|
|
|
|
|
|
- I had Lyney help bring some cakes to give to the theater trope for teatime, those cakes were made by the children with their own hands. It was gifted under the name "big fan", I hope she likes it.
- —Arlecchino's voiceline about Furina
Arlefuri is the femslash ship between Arlecchino and Furina from the Genshin Impact fandom.
Canon[]
Arlecchino is a Fatui Harbinger of Khaenriahn origin, while Furina is acting as the Hydro Archon, the God ruling over Fontaine. Because of the Fatui's objective of stealing all the Gnosis and "burning away the old world", the two are automatically pitted against each other.
Design-wise, Arlecchino and Furina have matching but opposing colour palettes: both widely use black and white, but Arlecchino matches them with red and Furina with blue. Both of them sport traditionally masculine and elegant clothing.
To the Stars Shining in the Depths[]
Through a letter, Arlecchino invites the Hydro Archon for an informal meeting, to discuss over tea and sweets. Wanting to entertain the Harbinger but reluctant to go alone, Furina accepts the invite, and meets Arlecchino with Neuvillette by her side. At the encounter, Arlecchino gifts the two some pastries as a way to show her thanks for looking after her children, while making sure to mention Furina's false accusations towards Lyney. During the entire meeting, Furina struggles to keep her persona intact, barely responding to Arlecchino's provocations.
Cataclysm's Quickening[]
On Neuvillette's request, the Traveler joins Arlecchino and Furina's second meeting at the Opera Epiclese. While at first it appears to be another informal talk over tea and sweets, this encounter goes arguably worse than the first one, as the tension is palpable and Arlecchino is more aggressive with her complaints about Furina. In fact, the Harbinger accuses her of being lazy and incompetent, having let Fontaine be at the prophecy's mercy ever since the previous Hydro Archon died. Furina is even more insecure and unstable this time around, often stuttering or poorly trying to defend herself from Arlecchino's accusations. However, when the Fatui suggests that the Archon has no plan to protect Fontaine, Furina shows confidence for the first time, being especially offended at this suggestion. This surprises Arlecchino for but a brief moment, as she keeps on asking burning questions to which Furina doesn't know how to answer. After Arlecchino goes on a particularly heated rant, she calms back down and resumes her elegant and polite façade. The two adopt their personas until the end of their meeting, which leaves Furina extremely shaken.
After their meeting, it is revealed that the reason why Furina was so insecure was because of an assassination[1] attempt from Arlecchino mere days prior to their first encounter. Thinking back on that event, Arlecchino remarks how weak and scared the Archon appeared, making her doubt she even is an Archon in the first place.
Quotes[]
- “The Knave? W-Who's that? Oh... Uh, I'd already forgotten about her... Keeping such a terrible figure like her in your mind will only give you nightmares.”
- — Furina's voiceline about Arlecchino
Fanon[]
Arlefuri is a ship that first started gaining attention with the 4.0 version drop as pairing a Harbinger with the Archon of the nation they appear in has been done before on multiple occasions (the most popular example being ZhongChi and Mavuitano).
It gained further popularity with Arlecchino's first appearance in-game with the 4.1 Archon Quests, and the reveal that she claimed to be of Fontainian origin. Arlecchino and Furina are occasionally involved in a somewhat troubled or even unhealthy relationship when it comes to fanon. The shippers highlight their opposing ideals and factions. Furthermore, they are often depicted to have a classic "good girl, bad girl" dynamic.
Another aspect that draws the attention of the shippers is their evident size difference. A lot of fanfiction and fanart depicts Arlecchino as the dominant alpha in the relationship and being very assertive with Furina.
In addition, there is a common argument between shippers and non-shippers that the relationship between the two would be abusive. Furina's fear of Arlecchino stemmed from the fact that she had to pretend to be an Archon, and she knew that Arlecchino knew she was not the Archon, hence Furina having a lot of pressure on her to put up her act. However, she no longer has to do this, meaning that if they were to ever meet again, Furina would likely be less afraid of her. Also, she was powerless in their meetings so she feared that Arlecchino may harm her, but she now has a Vision - she at least has some self-defense. In addition, while Furina's traumatising experience with Arlecchino has left her still fearful of her (to the point that she freezes up in her "About the Knave" voiceline and mentions having nightmares), Arlecchino has taken small steps in the aftermath to smooth over their relationship by having Lyney deliver her and her troupe cakes. This is also notable considering that, during the tea party with the Traveler, Arlecchino offers them an extra slice of cake as reward for their efforts, saying that those who work hard deserve gratitude and praise. By extension, it could be surmised that this is Arlecchino recognizing Furina's hard work over the centuries. As these cakes were delivered under the pretence of being a gift from Arlecchino's children, however, it is unconfirmed if Furina is aware of what it may represent.
Many fans like to interpret Arlefuri as a relationship that can be healed as both of them have a lot of visual parallels and they appear to share similar philosophies on life too; both believe that the world is a stage and have a desire to challenge (or deceive in Furina's case) fate. It's also notable that most of the cast of Fontaine (including Clorinde, Navia, Neuvillette, and the Traveller) has opposed Furina at some point during the Archon quest, and has caused her significant distress by staging a riot and causing her to take refuge in Poisson, before putting her on trial.
Although Furina has since forgiven them for this, there are several factors that may explain why she has yet to reconcile with Arlecchino. The first is that the Traveller's group made it clear that they had everyone's best interests in mind by ensuring Furina's safety, working with the court and following legal proceedings, and taking every opportunity to give Furina a way out; this stands in stark contrast to Arlecchino, who acted rashly and without consideration by using violence as a first resort. The second most significant factor is that, because of her actions, Arlecchino has set a precedent of using violence, intimidation, and manipulation to get what she desires, and demonstrated a willingness to use such methods against Furina. As a result of this, a lot of fanfictions often centre themselves around resolving these issues, making Furina feel more comfortable around Arlecchino and allowing them to reconcile, or choose to simply focus on their personalities and established power dynamic.
Arlefuri is Arlecchino's most popular ship and Furina's second most popular ship.
It has 900+ works on AO3.
Fandom[]
- FAN FICTION
- Arlecchino/Furina tag on AO3
- TUMBLR
- Arlefuri tag on Tumblr
- Focacchino tag on Tumblr
Trivia[]
- Arlecchino and Furina belong to two famously opposing elements: fire (Arlecchino) and water (Furina).
- Arlecchino and Furina's idle animations appear to be matching - both characters materialize an elemental chair and sit on it in the same way.
- Both characters hold a burnt piece of paper at some point - Furina does so in The Final Feast, while Arlecchino does so in her character demo.
Gallery[]
Screenshots[]
Fan Art[]
- All art in this section is fan made, and must be sourced back to the original artist. It also must have permission from the original artist to be posted here. If your art is here without your permission and you wish to have it taken down, please inform an admin, so that we may delete it.
Videos[]
References[]
- ↑ In the original Chinese text, Arlecchino says she "attacked" Furina instead of "near-assassination." 袭击 means attack. Assassinate is 刺杀 or 暗杀 (which does not show up in the Chinese text). Considering the death of a god releases lots of destructive energy, it makes sense for Arlecchino to not take the risk, despite her hypothesizing that Furina was not an Archon.
