#I would like to have Navia Clorinde and Lyney but I don’t need them

[hoipeepsimruby]

Man when is the Wriothesley banner re-running. I have Neuvilette, Sigewinne, and Furina waiting for him. Your fam is waiting for you.

After I get him I can go back to my goal of getting every Sumeru 5 star (I only need Dehya and Wanderer) I’ll have all the Fontaine characters I want. Neuvi is c1 and Furina has her weapon so I’m good on their front and I don’t want Sigewinne constellations and I’m fine not having her weapon. When can his re-run happen so I can get him.

[bayambii]

fontaine hands . . .

warnings: swearing, 4.2 archon quest spoilers, hands, a little steamy in clorinde if you squint

characters: wriothesley, neuvelitte, lyney, lynette, navia, clorinde, furina and freminet

bambis comments: hai cuties!! i have an obsession with hands so i thought it would be a perfect first post LOL

WRIOTHESLEY

◦ jesus fucking CHRIST, this man has large hands. i mean like second to none in teyvat i would say

◦ his hands are bruised and often dirty. when they’re not inside of his gauntlets, his right is covered with dark bandages. he goes really soft when you take the time to clean his hands or even like his nails

◦just like massaging his hands while he tells you about his day, rubbing his temple with his freehand while he goes on and on about one inmate who always tries to pick a fight

◦speaking of his nails! they’re stubby and not painted. he doesn’t bite them they just like break off naturally due to the nature of his job and his gauntlets

◦he has silver rings for every finger it looks like, and he fidgets with them when he’s talking to anyone, rolling it around his fingers and back again

◦HIS HANDS SMELL LIKE TEA RAAAH

NEUVILLETTE

◦ skinny ass hands, but they’re long.

◦ he almost always wears his gloves, because underneath he has scales on his hands. his hands aren’t fully dragon like, still keeping a human like color, but many teal scales decorate his hands.

◦his fingernails are naturally tinted a little blue, and they’re on the longer side. he keeps them clean and pushes his cuticles back often

◦he’s often writing with his hands, rolling his quill/pen around his fingers when he thinks. his hands are skilled at writing, and can write rather fast.

◦a wrist roller. his wrists get tight from writing for hours on end and always makes sure to roll them out.

LYNEY

◦OH MY GOD. don’t even get me started…

◦another fontainian who’s hands are often concealed in his gloves. a magician never reveals his secrets, does he?

◦he has regular length hands, but they’re on the skinny side.

◦his hands are almost always clean, and have a very soft texture.

◦imagine lyney late at night practicing new card tricks without his gloves, using you as his test audience (he shows you all his tricks first anyway)

◦he has trimmed nails, that he paints black and red, to match his whole theme. they tend to be chipped however, and he needs lynette or you to keep repainting them.

◦his hands are obviously very practiced, and he takes great care of them

LYNETTE

◦she has smaller and skinny hands, very petite and cute

◦ due to her cat-like nature, her hands are very sensitive, and she prefers to keep her gloves on

◦ when she holds your hand she likes to keep her gloves on, just so she doesn’t get overwhelmed

◦ however, she likes taking her gloves off to hold your face, and memorize each and every crevice and dimple with her hands

◦ when she feels comfortable, she’ll let you see her hands, and trusts you to know her comfort level with her sensitivity

◦she keeps her nails long, and painted a teal. she often keeps up with her nail care, and looks after your nails as well

◦her hands smell like tea, like wrio, due to her often drinking and brewing the beverage.

NAVIA

◦ADORABLE HANDS, and very well kept!

◦ skinny and longer, and a little freckled near her wrist.

◦she only keeps a glove on one hand, and she prefers to hold your hand with that one!

◦very well kept nails, with sapphire colored nail polish adorning them. she seems like the type to get like gems and stuff put on her nails.

◦she knows you like her hands, so she always makes sure to put extra time into caring for them

◦her hands are incredibly soft, and don’t really get that clammy

◦navia would only get clammy if you were flustering her, which is not an easy feat

CLORINDE

◦beautiful lady, long skinny hands again however she doesn’t know how to look after her hands

◦ ITS NOT HER FAULT NO ONE TAUGHT HER OKAY!! before starting a relationship with you, she never put much thought into her hands!!

◦she often keeps her gloves on, and like washes her hands when needed but she doesn’t take care of her nails or put lotion on or NOTHING

◦her nails are stubby, and might have leftover polish from the last time you attempted to paint her nails

◦with handling her weapons, she has very tactful hands and is not very clumsy

◦where she puts her hands is very, how do i say, purposeful

◦she might feign oblivion, but she knows exactly what she’s doing with her hands

FURINA DE FONTAINE

◦oh ho ho? you want to see the dear lady furinas hands?

◦only furina would take this much care into something she’s going to just put a glove over but WHATEVER

◦she’s got small hands, with many jewels and rings adorning her fingers

◦she looks after her nails with the upmost pride, and keeps them constantly painted and pristine

◦like clorinde, she is very purposeful where she puts her hands. your dear lady knows you, and knows exactly what makes you flustered (and oh does she love that)

◦she would love to help you look after your hands, and even help you paint a most magnificent nail art on your nails oh ho ho!

FREMINET

◦smaller hands, with larger palms, with FRECKLES!! and i mean freckles .

◦freminet doesn’t necessarily have clumsy hands, due to his work on per and other mechs, but his hands aren’t as practiced as other fontainians

◦his hands can also get clammy due to his shyness, and doesn’t want to bother you with that

◦HOWEVER, you can hold his hand all you want underwater. there’s no risk there, and he’s fully confident. maybe he’ll work up to holding your hand above the sea

◦he is very shy, and earlier on in your relationship, and is careful if he puts his hands on you if he does AT ALL…

◦ often under the water, his nails are always clean but still stubby, and never painted (but he wouldn’t be apposed to you painting them) ((just be prepared for a flustered frem))

[razorblade180]

A Splendid Day

Furina:*packing groceries* That’s everything. Thank you very much.

Merchant:The pleasure is all mine! You’re one of my best customers.

Furina:The price is still 500 mora for everything?

Merchant:On the house.

Furina:P-Pardon?

Merchant:Your birthday. It’s on the house, and I will accept nothing less!

Furina:But-

Merchant:It may not be a national holiday anymore and you may not be our Archon, but a little free macaroni and beverages is the least I’d like to offer. A birthday is still a birthday.

Furina:…*smiles* Thank you for the gift.

xxxxxx

A little later, the national celebrity walks down the streets of her nation only to be stopped by the sight of a top hat floating down into her hands. She looks up to see Lyney, Lynette, and even Freminet sitting on the railing of bridge covered in the nation’s flowers in a pattern that spelled her name.

Lyney:HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Lynnette:*clapping*

Freminet:T-Ta Da….

Lyney:C’mon you two. A little more energy.

Furina:Hahaha! My, my, this is quite the shock. *red* How long have you been planning this?

Lynette:Your birthday is no secret. We had ample time.

Freminet:The hardest part was keeping them alive long enough to do this.

Lyney:Just our little way of showing our gratitude. We wouldve baked a cake, but I fear our skills our outmatched in that department.

Furina:All cake is good cake if it’s sweet enough. Who is outmatching your-

???:Haaaapppy Birthday!

Furina didn’t get the chance to turn around before Navia swooped her up into a bear hug, spinning her around lovingly while Clorinde and Sigewinne held a small present patiently.

Furina:Never mind Lyney!

Navia:*puts her down.* How’s the birthday girl!?

Furina:Startled, but pleasantly surprised.

Sigewinne:Perfect! Exactly how a birthday should be!

Clorinde:Happy Birthday, Lady Furina.

Furina:Hehe, wow. Everyone take the day off or something? I was expecting a little get together or gift. Honestly I’m a tad embarrassed.

Chiori:*struts in* Since when does the wonderful Furina de Fontaine prefer a “little” get together?

Furina:How long have I been retired from leadership?

Chiori:Pfft, please. In or out of power, you’re still the same person who demanded dozens of retakes for a film in the name of “producing a diamond among diamonds in the craft.”

Furina:And we won! I will never forsake the arts!

Sigewinne:And we will never forsake your wonderful efforts.

Her and Clorinde walked up and presented the box. Furina only had to undo the ribbon to reveal it to be a makeup box containing an array of colors and tools to use.

Sigewinne:I made every color!

Clorinde:I made the box.

Chiori:Now we stop by my store so you can feast on Navia’s pastries in style.

Furina:How many pastries?

Navia:Yes.

Furina:Fantastic.

xxxxxx

More than 500 birthdays, and this might be the first one filled with true joy. Eating cheesecake while wearing a lovely pale blue sundress with dark blue water droplets on the skirt and cuffs that matched the sun hat she was given. Her nails matched perfectly and her lipstick was admittedly a little ruined now because of danishes, but she didn’t care! Furina even smelled like fresh rain thanks to Emilie’s lovely new perfume she made with the help of resource gathering/testing from Chevreuse and Neuvillette.

Charlotte took a photo of the girl’s pure joy as she dined with friends.

Furina:!? Please tell me you didn’t take that mid bite?

Charlotte:Of course I did. You need moments to smile at.

Furina:Myself!?

Wriothesley:*pouring more tea* Gotta admit, I’m a little jealous I didn’t get this brand on my birthday.

Clorinde:You didn’t like the “gift” I gave you?

Wriothesley:Oh I loved it. Wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Navia:Don’t spoil good food with certain topics you too. This is a sweet gathering. Not saucy.

Furina:You all really outdid yourselves. I don’t know what to say aside from thank you.

Lynette: “You can have the last slice” is a second option.

Freminet:Ummm-

Lynette:It was a joke. I would never rob someone of that honor. The last of any dessert is always the best.

Furina:Would you like to split the-

Lynette:If you insist.

Furina cuts the last danish is half and shares, giggling alongside her friends at Lynette’s perky ears as she ate. The girl was swept in the laughter she hadn’t realized Neuvillette had finally joined them.

Neuvillette:Today seems like a wonderful day to be out.

Furina:Huh? Neuvillette!? You took off too!?

Neuvillette:Is that so strange. Half the day has gone by. I used it do enough work to give the rest of today to properly wish you a wonderful birthday. I’m happy to see others make that possible.

Furina:Yes, it’s really more than I ever hoped her. I’m serious when I say I don’t really know what to say. Frankly I-

Navia:Now don’t go saying “I don’t deserve it.”

Chevreuse:She’s right. Thank you is more than enough. Besides, everyone here would easily agree that you deserve nice things ten fold.

Furina:Sniffles You guys… don’t make me cry today!

Neuvillette:So*reveals jewelry box* this might be a bad time.

Furina:You have another gift for me!?

Neuvillette:I wouldn’t count pointing out a good source of water for your perfume as a my gift. I could do that any day of the week. This however, took quite a bit more time and a trip to the bottom of several bodies water.

Knowing Furina best, Neuvillette wrapped the gift in a way that allowed her to still open it with ruining the design. The young lady choked on her own breath when her eyes saw shining white pearls in the form of a necklace. Neuvillette took the jewelry and put it around her neck while everyone was stunned into silence.

Freminet:Those are- how did you find so many perfect pearls?

Neuvillette:I am no stranger to sea life or waiting.

Navia:And here I thought I gave the best present without a doubt.

Clorinde:It wasn’t a contest.

Lyney, Lynette, Chiori: No it kinda was. We went all out.

Furina:I’m just- these are so expensive looking! And beautiful! I might have to start revising my entire wardrobe to wear these more often.

Neuvillette:Hehe, I don’t mind if you limit their use to a special occasion like today or a grand opening of a play. I simply wanted to give you something only I could manage, like everyone else.

Wriothesley:All I did was supply a big enough kitchen for Navia. Now I’m starting to think I should’ve fought some ancient monster for gems alongside Clorinde.

Chevreuse:Umm, Clorinde? When you said you made the makeup box….

Clorinde:I used only the finest of materials. It just so happened the finest things may involve interacting with less than fine creatures.

Furina:You could buy a box! All of you are so…wonderfully ridiculous. Neuvillette, thank you for this. I love it. Today has truly been splendid. I couldn’t ask for anything more.

Charlotte:You’re welcome!

Emilie:Charlotte, what was your gift.

Charlotte:Who do you think made all the invites, planned the timing and picked the location? It’s a little past midday, the space isn’t crowded, and more importantly, Furina still hasn’t eaten a proper birthday cake!

Furina:Ooooo I still get one? Wonderful! Although…I’m admittedly a bit on the fence. *crosses arms* I can’t believe Aether bragged about his baking skills just to go off to Natlan before ever letting me get my own personal cake! Not to mention not a single birthday letter! He’s probably off breaking some law right about now or fighting an ancient evil he stumbled into.

???:That sounds more like you, than me. I’m actually careful.

???:Yeah! How else would be able to carry a packaged cake through the desert!?

Furina froze up, her heart skipping a beat after hearing two familiar voices call behind her. She slowly looked over her shoulder and saw familiar faces that made her ignore any on lookers as her body took off out of her seat without thinking; the girl was full on sprinting towards Aether so quickly that he had no choice but to hand over the three layered cake to Paimon before catching Furina, who jumped right into his arms. Thankfully Clorinde zipped over to help Paimon balance the final dessert, but frankly, everyone doubted Furina cared about the cake as her embrace around Aether grew tighter while he spun her.

Furina couldn’t care less about any pictures getting taken or the giggles from her friends at the moment. She was just happy to be held again, resting her face in the crook of his neck.

Aether:H-Hello. You look lovely. I take it you missed me?

Furina:Yes. Don’t you dare let go until I say so.

Aether:*red* O-Oh. I thought you were going to deny it.

Furina:Later, but for now…

She raised her head to see his dumb smile before giving Aether a heartfelt kiss. Clorinde leaned over awkwardly and pulled down Furina’s sun hat over the two in order to create any semblance of privacy.

Neuvillette:I think she forgot she’s in company.

Sigewinne:Well, I think Aether won.

Navia:If I had to lose, it’s an honor to go out like this.

Chiori:You actually lost to Charlotte. If she planned the spot alongside the timing with the invites…

The reporter held up a photo of birthday girl with a tearful smile getting spun around in the arms of her happiness smiling back at her as the warm light of the afternoon barely broke through around the vast colors of flower petals.

Charlotte:Like I said, you need moments to smile at.

[miyosei]

TO YOU, MY WORLD.

premise. i assign them a oneus song based on what it’s like when they love you — ft. clorinde, lyney, navia, neuvillette

reader is gn, lowercase, written before the release of clorinde / navia / neuvillette, you don’t need to know oneus to understand ( but if you do please be my friend )

CLORINDE. champion duelist

you and i are in different conditions, it’s tiring approaching you cold — fragile

it’s almost frustrating—how incompatible you are, how suffocating the atmosphere is when she’s in the same room as you, how stiff the conversations feel when you force yourself to be cordial.

not to the fault of her, or even you for that matter. you are just so inexplicably difficult to grasp, like a sword just out of her reach and so close to the tips of her fingers.

but clorinde is an unstoppable force and is stubborn to a fault. and you are a cannon made of glass.

or maybe, you are the moon, pulling her in during the high tides and letting go once the sun begins to rise. a secret kept behind closed doors only when there are no prying eyes—the people of fontaine are notoriously known for their love of gossip.

maybe the truth isn’t that you aren’t incompatible, just opposite forces that are too powerful for their own good. because when she isn’t trailing behind your respective god or walking beside the chief justice, you find that clorinde the person and clorinde the champion duelist are rather different from each other. and much to your chagrin, just clorinde is regrettably more pleasant than you’ve led yourself to believe.

clorinde cannot afford to be emotional. it is nonnegotiable, a fundamental pillar that comes with her occupation—the one she swore her life to until her final breath.

still, she can’t help but want to be closer to you. stealing glances every so often during court trials, lingering near your home for just a second too long when she passes by on her patrols, stopping her hands from reaching out to you during the rare instances where you happen to cross paths.

clorinde has fought many battles and has come out of that same arena unscathed without a single imperfection on her skin. but when you stand before her face to face glaring daggers into her head with eyes that have long since put her in her grave, clorinde thinks this is one fight she does not know how to win.

LYNEY. spectacle of phantasmagoria

the long awaited curtains finally open, and the lights shine only on you — stand by

for lyney, it comes as easily as setting a stage. and luckily for him, he has had years of experience of entertainment to last him the next lifetime.

adjust the lights, load the sparklers, make sure all the props are perfectly prepared—because it has to be perfect, or it is not worth calling a show at all.

it has to be perfect because you’re sitting there in the center of his world, and he cannot handle the thought of disappointing you when your eyes twinkle and you have a smile that makes his heart flutter out of his chest. truly, he thinks you’ve been the one charming him and not the other way around.

and it’s your seat, nobody else’s. he’ll throw a fit if anyone else gets assigned that spot in the opera, lynette has seen it turn out so one too many times.

when did he become so lovesick, lyney tries to pinpoint where it started. it’s difficult to gauge, because even in his deepest memories, you were always there. in every corner of his heart, in all the gaps of his fingers. it all reminds him of you. the street performers sing choirs of love that make his heart melt, trinkets on display he wonder if you would like, desserts through the windows that he would love to try with you.

( correction: desserts that lyney would love to see you try. not because he particularly dislikes sweets, but because he fears his heart may just go into overdrive if exposed to both the melting flavors and your hypnotizing light. )

“how horrible, i’ve been ruined!” he falls dramatically into the cushions of his bed, face first into the pillows as lynette sits idly beside him with a cup of tea. the extravagant display is only two stops short of the truth. one that lyney is reluctant to accept for a number of regrettably selfish reasons.

the first: he buried the dull and boring pieces of himself and locked them away for no one else to see in favor of his charismatic prestige. it would not come so easily to let that go.

the second, and the more daunting: if he suddenly peeled back the facade, would you still love him? would you think him undesirable and remove yourself from his life? no, that would be just awful, he can’t have that happen.

of course, you’ve never had any explicit expectations for him. and of course, lyney doesn’t know if you love him. but he, as every other lovesick loser, truly hopes you do. because he isn’t sure if he can keep denying himself any longer.

but alas, he’s out of time—the stage lights flash and the curtains are drawn open. and lyney, of course, enters with the same dramatic flair. his eyes instantly find yours in the crowd. you’re in your spot, like you always are. your smile makes his chest pound, like it always does.

oh, he can only hope for you to stay once the show ends.

NAVIA. demoiselle of the spina di rosula

it’s like i’m crooked in front of you, my head is spinning round and round — zigzag

the world is moving so quickly, and navia can’t seem to see even two steps in front of her. the last she remembered, you were in front of her with a devilish grin. when she blinked, you were out of sight like she was never speaking to you in the first place.

oh, this is so embarrasing. spina di rosula’s big boss caught in a lovestruck daze, all because of an outsider with a pretty smile. melus asks if she’s feeling unwell when her faces runs red—to which navia only responds with a slam to the door of her private headquarters.

it’s all so black and white when it comes to you, like tunnel vision focusing only on the destination. as if you were the one thing she was looking for this entire time.

would you like this dress? or perhaps a matching suit would be better? would it be too over the top to get custom made matching outfits?

“demoiselle, it’s just a small banquet.”

navia almost has the nerve to look shocked. just a small banquet? impossible, nothing is small when it comes to you. everything has to be perfect. because you’re the greatest partner she’s ever had, her closest companion, her number one. of course it has to be perfect. how ridiculous people must be to think it otherwise.

regardless, it’s no secret to anyone that the two of you are most comfortable around each other. behind the flamboyant mask and an outfit with far too many buttons, your laughter rings through the open air and reaches her like a gust of wind—brushing past her hair and leaving her paused and dizzy.

this is absurd, is she tipsy? no—no, she is most definitely sober. sober and flustered and definitely staring far too obviously for her liking. but, if that sparkle in your eyes was any indication, then you didn’t seem to mind it much at all.

NEUVILLETTE. ordainer of inexorable judgement

i was always there just out of your orbit, if only i could tell you i love you — halley’s comet

‘when it rains in fontaine, the hydro dragon is in mourn.’

common knowledge to the people who hailed from the land of justice. and if that is to be treated as fact, then the emotional equivalent of the unforgiving weather must be grief.

but nothing has gone wrong in neuvillette’s life to warrant such a visceral reaction. surely, something is different, but each knob belongs to a door that does not open. an unusual—if not cruel—predicament.

the first time he saw you, it was raining. back then, you didn’t have any coverage and instead stood soaked down to the laces of your boots. what were you thinking about, he wonders. what are you thinking about now, where are you now?

in the moment, he thought you strange for standing out in the worst storm of the season. now, he likens that scene to a better time—cast in the shadow of your light when you turn with a bright grin and ask just what ‘monsieur neuvillette’ is doing out in the pouring rain.

he blinked, almost caught off guard. shouldn’t he be the one asking you that? there is no one else out in the city besides the two of you. any well-minded fontainian would know better than to frolic in the puddles and kick up water in the streets.

but neuvillette, while he does not know why, knows that you are a flame that cannot be doused.

you, always just out of reach from his fingertips when he opens himself with outstretched hands and eyes that don’t quite match his face. you, a searing comet that cuts through the sky without a second to spare, a trail of stardust left in your wake.

and if you were willing to wait for him, just this once. he would come to you open armed with his vulnerability exposed.

don’t talk to me about how lyney’s is so much longer than everyone else’s … i don’t know what happened also if you see me come back to this post to add the images don’t pay it any mind zzzz

[notthemonthbutmarch]

Emilie is ruining me.

I love her design so much, she’s so pretty, her voice is adorable, she has that “cutesy with a dark side” personality I like so much in characters, but she’s a dendro burning support and I hardly EVER play dendro bc I hate how niche it is— but I have plenty of pyro dps characters that I could probably use with her. I don’t even like Kinich or Mualani that much— their designs are good and their mechanics are sick but out of the five star units I like Xilonen and Mavuika the best so what’s the point of pulling for characters I don’t really like just to have them for the new nation when a character I actually like is in 5 days?!

The only character I want from 5.0 right now is Kachina, I like her the best, and odds are she’s gonna be free, so if I spend my freemogems for Emilie I can still get Kachina. And then that makes saving for Xilonen in what could be 5.1.

I just don’t know what I want to do. I don’t want Mualani to get the “Wanderer” treatment on my account (I pulled for Wanderer bc I didn’t want to miss out on the hype but I started loving Yoimiya so I skipped Yoimiya for Wanderer and now I hardly use him bc I was disappointed I didn’t have Yoimiya).

At the same time, I never play dendro and I don’t know if Emilie’s more versatile now or if she’s still heavily locked in burning, because I hate the niche of playing with dendro. I want a team set up with like one dendro unit and a bunch of other units like what I can do with basically every other element. I’m not heavy in the meta but I also want to be able to use Emilie happily! Rn the DPS I use the most is Clorinde and Navia, and Emilie definitely won’t work with Navia or is Emilie on a spread and aggravate team good or do I need to switch back to using Arlecchino?!

I have liked Emilie ever since her drip marketing, I have always thought she was adorable— I know a lot of people wanted that lavender design and that lavender design was absolutely adorable and I wish Genshin broke out of their color palettes more often, but it still doesn’t deter me from liking Emilie’s design. She’s so unique looking, we haven’t had a character that looks like her in my opinion. It also doesn’t help that I really want to lose my fifty fifty and get Dehya too, genuinely love Dehya and have been waiting to lose my fifty fifties to her but she never comes home, it’s always fucking MONA.

At this point I’m considering just rolling until I get a 5 star like I did with Xianyun, but I know my luck in this game. I have not won a fifty fifty since 2023. And I do not mean the 4.1 rerun with Neuvillette, I mean February. It’s been over a year since I’ve won a fifty fifty. In that time I’ve pulled for eight more five stars, all of them lost fifty-fifties. The only one who was a win was Lyney during the House of the Hearth banners because of the said fifty-fifty loss on Xianyun. I have 200 and some wishes, if I go for Emilie I frankly will have nothing left— and school is starting back up. I have a full schedule, I don’t know how much time I’ll have for farming primos in Genshin. I could probably work my way back up to 180 by the time Xilonen comes around— especially since leakers are saying it’s either gonna be her or Chasca, and if it’s Chasca that’s such an easy skip meaning two patches I don’t pull in. There’s also the eventuality of Kokomi’s rerun. I would skip anyone for Kokomi on my account, and I know she’s not coming in 5.0 so that still means that if she possibly shows up in 5.1 then I can maybe grind enough primogems to get her.

Kokomi is on my priorities, but I also am not gonna sit here and miss character after character for the chance to get one copy of her. So AGAIN— Emilie.

Do I get Emilie? Do I pull until I get gold? If I lose my fifty-fifty what happens if I don’t get Dehya? I’ve also been waiting for Diluc to show up! I’ve played this game since 2022 and have not gotten a single Diluc— I only just got Jean in this year. Maybe I just pull for gold and pray it’s Emilie or Dehya so I have a guaranteed Mualani or Xilonen? I don’t hate Mualani and I probably will try to get her whenever she reruns because her gameplay looks sick as hell. I don’t know— I really, really want Emilie and I really want Xilonen and I know the reason I want Mualani is because I’ll feel like I’m missing out on the cool new mechanics but if I just wait for the character I do like them I get to enjoy those mechanics when they do arrive.

SHOULD I JUST SAY FUCK IT WE BALL AND SPEND EVERYTHING ON EMILIE???

DO I LET FATE DECIDE AND PRAY THAT DEHYA IS THE ONE THAT COMES HOME WHEN MY HUBRIS IS SMITED?!!!???!!

DO I JUST BE PATIENCE FOR THE LEPORD WOMAN AND FISH GIRLIE??

SOMEONE HELP ME.

[dragimal]

Fontaine Review

I’ve mostly kept quiet til now, cus’ I wanted to get through most of the main story of Fontaine + characters before saying anything (and honestly, I still haven’t done much exploring or world quests yet, so forgive me for any lacking context there), but like. good god, Fontaine is THE single worst written region in the entire game, with some of the worst plots, character writing, and gameplay I’ve ever seen.

let's go

1) the hunting metaphor

if you don’t believe me, I’ll start off with a small example—one of the few things I’ll provide full dialogue reference for, because it’s honestly a little insane.

For reference, since this is a minor moment in the grand scheme of things, this is the conversation between the final ensemble, discussing their plans to trap Furina into telling the truth. If you’d rather just watch it, here’s the timestamp, but I’ll relay the relevant section here.

[dialogue start]

Clorinde: In that case, do any of you have experience in… hunting?

Lynette: Not that I recall.

Lyney: Freminet and I once used a wooden stick and a basket to catch wild rabbits when we were younger. As for Lynette… ah right, you were sick that day, weren’t you?

Freminet: I’ve also gone diving to catch some fish before. Does that count?

Clorinde: I’m afraid not. You may or may not have heard, but Fontaine once played host to a group known as the Marechaussee Hunters. Though that was their name, they did not hunt animals, but rather various monsters left behind by the ancient dynasty of King Remus. Today, Fontaine’s monster population has already thinned greatly, so the Hunters have blended back into society, taking up arms in other lines of work. They even left a unique methodology of hunting in their wake.

Clorinde: A trap comprises of the following components: bait, a trigger, and a containment device. Sometimes, a lethal implement will also be necessary to deal with the prey. So if we were to build a trap together right now, what would you choose to build it with?

Lyney: For me, I would prefer something basket-shaped. Pigeons and rabbits will see the bait and naturally enter the snare. Our line of work requires a deft hand, and we’re some of the best in the industry, so you can count on our techniques.

Navia: You used some of those techniques while moving the people of Poisson, didn’t you? My subordinates mentioned that you even performed some magic for the bawling children.

Lyney: Yes, and I even managed to gather some intelligence in the meantime—I’m quite the multitasker if I do say myself.

Freminet: I’m afraid I can’t claim that my strong suit… I prefer more stable methods, like placing bait in the water and waiting for the fish to come within reach… That’s the kind of method I would count on.

Paimon: Hehe, calm and steady—exactly the kind of person who would catch loads of fish.

Lynette: And I can be their assistant.

Clorinde: With discretion, I’m sure.

Navia: Hmm… I’d probably use some sort of mechanical animal. Papa once bought me some small clockwork squirrels, mice, and such. When placed in the forest, they can attract others of their kind. I remember that you liked those too, didn’t you?

Clorinde: I did, and that would be a good way to go about it. If they’re realistic enough, animals of the same kind will follow them all the way to the trap.

Navia: What about you, Monsieur Neuvillette?

Neuvillette: I… fear I do not have any related experience.

Clorinde: That makes sense. You usually solve problems directly, without the use of any such tricks. But I do have one more question for you, Monsieur. If we were to create a trap now, how would you design it?

Neuvillette: Hmm, I would like for it to be effective but bring no harm to the prey. A more gentle trap would be ideal.

Clorinde: Kind, as always. However, our intention doesn’t necessarily change the containment device and the type of implement we need. If we wanted to kill the prey in one strike, we would need a powerful implement. However, that also goes for prey that must be captured and safely contained.

Navia: Wait, why’s that?

Clorinde: Only a hunter who is a true expert at subduing their prey can snare it without harming it. The line that divides life and death is often exceedingly thin.

[dialogue end]

Now anyone would see that long, drawn-out hunting metaphor and think, “oh, so this is gonna be a big hunt, then? Hunting an Archon? A bit weird, given the vibe of the archon quest before this point, but that’s cool!”

But then—

[dialogue start]

Freminet: …So, are we going hunting together?

Paimon: Uh, we hadn’t thought of seeing ourselves as hunters. It kinda works… but maybe it’s still not the best metaphor.

Neuvillette: If our means of capturing and dealing with our prey is to put them on trial, then the hunting metaphor is actually quite accurate. But we shall require much more courage than any hunter to judge a god—a being whose seat is an exalted throne.

Traveler: That’s right.

Lyney: Oh, so that’s what is going on… sounds very interesting.

[dialogue end]

So not only are the characters within the scene confused by the metaphor, but then Hoyo itself has to step in with blank pages of text to dispel the audience’s confusion.

[image IDs: screencaps of white text on blank, black backgrounds reading as follows:

“Clorinde’s hunting metaphor was just that… a metaphor. You will not call this a ‘hunt’ because that is not what you should do at present, nor has the relationship between you and Furina reached such a dire stage. What you need is simply the secrets she is keeping. Attempting to take her secrets is an act of sacrilegious disrespect, but must be done to prevent Fontaine from sinking into the waters as foretold in the prophecy. There is neither hunter nor prey, but there must be a ‘trap.’ That is what you will need.”

End ID]

To be clear, hunting has not been mentioned as an activity or even a metaphor throughout the entire archon quest leading up to this point, and it’s so irrelevant after this point that the Hoyo writers themselves had to step out from behind the curtain to tell us that, no, the cast will NOT be hunting Furina, actually.

So like, what was the point? Hoyo just wasted several minutes of my time painting a complex hunting metaphor, only to tell me it’s nothing? Was it just an excuse to make Clorinde’s skills relevant in the final cast of characters? Why??????

Y’know what metaphor would have been fitting, though? I’ll give you three guesses……. Fucking STAGE PERFORMANCE!!! Performance and spectacle have been huge themes this entire quest, the entire country of Fontaine is mired in performance, and the entire last act of this quest is a literal performance-- why didn’t Hoyo choose that as the metaphor? Or, hell, even easier, just cut out the entire metaphor completely! We already know that the group is discussing what to do about Furina, Hoyo could’ve just cut to black at an earlier point in the convo and been done with it!

This may seem nitpicky as my first point, but it’s so telling of Hoyo’s writing philosophy—don’t write anything meaningful, and don’t commit to anything of substance. It’s really the core of all other problems, imo, and it’ll keep coming back again and again.

2) Traveler + Paimon

The Traveler issue is a bit complicated, and perhaps more subjective than my other issues, but bear with me.

Namely, the Traveler is supposed to be the player’s self-insert, while also being a character within the setting—a combination that just… doesn’t really work, at least not the way Hoyo approaches it

For one, Traveler has goals that often run counter to what the player wants to do. The obvious example being that Traveler just wants to get on with it and find their sibling, whereas we players want to take our time to explore, meet characters, and run through various sidequests. So this leads to a weird tension where the Traveler is simultaneously a kind-hearted errand-runner, always happy to help out… while also being very fed up with it all, anxious to just find their sibling and the truth of their separation.

There’s also the simple fact that we, the players, aren’t given any options to affect the path and choices of the Traveler, beyond “snarky answer” vs. “not-snarky answer”. This isn’t strictly a bad thing, not every game needs to have branching paths or complex character interactions… but it’s not exactly conducive to the “self-insert” approach that Hoyo tries to frame the game as, ya feel me?

And don’t even get me started on Paimon’s role in this! Even if Traveler has a personality, they can barely get a word in over Paimon’s constant whining and commentary. I’m not the first person to point out how annoying she is, but she truly is such an unnecessary plot convenience, when Traveler could easily just… speak for themself (and with a much more pleasant voice). Though that may be the problem-- I honestly think Hoyo only added Paimon so they could still claim Traveler as a self-insert, since Paimon usually serves as the mouthpiece for Traveler. Either that, or she’s supposed to serve as a lore dump to introduce Traveler to Teyvat, but like… Paimon is dumber than a rock, and other characters in the setting explain things far better than her.

Anyways, my point with Paimon is that, because she serves as the mouthpiece for Traveler, that means she also serves as the mouthpiece for the player. Which is infuriating, when she’s saying dumb shit I don’t agree with, but Hoyo thinks I’m supposed to. No, I don’t feel hostile towards Kaeya or think he’s “shady”, I actually like the guy! No, I don’t think Tighnari’s tangents about botany are boring—I’m a bio major, and I love hearing people talk about their interests in any case! Etc. etc.

thus, it feels like Hoyo is carefully straddling the fine line of “self-insert” vs. “character with autonomous personality” without really committing to either option, leaving me feeling unsatisfied and a bit frustrated (or often frustrated, when Paimon’s speaking).

But I will admit, this usually isn’t a problem. Sure, the “half-insert” approach bothers me sometimes, but at least Traveler’s dialogue options are often written vaguely enough that I’m not taken out of the moment, and Paimon… well, I try to just pretend she doesn’t exist. On the whole, the Traveler issue isn’t game-breaking…

Or it wasn’t, until Fontaine.

Suddenly, left and right, Paimon is being rude and dismissive towards more characters than ever (no, Paimon, I think YOU’RE making this moment with Neuvillette awkward, actually), and Traveler is not only agreeing, but inventing new, fun ways to act downright cruel (Lyney + Lynette, FURINA… we’ll get to them…). They’re both rude to a huge chunk of the cast-- not only the strangers we barely know, but the kind and charming characters who’ve never done a bad thing to us or anyone we know of!

It’s a heel-turn that suddenly emphasizes the problems with Traveler that were, up to this point, far more subtle.

For one, this behavior runs counter to how the players respond to these situations, as we've discussed. like, Traveler being rude to Lyney? Fan-favorite Lyney?? In a gacha game that’s trying to sell us our favorite little blorbos? What in the world kind of decision is that???

But more fundamentally, this personality switch runs counter to what we’ve grown to expect from Traveler. we expect someone who is open and understanding to all sorts of situations and types of people… but that’s not really the case, is it? Traveler is only here to find their sibling, and they’ve apparently grown tired of pretending otherwise. No more sympathy and understanding, the patience is gone.

I honestly think I’d enjoy the experience more if Hoyo committed to Traveler as a full character rather than a half-way insert. it doesn’t come up much in-game, but if you look at Traveler’s voice lines on their story tab, you’ll discover tons of fascinating backstory and personality. I want to learn more about their experiences in other worlds, and their thoughts about how Teyvat compares to other places! I want to know more about the apparently deep bond between Traveler and their sibling, and the trials they’ve been through together before Teyvat!

I wouldn't mind a bitter Traveler, if the Traveler was treated like an actual character, and we got to watch the progression of this bitterness over time… but we don’t get to see it, because they’re not treated like a full character. and I honestly don’t even think this was an intentional character choice, in any case.

This leads into the related problem of—

3) the Fatui

ok sure, the Fatui are not exactly trustworthy, that’s been proven time and again. I don’t blame Traveler for being wary of new Fatui characters, or even the organization as a whole. I get it.

however, Traveler has encountered many, MANY people on their journey, including many different Fatui operatives. There are many formerly-‘bad’ individuals (including Fatui) that Traveler has come to understand and even befriend, in many cases.

The obvious example here being Childe, who isn’t even among the list of “reformed” individuals. he’s literally still a Harbinger with violent streak, he’s implied to have a high death count, and he tried to drown Liyue (with Zhongli’s permission, sure, but Childe didn’t know that)… and yet Traveler STILL befriends him. I’m saying this as a huge Childe simp myself—I love the guy, but even I can admit he didn’t do a whole lot to earn forgiveness. Idek what the thought process is in that relationship, was Childe just too pathetic by the end of the Liyue archon quest to be considered a threat by Traveler anymore? Impossible to say.

But then Traveler will meet other Fatui characters and inexplicably act horrifically cruel. I think it starts with Ganyu’s story quest, where we’re encouraged to profile some random Fatui guy and extra-judiciously beat him up for the crime of… picking berries. And then Traveler just laughs it off like, “well, he had it coming anyways,” like HUH? WHAT?? And then the 9th Company in the Chasm… WHEW don’t even get me started. That whole Company was literally on the floor DYING of starvation, clearly no threat to anyone, and especially not anyone as skilled as the Traveler… and then Traveler STILL has the gall to act suspicious! The story basically had to drag Traveler, kicking and screaming, to help characters who-- I must emphasize-- were dying of starvation.

Real heroic character, there. Love playing somebody that’s clearly so kind and compassionate. Ugh.

At least the hostility towards Scaramouche makes some sense, given Traveler’s personal beef with him across several countries/quests, + Scara’s personality. Like, yeah, Traveler is rude to him after his defeat, but at least Scara gives as much sass as he gets. Still a frustrating double-standard, considering how nice Traveler is to Childe “literally still a Harbinger” Tartaglia, but whatever.

But Lyney and Lynette? The people who have been nothing but kind to Traveler? Who show genuine concern for Fontaine’s safety, who pass out free gadgets to help out the people of Fontaine? Whose tragic backstory involves literal child sex trafficking, and being rescued by the one single Harbinger that seems to have largely unselfish goals*? (*not saying Arlecchino prolly hasn’t done anything bad, but we’ll get there)

and Traveler still has the GALL to scoff at their trauma, and claim it doesn’t matter???

[image ID: a screencap of dialogue from the 4.0 archon quest, reading as follows:

Paimon: So that’s how you two joined the House of the Hearth.

Traveler: That’s all in the past, though. The Knave is after the Gnosis, isn’t she?

End ID]

If I thought the 9th Company quest was bad… WHEW… I’ve never wanted to reach through the screen and strangle the Traveler more than I did at this point (at least until Furina’s story quest <3 )

Hell, the House of the Hearth’s concern for Fontaine isn’t even a front, as is proven by Arlecchino and co. helping out in the final act. For all that Arlecchino and her House have likely done terrible things in the name of her goals, she and the siblings were completely honest about protecting Fontaine… and Traveler is STILL hesitant about the siblings, even when their sincerity has been abundantly proven.

[image ID: a screencap of dialogue from the 4.1 archon quest, reading as follows:

Lyney: As you know, the House of the Hearth has many reasons to seek the Gnosis, but our highest priority remains resolving the prophesized crisis. You can trust us on that.

Traveler: Sorry, I must refuse.

end ID]

Make it make SENSE.

Look, I would understand the hesitation if Traveler had never encountered any nuance in the Fatui before this point. Truly, I get it-- the Fatui is a powerful, deeply influential organization. I also don’t trust powerful, deeply influential organizations! but I must once again emphasize that TRAVELER IS FRIENDS WITH CHILDE. This just feels like a swift kick in the nuts, at this point.

It’s also worth noting that… Hoyo didn’t have to write the Fatui as cartoonishly evil. I’m frankly sick of seeing Fatui as the masterminds behind 90% of the evil plots in Teyvat, as if they’re the true root of all evil. For one, it’s boring-- I’d like to see other people making bad decisions for once, and I’d like to see more Fatui with more complex goals than “be evil, make profit”, such as the complexity of the House of the Hearth in this quest.

Hell, it’s already established that each Harbinger does their own thing with their resources/power.

[image ID: a screencap of dialogue from the 4.0 archon quest, reading as follows:

Lyney: But our organization is very, very large, and the Harbingers have very different personalities and goals.

End ID]

[image ID: a screencap of dialogue from the 4.2 archon quest, reading as follows:

The Knave: Don’t be too preoccupied with “sides.” The goal of the Fatui concerns not a single place or person, but rather the entire world. With such a grand goal in mind, it is inevitable that we must wear many masks.

End ID]

so I’m hoping we’ll see more of this nuance?? But this is Hoyo we’re talking about, so I’m not placing my bets on it.

But the more troubling thing abt the Fatui’s writing is that it feels very… Red Scare. Not that this kind of flat stereotype is exclusive to the Fatui—the Treasure Hoarders are a classist stereotype of “thieves” (despite the fact the Traveler prolly plunders far more ancient tombs and artifacts than the whole organization combined…), and the Eremites and related enemy NPCs are a racist caricature of ‘Arab’ peoples. So like, forgive me if I don’t trust Hoyo to continue to write Fantasy Russian Mob with grace and nuance.

but honestly, the real kicker is… I agree with the Tsaritsa’s goal of destroying Celestia. Celestia is an unambiguously genocidal god-state that can and will destroy any peoples that even hint at threatening their power. I joked abt Fatui being the root of all evil, but throughout Teyvat’s entire history, it seems like Celestia actually is the root of all evil. Like, yeah, blast that sucker out of the sky. Obviously I don’t agree with the free reign the Tsaritsa has given her Harbingers, but I don’t necessarily blame her for using that power to gain their loyalty.

And yet, the game continuously frames the Fatui organization as flatly evil—even Arlecchino, for all the good she did in this quest, clearly has her own agenda. Like, y’know that trope where the group resisting an unfair system is made to do cartoonishly evil things, thus delegitimizing their core goals? It feels like that. Yeah, it sure is hard to agree with the objectively correct main goal of the Fatui, when they keep starting civil wars across the map. Too bad nobody fucking else wants to fight Celestia… oh well, I guess we just have to accept Celestia’s iron rule!

The Fatui isn’t even the worst offender of this infuriating trope, tbh. Let us not forget Khaenri'ah—the people that didn’t want to be ruled by Archons, made their own, autonomous nation, and were thus completely annihilated by Celestia because their technology was “too dangerous”. and then the survivors are either cursed with immortality, or mutated to become black-skinned monsters wearing ‘tribal’ masks/outfits (the og racist caricature, if you will). But I’d be here all day if I started talking abt that, and it’s not related to Fontaine, so I’ll leave it at that.

I can’t predict what Hoyo’s endgame is for Celestia, so maybe they’ll surprise me, but forgive me for distrusting Hoyo’s obsession with authority and “divine rights”.

Which leads into the next problem—

4) the Fortress of Meropide

It’s one thing to have a fantasy world with fantasy ‘cops’ and some kind of punitive system. Like, sure, fine, it exists, but we don’t have to dig into it. Hell, we can even have ‘cop’ characters without it being a huge deal. at least Kujou Sara and Cyno-- for all their blind loyalty-- could eventually see the flaws in the system. Sure, I would’ve liked to see the systems themselves challenged-- to see the people of Inazuma not so readily forgive the Shogun, or to see the idea of “forbidden knowledge” questioned as a tool of control, maybe. but I wasn’t rly expecting that level of self-reflection from Hoyo anyways, so whatever. Ultimately, those systems are ‘fixed’ so they no longer subjugate the people, so I can’t complain too much.

but then we get the Fortress of Meropide. A literal prison—not even just a metaphor, it’s just. Literal, modern prison, but with a steampunk veneer.

Let me lay out all the issues here, beyond the obvious:

“autonomous” prison

generally, the Fontaine justice system exiles people rather than imprisons them. Long ago, all these “exiles” made their own society outside of Fontaine, both for survival and to “repent” towards Egeria (we’ll get to that). Thus, the Fortress is technically “autonomous” from Fontaine, since its population is full of these “exiles” rather than true “prisoners”.

But if that’s the case, why are the exiles still on Fontaine land? the Fortress is still within the borders, after all-- if they are truly just “exiled”, then they should be free to roam outside of Fontaine. Yet, why are these “exiles” escorted straight to the Fortress by Gardes-- as if they are, perhaps, prisoners of the Fortress?

The only way this works for me, logically, is if the Fontaine government claims no connection on paper, while still working with the Fortress under the table. This would allow Fontaine to exact whatever policies/cruelties they like on prisoners, without the oversight of official Fontaine policies to hold them accountable for this behavior.

Fontaine can’t violate their citizens’ human/worker rights, if the people in question aren’t actually citizens anymore.

credit coupons

Prisoners do not earn Mora for their work in the Fortress—instead, they earn credit coupons, and these coupons are only worth anything within the bounds of Fortress.

So let’s follow these facts to their logical conclusion: if prisoners can only earn credit coupons, then they can’t save up any real Mora (unless there’s lore abt credit-mora exchange I’ve missed). That means, when they’re eventually released from the Fortress, prisoners have no money to their name. and unless there’s some system in place to hold prisoner housing/assets safe (doubtful), then prisoners have likely lost their home, job, and any savings as well. So a newly-released prisoner is just as poor (if not worse off) than before. They will likely have to steal for survival, and end up in the Fortress again. if that’s the case, then why would they leave?

Like, gee, I wonder why so many prisoners choose to continue living in the Fortress after their sentence is done? Surely it must be because of the excellent accommodations!! 🙄

prison labor

the main job available to prisoners is factory work, building many of the machines used in above-ground Fontaine. No wonder Fontaine doesn’t want the prisoners to leave, they’d lose their free (slave-labor) workforce!

Notably, prisoners also help make Gardemeks—the robots that serve as a large chunk of the Fontaine police force, and prolly arrested many of the prisoners themselves. What a slap to the face!

welfare meals

Every prisoner apparently gets one free meal a day, after which they must pay for any other meals using their credit coupons.

But what about people who can’t work? the sick, the disabled? one meal a day is not enough to survive, and trying to do so would only make people weak and sick, which would make them even less able to work, continuing the vicious cycle. And the fact that prisoners didn’t even get that little crumb before is kinda nauseating.

Also why is their quality Russian fucking roulette??

[image ID: screencaps of dialogue from the 4.1 archon quest, reading as follows:

Paimon: Oh, you mean the meals are random?

Sigewinne: Yes, what you get to eat depends completely on your luck. You could say that it’s a… distasteful little game that Chef Wolsey likes to play here in the cafeteria.

End ID]

I know Genshin is a gacha game, but this is too much. Fuck people with food sensitivities or allergies, I guess.

EDIT: informed prisoner choice/consent

there's two main instances of uninformed decisions being thrown at prisoners:

A) Sigewinne makes special meals for prisoners whom she observes to be overworking themselves. instead of telling them this, though, she just silently slips her meal into their gacha-tin instead of their regular meal. thus, instead of understanding that they are being given a healthy gift by the Fortress nurse, prisoners just see a gross piece of meat and think they're being punished or poisoned for non-stop working 3 days in a row.

now, I'm slightly more lenient with Sigewinne's case, considering Melusine aesthetics and such. there's a chance that Melusines, idk, have a higher sense of smell or something, so she thinks she need not explain the healthy qualities of her meals to humans, bc they should just be able to tell it's healthy. MAYBE.

but Sigewinne has been working at the Fortress for how many years? seriously, how many years, I'm not sure-- at least as long as Wrio's been there. that's quite a while to not have picked up on human habits-- especially for someone like Sigewinne, who apparently spends all her time studying human behavior/emotions in order to give them the best care possible.

honestly, given Sigewinne's interests, this feels almost cruelly intentional? like, what the hell else am I supposed to think, when Hoyo takes time to note Sigewinne's interest in human emotions? and especially considering the manipulative role she played with Lyney and co... yeah, no dice, this girl is a razor blade hiding under a lolita dress.

B) Fonta wants to sell their drinks down in the Fortress, and in particular wants to test out a new drink they've come up with, to see if the prisoners like it. Wriothesley thinks Fonta sucks and believes only the dumbest of prisoners would spend their precious coupons on Fonta. so to prove this, Wrio slips a bottle of the special Fonta into certain prisoners' cells (those he deems to have recently made stupid decisions) to see if they'll drink it. without knowing what the drink is, prisoners only see a mysterious bottle of unlabeled, blood-colored liquid, and throw it out without touching it.

so, for one, it's really not Wrio's place to decide what his prisoners do with their money. he may think Fonta is stupid, but it's people's Archon-given right to spend their hard-earned money however they see fit! I don't want the president of my country telling me I can't have a nice, refreshing cola after a hard day's work, fuck off!!

but also, like. Wrio clearly knows what he's doing, here. he's giving this new product the worst possible chance at positive reception (pulling off the labels, leaving them in prisoner dorms with no explanation), and claiming it's Fonta's fault for making a bad product. fucking of course nobody wants the new product, they think it's literally blood, and probably some kind of threat!

I bet you a million bucks, if prisoners knew what it was, this blood-like Fonta would get at least some clientele. there's always a morbid audience to be found, and the chances may even be higher in a prison

Wrio doesn't even start offering prisoners his drink of choice-- high-end tea-- to be bought instead, so like. this isn't even a flex on his drink tastes so much as another way to control prisoner's very few means of recreation and personal choice.

medical care and general health

why is Sigewinne the only nurse? That’s insane, there should be a full staff of medical professionals-- the Fortress is huge. And considering all the leaky walls and rusting metal, I’m surprised more prisoners don’t have gangrene or tetanus.

Also being deep underwater, with few windows out into the surrounding lake, the Fortress gets basically no sunlight. it’s socially cut off from the outside world, and as far as I know, there’s little else to do beyond Fight Club (I’ve heard tell of a library, but I certainly never saw one!). the Fortress seems primed to turn people fucking insane and/or depressed. Humans need sunlight and fresh air, humans need intellectual and physical enrichment.

And y’know what? I’d accept all this if it was intentional—some commentary on the corruption of the state, and the way prison only destroys lives.

But that’s the worst part—it’s not.

The Fortress is framed as not only necessary to Fontaine’s functioning, but good for the people. Traveler and Paimon constantly comment on how “surprisingly nice” the Fortress is, how they love being there. Meanwhile, every time I’m in the Fortress, I feel like a fox caught in a bear trap-- I want to fucking LEAVE, but the game acts like I should love it SO SO much.

[image ID: a screencap of dialogue from the 4.2 archon quest, reading as follows:

Paimon: That’s right! Today is our last day in prison… But now that Paimon says that, it doesn’t feel like we were confined here. It’s actually been pretty nice.

Traveler: A lot of people have helped us out.

Paimon: Oh, yeah. Paimon feels fond of this place now.

End ID]

Hoyo voice: oh boy, don’t you just LOVE it here? Isn’t it so fun and great??

Not to mention the weird “redemption” undertones of it all.

…

[image ID: screencaps of dialogue from the 4.1 archon quest, reading as follows:

Wolsey: Now everyone gets a square meal every day, even no-good slackers who’ve never picked up a wrench in their whole lives. Nobody starves to death here.

…

Wolsey: Whatever the case, hard work is rewarded here. You’d be hard-pressed to find anywhere else as fair and reasonable.

End ID]

--

[image ID: screencaps of dialogue from Wriothesley’s story quest and the 4.1 archon quest, respectively, reading as follows:

Wriothesley: Which is why in my opinion, learning to reconcile with oneself is the first step on the path to redemption.

--

Wriothesley: And with that, the people here stopped referring to the Fortress as a prison. They saw themselves as repenting sinners, who would regain their freedom once they had sufficiently redeemed themselves.

End ID]

How disgustingly Christian 🙄

this only reinforces the idea that prisoners are lesser citizens that deserve to live under the worst conditions, unless they “repent” and bring something “valuable” to society. Not to even mention that every crime is treated equal, in the scenario—yeah, sure, I definitely want the single parent who stole food for their starving kids to go to the fucking pit of darkness. Definitely.

And if it wasn’t already incredibly obvious, this is way too close to real-life to be comfortable—everything from credit coupons, to exploitative prison labor, to the idea of prison as “redemption”. This is how real-life prison works, what people think of prison, and how society often treats convicts.

It’s one thing to write a narrative that’s tone-deaf to the deeper implications—Hoyo does that all the time, I’m used to it. But this? This feels intentional. This feels pointed and vicious. This feels like Hoyo, mask-off, saying, “these are our unambiguous views about the state and punitive system, and we’re going to make you agree with us using a hot guy mouthpiece.”

Which is, of course, why I hate Wriothesley so much.

It’s not just that he’s a smug, insufferable bastard (though he is), but it’s more what he represents for this story.

Essentially, Wrio is not allowed to be wrong. This is partly bc he’s a high-spec guy and Hoyo is afraid of letting high-spec guys be wrong (see: Alhaitham), but mostly because Wrio is a thesis statement for the Fortress. Wriothesley is authority, and according to Hoyo, authority is always right. even when authority is manipulative and cruel, as long as the “proper leader” is using that authority, then it’s actually for your own good, so you should just shut up and listen.

Wrio can’t be wrong, bc if he is, then what does that say about the Fortress?

Thus, interactions between Wrio and the prisoners take on a different tone. Wrio’s not just some schmuck acting smug—he’s a guy with power, and he delights in lording that power over the people who can’t tell him “no”.

[image ID: screencaps of in-game dialogue from the 4.1 archon quest, reading as follows:

Deakin: Th- The Duke! Greetings, Your Grace! L-Lovely weather today, isn’t it?

Wriothesley: Greetings, my good fellow. I’m willing to imagine that the weather is as good outside the sea as you say it is. Ah, how great it would have been if only the Fortress of Meropide had been built on the coast. It would have been so convenient to enjoy a nice chat in the sunshine.

End ID]

[image ID: screencaps of in-game dialogue from the 4.1 archon quest, reading as follows:

Fitzroy: Ah, Y-Your Grace! Good morning… I mean, good afternoon!... No wait, what time is it again?

Wriothesley: What time indeed. Time waits for no one, so it’s best to keep an eye on it.

Fitzroy: Ah, m-my apologies, Your Grace! *panting*

Paimon: Geeze, that guy’s so nervous he almost forgot to breathe…

End ID]

these interactions kinda make me wanna vom! This isn’t playful teasing, and Wrio knows it—he’s got all the power, and he can wield it as he likes.

Also, knowing that Wrio was once a convict doesn’t make me like him more. He’d only work for me if he was like Roy Mustang—a smug bastard façade hiding a manic drive to tear apart the whole system from the inside, and then himself. But Wrio is the Duke, and little has changed in the Fortress. Class traitor? Die

Also, this is a minor problem compared to the writing issues, but the Fortress is just an awful place to navigate. Why does each elevator only move between two floors, when there are several floors? I should NOT need to turn on sparkle-trail navigation for a single goddamn building. Nightmarish, 4.1 was easily the worst quest in the entire game, bar none.

5) Furina

Furina herself is excellent—she’s one of my new fave characters, and the situation involving her, Focalors, and Neuvillette is insanely tragic and devastating. I’ll give Hoyo props for that one—that scene was insanely well-executed, and Furina/Focalors’ Eng va crushed it.

No, I’m upset with all the writing surrounding Furina.

It all starts going sideways when Traveler tricks Furina into the final trial of the archon quest. I don’t blame them for the situation, of course-- they couldn’t have known that Furina was about to maybe open up, if only they had a bit more time alone. but GOD that betrayal still stung… except the Traveler didn’t seem to agree. they didn’t show any concern for Furina in that moment, or at any point during the trial. But y’know what, fair enough—there are bigger problems than Furina’s feelings in that scene, so I don’t blame them for focusing on the more pressing goal of Fontaine’s safety.

But then they enter Furina’s literal mind. They see her desperately clinging to a mask of confidence, even at her deepest core. They see her scared and alone, frantic for solutions and sacrificing every part of herself for months and years, decades and centuries. They see her tears flowing over and over, desperately trying to cover up the fatal cracks in her façade.

[image ID: a screencap of a scene from the 4.1 archon quest. White text reading, “Scene 182375, Opera House, Furina,” sits on a black background. Hundreds of faint tally marks are scratched into this background, marking the days. End ID]

Traveler sees Furina at her most vulnerable, most broken, and her still caring more for the people of Fontaine than her own health and happiness.

And Traveler has the AUDACITY to demand MORE of Furina. To demand to see the “truth” of Furina’s situation, as if her trauma wasn’t already abundantly fucking clear by that point. Literally, if Furina knew anything else about her “mirror self”, Traveler would have seen it by then-- what do they even want from Furina at that point??

and THEN. after Fontaine is saved, and Furina fucks off to solitude (good for her), and Traveler now has an intimate understanding of Furina’s trauma concerning performance and spectacle… Traveler and Paimon make fun of her situation. Paimon makes fun of Furina’s clear depression meals and lack of life skills like cooking, as if it isn’t extremely fucking obvious WHY she lacks those skills.

And Traveler demands Furina return to the stage.

And when Furina decides that, no, she’d rather not act ever again, Traveler completely ignores her boundaries. Furina literally calls it a boundary that she refuses to cross, and this newfound confidence and self-worth is framed as a problem that needs to be fixed.

Paimon even calls her a “drama queen” for daring to set boundaries.

[image ID: a screencap of dialogue from Furina’s story quest, reading as follows:

Paimon: It’s amazing… even though Furina’s still being a bit of a drama queen about it all, she’s really fired everyone up!

Traveler: I’m really looking forward to the final production.

End ID]

As if it isn’t completely fucking obvious? Why Furina wouldn’t want to play as someone else again? to cover up her own feelings with a mask? to be ogled as a spectacle, an object? To be judged by the harsh gaze of her people?

Hell, even Neuvillette suggests that Furina belongs on the stage, but frankly that’s character assassination, imo. Neuvillette was HORRIFIED when he learned what Focalors did to Furina, and even if he saw the necessity, that doesn’t mean he was happy to learn that a dear friend of his has been suffering so severely for centuries. But anyways.

Furina finally makes a solid decision for herself—no coercion from outside parties, no playing a part-- she makes this decision all on her own, for herself. And the people she’s closest to decide that they know better. They decide that Furina doesn’t know what’s good for herself, and that they should dictate exactly what she needs.

Was 500 years not enough for you people? Was it not enough?? this literally makes me nauseous! It makes me want to burn down all of Fontaine and spit on the ashes! Sorry, Neuvillette, you may forgive Fontaine, BUT I FUCKING DON’T!!

And the real kicker, the true punchline to her “character arc”, is Furina receiving her Vision on stage. The culmination of her core character—her hopes, her passion, her will… is being pressured into playing a role. Again.

What a joke.

6) Melusines

One of my lesser problems with Fontaine, but I consider myself a connoisseur of creatures, and Melusines deeply disappoint.

design

Melusines are supposed to be slug-things, but they just look like toddlers? YAWN, give me real slugs!

Also they look like cutesy toddlers, and they don’t wear pants. Really bad vibes, there

behavior

Melusines have this whole schtick abt not understanding human communication/emotions, but it doesn’t land when they look, act, and talk like tiny humans. When Sigewinne calls me “cute”, it feels weird and infantilizing, because she’s a tiny human calling another human “cute”.

infantilization

speaking of, Genshin has always treated nonhuman objectification and boundaries weirdly (I could say a lot abt how Gorou is treated..), but the treatment of Melusines is especially uncomfortable.

Like, they’re fully autonomous adults that have been alive for hundreds of years, and they’ve made their own underwater town… yet everyone keeps infantilizing them?

Like when Eloffe wants to use Kiara as a model for child clothing

…

[image ID: screencaps of a scene from Neuvillette’s story quest, featuring the short, pale pink Melusine Kiara, and the human Eloffe. The dialogue is as follows:

Eloffe: Hear me out. I’m planning to release an outfit for children next month and wanted to hire you as my model. Is that okay with you?

…

Eloffe: I think light and frilly clothes look best on you. You’d definitely look cute wearing them.

End ID]

for one, this wouldn’t even work bc Melusines have different proportions than humans, but like… why not use an actual child to model child clothes? Why not make clothes for Melusines themselves? Why not ask them what styles they’d like to wear, instead of just assuming? This is kinda rude??

And the worst part is that the Melusines don’t even seem to notice this infantilization—as if they’re so far ‘removed’ from human culture, they don’t realize when they’re being objectified.

[image ID: a continuation of the previous scene, with the following dialogue:

Kiara: I love them too! Especially the soft and fluffy kind…

End ID]

Not gonna lie, it’s creepy!

Slug-girl racism

slug-girl racism is dumb. It’s already dumb when stories do cat-girl racism, so making the characters slugs instead doesn’t make that narrative any more profound. At least the racism is over by the time the story starts, but that was a rly dumb aspect of Neuvillette’s story quest …

[velvet-rp]

Genshin impact roleplay?

Hello ! I’ve made a post about this before but I decided to make a new one since a few of my rules and things like that have changed! ^^

I’m looking for someone who would be interested in mainly doing a 1x1 roleplay but I don’t mind doing a 2x2 genshin roleplay, Im looking for someone who can do a oc x canon roleplay with me.

I more specifically looking for someone who can play Childe/Tartaglia for my oc

A little bit more about me I’m 18, lesbian, and Latino.

I’ve been roleplay since I was in 5/6 grade so I’ve been rping for like 8 years. I’m a semi-lit to literate roleplayer.

┈┈┈┈┈┈┈﹒ׂׂૢ་༘࿐ೢ

things to note/rules

- I would feel comfortable rping with someone who 18+

- I’m still I school so I won’t be able to reply 24/7 So I would say (unless I say I let you know im busy) then after like 3 weeks you can message me

-my time zone is also est

-I usually write up to 3-5 at a minimum. I’m find if you’re not really a literate or semi-literate rolepayer, but at least give me two or three lines and not just one line, since it makes it hard for me to reply back to you. Also if you going to rp with me, please rp in the third person since it makes it easier for me to see who is and who isn’t talking when it comes to rps when people are playing multiple characters

-I’m find with doing nsfw rp as long as that’s not the main focus

-Please either use // , )) , ]] , etc. When you are talking outside of the rp it makes it easier for me to easily tell what’s apart of the rp or not

-I’m fine with the cursing in the rp, I’m also find with rps mentioning serious topics like abuse, drugs, etc.

-I will not really be rp with anyone who’s homophobic, transphobic, racist, or sexist

Trigger/Limits

-Don’t glorify/ romanticize serious thing as it’s really weird and makes me uncomfortable same goes with making jokes about it

-Please don’t go into detail about SA, you can have it mentioned and talked about for your oc but you don’t need to have the event described in so much detail

⊹₊ ˚‧︵‿₊୨୧₊‿︵‧ ˚ ₊⊹

For people who want to do 2x2 rp, heres the list of charaters I can rp to characters I can’t

Also i believe I listed all characters but if I didn’t and you’re wondering if I could play a character, I didn’t list just ask me

Charaters I can play:

❥ Venti

❥ Diluc

❥ Kaeya

❥ Eula

❥ Lisa

❥ Albedo

❥ Jean

❥Barbara

❥Rosaria

❥ Zhonglia

❥Ningguang

❥Xiao

❥Yanfei

❥Xianyun

❥Layla

❥Alhaitham

❥Cyno

❥Candace

❥Nahida

❥Collei

❥Dehya

❥Nilou

❥Tighnari

❥Navia

❥Lyney

❥Chiori

❥Neuvillette

❥Furina

❥Clorinde

❥Wriothesley

❥Lumine

❥Aether

❥Dottore

❥Pierro

❥Pulcinella

❥Pantalone

❥Columbina

❥Capitano

❥Arlecchino

Characters I haven’t played that I’m willing to try:

❥ Skirk

❥ Amber

❥ Faruzan

❥ Mona

❥ Sucrose

❥ Baizhu

❥ Beidou

❥ Ganyu

❥ Shenhe

❥ Xiangling

❥ Xingqiu

❥ Xinyan

❥ Hu Tao

❥ Ei

❥ Ayato

❥ Ayaka

❥ Gorou

❥ Heizou

❥ Itto

❥ Kazuha

❥ Kiara

❥ Kokomi

❥ Thoma

❥ Kujou Sara

❥ Kuki Shinobu

❥ Yoimiya

❥ Freminet

❥ Lynette

❥ Dainsleif

Characters I can’t play:

Any of the Natlan characters cause I haven’t gotten to the recent event so I don’t feel confident in playing any of them

And for tbr kids charaters ive nerver had to play them so I feel uncomfortable to play them tho of course I can try if they are needed for the roleplay

┈┈┈┈┈┈┈﹒ׂׂૢ་༘࿐ೢ

If you are interested in roleplay please reply here or you can add me on discord which is Http_velvet

[cyclone-manic]

Henri / Voice-Overs

Story

[ Hello ]

Bonjour, Monsieur/Madam! Welcome to Fontaine, the nation of justice. I am Henrietta Baudelaire, Marquis of Fontaine. You can just call me Henri. If you ever need assistance, you can always call on me.

[ Chat: Cannot Stand Still ]

You never seem to slow down or take a break, do you? I understand. I can never stop. There is always electricity coursing through my veins. Every chair I sit in becomes an electric chair. I must always be moving. I can never stand still. The pain of remaining in place for even a minute.. that is too much to bare.

[ Chat: Dottore’s Monster ]

People say that the Abyss Order is evil. Hilichurls are evil. Fatui are the worst of the worst. I am all of them combined into one person. So, what does that make me? Worser than the worst of the worst or just another broken useless little creature?

[ Chat: ??? ]

[ When It Rains ]

Can you smell that? This rain is made from the waters of those who have fallen to the prophecy. I like to drink it. Reminds me that it could have been me that died.

[ After the rain ]

Mother? Father? Do you really have to go? .. Okay.

[ When It Snows ]

You call this cold? Weakling!

[ Good Morning ]

Oh! You came back! You made it through the night.. Good, Good. People need you. Hm? Me? .. What about me?

[ Good Afternoon ]

What to do? What to do?.. I could always bother Fremie if I really wanted to *chuckles*

[ Good Evening ]

Do you want to play games with me?~ No? Well! You must want to bet with your life then~

[ Good Night ]

Do you need your little nappy time? Haha! I will play with the monsters who show up then.. where are you, mister hillichurl?~

[ About Henri ]

I am a being of pure electro energy with no weaknesses. I, Henri Baudelaire, am the untameable and unrestrained storm.

[ About the Vision ]

Huh?.. Oh! You mean the shiny gem! It is very pretty.. and does keep me alive.

[ Something to Share ]

I was meant to serve the Hydro Archon. My family served the Hydro Archon for centuries but me? Noo!! I had to be sent to the fortress and then the prophecy had to happen. I serve the Hydro Dragon.

[ Interesting Things ]

Did you know that a typical adult human has two hundred and six bones in their body? I have more than that and I am only sixteen. Neat, huh?

[ About Neuvillette ]

You know the boss? Yeah. You would think a dragon would be much more intimidating than he is. He no longer gives out death sentences. What’s the deal with that?

[ About Furina ]

The Hydro Archon?! Where? Did.. did I miss her? Aww.. I never get to see her.

[ About Wriothesley ]

You met the Duke? Quite the cold lone wolf. If a cold lone wolf drinks tea, hangs around a cute little thing like Sigewinne and is overall a genuinely friendly guy. I like calling him ‘cold lone wolf’ because he has a shinny little wolf on him.

[ About Navia ]

Fontaine would never have survived without the Spina di Rosula. A pity that her father for some unknown reason forgot how to fight the second he entered the ring. Navia makes the best Rainbow Macarons! I would kill for those Macarons!

[ About Chevreuse ]

Captain Cheveruse is the greatest gunslinger I have ever met! I often sneak into the Maison Gardiennage just to watch Cheveruse do target practice.

[ About Chiori ]

Chiori is one of us now. Inazama will have to take her from my cold dead hands. She makes me such nice clothes! And- And- she doesn’t flinch when she sees my teeth.

[ About Arlecchino ]

Who? … Wait. She is Lyney, Lynette and Freminet’s father? Wow. I was picturing an assassin sailor with a hobby for fishing and card tricks. Good to know that I wasn’t that far off.

[ About Clorinde ]

You met the Champion Duelist? Wow! You really do know a whole lot of people, [ traveler name here ]. Clorinde and I are pretty much besties. Yep. Ask her yourself if you don’t believe me.

[ About Sigewinne ]

There is nobody like Sigewinne expect Sigewinne. She still keeps in touch even after I left the fortress. She taught me a whole lot and I helped her out whenever my shift ended.

[ About Lyney ]

I will always remember the day we met. It was in the fortress and our shifts ended at the same time. Lyney took me aside and showed me a magic trick. I.. I didn’t understand what he was trying to do and so.. I kinda ate his cards. Lyney tried to show me another magic trick later that day and I ate the rose he gave me. I was really hungry that day.

[ About Lynette ]

Oh, yes. Lyney’s calm and collected twin sister. I met her in the fortress too. She had no interest in me. She still doesn’t have any interest in me.

[ About Freminet ]

Fremie? You know little sweet Fremie? He.. I think he might be scared of me. I try not to open my mouth too much when I’m around him. That.. does not help.

[ About Emilie ]

Oh.. I know that name. I just.. I don’t think I’ve met her.

[ About Charlotte ]

Huh? Who?.. Oooh! The journalist! Yeah. I sometimes check out The Steambird. She is always there when I am there. I never say anything that she shouldn’t know because I never say anything at all.

[ About QiQi ]

Wait.. you are telling me there is a child who died younger than me? How am I just now hearing about this? She.. lives with a doctor and a snake? I… I don’t understand what you are saying.

[ More About Henri: I ]

My life is not that complex. It is all about getting up whenever I fall down. I stand firm and I stand tall. I do what I do best and the Hydro Dragon will handle the rest!

[ More About Henri: II ]

Do you want to hear about my typical weekly or daily schedule? Too bad! Here goes..: I get up in the morning and if I smell terrible, I take a shower. If I do not smell terrible, I skip ahead to breakfast. I eat whatever Lyney or Lynette hand me. If they are not there, Fremie will hand me something. If Fremie isn’t there either, I will find something to eat for breakfast.

[ More About Henri: II ]

Whenever I am out, I always look for materials for Fremie. If I find anything, I will leave them in his work area.

[ More About Henri: III ]

I never told anyone this. I.. was once in Snezhnaya. I was ten at the time and my parents went missing. I never knew what happened to them until I got back half a year later. It was super cold. I had to train out in the snow with Childe. I played games with Columbina. I.. I gave my body to research.

[ More About Henri: IV ]

Do you think.. there are any other Paimons out there? I.. I want to keep her with me forever but I know you need her. I.. I don’t want to hurt her but I might if you leave her with me.

[ More About Henri: V ]

I do what the boss man asks. If Monsieur Neuvillette wants a cup of Monstadtian water but is too busy to get it himself, I will go there and get that cup for him. If the researchers need somebody who can withstand high voltage, I am their gal! Just call on me and I will be there within a second.

[ Henri’s Hobbies ]

I like playing games! I play Tabletop Troupe with the girlies. Clorinde is the best Game Master. You should join us sometime!

[ Henri’s Trouble ]

My insides are wrong. I never seem to grow taller. My chest is flat. The electro energy that flows through my veins and blood keeps both my heart and mind racing constantly. I.. I think I might be a walking corpse. I have the heart of a hillichurl and the brain of a human. My heart and brain often fight for control. My bones covered in electro crystals and my tongue covered in electro slime but I am still human. I am not just a toy.. right?

[ Favourite Food ]

I love the food down in the fortress but the best food I have found comes from this one hillichurl camp up in Monstadt. I will also take either Rainbow Marcarons, an occasional Leisurely Sip, some Cubic Tricks and Seabird’s Sojourn if you have any.

[ Least Favourite Food ]

I really don’t like Cubic Tricks but there is a dish that I despise far more than that: Calla Lily Seafood Soup. It’s disgusting.

[ Receiving a Gift: I ]

You.. want to give me something? Oh! How did you know that was my favourite? Thank you so much!

[ Receiving a Gift: II ]

Oh, no. Is this.. an experiment? It looks good! I will take it!

[ Receiving a Gift: III ]

AHHHHH!! WHAT IS THIS?! ACK!

[ Birthday ]

Congrats! You survived another year! Here! I got this for you. You better keep living and thriving, okay? It will annoy your enemies!

[ Feelings about Ascension: Building Up ]

Huh? Is this.. what you call “improvement”? Do you think I can improve more?

[ Feelings about Ascension: Climax ]

Ta-dah! I can do this now! Look at me go!

[ Feelings about Ascension: Conclusion ]

Wow! I can finally be Marquis of Fontaine for real! I owe it all to you. You helped me this entire time. I will make it worth your time, I promise.

Combat

[ Elemental skill: I ]

Divide and conquer!

[ Elemental skill: II ]

Hahaha! And your little dog too!

[ Elemental skill: III ]

La hurricane Henri has arrived! Prepare yourself!

[ Elemental Burst: I ]

Tag! You’re it!

[ Elemental Burst: II ]

Come on out and play!

[ Elemental burst: III ]

I have a surprise for you!~

[ Ally at Low HP: I ]

Hey! Leave them alone!

[ Ally at Low HP: II ]

Hahaha! Does the ground taste good?

[ Light Hit Taken ]

Ha! Try harder next time!

[ Heavy Hit Taken ]

Ow! Okay.. I didn’t mean that hard.

[ Fallen: I ]

You.. damn.. jerk..

[ Fallen: II ]

I will.. not.. stay dead.. for long.

[ Revived: I ]

Yay! I’m back!

[ Revived: II ]

Did I fall asleep again? I always fall asleep right in the middle of a battle..

[ Joining Party: I ]

I’m here!

[ Joining Party: II ]

Do you choose me?

[ Joining Party: III ]

I have sword. I have bow. I have catalyst.

[razorblade180]

Take a bow!

[Hotel Debord]

Lyney:Tadah! Magic!

A very familiar phrase accompanied by a flock of pigeons taking flight from a deck of cards. Applause from his dear friends, new and old, were all around him at Furina’s tea party.

Furina:Bravooo!

Navia:One of these days I’m going to find out how you do it.

Clorinde:Pretty sure that ruins the fun.

Lyney:I welcome her to try. It would only mean I’d need to even more crafty.

Lynette:I don’t really think that’s possible anymore.

Lyney:What’s that supposed to mean!?

Wriothesley:This certainly is the liveliest tea party I’ve ever seen. Almost feels like I should be paying for the show.

Lynette:*opens hand*

Neuvillette:I do believe he was joking.

Lynette:Oh I know, but if he’s willing…

Wriothesley:I can pay you in my dessert.

Lynette:That works.

Furina:H-Hey! I wouldve kept the slice if you didn’t want it.

Chiori:As if either of you need another slice of cake. At this rate both of you will end up having to pay me if you want keep those clothes.

Chevreuse:Lighten up. I eat whatever I like and I’m fine.

Everyone:You’re a special case….

Emilie:You’ll run off those calories before your body even realizes it’s eaten them.

Chevreuse:All of you can accomplish that too. *bites chicken* mind over matter and all that.

Everyone: “And all that” she say

Navia:Hehe, maybe has a magic trick for that too.

Lynette:Unfortunately…no

Lyney:It’s called a balanced meal and intake

Furina:Pfft, perhaps you should add comedian to your routine.

Charlotte:Honestly that might be kinda interesting.

Sigewinne:Although with you recently adding Freminet… I don’t see that in the future.

Freminet:Stand up is far beyond me. Although…there is a magic trick I’ve been working on. *red* I…I would actually like to try it now.

Lyney:Oh!? By all means, the crowd is yours!

Lynette:Lyney! Don’t freak him out.

Freminet:It’s alright. I got this.

He stands up and begins walking up, passing his brother on the way. Freminet could tell just how excited Lyney was about this. He faced his friends. Funny, Freminet never imagined having so many. Seeing them all calmed his nerves as grabbed a long table cloth from a pile of props Lyney and Lynette had put out for this casual show among friends. Freminet cleared his throat.

Freminet:Ladies and gentlemen. I, The Fantastic Freminet-

Navia, Lyney and Lynette:Awwww

Freminet:*blushing* Will attempt to make a person disappear!

Everyone:Oooooo~

Charlotte:Can’t go wrong with a classic.

Lyney:Umm, that’s a tall order. I was thinking you were about to make a chair vanish or a trick with Per. Don’t you need an assistant?

Freminet:Yes, I do. In secret I’ve practiced this particular trick. I’m not as good as you or Lynette but I’ve tried adding my own touch to it. Now then, may my assistant please step forward?

Everyone looked at one another, seeing who was about to stand up. However, all of them were just as puzzled. That’s when they heard the sound of footsteps coming up the stairs, their eyes shifted to the right and they all let out a surprise gasp before following it with a bittersweet smile. Approaching from the right was none other than Aether and Paimon wearing a similar smile alongside a couple of fully packed traveling bags.

I a couple seconds of silence filled the space before Chiori began to clap for the two assistance, snapping everyone out of their thoughts and adding to the applause as the travelers stood beside Freminet.

Freminet:I take it these two need no introduction?

Neuvillette:You can say that again.

Furina:And here I was wondering why I never got a response from you about my generous invitation. How cheeky of you.

Aether:We prefer…dramatic.

Furina:Hmm, *smiles* hats off to you.

Freminet:Would either assist like to say a few words before we start.

Paimon:….*tearing up*

Emilie:Aww, *smiles* “allergies?”

Paimon:Hehe, yep! It’s fine though! I…I have no words.

Wriothesley:That’s surp-

Clorinde:*elbows him* Aether? Any comments?

Aether:Honestly…I’m sorta afraid I might start talking a little too much if I’m not careful. A magic trick was one of the first things I witnessed in Fontaine, and it lead to so, so much more than I can imagine. What can I say? I’m happy to be apart of the show.

Lyney:*sniffles*…We’re glad to welcome you on stage.

Lynette:Anytime.

Freminet:*hanging up cloth* Now then, just as a reminder…it’s a disappearing act. As for reappearing…I haven’t gotten the hang of that.

Chevreuse:Don’t sweat it. I think I can speak for everyone when I say no matter how long it takes, I’m sure these two will reappear like magic.

Aether: Couldn’t have said it better myself. Freminet?

Freminet:Ready.

Aether and Paimon look at everyone one more time. Furina locks eyes with the golden hair adventurer as she stands up. Without a word, she bows politely. The rest of their friends follow suit, performing a bow before the two. Aether and Paimon could only smile gently as they finally bow back. It truly has been quite the show. With nothing else to do, they walk behind the sheet.

Freminet:Let’s count down from ten, then I’ll tear down the sheet.

Everyone: Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five..four….three…..two……one………farewell.

Freminet pulls down the sheet. Sure enough, the two wonderful assistants were gone. Freminet took his seat again, silently putting on his helmet. Immediately his siblings gently hugged him for such a moving performance. As much as anyone wanted to clap, nobody did. Instead, silence was broken by the sound of light rain hitting the windows of the hotel. Furina couldn’t help but chuckle as she glanced at Neuvillette.

Furina:Come now, new beginnings should be met with celebrations and clear skies. Nothing less than a standing ovation.

Neuvillette:You are right, Lady Furina. However…ideals like that are clearly difficult to uphold. *pulls out handkerchief*

Furina:Pfft, whatever do you mean? *takes it* I’m still new at controlling my Vision.

Navia:*wiping eyes* Hehe, I’m surprised you didn’t ask for one last photo.

Charlotte:It crossed my mind, but even I know how to read the room. Honestly I think my hands would’ve been too shaky. Beside…*smiles* we can all take one together later, when those two reappear like magic.