#oc: Xixa

[starres-stuff]

Day 13: New Acquaintance

"Just looking at this picture makes me feel old. That was myself as Seri and Xixa when I first arrived in the Shroud. Spinner Save me we look so different back then."

[the-sharlyan-song]

"Are you certain that one Sonny?" It was midday in Gridania, and Dimitri had taken an early break to meet his mentor, Xixa, outside of the shopping area.

"Look at it. It is as green as his eyes, and I swear the band is made of wood. I think it is perfect for him. If he hates it, he can take it off. I think it would help him to have a symbol. Something he can look at when he needs to. When he worries, I.." a deep blush appeared in the Sharlayan's pale skin much to the amusement of the supposedly old Mooncatte who gave a chuckle and then turned to look at a pair of earrings with Menphina's symbol on them giving the seven fulms tall Elezen time to compose himself.

"Cutest damned thing you are. Still can't say you love him without blushing." It was a low mutter, but the Duskwights sharp ears picked up every word she spoke.

"Hey! You are not used to seeing what true love looks like, " he protested, a scowl appearing in his rather feminine features, his normal array of eyeliner and eyeshadow just adding to those features overall.

"No such thing." Xixa grumbled in reply, her nostrils even flaring. "Mark my word Sonny he will either get bored with you, sick of you, or find someone else. It's what happens. No, such a thing as forever no matter how many times ya try, along comes the new shiny and next thing you know the half way out the door."

Over his shoulder, he looked to where she stood, and then he found the dark-haired Miqo'te playing with a bracelet that went to the earrings she had been looking at he could see the sadness there, and a small sigh came from him. "Have you ever told Iris how you feel?" He asked softly, reaching over to take one of the boxes that copies of the set that had caught Xixa's eye, and quickly he put it with his other things before she looked up at him.

"WHAT! NO?" Her voice raised, and for a moment, he thought she was going to punch him, her hand balled at her side suggesting she was certainly thinking about. "It's complicated. She is all the way in Corethas, and I am all the way here. I think she is a noble, one like your sister, full blooded. Doubt she would have time for a relationship with a commoner, and besides, there are others I like in that, and I don't think that's her thing. Like I said, it's complicated. We see each other less and less now. Doesn't change anything for me, but like I said, don't get too comfy, Sonny people leave, and then you have nurse a broken heart."

Dimitri felt his eyes cross, and his lips pressed into a thin line. He despised when she got like this, which wasn't often, Xixa was a strong woman, after all, stronger than his sister in many ways. "Could start going to those social mixers. You know those speed dating ones. The girls are older, and I could be you Wing-Elezen, " and there it was the fist he had been expecting, which connected with his thigh muscle hard enough to make it spasm.

"Ow! XIXA what the FUCK was that!? I was being helpful!" A loud shhh came from the shopkeeper, an old Wildwood from the looks of him who was staring down his nose at the pair with his lip curled in disgust, a faint tremble going through him.

"Mind your business, Sonny. I'm old, and I'm set in my ways. Don't need someone trackin' mud through my house or cloggin' up my shower shower drain with their hair. Been me and the girls for so long now that I wouldn't even know what to do on a date. A speedy one or not. The last date I went on was twenty years ago and it was the girls' father. We went over to the water and fished didn't have much money to do anything else. Can't believe I was ever that young. Liri was born just a turn later, too. Wouldn't even know what to say to get someone interested in me. What do I tell them? I like to darn socks and make stew for supper. Oo, that would have them beatin' down my door." Up she looked at his smiling face, and she couldn't help but scowl at it. "Think my days of datin' are o-v-e-r."

To this, Dimitri shook his head and sighed. "Just like Laurent, same damned age too. Neither of you has even hit forty yet, and here you are. I am beginning to think it is one of those Shroud things." Quickly, he darted forward, putting a space between them before she could hit him again. "I could always look into Iris for you to find out who she is. Invite her to dinner so you two could talk."

A momentary look of hope appeared in the Keeper's eyes, but then she swallowed hard and shook her head. "Wouldn't want to push her. She'll come back around when she's ready or when she misses me. I know she does. I can feel it." There were other things Xixa wanted to say as her ears sagged on top of her head, and her tail swished back and forth very close to the floor. "I don't want ta talk about this anymore." Her tone was firm again and her teeth gritted together.

"Order your wedding bands, and then let's go. Had enough of this old ass staring at us." Her hand lifted, and she raised her middle finger to the old Elezen. Who wheezed in reply and look towards Dimitri who was approaching the counter swiftly.

"Better have the gil Duskwight or the Adders will be here to collect you." The old man left his threat hanging in the air as Dimitri drew out a rather official looking cheque book from a Sharlayan Bank. "How much do I owe you?"his fiery eyebrow lifting in question.

"The two nophica bands set in dark wood around one hundred thousand gil as a pair and that box there will cost you another hundred thousand and no I won't split it up so you can afford it. No bartering, either your kind, has nothing I would be interested in."

Not a single word left his lips, not even a whisper of reply. Instead, he focused on writing the amount on the next cheque and then slid it across the counter just as Xixa yelled behind him. "Dontcha be smart Pierront Chevanoix. I see your wife at temple on Windsday. She'll box yer ears if I tell her you were bein' an ass to Lord Jienuex."

Dimitri stiffened at the sound of the word "Lord" before his name. Even though he had just written it on the cheque, the sound of that terrible word always made his stomach churn in protest. When someone called him it.

"Oh, sorry Ser," Elezen said out of nowhere, and he straightened up. "Forgive. The clan markings and relaxed manners. I thought you were one of those vagrants from Mun Tuy cellars." This seemed to get much faster now as he gathered all the sizing information and designs for the rings, the special symbols giving him pause as he recognized the Shroud Witch nature behind them. "This order will take about a Moon, Ser. Unless you need it sooner?"

Tucking the book back into his coat, he shook his head at Old Elezen. "A Moon is fine. We have not set an official date yet. I will just take the other item. It isn't going very far. " Then, on his heel, he turned and out the door he headed, adding one final dig. "Just linkpearl the Adders when they are done. I work for them. They will get you in touch." Yanking open the door, he let Xixa escape first before he stepped out and shut it behind him.

"Where too next?" Xixa lit a cigarette as soon as she felt the fresh air on her cheeks.

"Home. I have had enough of the city this day, but first, this is for you." Dimitri extended the box he had been carrying waiting for the Keeper to take it. His eyes flashed in various marine shades. "I saw you looking at it. Something nice to wear when we find you a date."

"Sonny, is this.." her eyes widened as she opened the box and looked inside. The next thing Dimitri knew, there were tears in Xixa's eyes. "Sonny, I can't pay you back for this."

"You'll pay me back by going on a date with someone or finally telling Iris that you want her in your life life." Silence fell over the pair then as Xixa fought for the words to say how she felt, but none would come, at least not now.

[starres-stuff]

Day 9: Lend an Ear -FFXIV Write 2024

Lend an Ear: listen sympathetically or attentively.

“Why do you do it? I will never understand that. They are in and out of this house more than your children, Mother.” 

Xixa's oldest daughter was in a tizzy that morning, her daughter Lunah, had her first teeth coming in and hadn't let the girl sleep a wink. When she showed up on Xixa's doorstep it took the Viera no more than a few minutes to settle the baby down in the spare room with a teething rattle she kept in the freezer for such occasions. Now Xixa was making breakfast for the rest of the house and entertaining Liri's grumpy questions.

“Best to open the door to others than close it in their face. We all need someone to talk to, girl. Doesn't hurt a bit to lend an ear to a troubled soul.” This morning it would be pancakes and sausage for them all, the platter was already piled high and Xixa kept adding more. She was always prepared for guests, she had to be. 

“But who do you talk to when you need someone, Mom? You are everyone else's sounding board like Lady Vi says, but who do you turn to?” Liri felt like she had a hangover at the moment from the lack of sleep, and she was already prepared to get some sleep after breakfast, on the couch so she wouldn't wake Lunah. 

“The trees, girl. The grass, the elements, and the Shroud herself. Some of us are put here to help others, Liri. We don't think about our needs, we aren't selfish about our time or our love. We just open ourselves to the turn of the Wheel and what comes through the door, Spinner provides, is ours to handle this day. Today it was you and my screaming Grandbaby. Tomorrow, who knows.” Another pancake hit the pile and then Xixa turned to grab the sausage, tossing it into the same cast iron pan she had already used. The sounds of Lahsih and Volhi filled the house as they woke to the smells of breakfast and scrambled to get ready for lessons in town. 

“Don't you feel used though? People are always here with their problems instead of seeing you?” Liri rested her chin on the edge of her cup, her long ears just falling flat from exhaustion. 

“If I did, girl, I would have shut the door in your damn face this morning or not gotten up to answer it at all. It is my path in life, and I was given the tools I needed to walk that path. There is nothing to feel used about. People just need an ear. Life is hard, look at yourself just nineteen with a daughter going on two. We all need someone, and I just don't mind being that person. Sure it hurts sometimes, people ignore you and push you away.” Xixa's shoulders raised into a shrug, but her ears stayed alert, the sounds of the house never allowing them to rest. It was her responsibility to keep the others safe. 

“I don't see the happiness in that. There must be something you want in return, something you search for from them that you let them in.” Liri was at the point of passionate protest which was nothing new for the young woman, she still had a lot of growing to do. 

“Go get your sisters for breakfast now. I'm just about done.” This was the end of the conversation and as Liri huffed then stomped out of the room, like the brat she always had been, Xixa shifted her eyes to the window and looked out it at the sunny morning the Shroud had given them, a measure of sadness in her eyes and she whispered to herself. 

“Just want them to love me. No matter how far apart we are, no matter if we can ever be together. That's what I want. That they would just be with me and just stop running away.” as she finished speaking a soft wind blew in the window to ruffle her hair and wrap her plump frame with a hug that only the air could give. 

[starres-stuff]

Day 25: Old Friend

"A few days ago I sent in Xixa and I from when we first met. Well, here we are a good seven cycles later. She is also ten years older than me. So she is two different types of Old Friend."

[starres-stuff]

Day 2- Horizon FFXIV Write 2024

Horizon: The limit of a person's mental perception, experience, or interest.

“A gil for your thoughts” 

The voice had come out of nowhere shaking Dimitri from his trancelike state and turning his head where he found the emerald green eyes of his mentor, Xixa, staring back at him. 

“I didn't even notice your approach” The Duskwight offered a warm smile. Xixa was very skilled at this, even when the days were dark and dismal as they had been lately. 

“He thinks of you too, you know, Sonny.” Xixa patted his forearm and then let her hand rest on it while she kept talking. “I know why he is mad at you, a little bit torn on it since I don't think it is a reason to stay mad for a Moon, but at the same time if I had a life like he has I'd have been mad too.” 

Dimitri sighed softly, eyes lingering on the Viera's face, he always wondered how old she was, she certainly didn't look any older than her mid-twenties but the way she spoke made it sound like she had lived for centuries. “I don't think this place is for us anymore and I don't just mean the Shroud. I mean Eorzea in general.” 

Xixa fought to show no emotion regarding this. She enjoyed having both men around, they had been through a lot together, and the lump in her throat reminded her she cared a bit too much about both of them these days. “There is still tomorrow, Sonny. When all hope for today has run out, and we think there is nothing left. We just have to remind ourselves that tomorrow is a new day and we can try again. Just got to believe in what you want and who you love. They wouldn't be there if they didn't still feel the same for you.” 

Dimitri raked a nervous hand through his hair then gazed out towards the meadow full of flowers she had found him sitting near. His first intention was to come here to paint the beauty of a now encroaching Shroud fall but as soon as he had his easel set up and his paints mixed he found himself wishing Laurent was there to share it with him. 

“I keep having dreams of leaving this place Xixa. There is nothing left here, everyone I knew is gone. Vi has her life to live and I find myself lonely for company and friends. It is just not the same anymore, I hardly know anyone besides Qih’a but his head is in his own set of clouds.” biting his lower lip he looked towards the ground, he felt awful thinking the way he was now.

“There's always hope on the horizon. Sometimes we can't see it, sometimes we think it's over and it's not. The thing is we have to learn to love without expectations. We can put it out into the world, let it be there but people aren't content with that. They want someone to pick it up and then send it back. When all that matters is that we put ourselves out there, to begin with, we tried to connect and it's a start.” from the basket she had been carrying with her she pulled out a Pixie Apple, its bright red and waxy skin catching the light as she held it out to him; her features filled with understanding and compassion. It was his favorite fruit and she knew it too. 

“I tell him I love him but he doesn't say it back.” The forlorn notes in his voice were as strong as they were heartbreaking, but he reached for the offered apple, picking it gently from Xixa’s hand and holding it in his own. “I don't know if we will make it through this time, I fucked up.” 

A tsk noise came from the Viera then and her free hand flicked a finger or two at his long ear. “Oh hush with that. It is a matter of perception. He comes home to you every day, words are words, Dimitri. I can spin you a pile of Chocobo shit in a single breath and mean none of it. He still loves you but you need to listen with your damn heart and soul instead of your ears. He speaks to you all the time, even if it is just handing you an apple like I just did. It's your favorite, those are the things you want to hear, which means someone paid attention to the little things.”

It was these words Xixa would leave him with this day for soon after she spoke them, she squeezed his arm and kissed his cheek then departed the meadow to continue with her day, and as the Sharlayan found himself focusing on her unsolicited advice and suddenly finding an urge to fill the canvas in front of him with his art. 

[starres-stuff]

For those who have read my ffxivwrite 2023 stories. You have come across a character named Xixa Loonsi that keeps popping up in them. I love this character so much that I made her in game!! It always feels good when a new OC comes out of story writing.

[starres-stuff]

Day 19: Taken FFXIV Write 2024

Taken: remove (someone or something) from a particular place.

“Are you certain this is where you left it Mom?” Liri had knelt before her Mother to wipe away the large, round tears that fell from her eyes. “Could you have moved it when you were cleaning?” She was trying to be helpful, it had always been difficult to see her Mother this upset about something. 

“N-No.” Xixa sniffled softly “I’ve always kept it in that spot. Other things are also missing, mostly jewelry that could be sold for gil. That stuff I don’t care about but this, this was the last thing I had of him. I-I kept it around for you girls.” the lace handkerchief was already streaked with dust and kohl eyeliner at this point, and the tears were not stopping. 

“Could it have been Volhi or Lahsih?” This was one of those moments where Liri, despite being a Mother, herself, was at a loss. Her Mother had always wiped her tears, and in her nineteen summers she had only ever seen her cry a few times, she was not one to share or show her emotions. 

“N-No, they stay out of there unless I call them in. I found the latch on the window in the guest room broken and the window wide open. S-someone broke in, I think. There is a strange Aether in the air. It makes my fur stand up.” It was the first time in her life that Xixa had to confront the fact that there were people on this Star that did not have good in them. 

“Would you like me to get one of the Wailers for you? I can go into Gridania or see if Laurent is home?” It was all Liri could think of to calm her Mother’s mind, she knew if someone broke into her and her daughter Lunah’s small house across the meadow she would be frightened for days to come and likely unable to sleep for a while thinking it would happen again. 

“No! It’s alright Liri. The tears will stop, and the hurt will too. Don’t bother Laurent. He is a busy man and so is Dimitri. I just don’t like that your Father’s wedding band was taken. That belonged to you, girls. I couldn’t keep him safe when he was alive and I couldn’t keep the last piece of him safe either.” The emotion that flowed from Xixa was both raw and ugly. The look on her face betrayed the fact that she realized it too. “I th-think I’ll lie down for a bit. Don’t tell Laurent and Dimitri, please?” The Viera begged her ears standing straight up making her look overly alert. “I don’t want them to think they have to take care of me, or that I can’t take care of myself and my House.” 

“Mom it doesn’t hurt to ask for help, I know it is a matter of pride but please? Let me get someone who can at least look for the thief.” Liri could feel the anger growing inside of herself, helping was what her Mother did for others, but yet she wouldn’t accept help herself at a time like this. 

“I don’t need any fucking help Liri Loonsi” Xixa growled at her then, her eyes filled with an emerald fire. “Not like anyone cares enough to help anyway. People are all about themselves.” With that, she left the room, the door to her bedroom slamming hard enough to knock one of Dimitri’s paintings he had given her off of the living room wall. 

This left Liri to stare after where her Mother had gone, her jaw set and her fists clenched and she whispered to herself. “No Mom, you just think people don’t care because you won’t let them care.” 

[starres-stuff]

Day 14: Telling FFXIV Write 2024

cw/tw: minor reference to abusive past of an oc

Telling: showing the truth about a situation or showing what someone really thinks.

“What is on your mind, Xixa?” 

It was a dreary morning in the Lavender Beds, the sky filled with large gray clouds that blotted out the sun. It was this type of day that left the Viera in a state of melancholy about the life she had decided to live. 

“Ah, nothing Lady Vi, I am fine.” The fact that Xixa didn't call her ‘girl’ was telling enough, but ending the sentence with ‘fine’ caused Viviane's eyebrow to lift straight upwards. 

“I do not know who you think you just said those words to but they are not going to float with me.” Before Xixa could react, the Elezen and her bowl of muffin batter were right in front of her, continuing to stir and mix what smelled like chocolate and rolanberry muffins while she waited for the actual explanation. 

“Ah, hells.” The words slipped out, and Xixa appeared mortified that they did. Finally, she let her shoulders slump in defeat and swallowed hard. “ Do you ever regret things you did with your life? In particular, never owning up to how you feel about someone?”

Vi narrowed her eyes for a moment, Xixa had been acting suspicious lately, she couldn't quite put her finger on it but she had her thoughts on what the problem was, still, she wasn't going to confront the Viera about that so she chose an easier route. 

“Well I regret marrying my ex-husband, my Mother liked him, that was the first warning sign.” Vi cringed at this thought visibly, then rolled her eyes at herself. “I thought he was charming. What he was, was a steaming pile of Chocobo dung. I was quite naive about relationships, I was learning to survive outside of the Cult and Mother thought selling my hand to the highest bidder would make me happy, she never even had the nerve to tell me they were close friends until after the wedding.” Setting the bowl down on the counter she slipped around the corner to grab her muffin tin and the little cups she used to line them. 

Xixa shook her head, she remembered well the ex that Vi spoke of and how poorly he treated her. She had arrived home in the Shroud on his arm one day with questionable bruises that Xixa had noticed right away with her medical background. It was the day she told her Aunt Doshaine she was getting married and that she was blissfully happy about it. What Xixa had seen was far from happy, not to mention, Vi had a history of twisting the truth in the way she thought others needed to hear it, so she did not worry them. Xixa knew now that Vi had never been happy until she met Clement and Kovalt, and while it still upset her that she had put herself in danger, she was pleased to hear the Elezen admit to such a thing; so candidly.

“I regret not telling someone how I felt about him when we were younger and I still feel the same I did then and now it's gone and got complicated because he is engaged to someone else, I have feelings for.” Xixa looked down to her hands, which had been busy forming little mounds of cookie dough on her tray to put in the oven along with the muffins and she had found it quite difficult to even express the thoughts in her mind. 

“Well I knew about my Brother. It has been written all over your face since before I married Clement and Kovalt. I did not know or even think to add Laurent to that list.” Vi could have been smug about this, she could have even picked on Xixa about it, but instead she chose to be supportive and encouraging. “I think you should tell them, you never know what the Spinner has in store for you and even if nothing comes of it, it is better than keeping it in.” Setting her cups into the muffin tin she turned to smile at the Viera. It was a complicated position, one Vi understood well. 

“Don't want to ruin the friendship, Lady Vi. I know Laurent broke it off with you when you wanted a relationship with him and Clement both.” Xixa frowned at that particular memory as it was one of the things that kept her from ever telling Laurent or Dimitri how she felt. 

“That is for a different reason Xixa. Laurent does not like Clement for a few reasons, namely that he caught both Kovalt and my eyes. That's not the same as your situation. I think you should talk about it with one of them. Clear your head, get it out there so they know. Go like this much longer and either you will grow resentful of their relationship or you will put yourself in a constant state of pining for their attention. At least give them the chance to decide.” 

Xixa stared at Vi for a long moment. There were times she hated that the Elezen made so much sense and times, like now, where she was glad the woman would listen to her ramble on about just about anything like she was now. “By the way, Vi? How did you know?” 

Vi chuckled then moved towards the oven when she pulled down the door and set both of her muffin tins on the heated rack inside. “Oh that's easy, it was written all over your face, like me your expressions are very telling. I caught it one day by the way you look at them.” 

[starres-stuff]

Day 11: Surrogate FFXIV Write 2024

Surrogate: relating to the birth of a child or children using surrogacy.

CW/TW: Mature themes include talk of pregnancy, children bearing through surrogacy, and polyamory themes.

“Mom” Liri whispered as they left one particular house in the deep woods that day. Xixa's eldest daughter, Liri, had joined her on her rounds this morning wanting to learn more about healing and using magic; to do so. 

“Yes, Liri?” The Viera sighed, slowing her normal walk to listen to the questions she knew were coming. After nineteen years with this particular child, Xixa knew that questions always came about anything that Liri found different from her standards about life. 

“Erm, why is Miss Jandie’s friend carrying her baby for her? Doesn't that mean she had sex with Miss Jandie’s husband more than once to get that way? Who would do such --” Xixa had managed to get a hand over Liri’s mouth before she could say the rest and down the road she pulled the girl until they were a good malm away from everything else. Then she said in a harsh whisper. 

“It is not your place to ask that question girl. What goes on behind those doors is none of your business.” Xixa was furious, which tended to take a lot, the normally calm woman's cheeks were flushed and her nostrils were flared. No daughter of hers would say an ill word about personal choice, not as long as she was alive. 

“Mm mmfn mrfj mmpfft.” Liri said through the hand clamped over her mouth, even trying to bite it a time or two before Xixa pushed her towards a bench that marked a rest stop along the many malms long dirt path. 

“There is nothing wrong with Miss Solei carrying that baby. The three are very close and Miss Jandee can't have her own. It's a natural thing, girl and you will get your head on straight about it.” The truth was the three had been a couple for cycles now and with Jandee being the first wife it had been decided that she would have the first child when she couldn't Solei offered to do it for her, which bonded the two even closer than they already were. Xixa knew Liri was going to protest even more but reluctantly she removed her hand to let the girl speak. 

“Isn’t that cheating? You hate cheaters! Why are you being so nice about this?” Liri rubbed her jaw lightly, and she stayed at her Mother demanding an explanation. Which she soon got. 

“I shouldn't have to tell you at your age that it is possible to love more than one person. Look at Lady Vi and her two husbands, you've never said anything bad about that. It's called polyamory, girl, and it happens in many ways. I've known Jandee since she came to the Shroud. She prefers to have a husband and a wife. She enjoys both dynamics equally. It makes her happy, Solei and Montague get along wonderfully, it took them a few years but now they are all together, Menphina blesses them.” 

Liri still looked grumpy, her head shaking vehemently  “I couldn't stand the thought of another woman touching my husband in front of me like t-that.” 

“That is where I wish I had raised you amongst our people. I regret I didn't. Our tribes are made of all women, the men are not allowed. They come home once a year for mating and it is not uncommon to find two or more women sharing one man.” Xixa shrugged, her eyes closing as she remembered her upbringing, it had helped shape who she became as an adult. 

“I still don’t like the sound of it.” Liri crossed her arms over her chest and stuck her nose in the air. This made Xixa groan inwardly and she instantly gave thought to her other two girls she still had time left to teach, a rare moment of feeling like she failed with Liri washing over her. Perhaps, her life had been too busy. 

“I do like that Miss Jandee has someone she is close to like that, who is willing to help her have her dreams. I, would help my sisters if they ran into Miss Jandee’s problems though I would not be involved with whatever man they wanted to be the Father. I do not exactly like men.” 

Xixa found herself staring at Liri, there was more in that statement than Viera was expecting. The kindness to her Sisters was heartwarming and took away the worry for the most part but the revelation about Liri not being interested in men made her reel sharply, her eyes widening in shock.

“What?!” Liri started to laugh, her Mother’s expression a great source of amusement to her suddenly. “I don’t blame Miss Jandee for having a girlfriend” she shrugged “After Lunah’s Father, I’m not too keen on another one.” 

“Ah hells girl, don’t turn out like your Mother.” Xixa snorted her eyes rolling up to look at the blue sky filled with clouds above their heads “I’ve been mad at your Father for getting himself killed not too long after Volhi was born and that’s thirteen years too long.” 

“You could always date Laurent and Dimitri.” Liri teased, then darted off the bench before her Mother could swat at her “Then you would be like Lady Vi! You seem to like her relationship.”

Xixa scowled at her daughter, rose from the bench, lifted her long skirt, and then started to run towards her “Don’t let me catch you, girl.” She called back, which sent Liri fleeing off into the Shroud, their conversation left to be continued another day. 

[starres-stuff]

"She acts like summer and walks like rain Reminds me that there's a time to change, hey"- Train, Drops of Jupiter

(Introducing Xixa Loonsi joining my cast of Main OCs)

[starres-stuff]

FFXIV Writes 2023 | Day 25 | Call it a Day

The shoe is on the other foot and Dimitri shows up at Xixa's house uninvited. This entry is from Xixa's POV.

“Mom! There is some giant red-headed Elezen at our door that says he knows you.” Xixa had been relaxing in her chair, knitting needles flashing in the candlelight as she gathered the yarn into a blanket for her oldest who was about to have a few of her own. She wasn’t expecting a caller, but then he never expected her when she stepped by either. In all of her years, she had never had a student like him, and the worst part was he reminded her of herself when she was his age. Matron save her, she was coming back to haunt herself through him.

“Ask him if his name is Dimitri.” She shouted back, the old rocking chair that had seen better days creaking under her as she moved it back and forth in a constant motion. It was late, the sun was already down and this just had to happen now. She was looking forward to a nice glass of wine, a hot bath but oh no the tables had to be turned on her.

“Mom, his name is Dimitri!” Lahsih, her second oldest daughter, called from the door. Xixa couldn’t help it she felt her eyes roll upwards towards the ceiling and the huff she loosened seemed to just blow out of her nose, now all she needed was smoke and she would have looked like a vicious monster ready to attack the giant once he was in her living room which thankfully was big enough to allow him in it, however, sitting would like be on her rickety old floor since his arse was bigger than most of her chairs, and they would likely break under his weight anyways. Damned Elezen, your kind is always too big after twenty-three.

“Show him in Lahsih, and put the kettle on. Might as well offer him some tea since he walked all this way.” Fuck him for doing so. That part wasn’t said out loud, that part was reserved for her private thoughts where little pitchers with big ears couldn’t hear her say them. She was a good Mother, or at least she thought she was, except they weren’t quite little pitchers anymore, they had grown taller than her, damn that Seeker who Fathered them. He was a tall one, and couldn't keep his hands to himself either. She really did like that Seeker too bad he didn’t last a year past Volhi’s birth.

“Xixa!” Dimitri’s voice boomed out of his mouth dragging Xixa from her thoughts in a syllable. Then there he was this giant man standing in the middle of her poor living room holding out a bag towards her that looked like it was full of boxes. “Vi asked me to drop by with these for you and the kids before I called it a day.” He was in a chipper mood for someone who had walked to Bent Branch all the way from the Lavender Beds Ferry, but she wasn’t that interested in him right now she was, however, interested in the bag he was holding above her head while Lahsih and Volhi giggled from the door.

“Dimitri,” she said warily, her knitting now sitting in her lap, the baby blanket coming along well with beautiful yarns of white, teal, and purple. She was fussy about how her knitting looked, and the colors always had to complement each other. Having a visitor while she had her work out in the open was stressful for the early middle-aged Miqo’te. It was her pride and joy to make things for others but when people came calling something always went wrong. It was this that caused her to hop from her chair, and carry everything back to her knitting basket across the room where it could be stowed away carefully until the next time she took it out to work on.

“This is my daughter Lahsih if she didn’t tell you her name already. She’s my middle child, and that little one over there is Volhi. My oldest Liri should be around shortly. She works with the weaver up the road, about to give birth in a moon or so that one. She’s slow these days. I keep telling her she needs to rest but she doesn’t listen. Much like Lahsih who I asked to make a spot of tea for us.” Xixa shot a look in the girls' direction and off she darted. Volhi followed after her with a squeal leaving her alone in the room with her student and a bag of goodies.

“I would offer you a chair but I fear I don’t have anything big enough.” Xixa flashed him one of her wide-fanged grins. That was the best part of being a Keeper of the Moon, besides being the best-looking type of Miqo’te and having Menphina in their corner, the fangs that she could expose at any moment often made others instinctively rub at the side of their neck. Dimitri didn’t, however, he just stared at her for a moment before he finally just plopped down on the immaculately cleaned floor and opened the bag to peer inside.

“Vi told me to tell you there are croissants, rolanberry cheesecake, and pixie-berry tarts. I was also supposed to tell you that the surprise for Volhi���s name day is coming along, she has all the ingredients now after going to Limsa for spices last week. She wanted me to ask if you wanted it the night before or the morning of?” Dimitri paused to think if he had covered it all then he nodded his head. “She appeared at my loft just when I was about to call it a day on packing. I cannot believe how much my Mother had in that place, I still have room to go through before I can fully move out of it.”

“Hmm, morning if she can handle it.” She was now staring into the bag with Dimitri, how she had made it from the other side of the room to where he was left the Duskwight was startled as could be, in fact, he let out a little yelp when her voice was that close to him.

“How do you people do THAT” his voice booming through the small house again, and bringing giggles from the girls in the kitchen where the kettle had just started whistling. “Laurent can do it, my Sister can do it and you can do it too! How the fuck do the three of you moving so silently.” he had just started to chuckle when Xixa hit him upside of the head, and it was a hard one too his head bobbing to one side as he stared at her with eyes like a kid who had just stuck a hand in the cookie jar and gotten caught. “What did I DO!” Dimitri yelped, putting his hands up to shield his face.

“Language, there are teenagers in my house. These are my rules. This isn’t your place, one more use of that word out of you and right out in the yard you go. If you don’t like it then go swear up a storm at your own house.” her arms folded across her chest then, and she looked as stern as stern could be. She even took to tapping her foot on the floor, daring him with her eyes to do anything besides accept her house rules.

“Yes, Ma’am” Dimitri shot her a look, one that seemed to express his desire to set her on fire where she stood right now, the last thing he expected out of his mentor was being told to watch his tongue since her mouth was worse than his on most occasions. Of course, Dimitri was also a brat and he made a show out of sticking out said tongue and then trying to stare at it over his glasses. This just earned him a well-aimed flick to the tip of his ear, which brought a chorus of “Ohhhhhhh Dimitri is in trouble.” from the two girls who had arrived carrying the tea on a wooden tray.

“Hush now.” Xixa barked, she was scary when she was being a Mother and a lot less fun than she usually was. Dimitri even gave a small sniffle to represent his hurt feelings, but this soon stopped when the Miqo’te put her attention right back on the redhead on her floor. She was going to kick him if he wasn’t careful, he could see the desire in her face.

“You are going to be twenty-nine cycles old here soon. Dontcha act like you are one of my children or I will get your Sister after you.” Normally Dimitri would not flinch at threats, his adopted Mother had used them often enough to get him to do whatever she needed him to do, but threatening him with Vi the head of House Jienuex even though she had been hiding in the Shroud made him shudder. Nobles had a way of making people feel like they were two fulms tall with only a few words and their best-practiced smile.

“Yes Ma’am,” he said again, pushing the bag of treats towards where Xixa had been sitting and then placing his hands in his lap folded as a proper house guest should, even though a proper house guest would never find themselves seated on a draft floor.

“Well then let’s have tea and then you can call it a day like you had planned. Girls, why don’t you go get the laundry from the line and put it in the baskets? Then bring it into the folding room for me. I’ll tend to it while making breakfast in the morning.”

“Okay, Mom!” They yelled in unison again, both stopping to peer at Dimitri again and then giggling to each other as they ran off to the yard to collect the wash.

“Don’t mean to be too hard on you, Sonny,” Xixa said once the back door slammed, she had moved to the tray with the tea and started to make them both cups as she talked. “They are both a bundle of energy and one has a mouth on her. They aren’t like my oldest, she was a quiet teenager. All about school work and learning to weave. These two are trouble. Liri at least waited until she was done with school and had a job to get herself pregnant. Of course, she did no better than me. Don’t have an idea where the Father took off to. Had her when I was only eighteen summers old.”

Carefully Xixa lifted the teacups and padded over to set them down on a low table that she pulled close to where they would both be seated. “Their Father got in a bit of trouble not long after Volhi was born, lass never got to meet him, and was buried the same year. They are good girls and just want a better life for them. I’m sure you understand, you got that Noble blood in you and want no part of it. Well for me they have their Father’s blood and I want them to have no part of it. He wasn’t the best man and I don’t want them getting mixed up in that.”

Dimitri found himself frowning as Xixa aired a bit of her story, his brow taking on a crease that made his eyebrows almost touch. “I’m..” he started to say then shook his head. “You’ve done a wonderful job with them Xixa. They seem like very well-behaved young women but then they have you as a role model how could they not be.”

Xixa snorted lightly, carrying her own cup to her chair, and then eased her tired self into it, the runners on the old rocker starting to creak almost instantly as she used her foot to rock herself. “I do the best I can with them, Dimitri. I don’t mind you stopping by but try to be a good role model for them yerself eh? I can’t say I want to keep them young, I don’t, everything needs to grow but at the end of the day, I do want them to learn to live a disciplined life where they still have fun. This Star isn’t the same as when I was a kid nor when you were. The last thing I need is for them to join some Menphina death cult as their Father did.

Dimitri blinked hard, his mouth opening to ask questions but it slowly closed again leaving him to sit there for a moment before he finally said over the top of his cup “Something I’d like to hear about one of these days. It has been a great deal of my work thus far but for now. Tell me about your day friend”

[starres-stuff]

Last Updated June 24th 2024

Hello everyone please call me Star! I am:

35+ | Genderfluid | She/They Pronouns. Please!

Married | Bisexual | From the North-East US

This is my FFXIV Hub Blog where you will find things associated with but not limited to:

My OCs/My Friends OCs

My GPOSE Work/Other's GPOSE Work

My FFXIV Writes Stories/Other's FFXIV Writes Stories

Macro Dancing Performances/ How to Guides

Art, lots and lots of it, I like to promote artists when I can!

Wol Questions of the Day Answers

FFXIV Event Announcements

A Link to my OC Hub Carrd

A Link to my GPOSE Portfolio, I do commissions!

Links to my IC Character Inspiration Blogs

Anything Else FFXIV that I find!

A way to get in touch with me

My Main FFXIV OCs

Dimitri Jienuex

Dimitri is Viviane's brother who was raised in Old Sharlayan his common themes are: Being an occult investigator working for the Adders, Painting, Old Books and Maps, Performing when the mood strikes, Learning about the Shroud, and exploring life outside of Sharlayan.

Inspiration Tumblr

Carrd

Dimitri is looking to:

Make friends he can hang out with!

Take on cases dealing with cults, ritual magic, malfunctioning relics and artifacts, and missing persons (always open to your ideas as well!)

Hear the news from Old Sharlyan! (is your character Sharlyan he would love to meet them. Pre-arranged hooks possible!)

Baroness Viviane Jienuex -Vimaroix

A runaway Ishgardian Noble ends up in the Shroud where they meet the loves of their life and come to understand what life is all about. Their most common themes are: Life as a Performer, Adventuring, Owning a Bakery, Tarot Reading, Nymeia Worship, and Slice of Life-Family Themes.

Carrd

Inspiration Tumblr

Viviane is looking to:

Meet other Nobles from Ishgard as well as other lands.

Network with other performers (duets and group numbers welcome)

Do Tarot Card Readings for the Community at Large

Visit Bakeries, Cafes, and restaurants to expand her knowledge.

Doctor Xixa Loonsi

A once Conjury student and Hearer from Stillglade Fane tells the Padjal where they can shove their rules and laws then embarks out on her own to have the life that she dreamed of. Her most common themes are: Conjury The Elements, Medicine (high interest in odd illnesses with no known cure), Medicinal Herbs, Medicine Making (Alchemy), Shroud Politics, Magic Lessons, and Menphina Worship.

Carrd

Inspiration Tumblr

Xixa is looking to:

Meet others from the Shroud

Make Professional Connections with other Doctors

See new Patients with odd illnesses

Have open discussions with like minds

Feel free to look me up on Twitter and Blue Sky as well. Thank You for reading!!