#i want my cyno to be SO good

[electric-plants]

i love cyno so so much it is actually indescribable but GOD building him is a nightmare for me i look at him and i’m like yeah all the numbers and stats look decent enough he should do great🥰 but then i test him and getting this man to hit anything above ~20k is somehow just IMPOSSIBLE for me

[iridescentmirrorsgenshin]

thinking about alhaitham going from recently orphaned to meeting kaveh and kaveh becoming the one person who knows him through and through, who he recognises as his mirror, as integral to his development as a scholar, and as essential to his happiness as an individual. knowing that their respective approaches to life are direct oppositions, but that this isn't a negative and instead is beneficial to the both of them - aligning their viewpoints can help the other grow due to considering new speculations and perspectives.

and then being rejected by kaveh due to kaveh's rejection of himself - his conforming to the collective, when his talents and abilities offer potential for more than he denies himself. kaveh rejects alhaitham as his best friend, his mirror, and he seeks to cement his ideals in his life, to realise them in full as opposed to being solely based on the guilt borne from his perceived involvement in his father's passing. alhaitham doesn't pursue kaveh because this is kaveh's decision - he said that he regretted ever befriending alhaitham, and it would be futile to impose upon this

alhaitham goes from having an essential figure in his life, to a void twice, the first time being the loss of his grandmother, and then kaveh's rejection of him. but he pursues the peaceful life his grandmother wanted for him, and when he meets kaveh again, he instantly sees through the façade kaveh fronts for other people, and recognises that something is deeply wrong. when kaveh moves in with him, he is held in contempt and through a critical lens, and kaveh believes him to be prideful and spiteful, believing that his egoism has triumphed over kaveh's altruism.

kaveh continues to reject alhaitham through this, but alhaitham desires kaveh's company regardless because he knows that kaveh is essential to him - no one else can provide what kaveh fulfils, both in company and in mind. regardless of the strained rapport between them, alhaitham enjoys kaveh. he smiles when kaveh has a quick-witted comeback, he smiles while teasing kaveh, and he goes out of his way to have interactions with kaveh, regardless of the outcome.

alhaitham knows that he and kaveh can ultimately benefit each other if they can overcome this barricade - a perception of 'correctness' between them. firsthand, alhaitham knows that being thought of as 'correct' is ultimately meaningless if it means you forfeit something you truly care about. the issue that stands between him and kaveh is not correctness, it is the unspoken, the miscommunication and misconception that drives them apart. alhaitham truly wants the best for kaveh, but kaveh cannot see this due to his perception of alhaitham. but this perception is challenged when alhaitham reveals that he looked into sachin for kaveh's sake, for a chance of closure, during a parade of providence

so going from this uncertainty as to how kaveh will interpret alhaitham's actions in a parade of providence to how kaveh and alhaitham are in cyno's story quest is so so fulfilling. it's cathartic to see alhaitham comfortable in his interactions with kaveh, rather than having to be underhanded of his comments about kaveh's misconceptions. alhaitham can openly enjoy kaveh's company because kaveh genuinely wants to spend time with him. alhaitham encourages kaveh to tell him about his day because he knows he will not be misinterpreted. their banter is completely without any kind of tension as an understanding seems to have been gained between them. it must be so liberating to be truly seen once again by kaveh, and not have every word, every action, ever intention scrutinised. kaveh accepts him, fully, through and through, and because of this, kaveh sees alhaitham as a mirror - and finally accepts it.

they work in tandem, their thoughts seem synchronised, and there is no issue in the two joining efforts to research together once more. alhaitham is openly expressive about his contentment in working with kaveh, discussing the case in their shared living room, watching kaveh sketch the emblem, smiling as he unveils a discovery, and smiling as kaveh shows interest, travelling together to inform the traveller of their findings, heading to the house of daena together, and having kaveh understand his silent request for help without even having to voice it, being asked for and freely giving obtained akademiya information to kaveh, consenting and smiling when being paired together in looking after the house of daena and researching into the temple of silence. kaveh seeks to find coffee for the both of them when alhaitham mentions it which establishes a domesticity which extends outside of the home. when alhaitham excuses himself at the gathering, kaveh knows that it doesn't include him, and he actively suggests their next activities, before heading 'home' together. alhaitham understands kaveh's notion of home (talked about here), and alhaitham assents to this, and the two leave together

to finally have their status as equals be recognised by kaveh is a huge development, and alhaitham seems so much more content now that this understanding exists between them - that their care is reciprocal. to see kaveh at ease within himself, to be more embracing and forgiving towards himself, must be so fulfilling for alhaitham, who wants nothing but kaveh's happiness. in kaveh accepting alhaitham, these past concerns of guilt and forgiveness can finally be addressed. and alhaitham will be there every step of the way, as he has chosen to do, and he knows, now, that kaveh will continue to choose him too

[harmonysanreads]

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ One Year Commemoration Post↬Sumeru Love Hexagon

-; ੈ♡˳ BEHIND THE HEXAGON

☆ The primary inspirations behind this AU are Alhaitham's Demo and this Fan Musical that debuted on Spring HoyoFair 2023!

Alhaitham's Demo no doubt gave many writers and daydreamers heavy brainrot and I happen to be one of them lol. But it was not until the fan musical that I had a concrete enough idea. I was charmed by the amount of tavern shenanigans this concept had the potential to bring, which is something that I really wanted to write at the moment :>

☆ Originally, Scaramouche or, Wanderer wasn't even supposed to be part of the AU!

Mainly because I didn't see many inclusion of him in the Sumeru Crew (at that time) and was unsure how it'd be taken D: But then, I remembered the v3.6 trailer where he was duking it out with the others and I was like 'why not?'. From that point on, he's come a long way and has even become the Best Boy of the Hexagon! :D

☆ Scaramouche's 'innocent in front of reader and the opposite behind their back' act is a tribute to his very first in-game appearance in the v1.1 Unreconciled Stars event!

This is something I'm humbly proud of, so to say. I still occasionally go back and admire the writing from that event. I think it's absolutely criminal for such a lore-rich and well-done in terms of character introduction event to be limited but oh well. Scaramouche, in my opinion, can be an excellent actor when he needs to be and if you watch the story from this event, you'll understand. Combining this with his mental state from after the Interlude Quest creates quite a messy situation though and, I kept it that way intentionally :>

☆ In the initial draft, Alhaitham was written as a very jealous character!

The cause of it being reader's infinite care for Kaveh. But obviously, I scraped it and wrote a much more toned down version and I sometimes wonder if I should've gone with my initial thoughts. Admittedly, I was playing it safe due to some reality checks regarding his character so I don't regret it a whole lot. But if it was up to the present me, I would be down to writing jealous Alhaitham immediately lol

-; ੈ♡˳ QUESTIONNAIRE

Does the Reader have White Knight Syndrome?

Well, I didn't originally write them with this particular condition in mind, however, upon further reflection I can see that they definitely show some symptoms of it. And considering the situation they're in, it's very easy for them to fall into the condition itself. I'm not at all qualified to diagnose someone with a mental condition so, my answer will have to a soft no. However, if anyone wants to imagine them as such, they're of course free to do so.

Is there any character you'd want to write differently if given the chance?

I already mentioned Alhaitham to a degree but, I really really wish I had been more considerate of Cyno. We're entering debatable territory here but the Hoyo writers putting so much emphasis on Cyno's TCG addiction and jokes while handling his actual lore whimsically made me lose interest in his character at that time. Though, I hope his upcoming Story Quest will fix this and do his character justice <3

Who is your favorite among the boys?

If you've lingered around my blog for a while, I know you thought I was going to say Alhaitham but, within the confines of the AU, it's actually Kaveh! He's like the initial spark that kindled the actual fire, as such, he's the first one you read about. I felt immense empathy for him after I learned about his lore through leaks, which is reflected onto the reader as well. Had this been a different timeline, Kaveh and Reader's relationship would be pure wholesomeness.

Who among the five is the endgame?

Ohohohoho.. place your bets because it can be literally anyone :) Even someone outside the hexagon in the off-chance they end up slaughtering each other lol. Kind of out of topic but, I think the Wanderer route would be genuinely heartbreaking unless he does something about Reader's mortality. He'd have to watch the one person who truly loved him decay slowly, while he remains afloat his raft of artificiality, safe from the clutches of death temporarily. Thinking about the endings make me feel quite sad honestly, it's a reminder that even the lighthearted shenanigans of the Hexagon will end at some point.

-; ੈ♡˳ ENDING NOTES

I could've easily done a writing event to celebrate the anniversary but I just really, really wanted to talk about these little tidbits. Many many kudos to you if you've made it this far, I hope I didn't bore you :')

Memories are fragile things, so I'd like to think of this as a memorial of sorts that I can look back to after a few years and not think of myself as a total failure lol. I wrote this AU at a rather difficult period of my life, which is why this is more lighthearted despite falling into the Yandere genre.

I don't really know how to express my gratitude without sounding overly sappy, but I'll forever remember every interaction, comment, ask etc regarding the Hexagon fondly. I even remember someone saying they're binge reading this late at night instead of studying for an exam or something which is.. wow, I hope you're doing well nowadays my fellow night owl! I appreciate every each one of you for even taking some of your time to read my silly ramblings <3

This is not at all the end of the Hexagon AU, just to clarify! I'll still answer any asks regarding the five losers (affectionate) because, despite the limitations placed by reality, in fiction, we have the power to imagine and write infinite tavern shenanigans.

Just before I posted the original concept, I thought to myself, 'If even one person smiles because of this, I'll consider it a success.' and now, looking back to the amount of people that enjoyed the Sumeru Love Hexagon (very silly name but I digress) I just feel so, so happy.

Thank you, everyone, sincerely <3

[koipalm]

cyno my love

[astrugglingacademic]

So is no one gonna write a fic where Tighnari's dad comes back from the desert bearing gifts for his son and his family, but said family (Cyno and Collei) didn't know they were known as his husband and daughter respectively? Cyno plays into it to watch Tighnari suffer, and Collei is just :) ? The whole time.

No? I guess I'll have to try and write it myself...

[menstits]

leo help i got majorly back into genshin for like 3 months and i’ve been having a great time i speedrun both sumeru and fontaine but the natlan story quest is so goddamn boring i want to drop it again 💀 but i would miss kaeya and yanfei !! crossing my fingers so tight for the sabzeruz festival because oh my god it’s so dire rn. why are they doing this to me

Hi!! No literally sorry... Like it's extremely dire for real, I'm pushing through it exclusively because Natlan so far is very Abyss related and my interest in genshin is extremely Kaeya-centric so anything Abyss related might come up again later with Khaenri'ah and such but so far it's like... Everyone in the main cast so far is ugly and whitewashed and the lore is confusing and the saurians also piss me off. Like. I was talking about this to my boyfriend too the other day but i feel like by keeping everything about Natlan under wraps for 4 whole years and then delivering something like extremely sub par and disappointing they did like the opposite of building hype for it like... for every other region we had little details sprinkled in since very early on and npc dialogue to go off of so we knew just enough about them to form a mild interest in the region before it came out but everything about Natlan feels very out of nowhere... I honestly just hope they let me see Kaeya and his ugly brother again soon or Childe because truly all i care about at this point are the same 3 characters i've been obsessed with since day 1. The only thing i'm interested in for now other than the Abyss stuff is Capitano because . He's been on my mind since the harbinger reveal teaser video dropped but i'm worried they're gonna fumble it with him too. In any case unless they improve the skin tone situation i won't be pulling on any banner for the foreseeable future even if i am and have been f2p since day 1 cause i hope their banners flop.

[that-foul-legacy-lover]

hey

pspsps

how's the baizhu savings going

oh i am SO glad you asked, comrade Zxt!!!!!

my hoard of video game currencies is the only thing i allow myself to boast about

[roartuwu]

Cynonari!!

[goldenbear228]

Hey would you look at that it’s another tighnari x cyno tickle art yay (its late help-) also no I don’t think I’ll ever do line art/color for any of these sorry forgivenesses cookie? 🍪

1. tighnari likes to tease cyno so there’s that (manly cuz I hear tighnari saying it like he’s talking to 5-8 year old lol) and cyno gets BIG mad under arms is cynos worst spot (don’t tell him I seid that shhhh)

2. tighnari likes to sleep in (guest room is colleis so cyno and tighnari sleep/cuddle together) also yes I headcanon cyno calls tighnari ‘love’ to both tease him and show he loves him also tighnaris ears are his worst spot (again don’t tell those are our secrets shhhhh I’ll give u a cookie to stay quiet 🍪)

[electric-plants]

actual footage of me trying and failing to get the cosmetic thing with my really shitty diluc build

[napstawantstosleep]

If you mischaracterize the one (1) character I hyperfixate on I want you to know that I've already twisted you in my mind like a wet towel that keeps getting soaked

[cluescorner]

Me, gritting my teeth and sitting on my hands: No pulling until Dehya, no pulling until Dehya, no pulling until Dehya-

Genshin: Here’s Yao Yao she is very cute and could be a friend for Klee in the teapot. 

Me: FUCK 

[koipalm]

genshin impact oc, akram. self proclaimed love interest of cyno, overall ostentatious and rude

[lord-pigeon]

Next three four patches? More like next four skips amirite

[c6jpg]

okay i've been messing around with a bunch of teams trying to fit candace in somewhere and i think i like how this one feels. i'm gonna make this fucking work or die trying

[uhzuku]

the knowledge that i don’t have to do fucking anything in genshin primogem wise is so so nice now like

we’re getting 22 pulls next patch instantly. i have welkin for 22 days that i bought back in december. that’s 44 pulls not counting wvent primos and i’m at 59 pity w a guarantee.

venti is mine next rerun.