straightforwardly (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
straightforwardly) wrote2025-11-18 09:22 pm
straightforwardly) wrote2025-11-18 09:22 pm
Entry tags:
326 | finally talking about the bee scene
I’ve mentioned before, I think, that the bee scene in Rose of Segunda is one of my favorite moments in the game. It’s just an absolute delight in every single way, regardless of how you choose to play it. Though my favorite option is hands-down the one where Iolanthe pretends to faint—it’s so fun. I love her going straight for the kill like that re: pretending to be a delicate flower, and of course, my shippy heart also loves Frederique needing to bridal carry her back into the palace <3
(Slight tangent, but my favorite option to choose during the boating incident is also the one where Iolanthe pretends to faint. In general, if I can make Iolanthe faint, I will, because the thought of her spending her time at the palace pretending to swoon at the drop of a hat is incredibly funny to me. I also absolutely adore how incredibly swift Frederique’s reaction is in that scene—his little, “oh no you don’t!” and how he manages to get out of the boat and catch her before she hits the water. He knows and reads her so well! <3 And the little banter between them—Iolanthe’s muttered, “poor Captain di Parisi” when he complains about his clothing getting wet—so so cute <3)
But back to the bee scene—as much as I adore the fainting options, I also very much enjoy the other dialogue choices too, particularly Iolanthe proclaiming a fondness for bees (same, girl, same), or the one where scholar!Iolanthe goes on about the importance of bees as a part of the ecosystem. It’s been a hot minute (five years) since I last played a hellion!Iolanthe, but I think she had a dialogue option where she could cause some real chaos amongst the others that was pretty fun, iirc?
In any case—it’s a fun scene, with a fun lead-up (I smile every time Iolanthe makes that snarky-sweet comment about not having eaten in three weeks, and love the way the screen cuts away to Frederique laughing at her joke—cuties <3), with lots of fun choices.
But there’s one thing that’s been standing out to me upon revisiting the game, and that’s the aftermath—when Iolanthe and Frederique tell Bastien afterwards about what happened. And specifically, the way how, no matter how Iolanthe reacts, Frederique recounts what she did with great admiration and clear affection. Which in turns makes me think about a particular moment in Frederique’s route, and how the bee scene functions in regards to the other LIs in contrast to Frederique.
Namely, the bee scene functions in a fundamentally different way for Frederique than it does for the other LIs, due to the fact that Frederique’s route in and of itself functions in a fundamentally different way than the other routes. More specifically—in typical VN/otome fashion, each of the available choices during the bee scene (and other moments like it) are linked with one or more LIs, with the “correct” choice thus positively impacting their affection for her. Make enough correct choices linked with the LI of your choosing, and Iolanthe ends up in a romance with them.
But with Frederique, what choices are made during those scenes don’t matter. You can do whatever you like, and play Iolanthe however you want; what determines whether Frederique’s romance starts and if it continues or ends isn’t how Iolanthe behaves herself during those two weeks. Rather, it’s decided by simply whether or not Iolanthe wants it to continue. The moment she displays discomfort or puts distance between them, he steps back. But his feelings in themselves always remain the same.
Which brings me to something Frederique says at one point during his route, a moment that I keep finding myself thinking about, again and again:
I can’t help but think about how true that statement is—truer than he knows. Depending on how you play her, Iolanthe can have various kinds of quirks and faults, which then appeal to different LIs in some scenarios and not in others. Except for Frederique. Whether Iolanthe is dutiful to the death or causing reckless havoc with abandon, it doesn’t matter: he always loves her, all of her, for everything that she is, just as she always adores him.
In short: truly an OTP for me <3
(Slight tangent, but my favorite option to choose during the boating incident is also the one where Iolanthe pretends to faint. In general, if I can make Iolanthe faint, I will, because the thought of her spending her time at the palace pretending to swoon at the drop of a hat is incredibly funny to me. I also absolutely adore how incredibly swift Frederique’s reaction is in that scene—his little, “oh no you don’t!” and how he manages to get out of the boat and catch her before she hits the water. He knows and reads her so well! <3 And the little banter between them—Iolanthe’s muttered, “poor Captain di Parisi” when he complains about his clothing getting wet—so so cute <3)
But back to the bee scene—as much as I adore the fainting options, I also very much enjoy the other dialogue choices too, particularly Iolanthe proclaiming a fondness for bees (same, girl, same), or the one where scholar!Iolanthe goes on about the importance of bees as a part of the ecosystem. It’s been a hot minute (five years) since I last played a hellion!Iolanthe, but I think she had a dialogue option where she could cause some real chaos amongst the others that was pretty fun, iirc?
In any case—it’s a fun scene, with a fun lead-up (I smile every time Iolanthe makes that snarky-sweet comment about not having eaten in three weeks, and love the way the screen cuts away to Frederique laughing at her joke—cuties <3), with lots of fun choices.
But there’s one thing that’s been standing out to me upon revisiting the game, and that’s the aftermath—when Iolanthe and Frederique tell Bastien afterwards about what happened. And specifically, the way how, no matter how Iolanthe reacts, Frederique recounts what she did with great admiration and clear affection. Which in turns makes me think about a particular moment in Frederique’s route, and how the bee scene functions in regards to the other LIs in contrast to Frederique.
Namely, the bee scene functions in a fundamentally different way for Frederique than it does for the other LIs, due to the fact that Frederique’s route in and of itself functions in a fundamentally different way than the other routes. More specifically—in typical VN/otome fashion, each of the available choices during the bee scene (and other moments like it) are linked with one or more LIs, with the “correct” choice thus positively impacting their affection for her. Make enough correct choices linked with the LI of your choosing, and Iolanthe ends up in a romance with them.
But with Frederique, what choices are made during those scenes don’t matter. You can do whatever you like, and play Iolanthe however you want; what determines whether Frederique’s romance starts and if it continues or ends isn’t how Iolanthe behaves herself during those two weeks. Rather, it’s decided by simply whether or not Iolanthe wants it to continue. The moment she displays discomfort or puts distance between them, he steps back. But his feelings in themselves always remain the same.
Which brings me to something Frederique says at one point during his route, a moment that I keep finding myself thinking about, again and again:
I can’t help but think about how true that statement is—truer than he knows. Depending on how you play her, Iolanthe can have various kinds of quirks and faults, which then appeal to different LIs in some scenarios and not in others. Except for Frederique. Whether Iolanthe is dutiful to the death or causing reckless havoc with abandon, it doesn’t matter: he always loves her, all of her, for everything that she is, just as she always adores him.
In short: truly an OTP for me <3