#platonic edeleth

[asha-mage]

Edelgard and Byleth / mercy

[Send me a fandom, character, or pairing and a one word prompt and I'll write a quick drabble for you!]

When Edelgard rode into the camp she found a gibbet had been raised in the center.

Two bodies hung from it, and had been hanging long enough that crows had begun to perch nearby and a faint smell was wafting towards her with the wind. She could recognize them as Imperial soldiers from their uniforms, and from the way the other soldiers pointedly avoided looking at the gibbet, their eyes sliding past their dead comrades, it was clear something had happened.

For a moment Edelgard just considered leaving the matter be. She was only passing through, checking on Byleth’s campaign to subdue the Alliance holdouts before continuing on to Derdriu for a summit with what remained of the Roundtable. She trusted Byleth, but more importantly she trusted his judgement- which was a rare thing for her. There were many people who would walk shoulder to shoulder into battle with. There were precious few she could  hand an Imperial writ to and not worry that they would make a mess of things. If Byleth was hanging people, she trusted that he had good cause.

But, she was not just a sister or a friend or a student. She was an Emperor. Maybe she was more an Emperor these days than anything else. If executions were being carried out in her name, then she had a duty to make sure they were just.

Dismounting she tossed her reins to one of the attendants and gave brisk orders for the mounts to be fed and curried, then marched off to find the command tent. She had not arrived in style and pomp- she preferred to go without that when she could since it let her see more of Fodlan as it truly was instead of the face her subjects would wish their Emperor to see- so no one was there to greet and squire her about. Most of the soldiers probably didn’t even recognize her as anything but another noble, or maybe an imperial official, given her well made but not particularly fine coat and britches. 

She didn’t need a guide though. Byleth always set up his camps in the same way, and locating his command tent was easy as finding her old classroom in the Monastery would have been.

Byleth’s personal guards- one and all former mercenaries that had served under Jeralt before joining the Empire with Byleth- did recognize her, and stood up straighter as she passed, not bothering to challenge her approach. That wasn’t because she was Emperor- the guards would have demanded the Goddess herself halt and explain her business with General Eisner. Edelgard was just on the short list of five people who Byleth had given standing orders to be allowed through no matter what.

She found him at his writing desk, scratching away at something while occasionally looking up to check the map spread out before him. It showed the region and tiny flags marked what she suspected were hold out lords. Fewer than she had expected- which meant Byleth had been more efficient then she or Hubert had hoped. That would strengthen her hand in Derdriu significantly.

“You're missing Lady Lur.” Edelgard said, pulling up a chair beside Byleth to peer more closely at the map.

“Lady Lur swore fealty two weeks ago.” Byleth said without looking up from his letter. He gave no show of surprise at her presence, even though she hadn’t sent word ahead she would be dropping in on him. She doubted anything had ever surprised Byleth.

“Really? I was under the impression she was an ideologue. Not a opportunist.” Edelgard had expected that Lur would rather go to the headsmen then bend the knee- which was frustrating since it would mean bad blood with her son, who was popular with the common folk and would make a good resource in the region if he could be turned.

“She was.” Byleth agreed, glancing up at the map again then back down at his letter. “Then she got word that her son had become our ‘guest’ at the Monastery. She was willing to give her own life for the cause- her son’s less so.”

Edelgard nodded thoughtfully. “How did you manage that?”

“The boy challenged me to a duel to the death for his mother’s honor.” Byleth said simply. “I spared him and shipped him to Gareg Mhach- where he’ll remain until we can be sure his mother isn’t a threat.”

“So snot nosed noble brats get your mercy, but soldiers of the Empire do not?” Edelgard asked, making her voice sharp. Byleth looked up at her, and blinked in confusion.

“What? Oh.” He sighed, setting his quill aside as it dawned on him. “The scouts.”

Edelgard nodded, making herself stern and iron hard. She was the Emperor now, interacting with her most powerful General. Not a sister stopping by to see her brother. “The scouts.” She confirmed. “What did they do?”

“They lied.” He said simply, turning his chair to face her. Edelgard waited. Byleth said nothing more.

“They lied.” She repeated after the silence had grown uncomfortable.

He nodded.

“Last I checked.” Edelgard said, her voice tight. “Lying was not a capital offense.”

Byleth frowned. “You know better than that. I taught you better than that.”

Edelgard hesitated. One of Byleth’s more succinct lessons regarding warfare had been about scouts. The skills that make a good scout and the skills that make a good thief are one in the same. You can get a thief to train a scout and hope they won't pick up thieving, or you can train a scout from scratch and hope for the best. But it's easier to just empty a prison of horse thieves, chicken stealers, and smugglers then promise them their lives and three square meals a day in exchange for becoming scouts. You have to be crystal clear from the beginning- one lie, one single lie, and they will hang and be left for the birds. Battles and wars alike can be lost for the lies of a scout. Moreover, a lot of innocent people can get killed that way. So if you ever find out one has lied to you, you make an example and follow through on your threat. It’s the only way.

“What did they lie about?” Edelgard asked, settling back.

“A merchant caravan offered them a bribe to not tell me they were passing south of here.” Byleth said simply. It’s Byleth’s standing orders that all merchant caravans his soldiers came across would be escorted to back camp before being sent on their way- both so he could replenish supplies and to ensure they went away from where they might carry word to the enemy he was fighting, or else get caught in the crossfire. “They accepted, but of the group of three- two followed through and lied and one told me anyway.”

“What did you do to the one that-” She didn’t want to say ratted out his fellows, even if that was the truth. “-came clean?”

Byleth blinked. “Nothing? Why would I do anything to him? He told the truth.”

Edelard exhaled. She knew it was useless to point out that he had also taken a bribe. Byleth didn’t care about that. A scout’s job was to report the truth. The rat had done it. That was the end of the matter as far as Byleth was concerned. It was the same logic that had kept him from just saying they took a bribe and reported false information to their commander, when she had asked why they had been hung. Byleth just didn’t see the world that way.

“What a lucky man to have a merciful commander.” Edelgard said standing.

“It’s not mercy.” Byleth said quietly. “The scouts need to keep each other honest. I’m just encouraging that. This is how you win wars.”

Edelgard walked over to the pitcher of water on the table and poured herself a glass. “Most commanders would have sent him to the whipping post even though he was honest.” She said calmly.

“Most commanders are bad at winning wars.” Byleth responded dryly. “What would be the point? To prove my power? Everyone beneath my command already knows my power. To instill fear? Two corpses do that far better than a lashed man, and give less fertile ground for resentment to take root. It’s the same with Lady Lur’s son.”

“Not mercy.” Edelgard mused. “Pragmatism.”

Byleth nodded. “Just so. Mercy must be for no other reason than itself, or it isn’t really mercy. Mercy is what I gave Flayn and Seteth. Or what you gave to Dimitri at Tailtean. Other choices might have served us better- but we chose what would be better for them over that.”

The air turned brittle and frigid in the tent suddenly. Byleth had not changed his tone of voice. Had not even recognized that his words might strike a different note. That too, was just not how he saw the world.

“....Do you really think what I did at Tailtean was mercy?” Edelgard asked quietly, staring into her cup.

“I do.” Byleth said without hesitation. “He would have been more valuable as a prisoner. But he would have suffered more greatly, and worse if he had lived to see the kingdom fall. You released him from pain. It was all you could do for him.”

Edelgard felt the urge to laugh. “You say these things with such confidence and simplicity. As if they are facts from our textbook.” I am so grateful for that.

Byleth turned back to his letter. “They are facts. Maybe not from a textbook. But they are facts. Be a mercenary long enough and you see the world as it truly is eventually. Or you die.” He allowed with a shrug. “Most think that makes me cold. Stone hearted. Ashenly demonic.” He chuckled hollowly at that. “But the business of killing people has made me…clear eyed about what must be, and what can be. Telling mercy from pragmatism is nothing more than that.”

Edelgard smiled. He didn’t realize how rare it was, not just that he could tell the difference, but that he still gave mercy when he could. She loved him for that.

“Well, I suppose that’s that then.” She said instead and set down her cup. “Now, tell me how the campaign is going.”

Smiling, so finally she almost couldn’t see it, Byleth gestured to the map. “Well. In two days times we’ll move north and-”

Letting his words wash over her, Edelgard nodded. In her head she was already sketching out the letter she would write to Hubert to ensure that the sum the scouts had been paid was discovered, and equivalent made its way to Byleth. She would have to make sure it couldn’t be traced back to them, or Byleth would reject it. 

But mercy and pragmatism alike, deserved to be rewarded.

[ninadove]

Shipping Ask Game

Make a poll of your Top 10 Ships so your followers can vote for their favorite!

Oooh, this is going to be hard. Let’s see…

One of these things isn’t like the others… (I ship many things, but only the best of the best deserve the Brainrot Medal! 🏅)

We should do this with platonic relationships/BROTPs/siblings too… I’m cooking™

Tagging @dragongutsixofficial, @rubytactician, @beezonia, @what-is-going-on-im-confused, @phieillydinyia, @purplecatghostposts, @trishacollins, @bittersweetresilience (so you can do the Renjing Square), @faiirygrahamdevanily, @alexandriaellisart, @sillyangstfic, @hartwign, @adastra-rising and anyone who wants to try! 💜

[gascon-en-exil]

Considering the undeniable fact that Edelgard was written for men and not them, what do you think that says about her lesbian fans? Are they following the wrong character? Or better question, does she truly have a significant sapphic fandom to begin with?

This is a difficult question for me to answer directly, because I'm not a lesbian. I've gotten a variety of comments from queer women addressing issues related to this on my relevant videos, with the range of responses being overall mixed. Even those who can enjoy Edelgard as a bi option (and/or her other F/F prospects) are usually still aware of IS's blatant misogyny in the way they handle their female characters, and acknowledge that these conversations are useful to have.

I think Monica's writing in Hopes sums up very well just how little the writers of these games are thinking about lesbians when they craft these characters and situations. Monica's attraction to Edelgard is treated as one long joke at her own expense, one that Edelgard appears to humor at best but never really understands. It's especially galling because this is the same game that takes a remarkably sober approach to Shamir's attraction to women, both in general and to Catherine specifically. There's also the matter of the M/M subtext, which as ever exists in a blind spot of straight male writers. With Dimidue alone, we have a situation where men are saying stuff like "You are irreplaceable, cherished" and "I cannot know happiness without you by my side" and holding hands and each other's gazes for something like fifteen seconds in an animated cutscene...and still expect us to believe that that's only platonic devotion. (As far as lord + retainer ships go, hold up Monigard and Dimidue side-by-side, and it's very obvious that IS is laughing at the former and isn't aware that the latter could even have romantic dimensions.)

The majority of IS's sapphic material exists in a different, though comparable blind spot: that lesbians exist as profitable titillation for straight men, and are always subject to the male gaze and the potential interposition of a male proxy for the audience (the Avatar, usually) because women's attraction toward one another isn't something to be taken seriously. Out of the various examples of F/F subtext and text in the entirety of FE, I feel like I could claim Heather from Radiant Dawn as maybe the only instance where the writers were thinking of actual queer women - and even then Heather is still mostly mild comic relief.

(As far as "following the wrong character" goes re: the fandom faction wars, there's always been the consistent irony that Rhea is subject to much of the same open objectification, ex. her summer duo alt with F!Byleth, and even gets to be a same-sex S rank as well. Humorously, this parallel or its implications is pretty much never brought up whenever Rhea's getting roasted as the Worst Ever.)

It's difficult to tell exactly how much of Edelgard's fanbase is sapphic. Of course Tumblr and AO3 skew queer as a rule, but those are just two sites; there's also Twitter and Reddit and SF and GameFAQs and 4chan and art sites like Pixiv and DeviantArt. We also know for a fact that at least two of the most prominent and combative elements in the pro-Edelgard side of the fandom are straight/bi men producing F/F Edeleth fanwork...which I remark on only as a counter to the frequent accusation that Dimitri fans are all horny fujoshi. How that does or doesn't play into what you're asking is hard to say - although one of them tends to get rather pissed when anyone brings something like that up and may still be stalking my blog.

It'll be interesting to see what troll anons I get now.

[edierarepairweek]

Edelgard Rarepair Week 2024 (August 25th-31st) Prompts:

Transcript of Prompts:

Day 1: Scars/Healing/Armour

Day 2: Eagles/Flowers/Blaze

Day 3: Past/Present/Future

Day 4: Closeness/Distance/Reaching

Day 5: Clueless/Obvious/Comfort

Day 6: Sparring/Relaxing/Stay

Day 7: Family/Letters/Finally Me

Rules

All details are in the google doc linked below, but for rapid fire definitions:

Rarepair classification: less than 100 unique works on Archive of Our Own (AO3) by entering “OTP:true” into “search within results” under More Options in the tag for a relationship.

Polyships: allowed, including those incorporating popular ships (i.e. Edeleth + Edelthea to make Edelgard/Dorothea/Byleth)!

Ships that do not qualify: Edeleth, Edelthea, Dimigard, Edelclaude, Edelbert, & Edelys.

Platonic allowed (Edelgard & [Insert Character]).

NSFW allowed, but must use SFW previews and be hashtagged as #EdelgardRarepairNSFW!

Tag on Tumblr as #Edelgard Rarepair Week 2024 or #EdelgardRarepairWeek24.

If you have any questions DM us!

[real-fire-emblem-takes]

I'm a Edeleth hater!! mostly because I headcanon Byleth as aro/ace and explicitly uninterested in anything beyond platonic friendship but also because the fans are annoying. moreso than d*mitri x Byleth fans are

.

[dragongutsixofficial]

Edelgard isn't big on physical affection in my stuff, due to her trauma. The list of people she'd comfortably accept even a hug or shoulder pat from is very limited. Just Hubert at first, then adding Dorothea (I ship them so hard), then adding Byleth after that. Ana and the kids are on that list too of course, but they don't come into play until after the war. Lysithea and possibly Hapi are in there somewhere, but I haven't figured out where. Beyond that it would be tentative at best.

Your thoughts?

Thanks for asking !! ^^ I agree, it'd take a lot for her to be comfortable with physical affection, even more so public displays of affection. She would accept it in some measure of capacity from her closest allies in my opinion, her partner (any flavor of Edeleth is still my favorite personally) and her family. I also do agree that she'd be more open to being physically affectionate with people who have gone through the same thing as her- they would understand on a deeper level. But how would that affection look like, especially between siblings ?

I think an underrated form of physical affection for Edelgard is hand holding, both romantically (with her partner) and platonically. And this is of particular significance regarding Loki, her younger brother.

See, growing up with TWSITD, Loki never got a lot of physical affection. But suddenly finding himself in a safe environment with people he could trust not to hurt him, his siblings, allowed him to become more and more physically affective. Although he was once touch-starved, he is now incredibly big on getting hugs or any other firm of physical affection, no matter the reason. With Aline and Adel, this isn't a problem. He can go up to them and whine about how he wants to be carried bridal style and he will be, especially if he asks Adel.

But then... that makes it all the more complicated in regards to El's trauma. A good compromise they found is Edelgard holding Loki's right hand. This is very emotionally significant to them because Loki's right arm is burnt and that's definitely his weak spot, which he takes great care of (and which he amputates after the war in favor of a prosthetic arm). As such, he's always incredibly wary of people touching it. I don't picture Thales as being physically abusive often (since he "raised" him) but that's definitely been a pressure point in the past- so Loki only lets people he deeply trusts hold his right hand. As such, he literally places his trust and love in Edelgard's hands. The first time he allowed her to take his right hand was actually when he accepted to walk her path with her, when she reached her hand out to him while he was having a mental breakdown over everything he had been told having been lies.

Another form of affection they both have is Edelgard giving her cape to Loki when he feels down so he can burrow himself in it.

Aline and Adel themselves have pretty heavy trauma regarding the experiments. Aline has done a tremendous work to reclaim her own body and accept her scars, especially by changing her vestimentary style and discovering that she loves wearing short dresses instead of the most covering and conservative ones that the Imperial etiquette advocates for- and she has also needed to be physically available to comfort her younger surviving siblings. For instance, she often holds her brothers or runs her hand through their hair while they wait to fall back asleep after a nightmare. However, although she is okay with physical affection, she hates being taken by surprise- if you touch her shoulder when she's not expecting it, you would trigger her fight or flight response- and she will punch you in the face out of pure instinct. And she will rarely be the one seeking physical comfort.

I have to say though, I am NOT impartial to Aline softly taking her sister's face between her hands and kissing her on the forehead in Edelgard's darkest moments. Or gently holding both of her hands in hers while their foreheads touch.

Adel meanwhile would be the one most prone to hugging Edelgard, but he makes a big effort not to. They're the two siblings most uneasy about their scars and they both cover up a lot to hide it- a way he would show Edelgard physical affection is by holding her by the arm while they walk around, trusting her with where they're going (since he is blind).

And finally, Siyn. Siyn struggles a lot with bodily autonomy for quite some time, and with the way she sees and treats her own body. But after the war finally comes a time where she can start treating it as something other than just a tool for fighting. This is also at this point that she becomes Edelgard's partner. I have a feeling they would take it very slow, and slowly become more physically comfortable with each other- and while Siyn would absolutely respect El not wanting too many physical displays of affection, I'd love for them to get to a point where they can proudly walk out holding each other's hand for comfort. Maybe even kiss in public. In private, they would take to cuddling more often. No matter the romantic partner El ends up with (if she does end up with someone), they would still have to take it extra slow regarding any form of physical affection.

What's really interesting is that I'm pretty sure that while she would allow Hubert to hug her or something, he probably wouldn't feel the need to. xD Ferdinand would probably be more inclined to hug the both of them out of the blues and while they'd feel uncomfortable, they'd appreciate the gesture. They'd need to set some boundaries, too. I do agree that Edelthea would also do pretty amazing in that particular domain. I have a feeling that early on at the Academy, Dorothea would have understood that Edelgard wasn't comfortable with physical affection, and Edelgard slowly opening up to her would make for some incredibly sweet moments between the two partners. I'd love to see it !!!

I'll share more thoughts if my brain stops being jelly at some point=)

[writer-of-worlds]

For your assassination attempt Edeleth you could make it more unique with:

- The assasin: you could make them different and have a reason uniquely related to Edelgard/Byleth ( Rhea loyalist wanting to bring her back the heart? ), maybe you could make them more important in the plot than in your Ferdibert fic? Maybe you could make them someone they know? Like maybe one of the Blue Lion wanting revenge for their King/lost friend, leaving Edelgard/Byleth filled with grief and doubt after the assassination attempt? Or Shamir like in Hopes?

- The whump: I don't know if you write this for whump reason or not, but if you do it could be an opportunity to do different kind of whump? Maybe beside physical injury and near death experience, it could be bringing back trauma, creating new trauma, paranoia, a harrowing focus on the feeling of dread, of not feeling safe anymore, of realizing one own mortality, how it could happen anytime ( Since it's Edelgard maybe there's a thing to do with her shortened lifespan if you subscribe to the theory, like she was just healed believing once again she could *live* yet because of the assassination attempt she realize there's another sword of Damocles over her head? Or since her lifespan is so short, with this assassination attempt she fear of loosing what little time she has left? )

- The method: maybe it doesn't have to be a big fight, it could be something like poison? Maybe even a slow poison, and now Edelgard/Byleth is left to figure out the impostor in the castle ( a Slither taking the face of one of their friend could make this paranoid among us style ) while their lover is in critical condition... Or if you want a fight you try a different approach? Different weapons that leads to different a battle and different injury ( I think a lot can be done through magic with fire, cold or dark magic outside of electricity! Or with a physical weapon, long-range could make an innovating fight? Or a poisoned blade could make an great twist where after the fight Edelgard/Byleth think themselves safe before realizing the poison ), Edelgard/Byleth left to fight without weapon, a longer fight where Edelgard/Byleth have to run ( either in purchase or to flee ) or maybe hide, with hiding or running maybe also making a fight more tense with anticipation where they know there's an assassin but not where

- The setting: Maybe the setting could hold more importance? Like instead of a private tea party it's during a public event and it has deep political consequences? Maybe even at a diplomatic meeting ( with Claude for Almyra ) which lead to a diplomatic crisis? ( For the hurt/comfort you could had Edelgard/Byleth working to solve the issue despite being deeply injured by the assassination attempt and needing to rest? ) Or maybe it was a place that Edelgard or Byleth believed to the one safe place they had, and turn out it's not! Or a place that brings back very bad memory ( like a dungeon for Edelgard ) and so the assassination attempt here lead to a mental health crisis ( continuing on Edelgard, maybe her dissociating with reality believing the Slithers are trying to take her away again? )

Sorry for this, it's 2 AM and reading your Ferdibert fic inspired me too much to sleep 😭 Hope one of those ideas can be helpful at least!

Anon, I am kissing you platonically for this ❤️ I love ALL of these so much!!!! I am getting SO many ideas from it 👀 And yep, it's for the whump! I didn't put it in my whump blog and put it here instead because some people are a little funny about whump, and I was playing it safe when I tagged it with the Edeleth tag. But anyway, your ideas are so MMMMMMMM. My brain is overflowing with ideas.

And aaaaw, thanks! I'm so glad you like my Ferdibert fic!!! Thanks to a friend, I grew to like the ship, and now I love it after my second playthrough of Black Eagles haha. Stay tuned for more Ferdibert and Edeleth stuff, whump or not :D

Thanks again for the amazing ideas, anon ❤️

[atlasgoodwin]

Fandom meme by @/gehayi

A - Ships that you currently like a lot. (They don’t have to be OTPs because not everyone has OTPs.) Friendships, pairings, threesomes, etc. are allowed.

I have a lot of them, but right now, my main romantics ships are AsoRyuu (TGAA), Edeleth (FE3H) and Amy/Virginia (CC)

B - A pairing–platonic, romantic or sexual–that you initially didn’t consider, but someone changed your mind.

My friends changed my mind on many things over the years, but I don't remember the ships :(

C - A ship you have never liked and probably never will.

Russell and Amy from Criminal Case

D - A pairing you wish you liked but just can’t.

Most of the ships that I don't like are like popular ships from fandoms, for example, in Fairy Tail, I really don't like the main ship Nalu, but I wish I did

E - Have you added anything cracky/hilarious to your fandom? If so, what?

Yes, I made some wonderful masterpieces there and there- But for real, when I'm inspired, I love making shitpost stuff

F - What’s the longest you’ve ever been in a fandom?

I have been in the Criminal Case fandom for 7 years and it's still going let's goooooo

G - Have you ever had an OTP? If so, do you remember your first one? Who was in it?

My first OTP was Luigi/Daisy and to this day, I love them so so so so much <3

H - What is your favorite source text for fandom stuff (e.g., TV shows, movies, books, anime, Western animation, etc.)?

A little bit of everything to be honest, it depends on how I am feeling, but it's mostly video games, western animation and anime

I - Has Tumblr caused you to stop liking any fandoms, if so, which and why?

Not Tumblr, but Twitter did multiple times :/ One example being Super Smash Brothers and if you know... you know rip

J - Name a fandom you didn’t think about until you saw it all over Tumblr. (You don’t have to care about it or follow it; it just has to be something that Tumblr made you aware of.)

I guess Good Omens(?), is that the name? I have no clue what it is, but I know it exists because of Tumblr

K - What character has your favorite development arc/the best development arc?

Stealing my friend Katrina's answer by saying Amy Young from Criminal Case, she went through some insane character development in one district and girl, I feel so bad for you :(

L - Say something genuinely nice about a character who isn’t one of your faves. (Characters you’re neutral about are fair game, as are characters you merely dislike. Characters that you absolutely loathe with the fire of ten thousand suns are exempt, as there is no point in giving yourself an aneurysm over a character that you hate.)

Okay, I don't like Jones (Criminal Case) as much, but I can say that he had an amazing character development in Season 5, I was actually interested to see him grow as a character, even tho I am not a fan of him

M - Name a character that you’d like to have for a friend.

I would love to be friends with Marceline from Adventure Time, she is such a chill person, I wish to be her

N - Name three things you wish you saw more or in your main fandom (or a fandom of choice).

Criminal Case: - More fanarts (that is not of the main characters, like suspects, killers or victims)

-More shitpost memes

-More fanfics (Of characters that I care about- even that, just overall)

O - Choose a song at random. Which ship or character does it remind you of?

Monster from Imagine Dragons AND Skillet reminds me of one of my favorite Criminal Case characters, Duncan Young

P - Invent a random AU for any fandom (we always need more ideas).

I have many AUs in mind, but it would be interesting to see a Victim and Killer switch to see how it would plan out and the different motives!

Q - A fandom you’ve abandoned and why.

The first one that came to mind is Hetalia and it's literally because of Homestuck lmao, I got more interesting in Homestuck so I gave up on the Hetalia fandom

R - Which friendship/platonic relationship is your favorite in fandom?

(Total Drama) I do not ship romantically Cody and Sierra at all, but I really love them platonically, it has so much potential to be an amazing platonic ship, until All Stars happened,,,

S - Show us an example of your personal headcanon (prompts optional but encouraged)

I need to do a list of headcanons for my favs, because right now, I have NOTHING in mind D:

T - Do you have any hard and fast headcanons that you will die defending? 

idk rip

U - Three favorite characters from three different fandoms, and why they’re your favorites.

Tess Goodwin (Criminal Case) - She is so intriguing as a character, at first, I didn't like her (that was like 9 years ago lol) but became so attached to her and I have a massive crush on her,,, I also love to analyze her so much

Kazuma Asogi (The Great Ace Attorney) - Wonderful well written character that I got attached to quickly, I won't spoil TGAA, but the only time I cried in TGAA was because of him aofbwoifbwos

Edelgard Von Hresvelg (Fire Emblem Three Houses) - She is a mixed feeling in the fandom, but I cannot stop thinking about her. Like Kazuma, so well written!! Love her design, love her personality and she is so fun to analyze!!

V - Which character do you relate to most?

Ivy (Carmen Sandiego 2019) physically and personality wise, I have a lot in common :)

W - A trope which you are virtually certain to hate in any fandom.

hmmmmmmmm

X - A trope which you are almost certain to love in any fandom.

hMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

Y - What are your secondhand fandoms (i.e., fandoms you aren’t in personally but are tangentially familiar with because your friends/people on your dash are in them)?

The only one that comes to mind is Star Trek (Thanks Katrina), because I know the other fandoms very well sdoibgfobgoer

Z - Just ramble about something fan-related, go go go! (Prompts optional but encouraged.)

I love fanart so goddamn much, I don't care if it's not for me, I still love love love LOVE IT so much!! People are so talented, it's insane and I wish they could share their passion and motivation with me please i am desperate ;o; oadbfoiwebigfwer

[adrestianxemperor]

Rules

1: I can and will reserve the right to discontinue any RPs if I don’t like the direction it’s going in. I will message you if this is the case, but if you continue, then I will block you. No exceptions.

2: Please give me ample warning if you want to do something NSFW between our muses…

3: I will only do NSFW if the Mun in question is over 17…

4: I myself am over 18, and thus, will not smut with anyone under 17. If I find out you’ve been lying about your age, I will hard block you and never look back.

5: If you want to ship your Muse with mine, canon character or OC, then just ask. But don’t assume. Message me and we’ll hash it out… (This is a Multi-ship blog, after all~ :3c)

6: If you are a multi-muse blog and you send me in an ask, please specify which muse you are sending it as. I will message you and give you the opportunity to send it in again once. But continued asks sent in this manner will be deleted…

7: In regards to above; don’t expect me to choose which muse sent in the ask. That’s for you to decide, not me…

8:  To become an Official Ship on this blog, we must have had several interactions before and my muse must make a sincere confession of love (while not under the influence of a spell or drugs/alcohol) to your muse. Your muse doesn’t have to reciprocate, because that is besides the point… ^^

10: This one is in regards to any and all F!Byleth!Muses; Mun’s main ship for Edelgard is Edeleth[F]. If you are the Mun for a F!Byleth and you are uncomfortable with this, even if our muses only interact platonically, then you are free to unfollow and I won’t take offense.

But I will not apologise or change my mind on this ship.

11: Even if you’re another female Edelgard!Mun, I would be totally down with interacting with you. I love duplicates, as each mun has a different take on the same character. So, don’t be shy!

12: On the topic of triggers…I will ask that you tag the various triggers listed like so; (tw: non-con), (tw: non-consensual torture), (tw: domestic violence)

13: Anyone who sends me callouts or callout posts about someone, or if I see someone on my dash reblogging one, then it’s also an instant hard block. They have long since lost their use as legitimate warnings, and I will not partake.

[kali-writes-stuff]

fire emblem: three houses | implied dimitri x m!byleth, implied edelgard x m!byleth, m!byleth & sothis | major character death | angst, regret, character death, black eagles route

It’s in this moment that Byleth realizes: He doesn't want to fight anymore.

As usual, far, far too late.

[theoretical-tactician]

Fire Emblem just loves giving me great characters whose relationships I love and then they find some way to make it Bad.

[edelegs]

black eagles relationships i like but don’t see talked about enough

Ferdinand and Petra - I adore their supports. You see a lot of Ferdinand’s dorky side with his reading about historic weapons, and you see that he is genuinely curious about Petra’s culture. He admits that he initially didn’t realize how sophisticated Brigidian techniques are and I just adore his vulnerability with her. And then there’s Petra in their A support, admitting she found a second home in Fòdlan, and the two discuss their loneliness? It’s such interesting insight into both characters (especially Ferdie; I’d say these are some of his most well-rounded supports)

Hubert and Dorothea - Dorothea sees right through Hubert’s edgy theatre kid persona. She approaches him like she would any friend right from the beginning and teases him about his love life. She also respects and believes him when he says that unrequited love isn’t his motivation. I would’ve liked a conclusion that wasn’t Dorothea suggesting they marry, but it is really funny that she did that. I love their paired ending too--completely platonic espionage opera! What could be better?

Hubert and Byleth - in my head they have a quirky sitcom where Byleth keeps trying to arrange Edeleth/Ferdibert double dates and Hubert has to attend them. (but seriously, the appeal of Hubert is looking at this man and saying “I’m gonna make you like me”, and then you do it). Outside of my shipping biases, his threats to you are funny as shit considering that he has no power over you and he’s always dying in battle, but once you win his trust he admits that despite looking Blatantly Evil, he truly abhors TWSTID and is already planning their follow-up war. I could easily see him and Byleth co-leading the war in the shadows (and that’s where the dialogue of the aforementioned platonic Huleth workplace comedy takes place). Also my friend who played as m!Byleth told me the “we could be a couplet of birds” line in the A-support still exists regardless of gender. Hubert is demiromantic bi and you CANNOT change my mind 

Edelgard and Petra - “Don’t settle for being the bird. Be the arrow instead” Both have a great deal of mutual respect for each other, even though Edelgard is heir to the nation that has kept Petra’s country down for years. You see the same beliefs Petra holds in her supports with Caspar here--that being, “we are not our parents, we can make different choices”. It’s a shame they only have 2 supports. I think it would’ve been cool to see Petra asking Edelgard for Brigidian independence or otherwise talking about how she can achieve her goal. 

Edelgard and Linhardt - I actually think people talk about this a bit, but it’s one of my favourite Black Eagles support chains so I have to mention it. This one is the key to understanding that Edelgard’s better world is only possible in her route, when she has the support and opportunity to trust others enough to learn how to listen to them and consider their perspectives. I advise anyone who thinks Edelgard would be a brutal dictator to watch these supports, because they so blatantly contradict that idea? Linhardt initially frustrates her because she knows he’s talented and smart but he doesn’t want to do anything to help the world with that. Characters like Linhardt are usually given an arc in which they overcome an initial selfishness to help others. This is not that. These supports are about Edelgard learning to understand Linhardt and accommodate him. Edelgard agonizes over finding the perfect way to allow him to do his research in a way that suits him--and when she senses his hesitation at her initial plan, she presses him for the problem and reconfigures the idea because she won’t put him in a situation he’s not fully content in. This is astounding character growth (from both of them, but mostly Edelgard). Also the struggle depicted in this chain is just something that spoke to me when I first saw it--”be useful” versus “learn for knowledge’s sake” is pretty much my exact struggle in life 😂 Seeing two of my favourite characters reach a resolution that satisfied both of them was hopeful, to say the least. 

Caspar and Ferdinand - What strikes me about their supports is that it compares and contrasts these characters’ ideas of justice against each other. Honestly, the Black Eagles as a whole have takes on morality that are just slightly skewed, and these characters’ arguments about it exemplify it. Caspar just thinks that people who hurt others should be hit right away, head empty no thoughts but j u s t i c e. Ferdinand initially believes that all sense of justice comes from being nobility, and with that comes an obligation to be morally superior. Having Caspar just go “uh yeah, what does nobility have to do with it? I just had to hit that guy” is one way in which Ferdinand’s ideals are challenged. It’s a cool contrast that I think highlights an interesting aspect of the Black Eagles and what they were taught. 

Dorothea and Bernie - I love everything about their interaction. If Dorothea were a lesser character, she’d be the mean popular girl who shames Bernie for her messy hair and her anxiety. Instead, Dorothea is patient and Bernie is like “oh no she’s Too Cool for me”. Dorothea also makes note of what Bernie says as she gets too anxious to continue the interaction and aims to comfort her in their next support. We get a good Bernie character moment in their B-support, where she mentions her father ruining her friendship with a commoner boy--and a cathartic moment where Dorothea tells her that her father’s an asshole and that they’re going to be friends anyway. Bernie cries in Dorothea’s arms and AHHHH why didn’t we get MORE of this???

Bernie and Petra - If I could add any support and ending to the game, it would be Bernie/Petra. They have such a good starting point--because of Bernie’s anxiety and Petra being a second language speaker of Fòdlandish, they are prone to miscommunications (which is the general theme of early Bleagles supports). They had a nice 2-support arc where they understand each other a little better--but then there’s the paralogue, where Petra encourages Bernie to come to her homeland with her and Bernie realizes she wants to travel and see amazing things like carnivorous plants. This is fantastic character development for her and is a satisfying conclusion to her arc. I feel like most of Bernie’s endings involve her just reverting back to her hermit self instead of developing a balance between who she was at the beginning and who she’s grown into. I think Petra would offer to let her come to Brigid again, where she helps her navigate a new language and culture. Bernie’s anxiety is still bad but Petra has been in her position and can offer advise and reassurance. Petra is also patient and would give Bernie a safe little house near the carnivorous plants for her to retreat to when overwhelmed. It becomes both of their refuge, with Petra taking time away from her regal duties to spend time with Bernie and her art and her stories. Whether it’s romantic or platonic is up to preference but I low-key ship them 😏

[randomcanbian]

What kind of Edeleth fanfic are you reading? I read a lot of fanfic ( albeit I filter what I read ) and Edeleth always put an emphasis on Byleth, the person beyond the vessel and mercenary. It's often one of the major point of the story.

Okay, in fairness my rants are in large part due to recency bias 😂 There are several (dozens of?) amazing, well-written Edeleth fic with Byleth fleshed out as a character who's usefulness isn't only relegated to physical battles but also to strategy and the morale of the Strike Force and the Imperial Army/Adrestian Faithful at large, whose personal relationships didn't revolve entirely around Edelgard!

That said, I've been reading Edeleth fics since the game came out, I've finished all the fics whose opening chapters I found good/interesting, so I've been trying to read everything else...honestly, it's no wonder there's a drop in quality. My gripe is just that there's so many fics among the recent ones I've read where I find Byleth's characterization unsatisfying, and I'm the type of person who gets annoyed when there are a lot of people who think about my fave in a certain way. Hence, the rants.

To describe what types of fics I've read, here are common enough tropes that I've found in multiple Edeleth fics that I find annoying:

Byleth's humanization coming from her loving Edelgard first-and-foremost--the insinuation that romantic love trumps platonic love rankles me. I wish there was more of an emphasis on how Byleth was humanized through her caring for all her students, and they caring for her in return. And--it's a matter of personal taste I guess--but I like to think Byleth returned Edelgard's romantic feelings only during the timeskip. Before that, she cared for all her students equally.

Byleth choosing to side with Edelgard because it's Edelgard, and not because of the ideals she's waging a war for. Hate that. I've read too many fics where Byleth doesn't really get why Edelgard wants the crest system eradicated / abolish nobles, but she's siding with her because it's her. I'd rather people draw from her background as a commoner--I know that Byleth's been in a daze for most of her early life, but if FEW3H has proven anything is that Byleth feels good when she helps people. Outside of the mercenary group, where she has the chance to interact with people she didn't have to kill, that she had to take care for--it should be enough for her to reflect on her own principles.

Post-Crimson Flower where Byleth isn't doing anything except waiting for her wife to come home and complaining about how much work she's doing and being emo about how they don't have enough time together. Even without the crest and Sothis' power she's a skilled fighter and a great tactician. She also has experience as a commoner / mercenary which Edelgard and the Twin Jewels (I love you Ferdibert) don't have. Surely she'd be better utilized and much busier than just being Edelgard's arm candy? (Honestly lmao I think most of my frustration stem from fics centered on this...like I know the writers wanted to write a fluff fic based on this trope and didn't want to overthink it, but it just bothers me. I'm a complainer.)

I hate dumb jock Byleth. Hate it. She may not know a lot about the world, but it's out of a lack of curiosity, as well as her father intentionally hiding things from her. I see her as someone more pragmatic, who only searches for knowledge if it's of use to her, but if it interests her she picks it up quickly. I remember seeing this more often in modern AUs, but I'm sure it's happened enough in fics set in canon for the hatred to have cemented in my mind.

I heavily dislike fics where Byleth barely interacts with the rest of the Black Eagles, or where it's obvious that she cares about them much less than she does Edelgard. I also dislike fics where the rest of the Black Eagles feel distant from Byleth, when in-game they were as worried about her as Edelgard was.

Special mention since I'm already complaining, but it's not really relevant because it's more a personal taste:

Byleth and Edelgard falling in love at first sight (I find love at first sight stupid in general, it's inorganic. I understand horny-at-first-sight, and obsession-at-first-sight, but the love-at-first-sight trope bothers me, and there are only certain ships where I'll let it slide. A recent fic that I read that I loved had Edeleth review an opera someone made of their love story, and both of them agreed that the initial part where they fell in love at first sight was stupid and wanted it rewritten, lmfao. It also makes less sense on Byleth's side due to her muted emotions. I'd buy that she'd feel connected to Edelgard because of her shared crest, but many fic writers don't go that angle, she just thinks Edelgard's hot, and that really annoys me (muted emotions reason))

[mikaharuka]

Edelgard for the character ask game please!

Heyo Iris! Thanks for the ask~

1: sexuality headcanon: Interestingly enough, my headcanons for JP and EN Edelgard differ.

For EN Edelgard, bisexual with a strong preference for women.

For JP Edelgard, however, pansexual. Did you know that JP Edelgard is the only major character in JP FE3H whose lines are exactly the same, no matter if you play as Bereto (m!Byleth) or Beresu (f!Byleth)? That's pretty much proof that her feelings are based on Byleth as a person and are independent of gender. Hence the pan headcanon.

2: otp: Oooh, Edelthea is my favorite! Though I also enjoy Edeleth as well~

3: brotp: Hubert, hands down. I mean... it's pretty blatantly clear how much they mean to each other. And in fact, their JP supports together with their paired ending seriously gives me strong queerplatonic vibes.

4: notp: Hubert - I mentioned it elsewhere, but my strongest brotps also tend to be my strongest notps. True, Ferdibert is my one FE3H monoship, making conflicting ships 'technically notp by default', but this specific pair draws a very strong reaction from me precisely *because* I see them as queerplatonic or an extremely close platonic pair.

I should note that this is all with JP conversations in mind. The JP supports mention 'strong feelings', but the charge and target of said feelings were left open ended. So while you could read the charge as romantic and the target as Edelgard, it is far from explicit or definitive. Meanwhile the EN localization took away all the nuance and ambiguity and explicitly declared a charge and target. I could go on forever about localization issues, but I'd be here all day >.>

5: first headcanon that pops into my head She's such a strong romantic, even if she hides it. Well... that part is canon, but small things like loving romance-driven media is my HC!

6: favorite line from this character Oh, I adore JP Edelgard - her softer personality (relative to EN Edelgard, at least) just shines in these subtle ways. A personal favorite is from the JP Edelthea A support. Here is the EN line, the JP line, the transliteration, and my translation of the JP line in italics:

Don’t you see? No story about me would be complete without the character of Dorothea. わからない？私の物語には、貴方ガ必要だもの。 [Wakaranai? Watashi no monogatari ni wa, anata ga hitsuyo da mono.] You don’t understand? In my story, you are irreplaceable.

Indirect, non-explicit confessions of love are extremely popular in Japanese. "The moon is beautiful, isn't it?" (tsuki ga kirei desu ne) is the most famous example of this. With the surrounding context and unspoken subtext, this is pretty much a confession of love.

There are a few details that help - 'hitsuyo' translates as 'essential', 'necessary', 'vital', or 'indispensable'. Also, while 'monogatari' means 'story', JP Edelgard is also talking about her life in this context - I settled on 'irreplaceable' because it fits 'hitsuyo' and the tone.

7: one way in which I relate to this character Being a secret romantic? Pfft totally me. Though my 'secret' nature is only the case IRL. To those who know me online? Super obvious lol

8: thing that gives me second hand embarrassment about this character Tbh... I'm having a little difficulty thinking of an obvious answer here.

9: cinnamon roll or problematic fave? As much as I love Edelgard, I do have to say 'both' - I can't quite discount her actions, after all. But on her personality alone, she's absolutely a cinnamon roll - both versions of her, too~

[check out my other answers for this ask in this post]

[gascon-en-exil]

Just my two cents: I'm into women and find Edeleth extremely obnoxious. Also I always read their relationship as often platonic considering that in 3/4 routes she is the enemy and IS decided to represent Byleth in Heroes never as the crimsom flower one

The subject of which version(s) of Byleth appear(s) in Heroes is one I'm not going to touch, both because FEH plays fast and loose with its canon all the time and because I just don't care enough about Byleth to wade into the back-and-forth over something that I know IS is never going to outright confirm one way or another. Why risk pissing off some of their whales?

In FE16 itself though I do think we're supposed to see some level of attraction between Edelgard and Byleth regardless of route. Just off the top of my head there's

Her death scene in SS/VW, "I wanted to walk with you" and such

The opening to the AM parley, where she greets Byleth first and doesn't acknowledge Dimitri at all if she gets snippy over Byleth doubting her

The "Facing you...I grow weak" line from the Hegemon in AM toward Byleth

The non-choice of dialogue option in SS/VW where Byleth can only sound sympathetic to Edelgard, just before the last fight against her

This isn't like, say, Camilla in Birthright, because Corrin grew up around Camilla (and the other Nohrian royals) so they have a longstanding connection that the game then mines for obvious fanservice. Edelgard has been crushing on her teacher for about a year - even in AM and VW where they're not her teacher - and we're apparently supposed to believe that Byleth reciprocates those feelings...that the game then mines for less obvious but still noticeable fanservice. It is indeed extremely obnoxious - and all the more so because Edelgard's player-pandering characteristics are less overt than the likes of Camilla and Tharja, so you have people arguing in all seriousness that she's not written to be a marketable waifu.

[mittelfrank-divas]

Do you have any fic recs? Just generally, fics that you've enjoyed, no matter the length! I like Edelthea and Ferdibert too, but I'd be especially interested in any rarepair fics you might have to recommend. Sorry if this has already been asked!

Oh, I do have some fic recs! I’ve had better luck finding good Ferdibert fics than others (plz send me the good wlw fic if you have them!) 

Some Ferdiberts I’ve enjoyed recently, in no particular order:

Cause for Celebration by Tattletold (there are infinite one-shots about these two dancing but I think this is my fav)

everything I write turns into a body by SydneyHorses (just. that title alone, man.)

have we met before? by Tattletold (okay but seriously this fic, absolutely goofy reincarnation premise with a delightful execution)

Denial & Deception by Bohemienne (fake dating for very important spy purposes)

And some non-shippy ones: 

Defies All Description series by @indigowallbreaker is all Edelgard & Hubert platonic goodness! Also if you’re looking for rarepairs, check out their other works!

Going in Circles, Going Down by Lady Aconite (takes the idea of Byleth and Sothis resetting the timeline over and over and runs with it, works in a bunch of other FE games in a way that’s lost on me, but uses them to flesh out the world and Byleth as a character in interesting ways. Not always how I’d characterize characters but an impressive multi-route undertaking anyway, with hints of Edeleth)