#AND she was probably the most understanding of Rhine's initial work of trying to create/modify crops that could thrive in Khaenri'ah so they

[eruditic-akechi]

Okay honestly I can see Rhine and Ivanovna becoming pretty good friends at some point. Ivanovna is presumably possibly a harbinger (seeing that Snezhnaya Mayor has so far only been referenced as a harbinger and in her letter. Also it'd make a bit of sense why Alice would invite her if she was in that high ranking position, seeing that most of the other spots are not human/mortal) and pierro definitely has some beef with Rhinedottir and despite knowing she's not solely to blame for the cataclysm, she definitely played a big part with her wolves and dragons,,, so Ivanovna was probably very wary of Rhine because she was tube fed a special breed of Rhine propaganda,,, but after a few years of actually knowing Rhine, she finds out that Rhine isn't some evil mastermind hellbent on ruining the world, she's just a little fucked up and maybe a little too into her work, but obviously that's not a breaking point for the harbingers.

BUT Rhine and Ivanovna both have perfectionist streaks, which they probably bonded over. It's a known thing Rhine is seeking perfection, but it makes sense if Ivanovna is too— she's the first mayor of Snezhnaya! And at that point, she's the first fully mortal, fully normal human! Not only does she have to deal with matters of the nation, but she has to seem like she's on the same playing field as some Khaenri'ahns, a mad doctor with even less morals than Rhine, the crimson witch of embers, an emo puppet made in the image of an archon, and whatever the hell capitanos deal is!! Those are huge shoes to fill for someone who has no special abilities or magical training! Someone with that much on their plate definitely has to seem perfect!

So as she starts to deconstruct her Rhine bias and realizes a lot was riding on Rhine seeming perfect as well, they start to get close. Rhine's honestly probably the most reliable source for what had happened to her personally before and during the Cataclysm, especially back when it was still fresh, because, with how out of it and delusional she was a lot of the time, she was mentally still living through it! Even as the worst of her corruption and trauma receded, there were still a few times where she was clearly disoriented, but between watching her relive it and the occasional fully coherent recollection, Ivanovna was able to paint some kinda picture of who Rhine was back then. She realized they had been fed a lot of stretched truths, if not some flat out lies, and she felt bad knowing that Rhine wasn't being judged based on the things she actually did, but instead by what the archons and few pure blooded Khaenri'ahns were saying about her.

Also,,, with Rhine being "straight" back then, and not an old hag, they probably had their fair share of boy talk. Since Rhine had more experience before Ivanovna got married, she'd go to Rhine for advice and to vent whenever her and her bf got into an argument. Rhine was also the most ecstatic when she told the ladies she got engaged.

Idk why I started yappin this much y'all I'm sorry🫡 I've been thinking about them lately I don't even know if this is coherent or if I need to step away from the forbidden knowledge