#my first planned out fic was with xingqiu though

[isekyaaa]

Tbh the reason why I even considered writing Genshin fics is because I wanted to write for characters like Chongyun, Xingqiu, and Bennett. They're all very interesting characters with a lot of potential

[klixxy]

Genshin Fic Recs

so... i ventured into the vast world of Google looking for some good GI fic recs... only to find such a pitiful amount that i was promptly devastated. therefore, the solution is to make my own! :D

keep in mind most of these will be ChiLi or XingYun, and yes, i will try not to include smut unless it was one i really really liked. if anyone wants a separate list for just smut (though that will most likely be shorter) i can try to make one later.`

ft. my bookmark comments :)

CHILI

wrapped up in pure gold by beyondwinter

(chili; accidental marriage; chili/childe-centric; 22k words; ongoing)

"Do you understand its meaning, Childe?" He finally asks. There's a hard glint in his eyes, like he's trying to steel himself for his answer.

"Yeah." Loyalty and devotion, right? Between business partners? "I do. It's traditional, isn't it?"

Zhongli's eyes glow a warm amber in the near darkness, reflecting the soft shine of the lanterns. He studies his face with a strange intensity, as though Childe were a piece of high quality Nocticulous Jade being sold for suspiciously small sum and he's trying to find the blemishes that would explain the price. The weight of his gaze should be uncomfortable, boring into him like he can see into the very depths of his abyss-tainted soul, but Childe finds himself preening under the attention instead.

Childe accidentally proposes to Zhongli. Zhongli accepts.

The World is Water by Millereflets

(chili; smut; hurt/comfort; chili-centric; 7k words; oneshot)

Childe doesn't visit Zhongli until it's almost too late.

(my bookmarks: HOW DO YOU MAKE A SMUT SCENE SO POETIC HOLY SHITTTTT)

Set in Stone by seredemia

(chili; fake dating au; angst; some smut?; chili/chiilde-centric; 55k words; ongoing)

What do you do when you write about a certain six thousand year old consultant so much in your letters that it somehow convinces your entire family you're not only dating each other, but that you're also engaged?

In Childe's case, the answer is plain and simple: he goes along with it, of course. Absolutely nothing can go wrong if he makes a contract with the God of Contracts, vowing that the two of them will pretend to be lovers for the duration of his family's stay in Liyue. Afterwards, they'll return as normal and speak no more of this mess. No feelings or complications involved whatsoever.

Contract accepted. A fool-proof plan set in stone. Right?

Private Ledger of the Eleventh Harbinger by JuHuaTai

(chili; humor; getting together; chili/ekaterina-centric; 5k words; oneshot)

“So guess what I did next?”

Ekaterina contemplated not answering, but Harbinger Tartaglia was just… grinning and waiting. It’s honestly rather creepy the longer time passed.

In the end, she gave a long suffering sigh that seems lost on him, “You bought him the Erhu—“

“I bought him the antique, cor lapis based Erhu,”

-

When she first left her homeland for the unknown nation of Liyue, Ekaterina was ready to be many things: To be a soldier, to fell Tsaritsa’s enemies in her name, to bring glory to Snezhnaya and her leader.

Being a receptionist in a cozy bank wasn’t so bad in comparison, but she absolutely can do without the front row seat to Harbinger Tartaglia’s (expensive) love life.

i know i'm where i'm meant to go by paperclips (pastel_paperclips)

(chili; humor; fluff; chili-centric; 12k words; ongoing)

"Childe," Zhongli says suddenly. "I am enjoying myself greatly." Childe’s face breaks into a grin. "Then-" Zhongli gasps, grabbing his wrist and tugging him over to an unsuspecting peddler with a cart full of rocks. "Is that an intrusive igneous pegmatite formed in the Inazuma regions?" Childe’s grin smooths into a small, adoring smile. He has all the time in the world to figure the other man out.

OR: Finding the Geo Archon is on Childe's to-do list but hanging out with Zhongli is significantly more fun.

CHILIVEN

Crumbling Stone by avtorSola

(chiliven; ANGST; PAIN; mind control; zhongli-centric; 74k words; ongoing)

When Morax unleashes his plan to test the Liyue Qixing and his adepti, he does not take into account the stirring of the Abyss Order in the north and the corruption of Dvalin - for why would he fear an organization that works in such shadows? He is secure in his power, after all, unlike his flighty ex, the absentee archon of Mondstadt who rises only when his people are in danger.

But, somehow, the Abyss Order discovers his plan. Somehow, they capitalize on it. And he, the God of Stone who cannot sicken, is struck down - taken by an order bent on destroying all of humanity as Liyue crumbles around him. For even Archons aren't immune to Durin's blood, and Morax is no exception. But then the question becomes - if even Archons may fall to the agony of this corrupting burn - how is their traveling friend Aether immune?

The answer comes from beyond the stars - an ancient malice that knows no kindness or mercy. A malice whose legacy the Abyss Order now bears, seeking to topple all the Archons and their people into the void of utter destruction. And they have begun in Liyue.

Fortunately, it takes a long time to erode stone.

(my bookmarks: IM SCREAMING AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA)

PLATONIC ZHONGVEN

left-behind city by trixstar

(platonic zhongven; angst; ANGST; venti-centric; 1k words; oneshot)

"An associate of mine has just informed me that Rex Lapis, the Geo Archon has been assassinated."

Venti blinks.

Or: Venti and how he copes with finding out he is all that remains.

i circle ten thousand years long; and i still do not know if i am a falcon, a storm, or an unfinished song by birdsofpassage

(platonic zhongven; angst; hurt/comfort; zhongven-centric; 4k words; oneshot)

Venti and Zhongli, and the vignettes of a much-needed vacation around Mondstadt.

(my bookmarks: ; - ;      ;  -  ; )

oh ye with little faith by air_fried_air

(platonic zhongven; angst; hurt/comfort; zhongven-centric; 2k words; oneshot)

Two former archons do a little tour around Mondstadt.

(my bookmarks: why are all genshin angst fics so melancholy.... i feel so empty)

the wind through the mountain tops by glassdrachma

(platonic zhongven; humor; hurt/comfort; zhongven-centric; 21k words; finished)

Boredom brings Barbatos of Mondstadt to bother a certain ex-Archon of the Earth.

(my bookmarks: venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship venti zhongli friendship-)

XINGYUN

the art of exorcism by Agried

(xingyun; ghost au; hurt/comfort; chongyun-centric; 9k words; oneshot)

On the road back from one of his jobs, Chongyun runs into Xingqiu, the wandering swordsman. And then they keep meeting, over and over again. or, alternately; how a ghost and an exorcist learn how to love, one step at a time.

Bane of All Evil by tzitzimeme

(xingyun; humor; romance; chongyun-centric; 24k words; hiatus)

When Chongyun unintentionally offends Liyue's second most powerful adepti, he vows to mend the thorny relationship between Adeptus Xiao and human exorcists-- even though no one has succeeded in currying Xiao's favor for over a thousand years.

His best friend Xingqiu offers to come alone, mainly because he's worried about what kind of trouble Chongyun will run into. Along the way, they receive help from others: Xiangling packs them meals for their journeys, while Zhongli gives them advice on what demons to track.

Childe is just there because he thinks the whole thing is hilarious.

[On indefinite hiatus due to burnout; sorry!]

kiss me slowly (so i don't forget) by xiwangmu

(xingyun; humor; romance; light angst; xingqiu-centric; 8k words; oneshot)

Wangshu Inn Bulletin Board

Guest Message: My best friend whom I harbor affections for kissed me last night, but due to his special condition he does not recall a single moment of it. I am quite conflicted about whether to disclose these events to him or not, because that would most certainly require me to confess my feelings as well. If anyone has experience in romancing boys with excessive positive energy, this one humbly asks you to share some advice.

Reply: Our greatest apologies—although we would like to offer some words in response, we simply cannot decipher your handwriting. Perhaps you may return with a neater message next time?

time trials by idlestars

(xingyun/many ships; humor; modern au; xingyun-centric; 2k words; oneshot)

A modern social media AU.

Xingqiu Teases Demons. Chongyun Almost Cries. [The clip shows Xingqiu, lit by the sickly green of night vision, as he stares bored into a dark room. He’s alone - Chongyun left to see if Xingqiu could lure out the ghosts. Xingqiu glances at the camera, smirks, and then opens his mouth.

“Hey demons, it’s me, yah boy.”]

OTHER/GEN

woe be the wallet of the god of wealth by glassdrachma

(gen; humor; identity reveal; keqing/zhongli-centric; 12k words; finished)

Or, the story of how the Yuheng of the Qixing came to idolize, befriend, and discover the identity of the God of Geo, in that order.

(personal comments: hilarious, made me burst out into laughter multiple times, and was just a masterful piece of writing)

to dream of dust by miao_x

(guili/gen; ANGST; hurt/no comfort; zhongli-centric; 5k words; oneshot)

Some nights, Zhongli dreams.

He dreams of soft light, golden song, and a gentle breeze whispering tales of millennia past. It is warm, familiar, and comforting.

It feels like home.

And then he opens his eyes, and awakes to reality.

(my bookmarks: oh zhongli... made me cry)

To drown in your own tears by C_rin_nyan

(guili/gen; ANGST; TEARS; PAIN; zhongli-centric; 2k words; oneshot)

As Rex Lapis, he had never shed a tear, even as he slaughtered hundreds, destruction following his every step. As Zhongli, he had shed much more than he would like to admit, however.

Or, “Zhongli’s soul gave its last scream long ago, yet even now, the echo of said sound was still strong enough to reach Rex Lapis.”

[tickly-trashcan]

Vengeance {Xingyun}

A/N: hello, jai aka anzynai. I have come to deliver your request hehe. i think this is my first time writing a fic for these two together, it was a lot of fun~ I hope you enjoy and remember to stay hydrated!

Summary: Chongyun is sick of being tickled by Xingqiu, and he decides to try and get him back.

Word Count: 1k (under the cut)

“Xingqiu! Stahahahap! I’m gohohonna dieee!” Chongyun wailed, thrashing around underneath Xingqiu as he scribbled his fingers across the claymore users ribs.

“Boo, you’re not gonna die. But fine, I suppose you could use a break,” Xingiu quipped, grinning widely before hopping off of his boyfriend, chuckling as he walked away. 

Chongyun grumbled, pulling out a popsicle and nibbled on it, stewing in frustration as Xingqiu had tickled him nearly to tears the third time that week. It wasn’t fair, he could never get back at Xingqiu for his tickles and pranks, so he just had to deal with them and stuff a popsicle in his mouth after to control his yang energy.

He had complained to Xiangling and Xinyan about it, but they had… minimal advice. 

Xiangling had told him to cook up a bunch of carrots and force-feed them to Xingqiu, but he was sure that he would never be forgiven if he did that.

Xinyan had told him that he should wait until Xingqiu is fast asleep, then yell in his ear to startle him awake. She said there’s nothing like a good scare to knock some sense into people, but Xingqiu was one of the deepest sleepers Chongyun had ever encountered.

As Chongyun continued to ponder on ways to get back at his mischievous boyfriend, Xingqiu pulled out his book and laid down on his stomach next to Chongyun. He looked over at Chongyun and smirked.

“How’s that popsicle?”

Chongyun sighed. “Same as always. Y’know, I’m starting to have a very limited supply because of you!”

Xingqiu only laughed, turning back to his book as Chongyun tucked away the popsicle stick, glaring at Xingqiu. As he stared at him, he noticed a leaf fall from the tree down onto the back of Xingqiu’s neck.

Chongyun reached out and grabbed the leaf gently, trying not to disturb Xingqiu’s reading. He might’ve been a little upset with him for having tickled him, but he wasn’t about to disturb his boyfriend’s favorite hobby.

He wasn’t expecting, however, for Xingqiu to flinch and swat at his hand. Chongyun raised an eyebrow.

“Are you alright? I was just getting rid of the leaf.”

“Ah… there was a leaf? Sorry, I thought you were… never mind.”

Chongyun cocked his head to the side in confusion. “Thought I was what?”

Xingqiu leaned closer to the book, pretending to be engrossed as Chongyun frowned. He reached for Xingqiu’s neck again, swiping his finger across it as Xingqiu flinched again, reaching back to swat at his hand again.

“Was there a leaf again?” Xingqiu asked, and Chongyun didn’t respond. Chongyun slowly put some of the pieces together, and his eyes widened.

“Wait, you’re ticklish?!” 

Xingqiu jolted at the word and slammed his book shut, whipping his head around to look at Chongyun.

“I’m not! I just… I don’t like people touching my neck!” Xingqiu stammered, though his face grew redder with every word. Chongyun chuckled dryly.

“So you’re telling me… that you’ve tickled me half to death nearly every day just for fun and you’re ticklish yourself? When were you planning on telling me??” Chongyun said, scooting closer to Xingqiu, who backed up.

“I… I didn’t-”

Chongyun pounced on Xingiu, who let out a yelp, followed by a frantic string of giggles as Chongyun scribbled his fingers against Xingqiu’s sides.

“You are ticklish! So you lied about it too, huh? Oh, you’re so in for it,” Chongyun said, Xingqiu shaking his head as he wailed.

“Nohohohoho! Plehehehease, Chongyun! I’m sohohohorry!”

Chongyun ignored Xingqiu’s pleas, he was dead set on getting revenge for all the times that he had been tormented. He climbed up to Xingqiu’s ribs, digging into every single one as his boyfriend squawked beneath him, laughing.

Chongyun had heard Xingqiu laugh before, sure, but it was mostly an amused chuckle or a short, proper laugh. But right now, he had some of the most outrageous laughter Chongyun had ever heard. It was shrieky, loud, and rather opposite of Xingqiu's normal personality.

“I didn’t mehehehehean it! Plehehease, no mohohore!”

“Nuh-uh, I’m gonna tickle you just as long as you’ve tickled me. How long was it a few moments ago… five minutes? Ten? I wonder if you’ll be able to even last that long,” Chongyun jeered, feeling confident now that he had the upper hand on Xingqiu. Xingqiu squealed, followed by a snort as Chongyun chuckled.

Chongyun pinched lightly at Xingqiu’s tummy, making him squeal as he grabbed onto Chongyun’s wrists, trying to pull his hands off as he prodded at the lower part. Xingqiu laughed loudly when Chongyun started to experimentally knead his hips, drawing out more hysterical noises as he worked.

Xingqiu wailed, wiggling around frantically as Chongyun went back to his ribs, climbing higher and higher until he reached his uppermost rib, where Xingqiu’s laughter became desperate.

“Chohohohongyun!! GAHa! Not thehehehere!” Xingqiu cackled when Chongyun dug his hands under Xingqiu’s arms. He scribbled his fingers around, making Xingqiu arch his back as he laughed.

“Not where? Not here? Hmm… let’s see how bad it is first, alright?”

“NohohohOHOHO!” Xingqiu’s laughter slowly escalated, to the point where it was mostly squeals and shrieks as Chongyun rubbed his thumbs into the hollows of Xingqiu’s armpits. His face was bright red at this point, and his dimples were showing from how wide he was smiling. Chongyun slowed down a bit, staring at Xingqiu for a few moments as he cackled loudly.

“I cahahahahan’t -- I can’t breheheheathe! Plehehease, stop!” Xingqiu gasped out, and Chongyun pulled his hands away, watching as Xingqiu came down from his giggle high and caught his breath.

“Thahat was… evil,” Xingqiu wheezed, and Chongyun crossed his arms, frowning.

“Yeah, well you do it to me all the time! It’s about time you had a taste of your own medicine!”

Xingqiu chuckled softly, nodding his head. “I suppose I did have that coming… Although, dear Chongyun, did you think that tickling me would make me stop?”

Chongyun looked down at Xingqiu in confusion, raising an eyebrow. “What do you mean - WAhahaha! Nohohoho, that’s not fahahahair!”

Chongyun fell backwards off of Xingqiu as he squeezed his hips, following him and scribbling his short nails across Chongyun’s tummy.

“Ah, my dear Chongyun, you’re too naive~”

[pixelatedchocobo]

Brought to you for you consideration by my Chongyun brainrot, I proudly present to you a Xingyun soulmate au ever so clichély named by yours truly, drum roll, folks, if you please...

🥳✨Young and Hopelessly Smitten, Indeed✨🥳 

Lol, real shit though, I had a lot of fun writing this and it’s actually? My first fic that I ever finished that wasn’t a drabble? I was so shocked when I realized, hey what the fuck, that’s like. The ending, the ending I planned. I genuinely had no clue what to do with myself for like a good solid while. Honestly didn’t think I’d get that far. So without further ado, let me tell you a bit about it!

Ahehehem, allow me to-  

Yep, there we go! I don’t need to go clogging up the tag you’ve been scrolling through here and thank you to those who have actually clicked the read more thing, y’all are great.

Can you tell I’m actually super anxious about this? Anywho! What you came here for!

Title: Young and Hopelessly Smitten, Indeed

Rated: Teen and Up Audiences- Realistically General Audiences, but just to be safe here.

Status: Complete! Yep, no need to go waiting on me! 

Summary: 

Chongyun just knew. Knew it with such a soul-piercingly deep certainty that he merely wondered where it would be and what shape it would take.

--- A Xingyun soulmate AU where, as midnight hits and it becomes your 18th birthday, so too does a soul mark manifest. Xingqiu has a lot of feelings on the matter, but that's okay. Chongyun is never far and always ready to comfort him.

AO3 Tags: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Their soulmarks are their constellations, Romantic Soulmates, Though platonic soulmates do in fact exist, Soft Chongyun (Genshin Impact), Chongyun is young and hopelessly smitten, Xingqiu is ALSO young and hopelessly smitten, Flustered Xingqiu (Genshin Impact), Chongyun's Yang Energy (Genshin Impact), Idiots in Love, Chongyun knows, Chongyun-centric (Genshin Impact), Xingqiu is a crybaby, Slight OOC, Aged up just for plot purposes, POV Third Person, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Everything is Beautiful and Nothing Hurts, Xingqiu is a clingy bastard, Chongyun doesn't mind

And finally... A Preview: 

Reaching out carefully, Chongyun smoothed a stray strand of hair out of his soulmate’s - goodness, he couldn’t get enough of even just mentally referring to Xingqiu as such- sleeping face, though it did little for his severe case of bedhead. It did, however, draw forth a gossamer of a smile from the sleeping boy as he leaned into the touch. With that, he quietly got up and made his way to the bathroom, and rolled the waistband of his pajamas down to examine the newly formed mark. He almost laughed as the extremely familiar image came into view. Most definitely Xingqiu then, if he’d had any lingering doubts, not that he’d had any to begin with. But still, the confirmation was comforting nonetheless.

With that said, thank you to those of you who read it and thank you to the rest for your consideration! 

[streetlights-was-taken]

💭: character exploration i

in the process of writing the first interlude for long live the long life, I figured I should write down how I want to characterize the main plot drivers for the new story arc, since I'm completely doing an original plot from here on out.

the first arc was kinda easy to write since I was just building up to the canon divergence and I was writing around in-game plot. and I have a pretty good grasp of what venlumi's character journey will be like.

I also have some small regrets for making the first arc so long considering it was........ an introductory arc, but what's done is done lmao. we needed to establish venlumi's characters anyway, and introduce scaramouche and albedo before the canon divergence, and introduce the concept of little palaces. ANYWAY.

this time though, I'm on my own and I'm working with waaay more characters than I did in act i, so I need to plan out my characters better and actually set them up properly, since I am no longer relying on in-game events to do that for me.

since I am a writer that relies heavily on themes to understand the direction of my writing, I basically ended up giving each character a guiding theme to center themselves on.

mona: one of the main stars of our interlude who will introduce one of the themes of the fic. mona believes in guidance through absolute fate; that is, the stars seem to clearly dictate the future, and so we should seize the destiny that is given to us. a bit of a fatalist, but with a rebellious side that wants to believe in free will. she is a compatibilist that believes free will is not incompatible with determinism. although she is more of an introductory/side character, the events of act ii will make her question what it means for her to advise and read the fates of others when she realizes that she has been reading from a script all along, that the fates of this world have been written long before, and loops back around time and time again. more importantly, the script can be rewritten. we won't see the conclusion of her character until the epilogue, but she is here for the ride and must witness the events of the story until the end for her to grow. I would like for her to, in the future, become a protector of free will.

"But if all time already exists, haven't we already made this choice?"

"I don't know, but what's that to stop you from making it?

xingqiu: exists to contrast mona (and to be a witness for the events of act iii later). if mona believes in guidance through absolute fate, xingqiu believes in guidance through fiction. that is, the stories we tell ourselves and the stories we proliferate and believe in are the cornerstones of human culture, and should be the guiding hand that pushes us to the future. he's a little bit like venti in this regard. although he's a realist when it comes to business, deep in his heart xingqiu is a hardcore idealist and optimist when it comes to everyday life. his only goal in the story is to get inspiration for his next book and write. and oh boy is he gonna get the wildest inspirations in this fic. like mona, we won't see the conclusion of his character until the epilogue. he is also more of a side character than mona is. but his role in the epilogue will be one of the most significant, so it's important for him to be introduced early to witness everything.

albedo: the star of act ii who will lead the investigation of the different mysteries presented to him. why and how did heru die? what was she researching about? and what is happening to mondstadt?

albedo searches for an objective truth to the world; an explanation that clearly and scientifically explains how the world works and why. this also parallels with mona's belief in guidance through absolute fate. if fate is determined and truth is objective, then there is a "correct" way to live and an "ideal" life to aspire to. of course, although this is the ideal, albedo desires agency just like anyone else. the compelling characteristic about albedo is that he displays compassion for people but also has a very methodical and lowkey intense desire to search for the truth. so... if finding the truth costs a lot, how much is albedo willing to pay? he won't let others get hurt, but he himself can probably take it, whatever that cost might be.

and I think that's what excites me to write him. his character arc is similar to 9S from nier automata. he's curious to a grave fault, and will poke his nose into anything to find the truth, even if it's a Bad Idea. it will be fun to write him as a detective, with scaramouche as his watson.

I also want to do an eldritch horror moment for him once he does figure out how teyvat (in the fic) works. a moment where he feels like the ant (mortal) being inspected by a human (god); the ant who cannot comprehend the world the way god can. and right when he's close to reaching enlightenment... he must pay the cost, and he is back to his limited ant worldview.

scaramouche (kunikuzushi): I'll call him scaramouche here, but for most of the fic he'll be referred to as kunikuzushi. scaramouche exists to contrast albedo (and to be one of the main drivers of act iii later). if albedo believes in an objective truth, scaramouche believes in the importance of a subjective truth. he is a puppet created for a purpose, but he can't even fulfill it. so for him, subjective meaning has more weight. out of all the long lifers in this fic, scaramouche also has the biggest desire to be a god and to have power, mostly so he can definitely for sure protect his own agency and control over his life. this also parallels with xingqiu and venti's belief that humans shape the future through the stories they tell themselves.

he is a supporting character to albedo in act ii, but will shine more as the main character in act iii. I hope to write both the rough and fragile parts of him, as they are all different sides of himself. he does gravitate to albedo though because albedo treats him like a person, whereas elsewhere he is treated as a puppet (by ei, dottore), as a suspicious fatui member (mona, paimon), or as someone to pity (venlumi — at least, this is what he believes venlumi sees him as). he won't admit it, but one of the reasons why he planted his own directive in lumine is because he wanted to secure for himself an ally that won't betray him no matter what he does or what face he shows. it may not be "genuine" loyalty, but it will be a secure one. and for scaramouche at this point in his story, that's more important.

the other reason is that he's just really pissed off to see lumine waste herself away like ei does lol. the soft boy that he was before he became a puppet is the kind who would sympathize with people in situations similar to his (i.e. lumine, albedo). it's like, "oh you already have everything in life and you still want to waste it? fuck off, I'm making you live even if you don't want to." he's rough around the edges now, but that kind boy is still there inside him.

at some point, he will probably have a similar moment to yin yu from tgcf where he's very angry and hateful, but he's just gonna say, "so what? I do hate and I am angry, but so what?" I see him as someone who is both soft and empathetic inside and just wants to be loved, but he's hardened by his experiences and has an intense and prickly demeanor as a result. and that makes it hard for him to trust, but also makes him very protective of the few people he decides are good.

because of that, I've had to think about what happens to his fatui underlings after he leaves the fatui. I think as a harbinger, he already put some distance between himself and his team and doesn't entertain any attachments towards them. so when he left the fatui, he let everyone disperse to other teams so they wouldn't be held responsible for his actions. but even so, I think he would have a few loyalists in his team, for whatever reason. so of those that still want to follow him wherever he goes (there's not a lot of them, probably just a handful), I'll shuffle them off to diluc lmao. there are several reasons:

it's like a peace offering. diluc would be the most distrustful and wary of scaramouche being in mondstadt. but unlike the knights, he's not bound by politics and hierarchy to do something about it (e.g. if the knights did something about signora or scaramouche without evidence of them doing something against mondstadt, that's like attacking a foreign diplomat for no reason. which, you know, isn't what your government should be doing against ambassadors of any nation, let alone one with the strongest military). so it would be in scaramouche's best interest to earn diluc's good will.

even though scaramouche likes albedo, he doesn't necessarily have to like the knights of favonius or anyone else really. so in his position, diluc is the best option to take care of whoever is bananas enough to still want to follow him. particularly because diluc is also not fond of the knights, is also familiar with how the fatui work, and is also familiar with working with underground networks and using more shady methods that the upstanding knights publicly shy away from (don't forget, that man is ready to torture abyss mages if needed).

most importantly, albedo and alice already approve of diluc's character. scaramouche doesn't necessarily trust diluc, but as a friend of a friend, he is not on the shit list.

scaramouche will be a nice contrast to aether later in act iii, but that is for another post. I also still need to see how his character actually pans out in-game, since I haven't done any of the sumeru archon quests yet or heard his voicelines. so the nuances of his character might be enhanced or changed as needed to make his characterization closer to canon. I'm still trying to strike the balance between his mean side and his soft side. I don't want him to be too soft, since that's not how he presents himself in the game.

"if the legitimacy or the meaning of a belief really came down to whether or not it were actually true, then most people wouldn't believe anything in this world."

dorian (subject two): dorian serves as a bridge between the themes monaqiu and scarabedo represent. originally I wasn't planning to write dorian and would merge his character with albedo. however, somehow he just popped up into the fic one day and demanded to be included. very in character of him to assert his own existence like that, both in the game and even in this fic lol.

originally, I planned to have albedo be the one to question what it means to be human and how one should live. but I think this is much more effective to explore through dorian. the canon divergence already makes it so that he has a tenuously amicable relationship with albedo and friends, so his whole thing is about navigating his own place in society as an individual. he still poses as albedo, but he wants to differentiate himself from him as well. albedo wants to think his way through life and figure out the truth, so dorian will try to experience life to the fullest through action. he will get his shining moment in the end of act ii and in the epilogue for his efforts.

"there is no reality except in action"

venlumi will take a backseat for act ii to give other characters room to grow, especially since we (readers and writer) are no longer going through the fic with a shared understanding of canon events. act i was easy to write because everyone knows what happened in inazuma, so I can skip a lot of world building and let the game establish the characters and relationships for me and I'll just add on top of that. but this is no longer the case!

but even if we diverged from canon, venlumi won't just suddenly disappear! I plan to use act ii to develop their relationship and to give the readers an opportunity to see them through an outside perspective, since act i was zoomed in on their own internal thoughts and was used as a space to establish their individual stories (with venti being a god who believes in the romance of hope, lumine as a god bound to her ideals of duty, and how those two values combine and clash through their characters).

in the interlude, I wanted to start building on their reputation together as this sort of power couple lol. well, for those who know venti is the archon (or at least, suspect that he's not an ordinary person), they are a power couple. but for those who know venti as a bard, they probably see the two of them as just a cute pair of lovers (while internally wondering how the heck venti of all people managed to seduce the honorary knight).

in the grand scheme of things, mondstadt is centered on found families. I think barbatos will adopt just about anyone into the family, including some ex-fatui members. at the same time, lumine will start sharing in that kind of love for the people. she wants to protect mondstadt because mondstadt took her in as part of the family too. in other countries, she's a hero and an outlander whose reputation precedes her. but in mondstadt, she's the honorary knight. mondstadters see her as one of their own, and they knew her before she became famous. they have built a personal relationship with her beyond just her "hero" persona.

since I'll be focusing on the development of other characters for act ii, venlumi will be more like a lens through which others can reflect themselves. albedo's search for the truth, scaramouche's search for meaning, mona and dorian's struggle with fate vs free will... all of those are things that are not strictly venlumi's problems, but they'll be there to help their friends get through them.

so I guess we're going back to the classic "traveler helps out other people with their problems" story lol.

both of them will come back into focus in act iii when aether gets introduced! especially venti, since act iii will be the conclusion of his and scaramouche's arcs. but looking at how many words act i needed... that won't be for another 40k+ words lmao

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there are other characters in act ii, but in case someone reads this post to the end, I'll remove my thoughts on them here to keep the mystery going.

there are also some characters I still need to flesh out for act iii (namely: alice, aether). idk if some of the inazuma characters will come back (namely: kazuha and kokomi); I planned to do that originally, but I was doing some lore reading and realized that my original plan was not going to work lmao. uh, so I'll figure it out later. they won't be needed until at least four more chapters, and we already know how long my chapters can be. so... this will do for now!