The week leading up to the tournament turned out to be a huge disappointment for Hinoka. The first problem was that Haru never materialized at the inn's front door. Neither did she discover a black market for large exotic animals that were more likely than not to be stolen. At least, she learned even more about the upcoming tournament. Peasants, mercenaries, and lower noble houses would fight the first day of the Festival of Bonds. The nobility would fight the following day in a different competition, part of her wondered if this was to prevent any of the nobles the embarrassment of losing to someone beneath them. That was good. Hinoka recalled the encounter she had with the crown prince the previous week. She did not plan on meeting, much less fighting him again.

At the very least, business had been better for the inn, which meant they had three customers a night instead of one. How Kristin managed to keep the place open remained an enigma. In a way, Hinoka understood why Kristin had been so insistent that she pay her back for whatever the healer had charged on her behalf her first night in Windmire. Money truly was no object.

Which also explained why, when Hinoka requested the day of the tournament off, Katerina had huffed and groaned, before finally admitting that no one would be searching for room and board until the night before and the evening following the tournament, and she really was not in need of additional help. However, she still made it clear that Hinoka would not gain any credit to pay back her debt when she was not working at the inn.

With how well that conversation had gone, Hinoka was not expecting much of a sendoff the morning of the tournament. She woke up to a sky slightly less overcast than usual. As a child, she had heard stories that the sun never shined in Nohr. Obviously, those were exaggerations. It was often overcast and foggy, but the sun was still there behind the gloom. Perhaps this rare bright day was a good omen for Hinoka. She couldn't know for certain without an onmoyji like her mother's retainer, Orochi, to interpret it for her, but a positive energy seemed to thrum through her veins. It was going to be a good day.

Britta's bed was already empty and made to Kristin's military strict standards. She probably had gotten up early up to make up for the work Hinoka would have done if she was not at the tournament. A small sense of guilt settled over her. If she were to collect any prize money, and assuming she would return to the inn after discovering both Haru and Corrin at the festivities, she would share what she could with Britta. Despite her insistent chattering, she had been nothing but kind to Hinoka. It was more than about time she did something in return for her.

Turning away from the beds, she leaned in front of a small mirror hanging on the wall by a frayed twine over a rusty nail. Black specks where the silverback had tarnished, marred her reflection as Hinoka quickly braided her hair. Although it was longer than it ever had been, the braid was still incredibly stubby and short. It looked rather goofy, but she felt it was too long for a ponytail. It was not as if she was going to be judge by her appearance anyway.

Satisfied that her hairstyle would not easily be grabbed by an opponent, she snatched her satchel, and hurried out the door as quietly as she could. There was no need to go stomping around and awaken both of the inn's guests.

As she stepped into the small dining area, Hinoka noticed that a small spot had been set up at the table closest to the bar. A linen towel had been tossed over it like a poor man's table cloth with a tin cup of most likely water and a folded napkin.

With a clank and a swoosh, the door connecting the kitchen and the bar swung open. Hinoka quickly turned her head to Britta, her tight braid already a bit frizzy and her apron stained. She was struggling to balance a tray with a ceramic bowl and a teapot. Hinoka subconsciously moved to help lighten her load, but Britta shook her head. "Don't worry, I have done harder balancing acts than this," she said.

Hinoka took Britta's word for it and simply stepped back to let her do her job. "Did someone worry there would be such a breakfast rush that they made a reservation ahead of time?" Hinoka asked as Britta quickly placed the teapot and bowl on the placemat.

Britta shook her head as she stepped back, "No," she replied, her face failing to suppress a huge grin. Something was up, but Hinoka was not certain how to politely ask about it. "Well," Britta added after they stood there for a few moments of silence. "The omelet is best eaten warm,"

Hinoka's eyes traveled to the steaming dish on the table that smelled of cheese and cured meat, and back to the smiling Nohrian. "You made this for me?" Hinoka had taken Britta as a thoughtful person, but to spend the little supplies she had, and to get up so early on the account of someone she had only known a few weeks (And had not been the easiest person to teach and work with, although none of the guest had come down with food poisoning yet)... it was not something Hinoka expected.

"Well of course," Britta answered. "Back home, mama always made sure we had something good to eat before a competition. The last thing you need to worry about is how empty your stomach feels when someone is swinging a big knife at you."

"Britta," Hinoka said as she smiled warmly. "Thank you."

Britta tucked the tray under her arm. "I cannot attend the event and cheer you on, it was the least I could do," she said. "Now hurry and eat before this gets cold or you are late to the tournament."


Hinoka planned to arrive at registration early to give herself additional time to poke around some before the tournament began. Perhaps she would discover Corrin before she had to compete in any of the battles. However, several other mercenaries had thought the same. Hinoka counted about fifty or so standing in front of her in the queue that had formed in front of Krakenburg's gates.

As much as waiting, annoyed her, Hinoka could not be angry at the others; they had just as much of a right to be here as she did. In fact, because the other mercenaries were (as far as she knew) not a disguised royal from a hostile nation, they probably had even more of a right to be there than she did.

She pressed on with the crowd noting that the face of the young man standing behind her was beginning to blend in with his pine green hair. Hinoka wondered if it was because of the nerves towards the upcoming tournament. Or it could be, given that he was not a sky knight like Hinoka and most certainly was not used to flying so high the land below looked like a patchwork quilt, he was uncomfortable standing on the bridge several stories above the lower levels of the Castle. What blew her mind was how the castle was built in a crater. It was like she was standing in a large kaleidoscope that was broken with only orange shards.

How deep did the entire thing go? Was it built into an already existing canyon that was unusually shaped, or was it dug over years to make room for the castle. Regardless it was, at least in Hinoka's opinion, a very defensible structure. It was more practical than she wanted to give it credit for. Wondering at the ins and outs, how the Castle came to be, certainly was a way to pass the time. She did not have much else to do waiting in line, and it beat agonizing over the coming tournament. It was simply something else to think about instead of fretting about suffering the same fate as the brother of the woman who sold squashes at the underground market.

Hinoka shuddered at an unusual roar. Her heart jolted into action before the rest of her. The others in the crowd started and murmured, but acted more like they were startled by a neighbor waiting to return something rather than a stranger looking to rob them. Pressing her hand against her chest as if this action could calm her breathing and heart back up, Hinoka looked upwards towards the source of the sound, and saw the wide wings of a wyvern slowly winding around the walls of the castle until it disappeared around the other side.

Wyverns were much larger than Pegasi. She wondered how different flying would be on a wyvern. Would it be more difficult to make tight turns in the air, take more time to ascend? Funny how she was so focused on what it would be like to fly on a wyvern when she did not even have her pegasus. After she safely located Corrin, which she would do that day, Haru would be found next. There was not a chance she would return home without him.

Turning her attention back to the moving line in front of her, Hinoka noticed that there were now only two others in front of her. An older butler dressed in a black and purple uniform with thinning gray hair sat behind a wide table. His voice implied he had been a little too fond of smoking his pipe all of his life. He also spoke very slowly and seemed to take an eternity to ask and record the identifying information of each contestant.

Despite the butler's tardiness of speech, the line managed to move forward. Eventually the mercenary in front of Hinoka stepped away from the desk, giving her a chance to finally register. The butler did not coldly tell her that there was no more space left which was good. He quickly glanced at Hinoka with watery eyes a pale almost washed out blue color before focusing back on the pages in front of him.

"Your name, please?" He said his voice just as dull as when he spoke to everyone before her.

"Helena" Hinoka answered, realizing this alias slid from her tongue easier than her own name did.

"Where are you from?"

"I'm not from anywhere," Hinoka replied, hoping this was acceptable and did not just make her the most inconspicuous person there.

The clerk gave Hinoka the most impatient look she had ever seen. "Well surely, there is somewhere you spent more time in than other places."

"Izumo," Hinoka replied.

The clerk scribbled this down on his page and then scratched the same information onto a thin wooden card which he handed to Hinoka. The man gestured to the opened door that was behind him to the left. "Go through that door and look for waiting room four, and please leave behind any personal weapons. The palace staff will provide what you need for the fight."

Hinoka's nervousness was replaced with excitement. This is what she had spent these weeks waiting for. She was inside Krakenburg, right under Garon's nose and he was not even aware of it. Most importantly, for the first time since she was a child, Corrin was finally arms-reach away.


The waiting room, she was directed to was filled with about a half-dozen mercenaries standing or leaning against the wall. A few were quietly speaking to one another. Not one stopped their conversations when Hinoka entered.

The only ones not dressed in gambeson or some sort of armor was the butler and maid duo standing near the weapons rack by a large door on the opposite side of the room, which Hinoka assumed must lead out into the arena.

The space was smaller than the dining room back at the inn. With only eight other people standing there, it didn't feel claustrophobic, yet. However, the line behind Hinoka had stretched out well onto the streets of Windmire so she doubted there would be this much elbowroom for long.

A board on the wall had names of the contestants written on small wooden planks that were hung on hooks determining who would fight and when. There were more names than Hinoka could count. However, after each round, the losing individual was pulled out of the competition. The number of contestants would be reduced by half after each match. She did not have time to perfectly calculate it, but Hinoka mentally figured that she would only have to fight maybe four or five times if she were to make it to the finalist. She could expect to have a chance to catch her breath and see a healer in between fights.

She hoped the order of the contestants would be determined randomly. She had trained her whole life and so did everyone else. Hinoka pinched her thigh and firmly shook her head. She would not be thinking this way. She was a princess of Hoshido and did not come here to simply win. She was here to save her sister, and Corrin's freedom was a far greater prize than any trophy they could place in her hand.

She handed that small wooden, card with her pseudonym written on it to the maid who took it from her, looked at the name, and then up at Hinoka's face, probably hoping to remember which contender was who. The maid then turned away and pinned the card to the board, and Hinoka's heart sank a little.

As far as she could tell, assuming the order contestants fought against one another was from left to right on the board, she would be one of the first to face off against an opponent. So much for her plan of looking around, see if she can hear any staff members mentioning a hostage before the tournament began. Was there still enough time to slip away quietly a return before she was missed? Last thing she wanted was to be arrested for being suspicious.

No, she would wait until after her first match. If she won, then there would be a much longer wait until she fought again, she would sneak out then. And if she lost, well her pride hurt a bit to think of that potential outcome, but at least then she would have the rest of the festival to sneak around.


"Helena," the maid standing by the board called out at last. Hinoka, who was standing on the edge of her feet, immediately sprang and hurried over to the entrance to the arena. The maid took a spear from the rack, a tournament one with a blunted tip. "You said this was what you had the most experience with when you registered."

Hinoka nodded. "I did," technically, her weapon of choice was the naginata, but she was not going to tell any Nohrian that. They would stab her before they realized that this Hoshidan might be important enough to be a worthwhile hostage… or at least important enough to know information worth torturing her for.

The maid had a book open in front of her and read out the rules, but Hinoka only really could recall he explaining that these fights were only to the "first blood" which meant the competitor who bled first was out. She had watched similar contest back at Hoshido.

The door opened upwards with a loud moan as if it had been in need of a good oiling a century ago. Hinoka stepped onto the sandy arena, her eyes looked up on the seats above them full of Nohrians excited for the contest. On the opposite side of the arena, roughly a hundred feet away, the figure of Hinoka's first opponent of the day walked towards her. She continued to move until, she reached a spot by the center where two parallel lines a yard apart from each other were drawn into the sand. The other competitor stopped here as well.

In his hands, he also tightly gripped a lance. Thankful her first fight of the day was not against someone wielding an axe, Hinoka also noticed how her opponent, a very round -faced and blond young Nohrian stood with his back slightly slouched and his feet turned in. Not a great starting position for an experienced fighter, but Hinoka did not think he could have been one.

He could not have been much older than Takumi. She did not really think that she wanted to fight him, but the crowd was ready for a show, and it was not at all as if Hinoka was expected to maim or do worst to the boy. The referee blew his horn. The boy thrust his spear towards Hinoka's chest. She easily dodged this by turning to the side.

The boy had moved too widely and left himself opened. Before he had a chance to blink, Hinoka nicked just behind his ear with her spearhead. As the boy winced and placed his hand against the wound, dark red blood slowly oozed out. Noticing this, the referee blew his horn, it was almost impossible to hear it over the cheering crowd.


The match had been brief, only a handful of minutes at most, but it seemed to Hinoka to be over in a matter of seconds.

Although she did not move that much, Hinoka's heart pounded. Despite the completely different environment, it reminded her of sparing with her friends at the Sky Knight barracks. A tinge of homesickness wrapped around her heart as she slipped back into the room where a healer was waiting with a staff. Hinoka shook her head and reminded herself that this longing she had in her heart although it hurt her for a bit, it must be nothing compared to whatever, Corrin was feeling. She should not forget why she even came here to begin with. It could be up to and perhaps more than a quarter of an hour until she was expected to fight again. Surely this would give her more than enough time to poke around the palace and see what she could find.

Hinoka slipped to the door that she had entered the waiting room by.

"What are you doing?" the butler barked at her as her hand hovered over the brass doorknob. Blast. Hinoka could ignore him, but she was not certain she wanted them to sound the alarm that an intruder was prowling around the palace. She turned to face the young man who very well could have been around her age. His purple and black uniform looked like it could fit a scarecrow better than his wiry form.

The easiest and most common excuse slid right off Hinoka's tongue. "I was going to look for a privy," she explained.

The young butler rolled his eyes and looked at Hinoka as if she were the densest creature he ever had the displeasure of speaking with his entire life ad he gestured to a pot in the corner of the room.

A blush as red as her hair traveled up Hinoka's neck. So much for sneaking out. She supposed someone who made as many enemies as Garon did would be tight on security if he was going to allow events like the festival of bonds at all. Hinoka's shoulders slumped in defeat. She would just have to search for Corrin after the tournament, and make she sure was not made to walk directly out the castle door once she was disqualified from the tournament.

If she were to throw a match, Hinoka could leave earlier. No. That was not something she could do. She still had her pride. Also, this feeling she could not shake seemed to tell her that if she stuck out until the very end of the tournament, it would lead her to reunite with her sister.


As the day wore on, the room became less and less crowded as contestants were disqualified. Hinoka was surprised to find herself standing alone in the room with the two staff members. However, this surprise was replaced with excitement. It meant she was very likely to place if she was one of the finalist. The maid did not even need to call her name again. She nodded to Hinoka who jumped up from the bench and was standing in front of the door waiting for it to open. When it finally did, Hinoka stepped onto the sand for the fifth and hopefully final time.

Despite watching these kind of duals for hours that day, the crowd cheered louder than ever, as if it were impossible for their voices to go hoarse as long as they were entertained. Yes, after several other fights, Hinoka was feeling fatigued herself, but whoever she was fighting would most likely be in the same condition. Hinoka stopped her walk at the parallel lines in the sand and lifted her head to see who this would be.

Her final opponent of the day was a young woman likely around her age. Well she had the figure of an adult woman, but dressed in a very odd combination of plated armor and frills, and with her wide yellow eyes, and blue and pink hair pulled into pigtails, she looked more like a possessed doll.

"The name is Peri," she said her voice high, but gravelly. "P is for pierce, E is for Eviscerate, R is for Rupture," she grinned and looked at Hinoka is if she were a rabbit and the other a lioness. "Do you know what the 'I' is for?" Peri asked.

Hinoka swallowed and did not respond. She did not know how to. This women child was exactly what Hinoka imagined what Nohrians looked like in her child nightmares. As Hinoka continued to stare, Peri's gaze on her did not waver. When Hinoka did not respond and the referee made a move to blow his horn to start the match, Peri quickly shouted "Injure!" and leapt towards Hinoka.

She rolled to the side, as the tip of Peri's spear brushed past her cheek, much to closely. Peri let out a frustrated grunt as she swung her spear widely at Hinoka, who quickly crouched as it swung harmlessly over her head. Peri jerked the butt of her spear down into Hinoka's stomach. She blocked this with the side of her spear and pushed Peri away, who stumbled backwards.

She was not at all a graceful fighter. Hinoka could not imagine her passing the beginning trials to become a member of the Hoshidan infantry, much less a Sky Knight. In fact, she retracted that mental statement, it was not at all fair to the infantry for Hinoka to imagine them even considering Peri joining their ranks.

"Hold still so I can stab you!" Peri sounded angry, but also excited as she swung her spear near Hinoka's neck again. She stepped back feeling the wind from the blade. Just what Hinoka needed, an opponent who Wanted to see her bleed for its own sake. She did not know much about this particular opponent's personal life, but she did not want to be any of her servants. Something told her that this mistress might be a bit overzealous in disciplining her staff.

Peri giggled like a child jumping in rain puddles. She was not fighting for the prize or the glory of it. She was here to have fun. Good for her, Hinoka thought as she grit her teeth, but she would rather have a chance to use this opportunity to find if her sister was in the castle. At this thought, Hinoka's face grew hotter than it already was from the excursion.

"Careful," Peri squeaked at Hinoka as she slipped away from the spear as if they were playing tag in a field and Hinoka was "it". Foreheads were easy bleeders, Peri was taller than her. Either she would have to reach high and leave herself open to Peri, or she would have to get her opponent on the ground somehow.

"I'm feeling stabby," Peri shouted heavily telegraphing her move with her voice and the very exaggerated way she shoved her own lance towards Hinoka, who quickly twisted to the side, feeling the blade drag across the stomach of her gambeson. Seizing the opening, Hinoka quickly raised her spear and slashed across Peri's knuckles, relieved when she saw the dull blade had drawn blood after all.

The referee had noticed this too and loudly blew his horn. Peri stomped in the sand and screamed and threw her spear at Hinoka. She lifted her lance to block, the two wooden shafts clanked together and Peri's weapon fell harmlessly into the sand. The referee quickly snatched this from the ground before Peri could. He reached his hand out to take Hinoka's spear as well. She quietly handed it over, glad to be rid of the Nohrian weapon.

The last Hinoka saw of Peri was two other referees leading her from the arena. Exhausted, Hinoka sighed and turned around towards the door that would take her back to the waiting room.


After a brief rest to clean up, Hinoka was ushered out to the arena one last time, along with the third and second place winners. A triple tiered podium decorated with garlands of white and red roses now stood at the center of the arena. The crowd cheered as if they were the ones marching with the victors in the parade. Hinoka, finishing first, was the last to take her place on the podium. She made eye contact with one of the other victors and gave what felt like an awkward but polite nod.

Hinoka lowered her head as they placed the green laurel over her bright red hair. She lifted her head as the audience shouted even louder the many voices all merging into one. Hinoka smiled wider than she ever had since arriving in Nohr. She had done it!

However, this smile soon faded as she noticed the balcony seating where the royal family had observed the entire tournament. Was Corrin with them? Back in Hoshido, they always took Azura to festivals and events. Then again, Azura chose to remain in Hoshido, and Hinoka and the others viewed her as nothing less than a sister. Corrin would remember watching her father be shot down in front of her. Most likely not the most willing to stay with these people. Why would anyone wish to take someone outside who would try to run away?

Unsurprisingly, Corrin was nowhere to be seen among the Nohrian royals. However, Hinoka recognized Prince Xander from the market a week ago. His eyes landed on her at the winners stand and he smiled without showing teeth. Hinoka blinked and once again, he was stoically studying the other champions. Surely, he hadn't recognized Hinoka from their last encounter?

The leaves suddenly felt as if it were made of needles stabbing through her skin and skull. No, she had not done anything. She had found her way to this competition and had come out on top, but all she had to show for it was a crown made of leaves that would soon dry out and turn brittle before finally falling apart. A lump blocked her throat, Hinoka tried to swallow it down, but this only choked her up more.


Author's note: Soooo, hello, hi, It has been half a year since since I updated this story. Which is a very long time to wait for the next chapter, and I do apologize for this. I really do not have an excuse except that sometimes I get so caught up in what's happening in my real life, I don't prioritize writing even though it gives me so much joy. So my resolution for 2023 is to spend at least fifteen minutes a day writing. The good thing to come out of my (unplanned) six month hiatus, is that I have a complete and very detailed outline for the remainder of the story. My current plan is to post one chapter a month from now on (or two if they are on the shorter side). To all of you who stuck around and left reviews during this time, thank you so so very much, I really truly appreciate it. :)