AN: So, those of you who follow me (a horrible mistake I tell you) might notice that: 'wait, this isn't Oto-nin!' That's because certain circumstances prevent me from continuing at the moment. I still plan to, just need to resolve that first.

In the meantime, here's this fic.
I won't promise regular uploads... or any continuation at all really. Will have to see if I feel for it.

Disclaimer: Graphic Violence.

Haunting Daybreak - Welcome to Garreg Mach

"Tell me about the stars."

"I've already told you about them."

"Just one more time, please?"
"Alright, alright."

They took a moment to settle comfortably into the straw of the house's roof, staring up at the spattering of lights that filled the night sky.

"Every light in the sky, every star, is far far away. You could walk from the imperial capital Enbarr to kingdom's capital Fhirdiad a million times and the same distance wouldn't take you even halfway to any of them. It's why they seem so tiny-"

"Even though they're massive balls of fire!"

"Haha, yes, even though they are actually massive balls of fire like the sun. In fact, they glow brightly enough that we can see them from here, even though we could never reach them. It's comforting that some things can travel any distance, and reach you from anywhere."

"Hey, that's different from how you told it last time!"

"I can't help it, my memory isn't perfect."

From below a woman shouted up, in the much more foreign language of Fodlan.

"Reidun! It's time to go to bed, you can stare at the stars with your imaginary friend tomorrow."

"I'm coming!" The young girl shouted down before she looked to the empty space next to her and whispered "goodnight."

Quickly, she climbed down, leaving behind a book.

As the lights in the house went off and the silence of night took hold, the lone book opened up, its pages illuminated by moonlight.

Unheard by anyone, the ghost spoke aloud to themself.

"They're not the stars I know, but they're beautiful all the same…"

1st of the Great Tree Moon, 1180

"...years later, Reidun found herself under the clear blue sky of day…"

The girl fought to keep her expression neutral as her ghostly companion continued to monologue melodramatically. Behind her facade, amusement, embarrassment, and irritation all fought for dominance.
"…She walked the winding path up the mountain towards-"

'Joseph!' she thought loudly at him, her irritation finally winning out.

Said ghost floated from behind her into her 'vision', not that she or anyone could see him, though she still knew he was there. Just like she knew his expression bore an amused smile.

"Yes?" he answered, waiting a moment, "You don't need to glare, and you're staring into space again."

Without complaint, she shifted her focus from 'spectral sight' back to her physical vision, in an active effort to look natural. She even smiled at the driver of a cart passing the other way. While her thoughts continued, relatively disconnected from her actions.

'This is serious. You're the one who said I needed to make a good first impression. I can't do that with you joking in my ear!'

"I said it would be nice if you did, these are going to be your classmates and professors, but nice and convenient is all it is." Joseph countered, his smile losing that mischievous edge in favour of a calm. "Much more importantly, I said you need to relax."

Reidun's mental image of herself shrunk and their conversation fell quiet for a moment. Then with his limited physical influence, Joseph took her hand.

"Aren't you just a little bit excited? You're going to be starting at the Officer's Academy today. Spend the next year studying at Garreg Mach Monastery under the most talented professors and best facilities in the world."

'Yeah…' she admitted.

"We've been working towards this for years, and now you're finally here." he reassured, "You have your letter of recommendation, and even if you lose it, they have a copy themselves. Yes there's a test, but we investigated and found out that most students who took the entrance exam were accepted, so it's really only to gauge your aptitude."

…and the future? You've said that things are going to go wrong. If you just tell me what happens then I can-

Reidun recoiled as Joseph flicked her physical forehead, which gathered a few curious glances from the immediate crowd. It was an old argument, perhaps the only thing they disagreed on, but they both knew that this wasn't the time to retread it.

Instead, Reidun took a final moment to readjust herself. She smoothed out the creases of her pristine white blouse and sturdy blue tunic, both of a quality no less than that worn by any of the noble daughters who would also be starting today; she fixed up the crowning braid she'd made in her vibrant ginger hair that reached just past her shoulders; and finally, she took a calming breath, reasserting her confident and refined posture.

Then she took the final steps out of the forest, and there it was, Garreg Mach Monastery. A field of green stretched from the forest edge to the first massive wall. The second set of walls were visible behind them, elevated by the rising peak in such a way that one could imagine the walls as the stairs of a giant. Then, rising up beyond even that, the monastery itself, the gargantuan castle-like structure who's peaks pierced the sky.

The veritable stream of travellers flowed up and down the road. Ostentatious nobles travelled in decorated carriages, while the more militant or free spirited rode on horseback. Merchant's rode or walked alongside their wagons. Pilgrims and commoners trod the path on foot. The blacks and reds of the Adrestian empire; the silvers and blues of the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus; and the golds and greys of the Leicester Alliance; they were all here.

Beyond them, the Knights of Seiros, the monastery's military force, were ever present. Guarding the walls, the monastery, the road. They welcomed the nobles, inspected merchant wares, and performed all the other duties required to keep order.

"Do you remember-?"

'Yes.' Reidun's thought interrupted Joseph's reminder. Now that they were this close, it was time for the one favour Joseph had asked of her.

She slowed her approach, while Joseph eyed up the other travellers. After a few moments, Reidun felt Joseph point out someone, a commonly dressed pilgrim. With their target set, Reidun approached.

"Hi, pardon me, could I have a moment of your time?" she asked pleasantly.

The elderly man turned to her with a smile.

"Of course, my lady," he bowed, having mistaken her for a noble, "How can I be of service?"

She made no effort to correct him.

"I was wondering if you could do me a minor favour." She began, "You see, I have a gift I would like to give to one of the church's officials, but I am starting my studies here today and wouldn't want them to think that I am attempting something egregious such as bribery. So I was hoping to find someone to pass it on in my stead, anonymously."

The man's smile seemed to brighten.

"Of course, my lady. It would be no trouble to aid such a humble faithful act." he answered.

"Excellent!"

Reidun reached into her backpack and pulled out a moderately large wrapped package.

"Please remember, it's for Seteth, the Archbishops chief aide and second in command."

The man took the package, and the two continued to talk for a short while after. Quickly enough, they saw the man hand the gift over to one of the knights and they could turn their attention back to Reidun's first day.

"Don't forget to-"

'Sell the horse and most of the travelling supplies, I remember.' Reidun interrupted her ghostly companion again.

"Do you need me to feed you the words?" Joseph teased playfully, to which Reidun rolled her eyes.

'I'm 17 now, I can speak for myself.' she thought at him as she entered the town.

It didn't take long for her to find a willing buyer. It took less time for her to walk away with a sum of money that was definitely greater than what she sold was worth.

"That was much funnier when you were 12," Joseph lamented, "now you're just cruel."

'Just because you were taking part in it,' Reidun pointed out flatly, completely undermining Joseph's point.

"In my defence, most of those merchants were trying to take advantage of your naivety," he argued.

'Most.'

"Fair point."

So with a much lighter load, Reidun made her way up to the Monastery proper.

"...and that should be everything in order, Lady Reidun. As it stands, this year we have many high standing nobility, so many of you will have to stay in the commoner dorms. Apologies for the inconvenience." concluded the priest who was serving as one of the clerks for the day. While the tone was pleasant, it was clearly rehearsed. Especially given that, once again, she'd been mistaken for a noble. "You are expected to meet up for more details on the initial examination in an hour in the mess hall. Welcome to Garreg Mach."

Once again, Reidun made no effort to correct the misunderstanding, offered her thanks, and left.

"In their defence, almost all the students from the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus are nobles or graduates from the Royal School of Sorcery. In fact, we only made the cut thanks to Count Galatea's recommendation." Joseph explained. Leaving out that of the three commoners he knew of, Ashe was the adopted son of a Noble, Mercedes was a former Noble, and Dedue was a foreign representative.

'Which is why you told me to not advertise my background with my classmates, I know.' Reidun commented again as she walked, 'Are you sure I'm the one who's nervous?'

Joseph bristled at the accusation.

"I feel what you feel, so of course I'm nervous." Joseph admitted shamelessly, before his pitch dropped into a serious register. "Though we have learned some new information we need to take into account."

Reidun physically nodded as she used her key to unlock and enter her dorm room.

'The Honour Student system.' she confirmed.

As it turned out, there was a reason the main cast of the game had been the only students Byleth really interacted with. That being that the student body was separated into two categories, honour students and regular students. Honour students had the privilege of learning more directly from their professors, but also a greater workload. There were higher expectations of their progress, and they were each responsible for a collection of regular students.

So in essence, the professor made sure the Honour students did well, and the honour students made sure their group of regular students, their cohort, did well.

Naturally, it turned out that whether or not one qualified as an Honour Student was dependent on the examination happening in an hour's time.

"That's not enough time to do a proper investigation." Joseph pointed out, "It's been a long road. The best you can do is get some rest. The stakes are higher, but it should be fine, we prepared for this."

'Okay.'

She assented and collapsed onto the bed without unpacking her things.

Firstly, there were the written exams. Where, for the sake of fairness, the exam was catered to the student. So a noble of the Adrestian empire would have a different exam from one who came from the Leicester Alliance.

There were naturally limits. So the tests for the Blue lions of Faerghus were divided into the version for Nobles and students of the Royal School of Sorcery.

Which was obviously a problem, because that meant that Reidun found herself sitting the noble's test.

…

'Who initiated the territory reform of-? Joseph, I don't know this?!" Reidun panicked.

"Neither do I!"

'Why?!'

"The game didn't exactly go into detail into the kingdom's lower level history!"

'Fine, can you look at someone else's answers?'

"I tried, but it's an essay question, they're all different."

'How is this an essay question?!'

…

Mathematics.

This is much easier than the homework you used to give me.'

"Education's important." Joseph proclaimed proudly.

'...this is also only worth 3% of the grade.'

Joseph went silent.

…

Literature.

"That's a common saying."

'Are you sure?' Reidun questioned.

"Yes- wait, no. That wordplay is from Duscur, that wouldn't be on this test."

'Well, I'm coming up blank. 750 words for a poem…'

Joseph cringed.

…

Economics.

Church of Seiros.

International-

-and so it continued, until finally…

"Time's up, quills down!" the nameless proctor announced. "We will now be collecting your answers. Please stay silent until…"

'That went horribly.' Reidun lamented.

"It could have been better, yes." Joseph agreed, "no need to panic, it's still a passing grade and you can still prove yourself in the practical examinations."

'Does that mean you'll use magic for me?' she thought back hopefully.

"No."

'Aw…'

"If you get a good magic grade, then your professors are going to focus on 'your' magic. We don't want that. We're here for your education, not mine."

'I know, I know.'

The last of the exams were collected and the proctor at the front of the hall called out again.

"The practical examinations will begin in an hour at the Training Grounds, until then, lunch will be available in the Dining Hall."

The food was really good.

'As expected of the most prestigious institution in all of Fodlan.' Reidun thought. ignoring the disappointed stare from Joseph.

"You should go make some friends, talk to people," he said.

Already there were cliques forming. Three parts of the dining hall were packed tight, surrounding the three future heirs of the countries of Fodlan, but there were other smaller collections as well. Many of which having split off from those three larger groups.

'Nope, I'm fine. Thank you,' Reidun thought as she took another bite.

"You're eating alone, Reidun," Joseph accused.

'I'm not alone, I have you.' Reidun countered. 'If someone else starts talking to me, I'll talk back.'

"Reidun…" the voice only she could hear faded to nothing with words left unsaid.

She finished her lunch, and no one approached her.

Contrary to the earlier written exams, the training ground was brimming with anticipation. For most of the students, this is what they were there for. Reidun was among them of course.

All three of the Monastery's three most prominent professors were present.

Standing at the head was professor Manuela. The middle aged woman had taken great efforts to present herself. From her highly fashionable, and subtly inappropriate, dress, to the brushing and care of her middle long brown hair. Her history as a songstress, if not apparent in her appearance, flexed and made itself present in how her poise drew the eye and how her voice carried clearly.

Professor Manuela stood at the head, her voice carrying through the eager crowd. "Welcome, dear students! I'm sure that after that stuffy written exam you're all just dying to get moving, but before we can get started you're going to need to check in with our esteemed staff to make sure that we have your skills listed correctly. I'm sure many of you have improved since you sent in your applications, or had a change in heart. Once that is sorted and we have your specialisations in order, we can get started!"

She gestured toward the white clad man on her left. "If weapons are your cup of tea, we have Professor Jeritza." The masked pale blond man nodded to emphasise her words. "He will be overseeing practise spars, so you can show your best side."

Then she gestured to the other man. "If you prefer to fight using magic, you'll want to speak to Professor Hanneman."

The spindly man adjusted his monocle without ruffling his fine brown suit or the jacket he wore over it. His greying hair was well groomed emphasising the serious expression on the man's face. Despite that, there was a twinkle hidden in his expression that pushed him forward to speak-

But was cut off by Manuella with a spark of enthusiasm in her eyes. "As for me, my name is Professor Maneualla. I'll be tending to the injured and those showcasing their skills in faith magic. So don't be afraid to give it your all!"

She concluded with a wink.

There were a few cheers, but mostly half-hearted and polite applause or no reaction at all, before the crowd dispersed and started lining up by the various staff.

"Reminds me of school." Joseph commented.

'An academy is a type of school.' Reidun responded.

"Well, yes, but this is the 'finest education in Fodlan', not some public school. I'd have expected a bit more enthusiasm." Joseph elaborated.

Reidun's eyes turned to a very large boy with scruffy blond hair who's shirt seemed close to bursting as much as the boy's energy.

'Some of them seem excited.' she remarked, before focusing on Joseph again. 'You're distracting me.'

"Yes, and you're staring off into space again."

Reidun moved her line gaze away from where Raphael had been standing to the line ahead of her, and forced a more natural expression on her face.

'The test is a spar.' Reidun pointed out. 'What if I end up against someone who won't let me show my best?'

"The odds for that are abysmal. There's at least 50 students in the Blue Lions. Some of them aren't going to be interested in proving they're good with swords, lances, or axes, sure, but that still leaves a lot of people. We only need to be worried if you end up against someone like Felix, Dmitri, or Dedue." Joseph reassured.

'That is unlikely…'

"Next." the man handling the blue lions announced, to which Reidun stepped up. He nodded to acknowledge her, before glancing down at the sheet before him. "Name?"

"Reidun."

"Hmm, yes." he shuffled through the stack. "It says here that you have experience with swords, lances and axes. Is that correct?"

"It is." Reidun answered curtly, before continuing in her thoughts. 'Unless you want to show off your magic?'

She could feel the ghost shake his head.

The man brought out a smaller letter sized sheet.

"Then it seems your matchups will remain unchanged. Professor Jeritza will call you up when it's time, if you or your opponent are unavailable it will be put off to let another match take place." he told her as he handed her the sheet.

"Thank you." she answered, and then left the que to join the crowd surrounding the academy's weapon master.

She looked down at her sheet and stopped.

Joseph stared.

She stared.

They both stared.

Opponents.

Sword: Felix

Lance: Dimitri

Axe: Dedue

"Fuck." 'Fuck.'

…

"Wait, don't-!"

Joseph's warning comes too late.

Reidun commits to blocking a feint which leaves her wide open, The enemy's training sword bludgeons her gut, before swiftly being followed up by a strike to her temple that leaves her seeing black.

…

She wakes up.

…

The white haired dark skinned teen and her hit each other simultaneously. She stumbles back. He does not. Her footing is off and he strikes first, which leaves her seeing black.

…

She wakes up.

…

Reidun was back in the crowd.

She stood with head held high, as if she hadn't been absolutely trounced twice in succession. Her dignified visage contrasted the frustrations bubbling beneath. In truth, she stood still not because it was graceful, but because her body was still sore after the beating.

Without warning, a wave of energy passed through her, easing that soreness away.

Reidun didn't thank Joseph for the little bit of magic that let her relax her shoulders. The spiritual connection they shared was more than enough to convey that on its own, and the mood would not allow for words. Instead, Joseph did his best to fade out of Reidun's focus.

A calm of body did not mean a calm of mind, especially given their last opponent.

Joseph had of course talked about Dimitri in the past. He'd said nothing about his history or future, that was private, but plenty about his strength of character and body. The boy with ridiculous 'stats' and a crest that gave him inhumane physical strength.

It was a good thing to know, the boy's build and outwardly gentle demeanour gave off a different impression.

The wait finally ended as the deep airy voice of professor Jeritza called them both up to one of the empty spaces that had been set aside for the matches.

Her stride was confident, but the polite mask was still up.

The blond boy, the boar prince in human clothing, stood beside her.

Jeritiza made no show out of handing them each a training lance.

"Begin at your own pace, but do not delay." he instructed, and as curtly stepped away to maintain his view over the other fights.

Dimitri turned to Reidun with a friendly smile. "Greetings lady Reidun. I don't believe we've met before."

"Indeed Dimitri, this is our first encounter." Reidun reciprocated the greeting with a polite tone and a friendly hand, still suppressing the lit fuse burning within her. "I hope we can have a good bout."

The boy took the hand without thinking, before his eyes lit up with a minor realisation. Before he could comment, Reidun continued, "Shall we get started? There are plenty of other students waiting for us to finish."

The boy shook off his fleeting thought, before nodding. "Of course, let's."

The two backed away a step, and lowered themselves into their respective stances.

Their eyes met and Dimitri saw the hint of the fire hidden by the mask before it shattered and the battle began.

Reidun's face warped into a snarl as she slid forward with a thrust. Dimitri, caught off guard by the sudden intensity, barely managed to knock the strike off course with the shaft of his own spear.

Though he didn't immediately retaliate, Reidun didn't manage to follow up with a second attack before he regained his footing with a focused gaze, and struck back with the butt of his weapon, impacting Reidun's raised forearm.

Meanwhile, her other arm committed to the attack, spear held overhead and striking down over his lowered guard, but the boy prince managed to jump back, reducing the direct impact to a glancing hit across his chest.

With both the space and the initiative, Reidun widened her stance, raised her lance for a swing and concentrated her strength. The world around the two faded into black leaving just them, Reidun and her enemy who stood between her and her goals.

Dimitri had only a moment to recognise the Combat Art and brace himself before the attack impacted his raised guard and vibrated through his whole body.

It was instinct that returned his footing to him, it was adrenaline that pushed him to strike, and it was skill that pierced through the opening Reidun had left and struck the spear's blunt edge right into her chest.

Her breath was stolen from her, her foundation ripped away, and her endurance weathered down to a thread, but still holding.

The two moved to strike again, Reidun pushing on when she should have given in.

The fire in Dimitri's eyes now mirrored Reiduns own, the intensity of someone who had fallen to the rush of battle and forgotten why they were fighting.

It was that realisation that gave her the clarity to recognise his stance, and let her recognise the air condensing into ice along her spine.

Her battle instinct let her recognise the danger she was about to face, but for Joseph, it was the words that the boar prince shouted that alarmed him.

"Let's see you dodge this!"

"Move!"
Riedun ignored Joseph's call. It was too late, she couldn't avoid this attack, the only way was to break through. Every part of her screamed that if she didn't that she would die.

Her forward foot slid forward to steady her foundation, the grip on her spear loosened to be optimal, and the tip of the weapon lowered so she could raise it in an active block.

Instead of stepping forward with a twirl, the boy leapt and raised his weapon overhead, his left arm straight to aim.

Then it got worse.

For the first time in her life, she saw a sudden glow. The air around the boy lighting up in an emerald green pattern that she recognised as the crest of Blaidydd.

The haft of the spear creaked and groaned with the web of cracks traced along its surface. Then the weapon disappeared with a crack of thunder.

The attack was over before she could recognise that it began.

The spear in her hands had split in two, unable to slow down the missile any better than the fist sized hole in her gut.

"Reidun!" cried out the voice that only she could hear, even as his desperate magic tried to fix the wound.

The last thing she saw was a look of horror on the prince's face, before her body joined the crimson fluid in decorating the ground.

AN: Just want to say the whole 'honour student' explanation is inspired by OCfan11's Idiosyncrasy.