X'aros Jardin
 X’aros Jardin
| |
| |
| Gender | Female |
| Race | Miqo’te |
| Clan | Seekers of the Sun |
| Citizenship | Gridania |
| Age | 22 |
| Nameday | 2nd Sun of the 3rd Astral Moon, 1555 |
| Guardian | Azeyma, the Warden |
| Occupation | Adventurer |
| Free Company Affiliation | The Black Diablos |
Contents
Basics
Name
Given Name:’X’aros Jardin (sh-AH-ros | Jar-den)
Preferred Monikers: X’aros (Sh-AH-ros) is her preferred name among those familiar enough with the tribal language to properly pronounce it; but growing up in the thick of Gridania and living so long with the mostly Elvaan inhabitants of Coerthas has left her with the knowledge that not everyone can. So she’ll answer to any close approximation, and even sometimes ‘oy you with the fluffy tail.’
Appearance
Height: 5 fulms, 10 ilms -- she stands as the tallest of her sisters, yet not quite as tall as the Nunh who sired her.
Weight: 155 ponz
Build: X’aros’ body is built with a lean kind of muscle that marks her body as more flexibility and speed than heavy hitting. She’s toned from years of combat and rigorous training as a dragoon, particularly her legs. Her curves lean to being slightly top heavy -- her chest and shoulders slightly more broad than her hips, and her face is distinctly heart shaped with its soft, rounded cheeks.
Hair: A dusty red-pink in color, her hair has been functionally cut into a reverse bob, the front tips just brushing her collarbone and the end sweeping up and off of her neck almost entirely. Her bangs are cropped to match, and come to a blunt end just above her eyes. Her hair and fur, particularly her tail are fluffy and full, much like the real-world turkish angora.
Eyes: Wide, uptilted almonds ringed in full, sharp pink lashes. Heterochromatic, her irises reflect a molten gold on the left and a brilliant, pale spring green on the right.
Skin: Tanned from a lifetime of training and working outside, X’aros has naturally dark skin has been made even darker by the sun. Her skin has a natural, rosy blush to it -- primarily showing itself in her cheeks, fingertips, and on her joints.
Style:Years living in the snowy wasteland of Coerthas have left her with a penchant for warmer clothes -- long shirts and trousers made of thick materials. She has no real sense of fashion and color theory, instead tending to drift towards whatever she feels is most comfortable at the time. Key words are function over fashion, though she has a few pieces of jewelry that she’s fond of wearing on occasion.
Scars and Markings:
- X’aros’ face bears the distinct markings of her race -- namely, a trio of almost coral stripes along her cheekbones, each one slightly shorter and fainter in color than the last.
- There are a series of long healed scars resembling claw marks along her middle and lower back, faded and shiny.
- Just above them nestled between her shoulder blades is a faded black mark, the sharp tipped blobs shaped vaguely like a particular crystal formation.
- More recently, she has gained a thin scar across her left cheek that is just beginning to fade, as well as a thick, diagonal cut across her stomach that is still in the process of healing.
Posture: Generally speaking, X’aros stands quite stiffly -- her posture is upright and always subtly thrumming with readiness after being trained into being prepared for split second transition into combat. Often times, she comes across as wooden or unconcerned because of this -- her reactions forcibly minimized and expression stiff.
Personality
Alignment: Neutral Good
Defining Personality Traits:
- X’aros presents herself as very quiet and composed, attempting to project herself as the the picture of maturity. She tries to keep her voice quiet, her reactions tame but always polite. Being polite is notoriously important to her, and she tries very hard not to be outright hostile to other individuals.
- Despite this, her temper lurks very close to the surface -- and her skin is particularly thin when it comes to the defense of her loved ones and her own choices. Unfortunately, because of this she has a particularly dangerous tie to what is commonly referred to as her ‘inner dragon.’ This has recently become an issue for her.
- Also unfortunately, she can hold onto a bitter grudge until the end of her days. She thinks herself an unwise person to cross, usually because of this.
- Perhaps because of her upbringing, X’aros is particularly fond of smaller and younger (or younger acting) individuals -- often trying to take them under her wing and mother them slightly, becoming incredibly defensive and doting upon them.
- Conversely, she tends to be naturally biased towards the larger and more aggressive individuals in society, though she will still do her best to be polite to them.
- X’aros is a complete and utter prude -- and avoids and abhors discussion about anything lewd or “unseemly”. If the situation becomes unavoidable, she tends to withdraw and cease talking unless directly addressed.
Traits
Likes
- Hot tea (particularly anything with a strong, spicy flavour)
- High perches, particularly if they involve being able to look out across the landscape
- Pastry fish
- Plant life; particularly large, old trees. (As they often remind her of the Shroud.)
Dislikes
- Foggy and rainy weather.
- Unauthorized physical contact (she will often react violently if you catch her off guard).
- Boasting.
- Alcohol.
- The two combined are just a nightmare.
- Scalekin, and those who are fond of them, in any respect.
Skills
Conjury: Though the offensive magic of conjury is lost to her -- she just ‘’can’t’’ seem to get the elementals to work with her in that regard, or bend even the slightest bit to her will, her eldest sister made sure that she at the very least knew the most basic of first aid and healing skills before she left for war. And that’s about the extent of what X’aros seems to be capable of, really. Not that she’s tried to do much with it since she left her clan.
Cooking: When she ceased being the baby of the family, she was taught to cook to feed not only herself but her younger siblings while their mother and aunts were working. As such, though she is by no means a gourmet chef, she knows her way around a pan well enough to produce something edible and, if she dare say so herself, a little tasty.
History
Currently, the background information is being worked out to suit the newly formed gathering of Lynx tribe members. Please be patient as this information will likely be changed. <3
Beginnings
X’dicentra was born into a small branch of the Lynx clan that inhabited the area around Ala Mhigo, and fled to escape the rule of Theodorac in late 1552, pregnant with her first child. They eventually settle in the embrace of the Twelveswood, mistrusting of the locals and forest alike. X’nolia is born early into 1553 - pale, fragile, tiny, silent. The medical knowledge that the clan has brought with them seems hardly enough to deduce what’s wrong, much less save the newborn kitten.
Worried, X’dicentra risks venturing into the nearby city with the kitten in order to find a medic. They are treated by Elezen herbalist Caominnoine, who invites them to stay with her in her home and clinic so that she may help keep watch on the child during the times of trial. Reluctant but desperate, X’dicentra agrees -- and spends several days in the company of the woman while she helps nurse their baby through the sickness.
X’nolia survives, but her voice and physical prowess are forfeit. Mother and child return to their clan and tell them of the kindness they received, much to their leader’s uncertain discomfort. Years pass, the small clan settling uncomfortably as the forest begins to allow and welcome their presence and the Griandians begrudgingly become used to them in 1555. They begin hunting and selling pelts, farming herbs and vegetables, and selling cultural dishes to make a productive living. Even after learning of the King of Ruin’s death, the idea of going back to Ala Mhigo is strange. It’s universally decided that Gridania is “home” to the growing branch of Lynxes.
Childhood
X’aros is born in the spring 1555, shortly after her clan has truly settled. She’s healthy, much to the relief of her mother and clan, and grows up a rambunctious child. Even from a young age, she idolizes the adventurers arriving and frequently drags her elder sister off to follow them. When she’s five, her mother delivers twins to X’diyn Nunh; X’essia and X’ersia. X’aros begins learning to cook and take care of their basic needs under the watchful eye of an aunt while her mother and older sister are out tending to the clan’s small fields.
During an outing with a few of the older members of her tribe to trade with another local Seeker clan, the Dodos, she meets and befriends D’emi Rhojah. The two regularly plead with their mothers to meet and play together, and spend many years together and form a tight knit bond.
It isn’t until she’s ten and out playing with her younger sisters, pretending to be adventurers in their own right, that they brave going further into the Black Shroud by themselves. As they are wont to do, they soon wander too far and are cornered by a lone Ixali. X’aros uses her own body to shield the younger kittens, but her back is torn to ribbons before the adventurer that had volunteered to go track them down finds them and slays the beast. X’essia and X’ersia are mostly unhurt, but X’aros is rushed to the Conjurer’s Guild for treatment.
They heal her, but her body grows with the reminders of her foolish mistake. She’s no longer allowed to go out without an adult accompanying her. Contrary to being quelled, however, her thirst to be an adventurer is only increased by her timely rescue.
Before even being healed, she’s already picking up sticks and hanging around the lancer’s guild mimicking their practices. The Wood Wailers do not think she’s cute.
The Fall of Dalamud
Many of the Lynx warriors agree to go into the field to assist in the fight to save Eorzea. Among them is X’aros’ father, X’jardin Nunh. He promises her he’ll be back after a long talk with her mother. X’nolia, now a rather talented white mage in her own right, accompanies him after a stubborn and one-sided argument on the Nunh’s part. Stubbornly, 17 year old X’aros decides her lance skills are good enough to assist them and follows them into the conflict. It is there that she witnesses X’jardin slain, and there that her elder sister shields her from death at the cost of her own life.
Having witnessed the death of both, a shocked and terrified X’aros elects to flee. Instead of returning to her clan, feeling that the deaths are on her hands, she instead runs to Ishgard. She is an unwelcome stray in the eyes of the Ishgardians.
Dragoon Age
Regardless, and desperate not to return to her homeland, X’aros works her way into the graces of the House Fortemps after weeks of doing any odd job she can to afford food and shelter at a small inn by the Observatorium. Within the month, she has sworn fealty to Lord Haurchefant and has been edged into probationary training as a dragoon. Though largely unhappy with her presence, her unit accepts her into their ranks.
She spends the next four years scrambling for every onz of respect she can, spending many a night she’s not on watch duty working on her techniques and combat prowess. Naturally, she develops an aversion to scalekin and those fond of them over time. She begins to think of the snowy plains of Coerthas as her home, despite her status as virtual social leper.
It is also here, at the age of 20, that she has her first brush with romance -- developing a fondness for one of her unit mates, a Wildwood Elezen by the name of Valeroyant Arbeau. After several moons of sighing and planning, eventually she makes her feelings known and receives a tremendous rejection that is the gossip for the next few weeks.
Humiliated, X’aros swears off romance and retreats back into only necessary social interactions.
Present
After a run in with her childhood friend, D’emi (now a sort-of Sultansworn), when purchasing supplies for her unit’s encampment, X’aros is introduced to the foreigners Kassandra Enora and Zorai Naccal. After a slightly tentative start, she becomes warily respectful of the former and protectively fond of the latter, thinking of her as a sister of sorts. It is through them that she comes to become a member of the Black Diablos, a group of warriors founded by Enora to hunt down and destroy any remnants of the dragon Bahamut.
Unable to resist, X’aros agrees wholeheartedly to give them her support in any capacity she can. This results in most of her off time being spent with the Diablos and their various members, becoming increasingly fond of them.
Until Enora plays a ‘humorous’ joke by taking the name of Ishgard and its authority in vain in order to playfully chase a few members of another company about La Noscea. Unamused, and highly irritated that Kassandra would abuse her offer of assistance and title, X’aros begins to pull away from the Diablos. This culminates in her removing her linkpearl and cutting off ties with them for a moon after an altercation with Kassandra.
Later, she meets Kassanda (accompanied by Zorai) and argue again while X’aros is conversing with D’emi. This escalates into a physical confrontation during which X’aros is nearly swallowed by her inner dragon -- attempting to spear Kassandra through the stomach and ultimately dispose of her. D’emi, unable to allow this, hurls herself between Kassandra and the lance with her shield. The shield is punctured, along with D’emi’s abdomen. Thankfully, Zorai’s healing magic is able to keep her well enough to be transported to a medic in Camp Dragonhead.
Horrified, X’aros returns to her Lord after making sure D’emi is safe and resigns from her position as dragoon. She cannot allow herself to assist them, as close to the edge as she has now found herself. Lord Haurchefant, though disappointed, accepts her resignation with well wishes and the offer that there will always be space for her lance in his troops should she ever change her mind.
For the next several suns, X’aros busies herself attending to D’emi in whatever way she can manage -- and eventually returns with her to Ul’dah. During their stay here, fellow Diablos Ul’teah Frostheart sends out a distress call for assistance in rescuing his friend, Y’fhyrr Tia, from a sticky situation involving his clan. Hopeful that she has overcome her temperament issues, X’aros and Zorai agree to assist in this rescue mission. It quickly dissolves into combat, during which D’emi and Azranahr Stormchaser (another Diablos member) are called in to assist. Unfortunately, under the stress of combat, her control breaks once more -- resulting in the death of several of the Y’ clan members and her rounding on and injuring Azranahr. On their return trip, X’aros formally gives up her lance via throwing it into the desert sands and leaving it. Once recovered from their wounds, D’emi and X’aros resume their trip -- and now stand in Gridania, where X’aros is attempting to avoid seeking out her clan.
Affiliations
Lynx Clan
- Mother: X’dicentra Oraah (45, Hunter)
- Father: X’jardin Nunh (Deceased, would be 46)
- Siblings:
- X’nolia Jardin (Deceased, would be 24, Conjurer)
- X’essia Diyn (17)
- X’ersia Diyn (17)
- X’maryl Jardin (5)
- X’nolia Jardin (Deceased, would be 24, Conjurer)
Other Notes
Rumors
Common Rumours
- “X’aros? Oh, that miqo’te girl. I heard she gave up her lance for some reason. A good thing, really, she never quite belonged here.” - House Fortemps knight
- “I once heard she got it into her head she was good enough to try and woo Valeroyant. Can you imagine? A silly stray like her, trying to romance a proper Ishgardian knight. Preposterous!” - House Fortemps cook
Moderate Rumours
- ”Aye, I know her. She once got drunk and stood up on me bar, rantin’ about somethin’ to do with Ishgardians. Bloody crazy, that one.” - Flying Shark barkeep
- “You know, when she came here she kept babbling about how she couldn’t go home. She must have done something terrible wherever she came from, don’t you think?” - Resident of the Observatorium
Rare Rumours
- ”You know, I saw what she did to that Elezen that came to help her -- shattered his knee cap! Just for trying to stop her! It was terrifying, I’m just lucky she didn’t see me…” - Surviving Y’ tribe member
Player Created Rumours
- "If looks could kill, I'd be out of Limsa by now..." - Rieza Hughes, Black Diablos Book Keeper
