Is Ciri Geralt’s daughter in The Witcher?
By Sabrina Reed
The Netflix original series, The Witcher, premieres its second season on Friday, Dec. 17. If you need a refresher on how Ciri’s relationship with Geralt came to be, we have you covered!
Last season Ciri and Geralt had different storylines that would eventually converge come the finale. While the timeline of the first season was hard to follow, it became clear in later episodes that the fated events leading to the two’s meeting occurred years prior.
Much of the show’s second season will deal heavily with Geralt’s position as Ciri’s father, however, he isn’t one of her biological parents. Destiny had a hand in his bond with Ciri, and it’s destiny that’ll throw them into very precarious situations in the middle of an ongoing war.
Here’s how Ciri became Geralt’s child.
Who are Ciri’s parents in The Witcher?
Born Princess Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon, Ciri is the sole heir to the Cintran throne as the granddaughter of Queen Calanthe and the daughter of Princess Pavetta and a knight named Duny. However, by virtue of the Law of Surprise, Ciri’s destiny was meant to lie with Geralt who’d inadvertently tied himself to her before her birth.
What is a Child of Surprise in The Witcher?
When Ciri’s father, Duny, went to claim Pavetta’s hand in marriage, he was denied it by Calanthe due to the curse that turned him into a humanoid porcupine. Calanthe tried to have him killed but Geralt, who was visiting the Cintran court at the time, refused to do so on the grounds that Duny wasn’t a monster.
This didn’t stop Calanthe who issued a kill order to her guards. In the midst of the melee, Geralt saved Duny from certain death, but it wasn’t until Pavetta’s powers manifested during Calanthe’s continued attempts to kill the knight that his life was eventually spared.
In his thanks, Duny requested that Geralt ask of him whatever he may so that the knight could repay his debt to him before entering into marriage with Pavetta. Geralt tried to shrug off his request but when Duny insisted, he said he’d invoke the Law of Surprise.
By this law, the person whose life has been saved must repay their debt by giving their savior something of value to them that they are unaware of having. In Duny’s case, he wasn’t aware that Pavetta was pregnant, as such his first born child (Ciri) would be given to Geralt.
The witcher, however, did not claim Ciri until she was older after she fled Cintra which was being raided and ravaged by Nilfgaard. Not that his child is under his protection, we’ll be seeing Geralt doing what he can to keep her safe including teaching her how to defend herself.