NeroHaku

NeroHaku is the non-binary ship between Nero Cladius and Hakuno Kishinami from the Fate fandom.

Fate/Extra
In the original Fate/Extra game, Hakuno is an unwitting and amnesiac participant in the Holy Grail War within the Moon Cell supercomputer. Their gender and name can be changed by the player. Nero, the former Emperor of Rome, is one of three potential servant partners for Hakuno. She represents the Saber class.

Nero answers Hakuno's summons, though she seems unimpressed by them. Nero's name has been tarnished by her actions against Christianity, and she is rarely summoned. Nero's motive for helping Hakuno is, at this point, largely the desire for glory. She refuses to tell Hakuno her true name, and generally keeps their relationship distant for the first few rounds. Nero does, however, give Hakuno a nickname. In Japanese, she refers to Hakuno as "soshiyo", or maestro. She compares herself to a fine instrument, and Hakuno to her player. In English, this is translated as "praetor", an honorary title for a general or official in the Roman Empire.

As the story continues, their bond grows. Nero finds beauty in Hakuno's drive to continue fighting throughout the grail war and growth as a master. She gradually opens up to them, admitting her true name, and becomes more concerned with fighting to protect Hakuno in particular. Nero considers their bond to be akin to a relationship, and devotes herself to winning Hakuno's love and approval. While Hakuno's opinion in turn is left up to player interpretation - particularly if Hakuno prefers Nero or Rin/Rani - it is later stated that, as their constant companion, Nero means more to him/her than "anything or anyone". With Nero never having been loved and Hakuno lacking any past but the traumas of the Grail War, their partnership is the first genuine affection either has known.

Eventually, Hakuno is discovered to not be a real person, but rather an AI copy. With their victory in the Grail War, Hakuno willingly deletes himself/herself in order to allow the original Hakuno to reawaken and begin life anew.

Fate/Extra CCC
The ending of Fate/Extra is somewhat retconned by the sequel/alternative route of Fate/Extra CCC.

Once again, Nero is one of the potential servant choices. At the start of the game, Nero dresses in a wedding gown, and declares her intent to wed Hakuno. In this sequence of events, Hakuno is saved from the deletion of the previous game and given control over the Moon Cell. Nero and Hakuno then wed, with Nero using her powers to create the ceremony.

Fate/Extella
According to series creator Kinko Nasu, Fate/Extella continues primarily off the Nero ending of CCC. However, other aspects of the previous games were altered to a storyline which saw Hakuno also recruit the Caster servant, Tamamo-No-Mae, to his/her side.

At the start of the game, Hakuno has been split into three: mind, soul, and body. Mind Hakuno remains with Nero and retains most of their old memories, while soul and body Hakuno suffer from amnesia. Tamamo has taken soul Hakuno while Altera has taken body Hakuno, giving them each control over some part of the Moon Cell. In the first route, Nero seeks to defeat Tamamo's forces and reunite mind Hakuno with soul Hakuno. However, she has a change of heart when soul Hakuno attempts to defend Tamamo. Sensing soul Hakuno's affection for Tamamo, Nero allows the two to escape. Unfortunately, this ultimately leads to Hakuno becoming comatose, and the route ends with Nero begging Hakuno to awaken.

The second route is largely a swap of the first, with Tamamo as the protagonist instead of Nero. In this scenario, Tamamo and soul Hakuno emerge victorious. However, like Nero in the previous route, Tamamo allows Nero to escape with mind Hakuno, after mind Hakuno attempts to defend Nero. In the third route, Altera is the heroine, and she instead kills Nero and Tamamo, only to be later killed herself.

Nero returns as the heroine of the fourth and final/true route of the game. With Hakuno retaining memories from the previous route with Altera, he/she convinces Nero to form an alliance with Tamamo that sees mind and soul Hakuno safely reunite. Nero is thus able to save Hakuno from the comatose state of the previous route. Hakuno tells Nero about their bond with Altera in the previous timeline, and Nero becomes equally determined to help save Altera. The two are successful, and Altera is reborn as a child. The story ends with Nero and Tamamo peacefully competing over which of the two is Hakuno's true wife, as Tamamo wishes to marry Hakuno.

Fate/Extella Link
In Fate/Extella Link, Nero's relationship with Hakuno has a minor role. Tamamo is still insistent that she is Hakuno's true wife, but her and Nero co-exist begrudgingly. Both work with Hakuno to assist Charlemagne, with Nero taking a more apparent position as Hakuno's co-ruler. Like in Extella, there are multiple fluffy and comedic bond events between Nero and Hakuno. If the player has a servant other than Nero equipped, Nero can sometimes be found waiting just outside of Hakuno's room, holding a rose.

Fate/Grand Order
Although Hakuno does not appear in Fate/Grand Order, it has been confirmed by Nasu that the normal Nero recalls Hakuno. As such, Nero does not express romantic interest in the Grand Order protagonist. Rather, Bridal Nero is meant to be an alternative timeline version of Nero who never met Hakuno, and thus falls for the Grand Order protagonist instead. The description for Bridal Nero notes that she is the version of Nero who did not meet her "fated spouse" even after becoming a servant - namely, she was never summoned to the Moon Cell, and thus never met Hakuno.

Quotes
"That's right. I'm a failure as a master because I couldn't give a damn about the Moon Cell. If I were forced to choose between the Holy Grail and [Nero], I would pick [Nero] without hesitation. As my constant companion throughout the war, she means more to me than anyone or anything."

- Hakuno Kishinami, Fate/Extra

"I smile unwittingly at [Nero]. Always so prideful. I want to protect her smile, even though she is the one who always defends me."

- Hakuno Kishinami, Fate/Extra

"For me, who has never been loved, our time together has been precious. It is truly wonderful to be foremost in the thoughts of another. You, who mean the world to me, let's go! May you defeat all who oppose you!"

- Nero to Hakuno, Fate/Extra

"Can you hear me Praetor? My beloved, my only...It's alright. Rest all you want. Wake up whenever you want...I will fight for you forever."

- Nero, First Ending, Fate/Extella

"I will say it again - soshiyo, I love you!"

- Repeated in-game quote, Nero, Fate/Extella

Fanon
Fan reaction to NeroHaku has been split between fans of Nero and fans of Tamamo. Fans of Nero typically praise the relationship for giving Nero a softer, sweeter side, and for her devotion to Hakuno. The femslash version of the pairing is more popular, though both have their fans.

On the other hand, the merging of the previous chosen routes from Extella onward turned some against the pairing. Fans of Tamamo consider Nero to be a spot-light stealer, and criticize the decision to make Nero Hakuno's true servant/lover in Extella and the anime Fate/Extra: Last Encore. Similarly, the choice to give Nero an alternative timeline character to pair with the protagonist of Fate/Grand Order is often negatively contrasted with Tamamo, who falls for the protagonist despite remembering Hakuno. Nero is thus often criticized as being given favoritism by the writers. Some fans try to reconcile this by claiming that Hakuno is polygamous with both Nero and Tamamo, though there is little evidence in canon for this past their general reluctant acceptance of one another in Extella Link.

Currently, it would seem that NeroHaku is a slightly more popular pairing. AO3 lists 101 NeroHaku works as opposed to 69 TamaHaku.

Fandom
FAN FICTION