Work Text:
After the war had ended, Felicia took every opportunity she could to bury herself in work, trying her best to utilize it as a distraction from the thoughts that would constantly haunt her. The memories of the people that she lost along with the constant feeling of worthlessness that dragged her down, always throbbing at the back of her mind. She had lost her twin sister, her biggest role model, one of the people she loved the most. She was mature, confident and could do anything she set her mind to, or at least that's what Felicia would find herself believing. Her betrayal, her suicide, filled her to the brim with guilt, serving as a reminder of her own naivety. She was naive for letting Flora bear the burden of the Ice Tribe's safety on her own, without her even realising. She had failed her sister. Failed to save her, to understand her. In her eyes, that made her lose all her worth.
The absence of someone she once held so dear filled her with a sense of emptiness. So without realising, she clung to anything that could serve as a reminder of her. Namely, she clung on to Princess Azura to fill the gap of where her sister should've been. Her mannerisms were so similar to Flora's, yet so, so different, and Felicia had found herself obsessed with her. Perhaps it was the need for connection, to find something familiar, but that obsession was unlike anything she had felt up until that point. It may have been the similarities between the two that pulled Felicia to her, but Azura was something else entirely. She was nothing like Flora, at least to her.
Her mind would often wander to that one time…
Sitting on her bed at an inn they were staying at, she held Azura in her arms, running her fingers through her hair. They sat in silence, while the cool midnight breeze came into the room from the open window. Azura was observing her pendant, much to Felicia’s curiosity. She didn’t think it to be a good idea, but she decided to risk it and ask.
“You wear that pendant all the time. Is it important to you?”
Azura thought for a moment before answering her question.
“I wouldn't say so. I inherited it from my mother, without it I’d be useless, and yet its power is too heavy a burden to bear.”
Felicia was puzzled. “A burden?”
Azura’s expression grew more serious and she looked Felicia in the eyes. “Felicia, my dear, it is very likely that I won’t survive this war. In such a case-”
“Don’t say things like that!” She interrupted, concerned.
“Listen to me Felicia. If such a thing were to ever happen, I want you to take this pendant and discard it immediately. Throw it into the sea, so it is lost forever. That will be the only way I can truly rest.”
Felicia swallowed, reluctantly agreeing. “A-Alright, I promise.”
…
In the end, Azura passed and yet, the pendant was lost along with her body.
She was pulled out of her thoughts when the door of her cabin was urgently opened, causing her to jump in surprise and sit up on her bed. Her eyes met with the person who entered the room, a sailor.
“Yes? I’m awake!!” She exclaimed nervously, her fingers fiddling with her skirt.
“Lock your doors, we’re entering the possible siren zone.”
“Oh… Right! I’ll make sure to do that immediately!”
“Keep them locked at all costs, we don’t know how those beasts operate or if they even exist, but it’s better to be safe than sorry.”
The sailor left the room again and Felicia relaxed just a tad. She quickly got out of bed to lock her door. She had been so distracted, that she completely forgot about the sirens rumoured to be in their way to Nohr. She had taken the objective to lead the delivery of goods to Nohr by Princess Corrin. The reminder of the rumour only served as another negative distraction, filling her with fear for what was to come. She took a deep breath and lied back down on her bed. With nothing to do now, she decided to try and fall asleep, to pass the time and to get away from her thoughts.
However, no matter how hard she tried, sleep just wouldn’t overcome her. She tossed around in her bed, but her thoughts were too loud to let her brain shut down, which was the only thing she wanted at that moment. And when she would find herself asleep, any movement the ship made caused her to wake up urgently and in fear. Ultimately, she gave up on trying and ended up spending her time gazing up at the ceiling, trying to distract herself by thinking of her trip to Nohr, but that trail of thought only led to a dead end. If her mind wasn't constantly taking her back to the events of the war, it was reminding her of the sirens. And if not that, to the promise she was not able to fulfill which plagued her every waking- and not- moment.
She was pulled out of her thoughts by a familiar voice. She quickly got up from her bed and started looking around to try and locate the source of the singing. She shook her head; no, it could not be her, there was no way. No matter how hard she would try to forget her, she remembered a conversation she had with Corrin. Corrin heard her voice after she had died. Corrin was also the one who watched her die, and she knew she wouldn’t lie. But even still, Felicia never witnessed it with her own eyes, she could still be out there, for all she knew. Felicia would always find herself clinging on to false hope, hope that the long lost princess would be out there somewhere, waiting for her, yet that only proved her naivety even further. That same naivety is what blurred her sense of reasoning, where even if she tried to remind herself of the danger of the sirens, the beings whose purpose was to seduce sailors to their doom, they were but a weak comparison to her desire to see her beloved again. And her lack of sleep was not helping either.
She ran to her window, her eyes scanning the ocean. The song was now louder and she could see a purple light that made her able to make out a feminine figure holding it, sitting atop a rock. There was no mistaking it, it was her! She hadn’t heard any rumours about sirens being able to shapeshift, so she took the chance. She opened her window and shouted out.
“Azura!”
They immediately locked eyes, and the figure that looked like Azura quickly started swimming in Felicia’s direction, still singing, something that Felicia would’ve found odd if it wasn’t for her surprise and excitement along with her restlessness. Felicia could now make out what the purple light was, that being Azura’s pendant. Felicia reached out her hand and leaned out the window, trying to reach Azura in order to help her get on the ship.
She grabbed her wrist in return, but only to pull Felicia down with her.
Felicia was taken out of her haze upon meeting with the cold surface of the ocean water. the Azura’s grip was firm and painful, pulling her down forcefully. She was finally able to see the other’s tail, verifying her fears. For a moment she wanted to let herself be dragged into the deep waters, maybe that would help quiet her raging thoughts. However, her instincts worked faster than her mind and she quickly pulled out her dagger from her belt and started stabbing at the siren’s wrist, making her weaken her grip. Using this to her advantage, Felicia swam back to the surface, but just before the siren could drag her back down, she was able to freeze part of the water’s surface to get atop of. She watched the now blood-tainted waters warily, dagger gripped tightly in her hand.
The siren’s head protruded from the waters, and she got the chance to look her in the eyes. Those were not the eyes of her beloved. And yet her pendant couldn’t be a copy, still emanating a bright purple light. Disturbed, rage coursed through her. She ran to the siren and grabbed her hair violently, tilting her hair upwards and using it as an opportunity to grab the pendant. She pulled it, breaking its chains and freeing it from the siren’s neck, causing the monster to screech loudly, grabbing its own neck. The pendant felt just like the real thing. She wasted no moments and hit it with her dagger, effectively breaking it to pieces, which finally stopped the siren’s violent outburst.
She leant down to look at her, and she finally felt that she was staring at Azura. Quickly, she grabbed her face and kissed her. Azura kissed her back, her cold hand reaching out to caress Felicia’s face. She broke the kiss to whisper: “Thank you Felicia.” Felicia in response held her closer, pulling her back into a kiss and trying to savour it for as long as possible, yet it wasn’t long before she dissolved into water, losing the grip she had on her, and the cold touch against her lips.
At least now, she felt satisfied with herself, and was ready to move on.