Disclaimer: These are works of purely speculative fiction. It is not intended to infringe on any rights by any of the companies and/or individuals involved in the production of any series mentioned here. Fate Grand Order and all the franchises and series associated with it, are owned by Kinoko Nasu, Notes Co., Ltd. and their affiliates. Similarly, Fire Emblem Heroes is owned by Nintendo Co., Ltd. and their affiliates.
I DO NOT OWN THESE FRANCHISES.
Sister Fanfic: Serious Side Reels - A Grand Order of Heroes Sidestories
Hans Christian Andersen was a man who cared little for the thoughts of others. He was a man who could easily dismantle people's personalities with a mere glance thanks to his skill… but even he had his limits.
"Say Aaaah," the purple-haired yandere princess said as she brought some food to his mouth.
"..." Hans opened his mouth without making a sound, acting like a rebellious child who did not want to humor his captor.
She didn't seem to care though as she was happy he took a bite anyway. Across from where there were two people, one of them dumbfounded to see the scene before him while the other was too busy shoveling extra spicy fried eggs down her gullet.
The King of Hoshido, Ryoma was the former and the Princess Hinoka of Hoshido, his sister, was the latter.
"I still cannot believe that you two are together. Even as I am seeing it before my eyes."
Hans grumbled something but was immediately punished with a solid pinch to his side, "Ow! Yes, we are together, what's the big deal? The tale of a hideous creature getting together with a beautiful maiden is a timeless classic in fairy tales."
"Aww, Hans, you flatterer" Camilla cooed as she heard him call her a maiden.
"Humph."
"Wow. Who would have thought a pessimist like you would be a romantic?"
"Easy for you to say, miss tomboy princess. Unlike you, I have a literal knife pressed on my neck forcing me into a humiliating pose like this."
"Don't mind Hans Hinoka, he is just grumpy a certain someone won't answer his correspondence," Camilla added as her hand head patted Hans, much to his chagrin.
Hans's mouth clamped shut just before he spoke more.
"Oh, you mean Manuela, the healer from the world of Three Houses. Ah, I still have no idea why you tolerate him flirting with other women like Camilla." Hinoka said.
"It's quite simple really, my little Hans is quite helpless when it comes to women. Aside from me, no one will be able to stand him… or keep him in line."
"Are you sure about that? Surely Hans could not be that horrible with the opposite gender." Ryoma asked.
"Positive, did you know he sends Manuela ten multiple-page letters every other day?"
Hinoka's eating utensil fell on the table.
"What?"
The reaction of both siblings and their scrutinizing gazes caused Hans to blush in embarrassment. He looked away in shame.
"Sheesh," Hinoka said.
"Yup! It won't be long now, pretty soon she will just get fed up and leave him all to me." Camilla said all too sweetly.
"Y-you don't know that."
"Hans, your relationship started after a night of drinks. A one-night stand, one which she must surely be regretting by now."
"..." Without saying another word, he grabbed the coffee from nearby and took a drink.
"Ara ara. If it isn't Hans Christian Andersen, I've been looking for you."
Hans could not help it, he spit his coffee back into his cup, coughing uncontrollably until Camilla patted his back to soothe him.
"Ah, my apologies, I did not mean to startle you."
"No, it's alright." Hans gave a curt response to the woman who interrupted them.
The woman in question was covered head to toe in clothing that one normally expects when they hear the word "nun," but in a slightly tighter fit around her waist and hip area.
This is a woman Hans has met before.
Kiara Sessyoin.
"Oh, Lady Kiara it's you, and it's no problem, Hans just startles easily."
Of course, these two know each other, why is he not surprised?
"I see you put the information I gave you to good use," Kiara said, as she stared at Hans in his current predicament, however, he refused to look her in the eye. He was too busy looking at the table next to her to care.
"It is such an honor to meet you for real this time, Hans Christian Andersen. It's such a shame we were too busy doing our work that we couldn't properly meet until now."
"Yeah, it's a coincidence." The atmosphere between the two was awkward, so much so that even the most dense harem protagonist would have noticed it. Camilla, Hinoka, and Ryoma were not harem protagonists, so they immediately noticed the shift in the atmosphere.
Camilla in particular narrows her eyes in suspicion, and like a hungry lion, she goes for the jugular.
"Do you two know each other?"
Kiara tilted her head in confusion, "No, I don't believe so. Like I've said, I've only ever heard of him after he was summoned but I never had the chance of finding him until now."
This information only made the awkward silence even more suspicious. Kiara claims never to have met Hans, but Hans hasn't denied not meeting her before.
"Hmmm…. I believe I might need to rephrase that question, Hans. Do you know-"
Somehow, someway, God decided he had enough of messing with Hans Christian Andersen, and threw him the distraction he needed to divert everyone's attention from him.
"It's rude to speak of your betters behind their backs, mongrels."
The question that was in Camilla's voice stopped when the voice of a particularly entitled brat graced their ears.
They, alongside the rest of the cafeteria, felt the sudden pressure and turned to look at the young KoGil and Oboro glaring at each other.
"Oh crap," Hinoka said as she immediately stood from her seat and went to try and prevent another incident. Everyone around them had the same idea and moved to stop the bloodshed, but hundreds of golden gates opened before them, all of them aiming weapons at both Hero Summon and Heroic Spirit.
"Don't interfere." Was all Hans heard as the scene gave Hans enough opportunity to get out of Camilla's arms and get the "fuck out of dodge" as modern humans would say?
Normally, as a tragedy writer, he would have loved to stick around so that he could obtain some material for his future works.
However, Hans knew nothing horrible would happen as Kogil was a softie compared to his older, more arrogant self.
By the time the situation calmed down, Hans was long gone.
0-0-0
"Well, are you just going to stand there and glare at me all day, or are you going to eat your breakfast, mongrels?" The young boy reprimanded them as he delicately and gracefully cut up a pancake and ate it.
After the fiasco that occurred when he caught Oboro talking about him, or rather his future self, KoGil decided to invite himself to their table for breakfast.
Sakura, knowing how dangerous Gilgamesh is, used her authority as Princess of Hoshido to stop her soldiers and the surrounding heroes from escalating the situation. This kind of behavior shocked the soldiers and some of the other heroes since they were used to seeing the meek princess struggle to speak, not a firm ruler who put her foot down when she ordered them to stop. They stopped their advance more out of disbelief than following her orders, but it was temporary as their feelings of bewilderment faded and the tense atmosphere of the room became thicker than the Maple syrup over the hotcakes KoGil was eating.
The soldiers were keeping a watchful eye on them, but thankfully, KoGil did not retaliate against them.
The boy himself seemed to not pay them, nor the awkward atmosphere between all of them. Oboro in particular looked especially conflicted at the unfolding scenario. Or rather, the lack of punishment for her transgression, as she had already offended the older Gilgamesh to the point where he almost killed her. Since she was still alive, it was obvious to tell this child version of Gilgamesh was not nearly as trigger-happy as his older self.
"Now that my older self is away, and you left the confines of your hiding spot, tell me, why do you react the way you do toward me?"
"Does it matter? I don't have to explain myself to you, a stranger." Oboro snapped back, meanwhile, everyone around them cringed at her rude attitude and assumed she was as good as dead, but to their surprise, KoGil did not seem offended.
"Indeed, you are correct. You don't have to explain it to me, however, I still wish to know."
She narrowed her eyes, "It's not really a secret why I would hate Nohrian lookalikes like you, so why not just ask someone else or just use that special clairvoyance of yours to find out?"
"Because Mongrel," Oboro's eye twitched when KoGil uttered that phrase, "I am a man of the people, I prefer to listen to their woes and opinions from their mouths rather than cheating by secondhand accounts or using my scroll."
"Didn't seem like your other self was very keen on doing that when he tried to KILL ME!"
"And for that, you have my sincerest apologies."
"What?" Oboro and everyone who never interacted with Kogil blinked in dumbfounded at what came out of the arrogant king's mouth.
"I will not ask you to forgive my older self for his actions, he is from a time in my life before I was humbled. Before I became the wise king. He cares only for himself, and no one else."
"Then why do you care?"
"Simply put, because I'm curious. I've had the pleasure of coming across your handmade fabrics while in this far-off wilderness, and I have to say, I was impressed by their quality. So when I asked who made such an item, the vendor told me about you. So naturally, I came to seek a commission… only to be met by the most visceral hatred I've seen a mongrel make, now I just want to hear it from you." He opened one eye and stared into Oboro's glare, which had calmed down to a small frown instead.
"Fine. Have it your way." She stood from her seat and craned her neck from the exit, "But not here, we can talk back in my workshop."
"Hmph, you do not order me mongrel, but I'll forgive your rudeness just this once. Lead the way."
0-0-0
Meanwhile, in the confines of the dungeon of Askr, a young girl sat huddled in the corner of her luxurious prison cell.
This girl was none other than the princess of the Emblian Empire, and she had been a prisoner of war in this accursed country for months now. She had been so furious when she awoke in her enemy's hands, but that rage had mostly calmed into a cold fury that she was using to fuel her plans for revenge.
She had been so close.
She had been so close to killing off those Askarian soldiers and taking Askr for herself, but instead, she was captured, her magical powers suppressed and her Xander taken from her.
The princess clenched her fists in anger, her nails piercing the callouses that formed due to the constant clenching she had been doing here.
And it was all that red bitch's fault, the summoner of Askr, Gudako.
If it wasn't for her and her otherworldly dogs, she would have been able to escape and regroup with her army to launch a counterattack. Instead, she was now sitting here in the dark, moping about what-ifs.
Her soldiers, her hero summons, they stood no chance against the utter overwhelming might of those broken heroes she possessed. The irony that heroes were kept on a magical leash in a way similar to her own was not lost on her. She gloated said fact at the royals when she had the chance, and the look of guilt and shame was enough to tell her they knew it too.
Yet… that small bliss was not enough to extinguish the feelings of pure hatred she had for Gudako and her summons.
'unfair…. unfair…
unfair. .
UnfairUnfairUnfairUNFAIR!'
Why?! Why did that bitch have to get in her way just when things were looking up for her? Why? Why?! Why?
Why couldn't it have been her?!
If she possessed the power of Heroic Spirits, she would have come on top! Why?!
Why?!
At the top of Veronica's crescendo of misery and self-loathing, a bright flash of light interrupted her.
"My my, what a pathetic sight." The new mature and feminine voice brought Veronica back to reality as she recognized the voice.
"Loki?" Veronica asked with surprise.
"In the flesh." She said.
"Nobu!" Veronica jumped in fright as an abomination to nature itself showed itself before her.
"Hmm? Oh, don't mind her, she's just a like-minded ally I picked up recently."
"How are you here? The heroic spirits put up magical defenses to keep me here."
"Easy. I took some time to do a bit of research. And we'll leave it at that. Now, back to the main topic at hand, come. Your role is not fulfilled being stuck here." The woman stretched out her hand to help Veronica up.
The girl looked at the hand and grinned as she took it and was lifted to her feet. By the time she got back up, the world had shifted from her comfy cell to her Emblian Castle. Staring at the new scenery brought great joy to her, but it fell when she remembered the summoner and her forces.
"What about the summoner? She and her pets are still an issue to deal with even if I escape."
"Don't worry your pretty little head with that, that's where our new friend comes into play."
The small creature waddled over to them once more and exclaimed, the word, "Nobu" once more, and by some bizarre scene straight out of a horror novel, an army of similar-looking creatures manifested from nowhere.
Many of them looked like her soldiers, while others looked like the hero summons from her world. She looked back at Loki, who had a mischievous smile on her face.
"To answer your previous question in more detail, these chibi Nobu are feared by the Chaldeans, so it's safe to assume they can match them in combat."
This time, Veronica's grin turned maniacal as she stared at the army of chibi Nobus who looked to her for guidance.
Time for some payback.
Author's Note: Took me a while, apologies. Anyways, I spent longer than usual on this chapter because I was wondering if I should do chapter 2 of FeH, and I am still kind of on the fence whether I should create the arc or make a mini arc that wraps up in a nice few chapters.
I am setting December as the end month of this story but that depends on my motivation levels when I come back from work. I have been doing some research for the next fic I want to do and haven't gone all in because as I said before, I don't want to drop this series during the climax.