Arlecchino/Storyline

Arlecchino, also known as "The Knave" and by her personal name Peruere, is the Fourth of the Eleven Fatui Harbingers and the current head of the House of the Hearth.

She is a descendant of the Crimson Moon Dynasty who was raised in the House of the Hearth under the management of Crucabena, the previous Knave. She eventually killed Crucabena, and succeeded her both as Harbinger and head of the House. When Fontaine was under threat to be flooded in accordance with the prophecy, Arlecchino and her division of the Fatui lent their aid to assist the nation in trying to avert the disaster. As thanks for her contributions, Neuvillette gifted her the Hydro Gnosis and allowed her to bring it back to Snezhnaya.

During the Traveler's journey in Nod-Krai, Arlecchino assisted Columbina in regaining her lost power in preparation for the latter's eventual confrontation against Rerir. Later on, during the battle against Dottore after he had seized the power of the Three Moons, Arlecchino lent her aid again, along with Varka and Nicole, in dragging the Frost Moon back beneath the false sky of Teyvat as part of a plan to revive Columbina. After Dottore's defeat, Columbina granted her possession over the Iridescent Moon Marrow as thanks for her contributions.

Profile

Arlecchino is the current occupant of The Knave title, ranking as the Fourth of the Eleven Fatui Harbingers, as well as the head of the House of the Hearth. She is addressed as "Father" by its members, unlike Crucabena.^[7][8]

Arlecchino has several sources of power: The Balemoon Bloodfire that she was born with as a descendant of the Crimson Moon Dynasty;^[9] her Pyro Vision, which awakened in response to her ambition to kill Crucabena;^[9] her Pyro Delusion, which she was granted during her promotion as a Harbinger;^[9] and the Iridescent Moon Marrow.^[10]

Personality

As one of the Eleven Fatui Harbingers, Arlecchino greatly respects the Tsaritsa, though she states that she is willing to betray the Tsaritsa if their interests ever were to differ.^[11] Arlecchino is working to achieve her goals by acquiring the Gnoses on her behalf. She handles Fatui matters with utmost importance and comes off as graceful and cordial. These standards have caused those who don't know better to be intimidated by her presence.^[12]

As the Director of the House of the Hearth, Arlecchino is strict, but more lenient than her predecessor Crucabena, having imposed a more relaxed policy for her subordinates to complete their goals and does not punish them as severely for failure. She appears to have a soft spot for children, seeing that many members of the House of the Hearth are young and orphaned children taken in across Teyvat and views them all as her "children," becoming particularly angered when their well-being is threatened or manipulated.^[13][14] While she does not like betrayal, she is not as cruel, as she was willing to spare traitors who demonstrated sufficient willpower by "executing" their identity in the House via excruciating mind-wipe rather than outright killing them physically; it is unknown what happens if someone is unable to withstand the pain this process causes, nor is it known how Arlecchino disposed of traitors before she implemented this "solution."

Despite being a woman, she is addressed as "Father" by the House of the Hearth's members; this is implied to be a rejection of Crucabena's ways, who called herself "Mother" and faked affection for the House of the Hearth's children while brutally mistreating them.

Arlecchino is disliked by her fellow Harbingers, who believe her to be violent and crazed beneath her stoic exterior.^[15][16] These appear to stem from biased accounts of Arlecchino's past spread by Pulcinella,^[17] with whom Arlecchino shares a mutual dislike.^[18] Arlecchino allows these rumors about her to persist, as she believes deception to be a useful tool.^[17]

Despite publicly claiming to be a Fontainian and having grown up in Fontaine, Arlecchino actually hails from Khaenri'ah. Arlecchino knows little about her origins, only knowing she had some kind of cursed fire running through her veins from a young age. All she does know was related to her by Pierro when she joined the Harbingers.

Appearance

See also: Moonglare

Arlecchino uses the tall female model. She has pale skin, obsidian eyes with glowing red 'X' markings, black mascara on her eyelashes, and silver eight-pointed star earrings. Arlecchino has white hair with black tips, with the right side being longer than the left. Her hair is then styled into a low ponytail with asymmetrical bangs that loosely resemble a single wing that goes down her back. Her ponytail has a red strand of hair in it. Her hair clip also bears the image of a single wing. Arlecchino has blackened hands with crimson nail polish on her sharpened nails.

History

Early Years

Peruere, as she was known by when she was raised in the House of the Hearth, is descended from Khaenri'ah's Crimson Moon Dynasty. Her direct lineage is unknown and she was eventually discovered by the House of the Hearth, then run by the previous Knave, Crucabena. Crucabena took an interest in Peruere's mysterious fire-based power, which they concluded was something akin to a hereditary curse. Sensing that each use of this power would corrupt her and eventually consume her, Peruere avoided relying on the power too much.^[19]

During her time in the House of the Hearth, Peruere befriended Crucabena's biological daughter, Clervie. Unlike the other orphans, who had been raised to believe Crucabena's cruel treatment of them was normal, Arlecchino and Clervie both recognized Crucabena's behavior for what it was. Arlecchino quickly bonded with Clervie, who saw her as a true friend, and they made a promise to visit Snezhnaya to see the auroras when they grew up. Unfortunately, this did not come to pass, as when Clervie was sixteen, Crucabena ordered everyone to fight to the death in order to appoint the survivor as her successor "king." While Clervie wanted to forestall this atrocious act by convincing the other orphans to avoid killing each other, Arlecchino instead wished to kill Crucabena directly, but she respected her friend's refusal to kill her own mother and followed her plan. Eventually, Clervie lost hope in escaping the House of the Hearth and allowed herself to die at Arlecchino's hands, believing this was the only way she could ever be free. Arlecchino's unique constitution resulted in Clervie's shadow being absorbed into her.^[20]

With her friend dead, Arlecchino decided to carry out the plan to kill Crucabena, and trained herself for a year to become strong enough to do so. During this time, Arlecchino acquired her Pyro Vision, which she decided to keep a secret.^[21]

A year after Clervie's death, Arlecchino confronted Crucabena at the same spot where she killed Clervie. Although Arlecchino had less combat experience than the Harbinger, she was ultimately able to kill Crucabena alongside with her Vision as a hidden ace, which she summed up as to having more conviction than her despite their large gap in combat proficiency.^[20]

Promotion to Harbinger

For killing Crucabena, Arlecchino was apprehended and sent to Snezhnaya to face her sentence in front of the Tsaritsa. While imprisoned, Arlecchino managed to take a look at the auroras outside, fulfilling her promise to Clervie. Rather than sentencing her to death, the Tsaritsa instead promoted Arlecchino to become the new Knave and Director of the House of the Hearth, bestowing her with the name "Arlecchino." Her strength made her the Fourth of the Eleven Harbingers.^[22]

After her promotion, Arlecchino had a private meeting with Pierro, during which he identified her as a descendant of the Crimson Moon bloodline from his lost civilization and explained its relation to her strange powers, which were known as Balemoon Bloodfire. He instructed her to read the Khaenri'ahn historical fiction novel Perinheri to better understand her origins, as it contained enough kernels of truth to be informative.^[23] Pierro also remarked on how the House of the Hearth was now "once again" led by an orphan from the Crimson Moon bloodline.^[24]

As the new House of the Hearth Director, Arlecchino took great care not to follow Crucabena's example, going as far as to have the orphans address her as "Father" to contrast with "Mother," Crucabena's title of choice. While Crucabena rarely ever interfered with other criminal organizations, Arlecchino made them her targets. Sometime after assuming her position, she took down the moneylenders who had preyed on Freminet's family; it was only after returning the pendant Freminet made as a child, which had been in his mother's possession before she fell into the moneylenders' hands,^[25] that Arlecchino discovered Crucabena told him that his mother sold him to the House.^[26]

After becoming a Harbinger, Arlecchino became acquainted with Columbina. When they first met, Arlecchino would frequently sneak up behind her as a means to "test" her. Columbina would try to do the same to her but failed time and again, resulting in her using kuuvahki to conceal her movements, eventually giving her a huge fright, after which she no longer snuck up on her (to the goddess's confusion).^[27] She also explained her past and powers to Columbina.^[28] She also attended tea parties gatherings with Sandrone and Signora.^[29]

Over ten years ago,^[30] Arlecchino took in Lyney and Lynette after killing the head of the Lefevere family, who Lynette had been trafficked to.^[31][32][20] During one mission, Lyney and Lynette were tasked with acquiring incriminating evidence from a Fontainian noble when the Gardes, who were also on the noble's trail, were also arriving on the scene. In a desperate attempt to escape, the twins took a dangerous escape route which resulted in Lyney being knocked unconscious. Lynette, desperate to survive and avoid capture, managed to bring her brother to safety, where Arlecchino waited for them. Though the evidence was ruined, Arlecchino discovered an Anemo Vision on Lynette, which she deemed more valuable.^[33]

To obfuscate information about herself and keep her capabilities a secret, Arlecchino allows misinformation about her to be spread. Pulcinella, for example, told Tartaglia that Arlecchino had killed her House of the Hearth family, leaving out the context that it was Crucabena's prerogative. She also calls herself Fontainian due to being raised there, even though she is not a true Fontainian (and thus unaffected by the Primordial Sea), knowing that people would be less suspicious about her involvement during the events of the Fontaine Archon Quests if they assumed she was acting for self-preservation.^[17]

Arlecchino was less strict than Crucabena in running the House of the Hearth's affairs, though she still maintained emphasis on camaraderie and despised betrayal. Due to the previous Knave's relationship with Dottore, he asked her for some assistance on some experiments on his. Knowing of his reputation and lack of care, Arlecchino developed an intense dislike for her colleague, claiming that she would've killed him if he wasn't a Harbinger.^[34] As such, she only allowed him to have minimal involvement.

Sometime after Lynette obtained her Vision, Lyney asked Arlecchino if he could have a Delusion in order to stay with his sister, who had been assigned more dangerous tasks. Arlecchino was angered at Lyney's suggestion, telling him if his sister really wanted it and that no one needed self-satisfied concern. Lyney gave Arlecchino's words much thought. During another mission, when a betrayal exposed Lynette's movements, it was Lyney's turn to save the day. Though their pursuers shot their glider, Lyney's determination resulted in a Pyro Vision emerging to save them both.^[35] Seeing Lyney's resolve to protect his family, Arlecchino eventually decided that he would succeed her as "King."^[36]

Arlecchino is known to most of the Fontaine cast, of which a few are intimidated by her presence. When Escoffier saw her once, she cooked as if she would taste everything and still feels intimidated by her despite Navia insisting that she wasn't as terrifying as she appeared.^[37]

Shortly before the start of the Traveler's journey, Arlecchino was in attendence during a meeting with the other Harbingers in which Pierro outlined the Tsaritsa's plan to collect all the Gnoses. After the meeting, she along with Columbina and Signora had a tea party in Sandrone's bedroom.^[38]

Inazuma

The Traveler first hears about Arlecchino in Inazuma, where Efim Snezhevich attempts to advance Crucabena's directives by attempting to restart the war between Watatsumi Island and the Shogunate, although he tells his subordinates that this is for Arlecchino's benefit.^[39] However, Efim is recalled to Snezhnaya before the operation can begin, with his subordinates speculating that he raised Arlecchino's ire, and the plan is dismantled through the combined efforts of the Traveler, Shuumatsuban member Momoyo, and the Fatui traitor Lyudochka Snezhevna.^[40][41]

Arlecchino, along with the other then-unseen Harbingers, makes her first appearance in A Winter Night's Lazzo, set during Signora's funeral. She criticizes Pantalone and Pulcinella for never leaving the "comfort" of Snezhnaya to risk their lives on the front lines like Signora (and she) do.^[2]

Fontaine

She first appears in-person in the Archon Quest A Tea Party Most Thorny, where she first requested a meeting with Furina regarding Prophecy of Fontaine. Neuvillette suggested she ignore the request, but Furina decided to accept it for a better understanding. Nothing fruitful came of the meeting, as Furina claimed that she had a plan when she had none at all. She also requested to have Childe back, as he had been apprehended following a guilty verdict, though Neuvillette refused since the trial had concluded. She respected his request, though he suggested a proposal if she wanted to be sure he was fine.^[42]

Seeing the Archon's inaction firsthand, Arlecchino returned to the Opera Epiclese and met the Traveler and Paimon. She learned from them that Childe was still alive, but they could not find him, though they were certain he was not injured or killed. Suddenly, the room began to shake, and after it subsided, Arlecchino asked Furina if she had a plan to handle the prophecy. Furina attempted to claim she did, but Arlecchino knew she was bluffing. She asked the Traveler and Paimon to accompany her out, where she gave them her perspective of the events. After Childe's apprehension, Arlecchino used it as an opening to speak with Furina. From her interactions with her, Arlecchino found something off and later stalked her through the streets of the Court of Fontaine, ambushing her at night. Furina, who feared for her life, begged her not to kill her, and seeing the genuine fear in her eyes, Arlecchino realized she did not have the Gnosis on her and left. The incident traumatized Furina in turn^[43], although Arlecchino was not as concerned about it.^[44] To this end, Arlecchino suspected that either Neuvillette had the Gnosis or it was hidden away. Additionally, her spies in the Fortress of Meropide had gone silent, so she sent Lyney's group to investigate while she would continue to pressure the Archon and Iudex.^[45]

Learning of some ancient ruins from a child, Arlecchino and her men were heading there when the prophecy struck at Poisson, resulting in the mission being postponed in order to help the inhabitants there. Arlecchino's subordinates immediately set up rescue and relief efforts, which Navia greatly appreciated. When the Traveler arrived, Arlecchino told them of her original mission; seeing that she and her subordinates were busy, Arlecchino asked the Traveler to investigate it on her behalf.^[46]

Once Neuvillette restored his elemental authority and averted the prophecy, he requested another meeting with Arlecchino. For her efforts in helping the people of Fontaine, Neuvillette gave Arlecchino the Hydro Gnosis, which she accepted. Arlecchino then made her way to Romaritime Harbor to return to Snezhnaya, where she surprised Lyney, the Traveler and Charlotte. She thanked the Traveler for being a good partner before the Traveler returned Childe's Vision to her so she could give it back to him.^[47]

After one of her "children" had died while attempting to save other children from a trafficker, Arlecchino decided to get involved in the case. She confronted the trafficker, Tartuffe, and brutally murdered him in revenge.^[48]

Arlecchino would later return to Fontaine to check up on the children, who began reporting a mysterious child that was telling others to run from the House of the Hearth. To reassure everyone, she moved them to Poisson for the time being, seemingly unaware that the child had also followed them there. Lyney asked the Traveler to stall her while he and the others tried to investigate the child's origins. Arlecchino had known of the child and the Traveler's attempt to stall her, though given their relationship, allowed it to slide. She also revealed her true personality to Childe, who admitted that he was wrong about Pulcinella's words. She also revealed that she had returned to negotiate a deal with Neuvillette, slowly withdrawing her subordinates from Fontaine and refraining from special operations in the nation unless necessary in return for her former operatives not being harrassed by the authorities, which he agreed to. Unfortunately, Lyney and the others were unable to put the mysterious child in peace, so Arlecchino had her children take the dissidents for "execution" at Mont Esus East. Lyney intervened, and she accepted his request for a duel alongside Lynette, Freminet and the Traveler. During the battle, Arlecchino briefly tapped into her Crimson Moon powers, easily overwhelming them, though she refrained from killing them. Impressed by their determination, Arlecchino instead offered potions to "kill" their identity as House members, though Lyney, Lynette and Freminet opted not to. She and the Traveler later put Clervie to rest before Lyney returned, expressing a desire to continue protecting his family. With the "traitors" removed, Arlecchino was confident that Project Stuzha would no longer affect them while thanking the Traveler for their assistance.^[49]

Nod-Krai

Arlecchino was later sent to Nod-Krai under the Tsaritsa's orders. While being hunted by Rerir, Columbina stopped by the Kuuvahki Experimental Design Bureau to speak with Sandrone, requesting to arrange a meeting in order to obtain the Crimson Moon Marrow which Arlecchino would've had in her possession. Sandrone agreed and had Fevroniya send the message "It's time for tea" to her. Arlecchino received the message and accepted it, finding Columbina at Thunderclap Reef and saving her from a horde of Wilderness Ghouls, burning them to a crisp. Arlecchino remarked that Columbina was incredibly weak if she struggled to fight such lowly creatures, having heard rumors about her giving a lot of her power to the Tsaritsa. She accompanied her and the Traveler back to Varka's camp, where she met with the others. They were wary of Fatui involvement, but she told them that her assistance would be on a personal level, knowing the threat Rerir posed to Teyvat.

She then took them to an area between Hiisi Island and Silvermoon Hall, revealing her heritage to the Traveler and opened a portal into the space between life and death. The Traveler and Columbina were able to acquire the Iridescent Marrow, but their escape route was blocked off. Sensing this, Arlecchino forced the path open, which corrupted her hands, though she stated it was a necessary price to pay. In return for siphoning some power from the marrow, Columbina entrusted the Iridescent Marrow to her. Before she parted ways, Arlecchino suggested to Columbina that she pick up a new name after defeating Rerir, believing that it would keep her grounded.^[28]

Following Rerir's defeat, Arlecchino had tea with Sandrone at the Bureau, asking about Dottore's activities. Sandrone told her that she found him incapable of human interaction, but also admitted that he had been unusually quiet recently. Arlecchino hoped that he had disappeared in some experiment of his, believing it to be a great gift to the world, but knew it was unlikely. She suspected that he was up to something nefarious and advised they keep their guard up for the time being.^[50]

Paimon, Varka, Wanderer, and the Traveler investigate Dottore by asking Arlecchino and Sandrone. Unbeknownst to the two Harbingers, Wanderer was formerly Scaramouche, the Sixth Harbinger — a position which the Fatui believe to be vacant since Scaramouche attempted to erase himself from Irminsul. Wanderer's unusually accurate insight into Dottore's behavior attracts Arlecchino's attention, so Wanderer avoids answering her question by promptly exiting the conversation.^[51]

Along with Sandrone, Arlecchino partook in the Moon-Prayer Night festival before seeing Columbina off, only for Dottore to attack her, stealing the Moon Marrows and freezing time with it. Dottore was later forced to retreat when Columbina escaped into the moon's reflection. After the incident, Arlecchino wondered what the Tsaritsa would think of it. Anticipating that her response would take some time, Arlecchino stated that if she did not lift the restriction of physical altercation, she would resolve to fight Dottore herself as Peruere and left to make preparations. Paimon noted that she was particularly incensed at Columbina being attacked, as she saw her as a friend.^[52]

Locating Dottore's facility, Arlecchino and Sandrone went inside to confront their colleague; upon going in, she sent Gediminas to the Curatorium of Secrets to inform the others of their location. While they made their way there, Arlecchino temporarily disappeared but returned when they fought Dottore, only to retreat when they realized his powers were too strong, and the Traveler was captured. Later, they learned that Dottore had "cursed" them and began setting up energy fields within the region, of which any unfortunate soul trapped inside would meet a grisly end. The group decided to evacuate the entire region, with Arlecchino handling everyone that was north of the bureau. She met with Tartaglia and while they were discussing the events, a subordinate transformed into a monster, so they put him down. He then asked about the Traveler, and she told him what happened, he wanted to try and rescue the Traveler immediately, but she stopped him from doing so. Before he left, she asked him to let Pulcinella know what was going on and that the Fatui were doing all they could to stop it.^[53] When the group confronted Dottore once more, Arlecchino, along with Varka and Nicole, brought down the Frost Moon from the false sky.^[54] After the battle, she noted Columbina's growth and prepared to leave when the Traveler caught up to her at the docks. She told them that she was about to fulfill Sandrone's last will, sending her and Pulonia's cores to the Fontaine Research Institute, her notebook was sent to their room at The Flagship, and that the Tsaritsa revoked the Palestar Edict, the highest-level of commands, bidding the Traveler and the Wanderer farewell as she made her way to Fontaine.^[10]

After the resurrected Sandrone's public reappearance, Arlecchino was one of her guests invited to have tea with her, at which time she expressed gladness at being able to see her friend again.^[55]

Trivia

• Arlecchino is the first character whose attack animations are uniquely distinct with a specific weapon; in her case, the Crimson Moon's Semblance.
• Arlecchino has unique walking and running animations compared to other tall female characters.
• Arlecchino, who has the title "Dire Balemoon" and ties to the Crimson Moon Dynasty^[24] along with new and full moon imagery, was released shortly after April 2024's full moon, which happened during Version 4.6's Version Update maintenance.^[56]
  • Coincidentally, a full moon in April is popularly known in English as the Pink Moon.
• Arlecchino's voice-overs about the other Harbingers diverged from the conventions previously established for Tartaglia and Wanderer:
  • About The Fair Lady does not require Omnipresence Over Mortals to unlock, despite acknowledging Signora's death. Additionally, the line is placed in between Sandrone and Regrator in accordance with Signora's rank, rather than after the last active Harbinger (after Regrator for Childe, after Childe for Wanderer).
  • Tartaglia's About The Balladeer voice-over becomes inaccessible after completing the Archon Quest The Night-Bird Falls at the Curtain's Call in Interlude Chapter: Act III - Inversion of Genesis, but Arlecchino completely lacks a voice-over for him.
• Arlecchino first states that, along with Columbina, the Traveler is a friend in "All Is Foretold". During "The First Sliver of Moonlight", she tells Sandrone that she and the Traveler were already friends.
• She has disliked wearing dresses since she was a young girl.^[20]

Aliases and Titles

• Arlecchino is also known by these aliases or titles:
  • The Knave (Fatui codename)^[57]
  • Peruere (personal name)^[20]
  • The Fourth of the Eleven Fatui Harbingers^[57]
  • "Father"^[31]
  • Otets^[31]
  • Perrie (by Clervie)^[20]
  • Cinder of Two Worlds' Flames^[20]
  • "King"^[1]

Etymology

• In commedia dell'arte, a type of Italian theater, "Arlecchino" (Harlequin) is an astute servant, often acting to thwart the plans of his master and pursuing his own love interest, Colombina, with wit and resourcefulness, often competing with the sterner and melancholic Pierrot. This is likely the inspiration for Tartaglia's About The Knave voice-over, in which he claims she would turn against the Tsaritsa (her master) in a heartbeat if it benefited her.
  • The name Arlecchino is theorized to be borrowed from Middle French "Harlequin" (modern "Arlequin"), from Old French "Hellequin" or "Herlequin." In French Passion Plays, Hellequin is a mischievous devil who leads a group of demons — the familia herlequin (a French version of the Germanic Wild Hunt myth) — in chasing the damned souls of evil people into Hell. It entered Italian culture and became Arlecchino through "Alichino," a demon that Dante places in the Divine Comedy as part of the Malebranche, a group of demons guarding the Bolgia of Barrators, who shares similarities with both Arlecchino and Hellequin.
• Arlecchino's real name, Peruere, likely comes from the Latin perurere, which means "to burn" or "to be consumed by fire."
  • The name may be intended to have a loose resemblance to Perinheri, the eponymous character of the in-game novel Perinheri who was raised in the House of the Hearth when it was still a Khaenri'ahn organization;^[24][58] compare 佩露薇利 Pèilùwēilì (Peruere) and 裴伦埃里 Péilún'āilǐ (Perinheri).
• Arlecchino's title "Otets" comes from the Russian word Отец Otets, "father."
• Some of Arlecchino's Talents feature names derived from book titles:
  • Her Normal Attack is named after the Vladimir Nabokov novel Invitation to a Beheading.
  • Her "Masque of the Red Death" state is named after the Edgar Allan Poe short story Masque of the Red Death.
• Arlecchino's pet spider was named Bambi, a reference to the Disney film of the same name.

Notes

Other Languages

References