Part 1 — Harpstring Moon

Zanado, or the Red Canyon as it is more commonly known today, is a locale of great import to the Church of Seiros. It lies close to Garreg Mach Monastery within the Oghma Mountains in central Fódlan: the natural barrier between the continent's three great nations. Where some great structures once stood, ruins now await those who visit the hallowed grounds hoisted high above sheer cliffs and valleys obscured by ethereal blue mist. There are few who still know what inhabited the ruins, but many claim visiting the site is a transcendent experience all the same.

Thus when bandits reportedly took refuge there, Archbishop Rhea was quick to amass her soldiers for retribution — alongside the Blue Lions and their professor.

None of the involved parties would truly understand the gravity of entering into conflict with these bandits, the same whom Byleth and Jeralt fended off with Fódlan's burgeoning royalty in Remire Village. They are in league with a mysterious entity calling themselves "The Flame Emperor." What this antagonistic force has planned would not be revealed for many months to come, but it would undoubtedly bring an end to peace in Fódlan as we know it.

Though the march from Garreg Mach to Zanado wasn't particularly long, it was arduous. Signs of civilization that were built around the monastery quickly gave way to uneven plateaus strung together by little more than bridges seemingly old enough for the Saints themselves to have traversed.

The landscape was drab to some, a sea of monotonous grey only broken up by sparse trees and rocky outcroppings. It was easy to trip over the cracked earth, especially as those preparing for battle had to lug around heavy instruments of war.

Because the Blue Lions class was only "tagging along" for this mission, they took up the rear section of the marching platoon. They were isolated from a group that some (read: Felix) had determined to be pompous about the skills of rookie combatants.

Byleth had long since pulled Felix aside to keep him from getting too worked up about the whole thing.

The green-haired professor spent much of their walking time demonstrating different kinds of jabs and sidewinding punches. His black-haired student mimicked them for critique while wearing a set of iron gauntlets that covered his forearms and extended his reach through daggers protruding out of the knuckles.

At the very back of the line, Marianne distanced herself further to cautiously watch her estranged classmates. Professor Hanneman had been happy to let her join the Blue Lions for this mission, as it was a good opportunity to "break out of that shell." However, the longer she was there, the more Marianne regretted ever agreeing to go.

Her attention focused heavily on the heir of Fraldarius. Felix was the only one who truly intimidated her, especially after his comments the first day. She hoped Byleth would keep him busy enough to not be a concern.

At the same time, she tried to keep tabs on everyone else's position to avoid any interactions. The constant worrying exacerbated an already exhausting march.

Mercedes was off on her own, head ducked as though offering a quick prayer before they encountered any danger.

Dimitri, Sylvain and Ingrid were at the front of the pack making idle chatter, as Dedue stood guard behind his liege.

Annette lent Ashe an ear to wear down as he joyously talked about getting to work with real knights.

Then her train of thought was once again broken by a questioning voice:

"Isn't it funny how they call this place 'the Red Canyon' when there is not a hint of red in anything around us?"

Marianne jerks her attention toward the deliberately slow and soft-spoken voice of Mercedes, who had fallen back when she wasn't looking to stand beside her.

For a moment, Marianne is transfixed.

It seemed Mercedes was everything the reclusive blue-haired girl wasn't. Mercedes carried herself with a confident poise, and the golden cloth wrapped around her shoulders hardly fell out of place when she moved her arms. Her silvery yellow hair was effortlessly tied with a cute bow and laid in front of her left shoulder to perfectly frame those soft facial features and make her pure blue eyes stand out. And let's not forget that she was the oldest student in the Academy, which gave her at least a five-year advantage in cultivating a shapely figure that Marianne could never hope to compete with.

What was she doing here when this perfect woman fit the same niche?

As soon as Marianne became cognizant of the eternity that had passed in the few seconds she was staring, she turns her gaze to her feet.

"Yes. I suppose."

The dimples in Mercedes' cheeks deepen as she smiles.

"It's a wonderful place all the same. Truly the Goddess has blessed us with a beautiful stretch of nature to enjoy during our assignment."

When Mercedes lets off a slight giggle to punctuate her thought, Marianne shudders. Her voice rolled over the anxious girl like a warm bath of honey and she hated it. She hated being stuck here with people who were so much more useful than her; People who flaunted that fact by trying to engage her in conversation.

But Marianne kept talking, as meek as she felt, to keep from appearing rude.

"It is nice out here," she mumbles. "If I were with the Golden Deer this week, I'd be off to Daphnel to pick up blacksmithing materials. It's too cold there for my liking…"

"You should spend some time in the Kingdom. It's cold no matter where you go!"

Mercedes links her hands by her belly and laughs. Marianne tries her best to force out a chuckle to fit in, but struggles to hold it nearly as long.

There's a pause as Mercedes fluffs at her hair when she's done laughing. Then she looks at the blue-haired girl directly.

"Sorry if I bothered you, Marianne. I just wanted to tell you how excited I was to see you coming with us this morning."

Marianne feels her heart stop. That was a joke, right…?

She wasn't sure, and that made her even more anxious. Cheeks draining of color, eyes widening like saucers, hands shaking by her sides. The works.

"I don't know why you would be. I'm just going to stay back and heal from afar if I need to, otherwise I'll just bring you all bad luck."

"Bad luck?" Mercedes looks curious at that, tapping a finger on her lower lip. "I don't know about that. If anything I feel like we're rather kindred spirits, you and I! Nobody spends as much time praying as we do, it seems."

Marianne has to look away from Mercedes to hide her quivering lip. It was a nice thought, but the girl knew that she and Mercedes were undoubtedly not praying for the same things.

To be kindred spirits with her was a nice dream. Nothing more.

She swallows back the lump in her throat and begins idly gnawing on her right thumbnail to try and cover her shaky voice.

"Honestly, Mercedes… I would say I spend more time confessing than praying."

Mercedes frowns in response, wondering what Marianne would feel guilty enough to confess about so often. But it wasn't her place to ask. She simply rests a hand on Marianne's shoulder and brings back a warm, assuring smile.

"I'm sure the Goddess forgives you for whatever you feel the need to confess, Marianne."

Again, the niceties stun her.

She opens her mouth to respond, but nothing comes out. Just hearing those thoughts come from someone as devout as Mercedes was touching in a way she could not articulate — and honestly might not want to. That would be opening up too much.

Luckily she did not have to respond, as others joined the duo.

"Mercedes. Marianne." Dimitri remarks in his usual kind, confident tone as he stands on the other side of Marianne.

She looks up from her feet and flashes a fleeting smile.

"Dimitri, hello."

As she looks ahead, she'd come face-to-face with Sylvain, who was walking backwards in front of her. He had both arms folded behind his neck as he offered her a charismatic smile.

Realizing she was surrounded on three sides, Marianne casts her eyes back on her feet. This was getting a little too crowded for her liking.

Sylvain, on the other hand, thrived on having many people to talk to.

"So. You guys are on a first-name basis already, huh?" The redhead teases. "Even Ashe still calls Dimitri 'your Highness.'"

Before Dimitri has the chance to scold him, Sylvain cries out as he trips over an uneven patch of ground. Mercedes gasps and nearly dashes forward to try and catch him, but Sylvain finds his footing again and holds up both hands to keep everyone back.

"I'm good, I'm good. No worries."

He laughs, and then shifts to walk normally beside Dimitri so he could see where he was going.

The Prince clears his throat, taking the opportunity to change subjects.

"I wanted to thank you for coming on this mission with us Marianne," he says. "It's a lot to ask, so we appreciate you being so willing."

Marianne shrugs off the comment as she drags her feet more sheepishly.

"The Professor is quite convincing when he wants to be," she mutters — deflecting all of the thanks.

The three Blue Lions all laugh at the comment.

"Yes, he really is." Dimitri nods. "That's one of the reasons we like him."

There's a period of silence as Marianne continues to stare at the floor.

Dimitri winds up breaking the silence, with a tone that clearly showed he was hoping to make their guest feel more comfortable.

"I hope you don't mind, but I brought Sylvain along so he could apologize." That draws the nervous girl's attention. "I heard he was rather crass when you two met."

Sylvain steps up so he can look past Dimitri to Marianne. His expression turns more genuine when they see one another. She can tell by the look in his eyes.

"If it came across that way, I really am sorry. I didn't want to make you uncomfortable."

The genuine emotion on his face then dissipates with a smug-looking grin.

"I just can't really control myself around a beautiful lady. That's all!"

Dimitri hits Sylvain hard on the shoulder, and the redhead stumbles to the side with an audible grunt of pain.

"Seriously?"

The blond Prince shakes his head with visceral disappointment.

"Ingrid is right, Sylvain. If you're going to be the Margrave of Gautier one day, you cannot be this insincere with people."

As Sylvain straightens out his posture again, he holds a hand up to his heart and gasps. He was hurt by the accusation, but clearly over-acting the bit.

"Insincere?" He scoffs and shakes his head. "Dimitri. Do you really think I'm lying about Marianne being a beautiful lady?"

The redhead slips past Dimitri so he can stand behind Marianne, resting his hands on her shoulders to hold her out as an example of his point. She tenses at his touch, but it was innocent enough that she doesn't try to squirm away.

Dimitri rolls his eyes and crosses his arms at the obvious straw man tactic. A light red dusts his cheeks.

"That's not the point and you know it."

From her side, Mercedes giggles with a hand over her mouth before reaching out to hold Marianne's wrist. The blue-haired girl's attention is pulled that way.

"Don't worry about them," she chimes. "Like I said, it's awfully cold in Faerghus. Tends to make people a little… Crazy."

The three Blue Lions continue to playfully banter and laugh amongst themselves. Eventually the warmth of their friendship around her does make Marianne smile and start to feel a little better about her decision to come along.

However, that fleeting moment of happiness is snuffed out as she looked ahead to find Felix's fiery orange eyes glaring from over his shoulder. He turns away right when she notices, but the message was clear. The more she indulged in this endeavor, the closer she got to that supposed boar's tusks.

Felix's eyes were seared into her memory as she returned to her usual downtrodden stance.