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🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

I...do a lot of this because I like to write reflective characters haha. Gotta make sure it follows a clear arc and contributes something meaningful to the scene, sometimes a bit of interplay with their own mind.
First example is an older one which came to mind, the second from something more recent

…The edge of her smile wobbles. She…she should know peace. Her bond with Venat burned bright and true. Yet the longer she stares at the woman, the more anxiety creeps within.

Contentment is utterly natural on Venat’s face. Practiced. Her brows sit easily, smile well set in its habitual place. Sahri cannot find a single crease, a wrinkle, a scar in her skin. Nightmares oft hound Sahri’s attempts at rest, making the previous night a fleeting rarity. Venat, however…

She possesses a deep intelligence. Untold years of wisdom to underpin it. None could credibly accuse her of naivety. No, she is most perceptive of the world and people around her. But in sleep…In sleep, her face reveals a startling truth. Innocence. An innocence wiped from the face of most every child of Eorzea by the time they claim their twelfth summer.

The innocence of paradise. Of the world unsundered.

Perception is inevitably based upon one’s foundational understanding of the world. Even Venat is not above such. And what is the only world she has ever known? A world oblivious, even hostile towards the existence of nightmares.

“Even in the most desolate reaches of Etheirys—the Etheirys of this time—man wants for nothing. Death, sorrow—they do not hang above our heads with such gravity as they do yours.”

Those were the words of the woman herself. Venat is wise enough to identify the radically divergent circumstances from which each of them were born. Through that, she finds something to admire in Sahri’s conviction, as she has repeatedly stated. Yet…the ability to identify could not be conflated with the ability to understand.

The women’s hearts sang as one in their love of the star, but there is more to Sahri. More to the task of the Warrior of Light. The researchers of Elpis look to Sahri and find a familiar. What is it Venat sees? When they kissed, did she taste of the blood that stains Sahri’s lips? Or is blood undetectable by the ancient tongue…?

It is the ease of their cruelty which throws Y’shtola the most. Not powered by an undergirding hatred, but a base, callous apathy. Hades, Sahri, the bits and pieces she has begun to recall of Persephone– For their towering faults, none could accuse them of apathy. What– What is this? A pressure grows in her head, a throbbing, a force from without squirming its way into her skull. She hunches forward, gripping her head, and unusual emotion seizes her.

Really– What is this? This…phenomenon of Azrael. Her eyes see them, but she does not comprehend. Her mind desperately casts about for an answer. It is not truly fae… Though fae playfulness was at times something for outsiders to fear, it was fueled by a certain innocence, a joy in the world around them. Joy could not be further from the mind when standing in Azrael’s presence, so what is this? This…void of meaning. It must be born of man, no matter how it projects itself as coming from beyond. This…this is…

This is the truth at the heart of every life. This is Sahri, this is Hades, and this is you as well.

Y’shtola’s own mind steals her breath. What is she doing, allowing herself to think these things? But the darkest reaches of her psyche continue to assert themselves in force.

When unwound, every person finds this rot at their core. Love, hatred, curiosity, the end consumes it all. Why not find joy in that?

November 29, 2025 at 6:05 PM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

*You* know this already, but…

Tw suicidal thoughts

Sahri was in a very, very bad place in 5.0 and uh… Well I’ll let Alisaie explain from this fic.
If anything crystallized the horror of living on the post-Flood First for Sahri it was this.

archiveofourown.org/works/40675440

“Amh Araeng,” Alisaie continues, filling the silence. “That is when I began to realize. Perhaps my year in the First afforded me a new perspective, but…You weren’t the woman I remembered. You were…” She pauses and nibbles at her lip, perhaps searching for a tactful turn of phrase. “You seemed so tired. So…resigned.” Alisaie sighs. “Do you recall…when Tesleen tasked us with fetching a nectarine from the markets?”

Sahri closes her eyes, pondering.

“...Yes,” she answers shortly. That was before Tesleen…She forbids herself to finish that thought.

“When I explained its purpose, you looked shocked. It was the first strong emotion I’d gotten out of you since our reunion. But then…” Alisaie’s expression turns chilling. “You stared at it. And stared. The way you looked at it, it was as if…”

She does not seem to wish to finish that sentence, and neither does Sahri wish to hear it. Yet truth is often undaunted.

“...As if you wanted to take a bite.”

One bite. Sweet slumber.

A pain flares in Sahri’s chest, heartbeat drifting off pace. Oppressive gloom rustling against its chains.

No. No. Those times are consigned to the past. She holds the lock firm.

November 13, 2025 at 9:47 PM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

I am looking at them so intently

From the newly released world kindness day FFXIV art, Y’shtola sitting on a step in Tuliyollal with her back to our view while G’raha stands in front of her seemingly discussing something

November 13, 2025 at 3:23 PM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

I fear my brain continues to melt.

Sahri garbed as Athena's pet "Persephone," a black hood and gray cowl and a gauntlet with spiked protrustions and red clawed tips. Standing in the depths of Pandaemonium with a haughty smile and back of their hand framing their face.

November 6, 2025 at 4:05 AM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

My brain has been rotting terribly I fear

Sahri standing before one of the large swinging cages in Pandaemonium, dressed in dark black robes decorated in gold and silver chains with a whole "evil nun" aesthetic going on bc I'm in danger

November 4, 2025 at 4:09 AM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

I recently picked up work again on an old fic of mine, Lingering Shadows, about Sahri's early days of being an adventurer in Gridania MSQ. Also mixes in retellings of the first few archer/lancer quests in their canon which I plan to expand on more in later fics

archiveofourown.org/works/303852...

Tags, title and statistics for early-ARR era fic "Lingering Shadows" posted in Ao3

November 1, 2025 at 11:15 PM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

AZ crying “it’s been 3000 years” from pokemon X and Y cuz holy fuck

October 31, 2025 at 12:58 PM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

For those unaware, this is related to the recent compilation-exclusive short story “Private Reflections,” about Y’shtola reuniting with her sisters after her father’s death in post-6.0. Each inherit a book from their father, and this is Nazqha, who inherits a magical book of Corvosi folklore.

It was shortly after my return from the edge of existence that I learned of the sudden passing of my father, Y’rhul Nunh. He had been in Nagxia, gathering literature in his capacity as a gleaner, when he contracted and succumbed to a local disease. As he had been the picture of health despite his some threescore years, his demise came as a shock to us, his twelve daughters.

　None took it harder than his tenth-born, Nazqha, who had been accompanying him as his apprentice. After witnessing him draw his last breath, she was forced to mourn him alone in a foreign land, for his body was not permitted to be repatriated lest the contagion that claimed him spread. At the physician’s urging, she tearfully acquiesced to cremation and subsequently scattered his ashes over the Ruby Sea, that he might roam the world once more before the tides bore him home. She then returned to Sharlayan and revealed the tragedy to our eldest sister, Adebh, who, in accordance with our father’s wishes, bade all his daughters convene.

This brought us to Nazqha, who inherited a most singular tome: a book of Corvosi folklore predating Garlean rule. It was not simply an antique, however. The elaborate arcane patterns it contained─the handiwork of a skilled copyist─had the power to immerse the reader in the worlds described in the fanciful tales. Nary a finer item could grace the shelf of one who so loved rare books.

October 31, 2025 at 12:25 PM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

I summarized the short story in a comment and figured people on here might appreciate having it consolidated too

Yes! Chronicles of Light Volume 2 is now available for digital purchase and has an exclusive story about Y'shtola and her family called "Private Reflections." It describes in depth the circumstances of the tribe as well as the situation of her father. Since it's a bit tricky to share I can give some of the highlights:

-The Y tribe is not traditional bc Y'rhul Nunh was a gleaner. He had partners around the world. He died after contracting an illness in Nangxia shortly after 6.0, and the story is about his apprentice (also a Y daughter) distributing his inheritance in the form of books for each of his daughters.

-Y'shtola is now said to be a full sister of Y'mhitra; Y'mhitra is one of twins who were born a few years after Y'shtola to the same mother, and the birth left Y'shtola's mother unable to take care of the kids so the Forum assigned Y'shtola to Matoya.

-All twelve sisters are as follows, in birth order:

Adebh- A member of the Forum, is either currently or will soon be actual in-game NPC. Receives "The Philosopher's Pledge," documenting the debates of Sharlayan's founding fathers.
Sumbla- An engineer in Labyrinthos who worked on the Ragnarok. Received "Into the Water's Flow" about Nymian attempts to create a perpetual engine.
Ranmaia- A seafaring navigator, received Ketenramm's travel logs.
Y'shtola- Well we know her, she received a Mhachi grimoire called "Gateway to the Void." A forbidden tome about opening void portals.
Talhdi- A painter and Ranmaia's full sister, received a collection of sketches from famous artists.
Mallibo- Mhitra's older twin and Y'shtola's full sister, archaeologist and Son of Saint Coinach with a scientific focus. Received a corresponding ancient Allagan tome.
Mhitra- Same as Mallibo but with arcane focus.
Raigoh- A musician and full sister of Ranmaia & Talhdi. Received compositions by minstrel Santhelme.
Sohnjin- Proprietor of the armor shop in the Agora and actual NPC in the gam…

October 14, 2025 at 4:53 PM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

New fic just went up, a short one-shot followup to the new Y'shtola short story cuz I was inspired. My determination to write whenever Y'shtola gets new content will never be sated.
CW for discussion of parental death and pregnancy.

archiveofourown.org/works/72428456

Tags and description of fic of my new WoLshtola fic "A Woman's Legacy"

October 13, 2025 at 9:06 PM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

Okay so I get there's probably multiple Y tribe men siring children but it drives me slightly nuts that the Y tribe woman literally sitting in the same plaza as Y'mhitra is NOT one of Y'shtola's sisters

October 8, 2025 at 7:21 PM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

Something something Calyx ran advanced computational models to simulate the worst possible outcomes of Sahri's life and found Azrael

Bastard sword of divine light laying on the ground in meso terminal

Dawntrail-era Sahri bieng pinned against the railing of the Meso Terminal by the manifestation of an evil AU counterpart (Azrael)

September 29, 2025 at 9:49 PM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

A very pleased looking miqo'te on a burning battlefield

September 28, 2025 at 3:09 AM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

Five years later, I've now finished my by far longest fanfic, a XIV AU fic named The Rebirth of Azem. If this idea sounds interesting to you-- The WoL takes Emet-Selch's hand, bringing consequences he cannot control--it'd mean a lot if you tried giving it a read.

archiveofourown.org/works/280133...

The Rebirth of Azem by unassumingvenusaur.
In a moment of weakness, Sahri gives into her despair and takes Emet-Selch's hand, shedding her identity and irrevocably changing the fate of the star.

A list of tags and statistics about the fic

September 24, 2025 at 9:28 PM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

Yeah yeah sincerity is cringe and straightforwardly admiring someone is usually considered grounds for disaster and disappointment above all else these days but man Toby Fox is such a genuine inspiration to me

The world is as big as you want it to be. Where will you go next?

September 22, 2025 at 1:56 PM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

Undertale memory featuring my cool Undertale OC (Princess) Flowerina the Flower

It really was an experience like no other when I first played it all those years ago in a lonely college dorm. This is the kind of art that sticks with you the rest of your life.
-Maddie

July 26, 2025 at 5:44 PM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

Oathkeeper is the extremely obvious thematic choice, perhaps supplemented by Oblivion a la Roxas. Being slightly more creative Two Become One fits Sahri extremely well though so I think I’d go with that.

The two become one keyblade from Kingdom hearts 2 final mix

The Oathkeeper and Oblivion blades from Kingdom hearts crossed over each other

May 8, 2025 at 3:50 AM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

Well it wasn't the highest scoring Balatro run I've ever been on but it's certainly the stupidest
I'm sure someone good at the game could get an even bigger Yorick than me

Joker setup in Balatro with a flash card, two merry andy's, a chicot and a Yorick

Game over screen of Balatro run with seed WLBY6CQJ

March 30, 2025 at 4:27 AM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

Spent some time putting together a Sahri iceberg~

March 21, 2025 at 2:22 AM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

Bastards.

March 19, 2025 at 3:28 PM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

Ah this is speaking my language immediately

February 6, 2025 at 6:34 PM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

You know what, fuck it. I need to sink myself into something meaty.

February 6, 2025 at 6:29 PM

🌙Moonbeam🌙

@unassumingvenusaur.bsky.social

“Everybody tries to be straight
But things are still unchanged
It's useless to resist this
Their effort will be wasted
Head straight for your goal by any means
There is a door that you never have opened
There is a window with the view you have never seen
Get there, no matter how long it takes”