candle-willowmint

[candle-willowmint]

Vierapril Day 30 - Future

While I've featured a fair bit of stuff about the boys (and their daughter!) in terms of post-MSQ, I don't think I've ever really laid it all out. What better time than now?

After MSQ ends, Laurent will wrap up his studies on botany and how aether can be manipulated to assist in growing flora in places where they can't usually thrive in. Given that he's doing field work and studies in between all the world-ending stuff going on, this doesn't take particularly long. Once he gets his Archon mark, the two return to Rabanastre.

Kris (who goes back to calling himself Gale after MSQ to separate himself from the Warrior of Light moniker), is a bit worried about this at first. While they had promised they'd return to Dalmasca once it was all said and done, Gale didn't want to force Laurent into a position where he'd be unhappy. After all, Rabanastre is in the middle of a desert, and a desert doesn't make for a great environment to grow much of anything.

But given Laurent's studies, he was confident that he'd be able to grow flowers out there. In fact, he saw it as a challenge—what was the point of theorems and ideas if he couldn't try and put them to use in one of the harshest environments he could think of?

So they head back to Rabanastre, and they make a new home in Gemna's old bar. The war and simply time away did mean that most of the bar needed repairs or rebuilding, and the bar was admittedly not in a great area of the city, but the boys didn't care—it's where they wanted to live, no matter how much of a struggle it may have ended up being. They always loved Gemna, and by living there, they felt closer to her.

But just renovating the bar wasn't the only problem that needed solving.* Gale really wanted to leave the life of being the WoL behind. He did not find pride in being the world's 'hero', and he just wanted to relax and live out the rest of his days with his husband. Gale very much did not want to be bothered about imminent threats or a squirrel causing havoc in a village or whatever. It was something for the next generation to handle.

All that said, it's not easy for the Warrior of Light to simply disappear. While he made sure he wasn't all that memorable in terms of looks, it's hard to dodge those who did know him. (Note: I do headcanon that the flow of information worldwide isn't instantaneous and is prone to inaccuracies and tall tales—Gale generally used that to his advantage to make him less immediately recognizable to the average stranger.)

Should people come to Rabanastre and start asking for Gale, things could quickly become out of control once someone did find him. It's not as though everyone looking for the WoL is in search of help, either, and there are plenty of his enemies looking for a chance at revenge.

Tataru helped in this way. She took some great efforts to help them "hide" with some clever rumors and bribing a few specific people… as in the boys' neighbors. Many of them got a fair chunk of change to simply not ask any prying questions, and looking at the gil on offer, why would they? They're just an eccentric Viera couple. And they never had the urge to ask, either; even as new people came around and the original tenants became elderly and died, the two were simply known as the flower shop owners.

And that is all they wanted to be known as. Laurent eventually cracked the code of 'growing stuff in the desert' and cultivated a colorful garden of flowers both inside and outside the shop. Being such an unusual site, people came to visit to look at the flowers and typically buy a bouquet, but the location made it so that it wasn't a tourist attraction.

But these two… are terrible shop owners. Like, incredibly bad. They'll often sell the flowers for a pittance (if not completely free), they're open and closed at seemingly random times, and Laurent doesn't know what 'customer service' is. By all intents and purposes, there should be no way in which they keep the lights open.

Well, if they only relied on the shop's income, that is. The boys made quite a bit of money during their time as assassins, and they had no reason to spend it once all the ~events~ started happening—and despite looking lavish at times, Gale is rather frugal and able to talk his way into a good deal, so those savings go far. Laurent also gets some funds from the Studium in exchange for some of his research findings… if he remembers to send them in a legible format.

Honestly, they're very well off for the rest of their lives, lol.

That's basically how post-MSQ came to be for the two of them. They're just living out the rest of their days in the place they consider their true home, and remembering their mentor and mother figure. Just… quiet and peaceful. It's all they wanted.

(*Final note: There was also the matter of being in the Saraab that might have made the boys' life after MSQ less peaceful, but this is taken care of by the end of the Bozja campaign. Once Fran learns that Gale is the Warrior of Light, she doesn't want to earn the ire of someone that powerful who also knows a lot of the Saraab's secrets, so she 'releases' both of them from duty at that time, so to speak.)

(main Vierapril 2025 post)

[candle-willowmint]

Blue Leafkin

Fledgling Dodo replacement. Can be rescaled with C+ (n_root). Download

[candle-willowmint]

📌🌆About "Crepuscule" my WoL & OT3 gpose fic created with love: 📔To read &/or catch up with it, you can join the comfy dedicated server here => Crepuscule server Or look at my feeds on Bsky (still posting little by little atm) 📚 📜Here is an introduction about it in this pic.

[candle-willowmint]

Hello, i love your screenshot -Raha with the maple leaf. May I ask where i can find that prop. Thank you!

Hi! 🍁Sure It's a leaf prop from here: Leaf prop

[candle-willowmint]

⁝ Rain soul - I

[candle-willowmint]

Nose boops always make the day better

[candle-willowmint]

🌆 Intimacy also lies in our laughter 🍂

Lil story behind this:

-Raha: "Let's go home, loves? my ears are getting cold." -'Rrrru: "Oh well, as long as it's *just* ears..."😏

They burst out laughing, when 'Rrrru lets out a weird snort. Vi and Raha try to reproduce the sound by teasing them, which triggers an uncontrollable fit of laughter.🤣🥰

[candle-willowmint]

🌟🥧Fall! 🍪🍂

[candle-willowmint]

☀️🍀Fall!☕️🍂

[candle-willowmint]

🌖🪻Fall!🧡🍂

[candle-willowmint]

🕯️Through the darkness i'll shine again 🌘

[candle-willowmint]

🌟❣️ *Mumbles* In continuation of redoing my expressions library for the blorbos, It's Raha's turn! And I offer you pouty Raha. Because despite his 324 years old, Raha remains Raha. I love his many facets so much!

[candle-willowmint]

I already took a picture of Crystarium a while ago but I had to take another one because the moon was such a nice detail here.

[candle-willowmint]

🪻Moonflower`

[candle-willowmint]

Hi yall, after a few days away from social media because of health, I'm coming back slowly. I'll resume the course of my creations & all the things I had in progress before the storm.

Concerning xiv write, I don't do many prompts, but I see it as a bonus exploration, not as a challenge. I'm already hard with myself too much. 🕯️💜

Also even if the old birb remains my main social place I'll try to post more here.

[candle-willowmint]

FFXIVWrite 2024 - Day 3 - Tempest

Night envelop them in its familiar, reassuring embrace. The late summer air is already tinged with hints of approaching autumn. All is calm. In the distance, snatches of laughter from their loves slip through the walls of the house. Sitting there on the swing, Nehru's mind is teeming with thoughts, ideas and memories colliding, inside them it's rumbling. “My memories, they're here, they've come back at last. The pieces of the giant puzzle that was my life before, not just life but the person I was, that I am… That I am?” A long sigh “I don't know… I should feel complete and light again, But then why do I feel so shattered and lost? I knew it wouldn't all be happiness and rainbows. I sensed a dark past sleeping in the back of my mind, I felt the demons lurking in the shadows there in that thick fog…” new sigh ”and I was ready because i needed them! my memories belong to me, they're part of me but… I feel like I'm back to being the terrified, imprisoned person I used to be, it's as if I've been given back this whole part of myself, but robbed of a part of what I've become without them… where's my confidence, my self-esteem, my serenity?.. I feel my flame flickering, I'm scared… I've never been so scared…” Nehru straightens up, and uncoils their body from the curled-up posture unconsciously taken on the seat, they straighten their head and raise their eyes to the sky, taking deep breaths to ground and soothe themselves, the thousand and one thoughts making the rumblings a little louder. “'Rrrru you must stay calm, don't give in to fear, don't let the demons devour you, you're not alone, you're loved and lots of people are counting on you… you've got all the pieces now… -or almost, you'll find what's missing in due course-… Now that you've got it all, your treasures, your pieces of yourself… you'll be able to piece together the puzzle of the person you are. With the pieces from before and those from today. And it's up to you to create the person you want to be, to become who you want to be. The storm will calm down, have faith, then you can reconnect to your essence fully.” Nehru stands up slowly, takes several deep breaths again and hurries back inside, finding the comforting warmth in the embrace of their loves. Thanks to them, they feel they can brave any storm, any tempest, and emerge brighter than ever.

[candle-willowmint]

FFXIVwrite2024 Day 3: Tempest

WoLNero 597 words Domestic fluff Severia suffers from a phobia, Nero gives comfort

A fire roared noisily in the hearth as the tempest raged outside, the crackling of the flames punctuated by the shrill hiss of rain drops finding their way down the chimney and transmuting into steam. The noisier, the better, thought Nero as he ran his hands along Severia’s unbound hair. Though the sound of the storm outside couldn’t be completely drowned out, he knew that the heat and light and noise of the fire helped Severia feel more grounded in the here and now. As did his touch.

His mind went back to the first time he had helped Severia through the terror that assailed her at the sign of thunder and lightning. It had come as quite the surprise at the time. Who would have guessed that the Champion of Eorzea was afraid of storms? And he had found about about it by simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time, from her point of view. Forced to cling to her former enemy turned tentative ally, Severia had let him see her at her weakest. And that was, perhaps ironically, the moment that he had truly begun to fall in love with her. 

Now, with Severia curled up in his lap half asleep, Nero smiled at the memory. They had come so far since that day. Never in his wildest dreams, when he had first seen her as an adventurer in Ifrit’s arena, would he have have believed that this simple domestic scene was in their future. Or that someone like him could bring another comfort by his mere presence. She had given him so much, made him a better man with her acceptance and her love. He would give everything to be able to take away these fears from her forever. 

Though at the same time he had to admit that he thoroughly enjoyed it when she needed him like this. She was the only one who ever had. 

Severia had fallen asleep with her cheek smushed into his leg, a tell-tale wetness spreading from her mouth to his pant leg. Nero wrapped his arms around her and lifted her up enough that he could cover her face in kisses. Her face scrunched up in response and he laughed as he continued assaulting her with his affection. 

“Mmph. Wha… What are you doing?” she mumbled. “I was asleep.”

“I know. You were drooling.”

“I was not! I don’t drool.”

“Then tell me what this is?” He pointed out the wet patch on his pants. 

“Don’t blame your accidents on me.”

“Why you little…” Nero changed tactics and began tickling her. “That’s where your head was.”

Severia shrieked and struggled. “Nero, you’re so mean,” she whimpered. 

“Then do you concede?” he asked, his hands poised over her sides. 

“All right! Maybe I drool sometimes. You didn’t have to rub it in.”

“Perhaps not. But I like that I get to see the less perfect parts of you that no one else gets to. I like that you drool. It makes me feel less unworthy of you.”

“That’s silly,” Severia said, cupping both of his cheeks with her hands. “There’s no question of worthiness when you love someone. And I love you.” She kissed him softly. And then again with more passion. 

“I love you,” Nero said, his voice rough with restrained emotion. “I love you and I think it’s time for bed.” Severia nodded and smiled as he lifted her up in his arms and carried her upstairs. 

The storm had passed, the fire was reduced to embers, but the night was still young. 

Thanks for reading!