#i had never realized the fire behind Marianne

[ladyonfire28]

Céline points out that Marianne is the first character who burns in the film 

(Eternal gratitude to @bereaving for making those beautiful GIFs)

“And here while Noémie Merlant had patiently learned the spinet, which is this little harpsichord, for weeks, she will really play it, but under a sheet.

The Four Seasons of Vivaldi are accompanied by a poem that he wrote, and the interpretation of Marianne is an interpretation of this poem.

First occurrence of fire between the characters, even if it’s Marianne who’s burning and Héloïse who’s looking. Maybe it’s the one looking who makes the other burn. "

Click here to see more translated parts of the DVD commentary

[alyssadeliv]

The Forgotten One

First       Previous

Chapter 4

Everything hurt. Her body felt as if it was on fire, her limbs were heavy and her head was pounding, she tried to open her eyes and understand her surroundings, but they refused to cooperate so she sought to use her other senses to identify where she was, even in a lot of pain she couldn’t forget her training, so she remained calm until she knew what she’s dealing with. It only takes her a couple of seconds to remember what happened. The attack on the League, the Temple crumbling to the ground and her being trapped under it. After that it was a void, so she must have passed out at some point.

She could tell she wasn't still trapped under the rubber because she could feel the softness of a mattress under her and not the hard temple training grounds, it was either nighttime or she was in a room without windows. She couldn’t hear a thing that indicated that there was another person with her, but she can identify cars in a far distance, so she must be close to a city. She feels cared for, so rules out being captured for now. 

She isn’t sure how long she laid there, but streams of lighting start to appear somewhere above her from what she can see with her closed lids. The sun is up when she finally can open her eyes.

She is in a bare room, that must be used as storage from all of the boxes around. She’s in an attic in an elevated part that contains just the bed, an iron stair makes way into the second part of the room, she can see from her position that the only way out is through the trap door on the floor, although she can assume that the lighting coming from above her must lead to a balcony. She feels better now, her pain is gone and her limbs ultimately start to obey her again. She had just sat up when the trap door started to open.

She prepares herself for what is to come, she does not have any weapons and she’s not sure she can beat another assassin in a fight in her current state, even with the pain now gone. To her surprise is her godmother that enters the room she’s resting in. She carries a plate with food and a glass of water. She has a warm smile that Marianne has only seen a couple of times, normally reserved for birthdays and celebrations, but still reassures her that she’s safe and cared for. 

“It's good to see you’re finally awake. Gave us quite a scare”

“Where am I?”

“Safe” With her tone she can tell that the conversation is over, so she simply accepts the plate that is offered and starts to eat what's been given, a tasty sandwich with a red tart at the side. If it was any other person that came into the room she wouldn’t have been so quick to accept the food, but she knew that her godmother would never hurt her, she was one of the only people she trusted with her life, like a second mother to her.  

“How do you feel?�� Sabine asks only after the food is gone. 

“Surprisingly fine. The pain is gone and I feel normal again. How is this possible? Where are we? How long was I out? What happened with the League? What happened to Damian? Is he here? Is he safe?” The questions jump out of her mouth before she can control them. Rambling has always been a trait of hers, one that she thought to be long under control. But given the situation, she can’t blame herself to look after answers. 

But Sabine calmly answers every one of her questions. She doesn’t get into details about the attack but she understands that one of her grandfather’s star pupils betrayed them and orchestrated the attack to take the Demon Head power to himself and rule over the Order of Assassins. Sabine and Master Fu were together at the Temple when it all started and went to look for her, only to realize that she must have thought the same and went to look for them. They saw her being crushed by the falling debris, and they were the ones that dug her out. 

She died. 

That piece of information stays in a loop in her mind. She died. Master Fu brought her back. Being brought back to life wasn’t impossible, she knew that her grandfather had been doing that for centuries, but he needed the Lazarus Pits for that, and she knew the symptoms of someone that used them, she had seen them first hand from her grandfather or when she was in charge of training a recruit that her mother had taken pity on. She was only ten, and the boy 13 at the time. One of her most proud accomplishments. Her grandfather was so proud of her for training the next generation, even if the boy was technically older than her. She knew the symptoms and she definitely wasn’t brought back using these methods.

“Master Fu will arrive here shortly, he can explain it better”

“Where is here? Where are we? Where's Damian?” She’s desperate, she needs to know where her baby brother is. That he is safe. “Please tell me he’s here!”

Sabine has a heartbroken expression on her face, and that's all the confirmation she needs. The tears roll down her face before she can stop them. All her efforts had been in vain, Damian wasn’t here. 

“We are in Paris. He’s not here, but he’s safe” Her godmother tries to reassure her, she dries the tears in her face and strokes her hair trying to comfort the distraught girl. “He’s in a safe place as well, your mother made sure of that. But for now, you can’t go after him, Master Fu will explain why, you just have to trust me when I say I only want what’s best for you”

She then proceeds to tell her best-kept secret so far. She’s married, and they are at her husband’s house, above his bakery. She tells her of how in one of her missions she met the love of her life. But because of her, she knew she couldn’t leave the League just yet, she needed to be there for little Marianne and her bright smiles, to make sure the League didn’t kill the kindness in her. She always visited Paris after a mission. It became some kind of ritual, and no one ever questioned it. Her husband, Tom, knew about her lifestyle and knew that she couldn’t just leave her goddaughter behind, he respected that, even loved how caring his wife was. Sabine begs Marianne to not be guilty that she couldn’t have a better kind of life because of her.

“The best thing in my life is knowing that I helped raise the most selfless and kind woman, I’m so proud of what you become. Never forget that.”

By the time Master Fu finally arrives she’s just so tired. But her need for answers is bigger, so she allows her godmother to guide her to the living room. When they get there she’s surprised, to say the least. Her master is there, but he is not alone. He’s accompanied by two very anxious Kwamis.

“Marianne is so great to finally meet you! I’ve been waiting for this moment for so long!” Tikki, The Goddess of Creation addresses her. But she stays there stunned. She grew up learning about these entities, preparing for the moment she would get to meet them, but there she stays, unable to properly function. So much has been happening in the last 24 hours, and she feels like she’s in shock.

“Great job sugar cub, you broke the kid” Plagg, The God of Destruction comments.

“She’s probably just surprised to finally see us, don’t be rude”

It feels surreal to see these mystical creatures just bickering like children in her godmother’s husband’s living room. She almost feels like she’s dreaming. Feeling her discomfort, Master Fu decides it is better to address the situation.

“Come sit Marianne. It’s time I give you some answers.”

For the next hour, she learns a part of history she never knew about.

Her Master calmly explained to her that by the time they were able to release her from the ruins of the temple, it was too late. But something in him knew there was still hope. Because she was Tikkis chosen, her soul takes more time to disconnect itself from the physical world, so The Grand Guardian did something that wasn’t wrong but still considered taboo. He asked Tikki to use her energy in order to anchor her spirit back into her body. He didn’t use the wish from the Miraculous, so it wasn’t as dangerous. That had only been done once, somewhere when the pharaohs were still in power. One of the Guardians had fallen madly in love with a woman chosen by Tikki, but she got sick and died. Consumed with grief he ordered the Kwami into bringing her soul back.

Because it had happened so long ago they didn’t know the reaction it would cause in her already existing powers. So, for now, it would be better if she stayed in Paris, close to her Master’s, where she could finish her training and receive guidance if needed. They still didn’t know the situation within the League, so it was best to lay low for a while.

So there she stayed. For a whole month, she lived with her godmother and got to know the man she called her husband. It was funny, that the super badass and strict woman everyone knew would turn into the warmest person when around the baker. Marianne could tell they loved each other very much just by the way they looked at the other. In the League love was not something that happened very often. So it felt nice to be in contact with something so pure. 

She also kept going on with training, just like Master Fu said they would. It was as if her life was completely new but completely equal to what it was before. She would wake up early, eat something, normally delicious made by Tom, and go to where her master was living, a massage parlor that served as a disguise from his real job as her teacher. They would start by meditating and then move into physical training. It was different, Fu wasn’t so young anymore so now she tended to train alone. She missed her brother so much that it hurt. Knowing where he was but not if he was okay. She wished that there was a way for her to contact him, but knew it would be safer if she didn’t. Just knowing he was with Father makes her feel a little better, she remembers her Mother’s stories of the fearless Batman, so if the time comes she knew he would be safe.

Nothing out of ordinary happened so far, her powers kept the same, maybe a little more intense, but nothing she couldn’t handle. But they were confident that there would not be any other side effects so far. Everything was back to normal, or that’s what they thought.

Imagine their surprise when on one of their meditation sections the both were suddenly overwhelmed by the intense energy that they received. It was dark, nothing like she ever had felt. 

“Master, what was that? I have never felt something like it” Her teacher looked like he had seen a ghost, pale and with an anxious expression

“I’ve only felt this type of energy once. We must prepare, something bad is on our horizon. It’s time to activate your miraculous”

“What? Are you sure Master? Please tell me what is going on!” She pleaded.

“The Peacock and the Butterfly Miraculous, a long time ago, when I was just an apprentice, were thought to be lost. This was when The League and the Order were constantly at war. Some of my fellow disciples got greedy. They wanted the power the Miraculous had to offer, they thought themselves worthy of wielding their power and destroying the League of Assassins. There was a fight, and the first Temple of The Order was compromised. Some of us escaped, but we lost a lot. That day… I felt the same type of energy. I believe somewhere in this city, someone is preparing to cause chaos. We must be ready for when it happens.”

“How do we do that?”

“We need to find the Cat Miraculous wielder”

Next

There is a little easter egg in this chapter, let’s see if anyone can tell what it is! The taglist is still open so feel free to ask to be tagged! Please tell me what you thought of this chapter, I’m dying for some feedback

Taglist:  @macncheesemonster @jumpingjoy82 @silversaphire12 @jinx-jade @swiftie-miraculer13  @greatcatblaze @megaafangirl @ramos123 @theamityislife @maskedpainter @toodaloo-kangaroo @nyx-in-line @ketchupqueenboiiii @iamabrownfox @lozzybowe @user00000003 @kashlyn @msshadows97 @ira-sairain @stackofrandomstuff @myazael @frieddonutsweets @asrainterstellar @our-preciousss @laurcad123 @nyaabinch @rverfades @thefangirlwholiterallydies @astoriaandromeda @unnamed2357 @little-lady-bird @imdaqueenie

[four-loose-screws]

An Interview with Mr. Toshiyuki Toyonaga about Fire Emblem (Claude‘s Japanese VA), Pg. 7

Chatting As Just a Player

As a player, how did you play “Three Houses?”

Toyonaga     When I started, I planned to complete two playthroughs, and on my first playthrough, I didn’t look up anything at all.  Because of that, I didn’t know things like how to scout the characters from the other classes. Someone told me “It seems like you’re missing something,” and I thought, then maybe I have to raise their support level? But even when I did that, I still couldn’t recruit them, so next I thought that maybe it had to do with stats, and did a lot of trial and error. I only realized that it might have something to do with weapon proficiency (skill levels) and support levels during the latter half of the Academy Phase. Because of all of that, I was filled with wishes that I had recruited this character and that character as I was thrust into the War Phase, and I was filled with regret during the three-way battle. (Chapter 17 and the battle at Gronder)

Because you encountered the other students as enemies, right?

Toyonaga     Yes. I remember thinking “Curse you!!” when Bernadetta attacked from the ballista because I didn’t scout her. Laughs. Having to fight the characters that I wanted to come to my side was really painful as I cleared the map. And so, that was how I played the game. I remember thinking it was a particularly pure playthrough. I also remember thinking “There’s so, so many of these!” as I collected the fallen items from around the monastery. When I think of the lost items, I remember stuff like the fish. Laughs. Fishing was fun too, and so was growing things in the greenhouse… though I forgot about it a lot, so there were some plants that didn’t grow. As you can guess, I ended up harvesting what I planted before the time skip five years later, after returning to Garreg Mach.

Which difficulty level did you choose?

Toyonaga     On my first playthrough, I chose normal classic. I play with the thought process that has followed me throughout the series, that I can’t let anyone die, so I have never once chosen casual mode.

We’d like to ask you about what impressions you were left with when you played normal mode.

Toyonaga     I thought that even normal was hard too! I progressed through the game without utilizing the free maps much at all. I only leveled up by completing the main maps and paralogues, so the War Phase was tough. There were many times where Claude and Byleth did nearly all of the work. I also gave Lysithea Lorenz’s Thyrsus Staff, giving her four range, so there were also a lot of situations where her magic did a lot of work even from far away. There ended up being a huge gap between Leonie and Ignatz’s levels and everyone else’s, and felt sorry about that as I continued through the game.

Did you make Lorenz a physical or a magic unit?

Toyonaga     I made Lorenz a Dark Knight. He was closer to a dark mage cavalry unit. Also, I remember thinking it was kinda cool that Grappler Raphael could attack four times in a row as he punched his enemies with all his might. Marianne fulfilled the role of the healer, and Hilda swung around her axe with great force. However, my Hilda’s defense didn’t grow very much, so I kept it in my mind that she couldn’t go out on many risky missions as I played.

What scenes did you like, or what scenes left an impression on you?

Toyonaga     I liked the mystery of the scenes where Byleth and Sothis spoke in the place that resembled a throne room, that was a sort of spirit world. I also really liked Seteth and Flayn’s conversations.

They’re all characters that are all similar to each other in some way!

Toyonaga     They are. When their allies learned of Flayn and Seteth’s true identities and relationship, a lot happened, and their allies changed a bit… Aside from that, because Claude is an archer, I also really liked being able to hear his conversations with Shamir, as they are both archers. It felt like she was a big sister.

The developers said that this game’s storytelling, and the creation of how noble society functions, among other aspects, were developed with Genealogy of the Holy War in mind, so what sort of impression did that have on you, as someone who has many memories of that game?

Toyonaga     There were many times where I thought that might be the case, that Three Houses was based on Genealogy, but as we talk about it now, I sort of think that might be why it was so easy for me to become fond of Three Houses… They both feature a type of war that doesn't really feel rewarding at all… And questions like “Who’s really behind all of this?” and “Is fighting this fight really what’s right?”, that deepened Genealogy's story, were things I also felt really strongly during the War Phase of Three Houses.

We agree! And you can even play the villain’s side of the story.

Toyonaga     About that, I thought that Hubert and Dedue’s roles were so unfair! They are considered the closest confidants to Edelgard and Dimitri respectively, existing as their right-hand men. The Golden Deer don’t have anyone in that position… Lorenz would never be someone like that.

Both     Laugh.

Toyonaga     Lorenz finally comes to support Claude during the War Phase, but the way that Hubert and Dedue are so devoted because they are right-hand men is really moving, and as men, it’s so cool! Oh, I mean “man,” as in “manly man...”* I could talk on and on like this for five minutes about just one character. Laughs.

(above) Hubert and Dedue both serve their lord without any concern for their own well-being. Also, Mr. Toyonaga also told us that he didn’t choose a different class from the Golden Deer even for his second playthrough, so we showed him scenes like how manly (!?) Hilda acts when she faces Claude as an enemy.

It feels weird to hear your own voice

Did your impression of Claude change after recording?

Toyonaga     My original impression of Claude was that his core personality cannot be changed, but aside from that, he gives off the mood that he has the flexibility to accept the opinions of many types of people… That sort of image. That part didn’t change the entire time we were recording, so after recording, I don’t think my thoughts changed then, either. I just thought from time to time that he says some pretty snobby things. Laughs.

He does. Laughs.

Toyonaga     He talks like that to the professors, to his fellow students in his class… ‘He… He can say nasty things like that?!’ I thought. But I think it’s still a good part about him, or not bad, at least.

So your image for performing Claude’s role was consistent from beginning to end. Does that mean that you didn’t have to do many retakes?

Toyonaga     We hardly did any retakes. I corrected myself on my own when I mispronounced town names that were difficult to say, and things like that, but aside from those physically difficult to perform lines, I don’t feel that we did that many retakes.

So how did you feel as a player when you heard Claude’s voice?

Toyonaga     This much is obvious, but when I first heard my own performance in a Fire Emblem game, it felt weird. And on top of that, I don’t know why exactly, but I wanted Claude to get married and have a paired ending, and I chose Professor Byleth. So I ended up confessing to myself! Laughs.

Laughs.

Toyonaga     I enjoyed the game in a way that only I could. But it was really weird the entire time. Hm, how do I put it… I wanted to express myself in the world of Fire Emblem, and wanted to confirm that I did a great job of that, so I listened really carefully to my own performance as I played the game.

That’s the point you discussed before, that you wanted a portrayal that made the game feel like it really happened in history, right?

Toyonaga     Yes. Was I able to express what I wanted how I wanted? I played the game with that thought in my head. ...And lastly, this is completely unrelated, but as I played the game, I was also thinking “Ingrid sure is really cute!” the entire time. Laughs.

[whatstheproblembaby]

Fic: What’s in a Name?

The “Why does everyone call Shelagh ‘Mrs. Turner’ when all the other married nurses are ‘Nurse Whoever’ fic that no one asked for but I wanted to write anyways. ~1900 words, G, gen/friendship fic at the beginning but solidly Turnadette by the end.

Also on AO3!

Shelagh had thought she was above eavesdropping in corners in Nonnatus House after Trixie and Cynthia had roped her into their spying on Jenny and Alec all those years ago, but apparently, some things stayed with you. She was approaching the dining room from the hall, intending to enjoy a quick cup of tea and a catch-up with Trixie as she waited for Patrick to finish with an ulcer case, but the voices coming from the kitchen made her pause and shrink back into the wall. She was likely still visible if someone took the effort to look from the dining room - and anyone coming from the end of the hall would think she was ridiculous - but she thought the conversation that was going on might not benefit from her presence just yet.

“Trixie, you’ve been here the longest,” Lucille began.

“Yes, thank you for reminding me, Lucille,” Trixie replied with a faux-irritated huff.

“You know that’s not what I meant. You’re still a young woman, and you have valuable knowledge that the rest of us appreciate,” Lucille said. Shelagh could just barely see them entering the dining room out of the corner of her eye, noticing what she thought was a quick, loving hand squeeze between the two women as they and the others took their seats. “Especially about the history of Nonnatus.”

“That’s true,” Sister Hilda cut in. Sister Frances nodded emphatically beside her. “They give us some background at the Mother House, of course, but it’s no substitute for actually having your boots on the ground here.”

“I see…,” Trixie said. She took a sip of her Horlicks before continuing, “And what exactly about the history of Nonnatus do you want to know?”

“It’s not about the history of Nonnatus precisely, but it’s related. I think,” Lucille said, sipping her own drink. “It’s about Mrs. Turner.”

“She should be here in a moment,” Trixie said. Shelagh flattened herself even more against the wall when Trixie leaned out to scan the hallway for her, but to no avail - she saw Trixie’s eyes widen as they locked with her own. Shelagh shook her head, just once. Thankfully Trixie got the message, smoothly saying, “You could just ask her then.”

“I don’t know if what I’m about to ask is...painful, somehow.” Shelagh quirked an eyebrow at Lucille’s choice of adjective. “If you don’t know the answer, though, then I will ask once she arrives.”

“Fire away, sweetie,” Trixie said. She looked back up to where Shelagh was hiding, her face a perfectly unruffled mask. Shelagh could see in her eyes that she too had no idea where Lucille was taking this question, though.

“Why do we call Mrs. Turner ‘Mrs. Turner’ when we all called Barbara ‘Nurse Hereward’ after she got married? She’s also a nurse - are we being disrespectful?”

“I’ve wondered that, too!” Sister Frances chimed in. “She puts in as much work as the rest of us. Doesn’t she deserve the title?”

Shelagh pressed her lips together, stifling a laugh. She had been so worried about gossip and stigma when she first left the Order - she had never imagined that she would be so absorbed into her new life that people might not know anything about her past at all. Of course, she had never imagined that the staff at Nonnatus would shift quite so frequently, either. Once, it would have been Cynthia, Jenny, and Chummy sitting at that table with Trixie, and they would have had no need to ask.

“I suppose the simplest answer is that for quite a while, we never expected Shelagh to become Mrs. Turner,” Trixie said. “It was a joy for us to be able to say it, and she did retire briefly from nursing when she married. We just got used to it.”

“That’s very kind of you to say,” Shelagh said, finally stepping into the dining room and revealing herself. A chorus of startled noises punctuated her statement, along with Sister Frances splashing her Horlicks onto the table.

“Oh, lass,” Phyllis sighed, pushing herself up to grab a dishcloth from the kitchen. “Hasn’t the East End trained the jumpiness out of you yet?”

“I’m sorry!” Sister Frances said, taking the cloth and mopping up her spill. “But why didn’t anyone expect you to marry Dr. Turner, Mrs. - I mean, Nurse-”

“Right now, I think you should all just call me Shelagh,” she cut in, taking Sister Monica Joan’s usual seat at the foot of the table. Trixie got up at that, walking over to the kitchen to pour Shelagh a mug of Horlicks, too. “Or were you going to be circumspect about my first name as well, Trixie?”

“Had they asked, quite possibly!” Trixie said, passing Shelagh her mug and taking her seat again. “I didn’t realize your past was such ancient history. Or is it classified under the Official Secrets Act?”

“What are you two talking about?” Val interjected, looking from Shelagh to Trixie and back like it was a match at Wimbledon. “You’re making it sound like she has a secret identity or something.”

“Maybe she’s a Russian spy,” Phyllis teased. “Come to get classified intel on birthing babies for the Kremlin!”

“Close,” Shelagh said with a laugh. “But to answer your question, Sister Frances, I need to ask you and Sister Hilda one of my own first. Did anyone at the Mother House ever mention a sister who left the order back in 1958?”

“Not to me,” Sister Frances said. “But I only just took my life vows.”

Sister Hilda bit her lip for a moment before saying, “Now that you mention it, it rings a bell. I think Mother Jesu Emmanuel said something at dinner one day, but she didn’t say which sister it was. Did you know her, Shelagh?”

Trixie snorted into her mug.

“I was her,” Shelagh answered.

There was pin-drop silence around the table. Five sets of eyes bored into Shelagh, clearly begging to know more, while Trixie just quietly allowed everyone to process the moment.

“I was Sister Bernadette for about ten years,” Shelagh explained. “And Dr. Turner was married to his first wife, Marianne, for most of that time. But she passed away, unfortunately, after an illness, and after that...we grew closer.”

“So no one expected you to get married because you were a nun,” Val said. “That makes sense.”

“Well, that, and I was in a sanitarium for six months or so because I had tuberculosis. Your future generally gets a bit hazy when you’re diagnosed with a serious illness.” Shelagh took a sip of her drink as another round of stunned silence settled around the table.

“Is that all?” Phyllis asked after a moment. “You aren’t secretly a member of the Royal Family, or brewing bathtub gin out of one of the spare rooms-”

“No, I’m out of surprises for the day,” Shelagh said through a laugh. “But thank you for thinking I could be that interesting.”

“So when you two first met-” Lucille began, turning to Trixie.

“She was Sister Bernadette, terrifyingly efficient and completely off-limits for friendship. Or so I thought,” Trixie said, smiling. “And now Shelagh’s still terrifyingly efficient, but an excellent friend.”

“Gosh, Trixie, at least buy me dinner first,” Shelagh teased. There was a moment of shared laughter before Lucille spoke up again.

“No one’s answered my original question, though. Do you want us to call you Nurse Turner professionally, Shelagh?”

Shelagh took a moment to gather her thoughts before answering. “I do appreciate the offer, Lucille, but no. Patrick and I actually discussed this a little when I returned to nursing, and we were concerned that ‘Dr. Turner’ and ‘Nurse Turner’ would lead to confusion among our patients if they were trying to discuss diagnoses or treatments amongst themselves. And admittedly...I do quite like being Mrs. Turner.”

“Well that’s encouraging to hear,” came another voice from behind her, making them all jump. Patrick rested his hand on Shelagh’s shoulder from behind her chair, squeezing once in greeting before asking, “Are you ready to go home, Shelagh?”

“Unless anyone has any further questions?” Shelagh asked, smiling at her colleagues around the table before standing up and taking her mug to the kitchen. There was a flurry of “good nights” from all parties as Shelagh looped her hand through Patrick’s elbow and they made their departure.

“‘Further questions’?” Patrick asked once they were in their car. “Were you having a class I didn’t know about?”

“Not exactly,” Shelagh said. “I overheard Lucille asking Trixie why everyone calls me ‘Mrs. Turner’ and not ‘Nurse Turner,’ and that led to some, erm, revelations.”

“But why - no one knew about Sister Bernadette?” Patrick said, connecting the dots. “Not even Sister Hilda? I would think she was in the Order around the same time you were.”

“She had heard about a sister leaving, but she didn’t know it was me,” Shelagh explained. “Apparently there’s been so much upheaval at Nonnatus House over the last few years that our story has gone quite unremarked.”

“You’re not upset that Sister Bernadette isn’t more prominent, are you?” Patrick said, reaching over to take one of Shelagh’s hands in his. Their gazes met briefly before he had to turn his focus back to the road. “She - you - did important work during your time there.”

“I’d like to think I’m doing important work now, too,” Shelagh said, smiling over at her husband. “And I don’t care about being recognized for it, whichever name I’m using. Frankly, I think I’d find it harder to do my work if Sister Bernadette’s name was still being talked about. I’d always be concerned that I’m not...living up to her standards, or that people preferred one version of me to the other. Not that there are versions of me in the first place!”

“You have always been the same loving, determined woman I used to share an illicit cigarette with years ago,” Patrick said, rubbing his thumb over her knuckles. “I’d like to think you’re allowed to be more open about it as my wife, but even if you had stayed in the Order, I know you would be going above and beyond for your patients and colleagues, because that’s just who you are, regardless of the name you use.”

“If I had any doubts about the path I chose in life, that would have erased them,” Shelagh said. “You have always seen me so clearly, Patrick, and it’s helped me to see myself.”

“It’s mutual, my love. I don’t know how I would have handled certain events over the past few years without you helping me find my strength and courage when it was needed.”

“Oh, Patrick,” Shelagh said, waiting for Patrick to put the car in park and turn off the engine before reaching over to take his hands in hers. “Just listen to us. Timothy would be aghast if he heard all this ‘mushy stuff,’ as he used to call it.”

“Timothy’s not here, though, is he? Which means I can do this without fear of unwanted commentary.” Patrick pulled Shelagh in for a lingering kiss. By the time it was finished, Shelagh had just about forgotten any name she had had in her life.

A yell of “Mum!” came from the front door, startling them back into reality.

“Another name for the list,” Shelagh joked wryly. “But maybe we could resume what we were doing a little closer to bedtime?”

“With pleasure,” Patrick said, and they got out of the car.

[houseisekai]

House Isekai: Shadowbringers - Finale (Part 2): The Dying Gasp

House Isekai Shadowbringers AU Masterlist Here

—

When the tower doors opened there were only a handful of people entering.

The fate of all their worlds lay in the hands of Byleth, Sitri, Edelgard, Claude, Dimitri, Rean, Doomguy, Ainz, Aigis, Kazuma, the School-Living Club, Yu and Akira.

[Mortal Instants - Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers OST]

(Edelgard) “Five years…”

(Dimitri) “El?”

(Edelgard) “O-Oh, Dimitri. Sorry I…”

He stood next to Edelgard, looking up at the monastery.

(Dimitri) “We cannot turn the hands of time back to what it once was.”

(Edelgard) “I know but…maybe if I had done something different…Byleth wouldn’t be what he is now. If I had never started the war then…Maybe we could have all lived in peace together-”

(Claude) “What’s done is done, Edelgard.”

He walked up beside her, looking up with the two.

(Claude) “Much as I would have loved to live a life of friendship, reality doesn’t work that way. All we can do now is try to right our wrongs.”

(Dimitri) “No matter what, we���ll stay alive long enough to fix this world, together.”

(Edelgard) “…Together.”

(Claude) “I like the sound of that. But, right now we gotta hurry. We’ll be within Garreg Mach in an hour…”

(Edelgard) “Byleth…”

(Everyone) “…”

(Edelgard) “Alright. Let us put an end to it, once and for all.”

…

Dimitri) “Even though he is our old friend, we must not go easy today…”

(Claude) “As long as we pull off the victory, doesn’t matter how.”

(Edelgard) “Our victory must be absolute, no matter what it may take…”

Kingdom, Alliance, and Empire soldiers drew their swords, the House Leaders retainers coming up to them.

(Dedue) “We all are ready to lay down our lives to stop this madness.”

(Hilda) “Speak for yourself! I don’t plan on dying. I plan on kicking their butts, and living to tell the tale!”

(Hubert) “An inelegant way of putting it, but something I agree with nevertheless.”

…

The Blue Lions slowly drew out their weapons.

(Sylvain) “Can’t say that this is where I imagined the war taking us but…I’m glad we’re all together today.”

(Ingrid) “I will protect my homeland, and my people!”

(Felix) “Tch…If I die here, then the Old Man would never let me hear the end of it…”

(Annette) “My father is gone, but I will not be losing anyone else today!”

(Mercedes) “I’ll protect everyone, even if it means losing my own life!”

(Death Knight) “You will not be losing it when I am around, because I will make sure you die by my hands…”

(Ashe) “Lonato, Christophe, everyone…Today, we’ll make things right for everyone!”

…

The Golden Deers all stood behind Hilda.

(Marianne) “After seeing so much death firsthand, I now realize how precious life is. I won’t let everyone be robbed of such a wonderful thing!”

(Raphael) “I got my little sister, and she sure as heck isn’t going to get killed by this weird Javelin thing if I have anything to say about it!”

(Ignatz) “I’ll protect my family, and all of ours!”

(Lorenz) “What kind of noble would I be if I let a tragedy such as this slide? It is my honor to-”

(Lysithea) “Put a sock in it, would you?…Hmph, I’m not sure I have long to live but, I won’t be letting it end early!”

…

The Black Eagles Strike Force looked down sadly.

(Linhardt) “To think this is where 5 years would put us…”

(Bernadetta) “This one time, I won’t run away. If I die today, well…At least I know it was for all of you.”

(Caspar) “Randolph…even though I didn’t know you that well, I’ll make the professor pay for what he’s done to you, and your sister!”

(Dorothea) “Professor…”

(Ferdinand) “I am conflicted as well but, I will be protecting all of our homes.”

(Petra) “Whether it be Brigid or Fodlan, protect them I shall!”

…

(Edelgard) “Hubert. From the schematics and plans Leonie told us, you and the other retainers will lead the students to the core.”

(Hubert) “And you’ll be going for the control room where Byleth is, correct?”

She nodded.

(Hilda) “We’ll get it done, don’t you worry Miss Edelgard!”

(Dedue) “Leave it to us.”

Everyone looked back to the gates and took a deep breath.

Everything they did here would decide the fate of everyone.

(Edelgard) “FORWARD, NOW!”

(Dimitri) “FOR HONOR!”

Claude motioned forward, and charged with everyone else.

---

The group watched as the three factions go toe to toe with demonic beasts.

The soldiers that followed behind the beasts appeared to have a symbol on their armor they didn’t recognize.

More importantly, no one seemed to acknowledge their presence.

(Sitri) “What is...?”

Byleth, Dimitri, Edelgard, and Claude reached for their heads, the voices coming back louder than ever.

(Rean) “Is...this what was on Lahabrea’s message?”

(Ainz) “It must be."

(Yu) “Hey, are you guys alright?”

Everyone turned to the four of them, shaking off the voices.

(Edelgard) “We’re fine...I think.”

(Dimitri) “It’s strange...Even though this is our first time here, I feel as if...”

(Claude) “This place is activated by our memories. I guess all four of us being here is making it more powerful...That’s what I assume anyway.”

(Yuuri) “You said you knew your way around here?”

(Yu) “Well, when our memories weren’t shifting. Though it seems like this area is staying in Garreg Mach.”

(Yuki) “This is the fight that caused us to be here...?”

Everyone stared at the battle ensuing below them. 

Edelgard, Dimitri, and Claude were side by side, the banners of Fodlan fighting as one.

With Byleth nowhere to be found.

(Miki) “What do we do?”

(Akira) “From what the message said, I don’t think we exactly have a lot of time to be just standing around.”

(Edelgard) “I overheard myself speaking to Hubert. Apparently the control room is where Byleth is...Er, Lahabrea.”

(Kazuma) “Where would that be, the top?”

(Sitri) “It must be.”

Doomguy looked with his helmet, and VEGA’s voice came through for everyone to hear.

(VEGA) “Scans indicate that Lahabrea and Sothis are up there. It appears that they have taken the place of Byleth in this ‘memory’.”

(Dimitri) “Then we should not delay any longer. The Dimitri in this time has opened the gates for us, move swiftly and take care not to get hit by anyone, we have no idea if they’re still unaware of our presence.”

(Kurumi) “We’re right behind you!”

Everyone nodded and ran into the town, trying to avoid the fighting.

Byleth lagged a little behind, his vision going slightly blurry with a bright light.

(Byleth) “No...not yet!”

“Stop...them!”

Byleth muttered “I know” as he stood up straight and caught up with the others.

The gates behind them slammed shut, causing everyone to turn around.

(Aigis) “Alert, our way out has been sealed shut!”

(Claude) “PREVENT ANY REINFORCEMENTS FROM COMING IN OUTSIDE, AND FIND A WAY TO BLAST THESE GATES OPEN!”

(Alliance Captain) “Yes, Milord!”

Claude nodded and flew back into the fight that was ensuing in the town.

(Rean) “Looks like it was meant to happen.”

When they all faced back towards the Monastery, orange phantoms appeared in front of them.

(Ainz) “Hmph. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised they’re blocking our way.”

Ainz used his staff and casted a chain lightning that hit all of them, causing them to explode into light particles.

More phantoms appeared at their sides as the world began to shake.

The memories of the Three Houses didn’t seem to notice and carried on fighting as if nothing was happening.

(Yuuri) “I-Is it me or are these earthquakes getting more violent?!”

(Kazuma) “Definitely not just you!”

(Byleth) “Then that means we’re running out of time!”

Byleth activated the whip function of his sword and spun around, slicing apart the phantoms before they could attack.

Sitri tried her best to summon any of Sothis’s power to help them fight, but nothing was happening.

(Sitri) “Come on, why won’t it-”

(Aigis) “Incoming fire!”

Aigis raised her arms, and bullets shot out of her fingers, dispatching of the enemies trying to close in around them.

Everyone was taking care of the phantoms on their own. While they weren’t the most dangerous thing they’ve fought, they were starting to get overwhelmed.

Doomguy and the School-Living Club were running out of ammo, while the others were starting to get slowly worn out.

They barely had time to rest, first the assault on Enbarr, then the portal jumping, and now the endless phantoms.

(Akira) “Damn it, we’ll never reach the Monastery at this rate!”

Yuki took a Phantom down by swinging her sword, while it wasn’t the prettiest cut, it did the job. It was then she heard Hilda’s voice.

(Hilda) “Claude, take Dimitri and Edelgard to the monastery, there’s no time to wait up on us!”

They all looked back to their retainers, realizing if they had any chance, they had to be left behind.

(Dedue) “Your highness, go!”

(Hubert) “We have no intention of dying just yet!”

(Hilda) “GO YOU IDIOT!”

(Yuki) “That’s it! BYLETH-SENSEI!”

Byleth looked back to Yuki.

(Yuki) “If we can fly up to the top, we can get there fast enough and avoid the fighting!”

(Sitri) “Fly? But how?”

(Kazuma) !!! “Rean!”

Rean nodded and held his hand to the sky.

(Rean) “Heed my call…

VALIMAR, THE ASHEN KNIGHT!”

Valimar came in through a portal and landed behind Rean, kneelng down.

Rean teleported into the cockpit while everyone jumped onto what they could.

Kazuma, Sitri and the School-Living Club got onto his hands, Akira shot a grappling hook onto the head, Byleth, Ainz, Aigis, and Yu got on his back, Doomguy, Edelgard, Dimitri, and Claude grabbed onto his legs.

(Rean) “HANG ON EVERYONE!”

Valimar stood up and began to take off into the air, everyone hanging on for dear life as he flew off towards the Monastery, where they were soon joined by this memory’s Edelgard, Claude, and Dimitri.

Rean saw on Valimar’s cameras that the spells were flying off to the right, trying to shoot Claude’s Wyvern down.

(Kazuma) “Uh, is shit like that going to shoot at us?”

Akira was barely hanging on with his grappling hook, looking down at the ground and upcoming windows.

Sure enough, orange phantoms began to appear, wielding bows.

(Akira) “Incoming!”

Akira pulled out his pistol and shot through the window, killing at least one before the others fired.

(Ainz) “WALL OF PROTECTION!”

Ainz quickly casted a spell over them, getting it just in time before the arrows quickly soared downwards when it got too close.

(Yu) “Nothing should be stopping us from getting to the top right?”

(Rean) “No, and I see our destination!”

At the rooftop, Lahabrea was with Sothis, deactivating some sort of control panel.

...

[Thunderer - Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn OST]

Lahabrea breathed a sigh of relief when he deactivated the console.

Even though it was just a memory, having that active was not comforting him in the slightest.

(Sothis) “The towers are breaking out in countless worlds! Are we ready?”

(Lahabrea) “To be honest, I don’t think we are, but it’s clear if we let this go on for a second longer-”

(Byleth) “LAHABREA!”

The two of them quickly turned around and saw Byleth drop from the air, hand on his sword’s hilt.

Valimar and the others landed behind him, rushing to Byleth’s side.

(Lahabrea) “You’re...all back? Why? You all need to go home and-”

(Kazuma) “And just leave things absolutely fucked? Yeah, sure! I wanna go home to have everyone I know freeze to death!”

(Sothis) “Which is why we’re trying to fix it!”

(Yuuri) “By reversing time again?! When has there been a single time where using your...Divine Pulse or whatever hasn’t had serious consequences!?”

(Rean) “Using it in combination with the Tower is what got us here to begin with!”

(Akira) “We understand what you’re trying to do. You want to protect us, but this ISN’T the way!”

(Lahabrea) “THEN WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE ME DO?!”

Lahabrea stepped forward, screaming as he clenched his fist.

(Lahabrea) “DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY TIMES I’VE HAD TO WATCH YOU ALL LEAVE?! HOW MANY TIME’S I’VE SEEN THOSE I CHERISHED FORGET WHO WE ARE, AND WHAT WE’VE ACCOMPLISHED?!

I HAVE TRIED EVERYTHING! I TRIED DOING NOTHING, I TRIED DIRECTLY INTERVENING, AND FROM MY MEMORIES: I HAVE TRIED KILLING EVERYONE AND SUCCEEDED! IT DOESN’T MATTER IF I DID EVERYTHING WRONG OR EVERYTHING RIGHT! STILL! STILL I FAIL TO SAVE ANYONE! I FAIL TO SAVE EVEN JUST YOUR MEMORIES!”

He shook his head.

(Lahabrea) “...Which is why...I’ll do everyone right! I will make up for my past sins, and stop this madness once and for all!”

(Sitri) “Byleth...”

Sitri stepped towards Lahabrea.

(Sitri) “Do you remember what you said about getting rid of the source, and everything would sort itself out? And what Sothis was saying about ‘Stopping them’?”

(Byleth) “...There’s one source left we have to get rid of that’s causing all this.”

(Sothis and Lahabrea) !!!

(Sothis) “No...There’s no way-”

(Lahabrea) “Are you saying that we’re the reason this is happening?!”

Byleth nodded.

He shook his head, getting angrier by the second.

(Lahabrea) “No, NO! WE’RE THE REASON EVERYONE’S STILL ALIVE! WE CAN’T BE! NOT AFTER ALL WE’VE WENT THROUGH!”

Lahabrea grabbed his sword as Sothis readied her spells.

(Lahabrea) “I WILL NOT BE TOLD BY A SHADOW THAT OUR EXISTENCE IS THE REASON FOR ALL OF OUR SUFFERING!”

(Kazuma) “DON’T YOU FUCKING CALL HIM THAT!”

Everyone drew their weapons in response.

(Rean) “This Byleth is as real to us as we are to you! If you think we’ll simply abandon him and just blindly listen to you, then what good were all those years with us?!”

The skies suddenly turned into a pale white, the Tower emerging in the distance, handicapping everyone as voices rang out, clearer than ever before.

(Lahabrea) “You...You all can’t just see it yet! Go home, and leave it to us! I promise, we’ll protect you!”

(Sothis) “Don’t make us do this.”

Byleth was the first one to take a step forward, but he started coughing white blood once more as the voices made the infection in him swell even faster.

(Sitri) “BYLETH!”

Sitri ran over to Byleth and tried healing him by trying to access Sothis’s powers within her.

(Rean) “VALIMAR!”

Rean and Valimar were the first ones to charge.

Lahabrea countered Rean by deflecting his tachi, then having Sothis blow him away with a wind spell.

Valimar’s sword was about to land on them, but it was blasted back by a spell cast by both Sothis and Lahabrea, sending Valimar flying back into the walls and crashing through them.

Kazuma appeared behind Lahabrea, his knife going for his legs while Kurumi had her shovel aim for Sothis. Yuki and Miki charged in with their swords as well, trying to help.

Lahabrea simply knocked the shovel out of her hands and kicked her into Yuki and Miki as Sothis fired a spell that shocked Kazuma, making him scream violently as he fell to the floor.

Aigis, Yuuri, Ainz, and Doomguy all fired their guns and spells, trying to overwhelm the two of them with numbers.

Sothis’s shield deflected anything that could’ve went through, making Doomguy and Aigis go on the offensive.

Aigis summoned her Persona while Doomguy pulled out his sword, going for the sides.

Akira used Valimar as a stepping stone and leapt into the air, summoning Arsene and casting a variety of elemental skills at him.

Yu summoned Izanagi and charged head on, making them deal with a four front attack.

Lahabrea reached for his head and clenched his teeth, it becoming painful to utter the words-

(Lahabrea) “Heed my call...-”

(Yuuri) “Huh?!”

(Ainz) “GET DOWN!-”

(Lahabrea) “CHAMPIONS FROM BEYOND THE RIFT!”

An orange phantom of Valimar teleported behind Lahabrea, and struck back everyone, the impact almost rendering some unconscious.

Another phantom of Doomguy struck Ainz into the floor and pointed a rifle at Yuuri, making the real Doomguy charge and attack his phantom.

All the representatives had their own phantoms come in behind Lahabrea, keeping them occupied.

Leaving Sitri and Byleth open.

(Lahabrea) “Call this off and go home. There’s still time-”

(Sothis) “Byleth-”

(Lahabrea) “I know.”

He activated the whip function of his sword and cut an arrow that was aimed at him in half.

(Claude) “Damn it!”

(Edelgard) “Figured we couldn’t take him by surprise!”

(Dimitri) “THEN LET’S GO FOR IT!”

The three house leaders charged him, Edelgard’s axe smashing into the floor where Byleth was as he jumped away.

Dimitri thrust his lance forward, but was deflected by Sothis. She retaliated by casting a holy spell at Claude’s location.

Before he could dodge, a circle formed at his feet and blasted a pillar of light upwards, catching him in it.

(Claude) “AAAAAAGH!”

(Dimitri) “CLAUDE!”

Being distracted, Lahabrea slashed his sword at Dimitri, only wounding him and causing him to fall over.

He then ducked as Edelgard swung his axe, using the hilt of his sword to hit Edelgard’s jaw, sending her upwards and kicked her, sending her tumbling away.

(Sitri) “Please...Sothis, hear me! Heal him, please!”

Byleth could only watch as his students were being beaten by Lahabrea, and the Phantoms were winning against them. Portals slowly began to open around them, revealing their homes.

(Lahabrea) “You all have fought bravely for too long. Go home. I promise, things will be okay...And as for you Byleth...”

He turned to him, frowning.

(Lahabrea) “...I’m afraid there’s no saving you.”

Sothis raised her hand to Sitri and fired one last spell at Sitri, shocking her, making her fall over next to Byleth.

(Sitri) “My...s-son...”

Byleth was losing his vision as he saw Lahabrea and Sothis reaching for their heads, ready to use divine pulse a final time.

He reached out one hand in vain, trying to stop it, only to fall over and his vision fade to black.

...

...

...

When Byleth opened his eyes again, the world around him was completely in white. The only thing next to him was Sitri.

(Byleth) “Sitri...?”

Byleth slowly got up and helped Sitri up, both of them looking confused.

(Sitri) “Did...did we lose?”

(Byleth) “I...”

Before he could finish, he saw a familliar sight, sitting behind Sitri.

Sothis was on the throne behind them.

(Sothis) “...If you had the strength to take one more step. Could you do it? Could you save their worlds?”

(Byleth) “...”

(Sitri) “...”

(Byleth) “Not alone. Never alone.”

Sothis smiled.

(Sothis) “Good answer.”

She got off the throne and grabbed Sitri and Byleth’s hand.

(Sothis) “You are wrong about one thing...I have never left your sides. And neither have they.”

They turned around and their eyes went wide.

Byleth was the first one to smile.

(Byleth) “...Let’s do this, one final time.”

...

...

...

[One Who Brings Shadow - Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers OST]

Sothis activated Divine Pulse, and everything was slowly rewinding.

All of a sudden, the rewinding stopped, leaving everyone, including themselves dazed.

(Lahabrea) “What...?”

A pillar of light burst behind them, making everyone turn and face the light.

One brings shadow, one brings light

Two-toned echoes tumbling through time

Threescore wasted, ten cast aside

Four-fold knowing, no end in sight

Byleth and Sitri slowly stood up, Byleth’s white hair had turned into the green hair when he first fused with Sothis.

And Sitri’s hair had done the same.

(Lahabrea) “WHAT...?”

(Byleth) “This world...these lives...”

(Sitri) “ARE NOT YOURS TO DICTATE!”

(Sothis) “T-The infection, it’s been dispelled?!”

One brings shadow, one brings light

One dark future no one survives

On their shadows, away we fly

There were three more figures that stepped up to Byleth’s side, which was everyone else’s turn to be confused.

Minato, Minako, and Megumi stepped to the front, slightly transparent and glowing a light blue.

(Lahabrea) “What...What is this?!”

(Minato) “Professor...This fight, is over!”

He said nothing as he unsheathed his sword.

(Lahabrea) “No...NO!”

The road that we walk

Is lost in the flood

(Lahabrea) “THIS WILL SAVE YOU, YOU CANNOT INTERFERE!”

Here proud angels bathe in

Their wages of blood

(Megumi) “Please, listen to us-”

(Lahabrea) “SOTHIS, DO IT NOW!”

Lahabrea charged Byleth with his sword while Sothis tried to reverse time again.

At this, the world’s end, do we cast off tomorrow

Byleth countered him with renewed vigor, blowing Lahabrea back.

As time began to rewind again, Minako and Minato raised their hand, shooting out a massive white beam to the tower, stopping her.

(Minako) “Agh, so...freakin’...STRONG!”

Minato and Minako struggled to stop time from going back, Sothis slowly overpowering them.

Yuki ran over to Megumi, joined by the other School-Living Club members.

(Yuki) “Megu-nee! What can we do to help?!”

(Megumi) “Raise your right arm to the tower!”

Nodding and without hesitation, Yuki did as she was told, firing a white beam to the tower. It was followed by Megumi, then Kurumi, Miki, and Yuuri.

One brings shadow, one brings light

To this riddle all souls are tied

Lahabrea looked around him, time slowly reverting back to the present in a constant tug of war.

(Sothis) “Byleth...!”

Lahabrea moved to help before being stopped by Byleth’s sword, which kept him occupied.

(Lahabrea) “NO!”

Brief our moments, brazen and bright

Forged in fury, tempered in ice

Ainz was next to join in, his magical might finally giving them an edge.

The Persona Users quickly got up and concentrated with all their might, not yet helping with the tower.

Rean channeled power within him as he stood next to Valimar.

Hindmost devils, early to rise

Sing come twilight, sleep when they die

Doomguy helped Kazuma up and joined in, his armor glowing white as he raised his hand.

Kazuma clenched his teeth in pain as he helped out, the energy taking a massive toll on his already exhausted body.

Heaven’s banquet leavened with lies

Sating honor, envy, and pride

(Kazuma) “What the fuck exactly are you four doing?! why haven’t you-”

(Aigis) “We request that you shut your mouth, Kazuma.”

One brings shadow, one brings light

(Yu) “IZANAGI-NO-OKAMI!”

(Akira) “SATANAEL!” 

(Aigis) “ATHENA!”

(Rean) “VALIMAR, DO IT!”

Run from the light

Massive Personas formed behind them as Valimar stood up and stabbed his sword into the floor, the green lights glowing white, casting lights bigger than everyone else’s as it flew to the tower, shaking the entire Monastery.

Authors of our fates

Orchestrate our fall from grace

Poorest players on the stage

Our defiance drives us straight to the edge

Time had finally started moving forward, as Sothis was brought down to the ground.

(Sothis) “AAAGH!”

(Lahabrea) “SOTHIS!”

A reflection in the glass

Recollections of our past

Swift as darkness, cold as ash

Far beyond this dream of paradise lost

Edelgard Dimitri and Claude looked at each other and nodded, raising their hands and finishing this.

HOME

RIDING HOME

DYING HOPE

HOLD ONTO HOPE

The addition of their powers caused the tower in front of them to slowly explode, causing massive damage to Sothis and Lahabrea, making them fall over.

HOME

RIDING HOME

HOME, RIDING HOME

HOPE, FINDING HOPE

OHHH…

Sothis began fading into an orange light, making Lahabrea break off from the fight.

(Lahabrea) “SOTHIS, NO!”

(Sothis) “I...I can’t!-”

Sitri raised her hand and joined in the converging of their energies, the tower finally exploding as the light grew brighter and brighter.

One brings shadow, one brings light

One more chapter we’ve yet to write

Want for nothing, nothing denied

Wand'ring ended, futures aligned

One brings shadow, one brings light

One brings shadow, one brings light

You are the light

(Minato) “EVERYONE, WITH ALL YOUR MIGHT, PUSH!”

With both hands they channeled everything they had into the beam, the light growing brighter as it came closer to envelop them.

We fall

We fall

We fall

We fall

Unto the end

The light energy blew everyone back, and started to break apart Sothis.

ONE WORLD’S END (The end)

(Lahabrea) “SOTHIIIIIIIS!”

OUR WORLD’S END (The end)

Sothis said nothing as the energy completely covered her, slowly fading away into nothing before Lahabrea’s eyes and blinding everyone else.

WE (Our world)

END (We won’t end)

...

[Song End]

...

[Unfulfilled (Short) - Fire Emblem: Three Houses OST]

When Byleth opened his eyes, he was alone on the rooftop.

It was starting to snow now, the temperatures had dropped to almost freezing, but he didn’t care.

All he saw in front of him was Lahabrea, staring over the edge.

(Lahabrea) “...Sothis, everyone...they’re gone...it’s just us.”

Byleth saw the reflection of himself in the window, and realized his hair had gone back to normal.

Did killing Lahabrea’s Sothis destroy his?

...No, the Sword of the Creator still responded to Byleth.

(Lahabrea) “...I can tell you want the same thing as I do.”

(Lahabrea) “You just want them to be safe, right?”

(Byleth) “...Yes.”

(Lahabrea) “...I suppose I was blind to the fact they would never remember me. That in their mind, they had always been with you.”

He chuckled, though Byleth saw tears run down his face.

(Lahabrea) “Then, there really is no peaceful way to settle this, is there?”

(Byleth) “No...there’s not.”

[To The Edge - Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers OST]

He unsheathed his sword, and waited for Lahabrea to do the same.

(Lahabrea) “...If you win or lose, you die either way. You realize that, correct?”

(Byleth) “Of course I do...But you’d risk your life for them too, wouldn’t you?”

Lahabrea smiled.

(Lahabrea) “...I suppose I should be glad that I am fighting myself this time...We can hold nothing back.”

His smile went away as he unsheathed his sword.

(Lahabrea) “I am your salvation! I am their saviour! I AM, THEIR ONLY HOPE!”

Byleth said nothing as he readied himself for battle.

He could have ended up like that. Technically he did, since he was fighting himself.

His real self? He didn’t care anymore, nor could he afford to.

No matter what his goal, he had to be stopped.

(Byleth) “You’ve no fight left to fight, Byleth.

(Lahabrea) “...The same could be said to you, but I tire of this talk! WE END THIS, NOW!”

One brings shadow, one brings light

Two-toned echoes tumbling through time

Threescore wasted, ten cast aside

Four-fold knowing, no end in sight

They felt the snow touch their skin as it gently fell on them. They could see their breath as they stood still, waiting for the other to make the first move.

One brings shadow, one brings light

Two-toned echoes tumbling through time

Threescore wasted, ten cast aside

Four-fold knowing, no end in sight

Lahabrea was the first one to take a step, with Byleth following close after. They circled each other, watching each other’s hands.

Byleth swung first, activating the whip and swinging it at Lahabrea’s legs.

All our splendour bathed black in silence Our surrender a sombre reverie

Lahabrea jumped out the way, the snow bursting into the air from the whip, and he did the same, swinging the whip at Byleth.

Slowly drifting down into twilight Left to sifting through faded memories

Byleth deactivated the whip and used the sword’s edge to catch the whip, pulling Lahabrea forward.

Know our places, for worth is wordless Evanescent, this writing on the wall

Byleth headbutted Lahabrea into the floor, aiming his sword downward, moving to impale him.

Brother stay this descent to madness Come and save us. Catch us before we fall

Lahabrea moved out the way of the sword, grabbing the dagger in his belt and swiping it across Byleth’s waist.

RIDING HOME

RIDING HOME

FINDING HOPE

DON’T LOSE HOPE

Byleth was cut by the dagger, but he didn’t let the stinging stop him, striking the dagger out his hand with his sword.

Like broken angels, wingless, cast from heavens' gates (Our slumb'ring demons awake)

Lahabrea dove for his sword and quickly recovering it as Byleth rushed forward, barely blocking the attack in time.

We only fly when falling, falling far from grace (Hell take us, heaven can wait)

Lahabrea began slowly overpowering Byleth, driving his feet back into the snow.

Our lives a message in a bottle cast to sea (Disgrace untold and unseen)

Both of them clenched their teeth, refusing to fall back and give the other one the advantage.

Quick to their ends, our candles burn until we're free

Byleth moved to the side and let Lahabrea fall from putting too much pressure forward, swiping the sword upward and catching the side of his face.

In monochrome melodies Our tears are painted in red (Bleeding to the edge)

The sword’s tip caught part of his upper face and right eye, making blood spill out and cover the white snow around them.

Deep inside we're nothing more Than scions and sinners In the rain Do light and darkness fade

Lahabrea’s vision had gone blind in one eye now, but that was a small price to pay if it meant he could save everyone.

Yes, time circles endlessly The hands of fate trained ahead (Pointing to the edge)

Lahabrea raised one hand up and casted a spell, a fireball hurling towards Byleth, which he used the sword to absorb the attack, making a mini explosion of snow blind him momentarily.

All things change, drawn to the flame To rise from the ashes. To begin We first must see the end

Lahabrea moved immediately with his sword, swiping downwards, catching Byleth’s chest.

One brings shadow, one brings light

Two-toned echoes tumbling through time

Threescore wasted, ten cast aside

Four-fold knowing, no end in sight

The slash made him stagger, his hand on his chest was covered in blood and his breathing became far more difficult to maintain.

One brings shadow, one brings light

Two-toned echoes tumbling through time

Threescore wasted, ten cast aside

Four-fold knowing, no end in sight

Even then, that would not stop him from stopping Lahabrea. Every ounce of blood could spill out of Byleth, and he would still not yield.

Rock of ages, we cast the first stone In our cages, we know not what we do

Byleth grabbed his dagger while he wielded the sword on the other hand, staring down Lahabrea.

Indecision here at the crossroads Recognition, tomorrow's come too soon

Byleth activated the whip as he leapt forward, the dagger forcing Lahabrea to watch for ranged and close ranged attacks.

Follow blindly like lambs to slaughter At the mercy of those who ply the sword

Lahabrea easily blocked the dagger but had to constantly dodge the whip, his missing eye not doing him any favors.

As our song wends dead underwater We're forgotten for now and evermore

The dagger slid off Lahabrea’s sword and stabbed his arm, making him drop the sword.

RIDING HOME

RIDING HOME

FINDING HOPE

DON’T LOSE HOPE

Without a compass wand'ring lost in lies of faith (Faith slowly wasting away)

Lahabrea had to leave the dagger in his arm, trying to pull it out with Byleth that close was too risky.

Only alive in fighting Death's amber embrace (Our hearts beat loud, unafraid)

Screaming with rage, he swung with all his might at Byleth, slamming the sword down onto the floor, Byleth dodging out the way.

On Hands and knees we pray to gods we've never seen (Come shadow, come follow me)

With Byleth finally far enough he took out the dagger quickly and tried to ignore the pain.

The final hour upon us, no more time to breathe

The whip swung back and knocked the sword out of Lahabrea’s hand.

In monochrome melodies Our tears are painted in red (Bleeding to the edge)

Lahabrea looked back to Byleth, with the pressure he was exerting on himself causing more blood to fall out.

Deep inside we're nothing more Than scions and sinners In the rain Do light and darkness fade

Byleth charged Lahabrea, using the whips to take out his legs from underneath him.

Yes, time circles endlessly The hands of fate trained ahead (Pointing to the edge)

Having no time to dodge with his injuries, Lahabrea was thrown into the floor, and saw Byleth leap above him.

All things change, drawn to the flame To rise from the ashes. To begin We first must see the end

Lahabrea grabbed the sword by the blade hand and aimed it at Byleth.

Lahabrea’s blade went through Byleth’s stomach as Byleth’s blade went directly into Lahabrea’s heart.

One brings shadow, one brings light

Both their vision faded into white, being brought back to the others, their injuries still with them.

...

...

[Eternal Wind - Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers OST]

When Sitri opened her eyes, she saw both Byleth’s had fatally stabbed each other.

Everyone rushed over to Byleth as he collapsed onto the floor, Lahabrea putting his back against the wall.

He was alone, watching everyone crowd around Byleth.

(Lahabrea) “...Remember us.”

Everyone turned to Lahabrea.

(Lahabrea) “...Remember, that we once lived...”

(Everyone) “...”

(Sitri) “We promise.”

Lahabrea finally smiled, as his eyes closed, and body started to fade away into light blue particles.

He shattered into pieces, a sight that was becoming too familiar by now.

Portals opened up behind them, the rest of the Four Houses and House Isekai joining in.

(Yuri) “Hey, the towers are breaking apart in the worlds and-...Oh shit, BYLETH!”

Everyone crowded around Byleth, the staff moving to his side as well.

It was then they noticed Megumi, Minato, and Minako right next to him as well, albeit transparent and glowing a light blue.

It wasn’t long before Byleth’s body started fading away.

(Sitri) “No...NO!”

Aqua raised her hand to heal Byleth, but was stopped by Byleth himself.

(Byleth) “Don’t...bother. I think Lahabrea was telling the truth when he said I was a shadow.”

(Sara) “Don’t speak about yourself that way!”

(Cocytus) “YOU ARE YOUR OWN PERSON.”

(Towa) “Maybe we could?-”

(Minato) “Don’t worry, he won’t be gone...not really anyway.”

Everyone turned to them.

(Minako) “We’re with you in spirit. If ya know, our ghostly appearances weren’t obvious enough...”

(Megumi) “But...this will be goodbye.”

(Byleth) “Hah, for you all. Yes...”

Byleth looked to where Lahabrea was.

(Byleth) “I killed my original self, and soon everything will go back to normal...So you three can carry in some form or fashion...”

He looked at his hand, which was now completely dissolving.

(Byleth) “...I’m gone for good.”

(Everyone) !!!

(Kazuma) “What...?! No, that’s bullshit! You’re our Instructor for House Isekai! THE only Byleth we could ever have! We can’t lose you too!”

Byleth shook his head.

(Byleth) “You all will do fine, if your resolve has shown me anything...

Kazuma, you were the first ones I met when this all began...You all are still the weirdest group I’ve ever seen but...I’m glad you here with us.”

(Kazuma) “I...Y-Yeah. It’s...been an honor.”

(Aqua) “...T-Thank you, Byleth.”

(Darkness) “I am glad I had the privilege of fighting at your side, Professor.”

(Megumin) “I’ll...I’ll make sure to tell my village all about you, your name will be carved into legends...!”

(Byleth) “Sara, Rean...Class VII. Your world isn’t too different from ours, right? If you can get through this, I know you can get through anything.”

(Rean) “Thank you, for everything Instructor...”

Towa was too busy sobbing to form any coherent words.

Angelica hugged her, closing her eyes.

(Angelica) “...Glad to have been along for the ride, Instructor Byleth.”

(Sara) “You were always too nice for your own good, ya know that? Hah...I-I’ll...I’ll miss you.”

(Sharon) “Master Byleth, you will be forever a friend to the Reinfords, Class VII...and me.”

(Byleth) “Akira, Minato, Minako, Yu...You kids have been through so much in so little time, sorry to add this to your list as well.”

(Akira) “Nonsense, Byleth. We wouldn’t have had it any other way.”

(Minato) “Yeah...We’d gladly die again for everyone here.”

(Minako) “We’re your students after all...you taught us well.”

(Yu) “Thank you for taking us in, Byleth-sensei...”

(Byleth) “Ainz, Cocytus...Even though you don’t like us humans that much, thank you for sticking with us to the end.”

(Ainz) “Of course...You all are allies of the Great Tomb of Nazarick. You will be remembered as such now, and always.”

(Cocytus) “YOUR NAME WILL NEVER LEAVE MY MIND. YOU FOUGHT AND DIED AS A BRAVE WARRIOR, IN YOUR NAME, AND LORD AINZ’S...”

(Byleth) “Slayer. I know you have actions speak louder than your words, and the fact you’re still here speaks more than you could ever know...Thank you.”

Doomguy nodded as he took off his helmet, so he could at Byleth face to face.

(Byleth) “Megumi...you and your students...I treasured our time together more than you could know.”

Megumi smiled as her tears faded into light dust.

(Megumi) “I know, Byleth. Thank you for everything you’ve done for my students.”

(Yuki) “E-Even if it wasn’t your intention...thank you for reuniting us with Megu-nee. And for taking care of all of us.”

(Yuuri) “We’ll remember what you taught us, no matter the world...”

Kurumi and Miki nodded.

Claude, Dimitri, Edelgard, and Yuri stepped forward.

(Byleth) “...Sorry you had to get wrapped up in our mess too.”

(Claude) “If anything, I think you just saved us all.”

(Dimitri) “The times ahead will be difficult without you but...We’ll figure something out.”

(Edelgard) “I’m not sure words could properly display my thanks, for you saved us from the greatest evils our worlds have seen...Including myself.”

(Yuri) “We’ll make sure Fodlan doesn’t fall apart.”

Lastly, Byleth turned to Sitri.

Sothis appeared next to Sitri, scaring everyone.

(Sothis) “...Hello again, Byleth. It’s good to see you.”

She had tears in her eyes as Byleth at this point was almost gone.

(Byleth) “...Take care of my mother for me, just as you have done for me since I was a child...”

Sothis nodded.

(Byleth) “And...mother. Thank you for giving me this life at the cost of your own. Please do more with it...than...I could.”

(Sitri) “...Goodbye, my son.”

Byleth smiled one last time before his body faded away and shattered into pieces, the light blue particles dispersing in the air.

Everything around them began to do the same.

(Kazuma) “The tower...!”

(Ainz) “So...this must have been what Lahabrea saw everytime before the loop restarted.”

(Megumi) “Did we manage to do it?”

(Sara) “...Guess we’ll just have to wait and see.”

Everyone’s vision began to blind, and everyone took a moment to wait their fate.

Doomguy stood heroically, sheathing his weapon and adjusting his helmet.

Lord Ainz looked before his subjects, as they all got on one knee and bowed.

The Persona Users had a variety of reactions, some of them hugging each other as some finished crying, looking towards the light.

Yuki hugged Megumi, which the rest of the School-Living Club joined in.

Class VII all stood together side by side, waiting.

Kazuma’s group all held each other’s hand, not knowing what was going to happen.

Edelgard, Dimitri, Claude, and Yuri went back to their respective classes and watched quietly.

They all were silent as their minds went blank, and their vision faded into a blinding white, followed by darkness.

...

...

...

...

...

Edelgard opened her eyes, and took a look at her surroundings.

They were surrounded by trees, with a small village in sight. Her vision was blurry, so she couldn’t make out where they where.

(Edelgard) “Where...are we?”

(Dimitri) “Ugh...”

(Edelgard) “Dimitri?!”

She spun around and saw Dimitri and Claude there as well.

(Dimitri) “Is...that...Remire village?”

Upon closer examination they turned to look at the village. It looked relatively intact.

(Claude) “Crap...we’re not all the way back in the school year are-...I remember.”

!!!

Everyone took a look at their clothing and realized they were still in their armor.

(Dimitri) “But...where are the othe-”

(Familliar Voice) “FUCKING SON OF A BITCH!”

With that loud voice interrupting everyone’s thoughts, Dimitri was suddenly dealing with four people on top of him, crushing him.

(Claude) “GAH!”

(Edelgard) “OH MY GOODNESS!”

Aqua was thrown off the pile, and into Edelgard.

(Kazuma) “GET YOUR ASS OUT OF MY...Holy shit...you’re alive?! WE’RE ALIVE!”

(Megumin) “Sure...doesn’t...feel like it...”

Dimitri stood up, throwing all three of them off.

(Dimitri) “AGH, DAMN...It...We...we are alive. And we remember!”

[The Edge of Dawn - Fire Emblem: Three Houses OST]

Edelgard, after getting Aqua off of her, she looked at Remire Village. While it was destroyed, it was getting rebuilt by outside parties. Just as her Imperial troopers reported to her years ago.

(Edelgard) “The world...appears to be back to normal.”

(Kazuma) “WE WON! HAHAAHA, WE WON!”

Kazuma began hollering in celebration, eventually joined by Megumin, Aqua, and Darkness.

(Claude) “Uh...where’s everyone else?”

(Edelgard) “Perhaps the tower took us back to where we first started? It would explain why only Kazuma’s group is here.”

(Aqua) “Well what are we waiting for? Let’s go find them!”

Everyone nodded and ran into the woods to see if they could find anyone else close by...

...

...

Sitri sat on her coffin, smiling. Sothis kept her company having a similar smile, albeit sadness was behind both of their eyes.

They had won. Byleth had given them a second chance, and righted his wrongs.

...Though it cost him his own life.

(Sitri) “Thank you...my son.”

Reach for my hand, I’ll soar away Into the dawn, Oh, I wish I could stay Here in cherished halls, In peaceful days I fear the edge of dawn, Knowing time betrays Faint lights pass through colored glass, In this beloved place Silver shines, the world dines, A smile on each face As joy surrounds, comfort abounds, And I can feel I’m breaking free For just this moment lost in time, I am finally me Yet still I hide, Behind this mask that I have become My blackened heart scorched by flames, A force I can’t run from As I live out, Each peaceful day (Each peaceful day) Deep in my soul, Oh, I know I can’t stay (I know I can’t stay) So I wish I, Could hide away Hold tight to what I love, Keep cruel fate at bay As rain falls on the path, I chase your shadow I don’t feel a single drop, Or the ground below Then you turn to me and I, Stop before I know And the lie upon my lips, I let it go Cross my heart, Making vows I know will be betrayed A sad girl’s pleas, Live only for a breath and then they fade Don’t ever take, Back your kind hand (Your kind hand) Lest precious love, Slip away like time’s sand (Like time’s sand) Only we will know, All that was lost Scars that we can’t erase, Show us life’s true cost The blue moonlight, Cuts across our sight As pure and clear as a ringing bell, Reaching for us in the night As the wind calms my thoughts, I have strung on this terrace I feel at peace, Carried away by the wind’s song Open the door, And walk away Never give in, To the call of yesterday Memories that made, Those days sublime These ruined halls entomb, Stolen time Reach for my hand, I’ll soar away Into the dawn, Oh, I wish I could stay Here in cherished halls, In peaceful days I fear the edge of dawn, Knowing time betrays

….

Epilogue

1 Month Later...

[A Promise - Fire Emblem: Three Houses OST]

(Yuki) “Come on, we’re going to be late!”

Yuki excitedly ran over to the rest of House Isekai, carrying several bags.

(Yuuri) “Ah, Yuki-chan!”

The School-Living Club members struggled to keep up, carrying bags of their own.

(Megumi) “Oh, let me help you!”

Sitri watched as Megumi began carrying bags, though it seemed like she was struggling.

Even as some weird spirit, it seemed like she was bound to her physical strength...For some reason.

When everyone woke up, they reunited at Garreg Mach, with the help of teleportation and Valimar’s spirt portals.

They had gone back to Zanado since House Isekai was still around, and sure enough the tower was still there.

However, it seemed to be causing no effects on the land whatsoever. Now, it served as a reminder of what was sacrificed...And what was won.

Sothis laughed as she floated over to the others and began making small talk, everyone being able to see her, whether they were magically inclined or not.

A month had gone by trying to stabilize Fodlan after the catastrophes that happened.

The Church no longer existed, and with no central glue holding the countries together, Dimitri, Edelgard, and Claude decided to form a temporary alliance to help each other’s nations, and hunt down any remaining members of the Church, TWSITD, and whatever the tower spawned.

House Isekai stayed to help them out until they were no longer needed. And the day had finally come.

Everyone had gathered their things from Garreg Mach Monastery, and made their way to Zanado, standing right outside the tower.

It now opened a portal to bring every one of them home.

Sitri still hadn’t decided what she was going to do, but that decision would come later. Now, she was here to say goodbye to Byleth’s students.

Doomguy stepped back from the portal and shot a thumbs up.

(Vega) “The System has tested the calls out, and we have confirmed positive readings. We are now able to visit each other whenever we request help.”

(Yuki) “Now we really don’t have to say goodbye, we can visit each other whenever we want!”

(Akira) “That’s really cool!”

(Kazuma) “I’m not entirely surprised. Considering Doomguy opens portals to fucking LITERAL BIBLICAL HELL, opening doors to our worlds seems easy in comparison.”

(Ainz) “That still amazes me, honestly...”

(Akechi) “...Whatever. I’m out of here.”

Akechi left through the portal first, and Kasumi tried to stop him.

(Kasumi) “W-WAIT!”

(Ryuji) “Bah, leave the asshole be. He doesn’t wanna see us again, that’s his loss. I for one wanna make this moment last! It could be years until we see each other again!”

(Rean) “It’s kind of weird to think about, seeing how we’ve been here for so long.”

(Sara) “It’ll feel weird going back home, that’s for sure.”

(Minato) “Hm...”

(Aigis) “Minato?”

(Minato) “Sorry just thinking...I don’t think we’ll be visible when we head back. The only reason we’re able to be seen right now is cause of the Tower.”

(Minako) “Psh, that doesn’t matter little bro. We can still haunt their asses!”

(Shinji) “Hah, that supposed to be a downside?”

(Yuki) “I knew Megumi was always with me when she went away but now...? I’ll miss talking to her, but I know she’ll be watching over all of us!”

Megumi nodded.

(Megumi) “Of course.”

(Ainz) “Having to deal with our world’s politics will be a nice change of pace, honestly. I’ve had enough adventures...For now anyway.”

(Kazuma) “DEFINITELY enough dimension hopping bullshit for me. I’m just wanting to go to sleep in my own bed.

Yuki hugged Kazuma first.

(Kazuma) “W-Woah hey!”

(Yuki) “Thank you all for being my classmates! I’m so happy to graduate with you all!”

(Edelgard) “Gradutation, huh? That’s a fun way of thinking about it.”

Edelgard, Dimitri, and Claude walked up to House Isekai.

(Dimitri) “If only we had the time to celebrate. The least we can do is offer congratulations, however!”

(Sitri) “Congratulations in order then!”

(Claude) “Well congratulations! You all have officially graduated from Garreg Mach Monastery, how do ya feel?”

(Rean) “Feels great!”

(Yuki) “I’m so happy!”

(Kazuma) “Like shit-”

(Akira) “AHEM. We’re happy we could graduate.”

(Yu) “Graduation...again. Huh.”

(Aigis) “It feels weird to hear that term again, given this context.”

(Ainz) “Beats not graduating middle school.”

(Yuuri) “...Hold on you didn’t what?-”

(Ainz) “T-TIME TO GO, BEEN FUN. DENIZENS OF NAZARICK, WITH ME.”

They all bowed and followed through the portal. Cocytus stopped and turned around.

(Cocytus) “WE SHALL SEE EACH OTHER AGAIN. THIS I KNOW. FAREWELL, HOUSE ISEKAI.”

He waved goodbye as he stepped through.

(Kazuma) “Whatever. If I see you guys again in the next year or so, it’ll be too soon. Lord fuckin knows we will.”

(Aqua) “Bye guys!”

(Darkness) “Take care!”

(Megumin) See yaaaa!”

Kazuma half heartedly waved goodbye and stepped through his portal, and his group followed.

Doomguy gave everyone finger guns before he stepped through his portal.

(Aigis) “I suppose this is goodbye, for now at least. Thank you for everything. And Minato, Minako...please do not haunt us too much.”

They laughed and S.E.E.S stepped into the portal, Minako and Minato waving before they disappeared.

(Yu) “Oh yeah, we all share the same world so...”

Yu shrugged.

(Yu) “I’ll say what I did to my group originally. We’ll see each other again soon!”

Everyone in the Investigation Team waved and said goodbye before stepping through.

(Akira) “Sojiro’s DEFINITELY worried about us, so we should get going as well. Take care everyone, call us if you need anything at all!”

Akira winked before going through the portal, joined by the Phantom Thieves. 

(Yuki) “Even though its...scary to go back to our world, we’ll face it head on! Please take care you guys!”

(Miki) “T-Thank you for everything!”

(Kurumi) “Don’t cry too much without us!”

(Yuuri) “Farewell, everyone!”

(Megumi) “We’ll see each other again, I know it! And Sara, don’t be too harsh on them okay?”

Megumi waved goodbye before she faded away.

(Sara) “Psh, course she singles ME out.”

(Angelica) “Now you know how I feel-”

(Towa) “A-ANYWAYS! It’s been an honor serving as House Isekai’s Student Council President! Thank you for attending our graduation!”

(Sharon) “If you’ll excuse us!”

(Rean) “Goodbye. If you need anything at all, you know who to call!”

Class VII waved goodbye and entered the portal, leaving Sothis, Sitri, Edelgard, Claude, and Dimitri staring at the tower, the last portal closing.

[Song End]

(Edelgard) “Well, we still have a lot of work ahead of us.”

(Dimitri) “Right...Not everyone’s been happy with our alliance.”

(Claude) “Eh, we’ll deal with it as it comes. Besides, with Yuri backing us up, I don’t think we got too much to fear.

(Sitri) “...”

(Sothis) “Is something wrong?”

Sitri wiped away a tear, though she smiled.

(Sitri) “I just wish Byleth had been able to see them graduate.”

(Sothis) “...Yeah.”

(Edelgard) “I know he’s watching from a better place.”

(Dimitri) “Then we best impress him with what we do. Would be a disgrace to let him down now.”

(Claude) “Then let’s get to work, getting all sappy like this isn’t impressing anyone!”

They nodded and made their way out.

(Edelgard) “Sitri?”

(Sothis) “Do not worry, I’ll be right behind you.”

Edelgard shrugged and continued on, walking off with Dimitri and Claude.

(Sothis) “...You’re thinking about something, aren’t you?”

Sitri held the Sword of the Creator in her hands. She had it ever since she woke up, but didn’t know what to do with it.

Upon seeing House Isekai’s farewells, an idea finally came to mind.

(Sitri) “I am...if he really is watching, I think I know how to make him proud.”

Looking to the skies, she smiled and nodded, holding the sword tightly in her hands, and tried to sheathe it.

Though it was a bit clumsy, she felt like she could use it better with practice. She eventually caught up with the others, Sothis floating behind.

The five of them walked away from the tower in Zanado, with blue skies above them...

=============================

Credits

=============================

[Beyond The Time - Aimer]

STARRING:

Konosuba Gang

Class VII

You belong to me I can't say good-bye I held you forever I belong to you It's ready to burst This chest is reaching out for you We belong to Earth The source of a faraway universe Toward the cobalt, there is a shining Earth That is where sadness begins All that we love is returning there

School-Living Club

The Phantom Thieves

Ah You can't slip away from the möbius ring So many mistakes are repeated More than peace, more than freedom, more than justice I want you, because you're everything Even if I'm separated from you, even if you change, even if I loose sight of you I'll never forget your radiance You can change your destiny Beyond the time You can can change your future Beyond the darkness We can share the happiness That we've been looking for That day when I'll accept forgiveness

The Investigation Team

S.E.E.S

We're guided toward the wind we call a dream A ship of indiscretions is swaying We belong to Earth If we can just keep on living There will always be the returning day

Ah I can pull the moebius ring toward me So many meetings are repeated Beyond the time More than hope, more than ideals, more than aspirations I was only able to believe in you Fleetingly, violently, without falsehood I won't avert my gaze You can change your destiny Beyond the time You can can change your future Beyond the darkness We can share the happiness That we've been looking for That day when we fell in love

Great Tomb of Nazarick

The Doom Slayer

You can change your destiny Beyond the time You can can change your future Beyond the darkness

Garreg Mach Monastery

Ah If I fortuitously meet you once again Passing through the Möbius's Universe Beyond the time

=====

HOUSE ISEKAI: ENDED

=====

Author’s note:

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

IT’S DONE. HOLY FUCKING SHIT ITS DONE. 2 YEARS OF THREE HOUSES (I think) IMAGINES AND WEIRD CROSSOVERS HAS LED UP TO THIS.

It feels...So weird to be free of Three Houses, so to speak. With this arc in Fodlan ended, House Isekai is finished as well, wrapping everything into a nice little bow, in case if we never come back.

Watch IntSys put out a 3H sequel

But, this has been a fantastic journey for me. And I couldn’t have gotten this far without you all enabling supporting this weird ass crossover. It honestly should NOT have gotten this serious, but I also used this AU to give a bit more to my older AU, and I’m happy I did.

And with that, the first generation of House Isekai is officially disbanded. Feels weird, huh?

Of course the blog isn’t ending, (most likely, depending on the answer)

But if there is a sequel, you can bet it’s going to be back the way things were, fun, shitposty, with a bit of wholesome. We are NOT going as dark as Shadowbringers again.

Anyways, I’m just rambling. Thank you so much for reading this, I hope it was worth the wait! If you got any questions about any loose plot threads, you let me know.

See ya guys, and again, thank you so much for being part of the ride!

- Chris

[argent-vulpine]

The Art of Rising

Fandom: Fire Emblem Three Houses

Rating: G

Characters: Sylvain/F!Byleth

Read it on AO3

He’d told her once, years ago, that he was going to work to become the kind of man she could trust. What he hadn’t said was that he was wanted to be a man she could love, that she could be happy with. Someone she could count on. He didn’t really know when his crush had become something… more.

After she’d fallen, he determined he would keep his promise to her. She was alive; she had to be alive. So he had to keep at it, no matter what.

Even Felix had noticed the difference, though he hadn’t commented beyond a thoughtful hum after seeing Sylvain turn down the offer of a nightcap from a moderately attractive woman.

No one, not even the goddess herself, could have prepared Sylvain for Byleth’s return.

——————

It had been harder than it seemed, getting out of Faerghus so that he could make it to Garreg Mach in time for what should have been the millennium festival, but what would now only be the reunion of the Golden Deer. Hopefully.

Felix came with him, of course, a steadfast friend as always. “Someone’s gotta make sure your dumb self stays alive,” the swordsman had told him.

Neither of them was sure what to expect. They’d heard the rumors of the monastery, that it had fallen to ruin after that devastating first battle, that the Knights of Seiros had scattered when Rhea vanished, most going into hiding from Edelgard’s warpath while the rest tried to find the archbishop.

When they’d managed to get correspondence out, Sylvain had found from Claude that they’d combed the ruins, searching for Byleth. No body was discovered, not a single trace of her had been found anywhere. She’d vanished almost as if she had never even existed, living on in the memory of her students.

Sylvain had taken the news hard, but at the same time… it gave him hope. She hadn’t been found, dead or alive, and she had the power of the goddess. Surely that meant… something?

——————

Their arrival at Garreg Mach went initially unnoticed, despite the early hour, which considering the rumors was a bit of a surprise… until they heard the faint sounds of fighting further into the town. Felix slipped away, drawing his sword; he was of the best use on the ground, where he could use his size and speed to his advantage.

Sylvain, meanwhile, hefted his lance, resettling himself on his horse. It felt so natural now, after years of war and routine practice. Byleth had been right; he was a natural lancer, and he used that gift now, guiding his steed through the town and combining the beating of hooves with the sweeping of his lance, dealing swift justice to the bandits that attacked.

He could hear the distinct timbre of Claude’s voice ringing out from above; looking up, Sylvain caught a glimpse of a wyvern, a flash of golden yellow atop it. An arrow thudded into a bandit that had been turning a corner, dropping him instantly; the Alliance duke gave Sylvain a jaunty salute with an arrow before he was sweeping off to another corner of the town, nocking the deadly projectile as he went.

It was strange how easy it was to fall into a routine with his former comrades. Though their circumstances had changed, and they’d grown into the people he was sure Byleth had known they would be, it shouldn’t have been so easy to rely on Claude – and Leonie, when she appeared – to have his back while he swept through the town. He could even hear Lorenz not far from him, likely doing the same.

He’d fought with these people numerous times, though before it had been largely on foot.

Byleth was right, in the end. This formation, spread out as it currently was, still packed a powerful punch.

He turned a corner, and his heart skipped a beat, breath catching in his throat.

It looked like he would have a chance to tell her exactly that.

——————

Sleeping, she’d said, looking as if she had stepped through time. Or fallen through it, perhaps. Her clothing was as torn and dirty as it had been when they’d last seen her, rushing forward. Nothing about her had changed. He wondered, briefly, if this meant that he was technically older than her now, as frozen in time as she had been.

She’d explained to them what had happened, her memory of the event, when and how and where she’d awoken. They were back at the monastery proper now, in the old Golden Deer classroom.

Byleth walked around the room, seeking out each person individually. Claude had been the one to find her; she’d already caught up with him, the shock of seeing him so grown still there, but duller, replaced by equal shock for everyone else.

He watched her move around the room, speaking quietly to each person. Raphael leaned down enough so that she could ruffle his hair, a soft smile on her lips as she said something to him that made him laugh in that booming voice of his. She exchanged shoulder clasps with Leonie, expressions serious. In this, he could see a glimpse of the mercenary she had once been, and the kind that Leonie had become.

Everyone was different, every greeting tailored to the person. A touch here, soft-spoken words there. Gentle smiles for Ignatz and Marianne; surprise at Lorenz (and perhaps a bit of amusement, too); a startled laugh at something Hilda said, followed by a wry comment that made the pink-haired girl whine; clasping arms with Felix, and a promise to spare later. Sylvain was close enough to hear that exchange, only rolling his eyes a little bit at his friend.

She saved him for last, and he wasn’t sure how he should feel about that.

“Sylvain,” she said, stopping a short distance away and looking up at him. And he realized with sudden clarity that he was taller now, easily a head and a half over her. No wonder she’d needed to stop so far away. If she hadn’t, she surely would have gotten a cramped neck, trying to meet his eyes.

He flushed slightly. “Professor,” he replied, unsure of what to do. Behind Byleth, Felix scoffed silently, making a ‘get on with it’ gesture that Sylvain pointedly ignored.

There was a brief, somewhat awkward silence. “You’re a lot taller,” she said, finally, with a small smile. “I told you the lance would suit you. Have you been practicing your magic?”

He huffed out a little sigh, relaxing the slightest bit. “Yeah, every day. I’m not as good as some, but you were right. It’s a great back-up to have.”

She nodded once, exactly the way he remembered it. “Good.” A pause. “Tea this weekend?” she asked, voice soft.

He almost laughed. Almost. Instead, seeing her expression, he nodded, giving her a soft smile. “I brought some with me.” Just in case, he thought. He imagined she could hear that subtext regardless.

——————

Their ragtag group began immediate work on cleaning up the monastery. Claude wanted to use it as a base of operations, and no one could fault his reasoning on it. It only made sense.

Byleth was there with them, helping to move things. She and Dorothea worked together to make their dorms livable once again, in some cases having to take things from the rooms of nobles they were sure would not be returning. The rug from Hubert’s room went into Dorothea’s; Byleth took the water pitcher from Edelgard’s old space, and spare blankets that had been in the press, largely protected.

The professor had needed to scrounge for a uniform to wear while her own clothes were washed and repaired. Sylvain decidedly did not comment on the way it made her look, though he couldn’t help but appreciate the way it emphasized her curves.

The weekend came around, and things almost felt normal. He willingly took to the stables, finding Marianne already there, and helped her straighten and clean before tending to the few mounts in the stalls. Overhead, he’d caught glimpses of Claude and Leonie leading aerial patrols. Byleth came by with bundles of herbs, harvested from the greenhouse which had been in complete disarray. She’d trimmed back the herbs that had managed to thrive, and was offering small bundles of aromatics to everyone to help freshen up their rooms.

Sylvain took his with a smile of thanks, fingers brushing against Byleth’s and causing a faint flush to stain his cheeks. That night, he tied the herbs to his bed and fell asleep to their pleasant scent.

People had begun trickling back into the monastery, townsfolk returning and setting their homes and shops to rights one by one. It wasn’t as bustling as it had been before, but a slow return to some semblance of normalcy was good.

He caught Byleth in the monastery market the next day, in deep conversation with a merchant. Curious, Sylvain wandered closer; enough to overhear but not so much that he’d interrupt.

“- any news at all?” she was asking, placing things in her basket as they spoke.

“Nothing much. Word’s spread about you all taking back the monastery. There’s a rumor that some of the Knights of Seiros are on their way back to see what’s with the fuss. Us merchants, though, we’re glad to have you back. You need anything special, just ask.”

She nodded, mulling over his words. “Actually… I do have a request.” She leaned forward, beckoning the merchant closer, and began to speak, softly enough even Sylvain couldn’t hear. The merchant looked surprised, but chuckled and nodded.

“Sure enough, I think I can find something along those lines. I’ll send word out right away.”

Byleth gave him a tiny smile and paid for her purchases, turning to face Sylvain, face smoothing back into her typical placid mask. “It’s impolite to eavesdrop, you know,” she said as she approached him.

“It wasn’t really my intent. I didn’t want to interrupt, but I did want to offer to carry your basket for you,” he said, holding a hand out in offering. “You’re much too important to be carting around wares like that.”

There was a moment of hesitation before she sighed, giving in. “Fine, but only because I need to talk to you anyway.”

“Oh? Is our tea canceled?” he asked, frowning. He’d been looking forward to that, as a matter of fact.

She waved a hand in the negative. “Nothing like that. I just… don’t want to talk war during our tea. Starting tomorrow, you and the rest of the Deer will be joining me in the cardinals’ chambers to discuss war strategy and plan our next moves.” She hummed softly, thinking. “One-on-one instruction will resume, too, though it’s as much for your benefit as it is mine. I’d like to see how everyone has improved since… well… since.”

Five years. He had to admit it had been a long time, and he could see she was still struggling with the concept. To her, it had been only a week or so ago. There were going to be lots of changes she would need to grapple with.

“I take it Felix has already gotten you onto the training grounds for a spar?” he asked, laughing at the expression she made. It was subtle, but there, and he was so glad he still knew how to read her.

“He’s still a hot-head, but he has improved a lot. He put up a better fight than before, that’s for certain.” She stopped by another merchant, browsing their wares, and glanced up at him. “I’m expecting your participation in these meetings. Claude has a good mind for strategy but he often gets caught up in his schemes. I need a bit more practicality thrown in.”

She was looking through a stack of games as she spoke, then drew one out and showed it to him. “Are you familiar with this one?”

“Passingly. It’s been a while since I’ve played.”

“Good. So you’ll know the regular rules.” She gave him a brief grin. “There are modified rules I’m almost certain you aren’t aware of, very popular amongst mercenaries.”

From their time spent before the war drinking tea and playing strategy games, he knew that she used them as something of a lesson in tactics, though it was clear they both enjoyed playing in general. That she deemed it important enough to buy for their tea today piqued his interest.

He kept her company as she browsed the merchants’ stalls, carrying her basket the whole while, all the way back to her room at the monastery where she shooed him away so that she could put things away and get things ready for their afternoon meeting.

Sylvain wandered the grounds, unsure of what to do with himself while he waited. He was, perhaps, less surprised than he should have been when Claude popped up from seemingly nowhere, joining him in his stroll around the grounds. They walked in silence for a time, which was the more surprising part, until Claude cleared his throat.

“It’s a little surreal, isn’t it, being back here with Teach, huh?”

“I suppose so. A lot of things are different now, though.” Sylvain glanced sidelong at the duke, who merely grinned.

“And some things haven’t. Teach herself, for example. And… you still like her, huh? After all this time?”

Sylvain shifted away a step or so under the scrutiny. “Who wouldn’t?” he asked. “It’s clear you didn’t think she was dead all this time, either.”

Claude laughed, placing his hands behind his head and giving Sylvain a cheeky wink. “I’m just glad to have my best friend back… and our best hope at winning this. She makes one mighty fine ally.” He paused, his grin turning sly. “Besides, I know when I’m beat. I’ve only ever wanted my friend back, that’s all.”

He caught sight of Hilda and Marianne then, and clapped a hand on Sylvain’s shoulder. “If you hurt her, you’ll regret it,” was Claude’s final word, the warning in his voice and eyes clear as day. Gone was the joking demeanor; he was quite serious about this. And then, in a flash, that all vanished, replaced by the happy-go-lucky he presented to the world as he jogged to catch up to the two women.

Sylvain watched them go, a thoughtful frown pulling at the corners of his lips. He’d always thought Claude had a thing for the professor, and maybe he had, but there was no hint of a lie in what he’d said. Not even a tiny bit of jealousy, which Sylvain was sure he would have noticed.

Did that mean… that he really had a chance with her, after all?

——————

She was waiting for him in the gazebo that afternoon, the water already heated and waiting, the board game set up in a configuration he’d never seen before, as he’d expected considering her comment earlier. “I’m not late, am I?” he asked, joining her and taking his seat.

“No, I was just early,” she said with a slight smile. “I wanted to get the game prepared.”

Sylvain stretched his legs out, careful not to knock into the table – or Byleth – as he did, before he leaned forward and added a sachet of bergamot to the teapot to steep.

“Fox and Geese,” she said, straightening up the board. “Tell me what you remember about the basic rules?”

He’d expected this, too, and did as requested. The gist of the game was easy to recall: play as either the singular fox or the flock of geese. To win, the fox had to eat all of the geese, while for the geese to win, they had to corner and surround the fox. The cross-shaped board made both of these things difficult enough to be challenging for even the best players.

She nodded. “Well, this version allows the fox to cut through this circle here,” she said, pointing to a thin line marked by a bit of twine, “if the fox is in pursuit of a goose already and it doesn’t stop in the circle. That circle is like an impenetrable fort otherwise.”

He raised an eyebrow at that, leaning forward to study the addition. “The circle can be anywhere on the board?”

“Anywhere at all,” she agreed. “But no bigger than this. Geese inside are protected, but it also means that they can’t surround the fox.”

He studied the board, considering the new rules, and thought. If a few geese could be protected, untouchable, but also unable to attack… interesting. It was a new layer of challenge to an already complex game.

“So, Sylvain… fox or geese?” Byleth asked, drawing his attention from the board. She checked the tea, seeing it was steeped enough, and poured a cup for each of them, adding cream to hers and stirring carefully.

“Fox to start, I think.”

She nodded, studying the board, and moved the first of her geese.

The game itself occupied much of their time, though they conversed as they played. Every other round, Byleth would change up the rules, dragging from obscurity some variation she’d learned while traveling with her father and his mercenary group.

As they played, she asked him questions about the last five years. It was clear she’d gotten a basic rundown from others and was trying to piece together the larger puzzle, so he told her about the state of things in Faerghus, how he and Felix had slipped across the border in order to make it on time, what he knew of Dimitri’s execution and Dedue’s disappearance.

At no point did she bring up the next steps for the war, only asking about things that had happened while she’d slept. The line of questioning inevitably turned more personal when all other topics had been exhausted.

“How were you doing during all of this?” she asked, now playing the fox and moving her piece to consume a goose. “You’ve told me how Gautier was doing, but not yourself.”

He slid a goose into the protective circle, frowning at the board as a distraction while he figured out what to say to her. “I… I’m not sure,” he sighed, finally. “At first I was just trying to understand what had happened, you know? Edelgard’s attack on the monastery, that dragon that came out of nowhere… what happened to you. So many people were convinced you had died.”

She nodded, having heard as much. Even some of those who’d arrived for the reunion hadn’t harbored much hope that she’d been alive still. Claude had been the most vocal about his certainty she was, evidenced by the meal he’d had waiting when she’d finally arrived so very, very late. “Were you?” she asked, voice tinged with curiosity.

He looked up at her, seeing nothing in her eyes to guide his answer. So… the full truth then? “It was… stages for me. At first, absolutely not. You’d fallen, but no one saw where, or how far. Then as news came in that you hadn’t reappeared, that no one had heard from you… yeah. I thought… I thought perhaps we’d lost you.” He sighed, running a hand through his hair, mussing it further than usual. “Then, as time went by and no one found your body, no rumors of your capture, nothing… I started to wonder. Surely Edelgard would have made some big show of it if she’d found you, alive or dead.”

Sylvain gave a forced laugh then, looking away. “After a while, it didn’t matter. You weren’t here. We lost Dimitri, and Faerghus began to crumble soon after. What was the use in wondering or waiting?” He hated that he sounded bitter, but… of course he had been. There had been talk, too, people wondering if Byleth had left them. Given up on them, decided it was too much.

After all, she’d lost so much already. Would he have blamed her, if that was what she’d done? No, he didn’t think he would have, though he would have been… what? Angry? Upset? Sad?

“Your move,” she said softly, drawing his attention back to her. When he looked her way, he saw her watching him, scrutinizing him. She blinked, and the expression vanished. “I still don’t know what happened. One moment I was falling… and then the next, I was waking up on the riverbank. I don’t know where I was, how I didn’t starve to death… nothing. That entire time is empty for me. It was like I blinked and suddenly I was here, now.”

“Professor, I just—” whatever he was about to say was cut off by an alarm cry going up through the monastery.

Byleth surged to her feet, turning and grabbing the Sword of the Creator. He hadn’t even noticed it before, and wondered now if she’d been expecting something. Some attack, perhaps? “Sorry, Sylvain, this will have to wait. Head toward the gates as soon as you can,” she said, and then she was off, her coat fluttering behind her as she ran.

——————

Though it didn’t take him long to retrieve his own weapon from the armory, it was still long enough for things to quieten down. By the time he got to the front gate, the alarm itself was over. He could see the banner of the Knights of Seiros as he approached, and saw Claude and Byleth conversing with… was that Seteth? It looked like it.

He stood a short distance away, Lance of Ruin in hand, and was joined a moment later by Felix.

“You’re late,” said the swordsman, gruff.

“I was having tea with the professor when the alarm went out. Had to divert to the armory.”

“Tch. Excuses.” But Felix didn’t push. He was always armed, but he knew a sword was easier to carry around than a lance.

When Byleth turned to walk back through the gate, he stepped into a position behind and to her left, an honor guard. Felix took the opposite side, flanking Byleth – and Claude – as they made their way to the monastery proper. Byleth glanced at him for a brief moment, but said nothing, resuming her conversation with the duke.

Behind them came Seteth and his honor guard, leading a procession of knights back home.

——————

Sylvain had long ago decided that war was unpleasant. It might have been fascinating to read about, to learn and to study, but actively participating was hard in so many ways. The emotional and physical toil it took from those fighting; the smell of blood, of burning bodies and scorched earth and charred wood; the long, sleepless nights spent planning and organizing and hoping that your strategies worked, and planning your tactics for when you knew they wouldn’t.

It was also, in a sense, very boring. If you weren’t in the upper-most ranks, where all the planning fell, then you had a lot to do during the waiting and the planning.

And in this case, he had a lot of extra nothing to do because he was, of all things, recuperating.

His wound hadn’t been so bad that quick, magical healing was necessary, and normal healing was considered better for the body in the long run, so into the infirmary he went, to be stitched up and bandaged and told – very firmly – not to move and certainly not to get up to any funny business.

Byleth had already come and spoken to him once already, ending in an unexpected heart-to-heart chat he hadn’t really been planning for. He’d thought that would be the end of it, that he would remain in the infirmary until Manuela informed him that he was well enough to leave, and things would resume as usual.

Honestly, he should have known better.

The professor returned that evening, carrying a tray piled with food. It was enough for the both of them, he could tell, and she set the tray down on a small folding table before bringing the entire set-up with her to Sylvain’s bed.

“Manuela informed me that you hadn’t had dinner yet, so I offered to bring it to you,” she said by way of greeting.

“You could have eaten your own first. You didn’t have to do all this.”

“I could have, yes,” she agreed, giving a simple nod. “I did not. Eat.”

He frowned at her, but she only returned his gaze with a placid one of her own. They locked gazes for a long moment, until he finally looked away, a light blush spreading across his cheeks. “Thank you,” he said after a beat, pulling the tray closer.

Byleth helped by moving the entire table. When she realized it wouldn’t be as easy to sit in a chair and eat, with how close the food needed to be to Sylvain, she simply changed location, nudging his leg over carefully and taking the now-vacant spot.

Not that he minded. He could feel the warmth coming from her as she settled down, the movement shifting his leg until it was resting against her back. She either didn’t notice or didn’t care, instead focusing on eating her own meal.

It was good, and he was hungrier than he’d thought. Sylvain dug in, a pleased hum in his throat at the first bite. He devoured half his plate before he slowed down, looking up at the professor with a grin. “This is delicious. Thanks for bringing me dinner.”

“You need the energy to heal. I need my best lancer fit and ready, after all,” she replied matter-of-factly, though the soft smile accompanying her words suggested a different reason entirely.

For once in his life, he wisely said nothing, preferring to enjoy her company for as long as she was willing to provide it.

——————

It was impossible to tell, really, who was the most shaken by Gronder: himself or Felix. Or perhaps Ingrid, whom they’d managed to talk down, to bring her back to Garreg Mach with them once she’d been convinced they weren’t trying to kill Dimitri or his soldiers.

She’d known, somehow, that Dimitri was alive; she’d joined with him, convinced she could help him… but she hadn’t told them… and now he was dead for real, run through by Edelgard’s forces.

Byleth had made sure he’d been given as good a burial as they could afford, with a promise to return later, after the war, to have him reinterred properly. She’d always been awkward with grief; Ashe’s loss of Lord Lonato had shown them all that, years ago. And even the loss of her own father had seen her in some strange gray area between grief and impassivity.

Still, she tried. She bade the trio sit, gave them hot tea, had the dining hall send dinner to Sylvain’s room, where the trio had crowded after the news had arrived. She did not try to placate, to soothe. It would have been awkward from her at best. So Byleth did what she knew she was good at; she went back to planning the next stage of the war, and the eventual justice for Dimitri.

——————

The war’s end did not come swiftly. Sylvain thought it would be over with Enbarr, with Edelgard’s capture, surrender… or, as it happened, death. He was there, at the end, watching as Byleth took the final blow, witnessed Edelgard’s sadness and, oddly, her acceptance of the end.

Byleth could not afford compassion, but he knew, having passed by the room she’d claimed that night, that it had been a difficult moment for her. He knew that she had genuinely liked Edelgard and Dimitri both, and that for her, their existence as something like friends was still very fresh in her mind.

She’d done what she had needed to do to end a war, and now it seemed as if that wasn’t the end after all.

Sylvain passed her door again, later in the evening, and saw light seeping through the cracks. “Professor?” he called, knocking on the door. This late at night, she should be sleeping. Then again, he should have been, as well, but everyone seemed to have a lot on their minds.

“Come in,” she said, voice muffled.

He opened the door, taking in the lamplight, the fireplace burning away, and the professor herself, leaning forward in a chair at a desk she’d claimed for herself, fingers pulling through green strands, frustration evident in every line of her body.

She looked up at him, noting his presence, though there was no surprise evident on her features. A half-eaten plate of food sat beside her, gone cold long ago. “Is there something I can help you with, Sylvain?” she asked, weariness heavy in her tone.

“I was gonna ask you the same thing, Professor,” he said, finding another chair and dragging it over to where she sat. “You look like you need some help tiring yourself out.”

Her eyes narrowed slightly as she looked at him, but his signature smirk was gone. She frowned. “If you’re suggesting…” she began warningly.

“What? Oh! No!” He rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed. “I mean, if you wanted to… maybe.” At her glare, he raised his hands in front of him. “Kidding! I’m kidding! No, I was meaning more, like… talking it out? Or getting your mind off things somehow. I, uh… I have one of those board games with me, if you’d like to play?” he offered.

Her features softened slightly at that, some look he couldn’t quite place lurking in the depths of her pale green eyes. “I would like that, I think,” she finally said.

“I’ll go get it, then. Won’t be but a minute.”

He slipped out of the room and nearly raced to the one he’d been housed in, digging out the board game and, as an afterthought, a sachet of tea. Neither of them were liable to even want sleep any time soon. Might as well make the most of it.

She made no comment on the addition, instead glancing toward the fireplace. A kettle rested on a table near the hearth, and a pitcher of water. He poured the water and settled the kettle on a hook, swinging it over the fire to let it heat. Magic might have been faster and easier, but they both had exhausted their skills that day, fighting through to Edelgard.

Sylvain busied himself with that while Byleth cleared space for the game, setting up the board and the pieces.

When everything was ready, he joined her, pouring hot water into the kettle and adding the bergamot sachet. He indicated that she should take the first move, and so she did, her tactician’s mask sliding into place as she watched the board.

Neither of them spoke for a long time. They were nearly to the end of their first round, half a cup of tea each already downed, before either broke the soft silence that had descended. “I wanted her to surrender,” Byleth said, soft.

He nodded. He’d been close enough by then to see that, but not so close he’d heard what the emperor had said to change Byleth’s mind.

“I wanted to spare her. I think… I think she knew that. And… she knew that I couldn’t.” Byleth swallowed, the words thick on her tongue. “Claude’s future, what he wants… it’s what I want, too. And I believe, I really believe, that Edelgard wanted it, as well. But her methods… how she was getting there… they were all wrong.”

“She was doing what she felt she had to do. I’m sure she had her reasons.”

“But?” prodded the professor, having heard his silent addition.

“But I agree. The reasons may have been sound; her methods were not. I think she trusted that you would carry on where she couldn’t… in a way that she couldn’t.”

Byleth stared at him, searching – for what, he wasn’t sure – before she nodded, the movement slight. “Maybe.” She moved a piece, then looked up at him again. “What is it that you want, Sylvain? Why are you here, fighting, with us?”

“I think you know the answer to that, Professor. You can see right through me, can’t you?”

She smiled then, a tentative thing, while shaking her head. “I can’t, though. Not the way you seem to think.”

“Maybe not. But you’re observant. Surely you’ve figured it out by now?”

“Hm.” The sound was non-committal. Perhaps a little thoughtful.

But for once, he thought he could read her just as easily as she seemed to read him. They said nothing else, returning to the game, until it was finally time to bid each other good night.

——————

“Do you trust me, Teach?” Claude asked, looking at her before turning his attention back to the man standing across the battlefield.

Sylvain shifted behind them, nervous concern radiating from his body. Even Felix was on edge, knuckles white around his sword, though he had not yet drawn it. Nemesis was no joke… but to face the ten Elites, too… ancestors… the ones who’d started this all…

His grip on his lance tightened, resolute.

“I’ve always trusted you, Claude,” remarked Byleth, her tone so calm and even that it eased tensions just by its existence. She turned, sweeping her gaze along her friends, her former students, settling at last on Sylvain with a long look he couldn’t quite decipher. “I trust all of you.” She wrapped her fingers around the Sword of the Creator, raising it up to point at their enemy, and while her eyes hardened for battle, for the first time any of them could recall, she did not look like the Ashen Demon of old. “Let’s win this. For all of us.”

——————

Nemesis fell, once and for all. The Elites were defeated, sent to their final graves by their own descendants. It should have been a night for revelry, for celebration of the end of a long war. Instead, everything was quiet, introspective.

Sylvain found Byleth on the edge of the field, leaning against the trunk of a massive tree, Sword of the Creator at her side., though she made no move to grab it as he approached. Her eyes were closed, head tilted back, but still she gave him the ghost of a smile. “Come to check on me, Sylvain?” she asked, cracking one eye when he was only a few steps away.

“Caught me out, huh?” He leaned his lance against the tree before joining her on the ground, stretching his long legs out in front of him.

“You have a very distinct footfall,” she murmured with a sigh. “I’ve been able to pick it out of a crowd for a long time now.”

His heard thudded in his chest. “Professor, I…”

“I really need you to stop calling me that.” She opened both eyes properly, tilting her head to look up at him. “You know my name. I’d prefer that you use it.”

“Heh. I guess you’re right. It was just… easier, I guess. We all look up to you, you know.”

“Not from where I’m sitting,” she said, deadpan.

He laughed then, nudging against her shoulder with his. “You know what I meant.”

“Hm.” An agreeing sound. Thoughtful.

The pair sat like that for a long time, looking out over the field, watching the stars come out one by one as the sky darkened. When Byleth leaned over, resting her head on his shoulder, Sylvain almost didn’t dare breathe. After a moment he hesitantly moved his arm, resting it around her shoulders and pulling her in close against his side.

She made no comment, no move to get away. It seemed, in fact, that it was what she’d wanted. Perhaps what she’d been waiting for.

He could have stayed in that moment forever, if Hilda hadn’t interrupted, a mischievous twinkle in her eye, to tell them that dinner was ready and they should come eat.

When he helped Byleth to her feet, he thought, briefly, about saying something, until she held up a hand to stop him. “We have a long march ahead of us. Eat and get some rest. Talk to me later, when you’re ready.”

——————

He was so ready that he was early, watching the sky from the window while he waited for Byleth. He didn’t know when, exactly, only that somewhere along the way, his simple attraction had grown to a crush, which had eventually morphed into love. She saw him for who he was, not what he was, and that was something he didn’t think he could ever fully repay. But he’d try. He’d try for the rest of their lives, if that’s what it took. He only hoped that she accepted him in this, too.

Happily ever after had seemed like a pipe dream at the start of the war. Now… now it a possible reality.

The sound of boot-heels on stone drew his attention and he turned, a genuine smile on his face as he waited for that reality.

[kumeko]

Title: goodbye my hopeless dream

A/N: For the Sylvgrid BB, for watercolorvigilante’s heartbreaking work. I love the angst of separating the Faerghus Four.

Summary: Five years ago, Sylvain had thought they could fix it all. That they could bring Dimitri to the Alliance, that they could end the war and save everyone. Yet…Felix lay face down, Ingrid sobbing on her knees, and Dimitri frozen forever mid snarl. He wasn’t sure how he could pick the pieces up after this, but he had to try.

…

…

…

…

Something was burning. Sylvain stuck his lance in the dirt carelessly, ignoring every lesson he’d ever learned about proper weapon care, and closed his eyes. Something was burning. Possibly someone, the air was full of fat and smoke and his throat grew drier with every breath. There were dozens of small fires nearby, the only outcome in the middle of a battlefield, where mages scorched the earth and fiery arrows rained down on their ashes.

 He opened his eyes. Before him spread a war-torn field, survivors picking dragging themselves off the fields and to their respective armies. Something bitter filled his mouth as he saw the bodies strewn across the field, blood pooling in the mud. Crows cawed as they perched on bare trees, their beady eyes taking in the field, and vultures circled above as they eyed their food.

 Five years ago, the Battle of Lion and Eagle had been nothing like this. Five years ago, they had all been just kids fighting for bragging rights and victory letters to send home, for stories to seduce strangers and that shiny glory that had seemed all too important at the time.

 Five years ago, he had been in with the Kingdom, not the Alliance. Now his Golden Deer family were scattered across the field, helping each other back. The Empire was long gone, Edelgard leaving behind the wounded and the dead alike. The Kingdom was torn apart, shredded into pieces. And Dimitri…

Sylvain shivered at the memory. The one-eyed, raging monster he’d seen hours ago hadn’t been any friend he’d known. The only thing that had motivated him was a long-nursed hatred, one that Sylvain hadn’t seen for all the years he’d known him.

 Or maybe he had avoided seeing it, just like how he was now avoiding the dead spread around him, trying not to look at their faces. He didn’t want to see another classmate he used to sneak out with, another beauty he’d flirted with in the shadows.

 He was certain Ingrid was doing the exact opposite. She’d always had a masochist streak and unlike him was probably all too intent on memorizing every person she’d killed.

 Sylvain looked up. It had been hours since he’d seen her Pegasus. “Ingrid?”

 Dread filled him and he yanked his lance out of the dirt. This was Ingrid he was thinking of. She was unkillable. Even Felix’s hardest glares and Sylvain’s worst lies hadn’t done the job.

 “It’ll be fine,” he muttered. Whistling, he waited impatiently for his steed to gallop over. His horse’s silken mane was matted in blood and dirt. Grabbing the saddle, Sylvain slung himself over. “I bet I look just as bad,” he murmured, patting his horse’s neck once before squeezing his thighs. “When we find Ingrid, I’ll make sure she gives you her special mixture.”

 His horse nickered and quickly trotted through the field. Sylvain scanned his surroundings as they moved, searching for the pure white Pegasus or even just Ingrid’s blonde hair. As he looked, he avoided checking the bodies, refused to check the bodies.

 There was no need.

 Ingrid wouldn’t be lying in the dirt like that. Not after all the times she’d yelled at him for his slovenly room.

 Instead of blonde, he spotted pink. He turned his head.

 Ingrid would have stopped.

 Sylvain gritted his teeth and guided his horse across the field. A tired, limping Hilda looked up blearily. With her stockings torn, hair awry, and a nasty cut along her chest, she looked as bad as he felt. She even dragged her axe instead of carrying it. “Hey.”

 “Hey.” He slipped off his horse, wrapping an arm around her waist as he helped her out of the ditch. “You’ve looked better.”

 “I’d say you’ve looked worse, but that’s a lie.” Hilda grinned crookedly as she leaned on him. She felt impossibly small, nothing at all like the mischievous woman who was Claude’s right hand. “Glad you made it.”

 “Me too.” Sylvain swallowed. “Did you see Ingrid?”

 He held his breath as she frowned and shook her head. “No…not for a while.” Noticing his face, Hilda squeezed his arm reassuringly. “I’m sure she’s fine. She’s a strong bitch.”

 Sylvain couldn’t laugh at the old joke. They’d exchanged it many times after Ingrid had scolded them or knocked them on their asses during practice. “She’s really strong.” His voice came out more of a whisper than he’d intended.

 “The strongest,” she agreed, pulling away. Leaning on her axe, she patted his back. “You go find her.”

 Sylvain hesitated. “Your chest—”

 “Needs Marianne’s loving attention,” Hilda interrupted, winking. Though, with the dirt streaked on her cheeks and her pale skin, she didn’t look half as flirty as she acted. “I can make it back from here.” She forced herself to stand a little straighter but for all her acting, she couldn’t hide her wince. “Who knows, maybe Ingrid’s there already. She’ll be too busy nursing me to health to take care of you.”

 Hilda waggled her brows. He wanted to smile but he couldn’t muster the energy.

 Ingrid would have helped her regardless.

 For all of her faith in him, he’d never been half as good as she’d hoped and not even a quarter as good as she was. “I’m sorry,” he muttered, letting his guilt and fear chase him as he vaulted onto his horse once more, spurring it through the field as though death itself were after them.

 Hilda wasn’t critically injured, at least. She could stand and she could joke and one of the others would find her in no time. They’d laugh about it later and she’d tease that he had tunnel vision when it came to Ingrid. The dense idiot that she was, Ingrid wouldn’t understand until maybe years down the road, when he told her everything.

 He clenched his fist. “Ingrid? INGRID!”

 The only response were the grunts and moans as other survivors crawled, hoping someone, anyone could come to their rescue. He’d save them all after he found Ingrid. He’d personally pick them up, carry them to Flayn and Manuela. He’d even wrap their bandages himself.

 He just had to find Ingrid first.

 “Sylvain!”

 A familiar gold caught his eye, and for a moment Sylvain thought Ingrid before realizing it was Claude’s torn cloak. He pulled his reins tight, heels digging into his horse as he came to a stop just beside the tired leader. Byleth wasn’t by his side for once. Maybe she was out there, picking up her former students.

 Maybe she’d already found Hilda.

 “Claude.” Sylvain tried to smile. It came out like a grimace. “Have you seen Ingrid?”

 “Straight to the point, huh?” Claude chuckled wryly, pulling his gloves off his fingers. His arms had small burns on them, the attacks of enemy mages, and Sylvain tried not to think how much that must have hurt as he loosed arrow after arrow. “No, not yet.”

 “Hilda’s that way,” Sylvain blurted out, unable to stop himself. He jabbed over his shoulder. “She’ll need help.”

 “Oh.” Claude blinked, resting his hand on the flank of Sylvain’s horse as he looked. His dragon wasn’t with him. Sylvain tried not to wonder why. “I’ll get her then. Thanks.”

 They stood there a moment, neither of them moving. Sylvain’s horse panted, nostrils flaring as he caught his breath.

 “I…I didn’t think it’d end like this,” Claude admitted quietly, barely audible over the wind. “Edelgard…I knew she wouldn’t listen, but Dimitri?”

 It was like a gut punch, remembering Dimitri. When he and Ingrid had heard Dimitri had survived his execution, they’d sworn to bring him over to Claude’s side. Dimitri had been a reasonable person, after all. He should have been reasonable now.

 Goddess, why hadn’t he been reasonable now? Sylvain thought, looking away. “I thought he’d come around.”

 “Me too. We could have avoided so much…” Claude trailed off. It wasn’t like simple bloodshed could describe everything they’d experienced here today.

 “Maybe next time,” Sylvain croaked, licking his chapped lips nervously. The air was still far too dry. It was hard to breathe. “We can talk to Dimitri again. Maybe after he’s had time to calm down.”

 Claude snapped his head to him, his expression unreadable. After a few, heart-pounding seconds, he pointed to his left. “Is that a Pegasus?”

 Immediately, Sylvain jerked his head up. Further up the hill, almost at the treeline, he could just make out a white horse. A pure white horse, sitting on the ground.

 It had to be a Pegasus. It had to be Ingrid’s. He squeezed his thighs, urging his horse into a gallop as he hastily shouted, “Thanks!”

 He really did have tunnel vision. Sylvain couldn’t tell anyone, even himself, how he got to Ingrid, what the route was like, anything really. He just kept his eyes fixed on the white horse, watched as its sides became wings and the saddle on its back took on the familiar markings of Ingrid’s. There was no blood on it, as far as he could tell, no injuries at all aside from a few ruffled feathers.

 That was good, right? It must have been tired after the long fight. Maybe Ingrid was letting it rest before heading to camp. “Ingrid?” he called out as he reached, jumping off his horse without even waiting for a response.

 The silence worried him. She wasn’t beside her steed and she’d never abandon her partner. “Where is she?” he murmured, patting her Pegasus’s nose. Her partner whickered, turning to his right and further up the hill. A bright green cloak stood out amongst the bushes, a familiar coil of blonde braided hair crowning it.

 Ingrid.

 She was kneeling next to someone. He could just make out their legs, still and unmoving. Of course, she was taking care of an injured solider, the bleeding heart she was. He’d bet the farm that she hadn’t even thought to look for him before doing that.

 And if she was doing that, she couldn’t be that injured. Sighing with relief, he jogged to her. “There you are.”

 Ingrid looked over her shoulder, cheeks stained with tears. “Sylvain,” she rasped, closing her eyes. “I’m sorry.”

 “Sorry for—” He couldn’t speak, couldn’t breathe after he saw Dimitri lying in front of her. His chest squeezed and he stumbled the final few steps to her side.

 Unlike the raging man he’d seen hours ago, Dimitri was utterly still and calm as he lay there. His bright, blue eye stared unseeing at the sky, his mouth half-open as though mid-way through a roar. Ingrid whimpered and Sylvain stared at the lance stuck in Dimitri’s chest.

 Luin.

 Bile rose in his throat and Sylvain barely crawled forward more than a few steps before he vomited in the bushes. Oh no. Oh no no no. He could just picture it now. Dimitri and Ingrid. And Felix—Sylvain couldn’t stop himself before he looked for a familiar fur-lined jacket.

 There was a sword in his hand. He’d died as he’d lived. Sylvain vomited again.

 “It’s my fault,” Ingrid sobbed, curling into herself. “I’m sorry.”

 His heart broke a second time at the sound. Wiping his mouth, he forced himself to his feet and stumbled back to her side. Sylvain forced back his uneasy stomach, forced back his growing numbness and pain, and gathered her in his arms, crushing her to his chest. “It’s not.”

 “It is,” she repeated, apologizing over and over even as she pressed into him. “It is.”

 And he couldn’t argue with that, not when her lance was in Dimitri’s chest. It wasn’t like five years ago, when she’d been crushed after they’d changed houses—no one could have predicted the looming war, the fact that they’d be disowned by their own families for something as simple as following their beliefs.

 It wasn’t like years ago, after Glen’s death, when Dimitri had broken down, Felix had hardened, and Ingrid had holed herself in her room. It hadn’t been anyone’s fault then. They’d been just kids, taking on more than they should have.

 Now, there was only Ingrid.

 And Dimitri’s blood was on her hands.

 Bile rose once more, pricking his tongue, but he forced it back down. She’d break if he said anything else. She’d break and then he’d break with her. Sylvain buried his face in her hair and shook his head. “Not true.”

 “I…I did it,” she sobbed, her fingers digging into his sides.

 “He would have killed you.” He realized the truth of his words as he said them. Dimitri would have killed her. The others from their house might not have. Annette and Mercedes and maybe even Dedue could have been talked down, but not Dimitri.

 Dimitri hadn’t been himself for a long while.

 Maybe he’d always been like that. Felix had been right, calling him a boar.

 “He would have killed you,” he repeated, stronger now, hugging her tighter. Sylvain could hear her breath, hear her heart beat like a frightened rabbit. She was alive. She was in one piece. She’d made it through. “You had to protect yourself.”

 “I could have injured him,” she mumbled, pressing herself closer as though to hide away from it all. “I could have knocked him out.”

 “Anyone else, sure, but not Dimitri. Never Dimitri.” Sylvain closed his eyes. Even before it all, Dimitri would never let himself get captured. Killed, sure, but never captured. “He’s too strong. Was too strong.”

 The was stung, burned on his tongue like an ember. Felix had been loyal. Dimitri had been a friend. They’d never be anything else anymore. They might never be anything but the two, angry bodies on the grass. It was hard to remember their smiles when all he could picture was their pale, frozen faces.

 “I should have tried,” she insisted, shoulders shaking as she cried. “I should have…I…he’s dead, Sylvain. Dead. They both are and I…”

 “I know, I know.” Sylvian stroked her hair, pulling back just enough to press a tender kiss on her forehead. Years ago, she’d done the same for him when he’d killed his brother; he wasn’t sure when he’d started looking at her differently, but he was certain the roots of it had been then. He hoped it brought her twice as much comfort as it had given him, this warmth, this forgiveness and love and gentle acceptance.

 She wailed, a wordless cry that sounded more animal than human. He remembered the maids talking about banshees and their mournful screams, and it had to sound something like this. Still stroking her hair, he let her cry it all out, his eyes closed so he didn’t have to see Dimitri or Felix. There was probably a better way to help. Mercedes and Annette had been good at it. He should have learned from them when he had the chance.

 He should have done so much more before this all happened, but he’d been barely able to help himself for years, let alone others.

 And now it was just them.

 No, not just them. Sylvain bit his cheek. That was what had caused this war in the first place, this stubborn belief that they had to stand alone. That was why he and Ingrid had left the Blue Lions in after all, for Claude’s vision of unity. There was Raphael and his hugs, Hilda and her jokes, even Marianne and her quiet companionship.

 He could try again. Better this time, in fact. Ingrid hiccupped and he pulled away slightly, still keeping her in the circle of his arms. Now that he was looking at her properly, he could see the cuts on her arms, the gash on her side. Small injuries, for fighting Dimitri, but injuries nonetheless. Sylvain knew every trick in the book when it came to convincing Ingrid to do something that was good for her, even if it was something as unrelenting as guilt.

 “Let’s go back to camp together,” he suggested gently, brushing her hair out of her face. Her puffy eyes, still red from her tears, started to slide away from his, to where Dimitri’s corpse grew colder with the passing minute. Before she could, he carefully cupped her cheek, forcing her to stay still. “We need to get patched up.”

 “But…Di…Dimitri and Felix,” she mumbled, not fighting him for once.

 “We can get them later.” Sylvain didn’t even have to try this time, he just smiled. She’d always been able to draw those out of him, even if she never realized it. “I’ll come back.”

 “Me…Me too.” Ingrid shook her head. “I’ll help.”

 He bit his lip before reluctantly nodding. There was time to argue about that later. “Okay. Can you stand?”

 She nodded. Sylvain wrapped an arm around her waist, slowly hoisting her up as he stood. Keeping his grip firm, he called for his horse. “I’m not sure if I’m ready to fly, so let’s take my horse, okay?”

 “Sure.” She sounded distracted, but he didn’t think much of it. With everything that happened, it was hard to focus. As his horse stopped beside him, he let go and quickly adjusted the saddle bags and straps. “You get on first.”

 Ingrid didn’t reply and when he turned around, she was beside Dimitri once more. Silently, he cursed himself as he ran back to her side. “Ingrid!”

 She didn’t respond, unbuckling her cloak instead. Gently, she spread it out over Dimitri’s body, covering him like she used to put blankets on them as kids, all tired out from practice. Leaning forward, she pressed a chaste kiss on his cold forehead. “Could you give me your cloak?” she asked, her expression unreadable.

 Sylvain didn’t hesitate before yanking what was left of his off and draping it gently on her shoulders. Ingrid shook her head, pulling it off. “It’s not for me.”  

 She moved a little further into the forest, to Felix this time, and tucked the cloak around him. Her fingers shook as she brushed his hair out of his face. Kissing him on the cheek, she whispered something he couldn’t hear before getting up.

 “Let’s go back.” Ingrid grabbed his hand now and this time he didn’t let go.

 “Yeah.” He didn’t ask her what she said. Sylvain had his own, private words for them, things he’d never repeat to anyone. When they reached his horse, he still kept his grip tight as he hopped on first. She raised a brow, the closest to a positive expression he’d seen so far. Not bothering to explain, he helped pull her up, settling her on his lap in a side-saddle manner.

 “I haven’t ridden like this since we were kids,” Ingrid commented, a little stiff as she looked at her dangling feet.

 “Not since you realized knights had to ride on their own.” He waited a second before asking. “Just this once?”

 “It’s silly.” Yet, she didn’t jump off, didn’t protest, just leaned against him.

 He released the breath he didn’t know he was holding as he wrapped his arms around her, taking the reins and urging his horse into a gentle trot. “That’s not a bad thing.”

 “No, it’s not.” She closed her eyes. “Thanks.”  

[clownsgobeepbeep]

Kiss

Wanted to try my hand at finally writing some Mary...hmm...some gay stuff, yes, yes

Curly hair was wilder than before, having been slept on for not very many hours. Not like it mattered, her dancing alone was more than enough to muss up her style.

“How long were you awake for this time?”

A voice with a slight accent spoke from the darkness that wasn’t really a darkness, instead a sunlight that was held back by lilac curtains. The voice’s owner had a silhouette that stood out through this darkness, moving slowly and carefully onto what was a bed that now sank with her weight.

Curly hair was moved from the face of the person the locks belonged to, now tucked behind her ear as her eyebrows became furrowed.

“More like, what time did you drop dead?”

No response came from the person who had already been on the bed, the only reaction being a smack of her lips and she attempted to pull her teal covers over her face.

“Don’t ignore me.”

A sort of mumble came from her lips that soon felt the feather-like touch of fingers that remained soft despite the amount of rough work they were put through. They now trailed away from the lips and down the girl’s chin, turning so that the back of them caressed her warm cheek.

“You need to stop sleeping so late, Mochi.”

“No.” the girl finally replied, smacking her lips once again as she hugged her blankets even more, ignoring the fact that the tips of the other girl’s fingers were now on the lining of her face. 

Soft lips planted themselves onto her cheek, forcing her to finally peek her eyes open in the slightest way, not that she could exactly bring herself to completely open them due to the blinding light that wasn’t that powerful. Through drowsy and blurred eyes she saw the perfect shape of a young woman, lips curled up into a beautiful smile meant only for her. A beautiful shade of blue orbs stared down at her, not bothering to blink as if to stare at her longer.

“Ansel.”

“Hm?”

“An...Ansel...longer…”

“Ansel told you to stay longer?”

A slight and lazy nod came from the girl in bed as her eyes shut once again, not bothering to react when she received a slight shove on the shoulder.

“Marianne Vidal, don’t you lie to me.”

“Mmm.”

“Ansel called me to tell me you refused to leave.”

“Fun.”

“It was fun?”

“Ye.”

“Well your fun has kept you in bed till 3.” the other woman shoved her once again, sighing when Mary brought the covers over herself. “Mary.”

“Mm.”

Mary’s lover could only blink down at her worm-of-a-partner, seeing as the blanket rose every now and then with every one of Mary’s soft breaths. There was no winning this one, Mary always being the type to party all night before passing out and sleeping all day until the night rolled around again. She got away with it most of the time, but this would not be one of those moments.

The other woman, Sato, removed herself from the bed they shared to then make her way to the very end of it. Here, her hands found the end of the large blanket Mary concealed herself with, snaking her hands beneath it before her body followed through. 

In the darkness created by the blanket were Mary’s bare legs that were barely covered by the pajama shorts she wore, her abdomen also revealed as she only wore a cropped top. This was enough for Sato to trail her fingers over Mary’s exposed skin, the latter shivering at the cool touch she never expected.

With the small illumination that came through the blanket, Mary opened her eyes to look down and see Sato climbing over her, offering kisses that were peppered over her stomach.

“What a wake-up call.” Mary groggily spoke, finally awake enough to keep her eyes open and move her arms over her lover’s body. “Good morning.”

With Sato now completely over her, Mary placed her tired hands on Sato’s cheeks as the former held herself up with a hand on each side of Mary’s head. She leaned down, soon enough placing her lips onto Mary’s somewhat dried ones. She was always so stubborn when it came to wearing lip balm.

“Good morning.” Sato replied after removing her lips from Mary’s, now giving the latter a quick peck on the nose. “Are you finally going to wake up?”

“If I get more kisses...perhaps.” Mary blinked once after her lips curled up into a sleepy smile. “Maybe some Ramune.”

“I think you had enough of that last night.” Sato brought herself closer down, using a plank-like position to hold herself as her body was still pressed against Mary’s. “I saw the bottles.”

“Aaand?” Mary gave a goofy giggle as she placed her arms under Sato’s. “It’s never enough.”

“Just like your boba?”

“Just like my Boba.” Mary leaned up to kiss Sato who had fixed her body once more, now laying between Mary’s legs. “I never have enough of you.”

“Good answer.” Sato leaned down to kiss Mary’s cheeks, intending on removing herself from Mary who made sure to hold her back.

“You woke me up, you’re staying here.”

“I am not, I have things to do.”

“Like?”

“Feeds the babies. You’re helping me out, it’s can night.”

“Hm. Good point.” Mary slightly nodded with a smile, then chuckling as a new sinking happened on their bed. “Speak of the devil.”

“Macintosh.” Sato turned her head to where a new figure came into view, an adult feline that slowly made its way over to the pair. “So nosy.”

“He is.” Mary removed her arms from Sato, now reaching out to the cat that rubbed its furry body on Sato’s arms. “Come here baby.”

“Well, I’ll leave you two then.” Sato finally stood up, looking around the bedroom to see that other cats had come by to see what was the hold-up with their Friday treats. “What do you want to eat?”

“You know the answer.” Mary gave a smirk as she looked behind the cat she had placed on her chest, giving Sato a look that made the latter’s cheeks flush red. “Fugu, duh.”

“Ew.” Sato jokingly rolled her eyes, especially as she realized that word alone had caught the attention of their feline friends. “You did promise to take me to that new restaurant by the sea.”

“The expensive one?” Mary faked wide eyes. “What kind of money does it look like I have Sato-Bear?”

“The kind of money that bought me a new bike the other day.” Sato picked up the cat known as ‘Macintosh’ from Mary’s body, setting it on the carpet before she sat on the bed to hold Mary’s chin between her thumb and index finger. “I still have to pay you back for that.”

“You know how to do just that.” Mary giggled to herself, finally sitting up to hold Sato’s features before their foreheads were pressed against each other.

Their eyes were now shut as they ignored the cats for just a few moments, faces so close they rubbed their noses together before Sato whispered.

“Kimi ni muchu nanda.”

“Well you drive me crazy when you speak Japanese.” Mary gave a purr.

“Ii nioi.”

“It’s that new perfume you got me.” Mary whispered back as she rubbed her thumb over Sato’s cheek, almost teasing herself as she restrained herself from giving Sato yet another kiss. “Or maybe the Ramune.”

Sato opened her eyes for a moment, giving Mary a look that made her shrug in a playful manner.

“Or cotton candy.”

“Omae wa baka da.Anata nashi de doshitara O nodesu ka?”

“You’d be the single mother of many, many, many...cats.” 

Sato once again rolled her eyes at Mary’s response, smiling at the comments she always made.

“Kisu shite.” Sato brought herself closer to Mary, the latter meeting halfway.

“No need to tell me twice.” she spoke, closing the gap between them as their moment was sealed with a final kiss.

“Mary?”

Mary’s eyes shot open, her curls wild enough to cover her face like the curtains she typically awoke to.

“Shit, we thought you had actually died this time.”

“Wha...what…” Mary blinked, having to do this quite the few times until her vision was no longer blurry and she could properly perceive the figures that stood over her. “What...what time is it..”

“Time...to wake up?” a woman’s voice spoke, Mary seeing as she crouched down to slightly shake the latter’s shoulder. “You haven’t had a turn in a while, figured that thing actually gave you a break this time.”

“Thing?” Mary yawned out, finally bringing herself to a sitting position as she realized there was a darkness, slightly illuminated by the neverending full moon in the sky above as well as the roaring fire she had accidentally slept too close to.

Once she had come back to her senses, she looked to her left, and then to her right.

No lilac curtains.

No teal blankets or pillows.

No pink carpet.

No white computer.

No cats.

No...Sato.

Mary remembered. Life was no longer pink like that song she listened to...it was now a dull gray...a lifeless gray that spoke no Sato, only death and torture. Continuous death and torture.

“Right.” Mary brought her right hand up to her eye, rubbing it in an attempt to wake herself up some more. “How long was I out for?”

“A good while.”

“Like I said, we thought you had died this time. We couldn’t wake you up.”

“I never did sleep much, and when I did...it took a bit to wake me up.” Mary informed the pair that helped her up, as she had kept her signature skates on. “Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.”

Mary stood before the scorching fire, every now and then the flame turning a peach-like color that resembled the color Sato adored dyeing her hair.

Mary clenched her fists as did her jaws, eyes furrowed as her left hand reached over to the charm that hung at her side. It was one of the parts of this desolate realm that kept her determined.

“Dakishimetai, Sato.”

[writtingfiction]

Golden deer Christmas party its a fun one my dudes (most competitive house they are having compeative Christmas parties)

it’s not two months late, it’s not two months late and filled with grammar errors.

pairing: None

words: 2k

Now, like usual, another event was coming up in the monastery that Byleth never truly experience. She doesn’t quite remember how the festivals were as a small child but over the past few years, she had been hired as extra security with her dad and company. Nevertheless, this year was different. She was a professor, with students that she taught. So, she wasn’t too surprised when the class approached her and asked about her experience with the Yule festivities.

“I’ve never truly participated in the festivities unless you count being on guard.” Byleth said. There were some gasps, and some students shaking their heads.

“No, no this won’t do.” Hilda said, and the rest of the golden deer nod their heads.

“Why don’t we throw you our own Golden Deer Party?” Claude said and there was unanimous agreement among the class, however, Byleth disagrees.

“No, you guys won’t be throwing anything, even if it is for my sake. The only celebration that I’ll be participating in is the ball. Am I understood?” Byleth said, giving her students her usual blank stare. There are some sighs but they nod their heads but this information doesn’t stop them.

—

It’s about a week and a half before the ball and she sees Claude and Hilda chatting, well, whispering like a pair of nobles. The hot gossip that’s being shared between them obviously important to catch their attention. For a moment she thinks to leave them be but Byleth remembers the reputation the house leader has and turns back around and walks back towards them. She could only get so close before they notice her.

“Professor!” Claude greets her happily, Hilda smiling right beside him. She gives the two of them a wary look.

“What are you planning?” Byleth asked, arms crossing. Claude feigns hurt, hand placed on his chest.

“Oh Teach, you would think your favourite student is doing something bad? Oh how you wound me.” Claude puts on the theatrics quite thick and it only makes it more obvious that he’s planning something.

“Yes, the theatrics aren’t for you.” Byleth’s narrowing gaze lands on Hilda. She looks cool and collected, however, she could press her and get something. “What about you Hilda, surely Claude can’t convince you to do anything physical.” The batting of eyelashes on confirms that the two of them are planning something.

“You’re right, Professor. Tried to get me to help him carry some oddly heavy boxes to his room.” Hilda said, shaking her head. “You should know better than to have a lady carry heavy things. Raphael would be a better option.” The look on Claude’s face though, tells Byleth that Hilda is telling some truth.

“Hilda, you said… ugh.” Claude straightens for a moment, sighing.

“So I was right, what are you planning?” Byleth pressured once more. Claude had a small frown on his face.

“Just some supplies for some concoctions I want to brew. I’m not going to create anything that will harm anyone, just some light experimentation.” Claude said. Byleth looks behind the two of them to see two large boxes. She gives Claude an unimpressed look. “I’m prone to not get it right the first time and occasionally break the tools. Come on, Teach, give me a break here.”

“I’ll let you go free this one time. If I see you trying to do this again I’m checking inside those boxes and confiscating what’s in them.” Byleth lets Claude off with a warning before she leaves them. The pair watches their teacher walk off towards the church, waiting till she’s out of sight before letting out a breath. A swift glare sent towards Claude and Hilda is ready to hit him.          

“We almost got caught!!” Hilda hissed.

“But we didn’t get caught! If it was anyone else, we would have been caught.” Claude said. “Now, are you going to help me carry these or not? Raphael is getting the rest.” There’s a heavy sigh that comes from Hilda’s lips.

“You owe me for this, and for saving your butt from the professor!” Hilda said.

— —

A couple of days pass, a week till the ball starts. The church has started to put up decorations for the ball. The morale was a mix among the students but for the most part, they were in high spirits. Especially the Golden Deer students, chatting with each other as if they’ve already celebrated. Marianne seemed to be more in the company of others as of late. Byleth was sure to notice, curiosity creeping in the more she noticed her students crowding together more and more.

She happens to catch Lysithea and Marianne together. Muttering to themselves as they muse over some magic books. However, she’s sure that isn’t the book they’re supposed to be learning from. It’s an odd white and red book compared to the rest of the pile of books that surround them. Byleth approaches them, however before she has the chance to get too close, Lysithea and Marianne turn around.

“Professor!” The two girls say in unison.

“Girls. What are you doing?” Byleth’s voice doesn’t portray anything firm, if not soft. Lysithea is the first to speak.

“We are looking into different spell books to help Marianne understand the concept for a spell.” Lysithea speaks with confidence, it’s nearly enough to convince the young professor.

“What spell?” Byleth said. Lysithea seems at a loss for words.

“Fimbultr.” Marianne’s quiet voice breaks the silence and Byleth nods.

“I’ll leave you to your studies. Take care to not overwork yourself.” Byleth said, leaving the girls to themselves in the library. When Byleth is gone, Lysithea deflates into her chair. Marianne turns back to the book and continues to silently read over the page.

“Thank you, Marianne, I think you saved us there.” Lysithea speaks up. Though she doesn’t see it, there’s a small smile that appears on Marianne’s lips, whispering a soft ‘you’re welcome’.

—— —— ——

Four days till the ball starts and only three days before the Golden Deer Yule mini party for their professor. Spirits higher than usual but not that the professor would notice. She thought that their excitement was for the ball. So when she came across Leonie and Ignatz arguing over something it caught her off guard.

“No no no, Ignatz. Why would you use those colours? It’s not— it doesn’t go with the theme.” Leonie said. The noise that came from Ignatz was something Byleth had never heard before.

“It—it does not go with the theme?” Ignatz said in disbelief. Byleth peered into the classroom. The two students were facing a table looking at ribbons of different colours. Their backs facing the entryway. “I’m sorry but you’re wrong Leonie. The way the colours compliment each other is much nicer if we go with this arrangement instead of this awful, eye-poking colour.”

“Just because you know the arts, doesn’t mean my arrangement isn’t totally an option!!” Leonie argued. Ignatz doesn’t usually get so fired up about things. Byleth decided to step in, she didn’t want Leonie tearing off Ignatz's arms off.

“Leonie, Ignatz, what seems to be the problem?” Byleth approaches tentatively, although her students don’t seem to notice. There’s a huff that comes from Leonie’s lungs and a relieved look on Ignatz’s face.

“Professor, I’m glad you’re here. We were discussing what arrangement of ribbons to put up for the…” Ignatz trails off, hesitant to say his next words. Before any suspicion can doubt Byleth’s thoughts, Leonie speaks up saving Ignatz.

“For the ball. This will be decorations we were told to set up in the classroom.” Leonie explains. Byleth nods and approaches the table to see a beautiful arrangement of red, green and white. There’s a second arrangement with a bold colour choice. Blue, green and orange, the ribbons were tangled together, not exactly a good combo.

“We would appreciate your opinion professor, settle this argument for us.” Ignatz said, regaining his voice. Byleth nods. She doesn’t let them sit in silence for long before she points to the ribbons Ignatz weaved together.

“This one would be better for the celebrations.” Leonie frowns deeper at her teachers' words while Ignatz’s pride grows. He does not show it but it shows in his eyes.

The three of them talk for a short while afterwards before Byleth leaves them. She misses the way her students scramble to grab more of the appropriate ribbon and hurry to have someone watch the door this time. Too close again for the Golden Deer, caught almost again for the third time. They hoped they wouldn’t have any more incidents and luckily they didn’t.

— — — —

The day of the celebration of the Golden Deer Yule party for their professor was going to go off without a hitch. Claude had the perfect plan to lure the professor. Saying he needed her help with a recent subject, he made a point to fudge his scores a little on the last quiz so that way this would seem more believable. However, when classes were finished and everyone parted ways to get ready for tomorrow for the ball and to finish the last details on the classroom since the professor was gone; He had trouble finding his teacher.

He went to the training grounds to see if his professor was there, but she wasn’t there. Next was the mess hall, wasn’t there either. He checked the main hall, followed by the main gate and then the pond. Claude scratched his head, wondering where his professor was. His eyes landed on the greenhouse, realizing he hasn’t checked there. His feet take him there.

He pushes one of the large doors open to the greenhouse. At first, he doesn’t see anyone, but venturing further he manages to spot someone. A smile appears on his lips, it’s his teacher. Her hands are packing down dirt, she just finished planting some new seeds. He tries not to sneak up on her.

“Teach!” He calls out, making sure not too loudly. Byleth pauses, turning around and seeing Claude. She nods before standing, brushing the dirt from her hands.

“Claude, to what do I owe the pleasure?” Byleth said.

“You know how I got that low score about tactics on the last quiz? I was hoping to get your help.” Claude said, He receives nothing but a nod. “Perfect, I have my notes back in class.”

“I’ll follow.” Byleth said.

The two of them left the greenhouse. Claude talking about the examples from the book Byleth gave him last week. Byleth gives some pointers although she doesn’t feel like she has to. She knows Claude doesn’t need these pointers, he’s making an amateur mistake. What did he have up his sleeve? But then again, he could truly need help. Byleth takes the latter and decides to take his ask for help seriously. She’s about to ask what specifically he needs help with when they walk into the classroom.

The classroom is brightly lit, the golden deer students and some others from the other classes throw confetti and yell ‘Surprise!’. She can see the ribbons she chose strung all across the room. There are some snacks and a large bowl of juice. It’s a warm feeling and the scent of herbs brought Byleth back to when she was a young girl seeing all the folks in the tavern, laughing and dancing the night away in celebration. The clearest part of the memory when she tried to join the festivities but ended knocking over her father’s drink onto him. The momentary pause before the largest of grins and hearty laughter was a memory she cherished.

“Thank you.” It was a whisper from Byleth but Claude heard it. He turned his head from his peers to her, the softest look he’s seen from her. A small warm smile on her face as she looked at her students. A small blush appeared on his face at how warm and happy she looked to be with them.    

“For you, teach, any day.”

[thegizka]

Our Time

Writer’s Month 2020 Day 4:  Long Distance Relationship

Byleth believes in the future that she and Claude are working towards, but serious news from over the border could mean they have less time to create that future than they thought.

Read it on Ao3.

Note: I do not own any aspect of Fire Emblem: Three Houses.

Byleth had only been to Almyra twice before, both times travelling only an hour over the border late at night.  She couldn’t venture very far because she wasn’t welcome, and peace wasn’t yet secure enough for an extended trip out of Fodlan.  It was much easier for a roaming prince to cross the border when he would be welcomed by many as a friend.  He never stayed long enough to socialize, though.  If word got back to Almyra, he would lose what hard-earned trust from his people that he had.

“The timing is terrible,” Lorenz said when she asked him to hold down the fort for a few days.  “Claude never did cultivate that noble quality of considering others’ schedules.”

“It’s not like he asked to nearly die on the battlefield,” Hilda snapped.  Byleth knew she was worried because she hadn’t complained about the extra work she’d have to do in her leader’s absence.  She had also nursed her brother through his more serious battle wounds.  She knew how bad it could be.

“Do you think the report is accurate?” Marianne asked.  “Could he really be dying?”

“That’s what I’m going to find out,” Byleth said.

“May the Goddess protect him,” she prayed.

Lorenz, Hilda, and Marianne were the only ones she told before leaving.  The fewer people who knew about her absence, the less likely it was that one of the disgruntled lords would try to seize power.  She also doubted her opposition would look kindly on her rushing to the aid of an enemy prince.  Neither Fodlan nor Almyra was favorably disposed to their union.

Byleth didn’t usually mind waiting, and experience had taught her that peace and unity took time and effort.  She had time, and Claude had a plan.  Eventually they would have the future that they both wanted.  She only wished this phase of the plan wouldn’t keep them so far apart.

She had known there would be a battle.  The Gonerils had informants just over the border, and Hilda was quick to share anything they heard about Claude.  A band of dissenters had been marauding the coastline, sometimes dangerously close to Fodlan’s border.  The prince had summoned his warriors to confront them.  It sounded routine, well within his tactical capabilities.  No one expected the scoundrels to have set a trap or Claude to be seriously wounded, possibly fatally.  Suddenly they didn’t have as much time to chase their future as they’d thought.

Byleth covered the distance in a day and a half.  She didn’t grant herself the luxury of admiring the scenery like Ignatz would have.  Sometimes in the quiet moments they shared, away from the politics that kept them apart, she’d ask Claude to describe a place they would someday visit together.  She loved watching him as he used words to conjure images of places held in his memory.  She could see his love for his country in his eyes, and he was extremely secretive and protective of the things he loved.  That he trusted her with his memories meant a lot to her.  She was looking forward to visiting those places and making more memories with him.

Her destination was not one of those places.  From the exterior, it looked like a farmhouse with an accompanying barn.  The buildings were tucked into the shadow of a mountain.  Byleth knew the facade disguised an intricate network of tunnels and rooms that could be extensively defended should the need arise.  No one but Almyran royalty and their closest guards knew about it..

“If anything happens and Fodlan is no longer safe for you, go there,” he’d said.  “I’ll meet you there and we can come up with a plan to keep you safe.”

“That’s not going to happen,” Byleth reassured him.

“But if it does,” Claude insisted, “promise me you’ll go there.”

She wasn’t sure what had spooked him that day.  Perhaps the unrest in Almyra was growing, or he had heard the rumors that a band of Those Who Slither In The Dark had escaped and were plotting against her.  He usually didn’t let such things get to him, but everyone has his limits.

“I will,” she promised, and relief washed over his face.

“Thank you.”  He kissed her hand affectionately.

“And if you’re in serious danger, I’ll be able to find you there, right?” she asked.

“If I’m in serious danger, you shouldn’t come looking for me.”

“But I will.”  She took his face gently in her hands.  “I would scour every inch of this earth for you if I could be by your side for a single moment.  I will always come back to you.”

His eyes said a thousand true things, many of which she felt more than understood.  It was strange to feel so much when for most of her life she had felt very little.  Claude made her feel the most, and the experience was as wildly beautiful as he was.  She wished she could feel this way with him forever.

“If it’s serious, I will go to the farm,” he conceded.  “Just don’t come to me unless it’s an emergency.  Wait for me to send word.  I don’t want you falling into a trap.”

“I’ll be careful.”

He kissed her to seal the promise, then pulled her into a hug.  They held each other for a while, drinking in each other’s presence.  Byleth never realized how starved she was of him until they were together like this, at peace and in union.

“I wish I could bring you back with me,” he murmured, lips brushing her neck.

“I wish I could make you stay,” she sighed.

That had been two months ago.  Now she crouched in the brush a safe distance from the little farm.  She hadn’t waited for him to send word because she wasn’t sure he would.  If he thought it would be safer for her to stay away, he wouldn’t ask her to come, even though she knew he ached for her just as strongly as she did for him.  He had lived his life too carefully to start letting his emotions override his reason now.

The guards at the farm were good.  Disguised as farmers, they made frequent trips between the buildings under the guise of agricultural chores.  Byleth had spent enough time around warriors, though, to notice the telltale signs in their movement.  She knew they were keeping careful watch while they appeared to work.  That they were so active confirmed her suspicion that Claude had been brought here after the battle.  All she had to do was get inside and find him.

She waited until dusk.  It was terrible knowing he was so close and not being able to rush to his side.  Their relationship remained a secret to all but a handful of their most trusted friends, and it had to remain that way.  Claude knew firsthand how a mixed marriage could polarize people, and even though their love was enough to endure the backlash, their future union had to unite their lands as well.

Byleth chose the barn as her point of entry, slipping inside as the sunset stretched long shadows over the land.  The guards seemed less attentive to this building, and it was evident why as soon as she entered.  The smell of wyvern cut through the dusty scent of hay and timber.  She felt nearly a dozen pairs of reptilian eyes bore into her as her vision adjusted to the low light.  Wyvern were fiercely loyal and sometimes dangerously territorial.  Walking into  one’s den was a sure way to get into trouble.

Despite this, she moved forward with minimal trepidation.  She had fought beside most of these creatures when Claude had brought his Wyvern Corps to Fodlan to stop Edelgard.  They recognized her as an ally, and several rumbled a low greeting as she passed, patting snouts and scratching behind their frills to reassure them.  Byleth noticed fresh scars and wounds plastered with pungent salves, signs of the battles they’d fought and their most recent skirmish.  It must have been a tough fight because no beast remained unscathed.  That made her worry.  There could be more truth to the rumors than she had believed.

With growing concern, she made her way to the back of the barn.  The Wyvern Corps’ presence was irrefutable proof that Claude was here.  The warriors were as fiercely loyals as the beasts they rode and would stay by their prince’s side no matter what.  But she had noticed there was a wyvern missing, and it made her worry a great deal.

She almost missed the large stall at the back of the barn because she was so intent on finding a way further into the compound.  The rustle of hay and a chirp brought her to a stop.  Appearing like a ghost in the thin light, Claude’s wyvern lay on a bed of hay, eyes looking at her intently.  He chirped again, and she went to him.

“That’s his name for you,” Claude had said when she’d first heard those syllables back at Garreg Mach.  They had just finished a strategy meeting for their planned assault on Enbarr, and as was happening frequently these days, she had sought him out to hear his unfiltered opinions and take comfort in his presence.

“My name?” she asked, gently scratching the wyvern behind his frill.

“He only makes that sound for you.”  Claude grinned.  “He must like you a lot.  It’s much cuter than his name for me.”

“And what does your name sound like?”

He made a series of clicks and growls that sounded ridiculous coming from a human throat.  She laughed, and Claude grinned brightly.

“It’s rare to hear you laugh, my friend,” he observed.  “It’s a nice sound.”

A warm emotion stirred within her when she met his eyes, something new and exciting that she wouldn’t mind feeling again.  She turned her gaze away, choosing to focus on the wyvern instead so she could sort through this new sensation.  He simply chuckled behind her and let the comfortable silence draw about them.

“Sh,” she cooed as the beast chirped the now-familiar sequence again.  She could see why he was separated from the rest of the wyverns.  His chest was a criss-cross of scratches, one wing was bound in a splint, and a large gash traced nearly the entire length of his side.  It had been treated and bandaged, but the cloth was damp from leaking fluids.

“You’re looking a little rough,” she murmured, rubbing his chin reassuringly.  He bumped her with his nose. “I bet the enemy looks even worse, huh?”  She scratched the patch of his neck that she knew he liked and was rewarded with a rumbling purr.

Byleth was torn.  She wanted to continue on and find Claude, but his wyvern also needed care.  Could she wait a bit longer?

“I’ll be right back,” she promised, patting his cheek before stepping out of the stall.  With the state of his wounds, the healers ought to keep their medical supplies nearby for emergency treatment.  She ducked into a nearby storage room.  It was mostly empty save for a few cratesr.  She popped one open to find bottles and jars of ointment, pungent-smelling like the salves slathered on the other wyverns’ wounds.  The labels were in the flowing, angular script of Almyran.  She could read just enough to understand the general application of each.  Byleth grabbed a few that promised to disinfect and encourage fast healing.  She dug into another crate to find large bandages.

The wyvern chirped her name again when she returned.  She rubbed his neck reassuringly before going to his side.

“Easy boy,” she soothed as she peeled back the old dressing.  He rumbled uncomfortably as the deep gash met the cool air of the barn.  It was oozing pus, but the bleeding had stopped.  She gently cleaned it, murmuring reassuringly as she did.  She took one of the disinfectants and carefully spread it around the gash.

Stepping back, she took a deep breath.  Reaching within her to the part of her that had been touched by the Goddess, she summoned the energy and poured it forth.  The magic wove itself into nosferatu and pulled the exposed tissue together.  The wound was large, and she was tired from the journey.  She also selfishly wanted to conserve some magic in case Claude needed it.  The Almyran people didn’t have many magical healers and were suspicious of Fodlan’s magical traditions, so most wounds were left to heal naturally.  She accelerated the healing process until the gash was past the potential of danger before releasing the magic and letting the Goddess’s powers fall dormant within her.  She then reached into her own pack and pulled out a jar of ointment.  The wyvern turned and clicked at her as she started applying it to what was left of the wound.

“Do you like that?” she asked.  “Marianne has more experience with warmblooded animals, but she thought this might help if you were hurt.  She’s always thinking of our non-human allies.”

Byleth finished dressing the wound with clean bandages before tending to the wing.  She knit the bone back together but kept the splint in place to discourage activity until the surrounding muscle finished healing.

“There,” she sighed, rubbing the wyvern’s snout.  “That’s about all I can do for you right now.  I hope it helps.”

He exhaled against her stomach, making her chuckle while she scratched behind his frill.

“Well this is a surprise.”

If Byleth had had a heart, it would have jumped in momentary panic.  She turned around.  Claude leaned in the entrance, eyes wide with surprise.  Bandages covered his torso, and he leaned on one leg as though avoiding putting weight on the other.  But he was there, and he was alive.

She walked the short distance to him slowly.  His eyes were tired but vibrant as they studied her face.  His gaze softened when she reached him and gently wrapped him in a hug.

“It really is you,” he murmured.  “I thought I was dreaming for a moment.”

“I’m here,” she promised in a whisper.

“Why?”  He pulled back so he could look at her.  He gently brushed some hair from her face.  “Don’t get me wrong, I am unbelievably happy to see you, but why are you here?”

“I heard about the battle.  I was worried.”

He blinked in surprise.

“I sent word that I was fine.  Did it not reach you?”

“I left right away.  I wasn’t sure there was time to wait.”

“I know you worry, but you need to be careful, my love.”

“Sh,” she hushed, cradling his face gently.  “I am here now.  Let’s leave it at that.”

“Okay.”  He gently rested his forehead against hers.  “Okay.”

They stood in silence together practicing the art of being.  Once again, she felt how heavily his absence had weighed on her.  She never felt so whole as when she was with him.

The wyvern behind them clicked and growled Claude’s name.  He chuckled.

“Someone’s feeling a little left out.”

Byleth let him pull away and limp over to the creature.  He spoke to it in Almyran, murmuring in beautiful, lilting speech that she only partially understood.  She loved the cadence of his voice and watching him interact with his wyvern.  He was somehow less guarded, perhaps because he had grown up with this beast.  It was one of his closest friends, and it was nearly impossible for him to hide his affection.

“You’re bleeding,” she said, noticing the bandage along his side turning crimson.

“I’ve been doing that a lot lately.”

“Should you even be out of bed?”

“Probably not.”

“Claude!”

���I’m fine,” he assured her, though he let her help him into a sitting position with his back resting against his wyvern’s side.  “I just thought this guy could use some company.”

The wyvern nosed his chest in concern.  Claude patted his nose to calm him.

“What happened?” Byleth asked as she carefully peeled back the soiled bandages.

“The luck of battle,” he grunted.  “It was not with me.  Some archers on the other side got in a few lucky shots instead.”

She counted three puncture wounds and half a dozen bruises.  It was amazing that he’d been able to stand, let alone walk to the barn.  He must be under immense pain.

“It’s not as bad as it looks,” he promised, though it was hard to believe him.

Byleth was already manifesting the Goddess within her and weaving magic into nosferatu.  She poured her intention into her work, tenderly treating his wounds.  Muscle knit together and bruises faded.  She knew the energy was taking a physical toll, but she was determined to ease his pain as much as she could.  That was largely why she was here, after all.

“Don’t overdo it,” Claude cautioned, gently grabbing her wrist.  “I can afford to heal on my own a bit.”

She wanted to continue until the wounds had disappeared, but the reassurance in his eyes and her fatigue convinced her to let it be.  The magic faded, leaving the wounds red and tender but no longer bleeding.  She took a moment to catch her breath before reaching for some ointment and bandages.

He took her hands once she had dressed his wounds and kissed them tenderly.

“Thank you,” he murmured against her palms.  The hair of his beard tickled her fingertips.

“I haven’t even looked at your leg yet,” she chuckled, trying to pull her hands back.

“Leave it,” he said.  “It’s just a sprain, and you’re already exhausted.  You must have traveled nonstop to get here.  Rest while we still have some time together.”

He was right.  She’d have to leave in an hour to avoid detection and return to Fodlan.  Their stolen moments were never long enough.  Byleth settled into the hay and nestled against Claude’s uninjured side.  He took her hand and held it against his chest, kissing the crown of her head before resting his cheek against it.  She listened to the steady, reassuring beating of his heart.  She could have fallen asleep there wrapped warmly in his love, but she didn’t want to waste their precious seconds together.

“Claude?”

“Yes, my love?”

“Tell me something.”

“What?”

“Anything.  I just want to hear your voice.”

He chuckled, and she felt it vibrate in his chest.

“Alright then.  In two days, it will be the twentieth day of the Great Tree Moon.”

“Yes,” she grinned, thinking he was being silly and listing mundane facts.

“On that day nine years ago, Dimitri, Edelgard, and I got separated from our classmates during some evening training exercises and were set upon by bandits.”

“I thought you snuck away from the others.”

“There was never enough evidence to prove that,” he chuckled.  “Regardless of how we got there, we were almost surely going to be captured or killed until a band of mercenaries led by the famed Captain Jeralt and the Ashen Demon routed the thugs and saved the future of Fodlan.”

“That was nine years ago?” she asked.  It felt more like three or four.  She’d lost five years to a coma.  Sometimes she wondered what might have been different if she had been awake to guide her students through the turmoil.

“It was.  Nine long years of fighting and bloodshed to create the future we believe in, and we still have a ways to go.  But on the twentieth day of the Great Tree Moon next year, I’m going to marry you.”

Byleth sat up quickly to see whether he was joking.  His eyes were earnest and soft, and they filled her with the conviction that he was making her a promise.

“Whether or not we’ve brought peace to Almyra and Fodlan, although I expect we will by then, we should get married.  I don’t care if it’s a tiny ceremony at Raphael’s inn with only the Golden Deer around to witness it.  The only future I want is one where we’re together.  What do you say?”

She felt emotions stir within her that were too big to name.  They spread through her body and swelled in her throat until she wasn’t sure she could speak.  But what could she say?  Claude had already spoken her desires for her.

“You’re crying.”  His eyes went wide in surprise, and a touch of fear passed through them.  Byleth reached up to her cheeks and felt their dampness.  She laughed in surprise.

“I’ve never been this happy before.”

Claude chuckled with relief as he wiped the tears away.

“You had me worried for a moment.”  He held her face, thumbs rubbing her cheeks gently as he grinned.  “I take it this scheme sounds good to you?”

“Yes,” she beamed.  “I think it’s a winning strategy.”

His grin grew wider as he kissed her.  She kissed him back, sealing their new promise.  Somehow the future they wanted seemed much closer than it had this morning.  One year.  They just had to get through one more year.  Then they’d have all the time in the world together.

[josy72]

Portrait of a Lady on Fire 🔥

Intervista del 14 /02/ 2020

The Black List Interview: Noémie Merlant & Céline Sciamma on PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE

Kate Hagen

My favorite movie-going experience in 2019 may have been seeing Céline Sciamma’s exquisite PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE at the 105-year old Prytania Theatre in New Orleans as a part of the New Orleans Film Festival. Being in an ancient theater only added to my immersion in the film’s sumptuous, sensual world, created by Sciamma and her incredible lead actresses, Noémie Merlant and Adèle Haenel. I spoke to Merlant and Sciamma about how they built a welcoming atmosphere on set, the power of the female gaze in narrative, secrets in cinema, and much more.

Noémie Merlant

What was your experience like reading this script for the first time? What resonated with you about the portrayal of Marianne?

It was a huge experience reading this script, because what I felt is that it represented something we’ve missed — these images, representations, and stories that we’ve been missing so much of. I realized that while I was reading that because we’re in a society and culture that is so inside the male gaze that we don’t even notice that this is the male gaze, this is one gaze — while I was reading it I realized that. And then, everything was so detailed — everything was in the script so the script was alive. There was all the breathing, the looks, the movements, the desire that was crawling…it was slow, and it was taking the time to build this love story of a woman and it was all about details taking the time, building excitement, expectations and desire slowly with new images, like the sex scene.

And so I realized the power of this love story. Marianne touched me really deeply because she’s a really modern character. She’s a curious voyeur, she’s a painter, she doesn’t want to get married. She is modern in that way, and that represents all these women that we’ve forgotten and erased from society and history. These painters — hundreds of women from that period were just erased. Through this love story with Heloise (Adèle Haenel) she finds her style of portraiture, because of their collaboration. She feels so grateful to be a painter that she’s stuck in the rules and the ideas and the way of “do a portrait that’s very good” and she’s stuck in this vision.Heloise wakes her up: “This is not me, this is not you, this is not us. This is not a woman, this portrait is not representing us.” And at that point, my mind changed. This script, for me, was what Heloise was for Marianne.

Throughout the film, we’re breaking out of that idea of the male gaze too — challenging rules by the old masters to create something entirely different. What was the most challenging part of creating this character for you? What was your favorite part about playing her?

There was not one scene that was particularly harder than another. What was hard was to keep something, a feeling, present from the beginning to the end of shooting the movie — there was a lot of restriction because of the period and the costumes and the dialogue and the light and the focus, it’s candle-lit. Every movement was written. I was finding a way to make it alive, and include me and my vision as an artist, too. I knew that I couldn’t move much while I was sitting, that I had to say the lines and do a smile or a gaze…But it was really trying to find a new way to look at Heloise each time, to find a new way to breathe. As the story grows and the desire grows too: Having a smile more open, more large, having movement more free, dresses less tight, and everyone smiling more.

I think the film does a great job of exploring the necessity of the collaboration among women that happens around art, but I also really loved that the film is about female kinship on all levels. Whether that’s making a meal together, sleeping together spending time together. What was the atmosphere like on set as you guys were creating that little bubble of the three of you in the house spending time together?

On set, the way that Celiné works is to create an environment of respect and kindness. But it’s about having fun too— we’re of course being serious because we’re working, but at the same time, we’re having fun. For this movie, we were all together in a house, we called it “Champs Mer.” Like the movie, we were all together in this house, the girls were together, and we were always together in creating and discussing what we did. It was really a parallel of the movie and the experience of the movie.

What do you hope modern audiences take away from PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE, which is a very different take on a period film than we’ve ever seen before.

Despite the fact that it’s a period film, it’s modern because it shows things like the abortion scene that we’re not used to seeing. The sex scene is an entirely new image, a new representation of the lesbian story which has of course existed before, but has never been present enough. The female gaze and intimacy of women…that’s a story that hasn’t been told, with the woman as subject and not as object. This feeling of creating mirrors this new experience of love — the excitement of imagination and artist collaboration, and the desire that grows slowly in details and images.

Céline Sciamma

How did the initial idea for this film spark within you? What was your writing process like knowing you were going be directing the film as well?

Well, I wanted to write a love story, I wanted to dedicate a film to love and to desire. And to have these two emotions embodied very patiently — what the process of falling in love actually looks like, moving away from the conventional idea of love at first sight and romance.

The chemistry between Noémie Merlant and Adèle Haenel in this film stars with a smolder then becomes incendiary, as you mentioned. How did you work with the two of them in pre-production and on set to make their relationship be viscerally felt on screen?

This chemistry definitely burst in front of my eyes during the casting process. First, I met Noémie alone with my casting director — she made a strong impression. Then during callbacks, the second round was with Adèle, and when I saw the both of them in the frame I knew that this was right.There was this strong physical contrast that I was looking for, very cinematic, but there was a strong also sense of equality, since they’re the same age, same height, and both have very strong intensity. We stopped there! We didn’t rehearse at all, so that they would actually meet on the set and during pre-production. Sometimes I rehearse before shooting, it depends on the film — WATER LILIES we rehearsed a lot, GIRLHOOD we rehearsed a lot, TOMBOY not at all, and PORTRAIT not at all. Because it was about love and all the danger of the unknown, it felt right for all of us to actually also be in that position.

There’s a sort of pervasive sensuality in this film — whether its a smear of paint or crumb of bread, we’re immersed in the same sensual world that the three leads are in. How did you work with your various department heads to make the world of this film come alive?

By being really minimalist regarding set design. It’s a paradox — even though this film is period piece, this is a film where I had less innovation on the set design because we’d come to this castle in the Parisian periphery where we shot most of the film, and it was untouched for… 150 years? So, the color of the walls…we didn’t choose that. [laughs] We entered this room, and we decided that we were gonna leave it that way. And there was a vibe from the past that actually made me super confident — so whereas in my previous film [GIRLHOOD] there was a lot of set construction, even the teenager’s rooms, there was no fourth wall, so then we decided to put very few things in the frame, just wooden boxes and fabric that was very low-key: linen, cotton. This also extended to the costume design, but with fabrics that were silky. To anchor the film and the sociology of that particular moment in Brittany— period pieces are often mundane, you know. We built the bed, we built the table in the kitchen, we felt we were inventing very minimalist furniture.

There are so many elements in this film that reflect modernity and almost an otherworldliness that we don’t often see in period films, whether that’s the abortion scene or the ghostly visions, or the psychedelic sequence. At what point did you decide to bring in these contemporary trappings to a tradition period film?

They all came up along the way, like “Oh, I want Adèle to appear because it’s mostly about ideas. I want Adèle to appear as a ghost because it’s the present of a love story, but also a memory of a love story, the contagion of these two layers.” The idea behind this is the fact that the minute Noémie falls in love and she knows it, she’s already haunted by the last image that she will see of Adèle. And then, when you have this idea, you try to really be brave about it and be generous about it, not make it this little anecdote, but put it all over. That what happens with Orpheus and Eurydice for instance — I was looking for a scene, a sort of “Netflix and chill” scene between the three girls where they would be super involved in a climatic bit of fiction, and then talk about it, and do a whole show of suspense. And then I thought, it’s also a way to see the myth from a woman’s perspective, and from the perspective of Eurydice. Sometimes it’s just an image — like for instance, Adèle on fire is an image that came out of nowhere, but was immediately like “I want this.” Suddenly, it gives you the title, suddenly, you have to find, “Why would she be set on fire?” So it should be outside, it should be a great fire, and then it’s “Maybe it should be a bonfire!” It’s strange to believe in your intuition and connect things that are not supposed to be connected. You begin to build the plot around strong desire for certain images that have mystery, and suddenly, you bring enough in to not rely on the mystery, but to connect them and to build the narrative around them.

Your last four films have been about developing the female identity, however that may look. Do you feel like you’re making a films in similar thematic territory, or is each film its own thing?

Well, after the the sort of adolescence trilogy (WATER LILIES, TOMBOY, and GIRLHOOD) I really felt like I was departing with PORTRAIT because it’s a story about grown-ups, with professional actresses and a love story that is fully lived, whereas before there was always a love interest, but it was mostly desire as a way to discover yourself. With this one, even though they are discovering themselves, it’s about this iconic couple, this duo and how a love story involves immense patience.

I’m still thinking about the last ten minutes of this film — that art show sequence is so breathtaking, especially as it concludes with the book in Heloise’s hand. You were speaking earlier about finding images before finding the plot — did you already have the images in mind for that ending sequence at the start of the film?

The last scene I had in mind since the beginning, I basically did the film to land there. But I didn’t actually think about the fact that there would be three endings, because there are three endings of the film. For instance, from the book, the page 28 reference, that’s a totally different process — it’s really about looking at a lot of painting at the time and the art of portraiture. I liked the fact that there were little secrets involved, and I decided I had to hide a secret in the painting. I thought it would be in the painting that Marianne would do, but then maybe it could be in the painting that Marianne would see. I had a list of different types of secrets, it’s very codified — for instance, in painting at the time, especially for marriage portraits, there’s a cage and a bird inside, if the door is open, it means she’s not a virgin anymore, if it’s closed, she is. I was finding our own little secret code, and also relying on the audience’s pleasure and intelligence that I’m always trying to think the audience has, that the viewers are the most intelligent person. It’s also knowing that the pleasure of being a viewer in cinema is about being immersed in a film and speaking the language of the film, and as the film goes more and more and more, you speak the language of the film, and the page… it’s a fucking number, but suddenly it means something for you as much as it means something for the character. That’s the kind of thing I’m always looking for — I thought about it for months, finding just the right treasure.

[frozenartscapes]

Monsters Don’t Save People - Part 2

I was inspired to do a follow up to the first part, found here. I might��have kinda combined it with what happens in Shambala but with someone else we know who can turn into a giant, magical monster.

---

“What do you mean you lost them?!”

Her scout captain took a step back in alarm, not used to hearing such an outburst from the Emperor. “I...I apologize, your Majesty,” he stammered, “But after that attack in the village the other day... In the chaos, we lost the trail. I’m afraid we have...erm, nothing.”

Edelgard grimaced, her teeth gritting so tight they were beginning to hurt. “There are no signs anywhere of where they might have escaped to? No magic signatures? Discarded weapons? Footprints?”

He shook his head in dismay. “We will keep looking, your Majesty,” he vowed, “And your spymaster is conducting interrogations of the surviving villagers as we speak. But...it’s not looking hopeful.”

A spike of frustration and anger shot through her heart. She clenched her fist to the point her gauntlet strained under the pressure. “Then keep looking. You may go,” she commanded.

The scout captain nodded, failing to hide his relief, and scampered out of her tent to the relative safety of their base camp.

Once alone, Edelgard returned to her desk with a map of Fodlan spread out across it. Little flags and markers traced the path they had taken so far, all on the hunt for Those Who Slither and their hideout. They had been following a decent lead, until their foe took drastic action, flooding a village along their route with mutated monsters in an attempt to distract them.

Apparently, it had worked.

Edelgard let out a low growl in frustration, scouring her map and attempting to figure out where they might have run to. Every possibility didn’t seem likely. Her enemy this time around wasn’t as predictable as a foreign power. They were elusive, sneaky, and desperate. They could have led them on a wild goose chase before warping across Fodlan, for all she knew.

Anger surged again. Foolish. She was foolish for thinking this would be easy. She should have kept following at a distance. Assembling her Strike Team and attacking Those Who Slither alerted them to her plan. And now they were back to square one because she couldn’t be patient.

She had spent too long being patient. She didn’t have much time left, she couldn’t afford to be-

CRACK!

In her rage, she had slammed her fist down on her desk. But rather than stopping when it met the wood, she had struck with such a force that it went right through, splitting the solid wood desk messily in two.

Not expecting the table to give, her momentum sent her stumbling forward, into the wooden debris. She caught herself before she was flat on her face, but still had to take a moment to recover from the shock.

She let out a long, shaky breath. Calm. She had to keep calm.

She pulled her hand out of the wreckage of her desk and was anything but calm.

Black, charred skin. Long, razor-sharp claws. They had ripped clean through her metal gauntlet, leaving the shreds dangling from her hand.

With a startled gasp, she staggered backward until she collided with the edge of her bed. She shakily sunk down, eyes never leaving the monstrous appendage.

‘Breathe,’ a voice in her head instructed her, ‘Breathe. Calm down. Or else it will get worse.’

She struggled to take in a few weak breaths, but panic was quickly taking over. Her wicked hand clenched into a fist under her will, confirming that this was, in fact, real and a part of her.

Tears pricked in her eyes. ‘So it does come easier, now...’

“Edelgard?”

Her head shot up toward the entrance to her tent. Another attempt at a deep breath, and: “Yes?” Her voice only sounded slightly strangled, so she took it as a victory.

“Is everything all right? I heard a crash... May I come in?”

It was Marianne, and while she would rather not have anyone see her like this, of all the people who could have come to her tent she was probably the best. Edelgard gulped, and hid her mutated hand behind her back.

“Everything is...fine. Yes. You may enter.”

Marianne entered the tent with a look of concern on her face. Her eyes first landed on the destroyed desk, and a gasp escaped her lips as a hand shot up to cover her mouth. “Oh dear!” she cried, “What happened?”

‘Shit,’ Edelgard thought to herself. She had forgotten that she’d have to explain the desk. Her monstrous hand twitched behind her back.

Marianne turned toward Edelgard and her worry shifted in an instant. The Emperor’s face was deathly pale, her eyes wide and brimming with unshed tears, and body trembling like a leaf. It was such an odd sight to see of the woman normally so unflinching.

“Edelgard?” Marianne asked softly, “Are you ok?”

“I...” She thought about lying. But her confident “yes” had been caught in her throat. She might have been able to sound convincing but she knew she didn’t look it.

Marianne noticed how the Emperor held one hand tightly behind her back, and her frown deepened. “Are you hurt? I can take a look at it if you want, or I can go and get the Professor-”

“No!” That word fell out of her mouth before she could stop it, and it came tumbling out as if she fumbled something easily breakable. When she met Marianne’s confused and startled gaze, she sighed, “No. D...don’t get Byleth. Not...not yet.”

Marianne tilted her head in response. “But...” she began slowly. Something was wrong. Edelgard shared everything with her fiancée. Even Marianne knew that.

Edelgard swallowed hard and squeezed her eyes shut for a moment, resulting in a few wayward tears falling down her cheeks. “Promise me you won’t tell a soul about this,” she choked out, attempting to maintain authority despite feeling more and more like a helpless child chained up in a cell.

“I promise,” Marianne breathed. Concern filled her voice, but there was a gentle earnestness to her that gave Edelgard the confidence to reveal what was hidden behind her back.

Marianne gasped when she saw the monstrous appendage, her hands flying up to cover her mouth in shock. Though her eyes, wide with horror, showed a slightly different emotion.

Edelgard looked away from her, glancing back down to inspect her hand with morbid curiosity. “I...don’t know what happened,” she explained, trying desperately to hide the tremble in her voice, “I...was angry. Frustrated. And when I went to slam my hand on the table it just...”

She sighed heavily, clenching the hand of the Hegemon into a tight fist. “I suppose I will have to be more careful, now. Ever since becoming the...that thing...to win the battle a few weeks ago, my emotions have been...strange. More potent, and more volatile. This is proof, now, that it’s...dangerous...”

Marianne still gazed upon her with those big, brown eyes. Yet despite the lingering shock on her face, she took a step forward. Then another. Slowly, she approached until she stood right in front of the Emperor.

Then, without a moment’s hesitation, took that horrid hand in hers.

Edelgard couldn’t hide the terror on her face. She wanted to rip her hand away, but restrained herself only because she feared what those claws might do to Marianne’s delicate skin. As she floundered, struggling to find words that would gently tell this sensitive woman to get away from her for her own safety, Marianne did something she rarely ever did to anyone.

She smiled at her. Reassuringly.

“You are not dangerous, Edelgard,” she said softly, carefully running her thumb over the rough, charred skin.

“Yes I am,” Edelgard breathed, unable to tear her eyes away from her hand.

“Tell me, Edelgard: Am I dangerous?”

It was with those words that the Emperor found the strength to beat her fear. “Of course not,” she answered, confident, as she met those warm brown eyes.

“Then you are not, either,” Marianne told her simply.

Edelgard’s eyes widened. Of course: her Crest...Maurice...

“But you never... I have...”

“Perhaps I haven’t,” Marianne said with a small sigh, “But as long as the Crest of the Beast dwells in my blood, there is a chance. Do you still think me safe to be around?”

Edelgard nodded, perhaps a little too eagerly. “I would never consider you dangerous, Marianne. You’ve proven yourself to me countless times over.”

Marianne gave her hand a small squeeze. “And I watched a great, magnificent creature place herself between myself and a monster, all to protect me and my companions,” she said softly, “You could turn into the Hegemon right now and I wouldn’t be afraid. No one would.”

Edelgard stared into that gentle gaze, focusing only on the comforting touch of a fragile hand against her demonic one.

She had been so caught up in her emotions she didn’t even feel her hand change back.

“There, see?” Marianne said with a delicate laugh, “All that worry for nothing!”

Edelgard regarded her bare hand in total shock. Never had she been happier to see her scarred skin - at least it wasn’t that sinuous hide anymore. She looked back to her companion and offered a grateful smile. “I really must thank you, Marianne,” she said earnestly.

“No need to thank me,” Marianne replied, “I would not be here if you hadn’t helped me overcome my own fears. I simply returned the favour.”

———

Finding Shambala turned out to be the easy part, much to everyone’s dismay. Edelgard had been forced to dial it back, but her initial attack had scared Thales enough for him to fire a second warning shot, much like Arianrhod. Though that still meant undue soldier and civilian casualties, Those Who Slither had chosen to obliterate a small fort town rather than target anything big.

The mistake they made in doing so, however, was that it allowed Hubert and Linhardt to track the magic signature, something they had been working on since Arianrhod had been destroyed by a Javelin of Light.

Now they knew where Shambala was, and it was time to raze the snake nest.

It turned out the technology of Those Who Slither in the Dark - or the Agarthans, as they had learned - was far more superior than any of them realized. Edelgard even found herself cursing Thales and his ilk for utilizing such medieval and antiquated procedures on her and her siblings when it was obvious the Agarthans were well beyond that.

Still, she had to put it all behind her for the moment. The Agarthans had learned of the army sent to destroy them, and like fire ants out to defend their hill, were swarming them with wave upon wave of mages, monsters, and golems.

She and Byleth worked to keep the Eagles together, moving as one powerful unit rather than splitting up. But that eventually proved to be impossible in the onslaught of chaos, and eventually, Edelgard found herself alone.

She took down another mage with a Crest-enhanced swing of her sword, breathing heavy and sweat dripping on her brow. The brief lull between enemies allowed her to survey the battle taking part around her, and a fear she was becoming too familiar with struck her heart once again.

“Truly a shame, isn’t it? To lose so much…potential.”

Her blood went cold. Her grip tightened around Aymr’s handle. She spun around, rage boiling in her soul. “You,” she spat.

Thales seemed bored at best by her fury. “You once told me that your little human friends were strong, capable warriors,” he drawled, “Seeing them here now, I’m almost inclined to believe you. We could have made them better of course…” He paused when someone - Annette, it sounded like - screamed in fear and pain. A wicked smirk stretched across his face. “But alas… Nothing will remain after today.”

“You’re right about one thing,” Edelgard growled, readying her axe, “Nothing will be left, but of this wicked place! Of you and your miserable people!”

“Put that thing down, girl,” Thales warned, “Don’t forget who made it for you.”

“And now I’m going to prove how great a mistake that was!” She surged forward, letting out a fierce war cry as she swung Aymr back.

Thales merely raised one hand, and she collided with a solid forcefield of energy before she could so much as touch him. The resulting blast sent her flying, Aymr landing further away with a clatter.

“Do you realize what you could have been had you stayed with us?” Thales demanded as he stalked toward her. Before she could pick herself up, he struck her with another shockwave, sending her careening away.

“You could have been the greatest Emperor Fodlan has ever seen!” Thales declared. Another wave of his hand, and she felt some unseen energy pluck her up into the air, only to hurl her into a nearby pillar.

“You could have been a legend!” Another wave, and this time she was thrown into the far wall with a sickening crunch.  

“You could have been a god!” He pitched her high this time, slamming her up onto a platform elevated above most of the fight. Her body crumpled to the floor of the platform. She struggled to get her breath back, struggled to shake the spots from her eyes.

Thales appeared beside her out of thin air, and grabbed her by the throat. He hoisted her up so she could see below them, at all of her forces currently being just as trounced as herself. “But you can still be something,” he hissed into her ear, his slimy voice sending shivers down her spine, “Once this is all over, we’ll rebuild you. Fix the flaws we missed the first time. Yes… Perhaps grant you a third Crest… Mend that meddlesome mind of yours so that you’ll obey… You might have to be replaced, of course, but your contributions to the Empire will still be highly valued.”

Edelgard struggled against his hold, but no matter how hard she kicked and thrashed she couldn’t escape. Memories began to flood her mind, and suddenly she was twelve again, fighting against this same hold to no avail while her family died around her.

But then Thales let out a pained shout, and released his hold on her as if he had just been burned. Or shot.

“Y…you leave her alone!”

She looked up from where she was on the floor, only for her heart to seize in panic. Bernadetta, bless her, was standing a few feet away, aiming a nocked arrow at the Agarthan’s head. She was trembling from head to toe and was pale as a ghost but she still stood, staring down the most dangerous man on the continent.

Thales reached behind his back and tugged the arrow from his shoulder blade with only a small wince. “And what are you going to do?” he sneered as he stalked toward the terrified archer.

“What are you going to do?” Uncle Volkhard - no, he wasn’t her uncle anymore - let go of her neck and allowed her to fall to the floor, his attention now turned entirely to one of her older sisters.

Before her sister could respond, he struck her, hard, with such a force it knocked her to the ground, her bold, defensive stance rendered utterly useless.

“Take that one next,” her not-Uncle growled at one of the mages, and they hauled her beloved sister away before she could do or say anything about it.

They threw the corpse back into the cell a few hours later.

“No…” she breathed. She pushed herself up as far as she could, only sitting, really. A violent cough sputtered up from her lungs, bring a good portion of blood with it. And the pain that shot through her side told her she likely had a couple broken ribs. And even if she could stand, Aymr was down on the lower level and all she had left on her was a dagger.

She was once more that helpless little girl in a dungeon, unable to so much as protect her siblings the way they tried to protect her. Thales was going to kill Bernadetta, and all she could do was watch.

But then a low growl escaped her throat. One that wasn’t human.

Amidst the panic seizing her heart, she felt a fire growing. One that quickly became a raging inferno, boiling her blood and searing her skin from the inside out. This time she didn’t fight it, didn’t try to stop it, and it came naturally. Her bones split and stretched into something that almost felt normal, her skin ripped apart and hardened into charred leather and scales and for the first time since they got to Shambala she felt safe. She flexed wings she didn’t have seconds ago, swished a tail that hadn’t existed.

She was nothing but claws and fangs and dark magic and righteous, protective fury.

Thales prepared to crush this trembling little human like the bug she was, but suddenly a massive hand grabbed him, claws narrowly missing anything important.

Bernadetta watched as the Hegemon yanked Thales away from her, and her paralyzed eyes met those sinister red ones of the monster before her. The creature offered only one word, one that would ensure the archer’s survival: “Run.”

And so Bernie did.

Thales chuckled from her hand. “So the rumours were true,” he laughed, “You did produce the anomaly. Oh…my wondrous weapon!”

Edelgard slammed him against the wall, squeezing until she could hear his bones breaking. “I’m going to enjoy this.” Her voice came out rumbling, distorted, every bit as menacing as she felt. But he was squirming, and for once she did not care how much blood she was about to have on her hands.

“Yes…yes…” Thales gasped, “Such power… Never…never forget…who gave it to you!”

Something inside her stirred. Her head swam in emotion, all her tightly bottled anger and resentment being released and feeding her actions. She couldn’t contain the twisted grin that spread across her face. Finally. Finally. She’ll have her revenge for what he did to her. For what he did to her family. And what better irony - to be killed by the very monster he helped design?

But then another scream pierced through the vindictive clouds in her head. Suddenly the roaring thoughts of crushing Thales, of tearing him apart and bathing in his blood, were overcome by the sounds of the battle around them. Shaken by the shift in her mind, she dropped Thales, turning to observe below them.

The Eagles - her friends - were losing. Mercedes was administering a healing spell to Annette as Ingrid and Marianne fought off a monster trying to reach them. Hubert and Dorothea were doing what they could against the mages, but were clearly outmatched. Ferdinand, Petra, and Caspar had been pinned between two massive Titanus. Lysithea and Linhardt were both taking cover, trying desperately to heal each other. Ashe had found Bernadetta and the pair were attempting to provide cover but there were too many enemies. And Byleth…

She watched as Byleth charged at a particularly large Beast, managing to sink her sword deep into its throat only to have the blade be stuck there. The Beast went unfazed by the weapon and batted her away. It then ran at her, teeth bared and waiting for blood.

“You’re still…going to lose,” Thales taunted as he struggled to his feet, “Kill me now, girl, and you’ll still lose.”

Her jaw set, her mind made up. With a swish of her tail, she swatted Thales away like the insect that he was. She then leapt over the ledge and entered the fray.

Byleth braced herself for the Beast to bear down on her, waiting for its teeth to pierce her armour. But then there was a loud crash, the ground shook underneath her, and the Beast charging her was slammed away by another, more familiar Beast.

“El!” Byleth shouted in alarm, suddenly more worried about how and why Edelgard had once again transformed into the Hegemon Husk.  

Edelgard killed the enemy Beast with one swing of her claws. “It’s alright, my Teacher,” she said in a voice that did little to comfort Byleth at that moment, “I am in control this time.”  

Her red eyes then locked onto the golem about to crush Caspar under its foot. “Call the others back into one group. We must take our enemies as a unit.” She then surged forward, throwing the golem away as if it were a mere toy.

Byleth shook her head, snapping out of her stupor, and raised her sword to rally allies near her together.

Ashe and Bernadetta ran up to meet her, both helping Lysithea and Linhardt limp forward. “Is that…Edelgard?” Ashe asked, his face pale as he watched the mutated Emperor fight against the golem.

“She did it again?” Lysithea demanded, “Is she crazy?”

“She…she did it to save me,” Bernie stammered, shrinking in on herself as she spoke, “Oh gosh… I…I hope she doesn’t get stuck like that b…because of me.”

“It’s ok,” Byleth assured them, “I think El’s got this under control.” There was a loud bang and a flash of blue-green light as the Titanus exploded under Edelgard’s dark magic.  

“I certainly like our odds,” Ferdinand said as he and the others joined them.

“I’ll say! Did you see how she just smacked that thing away!” Caspar exclaimed, “Saved my ass for sure! I owe her one!"

“What’s the plan now?” Dorothea asked as mages and soldiers began to flank them.

“We fight, and win,” Hubert declared, reading magic in his palms, “For her Majesty!”

There was a low rumble, and cracks of dark magic surged through the ground under the enemy’s feet. Spikes erupted from the openings, decimating the group. “I appreciate the sentiment, Hubert,” a demonic voice said behind them, though the smirk was unmistakable even with the distortion.

As the Eagles regrouped, so did the Agarthans, surrounding them with groups of soldiers and mages. More Demonic Beasts burst from the shadows and charged. Archers lined up from the ramparts high above. A final Titanus exploded through the wall behind Thales’ throne, sword glowing and ready for blood.

“Ashe, Bernadetta: take the archers!” Byleth commanded, “Ingrid, cover Ferdinand, Petra, and Caspar as they take the soldiers. Mercedes, stay with them in case they’ll need healing.”

“Hubert, Dorothea, and Lysithea: mages. Marianne, you, Byleth, and Annette take on the Beasts. Linhardt, stay with them.” The Titanus slammed its sword into the ground, resulting in a wave of molten rock and fire to surge out toward them. Edelgard held out one hand, and a shield of purple energy stopped the wave before it could reach them. “The big one is mine.”

With everyone good with their tasks, the Black Eagle Strike Force moved out in one formidable unit. When one hit, another was there to hit again. If someone had their back turned, someone else was there with a shield. Magic and arrows flew true and swords and axes hit with strength and accuracy. United, they were unstoppable.

The Titanus fell to Edelgard’s claws and she turned to find the battle over. Those Agarthans left alive were fleeing, and all the major threats were dead. She couldn’t stop the small smile that broke through the scales on her face.

As the Black Eagles gathered together to celebrate, wicked laughter echoed through the city remains. Edelgard whipped around and let out an involuntary snarl when she spotted Thales, clearly too injured to fight, kneeling on what was left of the dais.

“You…will never enjoy your victory,” he declared through heavy breaths. His cold eyes met Edelgard’s one final time as the floor underneath him lit up in archaic runes. “For all Agarthans.”

The entire city began to vibrate. Dust and rocks were shaken loose from the ceiling. Linhardt, who recognized the runes, gasped in alarm. “No, it can’t be!”

Suddenly the entire ceiling was ripped open with a massive bang, rocks and debris raining down around them. Now that they could see the darkening sky, it became clear what Thales had done. A bright light appeared in the sky, almost like a star. But then it grew brighter, and brighter. Purple circles appeared as a giant column leading the light down to the ground. More lights appeared in the sky.

“That idiot isn’t that crazy, right?” Lysithea demanded in a panic.

“Head for the exit!” Byleth shouted, “Now!” She turned to El, who was still staring at the sky. She didn’t like how the Hegemon’s wings twitched in anticipation. “El, let’s go!”

Edelgard turned, just a little, so she could see Byleth. Magic began to form around the skeletal wings on her back, filling them in to resemble something more like an eagle’s. Something that could actually fly. “I’m sorry, Byleth,” she said softly, nodding to her family, “I won’t let him do it again.”

And with that, and a mighty flap of her wings, she was off and into the sky.

“No! El!” Byleth screamed as she watched her love go. She wasn’t the only one, as the others from the team all had similar sentiments.

Edelgard stared down the first Javelin, magic and fire dancing down her long arms and collecting in her hands. Once enough energy had charged, she released the powerful blast. The moment it connected with the tip of the Javelin, the entire thing exploded in a massive, brilliant fireball.

Another column of circles formed nearby, and she quickly swooped into that path to take out the next one.

And the next.

Her position was too awkward to catch the one after, and she was forced to watch it strike the opening of Shambala and hope she had bought everyone some time to escape. Another column formed, and she snapped out of her worry and intercepted that Javelin.

Byleth could only watch in horror. Edelgard seemed to be doing fine, but the few Javelins that slipped past her were really starting to bring the city down. Thales had been lost in the chaos, laughing like a maniac as the boulders from the ceiling caved in around him. It had been made abundantly clear just how destructive one Javelin was, and El was up there swooping directly into their paths to take them out, narrowly avoiding the infernos.

El managed to destroy one more Javelin, and what seemed like the last one. And for a brief second, there was a moment of respite where it felt like she could breathe. Like Byleth could breath. Edelgard spotted her down below in the rubble, and the universe stopped. Just for them. It was over, they both survived. Things could finally…

Byleth saw it first. That flash of light, the circles… She shouted for El, hoping she’d see it in time. Edelgard whipped around, only having enough time to see the gold tip of the Javelin before it struck her directly.

The explosion rocked the city now exposed to the elements. A chorus of screams and gasps was overpowered by the loud boom. Rocks and dust blocked out the sky, fire rained down upon them, forcing them to take cover.

As the dust settled, Byleth shot to her feet, shoving aside rocks and debris as she began a frantic search. “El!” she called out, hoping - praying. Yes, she just watched the woman she loved more than anything take a direct hit from a Javelin of Light but the Hegemon was virtually indestructible and Edelgard was even stronger than that. She had to have survived. She just…she had to.

She pushed a large boulder out of the way, revealing what was left of Thales’ corpse, half-buried under the rubble of the civilization he was once so proud of. A maniacal grin still smeared across his face. Byleth clenched her fists tight, so tight her fingernails dug into her palms. After all that, after every life he destroyed, he goes out like that? Crushed by some rocks moved by his own hand?

She spun away, feeling her anger beginning to reach a boiling point, and that’s when she spotted her. That red cape, so easily seen through the dust.

Byleth raced to her side, falling to her knees and carefully scooping the Emperor up into her arms. She felt so…fragile, now. And cold, despite the burns on her body. But, despite her injuries, her chest still rose and fell.

“El…” Byleth uttered, resting her forehead against her beloved. “It’s over.”

Slowly, lilac eyes fluttered open. A faint smile danced across Edelgard’s lips. “My Love,” she whispered, “We won.”

“We did, El,” Byleth replied, feeling tears on her cheek and not caring in the slightest. She heard the other Eagles shouting. She spotted Dorothea all but dragging Linhardt toward them. “Just hang on, a little longer. And I swear to you will have that day where we do nothing at all - just lounging around and eating as many sweets as we can.”

A breathy chuckle escaped Edelgard’s chest, a violent cough following not long after. “I’ll…hold you to that…” she said weakly. Her eyes began to droop shut.

“Just hang on, El. Hang on…”

…

“The path we walk isn’t at its end yet.”

———

Enbarr in was at its best in the Garland Moon. It was warm, but it wasn’t yet so unbearably hot it almost made one wish for a Faerghus winter. All the trees had fully grown all their leaves, the first of the summer blooms were in full swing, and birds sang without a care in the world as they flew about the gardens. The sun sparkled off the water in the Palace fountains, warming the stone balconies and filling the rooms with soft yellow light. The air was fresh, with a touch of salt from the nearby sea.

Edelgard drew a deep breath in from where she stood on her balcony, wincing only slightly. Her ribcage was still fairly sore, but the fresh air was more than worth it after spending so much time trapped in her bed.

“El?” Byleth’s concerned tone came from inside, causing her to sigh lovingly at her wonderful fiancée.

“I’m out here!” she called, and Byleth was there in moments, not trying to hide her relief.

“You shouldn’t be out of bed yet,” Byleth scolded, though her playful smirk and tone gave her away.

Edelgard pouted, just a little. “I’d argue that the healing benefits of a pleasant, summer day were too good to pass up,” she countered, “Besides. I made it out here on my own, didn’t I? That should mean something.”

Byleth frowned a little, looking around the balcony for something. “That’s…right,” she said slowly, “How? You can’t really walk yet and we had to steal you cane after you kept sneaking down into the…” That’s when her eyes landed on the small hand axe El kept near the bed should an assassin ever try anything. The handle on it was just long enough. “…study.” She levelled the woman she loved a tired glance. “An axe, El?”

“I am nothing if not resourceful,” Edelgard stated in defence.

“Well, you won’t need it for this,” Byleth said as she pulled out on of the chairs at the little table on the balcony, holding a hand out to assist El over to it. Once she was seated, Byleth  returned to the room for a moment, and Edelgard could hear the sounds of tea being prepared. Sure enough, Byleth came back with a tray of tea and an assortment of various pastries and cakes.

“It’s not a mountain of sweets, not yet. Manuela says you still have to watch what you eat until your injuries are fully healed,” Byleth said, “But I just thought that… Well, this could be the first of many leisure days to come.”

“The first, huh?” Edelgard said with a small laugh, “Funny. I feel as though I’ve had nothing but leisure days since our return from Shambala.”

Byleth smiled as she poured their tea. “I’d like to point out that a coma isn’t exactly relaxing,” she teased, “Nor is lying in bed worrying about your Empire.”

“I wasn’t…always worrying…”

“I walked in on you at one point trying to will yourself into good health, El. You never stopped worrying.” She chuckled slightly at the thought. “But today felt like a good one for taking a break.”

Edelgard took a sip from her cup, breathing in the warm scent of bergamot and feeling it sooth the lingering rawness of her throat. “I suppose it is,” she said softly. She gently reached out and took Byleth’s hand in hers, brushing one finger over the gold and ruby ring she had given her beloved. Byleth did the same, admiring how her father’s ring looked on Edelgard’s slender hand.

“I really must thank you,” Edelgard said after a pause, eyes never leaving their intertwined hands, “I…don’t think I would be where I am now were it not for you.”

“El, I…”

“I’m not even talking about the war,” Edelgard admitted, “I… There was an incident, not long after the village where I became the Hegemon. In a moment of anger and frustration, I began to turn into it again. And I was so afraid to tell you because…” She drew a deep, long breath, clenching her free fist. “I’ve known I was a monster for a long time. I might not look it. Or sound like it. But what they did to me… It changed so many things. I couldn’t…I couldn’t let you see just how truly lost I was.

“But then in Shambala, when we fought together when I was… It felt just as natural as ever. Like I hadn’t changed who I was at all, despite being a giant, hideous creature.”

“The Hegemon isn’t hideous,” Byleth said quickly.

Edelgard laughed. “It’s alright, Byleth. I know what I looked like.” She frowned a little then, almost mournfully. “It’s still…disconcerting that such a creature dwells under my skin. But that was the second time it fully came out and all I wanted to do was keep you all safe… I don’t know if such a thing would have happened had it not been for you.”

Byleth offered her a comforting smile, squeezing her hand a little for added emphasis. “I’m always going to be here for you, El. We all will be,” she said, “And I wouldn’t be here without you, either.”

Edelgard returned the smile with a warm grin of her own. Her heart fluttered in her chest, overflowing with emotions she hadn’t felt in what felt like an eternity. Watching Byleth now before her, trying and failing to daintily eat a pastry, only renewed the fire in her heart. Her friends were all safe. Her Empire and all of Fodlan was safe. Her family was safe.

And she knew what it truly meant to love again.

“Thank you again for this, Byleth.”

“You deserved something special. Happy Birthday, El.”

[peterxwade24]

BWYD Chapter 4

Marinette Runs Away

Bruce woke up the next morning, a mostly grey blanket pulled over his body and at least two pairs of eyes staring at him. He felt a smile tug at his lips before he peeked one of his eyes open, he saw a pair of green eyes and a pair of blue eyes staring at him. He scrunched up his nose and stuck out his tongue at his youngest two children. "What are you two monsters doing?"

They looked at each other before laughing. "Waiting for you to wake up."

Bruce let a smile bloom on his face before looking at his youngest daughter. "Mon Chou? Can you be a big girl and go wake up your brothers for me?"

Marinette nodded before she darted away to go start waking up the other four.

Bruce looked at Damian before he sat up and patted the spot next to him, indicating for the young boy to join him. "When did you realize she wasn't all that we made her out to be?"

Damian tapped his chin for a moment, emulating Tim when he was doing a crossword puzzle, before he turned to look at his father. "I think it was back when she was still only speaking in French. I saw some marks on her back that I just assumed were from Alfred the cat."

Bruce nodded and smiled at his youngest son. "Before you think she set the place on fire, I think a minion of one of the villains set fire to the bakery because they knew she'd called us in. It could have also been one of the villains themselves because they didn't like that we'd been called in." He looked up when he heard the tell-tale footfalls of his oldest son. "We'll talk more later, okay?"

Dick strode out of the room he shared with Duke, Duke just a few seconds later, before Marinette zipped across the room to wake up Jason.

Duke slumped down on the end of the couch and finished tying his shoes before looking over at Bruce. "Do you want coffee?"

Bruce nodded, combing his fingers through his hair, before answering Duke. "Black, cream, no sugar."

Duke rolled his eyes and nodded. “I know how you take your coffee B.” Duke looked over at Dick as he walked out of the bathroom. “You want coffee?”

Dick nodded before he scooped up Damian and settled into his spot beside Bruce. “Thanks.”

    ---

Marinette looked around the park, her eyes filling with tears when she didn’t see any of her brothers or father Bruce. Her eyes continued to search the park, catching a glimpse of green eyes. Marinette took off for the boy with the green eyes, not noticing his blond hair or pale skin.

The boy let Marinette cling to his arm, noticing how frightened she looked and walked with his mother back to their house.

“Remember Adrien, your father is at the main office today so we have to be careful where we-” Emilie looked over at her son, noticing the tagalong he picked up, “hello there. Where did you come from?”

Marinette looked up at the woman, noticing her companions’ blond hair, and felt the tears well up in her eyes. “I got lost.” The woman stooped down to Marinette’s level and offered her a gentle smile.

“Let’s get back to our house and see if you can remember your parents’ phone number.”

The three walked back to Agreste Manor, which was much smaller than Wayne Manor, and Emile led Marinette into Gabriel’s office.

“I’ll be right back. Adrien still gets lost on his way to his bedroom.” Emilie pressed a kiss to Marinette’s forehead before taking Adrien’s hand and leading him to his bedroom.

In their absence, Marinette took to looking around the room. She noticed a large painting of the blonde woman on the wall and, while trying to get a closer look, accidentally caused it to swing open. She looked at the two broaches, one looking like a butterfly and the other looking like a peacock, and an old looking book. She grabbed the three items and, upon hearing footsteps coming towards the office, stashed the items in the black bag she had at her side.

Emilie walked into the office and smiled at the young girl. “Okay, do you live here in Paris or elsewhere?”

Marinette looked up at the blonde haired woman, “we live in Gotham. But we’re here visiting my friends.”

Emilie smiled and walked over to the phone placed on her husband’s desk. “Do you remember where you’re staying in Paris?”

Marinette smiled up at the blonde woman. “We’re staying at Le Grande Paris!”

Emilie nodded and dialed the number for Le Grande Paris. It rang three times before someone picked up the phone. “Hi, this is Emilie Agreste. I found a child while at the-”

“Did you say child? About three feet tall, blue-black hair with the cutest blue eyes you’ve ever seen?” A gruff man’s voice rang out from the other line. “Hair is pulled up into space buns tied with black and blue striped ribbons?”

“Yes, yes. Monsieur. She’s fine. A little teary-eyed but perfectly fine.” Emilie offered the girl a smile. “We can meet you in the lobby of the hotel in ten to twenty minutes.”

“Please just bring my daughter back safe.” The man on the other end of the line hung up and Emilie rolled her eyes.

“Come on Little One, let’s go collect Adrien.”

The two walked up the stairs to collect Adrien, who had changed into different clothing, before walking out of the manor.

    ---

The trio were about three blocks away from the hotel when Marinette looked up and saw a small massage parlor. She stopped walking, causing her two blonde companions to stop walking, and Emilie looked down at her before looking at where Marinette was looking. “We can stop for a second but we have to get you back to your Father soon.”

Marinette’s face screwed up at the word. Father. Bruce wasn’t her father, he was… He was Bruce. She nodded and led her two blonde companions to the massage parlor. She let go of Emilie’s hand and opened the door. The massage parlor smelled like the kitchen in Wayne Manor and put Marinette at ease.

A short Chinese man stood behind the counter, looking over the people who had just walked in. His eyes going to the bag at the girl’s side before going back to her eyes. He saw something in her eyes that reminded him of MariAnne before looking at her blonde companions. “You look like you have someplace to be. Would you like to call to let whomever you’re meeting know that you may be a little late?”

Emilie nodded with a smile. “Thank you.” Emilie used the phone to call Le Grande Paris, Adrien clinging to her leg.

Marinette looked up when the short Chinese man extended his hand to her. “I think I have something that would interest you.” Marinette nodded and held his hand in her’s, letting him lead her to the next room.

    ---

Marinette looked up as they walked into the lobby of the hotel. She gasped and ran at her brothers. “Oiseau bleu! Jay-Jay! Tim-Tam! Oiseau jaune! Damian!”

Emilie stood by the doors, watching the young girl be reunited with her brother’s. She noticed the large black haired man standing off to the side as the six siblings reunited. “You must be her father.” Emilie extended her hand to the man with a smile.

“Thank you for finding her.” Bruce nodded at the blonde woman. “I’m Bruce Wayne. Thank you for bringing her back to us.”

Emilie had a sudden shock as she looked over the group of six siblings, noticing that they were in father THE Wayne family. “Of course,” her voice didn’t betray the nerves she felt simmering under the surface, “she was really sweet.”

Bruce nodded and handed Emilie a business card. “She’s the only one who’s sweet.”

    ---

The Wayne family relaxed in the living room in their house, two days later, all nine kids together for the first time in a long time.

Cass looked over at Marinette and noticed the black studs in her ears. “Did you get new jewelry while you were in Paris, Mini?”

Marinette smiled at her sister, watching as her other sisters finally noticed the new earrings. “Yeah.”

Dick, sitting next to Barbara, noticed her earring too and noticed that Marinette had started incorporating more red into her outfits. “What’s up Tiny Bat?”

“Nothing.”

    ---

Nightwing was on patrol, looking over the city when he saw a red blur move in the direction of the Manor. “Bats, we may have a situation.”

Batman’s gravelly voice came over the comm. “Nightwing, report.”

“Red blur moving in the direction of the Manor. Appears to be swinging.” Nightwing took off after the blur. “In pursuit.”

He watched as the blur landed on a building towards the edge of the property and landed on the roof behind her. He watched as she turned around at the barely-there noise of his feet on the rooftop.

Her eyes widened behind her red and black spotted mask, eyes that Dick swore he knew. But, he watched as she launched something, a yoyo, off in the opposite direction and disappeared from sight.

“Uh… Bats. Who’s at home right now?”

“Hood, Signal, and Orphan.”

Dick pulled out his phone and called Jason, who picked up after a few rings. “Hey, Jaybird. Is Tiny Bat there?”

“She’s in her room, why?”

“Can you double check?”

    ---

Ladybug sat in the cave, her head hanging with a blindfold tied over her eyes. She could hear the familiar footfalls of all of her siblings and her father Bruce and she tried not to squirm.

“What were you thinking?” Tim, Red Robin, demanded. “It’s dangerous out there!”

She let their voices wash over her, their concern and accusations falling on deaf ears. Angrily, she pulled the blindfold off and, with tears in her eyes, she stared down every single one of her siblings. “I was thinking I would help. I was thinking that I was tired of being lied to!”

Damian, Robin, stood behind her, his hands on her shoulders. “She deserved to know the truth.”

Dick whirled on Damian, his anger bubbling up to the surface. “You told her!”

“Don’t yell at him! He just confirmed what I thought I knew!” Her hands slammed down to her sides, causing tiny ladybug wings to appear on her back forcing Damian to step to the side, while she stared down her oldest brother. “I can take care of myself! I’ve lived through the destruction of my home and my family!”

Marinette watched the hurt flash through her siblings Bruce’s kids’ eyes. She turned away from them all and ran out of the Manor. She never thought the Mantle of Ladybug would weigh so much.

@dast218

[houseisekai]

House Isekai: Shadowbringers Act 2, Part 2 - By the time you hear this...

House Isekai Shadowbringers AU Masterlist Here

—

Upon discovering the true identity of Lahabrea, The Golden Deer and Investigation Team move deeper into the Zanado Tower.

It is there where they make a discovery that pushes them, and everyone in Fodlan into a race against time...

—

Unknown Tower, Zanado

[A Long Fall - Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers OST]

Claude and Yu moved first towards the crates with their weapons drawn.

The rest of the Golden Deer and Investigation Team followed behind, slowly looking around.

Yu opened the crates and bags of food. It was clear by the dust on them that they had been here for a very long while.

Claude came closer and examined one of the bags, picking it up.

Claude opened the bag, and small blocks of meat fell out of it.

(Claude) “...Huh.”

The meat hadn’t spoiled. In fact, it looked brand new. 

He took another look at the crate, and it appeared that the food had been here for a while.

(Yu) “That doesn’t make any sense. How is the food still fresh?”

Lorenz, Hilda, Yosuke, and Naoto moved up the stairs, taking note of the planks of wood, crates, and lanterns as they were passing by.

Some of them were sawn in half while others appeared to have been unused.

The wood was nailed onto the walls and crates stacked on top of each other were in front of them. 

As they moved up, there were other stairs that appeared to lead higher into the tower but the path with the open door caught their attention.

(Lorenz) “Has someone already been in here?”

(Hilda) “It must be that Lahabrea guy, er...was it Byleth?”

(Yosuke) “We’ll cross that road when we get to it. For now let’s keep our eyes peeled, yeah?”

(Naoto) “Yu-senpai, up here!”

(Hilda) “Claude, get your butt up here!”

Everyone moved up the stairs after they finished investigating.

(Chie) “We didn’t seem to find much, other than supplies.”

(Leonie) “Looks like a bunch of people were here working on this place. Though, I doubt it only took some magic and wood to create this entire place.”

(Lysithea) “No, it seems they were trying to keep something out.”

Everyone nervously looked at each other after hearing that.

Just how big was this tower?

(Teddie) “No use waiting, let’s go in!”

Teddie ran to the open doorway and was ready to fight, the others quickly following behind.

(Ignatz) “T-Teddie! We have to stick together and!-...”

(Teddie) “JEEZ, THIS ROOM IS HUUUUGE!”

Teddie stepped near the edge and his eyes almost went out of his bear suit.

(Kanji) “Holy shit!”

(Marianne) “H-How is this area so big?!”

(Rise) “My Persona’s scans are going off the charts! There’s so much happening and-”

Everyone reached for their heads as they heard Claude’s voice echo through the halls.

“As big class reunions go, this one’s gotta be the worst in history...”

KABOOOOOOM!

The tower shook violently, throwing people off their feet and into the ground.

(Claude) “Never thought the sound of my own voice would be that annoying...!”

(Yu) “I don’t think this is a good time to be cracking jokes.”

Everyone was trying to steady themselves before they heard something in the distance.

clang! clang!

(Raphael) “Hey, I think I hear people fighting!”

Raphael pointed to the end of the walkway, with a glowing circle-like shape at the end of it.

(Raphael) “It sounds like it’s coming from over there!”

Everyone went over near the glowing circle, and it began to flash repeatedly.

(Yukiko) “Um, what does that mean-”

Leonie took a step into it, which catapulted all of them forward into another walkway, soaring high above a massive gap that fell deep into the tower.

When they landed, it prematurely cut off their screaming as they fell onto their backs and stomachs.

(Yosuke) “Ack, I think I cracked my ass...!”

(Claude) “Leonie, next time WARN US before you do that!”

(Leonie) “S-Sorry! I didn’t know it would-”

She was cut off as they were suddenly transported into a massive open field in the middle of battle.

Before they could realize what was happening, Naoto turned around and her eyes went wide.

(Naoto) “EVERYONE GET DOWN, NOW!”

Turning to see what was coming, they all screamed and dove onto the floor, a massive fireball hurling itself past and landing behind the group.

Claude looked up to see himself running into the front, firing arrows into incoming Imperial soldiers.

The group got up and slowly backed up, watching Alliance soldiers follow and move in front of Claude.

(Hilda) “Wait a second, isn’t this?-...”

Hilda saw herself in the distance, fighting off Imperial and Kingdom soldiers as she and several others moved towards a hill.

(Yu) “Gronder Field?! But how did we-”

The entire battlefield began to flash before they were returned back to the Tower where they landed.

(Chie) “WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!”

(Lorenz) “I-I don’t know. It looked like Gronder Field, and that certainly was us but-...”

(Ignatz) “I don’t remember us fighting the Kingdom soldiers. We were just fighting the Imperials!”

(Claude) “Yeah, and I wasn’t fighting the soldiers. Just Edelgard and Dimitri until Lahabrea and Byleth stopped us.”

(Naoto) "Wait a moment, do you remember what Lahabrea said when he was fighting the professor? They were teleported to that future since their subconscious had those memories. What if we went to Gronder in that time because you had been there before?"

(Claude) "...That was us from...those previous times? Man, thats weird to say."

(Yu) "Then what about our voices? Do you think we're going to be encountering our memories too?"

Everyone looked deeper into the tower before hearing echoes of more voices.

(Hilda) "Guess there's only one way to find out..."

Everyone held their weapons tightly and ran down the walkway, only now noticing that some of the platforms were moving on their own.

Some were carrying an assortment of supplies while some were empty.

There was another circle pad at the end of the hallway, which made everyone stop and look at their leaders.

Claude nodded and waited a moment for everyone to brace themselves. He stepped onto the pad and as expected, launched them into the air onto another walkway.

This time everyone landed on both feet, and carried on, noticing the memories of the past flashing more and more.

As they began to run down the next walkway, they were transported to another location, one unfamiliar to the Golden Deer.

The area suddenly became foggy, reducing everyone’s vision to almost nothing.

(Raphael) “Fog?”

The Investigation Team paused for a moment before Yukiko put on glasses.

(Yukiko) “Put your glasses on!”

The rest of the team put on their glasses and their vision became clear as day.

(Rise) “...Yeah, readings are almost accurate to our world’s Midnight Channel!”

(Lorenz) “How in the world do those glasses allow you to see through this fog?!”

(Lysithea) “It’s so thick I can’t even see my hands in front of me!”

(Chie) “Long story short, Teddie made these for us specifically for the Midnight Channel, otherwise these things are useless! So the fact it’s working now-”

(Kanji) “This being transported to recreations of our memories shit is serious!”

(Naoto) “How far does this go?”

The area began to flash a bright white before fading away, putting the groups back to their original location.

As they moved to the end of the walkway, there was a pad that seemed to send them down, deeper into the tower.

(Claude) “Let’s keep going for-”

An arrow whizzed by his head, making everyone duck down and look towards the direction it came from.

(Hilda) “WOAH!”

A soldier in an orange glow was loading up another arrow before Naoto drew her gun and pulled the trigger.

The bullet went straight through the phantom soldier but it still acted as if it was hit, then quickly faded away into a burst of energy.

(Yu) “Something tells me we should move a little faster...”

(Raphael) “Then let’s stop talking and go!”

Raphael stepped onto the pad, catapulting him deeper into the tower. Everyone else followed him and quickly, yet gently floated towards the bottom.

The size of the interior was almost staggering, a massive glowing crystal in the middle of the room led down to a seemingly bottomless green pit. 

After a minute of floating down, they finally reached the bottom.

As they took in their surroundings, they noticed a massive door, with the crystal core looming over them.

The group approached the door, looking for some way to open it.

(Ignatz) “There doesn’t seem to be a lever anywhere.”

(Yosuke) “No button, handle...is this an automatic door?”

(Yukiko) “If that’s the case, what opens it? Clearly people don’t.”

(Rise) “Maybe there’s some kind of keycard?”

(Lorenz) “A...key card?”

(Chie) “It’s something from our world. Normally I’d say you guys don’t have the technology to have anything similar to ours but this entire tower...”

(Lysithea) “Hey, there’s something over here on the crate!”

Lysithea picked it up and showed it to the group.

(Teddie) “It’s...a crystal rectangle?”

(Leonie) “Sorta looks like that crystal message thing from earlier.”

(Marianne) “Is there a way to let us hear the message?”

(Naoto) “May I?”

Lysithea shrugged and handed it to Naoto. As soon as she came into contact with it, the crystal began glowing.

(Soldier’s voice) “By the time you hear this, I’ll be dead, so don’t bother trying to save me! Just...Get the hell out of here! This...This door, I don’t know who, or when it was made, but it...It goes into your mind! N-No, that’s not right, It takes you- O-oh GODDESS! HELP, NO-----...........”

(Everyone) ?!

(Yu) “What in the...?”

(Hilda) “What the heck happened?!”

(Kanji) “Uh, maybe we shouldn’t mess with this shit after all-”

Before anyone could another comment, the door slowly began to open, emitting an orange glow.

(Claude) “Tch, too late!”

Everyone drew their weapons expecting something to appear.

Instead, when the door open, everyone slowly felt a force pushing them in.

(Teddie) “H-Hey, my footing is-”

A violent shockwave blew out from the door, knocking everyone off their feet as it dragged them into the glowing orange light.

(Hilda) “GAH?!”

(Claude) “DAMN IT, EVERYONE TRY TO GRAB ONTO-”

Claude was the first to enter, completely vanishing from sight.

Lorenz was almost next to fall in, but Yukiko grabbed his hand and summoned her Persona to grab her.

(Yukiko) “S-So...Strong!”

Marianne, Rise, and Teddie were the next ones absorbed into the door, everyone struggling to even muster the strength to resist.

A final shockwave forced everyone into the door as their bodies leapt from the ground, into the light, Yu being the last one to enter.

...

[Song End]

...

Yu flew outwards from the portal and landed face first into the hard surface of the ground.

As his vision started to clear up, he could hear everyone groaning from the pain of their landing.

The area they were in was extremely claustrophobic, with a table in the middle, and some furniture and decorations most of them didn’t recognize.

(Teddie) “MMMMMFFF!”

(Raphael) “Oh, crap I think I’m crushing him!”

(Lysithea) “Then get off of him, don’t just say you are!”

Raphael quickly got up, only to see Teddie completely flattened.

(Hilda) “EUGH! Ugh, I’ll never get used to that!”

(Teddie) “Sh...Shaddup!”

Rise and Yosuke helped Yu up as everyone else tried to recover from the fall.

(Rise) “Senpai, are you alright?

(Yu) “I’m fine, Rise. Where are we?”

(Yosuke) “I don’t think we took the time to actua-?!”

Yosuke’s eyes grew wide as he looked around.

(Yu) “What is i-...?!”

Yu had the same reaction as Yosuke once he recognized the room.

(Claude) “Yu, recognize this place?”

(Yu) “It’s my room!”

(Hilda) “Huh?”

The Investigation Team looked around and quickly realized he was telling the truth.

(Kanji) “Think it’s one of those memory flashes from before?”

(Naoto) “It’s hard to say. I think it would have gone away by now if it was-”

knock knock knock!

(Little girl’s voice) “H-Hello? Is anyone in there?”

Marianne and Ignatz were closest to the door, and reached for their weapons before Yu put a hand on both of them.

(Yu) “N...N-Nanako?”

(Nanako) “Huh? Big bro?”

Yu opened the door and let her in, shocking everyone.

(Claude) “Has...any of the phantoms acknowledged our presence besides wanting to kill us?”

Nanako looked extremely confused looking at the Golden Deer.

(Nanako) “Who are they? And what are they saying?”

(Hilda) “Huh? Can you not understand us sweetie?”

(Nanako) “...?”

(Yosuke) “Nana-chan, you understand what we’re saying right?”

(Nanako) “Yes...? I’m really confused right now...”

(Dojima’s voice) “Nanako! Is everything alright up there?”

(Nanako) “Yeah! It’s just big bro and his friends!”

(Yu) “Dojima too?”

Yu motioned everyone to follow him downstairs, including Nanako.

At first Dojima looked confused seeing Yu and the Investigation Team come down the stairs. The last thing he remembered was seeing Yu and his friends off at the train station. That was just yesterday.

He was about to say something before seeing the Golden Deer right behind them, carrying all sorts of weapons.

(Naoto) “H-Hello, Dojima-san.”

(Claude) “Yeesh, this is awkward. How do we even begin this?”

(Lorenz) “Greetings, we are part of the Leicester Alliance!”

(Dojima) “Er...What language are they speaking?”

(Marianne) “Certainly not like that...”

(Dojima) “No first of all, how the hell did you all get into the house? We haven’t even left all day!”

Teddie ran up to Dojima and began poking him.

(Dojima) “H-Hey, back off!”

(Teddie) “SENSEI, HE’S REAL!”

(Everyone) ?!

[Paradisaical Predicaments - Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers OST]

(Chie) “Woah woah woah, hang on! We’re really back in Inaba?!”

(Nanako) “What are you all talking about? Are you guys okay?”

Kanji and Rise rushed to the back doors and opened it, seeing it was a bright and sunny day.

(Kanji) “No orange shi-...crap as far as I can see.”

(Rise) “I’m sensing something nearby us-...W-Why can I still sense things?! We’re not in the Midnight Channel or Fodlan!”

Lysithea pulled out a tome and snapped her fingers, a black flame appearing at the very tip.

(Lysithea) “I can still cast magic?”

Nanako and Dojima started to get more on edge as both groups were testing their own theories out.

(Yu) “Everyone stand back, there’s one last test we need to do...”

Yu adjusted his glasses and took a deep breath, holding out his hand.

(Yu) “Izanagi!”

A tarot card appeared floating above his hand, which he crushed into pieces, summoning his Persona right behind him.

(Dojima) “WHAT IN THE?!”

(Nanako) “Dad?!”

Yu turned to face Izanagi, frowning at the fact he was able to summon his Persona. Izanagi quickly disappeared at Yu’s command.

(Yukiko) “T-That should be impossible!”

(Leonie) “Is it not normal for you guys to be able to summon those?”

(Yosuke) “NOT IN THE REAL WORLD!”

(Chie) “O-Oh my god, this is too much to handle!”

(Dojima) “Hang on just a damn second, who are these people, and what is even happening?!”

Claude froze when he realized what Rise said.

(Claude) “...Rise, what exactly were you sensing?”

(Rise) “Um...it’s a signature similar to something we fight called a Shadow.”

Everyone turned to Rise.

(Yu) “...Where?”

The entire house shook violently as a roar came from outside.

Everyone dashed outside to find a mass of black clouds forming with arms and glowing red eyes.

People screamed in horror seeing what was happening outside, and ran for their lives in the opposite direction.

Nanako ran behind Dojima, her legs trembling as he reached for his gun.

(Yu) “There’s no denying it, we’re really back home-”

(Yosuke) “But how are shadows able to form in the real world?!”

(Dojima) “GET DOWN, NOW!”

Dojima opened fire at the shadows, which they quickly disappeared into orange glowing light.

(Claude) “BEHIND YOU!”

Claude raised his bow and fired an arrow behind Dojima, killing another Shadow that was sneaking up on them.

(Dojima) “Thanks.”

Rise gasped as she summoned her Persona and began scanning the shadows.

(Rise) “These signatures, they’re starting to match the phantoms from the tower!”

(Hilda) “What?! How?! We’re not even in Fo-”

KAFOOOOOOOOOOOM!

The ground shook violently as if an earthquake struck Inaba, the screaming of everyone getting louder.

(Kanji) “Holy shit, EVERYONE, OVER THERE!”

Kanji pointed towards the direction of the riverbed, where they saw the Zanado Tower.

(Marianne) “How did it...!?”

(Yu) “We have to get back to Fodlan, Rise how dangerous are these shadows?!”

(Rise) “A-A little but I think the police or armed forces can deal with them, seeing how quickly Dojima and Claude killed them!”

(Dojima) “Yu, do you know what’s going on?!”

(Claude) “Tell your uncle we have to go, can they defend themselves?!”

(Dojima) “Go where, exactly?! Who even are you?!”

(Claude) “We’re going back to...!!!...You...You understand me now?”

(Dojima) “I...I can. I can?”

(Lysithea) “What...?! Wait a second, the Investigation Team was only able to understand us and vice versa because they came to Fodlan. Does that mean...?!”

Naoto quickly looked back at the Tower, the skies started to lose the color of its blue into a pale white.

(Yu) “Dojima, we’ll be back as soon as we can. Hold out until then.”

Dojima looked at the tower, then back to the group.

(Dojima) “...Be careful, Yu.”

(Nanako) “Stay safe, big bro...”

Yu nodded and held onto his Katana’s sheathe, everyone rushing towards the Tower.

Tokyo, Leblanc Cafe...

Sojiro washed the cups and half-heartedly listened to the TV until breaking news came on, catching everyone’s attention.

(Reporter) “This just in, several unknown towers have seemingly materialized out of nowhere in 3 locations, a town called Inaba out in the country, Tokyo, and Tatsumi Port Island!”

Sojiro stopped washing the cups as everyone in the cafe began to mutter to themselves. He frowned and went outside and onto the street, finding a massive half crystal half red rock tower piercing the skies.

(Sojiro) “What in the hell...?”

He took out his phone and tried calling Futaba.

...

No luck.

She had only been missing for a day, and he couldn’t seem to call Akira or any of the other former Phantom Thieves.

Part of him wondered if they had something to do with this...

Tatsumi Port Island, Kirijo Group Headquarters

(Officer) “What did the scanners say about those towers?!”

(Officer 2) “Sir, shadow presence is confirmed but...something’s off with them. It’s like it’s half shadow half...”

(Officer) “Half what?!”

(Officer 2) “We don’t know sir, we’ve never seen anything like it before.”

(Officer) “Get the anti-shadow weapons deployed before too many people are harmed, whatever it is, we need to stop this! Get the S.E.E.S operatives on the line, now!”

(Officer 2) “Yes sir!”

Fodlan, outskirts of Derdriu

As the group was walking quietly, the Persona Users suddenly dropped to their knees, grabbing their heads and wincing in pain.

(Akira) “AAAGH!”

(Minato) “S-Shit!”

(Minako) “M-My head...!”

(Edelgard) “Healers, NOW!”

(Kazuma) “The hell?! What’s going on?!”

(Rean) “A-Are they getting more of those weird voices?”

(Ainz) “If that’s the case, why aren’t we getting it?”

Lahabrea and Sothis looked at each other with unease.

(Sothis) “Do you think its...?”

(Lahabrea) “There’s no other explanation, it has to be. EVERYONE, MOVE IT TO DERDRIU, NOW! PICK THEM UP IF YOU HAVE TO!”

The healers tried to help the Persona users, but to no avail. Eventually some had to be carried and helped as they walked.

Sitri let Minako’s arm go over her shoulder and moved with the rest of the group.

(Sitri) “Minako, can you understand what’s going on?”

(Minako) “A...A tower...?”

Sitri only looked more confused as Sothis and Lahabrea tried to avoid making eye contact with anyone.

(Sothis) “We’re running out of time, if we don’t activate this plan-”

(Lahabrea) “I know...”

He closed his eyes and sighed.

(Lahabrea) “I know.”

Part 2: END

[This Beautiful Cruel World - Attack On Titan OST]

Your dream is where your heart is

It’s something more fragile than life itself

No matter how many times you throw it away, you still find it

So rest in peace now

Your wish is violated by your pulsing urge

and as much as you forget about it, you recall it again

In this beautiful and cruel world

We only ask “why” we’re still alive…

Ah, what are we going to protect

with our strength and weakness? If reason no longer exists

TO BE CONTINUED IN:

[pinstripedaisy]

Your Devout Shield (Commission)

This is a commission for the wonderful @audshorne who asked for a Ferdinand x Male Reader and I was more than happy to deliver~! Commissions are currently open.

TW: Reader injury, lots of emotional vulnerability

When you opened your eyes, you could immediately tell what had happened - you slipped up.

The pale light of day shone in through the still cracked infirmary windows. You’d heard Manuela ranting to a patient Marianne that they needed to be replaced some time ago. How long ago it was, you couldn’t quite say.

Everything was unbearably fuzzy. You couldn’t tell if it was dawn or dusk, the pain in your skull threatened to break out, and you could feel burning still in your stomach.

Oh.

What had happened after was a blur, but you could certainly recall getting stabbed through the middle by a wicked looking sword.

Almost immediately afterwards, you blacked out from the pain, though if you had actually gone down, you weren’t sure. Judging by the extra bandages around your exposed arms, you hadn’t gone down without a fight.

As you attempted to cut through the cloud in your memory, one thing rung out through the darkness. Ferdinand’s voice, screaming your name. Like a desperate plea, as if he could single handedly change what was happening before his eyes.

It was just like him. Thinking if he willed something into existence hard enough, it would be as he desired. But it seemed even his immeasurable will could not prevent what had happened to you.

Ferdinand.

Your heart pounded hard against your ribs as you surveyed the beds around you. None were occupied. It seemed you were the most grievously injured.

But Ferdinand…

You couldn’t bear to think along those lines. If you were alive, that meant Ferdinand had assured it. He wouldn’t be foolish enough to die in your place, this you knew to be true.

And sure enough, you could hear a quick stride stomping down the hall. You’d only heard that pattern of footsteps a few times, during happier days.

You tried not to lose yourself in the fond memory of Ferdinand following an evasive Felix through the halls, giving him some sort of lecture you’d only caught parts of. But your efforts were in vain, to the point you nearly missed it when Ferdinand appeared in the doorway.

He looked a wreck, so different from the image of nobility he often presented. Dark circles had appeared under his eyes, darker than even you had ever seen them.

His hair was pulled up into a messy bun, likely not even done by himself. Strands of bright orange hair were falling out, some into his puffy eyes.

His armor was shed in favor of commoner’s clothes, and a shirt you recognized as your own. It appeared a bit tight on him, but if he cared, he didn’t show it.

Instead, his sunset toned eyes were focused on you, a mix of desperation, relief, hope, and pure, heartbreaking love brewing together.

“My love,” he breathed, barely audible. He rushed into the room before you could get a single word out.

Carefully, as though he thought you would break with a misplaced breath, his hand ghosted above your cheek. His gloves were gone, allowing his calloused fingers to meet your skin.

“Ferdie…” You mumbled, not quite sure what tone to take. Seeing him so distraught, so broken...even for you, who had seen him more vulnerable than anyone in the army, it was heartbreaking.

The sound of your voice seemed enough to completely destroy him. With a choked sob, he pulled you to his chest, squeezing you with all his might.

You didn’t exactly want to show how he jostled your wound, but the hiss you let out was quite audible. 

Ferdinand pulled back as though burned, shame heavy on his features. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” He rushed out, tripping over his own words.

“It’s fine, it’s fine,” your tone was barely convincing to your own ears, pained and rather forced. You took a shuddering breath to steady yourself. The sharp pang faded, settling back into the rhythm of a dull ache. “I’m fine, Ferdie, I promise.”

“But you very nearly weren’t,” his voice trembled.

Gingerly, he sat beside you on the bed, gently tangling his fingers in yours. His gaze was transfixed on his own actions. He wouldn’t meet your eyes.

“Why did you do that? I would have been fine, but you...protected me.” His eyes were burning with anger. But you knew him well enough to know it wasn’t at you. It was at himself. 

“I told you I would protect you. You would have done the same for me in a heartbeat.”

“I almost lost you, my love. That is the closest I have ever…” He cut himself off, biting his lip. His eyes had begun to turn red.

You reached out, pushing a loose strand of hair behind his ear. You cupped his cheek in your hand, allowing yourself to relish at the way he leaned into your touch. His eyes finally met yours. You could finally see the full force of the tears brimming in his eyes.

“Sorry, Ferdie, you’re stuck with me.” You flashed him the best smile you could muster. He returned it, shakily. The truth of it was debatable, but you would accept it for the time being.

“It will never be ‘stuck’, my dearest.” He moved his free hand to grasp yours, moving your hand from his cheek to his lips, pressing a soft kiss to your knuckles. 

He dropped your joined hands to his lap, rubbing a circle on the back of your hand with his thumb. “It is good to see you warm, again. You were so cold…”

You couldn’t imagine what he must have thought. Vaguely, you remembered him holding you to his chest as he rode through the rainstorm. The rainstorm that very likely led to the severity of your injury.

Even as a novice, just enrolled at the academy so many years ago, you’d never gotten hurt quite like you just had. First, it was Marianne and Leonie backing you up, sniping from behind and healing your wounds before they could get worse.

And then, you had Ferdinand.

Ferdinand had taken a shine to you, for reasons he refused to elaborate on, and made it his mission to be your shield. He had vowed that to you on the night of the ball, high atop the Goddess Tower. It almost seemed like a joke, but the sincerity in his eyes kept you from laughing.

Oh how glad you were that you hadn’t laughed. He held true to his promise. Every fired arrow, every swinging axe, every blade at your throat, he always knocked them away.

You knew the fact he’d missed was eating away at him.

“This isn’t your fault.” You reminded him, sternly.

“Is it not? I vowed…” His voice caught in his throat. “I am your shield.” He insisted. Whether it was for your benefit or his own, you couldn’t say.

You knew if anyone else heard, they would laugh at what you were about to say. But Ferdinand clearly needed more than the simple assurances you had offered.

“Every shield needs a sword. Isn’t that what I am?”

The first of his tears began to fall. You untangled one of your hands to begin wiping them away. You could almost hear your heart breaking.

He leaned forward, resting his head in your shoulder. Careful not to repeat his mistakes, he wrapped his arms around your torso, twisting his fingers in the fabric of your shirt.

“You stupid, wonderful man…” His voice was muffled by your shoulder.

Despite the sharp pain it caused, you couldn’t help but laugh. You stroked the nape of his neck, holding him close with your other arm. His body shook with silent sobs.

Ferdinand only allowed himself a moment before meeting your eyes again, eyes determined. The strongest expression you’d scene thus far, other than guilt that nearly crushed you.

“Promise me you will not repeat such reckless actions again. When I left the Empire, I worried that everything would soon be taken from me. I thought I could handle that, until I realized ‘everything’ included, no, was you.” 

The passion in his voice was nearly enough to make you join him in tears. Instead, you nodded, making sure his eyes met yours.

“I promise.” 

Finally, Ferdinand gave you a sincere smile, shining and utterly heart-stopping. Yet tears still flowed down his cheeks. It seemed that you had opened gates he’d sealed shut for some time.

“You always do have a way of lifting my spirits. When did you get so good at that?” His voice still shook, but had regained some of its strength.

You shrugged, flashing a mischievous grin. “When you told me you loved me.”

His face softened. He leaned in close to you, close enough you could track the rise and fall of his chest.

“I love you.” his words were a murmur, almost close enough to touch your lips with his own.

Even being so used to him, he still had ways of making your heart beat out of your chest. Kissing you was easily the best.

[kumeko]

A/N: For the @invinciblezine‘s Marianne: Survivor of the Curse zine—the end of Marianne’s paralogue never sat right with me and I took this chance to fix it. And do a little MariHilda, as a treat.

…

…

…

…

Finally, this nightmare of a thousand years is at its end. Oh, Inheritor of my crest…

 Seated on a log, Marianne stared at the crackling fire, watching as the flames leapt higher and higher. Against the night sky, the dark smoke was almost impossible to notice except for the patches of stars hidden behind the smog. Not that she minded. For once, nature couldn’t distract her from her problems.

 No, her mind was stuck on the last words of her supposed ancestor, of the beast who had terrorized entire villages. No, not supposed, not anymore. Marianne looked beside her, where the Blutgang lay on the ground. Its sharp edges gleamed in the pale light. That was the sword of a hero. That was the sword of her family. That monster had been her ancestor, whether she liked it or not.

This realization left an unsettled sensation in the pit of her stomach. It had been easy enough to ignore it in the heat of battle, when she had been surrounded on all sides by monsters. In a life or death fight, Marianne hadn’t thought too hard about just what she was slaying. About who they were. Now that she was alone in the chilly night, it was harder to ignore the facts. Miklan had turned into a beast. Who was to say that the monsters there hadn’t been her kin, doomed to follow Maurice for eternity? Who was to say that one day she wouldn’t join them as well, the cursed blood flowing within her transforming her overnight?

 Despite the fire, she couldn’t stop shivering.

 “There you are!” Marianne looked up as Hilda eagerly plopped on the log next to her. Rubbing her arms, she sighed. “Brrr, it’s so cold! I can’t believe we have to camp here of all places. Sure, we killed those monsters, but who knows what else’ll pop out?” Grumpy and put out, she puffed her cheeks. “Honestly, what is the professor thinking?”

 Squashing her fears, Marianne forced a smile. “It’s too late to go back.”

 “I know, I know. But still.” Hilda sighed once more before shifting closer to Marianne. “It’s just so—”

 Unconsciously, Marianne recoiled. It wasn’t a big move, but it was enough for Hilda’s arm to bump into the air, for Marianne’s body to stiffen. They stared at each other for a long minute and Marianne immediately flushed. “I-I didn’t mean to—”

 Hilda dropped her smile, her expression serious. “Is something wrong?”

 “No…” Marianne trailed off helplessly. She didn’t want to bring it up. She shouldn’t bring it up. It wasn’t a problem anyone could do anything about, and why make Hilda worry over it? “It’s, um, it’s nothing.”

 “It’s okay.” Despite the smile she wore now, Hilda’s expression remained serious. She didn’t move any closer, though she also didn’t move away and Marianne’s heart did a funny flip-flop at that. “What’s wrong?”

 “I…I just…” Marianne swallowed. It was just her problem, but if her time at the academy, her time with the Golden Deer had taught her anything, it was that problems were meant to be shared. They had all come here, for no other reason than to support her. Wasn’t it time she showed some trust back? She had vowed, on that day in the rubble, to become strong. To never run away from herself again. To take the hands reaching out for her. Steeling herself, Marianne mumbled, “Maurice…”

 “What about him?” Hilda asked ever so gently but still so firmly. She had always been like that, insistent and pushy and always making sure Marianne was a part of things, that Marianne always said what she needed to.

 It was no different now. Marianne stared at her hands as she spoke, the words tumbling out of her like water off a cliff. “Maurice, he was, um, my ancestor, right? And he was that…that monster. My crest, it was his. I might turn into a monster like him.”

 “Who said that?” Hilda asked, and Marianne could hear the threat in her voice.

 “No one,” Marianne quickly blurted, preventing a murder. She dug her finger into her legs. “No one in particular. Just…maybe I’ll turn into a beast too. Maybe my parents did.”

 There was a long silence. Marianne kept her eyes glued to her thighs, too scared to look up. Would it be worse to see pity or fear? Kindness could be cruel too and she knew her fair share of that.

 “You know, you’re warm.” Before Marianne could react, there was a warm weight on her shoulder, a heavy arm wrapped around her waist. “Perfect for a night like this.”

 “Hilda!” she hissed, stiffening as she looked down at the head on her shoulder. Just when had Hilda closed that gap? She had never been fast. Squirming, she tried to escape but Hilda’s grip was too tight. “What are you doing?”

 “You’re warm,” Hilda repeated, looking up at her. “And you’re the perfect height for a nap.”

 Sitting ramrod straight, Marianne stared at her, not sure what to do. “Hilda, I’m serious.”

 “So am I.” Hilda’s long, pink hair tickled Marianne’s neck. “You’re not just warm, though. You’re also clumsy and kind and so earnest that it sometimes takes my breath away.” She leaned forward slightly, pressing a kiss against her shoulder. “And you’re so very human.”

 Marianne’s voice hitched and she almost forgot how to breathe, let alone speak. Ignoring the tingle running up her spine, she clenched her jaw. “For now. I could change. Miklan did. My parents—”

 “You don’t know what happened to them,” Hilda interrupted. This close, Marianne could feel the vibrations as she spoke. “And Miklan didn’t have a crest. You do.”

 “Maurice had a crest,” Marianne pointed out quietly. His voice had sounded like a rusty nail, like the creaks of an abandoned home. A thousand years of loneliness could be her future and maybe it was preferable to be a mindless monster instead.

 “It could be something else. I thought Claude banned us from assumptions?” Hilda paused, her hand digging into Marianne’s side. “Besides, even if that is the case, we’ll save you. You’re one of us, right?”

 Marianne wanted to believe. She wanted to lean into that touch, to accept Hilda’s warmth. “And what if you can’t? Could you…” she trailed off, unable to finish the sentence.

 Immediately, Hilda snorted. “Hello, Byleth went through, what, five impossible things?”

 “Hilda—”

 “If you want a mercy kill, I’m not doing it. We’ll save you, somehow.” Hilda sat up straighter, looking Marianne straight in the eyes. “We will.”

 It sounded like a fact coming from Hilda. As though there was no other possibility. “Really?” Marianne whispered.

 “I might not do it myself, but have you ever seen me not get something done?” Hilda leaned forward and hugged her. “You’ll be fine. Promise.”

 And maybe she would—whatever happened, Hilda would be there. And that was more than enough. Marianne leaned into her embrace, soaking in Hilda’s warmth. She finally relaxed, burying her face in Hilda’s neck.

 “But you better not live to be a thousand,” Hilda added playfully. “It’ll cost you a fortune in anti-aging cream.”

 Marianne laughed, a wet sound that immediately got muffled by a mess of pink hair.