Sylvix

Sylvix is the slash ship between Sylvain Jose Gautier and Felix Hugo Fraldarius from the Fire Emblem fandom.

Canon
Sylvain and Felix are both members of the Blue Lions house at the Officers Academy, and they both hail from Faerghus. The two grew up together, along with two other friends, Dimitri and Ingrid. They were very close as children, but grew apart after the death of Felix’s brother, Glenn, in which Felix became more withdrawn and cold. Sylvain became more of a flirt and a skirt-chaser, always attempting to woo women, only to break their hearts soon after. Because of this gap in their personalities, by the time they both enroll in the academy, they are estranged and not as close as they used to be.

In their C-rank support, Sylvain invites Felix to find some girls to chat with. Felix refuses, and Sylvain goes on to talk about how they knew each other as kids; he calls Felix meek, pure, and cute, then compares him to a baby brother. When Felix gets angry and calls Sylvain insatiable, Sylvain apologizes, though Felix does not seem to accept the apology.

In their B support, Felix apologizes to Sylvain for calling him insatiable. Sylvain seems to forgive him, saying that Felix has said much worse during their friendship. They reminisce on their time together and their friendship, Sylvain saying that Felix used to be so carefree but he was the exact opposite now. Felix responds by saying that Sylvain was "good-for-nothing then" and "good-for-nothing now". He then says that he is off to train, and after failing to convince him to do otherwise, Sylvain goes to train with him as well.

Their A support starts with Felix giving Sylvain candy that he had received from a girl. He thanks Sylvain for his help in battle, saying that if he had not spotted an enemy ambush, Felix would have been killed. Sylvain brushes it off, saying that friends help each other out on the battlefield, calling it "a little give and take". Felix remarks that Sylvain never changes, Sylvain saying in return that he tries to “stay on an even keel”. Felix then says, “you’re always...”, trailing off midsentence. Though Sylvain pushes Felix to finish his sentence, Felix doesn’t, saying that he might tell Sylvain later, or he might not. Sylvain then invites Felix to eat with him, and Felix accepts, though he adds that it is only because Sylvain saved his life.

The A+ support starts with Felix outside of an injured Sylvain’s room, calling him an irresponsible fool for protecting him in battle. Sylvain acts like he is going to die, to which Felix responds telling Sylvain to stop kidding around, saying that [he’s] not going to die and she won’t let him. When he enters Sylvain’s room, Sylvain laughs and tells Felix he was only joking. Felix calls him a fool, reckless, and inattentive, though at Sylvain’s annoyance, he admits that he is grateful. He says that Sylvain has been doing this since they were children—“constantly fooling around, but then showing up and helping when we really need you.” He then admits that seeing Sylvain’s smile, he almost wants to give him a hug. When Felix begins to leave, Sylvain abruptly asks him about the promise they made as kids, to stick together until they die together, and he has intention to keep the promise, and isn’t trying to get himself killed before Felix. Felix proceeds to say that he is tired of close calls, telling Sylvain to stop fooling around and to take his training seriously. He then says that Sylvain is free to die whenever he pleases, but Felix won’t go down with him.

However, interestingly enough, Felix says the opposite in the original Japanese version of the game. He says that he is worried that if Sylvain throws his life away carelessly, then they won’t be able to fulfill their promise to die together, showing that Felix wants to make good on the promise as well. In both versions Sylvain concedes that he will get his act together after he gets better, and Felix wishes him a quick recovery. Felix then thanks him. In the English version, Sylvain says “that’s what friends are for, Felix”, while in the Japanese version, he says something that is more similar to a simple “don’t mention it”.

In the Azure Moon route, their houses, Gautier and Fraldarius, are the two houses left that fight the Empire after it has taken over most of the Kingdom of Faerghus. Felix and Sylvain fight alongside each other as allies, with the above support taking place during this time. In their Azure Moon ending, Sylvain and Felix inherit their respective titles of Margrave and Duke. While they both led busy lives, their friendship only seemed to enhance as time passed, and they often visited the other’s estate to “deliver the latest taunting in a friendly but relentless game of one-upmanship”. It is said that in the later years, they passed away on the exact same day, as if conceding that one could not live without the other; therefore fulfilling their promise.

They also have an ending for the other routes, though it is considerably more tragic. In this ending, Felix abandons his noble title to make a living as a mercenary. Decades later, he met Sylvain again when he was hired for a job, but left as soon as it was finished, and they never met again. Years later, a sword thought to have been Felix’s arrived at Sylvain’s doorstep, implying that Felix had died and sent his weapon to Sylvain.

If either Felix or Sylvain are recruited into one house without the other, a special dialogue will ensue if you have one of them attack the other. The dialogue stays the same no matter which one of them is on your side. Sylvain asks Felix whether he remembers the promise they made as kids to die together, and when Felix says he remembers, Sylvain laments that they are about to kill each other. Felix will respond with, “Sorry, Sylvain. You’ll die first.”

Quotes
"Come on, we’ve known each other since we were kids. We’re not going to let your constant verbal abuse get in the way of our friendship, are we?"

- Sylvain to Felix in their B support.

"After the war, Felix and Sylvain inherited their respective titles of Duke Fraldarius and Margrave Gautier, and set to work restoring the Kingdom. Each led a busy life, but that only seemed to enhance their friendship over the years. Each became known for making surprise visits to the estate of the other, in order to deliver the latest taunting in a friendly but relentless game of one-upmanship. It is said that, in their later years, they became so close that they passed away on the same day, as if conceding that one could not live without the other."

- Sylvain and Felix’s ending in the Azure Moon route.

"Even after the war’s end, skirmishes continued to break out across Fódlan. Learning that there were still places where he could fight, Felix abandoned his noble title and chose to make a living with his sword. Decades later, he reunited briefly with Sylvain, who had need of his services as Margrave Gautier. Felix departed as soon as the job was finished, however, and the two never met again. Years later, a sword that was thought to have belonged to Felix arrived on Sylvain’s doorstep."

- Sylvain and Felix’s ending in every other route.

Fanon
There is a wide range of ways Sylvix are depicted in fan content. This includes alternate universes, unrequited loves, or simply endings in which they live domestically with one another. It is one of the most popular ships in the fandom, with their A+ support and their ending being coded quite romantically (even more so in the Japanese version). Their contrasting personalities also appeal to a lot of people.

It is both Felix’s and Sylvain’s most written ship on AO3. Though it has rival ships such as Fraldarddyd or Sylvcedes, none even come close in popularity. There are more than 3900 works in the AO3 tag, and it updates quite frequently.

Fandom
FAN FICTION

TUMBLR

Trivia

 * The original Japanese text of their A+ support is much more romantic than its English counterpart, making use of romantic language as well.
 * In their A+ support, Felix blushes when he thanks Sylvain.