Lexay

LexAy is the het ship between Lex and Ayra from the Fire Emblem fandom.

Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War
Ayra is a fierce, tomboyish princess of the country of Isaach, and a member of the "Navarre" archetype (Cold, stoic myrmidons who are often mercenaries and have a speed-oriented build) while being the first member of said archetype to be female, with the only other female member of the archetype being Marisa from The Sacred Stones. She is the guardian of her nephew, Shannan, who is the future prince of Isaach, and is blackmailed into serving Cimbaeth of Verdane during Chapter 1 after Shannan is abducted. However, she can be recruited if the player rescues Shannan before killing her. Lex is the youngest son of Duke Lombard of Granvalle's House Dozel, and a close friend of Azelle from House Velthomer and Tailtiu from House Friege. While generally laid-back, Lex also has a hotheaded streak and tends to get angry easily. He joins Sigurd's army in the prologue, where he accompanies Azelle to rescue Edain of House Yngvi after she is taken to Verdane.

During Chapter 3, if Ayra or Lex do not have a lover, Lex can initiate a conversation with Ayra. In said conversation, Lex greets Ayra, who asks what he wants from her with an annoyed tone. Lex, in response, sarcastically tells Ayra she's as "courteous as ever," prompting Ayra to tell Lex to get to the point, adding that she has better things to do than listen to him for too long. When Lex tells Ayra that he has a gift for her, adding that he thought of her the moment he saw it, Ayra dismisses him, saying that she has no use for "such trinkets." However, Lex suddenly reveals to Ayra that said gift is actually a Brave Sword, astonishing Ayra and making her remark at how beautiful it looks. Lex then tells Ayra he's glad she likes it, before leaving, ending the conversation as Ayra calls after him. The conversation rewards a Brave Sword in Ayra's inventory and 100 love points between the two. A similar conversation can also be initiated with Chulainn with similar results, but cannot be initiated with the Lex version in the same playthrough.

During Chapter 5, if Ayra and Lex are lovers, Ayra can initiate another conversation, where she will tell Lex that they are nearing the end of the war, which Lex vocally agrees with. Lex then remarks how Ayra's stubbornness has amazed him and asks her why she didn't travel to Isaach with their kids, Larcei and Scathach. Ayra, mildly offended, asks Lex why she should have, assuming it's because she's a woman, while also asking Lex why he didn't go to Isaach, either, as he is just as responsible for their kids as she is. Lex concedes and apologizes for asking, but also voices his concern about leaving Larcei and Scathach behind, to which Ayra responds that they will return to them - together - after the war ends. Ayra also takes the opportunity to appologize to Lex for taking offense to his earlier question, as she is a warrior by nature and knows little else. Lex, however, isn't bothered by this and tells Ayra that her warrior instinct is what he loves about her, adding that while he doesn't know how the rest of the war will play out, they will always be in it together no matter what. Ayra thanks Lex for the statement as the conversation ends.

Mitsuki Oosawa Manga
The manga adaptation of Genealogy by Mitsuki Oosawa greatly expands on Lex and Ayra's relationship.

In the manga, Lex and Ayra first meet in Verdane after she has been blackmailed into serving Cimbaeth. Lex emerges from below the cliff Ayra is stationed on and immediately begins to duel her. As they fight, Lex remarks to himself how Ayra doesn't even stop to breathe, briefly wondering if she's inhuman and leaving himself open. Sigurd, however, deflects the blow and saves Lex, briefly leaving Lex dazed by the experience. Ayra then tries to chase Sigurd after he enters the nearby castle, afraid for Shannan's safety, only for Lex to block her way and duel her as a distraction.

Although Lex manages to get the upper hand and pin Ayra to the ground using his axe, Ayra immediately recovers and counters against Lex, proclaiming numerous times that she won't die as long as Shannan is still hers to protect. By the time Sigurd has rescued Shannan, however, their duel has devolved into a "battle of attrition," with both of them telling each other multiple times to give up without actually attacking. Fortunately, it ends after Ayra sees Shannan is safe.

Later, after Ayra joins Sigurd's army, Ayra sits next to Lex, telling him how strange it is to be sitting side by side when just a moment ago they were enemies, briefly wondering if they're both insane. Lex, however, reassures Ayra and tells her that Belhalla (the ruling family of Granvalle) will not be notified of Ayra and Shannan's presence, as Granvalle and Isaach are at war with each other. Later, Ayra also apologizes to Lex for the fight when passing him in the hallway, adding, while blushing, that she wanted to make sure he heard it

After Sigurd and Deirdre's wedding, Ayra encounters Lex sitting at the edge of one of the castle's walls, and demands that Lex leaves the spot as she "found it first." Lex responds by jokingly asking if Ayra wanted to sit on his lap, leaving Ayra appalled, though she does end up sitting next to Lex after he makes room. Afterwards, Lex remarks to Ayra that she is an obstinate woman, for lack of a better term, with Ayra, annoyed, responding by telling Lex to shut up. After a few moments, however, she asks Lex if he isn't returning to Castle Dozel, to which he answers that he feels more comfortable with Sigurds army, while adding that there was a girl there who interests him.

Ayra immediately blushes and hears her own heartbeat, to which Lex teases Ayra by asking if she thought he was talking about her, annoying Ayra and muttering that she would kill him if she had her sword with her. However, Lex also adds that, during their first battle, he felt thrilled and wanted to have that same feeling again. Ayra responds by calling Lex weird, but also adds that she won't get bored as long as Lex's around, to which Lex agrees and compares the two of them to "comrades with similar personalities."

Later, Ayra gifts Lex a ring made from her hair, saying that there is an Isaach legend that forging a ring from the hair of a strong warrior will protect whoever wears the ring.

Fanon
LexAy is a very popular ship, and one of the most popular ships in the Genealogy fandom. It is the most popular overall for Lex and is among the most popular for Ayra, rivaled only by Ayarden (Ayra x Arden) and Chulayra (Ayra x Chulainn) on Ayra's end, and Lexdain (Lex x Edain) on Lex's end. Many fans of the ship like the pairing due to both characters having similar personalities: Both of them are hotheaded and get angry easily, though Lex is also more laid-back then Ayra is, making him a good foil to Ayra's personality. The ship is also liked for the fact that Lex and Ayra fall in love despite the fact that their families are enemies.

LexAy is also liked for gameplay purposes: both Larcei and Scáthach will gain solids stats from Lex’s Nal Holy Blood, and the usefull skill Paragon, which doubles their EXP gain. However, Scáthach normally won't be able to inherit weapons from his father. To remedy this, many players choose to make Lex defeat Chagall to get the Silver Blade he drops, giving Lex a weapon that he could pass to Scáthach.

Though LexAy has a popular following, very little fanart and fanfiction of the couple exists, with only 26 fanart pieces available on Pixiv and less than two pages of fanfiction on A03.

Fandom
FAN FICTION

ART