Sakulise

Sakulise is the femslash ship between Sakura and Elise from the Fire Emblem fandom.

Fire Emblem Fates
Sakura and Elise are the youngest daughters - and, indeed, children - of the rulers of the rival nations of Hoshido and Nohr, respectively. The two first meet face-to-face on the plains near the border of Hoshido following the death of their queen and Nohr swiftly launching an invasion. When the two saw Corrin - who they both saw as a big sibling - they both called out to them and argued who's big sibling they were. Corrin ultimately decides which family they go back to (or not to side with either), prompting the two armies to fight with Sakura and Elise hanging back to support them. Ultimately, the two separate when the armies fall back.

Birthright route
Following the battle on the plains, Sakura and Elise only passingly meet when Corrin's force make a stop in the city of Cyrkensia on their way to Cheve, only to have to fight their way out. Sakura and Elise finally reconnect when Corrin's force enter a secret passage to Castle Krakenburg, with Sakura and the rest finding Elise selling flowers in the underground market. After Elise informs them about why she's there, she joins the group through the rest of the passage. During the walk, Sakura get's spooked by seeing corpses that came about from sprung traps and ends up hiding behind Corrin. When Elise says she's spooked to, Corrin has her come behind them, too. The group ultimately get blocked by Camilla, but are allowed to pass through when Elise explains the situation.

At the end of the passage, the group finds themselves in Castle Krakenburg's training grounds - right in the middle of an enemy force led by King Garon's enforcer Hans. During the ensuing battle, Lilith - a small dragon and close friend of Corrin - takes a fatal blow from Hans. Following the battle, Sakura and Elise work together to try and heal Lilith but to no avail as she dies. Picking themselves up from the loss, Elise guides Sakura and the others to the castle's throne room in the hope of making Garon see reason, having to fight and kill his other enforcer Iago along the way. Sakura is ultimately forced to witness Elise, herself, take a fatal blow from her elder brother Xander to save Corrin.

Conquest route
The first time Sakura and Elise meet after the battle of the plains is in the kingdom of Izumo. Sakura and her siblings arrive at the same time as Corrin's force as guests of Izumo's archduke Izana. However, it's revealed to be a trap orchestrated by the Nohrian mage Zola - who had disguised himself as Izana - who promptly takes Sakura and her siblings into custody with the intent of killing them. Elise joins Corrin and the others in saving them and killing Zola. Following the battle, the real Izana throws a banquet for Corrin and the royal siblings. During it, Sakura takes the opportunity to talk with Corrin, but Elise forcefully reminds her that their her big sibling and also calls Sakura her archnemesis.

Sakura and Elise later meet when Corrin's force - backed by the main Nohrian army - assault Fort Jinya and capture it. Sakura is taken as a prisoner as the force makes their way further into Hoshido. During the march, Elise visits Sakura, which surprises Corrin given Elise's earlier hostility towards her back in Izumo. Sakura remains a prisoner as Elise joins Corrin and the others in assaulting Hoshido's capital and capturing it, while also exposing Garon as a monster and killing him. Following the end of the war, Sakura and Elise become friends as the two nations recover.

Revelations route
Sakura and Elise meet again after the battle of the plains in the town of Dia. Sakura is there with Corrin's force - who're trying to stop the true masterminds behind Hoshido's and Nohr's conflict - to get a ship to Notre Sagesse, but are met by a Nohrian force hunting for Corrin. Unknown to the Nohrians, Elise snuck in among them in an effort to reunite with Corrin. During the ensuing battle, Sakura and Elise both help Corrin in dealing with the enemy commander - Corrin's former friend Silas - while Elise also convinces the soldiers Benny and Charlotte to join their cause. After the battle, onboard a ship to Notre Sagesse, Sakura approaches Elise and asks if she wants to join a gathering that's happening, to which she agrees. As she sees Sakura and Elise bond, Azura muses that it's a sign Hoshido and Nohr can work together. The two ultimately join Corrin in defeating the masterminds - the hidden kingdom of Valla - and ending the conflict between Hoshido and Nohr.

Fire Emblem Heroes
Sakura and Elise are two of the heroes that the player can summon separately via the Breidablik using orbs to help Alfonse and his sister Sharena defending their kingdom Askr from the Emblian Empire. As in their original game's Revelation route, Sakura and Elise can develop a bond via support. They can raise their level of support in the following ranks: C, B, A and S if they stand together in the gameplay. Each of them have variants beyond their base forms: Both have two solo variants, Elise assists a Duo Hero, and the two of them together are another Duo Hero.

Both Sakura and Elise received hot springs-themed variants in the "Hostile Springs" focus from January 2019. In the associated paralogue, the two were two heroes that found themselves contracted to Embla. While enjoying their time in a hot spring, they're joined by their elder sisters - who were also contracted - after they were beaten by the Order of Heroes. Sakura worries the springs aren't a good place for a fight, but Elise dismisses that worry by questioning if she ever horsed around in the baths. The four are ultimately defeated and have their contracts broken.

The two later received a Valentine-themed Duo Hero variant - where they work together as one unit - in the "A Special Gift" focus from February 2023. In the associated paralogue, the two are working together delivering gifts for the annual Day of Devotion. When they go to deliver the last one for Kiran, however, they find the line to them is exceedingly long. Rather than just standing in line, Elise suggests to Sakura that they make an extra special personal gift for them. After hammering out what they were doing, the two went about Askr castle to get the needed items, although they end up drawing the suspicion of their respective brothers and retainers along the way. Regardless, they gather up what they needed and headed back to Kiran - the line for whom has been dealt with at that point. Upon comforting the summoner of their tiredness, Elise and Sakura reveal their gift: a duet performance with Elise on the violin and Sakura on the koto. Elise notes the hassle they went through to smuggle the instruments in while Sakura thanks Kiran for listening to their performance.

Fanon
Sakulise is a fairly popular ship in the Fire Emblem fandom, especially for Fates' subsect. Their loyalty to Corrin as their little sisters - even when their on the other side - is one of the big reasons for this ship's popularity, especially since the two of them express it in contrasting ways. This ship is part of the trend of pairing the royal counterparts together. Among the counterparts, Sakura and Elise being shown to have the least amount of animosity with each other, to the point of being the first counterpart pair to be completed in Revelations, is another big help to the popularity of this ship.

On AO3, this ship is decently written about with tagged entries currently in the 50's range. It's Elise's most written ship. It's also Sakura's second-most written ship behind Leokura.

Fandom
FAN FICTION
 * Sakura/Elise tag on FanFiction.Net
 * Sakura/Elise tag on FanFiction.Net

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