5 Times Yennefer Treated Geralt Right (& 5 Times She Absolutely Did Not)

In The Witcher video games, it’s up to the player who Geralt falls in love with, or if he just lives his life an endless ladies man. However, in book canon, the one woman for him is Yennefer of Vengerberg. Over time, she and Geralt have had quite the complicated, roller-coaster of a relationship. Some of their problems are totally his fault or based on weird things that happened to him, like his amnesia.

Some of their other problems, though? Those are definitely Yen’s fault, and Geralt deserves better. But sometimes Yen gets things really right, and that’s why he can’t stop loving her. Here are 5 Times Yennefer Treated Geralt Right (And 5 Times She Absolutely Did Not).

10 Raising Ciri (Did)

Arguably, whether someone ships Geralt and Yen or not, the best the two did together was raise Ciri. Between her magical powers and Witcher training, she definitely needed guidance on a lot of fronts. Geralt and Yen do that for her, and in raising Ciri, they bond more than they ever did before. They become a little family.

Geralt needed help with Ciri’s capabilities, and to round out a lot of things he didn’t know. Yen stepped up and helped him make his adopted daughter a much more well-rounded person. That is a great example of treating someone you love the right way.

9 Triss Tryst (Did Not)

When Geralt lost his memory, he ended up in bed with Yen’s good friend, Triss Merigold. Now, if anyone’s in the wrong, it’s Triss. She knew about Geralt and Yen, but happily ignored it to shoot her shot with the Witcher that got her all hot and bothered. She just told Geralt that Yen was a friend. Lo and behold, Yen was much more than a friend.

However, even in The Witcher 3 where Geralt can move on from his amnesia mistakes, Yen can blame him for what happened. It makes sense that she’s upset, but it’s not all that fair to put all the fault on him and to make him suffer for it.

8 Ensuring Their Love Was Real (Did)

All of their relationship, Yen wasn’t quite sure if what she and Geralt had was real. After all, when they met he saved her life by tying their fates together (as far as fans understand). So, she didn’t know if she actually felt so strongly about him or if it was just the magic talking.

Yen eventually encouraged Geralt to find the djinn that he wished on and reverse its hold on them. When they did, she finally was able to be sure if she loved him or not. In a complicated magic world, that’s very sweet, risking your life to love someone for real.

7 Pushing Geralt Away (Did Not)

Because of Geralt’s wish, though, Yen had a terrible habit of pushing him away. Many of their encounters were littered with her leaving in the middle of the night, accusing him of forcing her to care because of the wish, and even using her magic to transport him into a lake.

People don’t call her an ice queen for no reason. She struggles to get truly close to people. After all they’ve been through, it can be really unfair at times how she keeps him at bay. Geralt deserves someone who wants to love him, and sometimes Yen is simply not that person.

6 Couldn’t Stay Away (Did)

No matter how far away Yen pushes Geralt, they always seem to crash back into each other. Either by chance or because (against her better wishes) she needs him for something. And once they’re together? Well, they’ve never been very good at keeping their relationship professional.

While Yennefer may act distant, there’s something about Geralt that attracts her and makes her open up. Considering she doesn’t give anyone else that courtesy, and definitely not with as much respect she gives him, that’s a pretty impressive feat. She treats Geralt better than most anyone else in her life.

5 Ran To Istredd (Did Not)

Especially early on in their relationship, Yennefer would often boomerang between Geralt and Istredd, using the men to share her bed and give her company, but never committing. In the books, this caused tension between Geralt and Istredd. They almost fought, but then Geralt realized there was no point, because she wasn’t picking either of them. Not yet, at least.

Yen openly getting it on with Istredd isn’t the nicest thing to do to Geralt. Sure, they weren’t exclusive, but c’mon. Even ignoring Geralt, Istredd was always painfully in love with her and it was cruel to string him along. Both men deserved to be treated better.

4 Doing Anything To Save Ciri (Did)

During the hunt for Ciri, Geralt still stuck to his neutral morality. Yen, on the other hand, did not. She put Ciri and their family over everything else, dooming a whole town and destroying historical gardens to get any and all information on their adopted daughter.

While her actions seemed dark, it’s a serious sign of love for her. Yen normally does anything and everything for her own gain. Here, she was sacrificing so much for Ciri, the young woman they both loved. That’s a loving, albeit all-consuming, way to treat your loved ones. She is the kind of parent that will do anything for her child and Geralt respects and appreciates that.

3 Lied To Geralt And Used Him Multiple Times (Did Not)

From the moment they met, Yen has used Geralt for her own selfish gains multiple times. When she healed Jaskier, she made Geralt humiliate the local men who were obsessed with her as payment. He promised to spend the night by her side and answer any question she wanted about himself and Witchers, but instead she did that.

It really set the tone for their relationship. While Yen always was attracted and interested in Geralt, those feelings never got in the ways of her goals. Ambition always won over their romance. That’s not the best way to treat a man you love.

2 Coming To His Aid Whenever He Needed Her (Did)

Geralt and Yennefer aren’t always on the same page in their relationship or their stances on life, but when he’s in need? Well, Yen is always there to help if she can. He’s still an important part of her life, no matter the circumstances. He saved her life, she saved his friend, they were in love, they raised a daughter together. Their stories will always be tied together, considering Ciri alone.

So, it’s good of Yen to always want to help him. That’s how someone should treat the father of their child and (depending on the player) the love of her life. She may not be the best at showing her feelings, but this is one way she doesn’t act too cold.

1 The “Dear Friend” Letter (Did Not)

Okay, this one is more for the meme of it, but the “Dear Friend” letter is the most iconic, savage thing Yen has ever done to Geralt. When he lost his memory, all he was told was that Yen was a friend. And even when some of it started coming back to him, it all felt too awkward to be too romantic or intimate with her. So, when asking for Yen’s help, he signed it “dear friend”.

And Yen had a field day with that. In her response, she agreed to help him, but she littered the entire message with how dear a friend he was, and how dear their relationship had become, over and over. It was a roast like no other. While it was hilarious, though, a memory-missing Geralt didn’t quite deserve it.

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