#arl headcanon tbt

[mmriesoftvat]

coming here to talk about arlecchino, my queen.

may contain spoilers or leaks or something but i have thoughts.

my first thoughts are about her animation. I KNOW IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE THE OG TIMELINE because of scaramouche being there. but i saw a theory on twitter the other day that had me thinking about potential theories, and i thought they'd be fun to discuss. namely, if this was her remembering the past and scaramouche is there, then she potentially remembers who he is. i like this theory, i may adapt this to my own portrayal. and perhaps for her own reasons, i can see her keeping this shit to herself for her own reasons. which means she can and would just pretend like she has no idea who he is overall. it makes it feel more fun.

AND HER VOICELINES.

saint showed me the video last night and specifically pointed out the one about dottore. and BOY did i get excited. because that's exactly EXACTLY what i thought would be the case! she works with him and basically trades children that give her zero potential to him for experimentation. i HAD A FEELING that was the case. she is the kind of person that prides herself on her own work, and the perfectionism of it, and she loves that she can whip these orphans into shape and have them be loyal as fuck toward her and the fatui. she's also the kind of person shady enough to be like "here dottore, this one won't listen. perhaps you can whip them into shape."

SHE IS ALSO NOT HEARTLESS. god the amount of shitty/garbage takes i've seen over the course of months about how she doesn't give a shit about anyone because she's a harbinger, she's a villain. GROSS.

arlecchino isn't a good guy, no. she has her own agenda, obviously, but her voice line about childe PROVES she has a heart. she DOES care about people in her own way, she doesn't see everyone as disposable. people in this fandom are way too fucking quick to put someone in a black and white box and refuse to see nuance and anything in between and it's just tiresome at this point.

arlecchino is not a soft person, she definitely does morally bankrupt things without thinking twice over it. but she's not completely heartless either. she has a beating heart still and she does know how to use it. it's not a complete act either. we know she cares about her children. at least, about freminet, lynette and lyney. and we know she does care somewhat about childe. i knew she cared about him when she was the one who initially went to investigate his disappearance in fontaine.

she is a complex person and i am LIVING for it. i love this woman and i am so excited for her release. i have saved up for months and burnt myself out in the process, but WORTH IT cause she's literally right around the corner and HHHHHH.

anyway. i want to write her.

i want a thread of a younger arle meeting the other harbingers for the first time. i crave anything arl. just YES.