A/N: I wanted to take a small break to better my writing skills but then life happened, and I ended up being gone for almost a year. Terribly sorry for the wait, but I'm back now and I'm not dead. On to a new story I've been cooking up and I've got several more on the way.
I think I have officially lost my marbles. One minute I'm playing Fire Emblem Fates in my bedroom, the next minute I'm running through a field trying to reach the Hoshidan and Nohrian armies before they clash (at least I started at the branch of fate). I'm brought out of my trance when I hear Azura call out to me, "Hurry, Haylie, we must reach the battlefield and quickly." Well at least they used the name of my avatar. I pick up the pace and grip the Yato Blade so hard my knuckles are turning white. My stomach turns as the time to choose my fate draws closer and closer. Then I saw them, the royal families of Hoshido and Nohr ready to battle one another, all because of me. Xander turns to me and smiles, "Haylie, thank goodness, they haven't hurt you, have they?" I felt my stomach twist with guilt when I met his warm gaze. Camilla, Leo, and Elise stopped at Xander's words and turned to me as well. But before I could say anything to them, Ryoma's arm is already shielding me from Nohr's best. "Stay alert, Haylie, he's a Nohrian commander and a dangerous foe." Hinoka, Takumi, and Sakura rush to my side as soon as they see me.
Xander's warm smile contorts to an icy glare at Ryoma. "Silence, fool, she is my sister and I refuse to let you take her from me." Corrin's mind must be made of steel because I want to freaking puke right now. Ryoma harshly retaliates, "Ha, that's rich coming from the scum that took her from us in the first place." I wish I could just run away from it all, it's just so painful watching them fight over me. It was one thing seeing it on a screen with set dialogue, but it's completely different seeing what transpired on that field. Ryoma turns to me in desperation, "Haylie come back to Hoshido, please." Xander responds with a plea of his own, "No, Haylie, Nohr is your true home." Everyone turns to me awaiting my choice. I'm unable to meet their gazes as the pressure finally starts to weigh on me. For what felt like hours I'm unable to even speak to them as I cry the tears I can no longer hold back.
After a taking a moment (I'm honestly surprised Xander didn't tell me to buck up), I finally meet everyone's eyes as I turn and face Ryoma. "Ryoma, please withdraw your troops." With those words I sealed my fate and chose to fight with the Kingdom of Nohr. Ryoma's gaze contorts to horror as the realization of what this means hits him. "Haylie, you don't really mean you will side with the people who stole you away from us do you?" I cried some more as I faced him with a bit more determination. "I'm sorry, Ryoma, but I can't abandon the family I've known for most of my childhood." As I say this, I see the anguish on Hinoka's face, the fury on Takumi's face, and the sorrow on Sakura's face. My body felt so heavy at seeing the pain I just caused. My anguish was alleviated slightly when Xander's hand landed on my shoulder, and I met his warm gaze once more. "You made the right choice, little princess, after all our bonds are stronger than blood, and Father will be pleased as well." My determination was fueled further by seeing the joy on my Camilla, Leo, and Elise's faces.
Ryoma's horror turned into rage as he roared, "Really, I'm not sure about that considering he tried to have her killed today." Xander calmly responded with a cold command. "Explain yourself, swiftly." Ryoma explained the events of Chapter 5 to Xander (even though I technically wasn't in the game yet ha ha) Xander turned to me and asked, "Is this true, Haylie?" I nodded and told him about Queen Mikoto's assassination and the cloaked man. "But that's exactly why I need to go back and see Father." I said in haste as I wanted to prevent bloodbaths if I could. Unfortunately, Ryoma was in no mood to just let me go with "Nohrian Scum" without a fight. "You may go with them, but first you must face your true brother." His gaze hardened even more. "You are my sister and a princess of Hoshido. How dare you use the sacred Yato blade against your own kingdom!" Before I could even react, Ryoma darted for me and swung his katana, Rajinto, at me and nicked my shoulder. I cried out and stumbled back clutching my now bleeding shoulder.
Before Ryoma could do any more damage, Xander swiftly charged and retaliated, his blade, Siegfried emitting a frightening aura as the it sliced through Ryoma's shoulder plate. "Stand down, I won't let you harm Haylie anymore!" Elise glared at Ryoma as she healed my shoulder. I looked at Xander and said, "Xander, let it go for now, I want to go back to Nohr and speak to Father right away." Before I could say anymore, Leo quickly comes to my side in a protective stance. "I'm afraid we must fight." I look at him completely incredulous. "What!? Why, Leo?" Leo gives a confident smirk (confidence I do not have) and says, "They will think we fear them or worse, that we coerced you into this." Camilla pipes in with a smile "Besides, we didn't do anything wrong, why should we run away." Elise grabs my hands and cheers, "Your one of us Haylie, and that's worth fighting for!" I turn to the Nohrian royals and somberly tell them, "So you're all on board with this." They all nod and ready their weapons as I unsheathe the Yato and face the enraged Hoshidans.
A/N: The choice has been made and the consequences will begin in the next chapter. For now, farewell my dears.