chosen of hydaelyn

Cherish the stars and the light they bring you in the dark. For you are a traveler, are you not?

[ahlis-xiv]

welcome to my blog!

Hi all!

So, it’s been a long while since I made an updated post for my tumblr and with the pinned post feature now added I figured I should take advantage of it. So, hello! I am Mandy and this is my FFXIV-centric blog for my OC/WoL Ahlis Ildilayan that is part RP, part writing shenanigans, and part Aesthetic Reblog Central.

If you’re here because maybe you have an interest in role play, how my rp writing style normally goes, and/or you might wanna see if we’d be compatible in that regard please check out my rp tagged posts! For the record I do not do RP in game, it’s either here or on Discord. Sorry ‘bout that!

If that’s not your jam and you just like XIV fiction, please help yourself to my writing tag or head on over to my AO3, although it does not have all my works! This tag has everything from my longer fics/chapters, to my FFXIVWrite entries too! Keep in mind that some of these longer fics are kinda old, and I have not edited them in some time...but they mean a lot to me anyway as I’ve learned over the years and I’m a sentimental sort of person, haha.

I also have lots of character art that I’ve commissioned of Ahlis over the years that I love to share and reblog from time to time. This tag might prove useful for those of you looking for new artists to support and to create something special for yourself! Imgur is also a place I store artwork, and you can find some of my ultimate faves over here!

And finally, if you just want to see all-things Ahlis, be it inspo or aesthetics, please peruse my various tags as well. Also, for those of you who have multi-muse/rp blogs be it from XIV or from other fandoms, hello! I would love to interact with you too! I am open to exploring other verses/AUs for Ahlis, if the theme and ideas are ripe :)

You can find me on other social media sites, such as bksy, but I mostly repost or lurk over there. If you’re feeling social you’re more than welcome to reach out to me here via DMs or in game too if you also happen to be on Adamantoise :) I’d love to say hello!

With all that being said, welcome and I hope you stick around! Cheers~

(updated: May 2024)

[ahlis-xiv]

FFXIV Fanfest 2026 trip ended up being a no-go after all~

Travis had been doing well up until about a few weeks ago. Non-cancer related issues cropped up: infected ingrown toenail needed treatment, arthritis in his shoulder flared up again in a bad way, then his latest CT scans showed some new cancer growth in his lungs which meant he had to go back on infusion chemo.

Which was a bummer to accept but we prepared ourselves for it in hopes it would bring it under control again. Then a tooth got infected and needed extraction….then he started to get headaches that got more and more frequent…trip to the ER revealed he had inflammation and fluid build up in the brain from the met on the cerebellum previously treated but has grown again.

Some first day of Fanfest amirite?

No gonna lie the keynote and all the memes has helped us cope. We’re stoked for Evercold but…we have other priorities atm lol. I’ve really wanted to chat and laugh over the new content, to believe that shit is normal but…yeah! So it goes. I suppose it’s a good thing we didn’t get tickets huh?

We’re still in the hospital, Travis isn’t critical but we’re unsure how treatment will go right now, his neurosurgeon has yet to meet with us to discuss.

I’m fine tho! Just kinda coasting and on autopilot, the usual. I hope those who did make it to Anaheim are having a blast! It’s a fun place :) enjoy that sweet SoCal weather!

[ffxmtg]

Tome of Legends Illustrator: Smirtouille

[smokethereisfire]

Richard Calver (1946-) - Dandelions Rejoicing

[fashion-runways]

MALYAROVA OLGA Dress 2025 if you want to support this blog consider donating to: ko-fi.com/fashionrunways

[berrybooze]

Aymeric and his cat

[ahlis-xiv]

1 year update:

I figured a new post would be a good idea as, despite any intention I've had, this blog has remained rather quiet.

It's been just past one year since Travis's cancer diagnosis (crazy how fast time flies) and as of right now things are...fine.

Six months have passed since he finished his infusions and he remains on oral chemo medication. Nothing new has appeared in any of the areas where he's had spread aside from the brain. One new small lesion began to grow on his cerebellum and as of his last MRI it is responding to treatment (his old lesions where he had prior gamma knife and surgery remain stable/no new malignancy). It's too early to tell if it's been entirely effective but we'll see as time goes on. He remains in good spirits for the most part and his overall quality of life is pretty good. You really wouldn't think he has cancer!

Toasty remains just fine. Those episodes of weakness/tremors in his back legs went away after last October and he's not had any issues since...which is real weird mystery. But we'll take it. He has developed a small heart murmur though so we're monitoring that now too. He's still a fat fluffy & happy baby <3

Mom recovered fine from her gallbladder issues last year but now has continued back pain again; she's also 80 years old so I think that just comes with the territory huh? Dad still hasn't fixed his busted hip and frankly I doubt he will unless something catastrophic happens...

Myself on the other hand...well I mean I'm here aren't I? Lol...I'm honestly just going day by day. I had some procedures/scans done earlier in the year but everything came out more or less fine (acid reflux is a thing, getting old is a bitch, yadda yadda).

I hope everyone has been doing well though. We certainly are living in kinda scary awful times amirite? Still have no inclination to return fully to XIV but I remain subbed (got dat in-game mortgage to keep paying haha). I do keep an eye on SE news and honestly I think we're gonna try going to Fanfest next year if we can get tickets as we have family not far from Anaheim. Maybe I'll see some of you folks there too?

Much <3

[titsay]

[rainysunrisess]

[sea-wolf-coast-to-coast]

FFxivWrite is taking a year off!

Returning September 1st, 2026

For the first time in 9 years, I’m putting the writing challenge on hold, returning next year on September 1st, 2026.

Life is extraordinarily busy: I had a baby toward the end of July (yay!) and am in the thick of sleep deprived, early postpartum. Between new baby, family adjustment time, work, and my hubby in school, running the challenge this year would just be too much, even with my awesome team of friends to help out.

Putting the challenge on hold was an agonizing decision that was not made lightly, but at the end of the day self care and real life must come first.

In the meantime, if you're looking to scratch the FFxivWrite itch you could use this time to go back to previous years that you may have missed and write to those prompts (no forms, no prizes). Or, consider organizing your own challenges amongst your friends, discord groups, FCs, etc. I bet if you keep an eye peeled you'll spot other FFXIV writing challenges as well. Links for all prompts can be found on the FFxivWrite Carrd website.

Should you choose to run your own challenges this year, I ask that you please refrain from reaching out to me to ask for help or advice. I really needs this time to focus on family and big life transition. 💚

I’ll see you in September 2026!

[unleashed-imagination]

The mystery of human existence lies not in just staying alive, but in finding something to live for.

— Fyodor Dostoevsky

[dailyheroic]

A woman who goes around wearing a knife is obviously looking for trouble... However, a woman who carries a knife is ready for trouble.

Patrick Rothfuss, "The Name of the Wind"

[unusual-suspects]

[down-the-rabbith0le]

[veilwaltz]

[gemma-antiqua]

Ancient Roman gold and amethyst ring, dated to the 2nd century CE. Source: Trinity Antiques. 

[ahlis-xiv]

small update

Travis got to ring the bell today at the infusion center. Twelve cycles done and now he's onto maintenance treatment until if/when he has progression or we decide to do surgery/procedures to handle what tumors we can. We're getting second opinions for this as our current oncologist has labeled him "chemo for life" and I'd rather have a surgeon look at him instead anyway.

MRI follow up meeting with his neurosurgeon is next week; last scan showed some new prominent areas where the prior tumor was located that we're going to find out what it means/what we'll do if anything.

In more fun news we have 2 trips planned this summer: Tahoe in June and Maui with his mom and sister in September. So some things to look forward to for sure.