#cleanrot knight finlay

[catcas22]

Finlay and Rellana are two sides of the same coin. Both embody the Knight in Shining Armor archetype. Both exemplify loyalty and selfless love towards their unattainable doomed redhead commanding officer. Both really should have had a cutscene or at least face date please.

Finlay would appear to be the optimist of the pair. She fights for the Haligtree, for Miquella's supposed better world. Finlay is the type to say "I will follow you into Hell, and when you fall I will carry you out of Hell. Even if the flames consume me in your place, I will save you."

Rellana joined Messmer's Inquisition, an army so brutal that even the Golden Order turned away in shame. Rellana acknowledges that no one can save Messmer, not even her. Rellana is the type to say "I cannot carry you away from this Hell, because you carry it with you. But I would still like to sit here with you, in Hell, so that you don't have to bear it alone."

And I think both of those are extremely valid.

[etruski]

rotten yuri on my mind

[axydoesstuff]

halignation is this anything

[saildraws]

until the end

[blackbird1864]

the sillies

(meme based on my fic, Together in Rot, linked below--)

[koyoriin]

malenia and finlay commission!

https://twitter.com/koyoriin https://patreon.com/koyorin https://instagram.com/koyori_n https://bsky.app/profile/koyorin.bsky.social

[gorgynei]

the inherent homoeroticism of carrying someone across the continent when doing so is actively dangerous to your health

[paintingwinter]

Malenia and Cleanrot Knight Finlay

[wordslikesilver]

Wait. Oh my god I just. Something clicked and I need to be held now. St Trina is supposed to represent the part of Miquella that was able to heal others, genuinely and truly heal them, such that even the sickness would kneel and swear loyalty to her, for taking away its pain and misery (source: putrescent knight). Miquella’s needle represents a stop gap. A way of holding back and shielding one from the influence of outer gods. Pure, unalloyed kindness that can relieve you of even the pain of the scarlet rot, so long as it remains within you.

So when… when Malenia ripped out the needle… and sacrificed all her pride, honour and humanity in order to let the scarlet flower bloom in her fight with Radahn to guarantee her victory no matter the cost (Millicent is her humanity trying to return to herself, she is literally the rejection of the scarlet rot that Malenia feels, ejected from her body during the first blooming, I’ve gotta do a whole post on Millicent because she’s a fascinating character study with world building context of the DLC added)…

Doesn’t that mean she ripped out the literal kindness she felt from her own brother in order to do what she did? Dude wtf hold me. But wait it’s even worse because not only can she no longer feel her brother’s kindness protecting her, she didn’t have anyone or any way to put back the rot goddess. Unless… it was Finlay. Because as stated by putrescent knight’s remembrance, to be loved is to be healed (St Trina is Miquella’s love). So not only did Finlay carry the Scarlet Bloom all the way back to the Haligtree from Caelid, when Malenia awoke alone without her brother there anymore to help her heal making her bloom all over again, Finlay stepped in to help save her from herself. To be loved is to be healed. And Malenia was definitely both loved and healed because when we find her… she’s asleep. And St Trina, saint of healing and sleep, is love.

ELDEN RING LESBIANS CONFIRMED???

[dragoncult-handmaiden]

I want to be every soulsborne woman at the same time. Why are they all so ethereal and divine and mysterious and powerful and feminine and graceful and elegant and dark and I love women

[garden-of-deep-purple]

My Finlay headcanons

In short: she was one of Malenia's mentors, who in time became her apprentice's devoted follower. No romantic stuff involved.

Now, longer version. If you remember my Finlay, she's a senior knight. if you don't, there she is

In my headcanons, Finlay was one of mentors hired by Queen Marika to teach her daughter. Finlay taught Malenia battle tactics and leadership stuff. She treated Malenia with respect, she is one of royals after all, but Malenia was too young when they met so Finlay could barely think of her seriously. She was already a war veteran so the gap between them was too big.

Malenia grew up though, and Finlay witnessed how a sick girl blooms into a fearsome warrior with an unbreakable will. The time Malenia organised Cleanrot knights she freed her aging mentor from the oaths. Finlay knelt and told the princess that she's the lord worth rotting and dying for. And so, Finlay became one of Cleanrot captains.

After the battle of Aeonia Finlay was frustrated. She carried Malenia to Haligtree having big hopes for her future.

Finlay knew full well that she will never see her apprentice waking up.

[eghostsofdeadchildren]

Tiche the goat summon.

[etruski]

Finlay’s sacrifice

[valkyurii]

🥹💕

[thepapermice]

[razables]

round 2