#cessalie sombreterre

[morganali-art]

"... For Ishgardian courtship always begins with flowers."

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I've been rotating the quote above in my head at work all day - it's from a multiship fic I've been enjoying called "The Arc of the Heavens | Heavensturn, Beloved" by AO3 author OGMadster ( @theworldwalkerswols ). New headcanon accepted, as they say :3

My gremlin Charlemend cracks me up, I kept zooming out of my canvas and seeing him and laughing 😂

Here are some close ups, I know my handwriting is a little rough 👀💦

#wol x artoirel #artoirel de fortemps #cessalie sombreterre #ffxiv #edmont de fortemps #charlemend de durendaire

[morgan-aleghieri]

Ooh I've been tagged! @thebearmuse tagged me to use this Picrew to make some OCs, so I did my best 😅

Obviously I had to try and make my girl Cessalie, and I attempted to put my new Duskwight lad through as well. It was tricky, the eyes are so large O_O I think I got pretty close through 🤔 Though Isaudorel's scar is facing the wrong way... eh.

Not going to tag anyone, but it's a fun diversion if you want to play :3

#tag games #picrew #my ocs #ffxiv #cessalie sombreterre #isaudorel teaurelin #elves all the way down baybee

[morganali-writes]

Out of Reach

Despite the strained nature of their relationship, the household had never been so sombre than it was now that he was gone. Haurchefant had been better than all of them, and it had taken Artoirel far too long to appreciate that – appreciate the brother he wished he had accepted long ago, in spite of his mother’s wishes. Maybe still, his brother would have stepped in front of the bolt meant for the Warrior of Light, and maybe still he’d despair at words left unsaid – but for the chance to share words with him again all the same... but these were idle musings born of regret and helplessness.

Artoirel leaned his brow against the cold windowpane and exhaled in a huff. Ishgard was in a right state between the downfall of the late archbishop, and the revelation about the true origins of their thousand-year war. They had barely even begun to put the city-state back on its feet. Were it not for the Lord Commander’s tireless efforts to maintain order, he would scarce know where to begin.

Sighing again, Artoirel hauled himself upright and aimlessly followed the hallway towards the library. As he walked, he was brought out of his own musings by a plaintive voice. Curious, he drew closer, though hesitated at the threshold.

“Miette, please come down. Come now, sweetheart – I shall catch you.” There she stood, the Warrior of Light herself – far above her on the highest shelf, a black cat wailed pitifully. “I cannot fetch you by myself, Miette, please...” she all but begged, then hung her head with a loud sniff. Cursing quietly under her breath, she pushed a palm to her eye.

“Cessalie?” her name was across his lips before he could think better of it, and she startled as if guilty. He made his was over to her and she hurriedly wiped at her eyes. “That is to say – are you well?”

“Oh, quite well, never better!” she said, the forced smile she wore not reaching her eyes.

“Your furred companion seems to have gotten herself stuck,” said Artoirel, eyes flicking briefly to the stranded cat. Cessalie averted her gaze and grimaced.

“She has long had a dreadful habit of climbing higher than she can comfortably descend from herself,” she replied, crossing her arms. “Usually rescuing her is not terribly troublesome, but today...” Cessalie squeezed her eyes shut and exhaled a slow, shuddering breath. “I find she is out of my reach.” Looking between her and the cat, understanding dawned on him.

It was hardly the first time the cat had gotten stuck up on the high shelves – in truth, it was a near weekly occurrence. And for all those times Miette had found herself so far out of reach, it had been his brother who was ever on hand to mount a rescue. Many a time he had watched, bemused, as Cessalie had all but scrambled up his brother in a manner not unlike climbing a ladder. Theirs had been an easy camaraderie, and for the few months since the Warrior of Light and her comrades had been taken in as wards, house Fortemps was the liveliest it had ever been.

“Forgive me – I understand you were quite close to my brother.” Cessalie shook her head sadly, eyes downcast.

“He was—He was family,” she all but whispered, before glancing up at him, brows knit in concern. “I should be the one to be sorry, he is your brother, after all.”

“I—thank you. I regret that I was not closer to him.” She nodded sympathetically. Moments stretched between them as they cast about for words to say. After a while, Artoirel found his eyes drawn back to the cat, whose cries for help were growing more insistent. He cleared his throat.

“Perhaps I may be of assistance?” he asked tentatively. She looked up in genuine surprise.

“I wouldn’t want to trouble you–“

“There is no imposition you could make that would trouble me.”

“I – thank you. You are kind to me.”

“Not at all. What would you have me do?” she looked thoughtful for a moment, then climbed up onto a low table.

“Kneel here, if you please.” Artoirel took a knee by the table, and she gingerly perched herself on his shoulder. Instinctively he brought his arm around her skirts to steady her, and she reached for his other hand for balance.

How is she so small? He wondered absently as she settled herself. That the same woman as had laid low a half-dozen Primals was now sitting upon his shoulder like a sparrow beggared belief.

“Is this alright?” she murmured, and he found himself squeezing her hand in reply.

“Perfectly so.” With a grunt, he hoisted himself upright again.

“Let us be about it then,” he said, walking them carefully back over to the shelf. It took some cajoling and manoeuvring to retrieve the wayward cat – Miette was decidedly unconvinced by Cessalie’s new assistant. Eventually, with Cessalie balancing precariously on one of his hands like a step, and his other bracing her from falling, she managed to lay hands on the cat directly – scooping her up in one practiced motion.

Tucking the cat into the crook of her neck with one hand, she reached for his shoulder for balance again as she eased herself back to a sitting position. Dainty fingers dragged momentarily against the skin of his neck as she righted herself, and he drew in a quiet, surprised breath. After a moment, he walked them back over to the low table, and she hopped down from his shoulder.

“Miette,” she said, directing her attention wholly on the troublesome kitten. “I have told you not to climb so high, you little menace.” The cat chirruped indignantly in response. “Many times I have told you, don’t argue.” More chirping came in response, and Cessalie butted her forehead against that of her furred companion. “Silly thing. You’ll never learn.”

Artoirel could not help the soft smile that crossed his face as he watched them. It was a side of Cessalie he had only observed from afar. There was a softness usually held fast beneath a calculated façade, though around his brother she had let her guard slip. Haurchefant’s congenial demeanour tended to bring that out in people. Would that he possessed the same talent for putting others at ease, but instead he wore solemnity like a shroud – for ever had he been burdened with the lofty expectations of their House.

Belatedly, he realised that Cessalie had been staring back at him. Startled, he blinked and averted his gaze from hers. Had she been blushing? He ought not to consider it. He heard her quietly clear her throat, and he looked to her once more – only to find that she had lifted the little, black cat up to his eyeline.

“Oh!” Miette meowed loudly in consternation.

“Miette would formally like to apologise for the trouble she has caused this evening, if you can find it in your heart to forgive her.” Artoirel huffed a surprised laugh.

“There is nothing to forgive, save the grief you’ve caused your mistress,” he said with a smile, leaning in for Miette’s inspection. She sniffed the air about his face for a few moments, then tentatively licked the tip of his nose. The rough texture of her tongue caused him to scrunch up his face, and he laughed again. “Very well Miette, you may have my forgiveness – but see that you are better behaved in future.”

Miette made a puzzled sounding chirp. Cessalie lowered her once more, tucking the cat against her chest. Artoirel reached down absently to gently scratch under Miette’s chin.

“Mrrp!” the cat’s eyes closed in contentment. Not taking her eyes away from Miette, Cessalie smiled.

“Oh, I think you’ve quite won her over,” she said. He smiled at that.

“Glad I am to hear it.” The moments stretched in silence. He took a breath.

“I should… I have some matters that I must attend to,” he murmured, excusing himself. “But should you again require assistance, please do not hesitate to seek me.”

She looked up at him with her solemn, black eyes. She was silent for a moment, brow knit with some inscrutable expression. A small smile stole across her lips, and she nodded.

“Thank you, Artoirel. I will,” she said.

#cessalie sombreterre #artoirel de fortemps #ffxiv #this has been sitting on my desktop for a month and I forgot about it #it's post Thordan but pre vault solo duty #everyone is still in grief mode #now that there is a moment's peace to grieve #it's 1.30am and I have not edited this enjoy 😵 #wol x artoirel #wolartoirel #pre relationship

[morganali-art]

OC x Canon Week - Day 5 Getting Into Trouble

Please stop flirting you're making everyone uncomfortable with how sweet and earnest you are 🤢

(crops under read more)

#oc x canon week #ocxcanonweek #ffxiv #artoirel de fortemps #cessalie sombreterre #wol x artoirel #99% of this is my desire for emmanellain to have a calvin & hobbes-esque face journey ngl

[morganali-art]

Year of the OTP - November Secret Relationship (Reveal)

Usually right on the forefront of gathering information of questionable veracity, Emmanellain hears a rumour that catches him off guard.

Honoroit was trying to tell poor Emmanellain that Cessalie and Artoirel had big news to share, but he was too surprised by the rumour he'd picked up completely independently from the Ishgardian contingent returning from Ala Mhigo to listen.

#year of the otp #secret relationship reveal #cessalie sombreterre #artoirel de fortemps #wol x artoirel #wolartoirel #emmanellain de fortemps #edmont de fortemps #honoroit #ffxiv #cessalie and artoirel low key announce their engagement #queued months ago because it made me laugh and i had to draw it straight away #god i hope this is still funny in november #mom holy fuck

[morganali-art]

OC x Canon Week - Day 6 An Intimate Moment

Genuine feelings? gross 😒😳👀💦

... unless 👀💕

#oc x canon week #ocxcanonweek #ffxiv #artoirel de fortemps #cessalie sombreterre #wol x artoirel #i got places to be today so this is reeeeal scrappy

[morganali-art]

Just some quick warm up sketches before I get stuck into 8 hours of photo editing for work.

Cessalie just finished up patch 5.4.

#ffxiv #cessalie sombreterre #merlwyb bloefhiswyn #keelhaul me ma'am #the trials of being a minimum height elezen

[morganali-art]

OC x Canon Week - Day 3 Out in Nature

Artoirel is helping Cessalie track down a particularly rare plant in the Hinterlands.

#oc x canon week #ocxcanonweek #ffxiv #artoirel de fortemps #cessalie sombreterre #wol x artoirel #for the players at home #the plant is DAI royal elfroot #a very quiet lil nod to artoirel sharing a VA with my dalish inquisitor #his feelings about elfroot are classified

[morganali-art]

OC x Canon Week - Day 2 Mundane Tasks

Because even the Warrior of Light needs to mend her unmentionables.

#ocxcanonweek #ox x canon week #ffxiv #artoirel de fortemps #cessalie sombreterre #wol x artoirel

[morganali-art]

Year of the OTP 2023 - August Storm

They must be out in Idyllshire, because you know it doesn't get warm enough in Ishgard for rain 🌧

#year of the otp #storm #artoirel de fortemps #cessalie sombreterre #wol x artoirel #wolartoirel #ffxiv

[morganali-art]

OC x Canon Week - Day 7 Date Night

Cessalie and Artoirel go to the opera 🎶

#OC x Canon Week #ocxcanonweek #ffxiv #artoirel de fortemps #cessalie sombreterre #wol x artoirel

[morganali-art]

OC x Canon Week - Day 4 Caring For One Another

Cessalie has Pneumonia, Miette is Helping™, and Artoirel is quietly, lowkey jealous of her little "nurse" 😌

#oc x canon week #ocxcanonweek #ffxiv #artoirel de fortemps #cessalie sombreterre #wol x artoirel #not even jealous for the obvious reason #but oh to be able to hunker down on your lover's chest and vibrate to make them feel better #i never know how big miette should be #how big are cats? we just don't know 🤔

[morganali-art]

OC x Canon Week - Day 8 (Bonus Day) Missing the Other

After the events of Endwalker, Cessalie is grounded in Sharlayan as she recovers from her ordeal.

#oc x canon week #ocxcanonweek #ffxiv #artoirel de fortemps #cessalie sombreterre #endwalker #wol x artoirel #edmont de fortemps #ameliance leveilleur #at this point cessalie's aether is like #old janky wiring that you can hear buzzing #sure it works #but it does not sound good #and is a little worrying

[morganali-art]

An unexpected development Cessalie Sombreterre (WoL) x Artoirel de Fortemps

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I'm going to go back eventually and fix a few things up/redo some things, but I am a terminally impatient person and I need to inflict this on y'all and go feed my island animals. ✌😴

Edit: I FORGOT A PAGE AAAAAAA

#ffxiv #comic #artoirel de fortemps #wol x artoirel #cessalie sombreterre

[morganali-art]

Year of the OTP 2023 - September Hurt/Comfort - "I (wrote) it for you"

Set in days/weeks around the Final Day™, Cessalie is Over It, and Artoirel composes a song.

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Consistency? I don't know her. There's a few things I'd like to fix up, but I need to get back to work on other things. Another one that started out as a fic draft - so I might go back and flesh it out more in text. ✌️😴

#year of the otp #artoirel de fortemps #cessalie sombreterre #wol x artoirel #wolartoirel #ffxiv #endwalker #the final day

[morganali-art]

OC x Canon Week - Day 1 Play Fighting

(It's going to be a sketchy one this week, folks, I've hit a bit of a wall.)

After Nidhogg's fall, Cessalie was determined to pick up where she left off with her swordwork. Where she had been taught to handle a blade by the Gladiator's Guild in Ul'dah, she was told then that she'd never be strong enough to go far.

Before his untimely fall, Haurchefant had taken delight in running her through some drills at her behest - though there had rarely been time enough to devote to it entirely.

But now there was time, and waiting, and rebuilding to do - and letting her own guard fall for a moment and leaning on this new something between them (friendship or kinship or... it was too early to say), she appealed to Artoirel teach her as well.

Ishgard, however, was never not horrendously cold - and training outside even on a considerably mild day still played havoc on her lungs - forever weakened by a childhood illness.

In lieu of the outdoor training grounds then, they were granted leave to train alongside the temple knights. There were a few spectators of course, the temple knights curious or amused by their guests. It's not until the Lord Commander himself quietly reminds them that this is the selfsame woman who slew the elder dragon, Nidhogg, that the curious onlookers return to their own training.

All the same, Perhaps Lord Aymeric too kept watch a moment longer than was strictly necessary - there was something forming there between these two dear friends, and it was heart-warming to see.

#oc x canon week #ocxcanonweek #ffxiv #artoirel de #artoirel de fortemps #cessalie sombreterre #wol x artoirel #this is very unedited but i have a lot of thoughts and less and less time to order them #you get the vibes #i want to return to this scenario later on