Kisaa 🌸 (she/they; 23+ may be 🔞) Writer, artist, gamer. Thinking about my Fields of Mistria OC, Cheri, atm! Hollow Knight | Rain World | Fields of Mistria | Slay the Princess | Hades Sidebar: cressida (VGen) 🌸 Header: @moonfloat
Hi! I'm Kisaa (crystalinerose), an Indonesian artist specializing in digital and pixel art. I like to draw and think about my OCs when I'm not gaming in my free time. This blog is my main/art blog!
I'm also a Stardew Valley mod author (and soon-to-be Fields of Mistria modder too), so check out my devblog @meadowlade if you're interested in those!
🌸more info: https://linktr.ee/crystalinerose
🌸bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/crystalinerose.bsky.social
🌸vgen: https://vgen.co/crystalinerose
🌸ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/crystalinerose
If you are navigating this blog in the desktop layout, you can use the top bar to find content on my Hollow Knight project Voided Hearts (AU set post-Embrace the Void ending) or my Fields of Mistria project Petals Upon the River (centering around my OC Cheri!). Otherwise, you can click on the links embedded in this paragraph.
More navigation tags under the cut:
#ksadraws: All my original art!
#ksaplays: My gaming musings. For more specific tags, search #ksaplays:[game name].
#otherart: Other people's art, gifted or commissioned to me.
#ksatalks: general ramble tag.
Honestly feeling a bit FOMO about artfight right now but considering my drawing pace + the fact that I tend to draw whatever I'm fixating on right now (and it is personal projects outside of work), I feel like not joining is for the best. I don't really do well with timed events, even if artfight is comparatively relaxed, and I'd honestly feel bad if I couldn't reciprocate attacks as much as I'd wished 😔 Maybe next year...?
I posted Fiore's 2026 revamped sprites to Art Fight, so I figured I should post them here too!
Not much has changed aside from polishing some of the older art, but I completely remade her winter outfit because I felt like the old one didn't fit her performer aesthetic very much. I'll work on her beach and bathhouse sprites next!
With the release of the v.3.0 portraits, I thought I'd redo Cheri's bio in light of certain directions her character has gone to... and consequently, I have to make a brand new intro post as well!
Most of these lore are actually already in the project wiki, which not only contains information about Cheri themself but also the project's supporting cast and Lore™️. It's pretty ambitious so the wiki is a perpetual WIP. I'm also working on a spin-off wiki for the cast from Cheri's childhood because the Carrd editor for the main wiki is getting laggy and I am nowhere near finished with it.
This post will also serve as a masterpost for required reading on information and lore that I have yet to put on the wiki itself, and may be updated over time.
🌸 Petals Upon the River Wiki 🌸
🌸 v.3.0 Portraits + Design Masterpost | "Those from the Distant Past" (a peek into Cheri's childhood) | A Peek into Cheri's Mind (aka. a Disco Elysium-style character study) 🌸
(VERY long post, so bio, lore, and MANY MORE under the cut!)
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The Arrival
"A so-called 'adventurer' and traveler from distant lands who started a new life in Mistria with the help of an old friend."
... that's what it says on paper, anyways.
Born in the moon-bathed province of Gyokurin in lands far west of Aldaria, Cheri is the most recent addition to Mistria's community and the local errand girl. They arrived in the dead of winter, having been brought to town by Balor, who introduced her to Lady Adeline as an old friend and contact of his from the Adventurer's Guild — resourceful and especially skilled with the blade.
In reality, Cheri had never been an adventurer in the first place. She was a mercenary — the sort that kills for money and survival instead of noble or higher causes — with a near-ghostly reputation as the fair-haired, Blood-Red Swordsman. Balor had earned her entry to Mistria through his good charms and the help of some forged documents, and Cheri took to prove his vouching of her skills with great diligence.
Following her Master's final order, 14 year-old Cheri fled across their homeland, eventually stowing away in a ship that managed to escape the blockade and ending up in foreign Aldaria. Utterly alone with no one to depend on other than themself, they took to the life of a sword-for-hire, surviving through their exceptional skills... until they came across a peculiar advert written on the back of a storybook page. It called for protection detail during 'delivery of a precious cargo', and Cheri answered.
It was then that the young swordsman met Balor and his motley crew of rogues and con-men. He became her mentor — teaching her literacy through screenplays and knife combat, among other things — but their relationship evolved over the years into something of its own. They travelled together for about three years as a ragtag group of thieves and killers until a job gone wrong, and a job that Cheri found for them at that, killed the other members of their group.
After the incident, Cheri made herself scarce out of guilt and shock. She lived the vagrant life with her then-mount Kintsugi before giving the little stallion away at some point as her psyche worsened. She travelled alone ever since — throwing aside the name her Master had given her all those years ago, becoming known only by her epithet and the lethal dance of her blade.
Balor and Cheri reunited by chance in a sleepy Aldarian village years later. Barely living life and hanging on to the very end of their rope, Cheri accepted his proposition to aid Mistria's rejuvenation. He gave them their new name, and after two weeks' worth of waiting, the two travelled together to Mistria.
One last adventure, for old time's sake...
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Past Ghosts
While Cheri has taken up more peaceful work in Mistria, they've never really viewed themself as anything but their Master's prized student. They would have passed it off as the importance of carrying out his legacy seeing that, as far as they're aware, they're the last standing member of his noble house by service. The sword they carry at all times is proof of that. It's the clan's heirloom blade, passed from leader to their successors, and one that their Master wielded as a youth himself before his marriage.
However, the simple truth is that Cheri is afraid of the idea of failing her Master, despite the fact that his death meant he cannot pass such judgments upon her. To Cheri, if no one in the world will embody her Master's ideals — especially his chosen heir — then what was all his efforts worth? What is her life meant for?
Growing up in the midst of a civil war, Cheri was taught that survival matters above all else. Anything one does to ensure one's continued existence is justified, so long as one only does what one must. This was the core ideal of her Master's motto: 'Strike true, strike to kill'.
On a surface level, it can be interpreted as 'precision and confidence in the act of killing'. Inability to land a clean, lethal strike is to cause undue suffering to one's opponent and oneself. However, the true meaning of this philosophy is 'only draw your blade with the intent to kill; nothing more, nothing less'. Because the blade is the reflection of the wielder's intent, Cheri never purposefully flaunts her blade nor her skills, and neither does she take pleasure in her work as a mercenary, despite utter lack of guilt in the act. To Cheri, drawing blood and taking lives is simply a means to an end.
This philosophy is also why Cheri has less qualms to do things under the table than Balor does, and why it's unlikely for her to judge others harshly for everything they've done to survive. To be quite honest, the only reason she has not returned to her old ways (not completely, and at least not openly) is because it would ruin Balor's reputation by association, considering he was the only one who vouched for her presence in Mistria early on.
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Settling Down
Life in Mistria is something Cheri struggled with greatly. Having first lived in shared dormitories with her Master's other disciples — working as an indentured servant and stablehand outside of her studies — then a vagrant life that's only broken up by their short stint of travelling by wagon and horse with Balor's crew, the idea of having a roof that is not only permanent, but also one she could call her own is an alien concept.
Cheri spent that first winter refurbishing the cottage she'd moved into with Ryis and Landen's help. However, even once the roof was no longer collapsing into itself and the floorboards caulked, Cheri found herself restless. She ended up bunking with Balor most nights. It did not help (lighthearted) gossip that she was his partner and not in the sense he intended when he described Cheri as such. There's only so many times they could call each other 'old friends' and refusing to elaborate without it sounding like an euphemism, after all.
Eventually, to Balor's relief, Cheri learned to indulge in the finer things in life. They decorated their house with comfortable furniture, all in soft materials and pretty pinks and, courtesy of a favor Louis owed them, got themself a wide variety of fashions — men's clothes, comfortable yet sophisticated to fight and dance in, but in the rich colors and patterns the court ladies back home had worn. These were the things that first them social status and later lifestyle had denied them.
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Connections, Old and New
Cheri, once you get past their consummate professional front, is actually quite the social butterfly. Their work requires them to not only be diligent and resourceful, but also to carry themself with grace and charm. Information and connections are worth more than gold — both to them as a fixer, and to them as a person who's always craved kinship and acceptance.
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Early on, Balor was the only person that Cheri genuinely, honestly cared for. When they were both younger, he took up a mentor role: teaching young Cheri literacy through his trove of storybooks and screenplays, and later throwing knives and how to do tricks with them. Their separation, Cheri's youth and her deep emotional reliance on his presence, and Balor's own guilt about her involvement in their heyday hurt them both as an individual and as a duo.
Nowadays, there seems to be a gap between the two; Cheri tried but could not understand why Balor so doggedly wanted her to grow roots in Mistria while being evasive and noncommittal about his own stay. This difference is the greatest conflict in their present-day relationship, though once they resolved it, they've become inseparable in a much healthier way. Balor's quite pleased to be the Dragonsguard's wine uncle, so Cheri, as his counterpart, gladly took up the post of vodka aunt. They're partners-in-crime, in the literal and metaphorical sense.
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Reina first met Cheri while they were foraging for something to eat. At first, Reina assumed this was an occasional habit, until it turned out that despite Cheri's constant visits to the Inn, they have never once been seen eating proper meals. This had been an appalling discovery, so now Cheri works for the Sleeping Dragon Inn as Reina's sous chef in exchange for free breakfast — a compensation they cannot deny, as denying this kind of hospitality wouldn't be a good look. To that end, Cheri was fairly compensated, while Reina is reassured that her friend is at least eating one meal per day.
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As Cheri lived near the bridge in the Eastern Road, it makes her neighbors with Ryis and Landen. She struck a quick friendship with Ryis on their mutual appreciation for craftsmanship, woodworking, and fashion, along with their feelings of being unmoored in a new life. Cheri's skills and odd habit of making intricate wood sculptures with just her survival knife amused Landen, and he immediately hired her to assist with odd jobs and manning the till. They occasionally have dinners together, and Landen even grew to view her as his eccentric new niece.
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March and Cheri have a relationship, if 'relationship' is defined as 'having interacted in any capacity'.
Their first meeting was a disaster. March's carelessly-phrased aside had offended Cheri, who at the time came to him to commission new throwing knives to match her old set, as some of them had been lost in hectic fights. She ended up issuing a challenge to forge her knives that are good by his standards, with the catch that the ornamental work had to be the exact same as the old knives'. March ended up producing beautiful knives that were too light compared to old ones. He got a sound dressing-down and to his bruised ego's dismay, Cheri even paid twice the rates for the first commission and the reworked knives.
Ever since, they've found themselves in a constant volley of passive-aggressive exchanges — including publicly bickering with each other on the town's notice board, which Adeline had to put to a stop, only for the two to continue everywhere else around town... and loudly.
It was not until a passing teasing comment Cheri made when they ran into each other outside the Bathhouse and March's explosive, flustered reaction to it that this so-called relationship's nature changed. All of Cheri's hostility disappeared, replaced by an incessant need to irritate March in every way possible, as he has unfortunately made himself an easy target. March eventually began to retaliate, inviting Cheri to odd competitions, and trying to break her composure (which has backfired spectacularly on occasion).
Despite all the backtalking and teasing, March and Cheri have always held respect for the other. Cheri may have gifted him a resin-cast paperweight of a 'redheaded worm' once, and March may constantly threaten to kick them out of the forge when warming up in winters, but neither will go as far as to be purposefully cruel to each other.
However, it was also this back-and-forth dynamic that prevented them from growing closer, as neither Cheri nor March are good at speaking honestly, and the status quo made them — or at least, March — question the kind of relationship they share and if it could grow to be genuine, even if just as friends.
Eventually, they do get along... after March accidentally asked for Cheri's hand in marriage by gifting her a replacement sword. They compromised on calling it an engagement while they figure out this whole 'dating' thing.
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Caldarus is possibly the oddest connection Cheri's developed in Mistria. Where she came from, dragons are mere animals, so to Cheri's logic, talking dragon statues are more realistic than talking dragons. It was this novelty that made her seek out Caldarus — first by listening to his grand tales of ages past, and later a mutual exchange. From Cheri, how they're trying to adjust to life in Mistria, and from Caldarus, the simple joys of transient life that he'd observed as a statue.
Cheri finds comfort in the fact that Caldarus is so far removed from 'normal' human norms despite living in the human world, and felt secure in his lack of expectations of normalcy. And Caldarus not only likes Cheri as they are, but cares enough to check in on their wellbeing through dreams.
Despite this contentment, however, there was one uncomfortable observation Cheri has made of Caldarus: his wisdom, philosophy, and teacherly demeanor... he reminded them of their Master. Sometimes they found themself wondering what would happen if Caldarus were in their Master's place. What, then, would they have become today? But such fanciful thoughts always made them awfully guilty as, for better or for worse, their Master was the one who shaped them into what they are today...
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Snow White was the latest addition to Cheri's ever-expanding family. Cheri has always had a fondness for horses, and moreso for war horses, as they are the type of equine they grew up surrounded by.
Snow White happened to be of a breed historically used as cavalry horses during the War of the Lilies, but in times of peace raised as dressage and parade horses for the Crown's guard. Snow White also happened to be the most notorious horse in one of many stables Cheri visited in their search for a travelling companion to and from the Capital. A mare too smart for her own good, with a mean bite and history of kicking down stable doors when agitated... all the works. This alleged poor temperament is the reason why Snow White, despite her pedigree, was on the brink of being sent to the chopping block.
Cheri stepped in and ended up striking a deal with the stablemaster: if they could so much as ride Snow White in under a year, then they would need to only pay a pittance for a steed worth her weight in diamonds. Little did that stablemaster know, it was his loss — because Snow White turned out to be a loyal, protective companion... if occasionally mischievous. 'Like horse, like rider' exhibited in full force, apparently.
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Cheri is someone who has not had the chance to mature in a healthy way because of their isolation and the general circumstances of their upbringing. Even as a child, the only people whom they could model a deep relationship off of were her Master and his husband. The sort of dedication, acceptance, and lifelong companionship they had was something they yearned for their whole life, but felt like they could never obtain because they were not a 'normal' person, even if only platonically.
She's haunted by the burden of her legacy and basing off her entire sense of self around said legacy, which was exacerbated by her blind adoration of her Master for 'saving' her and giving her purpose. This was also what caused Cheri to cling to people like Balor and their old friends, because to her they are the closest people to the sort of 'normal' she's known her whole life.
Moving to Mistria and their new life there was the hardest decision they've ever made... but it was also the best, because for once Cheri can finally see that they are not so removed from what they believe normalcy is, and that they are more lovable — and more loved — than they think they are.
The question remains: will they accept that and move on, or will they continue to cling to their past?
After approximately 2 months of work, I've finished the first revamped portrait batch for Cheri. This includes their basic seasonal portraits, romanceable character-exclusive portraits (beach and bathhouse), and additional outfits alongside their alt versions. The extra outfits for this batch are:
Their iaido training gear, with tied/untied sleeves;
Loungewear, with warm and cold weather variants that is based off of the nemaki I've drawn Cheri in in certain art (1, 2);
An alt version of their summer outfit (with kimono off);
Shooting Star Festival date outfit, and;
The travelling outfit that they wore in the winter before the story starts (which is part of their Lore Portraits™️; more lore to come!).
This has been a massive labor of love, because not only did I do a ton of extra work for the additional outfits and emotes on top of that, I also fully rendered every single outfit layer for fashion study reasons. Here you can see how every layer of their outfit affects Cheri's silhouette, even if slightly!
The underlayers also work as bases for some of their subsequent outfits, so there's no such thing as wasted effort on my end.
Some Extra Thoughts
Aside from the portraits, I've also talked quite a bit about my process for making these designs and some character discussion in my prior posts, if you're interested in reading about them:
Spring | Summer | Fall | Winter | Dichotomy Between Cheri's Iaido and Date Outfits
I've come a long way since I did my first ever portraits, so seeing the obvious improvements in both my imitation of the FoM style and my own rendering techniques has been very satisfying. Now I can finally move on to the second set of seasonal outfits and the new extra portraits for wedding and other outfits I've drawn Cheri in 🌸
As a bonus, some slightly more scandalous versions of the loungewear/bathhouse portraits (which are actually not very scandalous considering the new bachelorette, but it is for Cheri's standards) under the cut!
These are entirely self-indulgent, but I had to do it anyways ^^
P.S: I do commissions for these kinds of portraits!
I specialize in imitating the FoM style as exactly as it gets... with a little extra flair on my end, which is more detailed cel shading and antialiasing. If you're looking for a portrait for your farmer/OC that would fit right into the game, feel free to check out my portfolio! <3
More refs, thoughts, and lore under the cut! She got 3 dresses & a dream!
I added a bit more of lore in her AF profile so I thought of sharing her refs here too! I’ll post her profile when July starts
"It's nothing a Hot Toddy can't fix!" - if questioned about her injuries
Once a daughter of a noble family from the Caldosian Empire. Hunie now serves as the steward of Mistria’s farm, caring for the crops, animals, and every task that comes her way.
Hunie's past is unknown in the townlet. She’s content with what she has and keen to do anything just to sleep a little longer.
💛 My friends are funny for often forgetting she isn’t a natural beach blonde babe. She would be so happy to hear that 🎵
I mean- who would question her about it since it’s really common to dye your hair. I do think only Valen, Balor, and Vera would know she dyes her hair. The rest of the town just assumes she’s blonde.
I do believe she would be pleased if anyone in town calls her boring or nothing extraordinary, thinking she is blending well in this little town.
Also- think of her natural hair similar to the caramel tops of puddings hihi 🍮 it fits her pudding motif
I've reached 400 followers, so I'm holding another free art raffle!
The winner will receive one completely from-scratch Fields of Mistria style base portrait sprite, and one outfit!
The only rules are:
- Reblog
- Have your messages enabled
Fields of Mistria fan OCs/farmers are preferred, but I will make any OC. You don't need to have any images of them, in-game screenshots or descriptions are fine!
The winner will be drawn from a wheel on Wednesday, July 1st.
Lore-related portrait sprites of Fiore, as well as her Mistria appearance for comparison! These show how she looked before she started street performing. Fiore looks very different in Mistria compared to how she looked before, which made living under a new identity and disappearing from the Capital very easy.
Thoughts and reflections on these designs below:
I actually changed her face more than I thought I would in these. My idea was that she wears a lot of stage makeup at the Opera House, which makes her look not like 'herself'. Ironically, the '?????' sprite looks most like the Fiore we know, at least in the face. This period of time is where she becomes more stone-faced. She is about 24 years old in the 'Opera House' sprites, and 26 in the '?????' sprite (she is just shy of 27 years old when she arrives in Mistria).
I chose a more 'romantic' color palette for pre-street performing Fiore because I think it represents her desire for something more. Opera is at heart a very romantic form of theater, so there is irony in performing the concept of romance while never being able to explore it outside of scripted theater. I think the romantic reds pave the way for the smoky ash color, and then the fiery rebirth of her street performance era.
The curls in her hair were a motif I added in her very first design iteration but at the time they were just a design choice. Making the curls have a more symbolic meaning was something I decided when I first drafted her opera house design. Fiore's hair ties heavily into her story. I would say it's the most important part of her design because of what hair can symbolise in storytelling. The way her hair changes throughout her story means many different things and marks significant periods of her life. Fiore's current hairstyle isn't entirely her choice, it's more of an attempt to work with what her hair has become.
Just finished a PNGtuber-style Fields of Mistria Portraits - with animated emotes! ✦🌸
With the recent price revamps also comes more options for emote packs, including a PNGtuber set that adds a blinking-while-talking emote. There's a discount for ordering a full set of either static or animated emotes, so keep that in mind too!
Check out my VGen for more details!
🌸 https://vgen.co/crystalinerose
Another one done for the month - a previous client returned to commission me for their farmer OC's spring and winter outfits, and now we have a full seasonal outfit lineup!
(This post is a PSA that you can commission me in increments for your OC's portraits - prices in subsequent comms will be adjusted if you have previously commissioned me for a base portrait <3)
Just finished a PNGtuber-style Fields of Mistria Portraits - with animated emotes! ✦🌸
With the recent price revamps also comes more options for emote packs, including a PNGtuber set that adds a blinking-while-talking emote. There's a discount for ordering a full set of either static or animated emotes, so keep that in mind too!
Check out my VGen for more details!
🌸 https://vgen.co/crystalinerose
