#I think 'furina' is the one we've met

[hellogoodbyeitsme]

My theory about Furina is that the girl we know is simply a meka/puppet expertly made to look like the real Furina (we know this is possible with Ei, she has two puppets in her likeness), and the reason Neuvillette HAS to be around her at all times is because she isn't allowed to talk about highly secret topics, unlike the real Furina, down under the opera house, under the Oratrice, powering her Gnosis with the people's belief (in Justice, of which she is the archon). I believe she must be holed up there, possibly buried in research, likely trying to solve the primordial sea crisis without alerting the research institute, and I believe that she was the one who called out to Lyney when he performed his trick.

Neuvillette, as the dragon bound to the hydro archon (I HATE when they throw away these tiny lines that reveal insane lore, like how Celestia stole the dragons' power to give to the archons, which I now believe to be what is stored within the Gnoses. This also informs my idea on what the Tsaritsa is planning, but that's another theory haha) is faithfully taking care of this Meka-Furina and covering for her weaknesses. When she doesn't have clearance to speak on a matter, Neuvillete steps in. When a matter has no bearing on her true, secret work, she is free to act as she wishes (though she does still have a sort-of retainer in Chlorinde, who seems to know plenty more than she lets on). He attends important meetings at her side and rules over the court, responding to the oratrice, in order to keep up appearances while the true archon is trying to solve the crisis. And perhaps, the supposed real Furina is the one calling the oratrice's judgements, instead of it being The People; and when she noticed something off about Childe, she overruled the guiltless charge.

I can't explain the "curse" thing, perhaps it's just tied to the oratrice or the primordial sea, I have yet to know enough about her to figure out the curse's nature, but I think my theory covers a lot of ground otherwise. A meka created only to be a figurehead doesn't need to have any power within it, and as we've seen with Raiden, puppets are capable of having their own personality. In the past I considered Raiden's personality to be the "robot is emotionally cold" trope, but now I think Raiden was created to be strict and unbending on purpose by a grieving woman, as such traits would make her a perfect ruler in the absence of the real one - which also makes her reaction to Wanderer's gentleness make more sense. Rather than "omg why is he crying?? Sweet boy be free! Rip!" it paints a "you and I were not built for this painful world, and I don't wish to hurt a being that feels so softly" painting. That was a tangent, but in any case, The Wanderer, another puppet, also has a unique personality. We know him well, and that he even has his own desires and goals. The Katherines are also unique, even if they have a much lower level of consciousness (?). So why shouldn't a Meka Furina have such a unique, at-odds-with-itself personality, a true facade inside and out?

I had more I wanted to say about this theory but I've suddenly forgotten because I'm SLEEPY thank you for reading I love you goodnight

[transmascaraa]

gaming headcannons!

he's liked you for a while now...

crush!gaming x gn!reader

author's note: sorry this took a while lmao i was too lazy to write anything. it might be ooc but oh well i js really like him and he's so skrunkly omgshhfhs and i wanna do a gf furina x reader FANFIC for a christmas special or smthn😍 i'm too insecure abt my writing skills like for fanfics but i hope it comes out good🤷 anyways, enjoy👍

"so you see, i've been dealing with a strange feeling ever since we've met..."

-he would be all over you already at the first eye contact you two made

-he was really energetic when he met you

-oversharing about himself, talking constantly and giving you a compliment every now and then

-you kinda fell for him too, but didn't think much of his actions(you were a little blind)

-he tried flirting a couple of times and it made you blush but again, you were a pessimist.

-but he had high hopes on you loving him just by the look you gave him

-so after a while of knowing eachother, you guys met at the lantern rite, a small place near a little lantern shop

-"hey y/n!" he waved and smiled brightly at you

-"oh, hey gaming!" you replied, walking towards him and smiling in return

-he was head over heels for you, trust me.

-not like you weren't for him.

-the two of you chit-chatted for a little bit, just enough for him to get comfortable in the conversation.

-"hey, also, i see the people getting prepared for launching the lanterns, do you have yours?"

-"yup, let's go!" you exclaimed as you unconsciously grabbed his hand, making him blush a bit

-getting to a place with not too many people there, you finally started lighting up your lanterns, whispering your wishes to them and slowly allowing them to fly high up in the sky, making your wishes come true.

-the sky was covered in lanterns.

-little lights.

-little yellow dots.

-until they couldn't be seen anymore.

-while you were looking at them, he was looking at you.

-your eyes shining in such adoration as you looked at them.

-his shined too, but not for the lanterns.

-for you.

-finally, you looked back at him.

-"wow, that was so beautiful..." you softly said to him.

-he only had a few seconds to think before replying.

-now or never.

-now or never.

-now or never.

-"but not more beautiful than the person standing right in front of me."

-one could say that there was a smile on his face.

-but a Mona Lisa type of smile.

-you blushed and hid your face.

-"w-what?..." you were too shy for this.

-no way he actually said that.

-you were dreaming.

-"i'm being serious... i've..."

-*sigh*

-"i've liked you for quite a long time now..." he shyly said.

-"but it's up to you if you wanna try..."

-he was so insecure.

-he was looking down the whole time, not even realizing that you were ready to look him in the eyes and answer

-"gaming..." you said, voice barely above a whisper.

-"h-huh?" he looked up, his eyes meeting your eyes.

-eye contact.

-he trusts you.

-you trust him.

-"i like you too..." you put your hand on his cheek and gently caressed it with your thumb.

-he was left speechless.

-his face was burning.

-his heart going 1000 miles per hour.

-"y-you do?"

-"yes, gaming, i'd like to try this. only with you." you were looking at him with a hopeful look.

-"thank you, my dear..." and before you could say anything else, he had his forehead pressed against yours.

-so... close.

-"i love you..." he whispered, blushing so hard.

-"i love you too..." and with that, your lips met in a soft, true, kiss.

-your wishes came true.

-now you surely know what to wish for next year...

~~~~~

this won the poll and when i have the motivation i'll do this similar confession but with dahlia. BUT FURINA FOR CHRISTMAS FIRST.

TYSM GUYS FOR SO MANY LIKES ON MY RECENT POSTS I'M GOING INSANE.

ily all sm also this gaming guy is adorable omfg

[a-yarn-of-purple-prose]

Damn the people in Genshin's official sub have been full-on schisming about Furina these last few days.

It's the most impressive thing to watch btw. I'm basically taking notes to write fantasy setting sects because while researching historical schisms can tell you the bones of how people go from agreement about something to "we're different religions now", seeing how people formulate the argument is something else.

I'm putting some prints after the break because this is heavy spoilers after all.

Here's some of what I collected:

The argument that Every Part of The Whole Contains The Whole Itself (or maybe that personhood isn't defined by a separate embodied presence and experiences but by a Secret Third Thing. I'm not sure.)

2. The argument that Fate/Celestia Is Omniscient Thus Can't Be Fooled, ergo Furina had to be divine (this one bothers the hell out of me because the whole point of the quest was that fate CAN be fooled or at least misdirected as long as you reach the right story beats. And we've known for ages that Celestia isn't watching.)

3. The argument that You Can't Tell Which One Is The Copy, and, furthermore, that No One Died Because Focalors As We Met Her Wasn't a Person (this one is kinda extra-esoteric)

4. The argument that Focalors Was a Persona Inside Furina's Mind All the Time (despite the fact that the story tells us Focalors was the Oratrice):

Just FYI the poster is talking about cakes because there was an attempt at an explanation though a cake analogy (I don't think this poster got the rhetoric.)

5. I'm putting the obligatory "ship of Theseus" reference here because this is tumblr and we're simple people here.

The whole issue, of course, is that some people are tripping over the philosophical question of "what is a person?", others are trying to invent a whole theory of mind, while others are so fully into Christian mythology that they can't conceive of this story not being a reference to their blorbo.

This was, you have to understand, exactly what the writers wanted.

[tempests-bards-and-birds]

i'm not sure how i feel about the archon quest as a whole but one thing that i can say is that i really like mavuika. so far throughout the story we've met archons who are all gods (in the eyes of their people at least) - and godhood, whether it ends up demanding devotion or fear, is something that undeniably seperates these archons from the people of their nations, as there's always this big "something" that people seem to believe makes a god "more" than them, and a lot of the time that seems to boil down to the idea that the gods are without flaws that are inherently human. obviously this is very much not the case in practice - it's arguably one of the main themes of the entire game that these systems of worship are flawed because the gods are inherently human in all the ways that actually matter - but the point is that people believe them to be flawless, so there's always this level of insincerity in their characters, whether they're in their role as a god or pretending to be human.

mavuika, on the other hand, almost seems to be the complete opposite of that - she is so, so sincere, to the point where it makes you suspicious of her intentions, because it's nearly the polar opposite of what we've gotten previously. and maybe she is just an incredibly honest person, which in and of itself is still very refreshing when it comes to archon characters, but i think a lot of it comes down to one thing - she's human, and the people of natlan see her as such. yes, she is still the archon, but she's not a god, and so they don't really revere her or worship her - they just extend the same level of respect to her that you would see people in other nations extend to their human leaders (take ningguang as an example.)

i think that having an archon who is so plainly honest and sincere - not just about their plans but about themselves, too - due to the fact that they are already seen as human and therefore don't need to maintain the perfection of a god is so useful for looking at how the archons are just as flawed and just as human as anyone else, and by extension how these systems of worship are flawed and almost redundant. we got another pretty obvious angle through furina - a human who was forced into the role of a god, and who played it perfectly - but having one who's just obviously human from the get-go is just. so nice.

[soleillunne]

— happy new year everyone!

İ would like to start this by saying that while it hasn't been that long since I've been here I've had a great 2023 here and I've made lots of new friends that i would die for. So thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for making this year great :) İ haven't been able to talk with you for some time and i hope to fix that soon so here are some people that helped me through 2023.

May 2024 be better for all of us <3

-Aly

@https-furina ; MY LOVE!! We haven't known each other for long, but you've managed to worm your way in my heart regardless. You've been there for me for the short time we've known each other and i can't express how much i appreciate everything you did for me. İ say this very often but I'm truly so happy i met you. You're the reason I'm still here, and you've made me feel happy, truly happy, for the first time this year. İ can't thank you enough.

@lillonvia ; LİLİ BELOVED!! Talking with you is so fun and there's never a dull moment with you and i love you so so much!! İ wish i could take away your problems so that you'd never frown again.

@umgatochamadopercyval ; CLARA!! we've known each other for a very very short time and i haven't been able to talk with you as much as I'd like but i will fix that this year (as soon as exams are over-) but i want you to know in the short time I've known you, you've always made me smile and i appreciate it more than i can express.

@idyllic-affections ; APHH Hİ!! thank you for always listening to my silly ideas and rambles and being patient with me <33 it's always a pleasure seeing you on my dash and you always make my day a lil bit better MWAH

@ilyuu ; YUİ SWEETHEART!! i love talking to you sm and it's been so long but just know my inbox is open whenever <33 i love whenever i talk to you bc you're so so energetic and it makes me feel happy that you're having fun when talking w me!!

@7kei-soft ; (i searched for your blog for like 15 minutes aya help me) you're one of my earliest mutuals here and i love talking with you!! Thank you for sticking w me through everything

@kopivie ; gosh it's been super long since i talked with you last but you hold a special place in my heart either way. İ understand life has been hard for you lately but my inbox is always open for you and I'm down to talk about anything!! İ hope 2024 treats you better (just like you deserve)

@supernova25 ; Hİ SWEETHEART!! you're so so fun to talk to and it always makes me smile whenever i see you on dash !!

@n3r0-1417 ; ARİİİ Hİ!! you're so so sweet and i love talking with you!! İ haven't been able to lately and I'm so sorry for that, but i promise I'll be back with chaos soon!!

@papiliotao ; REİ SWEETHEART!! You're like a sister to me and i love you so so much i hope you have the greatest year ever <33 not much to say right now but just know that I'll be in your inbox soon enough hehe

@delusina ; KAZU Hİ!! i know you probably won't see this now as you're taking a break however i just wanted to say thank you for all the times you've been here for me <33 I'll be here once you're back, so please take care of yourself !

@kazumist ; AKİ!! gosh i haven't talked with you since ebg i think and i miss you RAAAAA you're so sweet and i hope you're doing alright!!

@yaminohimeyume ; YUME YUME Hİ!! we haven't been mutuals that long but you're the sweetest ever and you're so so kind to me and i hope you know how much i appreciate it <33

@ryuryuryuyurboat ; RYUU Hİ!! we haven't been mutuals for long either but i love talking with you so much <33 I'll get to know you better this year trust

@nordicbananas ; SHROOM!! you've been here since i started writing, silently cheering me from the background and i can't thank you enough. Seeing you in my notifs always made me smile and kept me going when i felt like i no longer could.

@alexisomnias ; ALEXİS Hİ!! We haven't been able to talk in forever but I've always enjoyed talking with you!! You're so so sweet and i hope you never lose that spark <3

@mccnstruck ; ZEE!! Hi hi!! Talking with you is so fun and you're so so sweet AAA i don't have much to say for you but RAAAA İ GİVE KİTH

@mysnowmanandmebaby ; JO!! we haven't talked much on Tumblr but you keep sending me Xiao pics on discord and i scream everytime- cough i mean ahem (thank you <3)

@zhongrin ; miss Rin!! İ want to start by saying thank you for putting up with me bdndjd I'm a lot to handle sometimes but you're so kind to me aaaaa i love dropping by your cafe to talk with you sm and you always listen no matter what it's about i can't thank you enough <3

@m1shapanda ; MİSHAAAAAAA Hİ OMG HOW ARE YOU I'm so sorry i haven't been able to drop by and scream more often we'll have to fix that soon RAAAA

@dustofthedailylife ; we haven't talked much but i love stalking your blog when I'm bored enough /lh you're so sweet and so so kind (I'm just shy) but i hope I'll be able to talk w you more often this year!!

@mikacynth ; MİKA SWEETHEART it's been so long since i last saw you on dash and i hope life's treating you well !! İ hope you have a great new year bc you deserve it mwah!! Thank you for being there for me

@camvrin ; THE CHAOS CHİLD!! hi!! You're so chaotic i love it. You never fail to make me smile and i can talk about anything with you for hours on end. İt's always refreshing to talk with you as i never know where the conversation will go

@floraldresvi ; Vİ !! MY LİGHT!! The queen of selfship!! You're probably the reason i feel comfortable sharing selfship on this hellsite bc you never once judged me for it and I'm v v happy to see yours as well!! Flower anon made a bunch of appearances on my inbox this year and im keeping every single one and i appreciate it sm MWAH MWAH KİTH FOR YOU

@lovelyney ; hi fawn!! Confession time i actually screamed when you first followed me lmao it's been a while since we've talked but it's been so fun everytime we did!! Thanks for listening to my rambles !!

@i23kazu ; YİNGİEEEEE Hİ!! you're the sweetest person ever and you deserve the best and RAAAA i love you sm you're so so kind and i hope this year treats you well <3

[gachagen]

Is Furina a Hydro Eidolon? And other Fontaine 4.1 theories

I finished the Archon Quest and I have a LOT of thoughts, but mainly one solid theory I thought about after I finished it. And I rambled on and on in my friends DMs about this too lol so now I'm rambling about it here.

The reason I believe Furina to be a Hydro Eidolon is that she matches perfectly with the description of Hydro Eidolon replica's that we saw in the Mirage during the summer event. She has the signature blue hair and everything. And I think she could possibly be the Hydro Eidolon of the former Hydro Archon.

Another reason I think she might be a Hydro Eidolon is because I also think she might not even be the archon of Fontaine. During the archon quest, Arlechinno says that she tried to take the Gnosis from the Hydro Archon but that Furina didn't have it. She also noted how Furina practically begged for her life instead of fighting back like all the other Archons would have done.

So she thought maybe it was with Neuvillette but she doesn't disclose why she believes it's not with him either. So if it's not with Neuvillette and it's not with Furina, where could the Gnosis be? My theory, it's probably in those very scales that Furina uses to judge people. If Furina isn't an archon herself, than it would make sense why she relies so much on Neuvillette who is one of the Sovereigns, but also would explain why Furina would even need the Gnosis and has to safe guard it some place important or use it's power.

So far, we've seen that the Archons aren't really that caring about the Gnoses for some reason, but my theory as to why is because unlike Furina they aren't being watched by an old Dragon Sovereign, and have no need to really use it's power anymore. The Gnoses are a catalyst for an Archon's power obviously, but it's not the thing that grants them power. A lot of the archon's we've met already besides Furina seemingly are already really powerful creatures (Venti is a wind spirit/nymph thing who also has connections with the old goddess of time, Nahida has direct access to Irminsul whenever she wants, Ei has the Plane of Euthymia and the Sacred Sakura tree that literally can cleanse traces of the abyss from the earth, and Zhongli can bind anyone to a contract even those "above" him in power.) But Furina can't hold the Primordial sea back at all. She has to rely on Neuvillette, who can't solve the problem forever for some reason. He even says it's a "sentencing" as in its a punishment set by a judge.

I think the reason neither of them can really solve the problem is because 1. Neuvillette isn't as strong as he used to be now that the Sovereigns powers have been split in 7, and 2. Furina isn't an archon and thus doesn't have the power to rewrite the laws of teyvat like the other Archons can. The Prophecy is probably a set in stone rule that HAS to happen, and with no Archon present that means there's nobody around to change that rule. Furina's "plan" that she's been 'working' on could very well be a plan to become an Archon, which is why she's always acting so extroverted and is trying to make everyone love her. She probably believes that if she makes everyone in fontaine have faith in her, than she can ascend and become the Archon and then save all of Fontaine. But she can't possibly reveal that she's NOT an archon because than that will throw everyone into disarray and reveal that Fontaine has been a godless nation this whole time.

[trashcanwithsprinkles]

so since chen zhongli didn't have a connection to raniya, would he have one with venti? they're traditionally seen more often together (i joined like ~1.5-2 years ago i think it's because of last years lantern rite they're seen together but they're could be more i'm missing) and they're dynamic is always so funny i think it'd be a shame if they didn't know each other somehow

(but also knowing venti he probably would've blown up zhongli's phone by now lmao)

also as a second thought what is going on in like inazuma and fontaine if it isn't too like spoiler? do they have something mirroring the sokoku decree since there's no visions? is ei still in government to help the closed borders policy?

would neuvi have a position similar to his in teyvat? or is he just a dragon of myth like how rex lapis is?

sorry if that's too much i just love the aus you create and i love fleshing universes out

honestly? venti and zhongli have only appeared together in like one lantern rite scene and one poetry event and that's literally it, so i wouldn't say they're 'traditionally more often together'. on both times it was hu tao's fault anyway? so i don't think we've had zhongli expressly seek venti out like ever. but the reason why they have indeed interacted the most when it comes to inter-archon relationships (which isn't saying much because the only other ones who've interacted are furina and zhongli so like. venti doesn't seem like an outlier if he only has one extra instance over her) is because they're the only original two. so they know the other the most out of the rest, because again. only original two

so as for zhongli not having a connection to rukkha in this au and not having one to venti either; the only reason they know each other in-game is because of the archon war.

there's- there's no archon war in this au, at least not one that involves them. so like-

no. idk how to justify any of the archons having met each other imma be honest, which is why they haven't

as for the other nations- since zhongli isn't anything remotely resembling an authority figure in liyue, then neither are any of the rest, so no, ei isn't in office. ei and makoto are probably living normal lives as like- the descendants of a fabled samurai clan who now run a kendo dojo together after their father died or something idk. i could absolutely see their dojo and their sword arts being like- the same ones the shogunate's men use? so ei and makoto would be like the official sword art teachers of the entire military. that way we can keep sara a simp in any timeline LMAO also inazuma probably did have a closed borders policy but like in the past. so now they're all about trying to catch up for time lost in getting to know other nations and having other nations enjoy their culture. so the kamisatos are thriving is what i'm saying

neuvillette is a bit of a spoiler imma be real. not in that neuvillette is going to appear and matter (sorry), but in that if i try to tell you what's up with him i'm going into spoiler territory bc you can extrapolate that to other things, so no. but i CAN say that he's like- a judge. like of the justice system. maybe a lawyer? but i think judge fits better bc you know. he's a normal human guy, same with chen zhongli. furina is a famous actress but she does have a law degree bc i think it's interesting that she was essentially the prosecutor of fontaine, from what we saw.

[diot05]

Ok so i've seen a lotta people argue about whether or not Furina is the Hydro Archon, but what if (and bear with me here) she is ONE Hydro Archon. Like one of the currently standing Lords of Hydro.

Alright hear me out, Arlecchino mentions how Furina is under some kind of a curse, girl doesn't even have a gnosis, her playable self wields a vision and it doesn't seem to be a disguise like the tone deaf bard or geo daddy, so how does anyone believe she's a god?! Well below will be what i think is the power dynamic of the 4 (3.5 actually since one is a machine)

Furina. She is the one most would think of when 'Hydro Archon' pops up in their head, she holds the TITLE of Lord of Hydro, as well as the physical form since she shares the most physical traits with the other Archons (glowing hair and the like), and is thus responsible for representing Fontaine (people call her a mascot for a reason y'all).

Neuvillette. He holds the responsibilities of the Archon, as well as some of the power through being a Sovereign Dragon, that is what originally powered the gnoses after all, and being the only sovereign we've met so far that has been born in a human form AND was given a chance to live in his element's nation peacefully, of course he'd display his mastery over his element more obviously.

Egeria. Despite dying 500 years ago during the cataclysm, her spirit is still around in Teyvat thanks to Rukkhadevata, in fact she's the one responsible for launching that obvious giant green energy blast towards the sky, fighting The Abyss to this day (maybe that's where Neuvillette got it from), so she holds the majority of the Archons power, thus why Furina is so weak and vulnerable compared to the other Archons, 'her' power is still mostly held by her predecessor even after death.

The Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale. It would probably hold the Hydro Gnosis, similarly to how the Dendro Gnosis powered the Akasha Terminals prior to them being deactivated by Nahida, this is the point i'm shakiest on, but my reasoning is that we know very little about Indemnitium, we do know it is produced by the Oratrice but it's not stated to be what POWERS it, it is merely a byproduct of it's decisions in a trial, and if Lyney is right to suspect it ties back to the crisis, along with the strange voice he heard while investigating it, it would make sense the Oratrice is powered by the gnosis and that was Egeria (or Sandrone but that's another crackhead theory, Sandrone mention tho yippee).

With all that said i hope you all enjoyed this silly theory i came up with while rambling to a friend, please don't take it too seriously but if you have anything to add or anything that breaks this theory please let me know! This is very different from my usual shitposts here on Tumblr so i might make more theories in the future, who knows, anyway, byee!

[onelastchorus]

fontaine megathread

full of spoilers.. duh

archon quest act i

they're referring to the eremites. couldn't leave sumeru without one last sprinkle of racism lmao.. fr love how this was one of the first things i saw in fontaine. "see something, say something." STFU!!!

the fontaine VAs fucking STEPPED UP!! like why is lyney's VA so good.. the decision to open the quest with three of the most off-putting and unnerving characters so far.. lyney truly sounds deceiving, it really felt like you couldn't trust him. and then lynette is just ominous

and then furina.. miss focalors, the star of the mf show. whatever they're paying the VA is not enough because she's incredible. bravado, insecurity, instability, fear, hunger.. all the emotions are portrayed so well

fuck them for this one.. THERES SO MUCH TO UNPACK. i mean, supposedly teyvat has flooded before, this would not be the first. they're so unsubtle with the noah's ark and biblical themes. AND ARE WE GONNA TALK ABOUT THE TEAR?? THE LYNEY PARALLEL?? WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN

that moment when u realize teyvat is world without catholic guilt

lynette is so me. we both got that selective mutism rizz <333

YEAH WE GET IT, WE GET IT!! no subtly smh

the traveler bringing this up as if they didn't directly contradict each other. also another point. if the oratrice relies off belief in justice, not necessarily the archon, could that be applicable to other archon related things? this is feels odd because sumeru and mondstadt's people's entire philosophies rely off of wisdom and freedom respectively, yet they hold the "weakest" archons. and then there's inazuma, where modern citizens hate the raiden's vision of eternity, yet the raidens are arguably the strongest we've met yet

the way i fucking screamed i cannot believe we got skirk name drop

if this is actually meant to be foreshadowing i'm gonna laugh so hard

i'm genuinely so confused by the whole neuvillette situation.. so everyone knows hes not human, but no one knows hes the hydro dragon?? what do people think he is?

the way he fucking hates her i can't breathe

i couldn't get over this why did it jumpscare me.. paimon is funny again god bless.

did she happen to write 2021 aoty if i can't have love, i want power

insert speech about how hydro is truly about the split of ego, how someone presents or is perceived is always different from how they truly are or think. fr tho her design is SO GOOD. THE EYES!! THE TEARDROP ELEMENTS!! THE JELLYFISH ASS HAIR!! THE SILLY HAT AND FRILLS!! after anemo, i already feel as if furina's character aligns most with her vision holders

i've already seen everyone talking about this but we were literally hanging out with childe at lunchtime can we chill /j

with all that being said tho, i get it.. why did they lie did they just not expect this to be brought up its gotta be literal public knowledge

"SHES YOUR FATHER?" im gonna puke im so gay im so gay im so gay im so gay

cannot believe they went there. so fucking dark. kudos to hoyoverse.. anyways lynette come here my love i love u sm i will protect u

fr tho i loved the fact that we had a real prelude for this region.. i think the excuse to make something a little more isolated and establishing in it's plot is already super beneficial for whats to come. we got a lot more character exposition, and even the time to install these cool archon quest specific mechanics. i loved solving everything, it was all SO fun but they also got to have these really emotional beats, i feel this is some of their best pacing yet.

imo the last half of sumeru really helped hoyoverse find their stride, fontaine so far has similar storytelling energy to the whole heist bit of sumeru.

the best thing however might've been the SCORE??? they went out of their league with this one, it's the most fitting, noticable and influential instrumental work they've done in an quest imo

[scarletooyoroi]

Alright! S'been a hot minute the AQ and it's been properly digested so to speak. Under the cut I want to go over a different spin of content in the overview, mainly what I feel like were worldbuilding plot points that met odd ends.

Naturally will have some touch of spoilers for those not caught up.

The first thing I want to dive on is the issues that we were teased about Fontaine having.

First example being.

This was one starting example, but there was a few more NPCs and Liben's accounts that told of Fontaine's infrastructure. Now we could angle this as these researchers thinking extremely long term, yet, the realm of Fontaine itself never gives any visual or quest based storytelling of this account. If anything, there seems to be a craze trend with both robotics and the issues regarding the primordial sea.

To me that always just scratched the thought of this being a storybeat that ultimately needs attention. That said, we've virtually got none of that in response. The initial energy issues weren't even an issue as the newly established power source of Indemnitium (which we've never seen even be USED for the town, only Pneuma/Ousia has been utilized) didn't have no concerns what so ever. On top of that, we've learned from Focalors that a mere, minuscule fraction alone was enough to power Fontaine.

So okay, cool, with the granted direction and it's eventual demise, even though it's come at the VERY end of the AQ, that could lead to some future Fontaine stories for this route, right?

Well, no, for again the potential energy issue that needs to be regulated is then magically hoisted up by Nevuilette's hand. His Hydro authority granted him immediate generation, upkeep and control of Pneuma/Ousia energies. Which I mean.. is fine. That said, what to make of all the prior region teasing? Why are the humans there even bothering when technically, there should be no signs of downfall to warrant this concern? As it looks we've seen no measure of heavy pollution at all there either.

In return it gave me the impression that Fontaine's environment might've had a vastly different outlook before. Moreso a deeper look into aspects of pollution, purity and having to make good on caring for the land.

Sliding over to the next!

Another aspect of Fontaine it felt like we were going to get depth in was this, how there was this supposed shadow war between new and old generation Oceanids. Egerias idea of love and unity, Focalor's..??? We never really learned what she did to warrant this distaste, since her plan was moreso focused on just getting the Heavenly Principle's plan situated. Did the Oceanids even know about her existence? Was the distaste aimed at Furina?

There's also the new generation Oceanids in question. Was it the Hydro Phantasms that warranted this issue, or was it the Oceanids that followed the desires in becoming human? The latter feels difficult in being the case as we've seen no rhyme, reason or sign of Oceanid humanity even bothering with them, it's all in their own lives.

While the Hydro Phantasms can still be up for contention, we've rarely met any of them focused on this task. They're either wild spirits or in cases of the Veluriyam mirage, phantasms that wanted to keep the wishes of travelers there alive.

Being a longer time player, this is where many of the storytelling issues didn't end up-- bad (at least too bad to me), rather, it's a really weird note of them just shuffling some past ideas under the rug and calling it a day. I honestly don't think we're going to find any ground on them, given the gradual changes of their story overtime.

These were the big two about Fontaine that I really needed to get out there. With themes such as 'Purity' being a key part of it's story, this felt really weird to just topple on the wayside like this. Instead, it looks like it switched Egeria's sin of human creation instead.

Have you noticed any particulars yourself? Stuff like this fascinates me so I'd love to hear it.

damn you really out here readin' a lot.

[shoggothkisses]

Lore Bites: Furina Drip Marketing

I've been chewing on Furina's design since she first appeared, because it's a lovely hodgepodge of elements designed to evoke a sense of duality: black and white, masculine and feminine, positive and negative, royal and jester. Even old and new: the combination of buckled shoes and ruffs from the Elizabethan age with a Regency dress coat and Victorian top hat suggests fashion from multiple eras. Not only does it look good, but it gives the sense that Furina is (aside from being VERY caught up in appearances) at odds with herself.

Furina's Irises - so far we've met two types of morphing Hydro creatures: Eidolons, and Tainted Phantasms. Technically, "eidolon" and "phantasm" mean the same thing (a ghost/spirit). However, they have different context: "eidolon" suggests the ideal form of said spirit, while "phantasm" suggests falsehood or deception. Furina's heterochromia may be a hint about a "lie" she's currently living as Hydro Archon - or it may suggest that she, like the Hydro Phantasms, is somehow tainted. (Or both.)

As it's been pointed out numerous times since the drip drop (see what I did there?), Furina's art does not have a false Hydro vision at the top of the background. At first I thought this might have to do with Neuvillette's recent leaked(?) voice line about Archons wearing fake visions to better blend into society - if everyone knows Furina is the Archon, she doesn't really need one. But then, Nahida and Ei would also not need a fake vision (everyone knows they're the Archons of their respective nations) - and yet they still have a Vision in their splash art. I'd like to speculate about why this might be, but it'll probably be in another post.

I'm not sure, but I feel like I've seen the word "justice" appear in those quotation marks multiple times. And when I see quotations it makes me think that the real meaning of that word might be just slightly different from how we understand that word. Could "justice" be something tangible? An energetic force? We'll have to wait and see.

N is Nicole, the Hexenzirkel mage who is believed to be the woman who spoke directly into our heads at the end of Inversion of Genesis. She is the "guide who will never get lost," according to Alice, and studies the "direction and order" of events in Teyvat. According to her, all things that happen in Teyvat are preordained:

If this "fable left in someone's dream" is one of N's prophecies, the dreamer (likely Furina herself) is going to be hard pressed to change what's coming for her - even with the powers of an archon.

I tried to do an etymology search for "Furina" as a name, but there's a lot of conflicting info and very few legitimate sources to use, and I'm in denial that she's named that because of "furies." If anything, I'm more likely to believe the "-rina" in her name is supposed to be from the Hebrew for melody, or the Sanskrit for "melting/dissolving." But again, I don't even know for sure if those are the real definitions.

Endless Solo of Solitude is such a sad title - she's not just alone, but double alone. Forever. Jeez.

"Animula" is a diminutive form of "anima," one of the Latin words for soul (as I'm sure many have said already). For some extra trivia, it's not just considered the soul, but the irrational, emotional and sensitive part of the soul. So: a tiny, sensitive, fragile soul. (cries)

"Choragi" is the plural for "choragus," an originally Greek term for someone who lead, or more often financially sponsored, the choirs in Greek theater.

[contentloadingandstuff]

Thoughts abt the Fontaine girls? Who do you like more?

Truth be told, the best one so far seems to be Navia. We thought that Clorinde is going to be the chad, but she turned out as more of a wet dog in reality (so far). I also can't shake the feeling that Clorinde is pretty much the same as Kujou Sara from the looks of it. Lynette is just.. well, kinda lukewarm. She's there, that's for sure.

This may surprise a lot of people, but I think that Furina is shaping up to be the best so far. Out of all the Archons we've met, she has the absolute most personality, which I dig. The way she acts is also quite amusing, and she looks to have a more complex side to her. I can't wait for her story quest.

But let's be real here. Melusines are the absolute top addition.

[mixigames]

MY THOUGHTS ON THE FONTAINE ARCHON QUEST

I just finished the Fontaine Archon Quest, and I have some thoughts. More under the cut!

Warning: contains spoilers for the story.

QUEST BREAKDOWN

Chapter 4 Act 1 - Prelude of Blancher and Noirceur

The first act is quite short, and flows very smoothly, in my opinion. We are first introduced to some of Fontaine's characters, the most import ones being the twins, Lyney and Lynette. The storyline is good, but we're also introduced to the basic way things work in Fontaine.

I like the end of this act the most, I think. Lyney's big performance is really, really good - and it has the perfect shock factor once the rope snapped. I love guessing plot twists, but I genuienly couldn't figure this one out!!

Honestly, I didn't expect death from Genshin. I know we've had characters dying multiple times before, but never like this! Although he wasn't that important to the story, it still quite shocked me. (My mouth was agape for like 5 minutes after, lol)

Chapter 4 Act 2 - As Light Rain Falls Without Reason

The second act is pretty short too. It didn't feel dragged out and with lots of unnecessary dialogue (yeah, I'm looking at you, Sumeru). The most important character is definitely Navia here.

The story is good and well thought-out. I liked how they solved the missing women case. That part where the Oceanids/women came for Vacher was so scary tho?? Like they just casually dropped that he lost his soul. What.

Chapter 4 Act 3 - To The Stars Shining

The begining of act 3 was a little fast-paced, considering that we found out Childe was missing and everything.

Neuvillette looked so good tho😻

I like how they designed Fortress of Meropide, yet I don't understand certain important things. For example, how is the fortress' entrance at the Opera Epiclese, yet it's actually in the sees under the Liffey Region? Strange if you ask me. I love the steampunk vibes, tho!

For me, this part of the archon quest was the most boring and most dragged-out one. For the majority of the quest you are either working, investigating or sleeping. And literally nothing else. It really annoyed me that we manually had to return to our bunk to sleep!

Chapter 4 Act 4 - Cataclysm's Quickening

The first half of this quest - up to the point we talk to Wriothesley - is also very boring to me. Nothing significant happens. I feel like they could've done without this part.

Much is explained in this act, including the reasoning behind Fountaine's prophecy and it's eventual downfall. The storyline with the boat wasn't bad, and I liked how some characters liked Wriothesley while the others didn't - he also seemed like such a villain when Lyney thought he kidnapped Lynette.

We meet with Arlecchino, which was a much less significant character in the storyline than I thought she was going to be. The gnosis is mentioned only like, 5 times in the entire quest, and The Knave is about the same amount, too. I'm not saying that's bad, we are just used to the Fatui being the main problems in these Archon quests.

Chapter 4 Act 5 - Masquerade of the Guilty

This act was... Wow. What an end to this chapter of the quest. I mean, so many things happened! It was a rollercoaster of emotions. First of all, I was so sad when Navia's friends died. So much death in this quest!

The trial against Furina was painful to read. Her attitude is just so infuriating, yet the whole thing is really really interesting and the story is, as always, so great! It was such a shock when the Hydro Archon was sentanced to death!

However, Focaloros' plan was brilliant and I have to say, I underestimated her as an Archon. At first, I was a little sceptical on how she was one of The Seven, but I get it now. Also, I'm very sad that she's dead. Her sentance was so unfair to her, yet she did what was right for her people and I respect that.

Neuvillette was amazing in this part of the story, as well. I'm glad that he has the Hydro Archon's power now.

QUEST SUMMARY

new characters we met:

5 ☆ Lyney (bow, pyro): good character, a very concerned brother. he lied to us but for a good reason - turned out he's in the Fatui.

4 ☆ Lynette (sword, anemo): quiet, reserved, an assistant to Lyney.

4 ☆ Freminet (claymore, cryo): same as Lynette, but more shy

5 ☆ Navia (claymore, geo): passionate, brave and adventuristic. she runs a major organisation called Spina di Rosula. during the quests she turns into a real friend of us (plus she looks like Taylor Swift in the fearless era!!)

5 ☆ Neuvillette (catalyst, hydro): 😻😻😻. I'm in love. Literally. I'm so thankful the Genshin team desided to give us more very handsome men in Fontain. he's also a great character, and wields great power. (currently saving up primogems for him)

5 ☆ Furina (sword, hydro): might be an unpopular opinion, but I HATED her character. she's obnoxious, she's self-centered, and while I know it's only to put on a show for her citizens, I still don't like her.

5 ☆ Wriothesley (catalyst, cryo): I'm actually lucky enough to have Wriothesley in my team currently, and honestly, I really recommend him as cryo!!! I love his play style, and he's just been fitting into my team so well! aside that, i really like his personality as well. he's a bit playful and sure, just a tiny bit cocky, yet still sweet.

4 ☆ Charlotte (catalyst, cryo): a very annoying character to me as well. she's too pushy for my taste.

new info we gathered:

Lyney and Lynette are working under the House of Hearts, a Fatui organization based in Fontaine.

the "father" of their house is Arlecchino, the 4th of the 11 Fatui Harbingers, who's been sent to Fontaine to take the Hydro gnosis

Even though used as a punishment, the Fortress of Meropide is a separate institution from Fontaine's justice system and oparates separately. The "leader" of the fortress is Wriothesley, an ex-criminal.

Neuvillette is the hydro dragon sovereign.

Furina isn't the actual archon - she's the cursed human version of Focalors, placed on Teyvat for the last five hundred years to display the image of an archon. After Focalors' death, she turned into a normal human, and will continue on to lead a normal life.

Focalors, the true archon, served a death sentance to be able to save her people from the terrible prophecy. She left all of her power to Neuvillette.

Neuvillette gave the gnosis to Arlecchino as a gift, showing once again no resistance to the Fatui harvesting these materials.

Our next destionation is Natlan, the pyro nation. We learn from Neuvillette that Natlan is a country of war and dragons.

As for our sibling, we have learned nothing new. (Shocking, I know)

All in all, Fontaine is a beautiful new region which I cannot wait to explore fully. I think that the genshin team really outdid themselves (yet again). The story could have been changed just a tiny bit (were 5 acts really necessary?), but nevermind. We've got amazing new characters which I'm glad to play with, and a new little piece to the giant puzzle we call Genshin Impact.

Thanks for reading! Hope my guide helped. Follow for more!!

[moni-harmonia]

Chapter IV Act I

It took me a lot of time to finish Act I because I was so engaged with exploration and building characters lol. It's been a while since I enjoyed doing that.

But I didn't want to wait too much, I decided to continue with the story today. But I didn't know it was gonna be so interesting! I couldn't put it down until I finished the act.

(I don't have screenshots of the beginning, sorry lol, I literally forgot while I was playing.)

First, we arrive at Fontaine, meet the twins, Furina and other characters. With each region I feel they're improving on the storytelling. This Act was long but I never felt bored of it. We met important characters very soon and we knew that something was wrong here. And I'm liking the characters so far.

And then we see our favorite battle maniac again!

I knew Tarta would appear in Fontaine but I wasn't expecting to meet him so soon. It was fantastic, even if he's a Fatui we're on very friendly terms with him (something to take into account later...).

He's having problems with his Hydro Vision, and I thought "Finally!", I've always felt that problems with Visions is something that would happen sooner or later, but for now we don't know exactly what's going on.

(Tarta leaves his Vision with us, a very interesting move. I wonder what will happen with him later on.)

We go see Lyney and Lynette's magic show (which was very well animated) and there's a murder.

I have to tell you, I really liked this part lol. I'm a huge Ace Attorney fan. Not only the whole investigation and trial was very similar to those games, but in Ace Attorney there is one case where a murder occurs during a magic trick too! (Well, maybe more than one, but there's one that's very similar to this one)

Of course we think that Lyney is innocent so we defend him, but in the trial there's an interesting revelation: Lyney and Lynette are Fatui.

What I found most interesting was Traveler's reaction to this. This is one of those instances where you can see that Traveler has their own personality and thoughts. If I could choose dialogue, I wouldn't really have minded if they were Fatui or not, I could tell they weren't bad people.

But Traveler is angry, they decide to still defend them but they're very angry that Lyney hid this information from them.

It was a simple mystery but I thought it was very well done. In this part we meet other characters like Neuvillette and also Navia, and we confront Furina on the trial.

She's a fun character and very different from other Archons so far. I'd say she's most similar to Venti in personality, but unlike him, everyone is aware she's the Archon so relationships are different.

(I swear, this was too Ace Attorney lol, even the music had a similar vibe, I love it)

Lyney and Lynette were innocent and we discover some very interesting things here. Apparently people from Fontaine can turn into water. This reminds me of Radiant Historia, though in that story people turned into sand instead. I wonder what's going on about that.

And I'm also interested to meet Arleccino and what kind of plans does she have. It seems we'll be meeting her and Tarta in this region. There's still a lot of story left, but I feel like we've seen so much already lol.

I'll try to play Act II in the following days. So far, Fontaine is pretty good both in story and exploration. I hope it continues that way.

[soleillunne]

mutuals appreciation post!! bc i checked my mutuals list the other day and i was like woah

if i didnt tag you here, we havent talked that much so idk what to say but just know i appreciate you nontheless<3

@https-furina : PERSE!!! i don't know how to start this but thank you so much for being in my life. you've been nothing but encouraging since the first time i met you and i love you so much. words cant explain how much i care about you, but i'll find a way to make you know in some way soon hehe

@lucid-lilium : lili my fellow xiao kisser :3 i love talking to you so much you have such a colorful personality and you're so kind and so so so sweet <3 thank you for feeding my angst delusions.

@idyllic-affections : aph my beloved <3333 your works are very nom nom but also youre so sweet and i love brainrotting with you sm bc you never judge me <//3 the friend everyone needs fr fr

@mikacynth : mikaaaaa aaaaa i love your vibe sm you're so cheerful and interacting with you is like taking a deep breath on the first hours of the morning when the air is still cold but you stay out anyway because you dont want to miss the beautiful view <33 mwah mwah

@kisthes : KAZU HI FELLOW TSOA LOVER !!! i love talking with you sm but we've both been so busy lately so i couldnt interact as much as i wanted <//3 i appreciate you sm mwah mwah

@anonbinaryweirdo : OLIIIIII HI OMG the chaos child <3 i love talking to you sm bc you always have sth fun to say and its never boring (not that thats a bad thing but,,, you get what i mean) mwah mwah kisses

@zhongrin : MISS RIN!! i love dropping by in your teashop so much, theres never a dull moment there (be it crazy anons, or events, or anything-) and i love love love seeing you on my dash <3

@floraldresvi : vi, you are so precious!! i know you think otherwise sometimes but thats not true and i will bite anyone that makes you think otherwise >:( you deserve the world mwah

@akiayama : AYA HI HI we became moots not long after i started being into genshin and i remember being so shy to interact with you but you were so kind to me and you still are and i cant thank you enough for being with me through all these times :3

@kopivie : CINNA HI!! you're one of the first mutuals i made here and you're actually the reason i started playing genshin. back when i was trying to write for genshin myself you kept encouraging me so i want to thank you personally for being the reason why i'm here today :3

@i23kazu : ying!! you're so so so kind and talking with you is so fun, i dont even notice the time slip when im chatting with you! i know we dont do it often (which is a crime) but its still lovely to see you on my dash<3

[aeviare]

{personal hc about aether's behavior at the end of act one. this really turned into a five page essay adsfasd also, i haven't played act 2 yet so if this is all confirmed anyway then please just ignore me lmaoooooo}

aether seeing lyney and lynette and severely missing lumine like a phantom limb. a pain that's so deep inset into his chest that no matter how many times he physically rubs at the spot, the pain just won't go away. it makes little to no sense to me aether turning his back to the twins when he's literally holding childe's vision in his inventory and renamed the freaking balladeer, okay.

like, baby boy, you have sussier friends other than two actual sweet beans that were adopted by a harbinger. zoom eyeing childe (a fucking harbinger who has tried to kill aether in the past) and wanderer (oh look another harbinger who has tried to kill aether in the past).

it is the only thing i can reasonably think of outside of hyv just saying 'ha ha fuck traveler's actual personality we've given them.' it just makes sense to me. and with lyney telling us that he fought tooth and nail to save lynette and to keep them off the streets. it sincerely is reminiscent of his relationship with lumine before they were parted.

my aether likes the twins. he loves the twins, even. if he didn't like them, then he wouldn't have continued to represent them after furina announced their ties to the fatui. perhaps he was blindsided by that information, but again. he is friends with sussier people.

i think for my muse, just looking at them too long reminds him of what he's missing. and what's he's searching for... and what he's lost. (and his worst fear being that he will never get it back, but this post is already long enough without me being unhinged again)

it isn't that he isn't sympathetic to their story or even that he cares all that much about their fatui ties. and after some thought, he realizes they didn't ask to be taken in by the fatui, and it shouldn't matter anyway.

because the twins have been nothing but kind to him and paimon. and besides omitting some of the truth of their past. he literally just met them! why would they tell him they're part of the sussy snez organization. they're new friends and technically still strangers.

it just makes more sense to me that he walks away because he's missing lumine and dealing with inner turmoil, rather than actually walking away because of their ties with the fatui.

again, please see, we are literally holding childe's vision (and hand probably) in our hands.