Bold for Common | Italics for Rare | Strikethrough for not applicable
DEFENSIVENESS
arms crossed on chest / crossing legs / fist-like gestures / pointing index finger / karate chops / stiffening of shoulders / tense posture / curling of lip / baring of teeth / tail lashing / pinned ears / intense looks / guarded speech
REFLECTIVE
hand to face gestures / head tilted / stroking chin nose / peering over glasses / taking glasses off to clean them / putting earpiece of glasses in mouth / pipe smoker gestures / putting hand to the bridge of the nose / pursed lips / knitted brows / lip chewing / Hand on chin / tightened eyes
SUSPICION
arms crossed / sideways glance / touching or rubbing nose / rubbing eyes / hands resting on weapon / brows rising or knitting together / lips pressing into a thin line / strict unwavering eye contact / wrinkling of nose / eyes narrowing / ears alert or upright
OPENNESS / COOPERATION
Open hands / upper body in sprinters position / sitting on edge of a chair / hand to face gestures / unbuttoned coat / tilted head / slouched shoulders / relaxed posture / feet pointed outward / palms flat and facing outward / smiling or warm expressions / playful banter
CONFIDENCE
hands behind back / hand son lapels of coat / steeped hands / smirking / baring teeth in a grin / rolling shoulders / tipping head back but maintaining eye contact / chest puffed up / shoulders back / arms folded just above navel / relaxed and easy posture
INSECURITY / ANXIETY
chewing pen or pencil / rubbing thumb over opposite thumb / biting fingernails / hands in pockets / elbow bent / closed gestures / clearing throat / “ whew ” sound / picking or pinching flesh / fidgeting in chair / hand covering mouth whilst speaking / poor eye contact / tugging pants of clothes / jingling money in pockets / tugging at ear / perspiring hands / playing with hair / swaying / playing with pointer or marker hands / smacking lips / sighing / rocking on balls of feet / flexing fingers sporadically / chewing on lip / pacing / stammering
FRUSTRATION
short breaths / “ tsk ” sounds / tightly clenched hands / fist-like gestures / pointing index finger / running fingers through hair / rubbing back of neck / snarling / revealing teeth / grimacing / sharp eyed glowers with brows drawn together / shoulders back, head up / clenching of jaw / grinding of teeth / nostrils flaring / heavy exhales / tail lashing / pinned ears
tagged by @indraste-darktalon! Tagging @mekandawn and @frostahesmegabite
FInished off this commission of Xarian in a flowercrown for @advancedscoutkappi
It was inspired by a bit of RP we had where my character Jousu suggested he get pink daisies with pink bunny ears to be a troll, and Xarian went "alright, bet" and successfully countered Jou's attempt to make him suffer.
Turns out, the pink suits him, too.
Like what you see? Consider checking out my carrd and getting a commission of your own!
Totally have had this done and just forgot to post it
Word Count: 1148
Summary: Xarian is paid a surprise visit by the last person he would expect.
Warnings: Minor violence
@daily-writing-challenge
Xarian had been silently working on his dining room table, going over the edges with different gouges and other tools to carve out an intricate design around its edge. It had been going quite well at that, which never happens. No matter how good you are at any specific skill, there are always going to be mistakes. They can be actively minimized, but they still happen. Xarian was working on one very particular one when a knock came from the front door. He blinked several times as he looked up, he was not expecting company. So who could it be? He set down the gouge he was using and moved to the door, placing a hand in the handle before calling out.
“Who’s there?”
“Xarian. It’s me, it’s Sera.”
His head spun. He had not been expecting any visitors at all, but he would never have expected a surprise one to be his sister. His mind raced, running back to when they first ran into each other during the battles in Kul Tiras. He had no idea she had been raised, let alone raised with the abilities she now had.
“Xarian? Can you please open the door?”
He slowly opened the door, his deep blue eyes met her now pale blue ones and he hesitated. He took a deep breath and opened the door fully, stepping to the side to give her the space she needed to come in. She does and he closes the door behind her. They move to his table, the side he had not been working on, and he pulls out a chair for her. She shakes her head and even laughs softly.
“Always tryin’ to be the gentleman, huh?” But her voice was less amused and more condescending.
“Just tryin’ ta be polite like mother taught us. Why are ya here Sera? Last time you was here ya made it pretty clear ya didn’t wanna see me for a while..if ever again.” He snaps back, letting go of the chair and crossing his arms.
“I didn’t, but it wasn’t like that damnit. You know I just was talkin’ about tryin’ to find me and figure shit out.” She had stopped in the middle of the room, keeping her distance.
“Coulda fooled me, little sis.”
She shook her head, crossing her arms now with a huff. She opens her mouth to say something then just frowns. Xarian could feel the air in the house getting colder around them the more angry she got. Those wonderful abilities. She shook her head and put her hands on her hips with a deep scowl.
“Xarian…gods, you…The reason I came here was to ask you if you are keepin’ tabs on me? You havin’ me followed?”
He squints, staying silent as he stares at her. Apparently that was all she needed to confirm his guilt because the room around them became ice cold. He glances around him, his arms dropping to his sides and he tensed. He did not like the way this was feeling all the sudden.
“Sera..yes, I did. But only cause ya didn’t give me no choice. Ya just left, didn’t say where, didn’t say what, when, none a that. We may got our differences right now, but you’re still my sister and I still want ta know your safe..”
This answer only caused the room to become colder, the anger on her face growing.She steps towards him very aggressively but Xarian stood his ground.
“You..you are jus’ like him. Ya know that?” She pokes him in the chest with each word, which didn’t bother him. That is until she said the last three. Those pokes he suddenly felt a stab of cold in his chest with each one. He took a step back and rubbed a hand on his chest, but this did not change his response.
“Like who? Father? Oh, shame on me for wantin’ ta make sure my family, the only family I fuckin’ got left, is safe. Yes, I am the same twisted picture ya got of Father. The same one that just ain’t true!” This time he pokes her back. They never did see eye to eye on their Father. Xarian always looked up to him, wanted to make him proud, honor him. Especially when he died. Sera on the other hand, only saw his actions as him doing everything he could to keep her contained, to keep her from doing the things that she wanted to do. Like he was a dictator to her, who ruled with an iron fist.
Sera let out a exasperated roar. “Wantin’ to make sure I’m okay? More like stop me from doin’ things ya don’t want me to do!” She shoved him again and another pair of ice cold jolts shot through his chest. This time Xarian -really- felt it, but Sera wasn’t done. “Where were you when I really needed it? Where were you when the orcs came?! Huh?! When Mom needed you?! OFF PLAYING HERO FOR THE LIGHT!” Sera shoved him again. Since she was risen Sera had gained considerable strength, and even though he was quite a bit bigger than her, this last shove sent him crashing through the dining room table he had been working on. Gouges and chisels fly through the air and Sera looks on, her face contorted with anger.
“You were always so devoted to your precious light, but not enough to be home with us!”
Xarian did not respond. He couldn’t, his body was ice cold, but the chills he was feeling were not from that. They felt feverish. He tried to move, to will any part of his body to move but even his thoughts were sluggish. So sluggish that he could not even indicate something was wrong. Sera had absolutely no idea what she had just done, and instead of checking on him she let her anger get the better of her and assumed he was not responding out of his own stubborn anger. She let out another exasperated growl and turned, knocking over a pair of shelves by the door as she simply left the house. She did not bother to close the door, did not bother to come back and check on him. Xarian lay in the splintered remains of the table, trying to move but unable to.
He knew that was how she felt, that even the happiness they felt when they found each other was overshadowed by the fact he was not there and that she held it against him. He had tried to explain how he had left the order, was no longer that person, but it didn’t matter. She hadn’t forgiven him, and now as he lay there, his only movement the shudders that ran through his body, he was starting to wonder if he would ever get a chance to try again.
Summary: Xarian is looking to honor his father and heading off to join The Order of the Ivory Flame.
Warnings: None!
@daily-writing-challenge
“Get a move on, boy! The light may be patient but I do not have an eternity!”
Xarian stumbled out of the house, now rushing as Reinhart bellowed from the road outside their house.
“Yessir, I’m hurrin’!” He called back. Hauling his pack onto his back. Just as he gathered himself and started down the steps, a hand reached out and grabbed his arm. He knew who it was before he even turned. His mother stood in the doorway of their farm house, a mix of emotions on her face. She reaches up to cup his cheek and smiles.
“I’m so proud a you, son. This is gonna be such an amazin’ opportunity for ya.” She paused and ran her thumb over his cheek. “You’re already on ya way to becomin’ such a good man.”
Xarian shook his head and put his hand over hers, his own smile spreading across his face. “I’m just livin’ like ya taught me, Mother.”
“Then ya learnt well and your father would be proud.” She replied, her smile growing even more.
Xarian seemed to tense slightly, his eyes closing as a wave of emotion flowed over him.
His father was the quintessential military man, stern, strict and always put together even when working in the fields. Growing up the man’s only son had not been easy. He was always harder on Xarian, wanting to make sure he grew up with the same expectations that he had had. Up before the sun to start chores, make sure everyone else was set before doing anything for yourself. Treating your superiors, though in this case he meant his elders, with respect and listening to the wisdom that they were willing to share. Treating his mothers and sisters right, though that one was one of the hardest because his sisters knew he was supposed to and would antagonize him until he retaliated. Even with all the stern exterior and hard lessons, there had still been time to enjoy doing some things with him. The biggest was fishing. His father always loved fishing and whenever he would come home on leave he would take he and his sisters out on Lake Everstill in their little boat. It wasn’t much of one, but it was theirs and those were some of the fondest memories Xarian had of his father and it always brought a smile to his face. Some of the few times he actually saw his father smile.
But out of everything that he had wanted to do in his young life to this point, it was to make his father proud. He felt like no matter what he did growing up, no matter how hard he worked, he just did not get that.Then his father was taken from him, falling in battle and he lost the chance to have that. It was taken from him, at the tip of a sword. Truthfully, that was the biggest reason he was joining up with the Order of the Ivory Flame. He wanted to make his father proud, he wanted to honor the man’s memory. To show he was worthy of his praise, even though he would not get to truly see it. So now here he was, on his eighteenth birthday, leaving home to do just that.
He pat his mother’s hand and brought it down to place a kiss on the back of. “I preciate that, Mother. More than ya ever gonna know. I’mma do this for him, for the family..and most a all for me. I’m gonna help people, and do everythin’ I can to make the world a better place.”
His mother smiled back up at him, wiping away a tear before nodding. They both took another minute before another loud call from Rinehart interrupted their silent goodbye. He gave her one last, quick hug and ran. Ran to the waiting horse on the road and rode off towards Stormwind and a new future for him and his family. He was going to do everything he told her he would, and come back a good man and proud paladin. He not only wanted to honor his father, but make his mother proud too, and this truly was that opportunity.
Summary: An old memory comes back after a bit of healing by @indraste-darktalon and makes its presence felt.
Timeframe: During the three years between Shadowlands and Dragonflight.
“LOOK OUT!” The scream came from somewhere close and he was moving without even thinking, covering the healers from the coming assault. Then a flash of green, searing pain, the cold snow..…and he was awake. He glanced around the room, his room, the weapon and armor stands coming into immediate view. He filled his lungs with a deep breath and rolled over, staring up at the ceiling for a moment before his head turned and he focused on the full potion that sat on his night stand. Indy had given him that to take for sleep, and last night he thought he would be okay, clearly he was wrong. He slowly threw the blankets off and sat up, swinging around to sit at the edge of the bed.
“Way to be stubborn you damn fool.”
Xarian rose and went towards the bathroom, moving straight to the sink and running the water. He stared at himself in the mirror, eyes bloodshot, hair and beard a mess. He looked terrible, which is how he felt. Even with the aid of the potions, he did not feel like he had truly slept well, or maybe it was more that being dragged back to Northrend repeatedly had just taken its toll on him. He closed his eyes and instantly saw another flash of green, his left side twitching as tingles ran along it. Cupping his hands, he dipped them in the running water and splashed his face several times, then finally looked at himself in the mirror again and shook his head.
When he finally exited the bathroom he glanced at the window, still dark. He let out a curse and ran a hand through his hair. Too early to work on anything outside, too awake to try and get anymore sleep by himself. Seemed that meant something inside but he had no idea what. He slowly made his way downstairs and over to the fireplace, prepping and lighting it. As the flames grew he got another flash of his dream, fire hitting him in the back. But not the orange and yellow fire that was dancing in the fireplace, no it was green and hurt a whole lot more. His hand covered his face, finger and thumb pressing at his temples until he was fully back in the present again as he leaned against the wall. Maybe the potion was in order..but not yet. He made sure the fire was building strong before moving to his work cabinet and digging. He grabs a small pack of leather wrapped tools and a smallish block of wood to go along with it, moving back to his table to sit. He unrolled the carving tools, running a hand lightly over the worn set and smiling as he thought back to past projects they had worked on together. He turns his attention to the block, turning it over several times as he tries to envision just what it was telling him it wanted to be. His head tilted when he finally got his idea then he turned back to pick out a knife. He lines up the blade with the grain of the wood and starts his cut, but the knife slips and slices his finger, causing him to drop both the block and knife.
“Of course…just ain’t my mornin’.” He says as he sighed heavily. Maybe that potion was in order after all. He closed his eyes, wrapping his other hand around the wound and a small flash of light filled his palm, healing magics closing the cut. He wasn’t the world's greatest healer but he knew enough to close a minor cut. Opening his hand he saw the streak of blood that was left behind, the only evidence that any cut had happened at all, and sighs. His eyes closed as another flash filled his head, this time of red streaked snow, causing him to wobble before slamming his fist down on the table. The potion was definitely called for. He pushed back from the table, leaving everything laid out, and turned back towards the stairs to make his way to his room. The fire would be fine and give his home a bit more warmth as he worked to forget the waking world.
He went back to his room and grabbed the potion, staring at it for several moments before pulling the stopper and gulping it down. He shook his head and a shiver ran down his spine but the sleep he would get was a worthy trade off for the taste of the potion. He sat on the edge of the bed for a moment, waiting those few minutes it took for the potion to take effect, and when they did he just let himself fall back in the bed and stare at the ceiling.
“Least this time it’ll be blank sleep..” *He says as he slumps against the bed and closes his eyes, slowly drifting off to sleep.
The sun poked through the trees with that early morning light, sunbeams washing over everything they could. The birds were already chirping, singing their spring songs of love and Xarian couldn’t help but smile. Mornings like this were a big reason why he had decided to return home to Rredridge and regain control of his family’s land. He remembered waking up when he was just a boy and hearing these same sounds starting his days and when he did it always brought a smile to his face.
He looked to the angled sawhorses that he set up and sighed, hoisting the log to his shoulder with a grunt. He walked it over and set it into place, turning it until he found some of the spots he was in search of. Grabbing his wood plane he starts to run it down the log, evening it out and smoothing several spots that were not quite right. Long ago his father had shown him how to work with wood, crafting all manner of furniture and other trinkets. It was something that Xarian always found relaxing, though throughout his life he was not able to take advantage of it that often. Now that his focus was back on his family’s land, there was ample time.
The land had been in his family for many years. His grandfather passed it to his mother, mother to him…by default. The problem with the hand off from his mother to him is his land had been hit but the Horde when they moved south into Redridge and he had only just now been able to reclaim it proper. The house, sadly, was damaged beyond recognition and much of the belongings that were there before had been taken or destroyed by orcs or looters. It had taken him months to clean things up to even look at the house and see what could be saved, if anything, and there was not much that could. So he had stripped it down to bare bones and here he was now, rebuilding. Much of that entire series of events was on his mind almost constantly since being back here, but he knew those thoughts and memories would motivate him to return the land to its former state, and then improve upon what his family had done.
He pushed the plan along the log then turned it so he could attack the next spot. Before he did though he stood and stretched, his old body aching at him to remind him he was not near as young as he used to be. Sighing heavily he took a quick drink from a canteen he had with him and got back to shaping the log.
“One day soon you will be back to your beautiful self and this land will be flush with crops. One day…”
snowghoul
origamiaround
turnnoffyourmind
dailybridgerton
baratheonpilled
jacobvanloon
