other people became about race and nothing else. This was a very nice example of something I've always believed, that Edelgard antis don't know the story nearly as well as they think they do.

Also, for what it's worth, I spoke to a mixed-race friend of mine whether they agreed with the mixed-race interpretation of Byleth, and she simply replied, "hell no."

so i wrote Byleth

Being a coward who only cares about the Nabateans?

not taking their "you're one of the good ones" shit well mentally until they eventually just fuck off entirely (even if what they're fucking off to isn't, ah. the most optimal situation to fuck off to. to say the least lmao). as best as i could anyway

You didn't do very well. As I said before, all they did was take it personally when Edelgard and Hubert castigated Rhea for her abuse of power, which doesn't reflect well on Byleth.

And we're finally free! It wasn't all that long, but it sure felt long. Hope you at least enjoyed my breakdown of it. Later, everyone!

#fire emblem three houses #edelgard discourse #edelgard positive #edelgard von hresvelg #byleth eisner #hubert von vestra #sporking #Rhea critical #Rhea discourse

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ejunkiet · 8 months ago

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ej's adventures in romance: the good, the bad, the ugly

i've had kindle unlimited for the few months, and have been on a deep deep dive into all the recs from the romance genre that i can get my grubby little paws on. I've read.... many, many books. so many.

I've made a rec list of my new fave authors in the genre before, and this is not that. I'm just gonna list what I've read, by tropes, with ratings, and you can read my full reviews on goodreads. I've gone there. there are quite a few of the booktok hits here, because they came up on rec lists, and I'm gonna give my honest opinions on them okay. my goodreads!

Before we get down and dirty, have my actual recs from the last month: Heather Guerre remains a diamond in the rough, although she can now be joined by a further two authors: Kathyrn Moon (smutty RH queen) and Zoey Draven, a surprise last minute entry that doesn't shy away from darker themes, but handles them maturely.

other recs are the obvious: Talia Hibbert, Katee Roberts, and our very own @dominimoonbeam (whose book Doors I've been reccing a LOT lately, as I love it so much, and the sequel will be out soon >:3)

Okay. lets do this. this gets long, be warned. >:3

the "grovel" trope

books where the MMC fucks up and tries to make up for their mistakes. a good read where you get a healthy dose of angst and then a lot of making up for it. can be a great cathartic read.

Cate C. Wells has a whole series dedicated to this, "the five packs", one of which I already recommended as a guilty pleasure: the lone wolf's rejected mate". Now look, these books are ridiculous, the worldstate is terrible, each pack is a dude fest that reeks of misogyny, but they're pretty fun. I've read book 1 and book 3. I want to stab the MMC of book 1 with a rusty spork. you can skip it.

the lone wolf's rejected mate however is a ride, with a broken MMC who rejects his soulmate because he thinks he's too broken (literally, his wolf tries to kill her), and then they get captured, save each other, and he builds her a treehouse, yada yada. mind the content warnings, but if you want to read something OTT that basically epitomises the craziness that is the PNR and "grovel" romance genre, read this, and hold onto your butts.

the paranormal romance genre: shifters, vampires and more

Heather Guerre's books. okay, so actual recs. She focuses on characters from working class backgrounds with a sprinkle of the paranormal thrown in, everyone is over the age of 25 (thank god, most are in their 30s), and she can really write. I won't tag Eeshley again, but the "Tooth and Claw" series was their rec and *chefs kiss*. this is still the self-published romance genre, so these books could use an editor/polish, but honestly, I'm a big fan of her writing, and have picked up all her books. (her contemporary romance is also excellent.)

post-apocalyptic trope

Claire Kent's books. Imagine Joel from the last of us as a book series. I've only read Last Light so far, which is the prequel to a longer series that explores life in america 5+ years after an asteroid collides with western europe, causing global environmental catastrophes. I'm not 100% sold on her world building, but this is a romance novel, and the way she writes the characters and their relationships are human and organic, and the most realistic I've come across so far. the world state is the walking dead, with evil biker gangs that rape and pillage. i'm assuming this is an american thing, but can't comment on what it'd be like in the UK considering we no longer exist, due to aforementioned asteroid collision. probably for the best.

omegaverse and reverse harem tropes

yeah, I thought omegaverse was just a fanfic thing too. it's not, and it is super prevalent in het romance. it was never really my thing in fanfic, and the fact it is not a shifter thing was very surprising to me, as knots/packs/heat/rut still exist, but it's just humans with animalistic traits. I kept on waiting for the motorcycle gang in 'baby and the late night howlers' to turn into wolves, and they never did.

So Kathryn Moon writes some delicious reverse harem books. I read the first of monsterfucker series 'a lady of rooksgrave manor' years ago, and liked it, although there wasn't enough plot for me to continue. she writes excellent smut. Seriously, just really, really good smut. BIG FAN. I've been making my way through her 'Sweetverse' series, which has more connections and actual relationships between the characters, and polymances, and I recommend starting with Lola + the millionaires, if you can handle a little omegaverse. mind the content warnings, this is a book about recovering from trauma, which happened in the first book (baby's book, although offscreen. Lola has a lot of flashbacks in italics.)

Otherwise, you can stick with the monsterfucker books! I bought her latest monster series off of regular kindle, instead of KU, and I'm really excited to read it hehehe

"mars need more women" and "fated mate" tropes

hehehe okay HERE WE GO. these books are all about women ending up on planets where due to some sort of cataclysmic event - disease, mostly - 80% of the female population of the planet has died. now as we're not here for angst, the arrival of these women are usually due to some other species abducting them, and they are then "rescued" or recovered after a crash on metaphorical mars, which needs a better sex ratio to ensure the survival of the species.

this trope is coupled with "fated mate" tropes, where basically the rescued/recovered women end up with a devoted alien husband, who yearns until he can win her over (we're all about consent here folks)

the ice planet barbarians series by ruby dixon. this is basically na'vi aliens that crashlanded on an ice planet 250 odd years ago, and have made it their home, living in tribal colonies. to survive in this planet's toxic atmosphere, they've taken in a native parasite called a 'khui' which helps their bodies adapt to the climate and atmosphere. the women in the books also receive the same parasite to survive (they're given the choice), and this is the basis of the "mate bonds" formed throughout the series.

now book 1 is a rocky start, and the weakest of the series. I nearly put it down because of the first 20 pages. you can skip the first 20 pages. it basically recounts the abduction of the women from their home planet, and mistreatment by their captors (tw for sexual assault of a side character, not explicit). the ship malfunctions, and the women "cargo" are dropped onto the ice planet, where they are found by the not-na'vi, who are called sa-khui, because of the parasite.

now the rest of the series is about adapting to life on an alien planet, understanding the culture of the sa-khui, and gaining a devoted alien hubby. look, I read four books in a week. they're fun, they're exciting, the smut is good, and it's an easy read. it's also written by an experienced and practiced author, as the topics are handled maturely, it doesn't take itself too seriously, and it has great representation.

(one of my favourite books in the series, book 7, is centred around Lilah, who was born deaf and had a cochlear implant that was surgically removed during the abduction. the book focuses on her struggling to adapt to life on the planet, aided by a sa-khui that rescues her and learns ASL to communicate, and it's an excellent read okay)

I'd say read book 1 (maybe skipping first 20 pages, or even to part 2) for context, read book 2 (my favourite of the series omg), and then pick and choose from there!! I've read 1,2,4,7, and I'm gonna end up coming back for more hehehe.

"choosing theo" is another in this genre, but it didn't quite vibe with me. it leans into the 'rescued human ends up on a planet that needs women for propagation', with a matriarchal society where the men go to husbandry school to learn how to please women, and all residents of the planet are required to participate in three month long marriages to try to find potential mates to propagate the species. the premise is a fun one, but the first book is not the strongest, and I didn't continue from there. (another rusty spork for the MMC...)

dothraki in space trope

we're at the end of my trope list! I liked the ice planet barbarian series a lot, and I'd kept on seeing the Horde Kings of Dakkar by Zoey Draven recommended, and they are good. (thank you woofs >:3) think dothraki from GoT in space; humans live in small, poorly maintained colonies on the Dakkar planet, where they aren't allowed to hunt or damage the earth. offenses are punishable by death. these books lean into the captive trope, and handle the issues of the worldstate and navigating cultural differences super well, with a heavy dose of consent and BAMF heroines that rise up to their situation and make a place for themselves in their new (objectively better) lives.

i'm on book two now, and I love the maturity in the characters and the writing (which I did not find in 'choosing theo'), and they're an excellent romp. fantastic rec, really glad I picked this up >:3

am I finally going to take a break from my reading binge now? I keep on saying I will, and then not doing that ahahahaha. my kindle library is still stuffed full, mainly with other books from my fave authors above, but also some nice space horror to round it off.

next on my list is gonna be either 'Haunt, Heart, Havoc', a horror romance that I've been meaning to read forever, or 'Dead silence', which is aliens meets titanic in space. >:3 if you read all of this, KUDOS TO YOU, have a lovely sunday ahahaha!

#ej adventures in romance #so nobody asked for this but I've been keeping track hehehe and honestly it's been super interesting diving into romance land #you can still find better writing - especially with actual smut - on ao3.#in general romance authors go for volume and tropey plots that don't do the subjects justice! major romance pitfall #which I blame on the need to churn out full books for consumption. commercialisation ruins quality #tmi

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