Chapter Text
Awakening
It all felt too surreal. You could sense light from underneath your closed eyelids, something you hadn't seen for a long, long time. The second feeling that striked you as odd was the sensation of soft, cool grass and hard ground under your body. Then came the chirping birds, gentle breeze and perhaps the most alarming: clear air. Your eyes snapped open, altough you quickly regretted the action as the light literally burned your eyes - just like your phone did in the middle of the night if you left it at 100% brightness. This was way too weird. There was a distant, roaring headache in the back of your mind, as if it was either approaching you to terrorize you in the near future, or was about to completely leave your body, along with how.. fatigued your limbs felt, particularly your legs - as if they had been transformed into lead -, and your lungs felt a little empty as well. You frowned, slightly alarmed by the weird state of your body, but it was he earthly scent of forests that finally made you attemp to see your surroundings again - and you didn't rush things, this time around. Your nostrils weren't lying, you were indeed in the middle of a forest. Well, not in the middle, but it was alarming nonetheless. How did you get here, and where was even here?
"Oh? Thank the Goddess, you're awake! I was getting worried you wouldn't wake up." The sound of a sweet, feminine voice snapped you out of your shocked stupor, the movement of your head towards the source of the voice came from instinct. Before you kneeled a young woman on the ground. There was a basket next to her in the lush grass, filled with something you couldn't see clearly, as it was covered with a well-used, ableit expensive-looking handkerchief. Her hands were tucked inside the basket and had been fumbling with something, considering her body was rotated in its direction.
"Who are you?" Your voice was rougher than you expected, but the young woman didn't seem to notice the slight shift of tone, she didn't know your original voice, after all. She offered you a gentle smile as she turned to look back at you, her body soon followed suit. She had long dark blond hair braided around her face and ending in a low ponytail, freckles and round, fawn-like dark brown eyes that made her look young.. with this in mind, you couldn't really decide her age, but she seemed to be in her early twenties or late teens. She looked rather pretty, you had to admit.
"Oh, you can call me Rose, I don't like how Rozanne sounds. What's your name?" Her eyes twinkled with curiousity, it felt too genuinely excited not to make you creeped out. You glanced around, trying to see a way out from this situation - those alarms that your entire society drilled within you activated, signalling you to be wary of any and all strangers. Especially to those who appeared this.. eager. Behind you was a slope, so you could maybe outrun her or something, but then you remembered just how tired you felt, so running was out of the question. Plus, in case your eyes weren't betraying you, this woman had a genuine bow within her reach and a quiver full of arrows at her hip.. you immediately let go of escaping. So, the good ol' reliable wits remained - you had to shake her off somehow. What kind of madlad carries an iron bow with them, anyway?
"Y/N." Just to sum up the new info, you woke up in an unfamiliar land - feeling really worn out -, plus that 'Rozanne' sounded foreign. You observed the young woman in front of you closer, focusing on her body rather than her face this time. She wore.. light armor? You weren't an expert on the topic, by any means. A leather plate covered her chest where her heart was and her hands were covered in leather, archer gloves if you had to take a guess. She wore a simple light green shirt, black skirt and dark brown thighs underneath it. Her foot was in a sturdy-looking pair of boots and her body was covered in dark grey cloak. Now that you took a closer look, she did appear quite muscular, under all that layer of clothes. But that bow.. it looked really, really threatening.
"Don't worry, I won't hurt you. But are you alright, tough?" Rozanne must have noticed your eyes on her weapon, because as she inched closer - careful so as not to alarm you - she placed the bow further away from her, on the basket. When she got within arm's reach she extended her hand, a weird flask with long neck and sqare-like bottom glittered in the filtered sunlight, with suspicious blue liquid swirling inside and locked by a plug made from something akin to corck. You looked back up at her face, her thin eyebrows furrowed from worry as she gestured back at the vial with her head. You quickly realised if you told her about your headache and weird fatigue, she would've made you drink that.. thing. You shook your head, accidentally strenghtening the headache to a dull, rythimic drumming, but you didn't show it. Her frown softened and the woman stood up, extending her hand to you, which you took with a little hesitance. As you stood up, however, you noticed it wasn't only your head that objected to the motion - your back itched and stung. "Thank the Goddess, that's a relief. But why were you sleeping here? It's dangerous, there are wild animals around. Are you from the nearby village? I could escort you back--"
"No, there's no need. I'm not from.. the nearby village. Yeah." You swiftly interjected, having no idea what this 'nearby village' was. Your mind stormed with trillions of questions - what was with your surroundings, your condition, this woman to just name a few - and none had answers exept one; you had to play it smooth and find out some form of lie, as you clearly weren't anywhere like your home and you sensed stranger-danger. You gulped, feeling said woman's ridiculously burning gaze on you as you stalled for time so your paniced mind could make up something - anything. "Uhh.. This spot just felt perfect to take a little nap, and altough I'm embarrassed to admit, I'm actually lost.. could you tell me where I am?"
"In Goneril territory, close to Ordelia border by the sea.. But this isn't good. Where's your home? We have to take you back!" Rozanne parted her lips to form an 'o' shape from presumably shock, she quickly bent down to gather her belongings. Meanwhile, you were just left bewildered. Goneril territory... the name vaguely resonated with something in your mind, but it was incredibly dofficult for you to recall any memory you had, surprising you. So you furrowed your brows and concentrated, search up and down for the thing that resonated with the name. You kept on repeating it over and over, like a broken record or your favorite music, but it wouldn't reveal its secret-- until it did. It did, and your mind immediately went blank. You remembered where you'd heard that name: Hilda Valentine Goneril. From a video game. A.. very precious video game to your heart. There was just.. no way. It was physically impossible - this woman was just either pulling a nasty prank on you, or was delusional. In which case, you really had to get away from her.
"No please, thank you! I don't want to go back!" Not with her at least. You quickly shook your head in emphasis, and that finally made Rozanne halt. Well, you did want to go back, just not with someone who tried to sell their absurdly bad prank. She did say there was a village nearby, so if you could make her go away you could find it and ask for help there. The woman looked back up at you, with her weapon and basket in hand, she pursed her lips together to show her distaste over your decision.
"But you can't stay on your own... The beasts will be even more active as the night grows near - they'll tear you apart. Ot those bandits we've been hired to take down." Rozanne shot you a worried glance, then looked around. The motion made you mirror hers, making you observe the forest more closely. The trees, the flowers - of course you weren't an expert, but you were pretty sire those didn't grow anywhere near your home. You looked back at Rozanne one more time, considering her words. It would all add up - all the things that didn't make sense until now, if only the basics of logic wouldn't rule out the possibility. Why was she lying? Suddenly your eyes met with hers as she turned back to you, something strange crossed her face. "Are you certain your family won't want you back?"
"Why?" You frowned, immediately steeling your lead-like legs to bolt away in case this Rozanne tried anything funny. You didn't like that hopeful glint in her eyes or that wide smile on her pale face as she eyed you. You took a step back, almost tripping over a rock but you quickly balanced yourself by flailing your arms - it was only now that you realised you didn't recognise the shirt covering your arms. They weren't what you wore before waking up here at all, these were dark grey and thin, made from somewhat poor materials. You discreetly glanced down at the rest of your body, only to see a simble pair of black green trousers from equally so-so material covering your legs and weird black shoes. You grimaced, suddenly feeling very, very self-conscioncious.
Who the hell dressed you up while you were sleeping?
"If you have nowhere else to go, I would be more than happy to provide you with a home!" Rozanne bit down a giggle as she extended her hand for you to take, eyes boring into your with a clear intent. But you were defineatly weary of this woman, even if the notion that wild animals roamed the area - such as wolves and bears and such - made you a bit more anxious, the mere idea that bandits existed nearby was the fact that alarmed you more. She did say 'we', so she wasn't alone, were hired by someone to dispose of them. Of course it could still be just yet another part of her prank so you could believe it more easily, the fact that she had a quiver full of arrows and was armed and had armor on made you question that. What if she really was hired to kill bandits? Still, that rule of stranger-danger was still too strong to ignore in favour of your curiosity.
"I know nothing about you - not even your full name, at least. I won't follow a stranger, but I tought this was common sense." You narrowed your eyes at Rozanne, deciding to stall for time so you could gather more information. Your words appeared to have saddened her, but only a little as her smile returned tenfold broader. There was something more to the look in her eyes, but you couldn't put your thumb on it. It didn't make it any less disturbing though.
"Never mind that! My full name is Rozanne Losanthyne Valkar, daugther of Dominic Lorcer Valkar - but that's unimportant, just as much as he is. I'm now a mercenary who temporarily joined the legendary Blade Breaker's group, and as you can see I use bows and swords, altough I only resolt to the latter if I have to. Come now, Captain Jeralt will surely let you stay with us for a little while at least - we made camp nearby, just a few minutes away by the small river." You raised your eyebrows at the woman. She just named Jeralt, the father of My Unit or Byleth in other words, as the elader of the mercenary group she belonged to. She really was trying to make you bite her trick of this whole Three Houses shenanigan.. she was crazy hellbent on it. Rozanne probably saw your blank look of disbelief as shock and surprise, because she gave you a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, I'll pay for your food and shelter. If you don't get in the way, don't expect the Captain to do your work for you and of course don't drink his alcohol, he'll let you in."
You were rather conflicted. On one hand, there was the possibility that this Rozanne was leading you into some sort of stupid prank - because being transported to the fictional, nonexistent world of Three Houses was impossible by the laws of physics. On the other hand.. you had no argument supporting this woman's claims. You glanced back behind you, where the green grass greeted you with some wooden fences at the horizon. You could go there instead if you turned her down, but that looked hours away, if you were to guess. You didn't think you could walk for more than around ten minutes without feeling like you were about to collapse. Besides, you were rather curious about this woman and her deal, so on second thought.. You knew this was dangerous, a lot, but you could take her sword and defend yourself if she were to attack you.
"Fine, I'll follow you - for now. But only if I can hold your weapons." You turned back towards her with narrowed eyes, not even bothering to hide your suspicion. Why would someone you met out at no man's land help the other - with promises of food, shelter and financing? Only the people with white vans for sure. Still, the woman decided not to notice that glare of yours and just smiled, brighter than ever. Why was she this stupidly happy anyway, even when she quickly put her heavy bow and sword in your hands? Regardless, now your conditions have been met - at least to your knowledge, but you nodded anyway. "Allright, lead the way."
Rozanne strode with big, bouncy steps, the basket on her arm swayed with each movement. The handkerchief that covered it long fell of its content, which you could clearly see now was nothing more than green plants and some vials of the very same liquid she almost made you drink. You saw her eyes flicker from left to right as you advanced trought the forest, altough you didn't follow her example - you wanted to watch her every move. That's also why you came after her. Your body was tense, ready to flee if you saw the slightest sings of danger. Altough you began having difficulties with keeping up with this Rozanne, your lungs felt as if the had been trough a fiery hurricane of some sort, while your soles practically begged you not to put weight on them. You were about to stop and think of a plan to gain time for you to recover that wouldn't induce suspicion, when the trees around you began to grow scarce. Even the woman slowed down at the edge of the - presumably - clearing, the sound of running water and talking filled the air that was full of birds singing earlier. Rozanne turned around to give you one last look of ecouragement, then led you forward by your shoulder. The touch did make you uncomfortable, but you didn't show that. Not when the sight of a camp full of armored men and woman greeted you. Okay, now this seemed genuine, she really was part of a mercenary group. It still didn't prove that this was Jeralt's.
"Hey Rose, you're finally back! Who's the lass?" An older man with dark brown hair and hazel eyes, clad in heavy-looking metal armour greeted Rozanne with a hearty laugh, he sat by a row of dispalyed weapons with whetstone in one hand and a big, big sword in the other with jagged edges. There was a woman next to him with ginger hair and piercing.. red eyes? What in the world was going on? Did she wear contacts or what..? Her absurdly sharp eyes travelled to the weapons in your hand and a deep frown appeared on her face. You quickly looked away, as you didn't like the attention she gave you.
"Hi Joseph, hello Linda! Where's the Captain? We would like to speak with him. This is P-- Y/N, by the way. We met nearby, and she was kind enough to help me carry my things - you know I'm nowhere near as strong as you two." Rose gently pat your shoulder, and you had to fight not to wince and exclaim that no, you wouldn't be staying with them, they were strangers for god's sake. You hated how this woman's eye bore into you, you hated how more and more eyes landed on your form. You could feel your face burn up, so you made sure to keep your gaze on the grassy ground. If you didn't know how many looked at you, you couldn't feel uncomfortable. And you didn't forget that stumble of your name either. What was that for? Your name surely wasn't that difficult to pronounce...
"Hmpf, whatever. Captain's in his tent by the horses and the girls' pegasi, just make sure you're quick. Heard he'll go fishing with the brat soon or something." The woman grunted as she swung her sword, looking at the weapon instead of you. Still, it felt more and more weird just how much people were involved in this.. prank. Because it still couldn't be real, pegasi didn't exist.
"Oh yeah, he did say something like that! Anyway, he's in good spirits now - finnally payed for the last tavern." The man laughed, loud and hearty, he nodded in the direction of a slightly bigger tent than the rest. Rozanne nodded and bid a very quick farawell, she took you by your arm and dragged you along the way. You looked hard, in case you really saw those 'pegasi' the man spoke of. As you walked further in the camp you noticed more horses. Actual, big horses. And.. there really were pegasi, by a big tent to where the two of you'd been going. They had their wings folded, but one decided to strech them a little while it neighed. They were covered in cream coloured feathers, the same shade as its fur that hung funnily donw its chin - just like how it did in Three Houses. But.. pegasi weren't real. They couldn't be. You couldn't have crossed-- preposterous, even to think about it. It was still physically impossible to--
"Hm? Oh, hey Roze. You need somethi-- Uhh.. what's going on?" Your eyes widened from absolute, sheer surprise and quite a good amount of shock. Before you was a man who looked and sounded just like Jeralt, spoke in the very same manner and was now eyeing you. You gulped - this was a ridiculosly precise cosplay of the Blade Breaker. He was sitting in front of a table, something akin to a map lay on its hard wooden top. A candle burned to his left and to his right was a white quill and black ink. The tent itself was small, yet it felt kind of spacious. Maybe it was because of the strickt order everything was sorted by, from the scarce books to the many kind of weapons. You gulped again as you tore your eyes away from Jeralt to observe the tent outside of his surroundings, but already regretted your curiosity when made eye contact with Byleth - a woman dressed to look exactly like her. The actress looked like how she did in the game, with enormous teal eyes, teal hair, pale cheeks and top-notch clothes. Even her.. chest was of the same, big size. And the way she looked at you - trough you, it made you scared, for some reason. So you quickly broke the contact and returned your attention to the heavily frowning Jer-- to the man acting as Jeralt. He had to be acting. He had to.
Otherwise you would legitimately lose your mind over getting into a finctional world.
"She's Pegasus. Ah, that's the nickname I've given her, her real name is.. Y/N. Can she stay with us? I know this sounds foolish, but I would cover every need she might have. Please, Captain." Rose flashed Jeralt a big smile, her brown eyes shone with burning hope. You forced yourself not to raise your eyebrows at the 'nickname' she gave you - you didn't even know what gave her the right to even think that the two of you were not strangers, but good friends who knew each other really, really well.
"Rose, we are a mercenary group, not some home for runaways. She'll be in danger with us. I'm not much for nicknames.. Y/N, was it? You'd be fine with this, staying with us? I gotta warn you, though, tomorrow we're going to Faerghus and early, so drink this Vulneary up - you look tired." Jeralt's hazel eyes stared into the depths of your soul when you locked eyes. You gulped as he grabbed a vial identical to the one offered to you by this Rozanne, but sadly you didn't have any excuse to use now. You were tired - dead tired, in fact. Still.. well, sonfar they haven't harmed you, so.. You took the vial and unplugged it, sniffing its content. It was a mixture of bitter and sweet, just like some medicines you knew. After a silent sigh you raised it to your lips and gulped down the-- your eyes widened, the feeling of exhaustion was washed away from your body and the stinging finally stopped from your back, as if it had never been there in the first place. What kind of magic was this?
"Thank you.." You put down the empty vial on the table, still debating wheter to join or not. You were in an unfamiliar territory with bandits and wild animals around, in unfamiliar clothes and no knowledge how you got here.. in fact, you knew nothing other than that these people - even if only for a trick - dressed up as characters from one of your favourite video games and that mysterious liquid that somehow made you feel all energized again somehow, and the pegasus to boot.. it was almost as crazy to deny you were in a different world than your Earth as thinking the exact same thing. Better safe than sorry, as you believed. "And yes, I would be fine with it."
"..Damn me and my conscience, I defineatly didn't drink enough for this. Fine, you can stay with us - but not free of charge. Rose, you'll pay for everything. And you, Y/N, since you can't fight by the looks of it, you'll be cooking, doing the dishes and helping whoever needs it. Got it? Now go, I'll need to prepare for fishing." Jeralt let go of a heavy sigh as he shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. Rozanne's face immediately turned into one big happy smile and she embraced you in a tight hug, for which you defineatly didn't give any permission.. but whatever. You didn't understand much of the things around you as the woman led you out of the tent. Where were you? Why were you here? Where were your clothes and just.. how? Maybe you really were in the world of one of your favourite video game - or at least one very similar. Regardless..
What a wild welcome you had...