For the Doctor

NAME: Odehta Khamzov
ALIAS: 'Odette'
TITLE: Matriarch of Khamzov'Pah
PRONOUNS: She/her
AGE: Mid-thirties
NAMEDAY: 7th Sun 5th Umbral Moon
PATRON GODS: Menphina, Oschon
BIRTHPLACE: Northern Ilsabard
RESIDENCE: [REDACTED]
AFFILIATION: Eorzean Alliance
MARITAL STATUS: Unpartnered
LANGUAGES: Common, Huntspeak, Bozjan

HEIGHT: 4 fulms 11 ilms
BUILD: Stocky
HAIR/FUR: Reddish-orange
EYE COLOR: Green
MARKINGS: Clan tear; scars; cheek stripes
PIERCINGS: Earlobes (upper and lower)
AETHER: Ice, Water, and Earth

A Young Matriarch's Mien

This petite and lively woman exudes an almost industrious energy: She always seems to be going somewhere, meeting with someone, or finishing something that needed getting done. Her moods are usually pleasant, her methods productive; her wit, though tempered, is as quick as her laugh. Her voice—a low, warbling contralto—is not unpleasant, but occasionally roughened by a throaty rasp when pronouncing more sibilant words. Odette greets patients, friends, and strangers as if she is altogether delighted to make their acquaintance, regardless of their status or person.

Odette takes pains to maintain a prim and tidy appearance, even when tousled by the day's long work. Gloves seem to be a wardrobe staple. Whether robed or armored, she prefers sturdy fabrics, pale hues, and embroidered hems. Her pierced ears are broad and tufted, almost plush at the tips with soft red swaths furring down her sideburns and neck. Other than her Menphinic earring—a symbol of devotion to the Lover, and a gift once bestowed upon her by a former partner—she bothers little with jewelry, but what she disdains in bijouterie she makes up for in cosmetics, mostly kohl and cassia. A hint of sweet chypre lingers in the folds of her collar and sleeves.

Throughout the Turns

"At the outpost, we were met by two young chirurgeons: Doctors Liheng and Khamzov. The latter was a student previously working for tenure under the former, but both had dropped obligations to the collegium and set out in pairs to assist the brave souls joining in with the Resistance. I swear I have never seen any two sawbones work as fast as they did, tending to Rumigan's wounded leg. It was a sight, seeing that slight little lady in her green smock doing her very best to hold him still whilst Dr. Liheng cleaned the wound—and still he held! Though we jest that Rumigan's heft are both boon and bane, t'was his fool tongue what nigh did him in. While convalescing, he remarked sly that he had never before been ministered by someone with such fine hands, and did wonder if O-tribe girls were known for such dainties. She reproached that she was nonesuch tribe and nothing of the sort—and her tail! Like a long whip it lashed around, angry and red! Were it not for Dr. Liheng snatching her by the arm, I think she might have poured the bedpan over into his lap, as was he deserved!"—P. Minost,
Before Gangos: Journals from the Imperial Resistance

"Previously I mentioned that Claudine had hired into the household a most diminutive maid. She did most gently correct me that very eve I wrote, and thus now I amend to you my error. Miss Odette, as we are encouraged call her—for she is miqo'te, and her given name rings unmusical in our rheumy Ishgardian throats—is neither maid nor servant, but instead the palliative healer that Claudine so insisted our beloved Father required. Fury help me, Mirespalle, but he is not long for this world. Imagine my dread and sorrow when Miss Odette informed me that Father's condition so steadily declines, and he has nary moons left! But, mark this: your dear Uncle fades in capable care. What a comfort, when she gathers my hands in her own and delivers plain his daily condition with frank but tender solicitude in her gentle voice. She vows that in these last fortnights he shall feel the least of pain, and should Claudine or I require her aide we are merely to state 'how high' so she might jump. Dear nurse! In vast Coerthas a more compassionate soul perhaps exists—yet, in these gloomiest hours, I know not where else she might be but within this twilight house, where she tends to the three of us as she might nurture her very kindred."—S. Deloupagne (de Fortemps),
in a letter to his cousin

of Northern Ilsabard

• Hestia
• Leyah
• Odovh'a
• Vahleh'to
• Odilah
• Golha'to
• " Kletska "

• Vahleh
• Vahleh'a
• Odovh
• Ihri the Grey

Hestia

Odehta's firstborn, and twin sister to Leyah. A spirited, competitive child who prefers to be out of doors—preferably in the boughs of a very tall tree. Quick with slingshot, bow, and bola, she aspires to be a great marksman. For all her pluck, Hestia has a kind heart and a love for woodland creatures. When not tormenting her family with the newest "pet" brought in from the woods, she can be found collecting vilekin and avoiding chores.

Leyah

The quieter, more contemplative twin. Where her sister leads, Leyah often follows; while far from hapless—rarely is a child of Khamzov lacking when it comes to self-sufficiency—she prefers to let her other family members occupy the spotlight. (Thus Leyah tends to stay out of trouble.) A bookish child, mostly disposed towards scholarly pursuits, who regularly fights with her siblings over who knows the most unusual (read: weird) Eorzean trivia.

Odovh'a

Named in the Khamzov tradition—in which a mother may choose to honor the legacy of favored matriarchs rather than naming sequential sons after herself—"Oda" is the doctor's youngest child and only son. A smug, intelligent youth with a captious disposition, he has already demonstrated a capacity for all matters academic, and appears to be quite the prodigy. He is also keen on sharpening his debate skills, much to the chagrin of his elders.

Vahleh'to

Odehta's twin, secondborn son of Vahleh Khamzov and Golha'to Epocan. Called "Leto", this loud, hard-drinking veteran is an explosives expert and artillery engineer. Since the Final Days, Leto has spent less time on the battlefield and more with his family, restoring a sense of closeness between the surviving Khamzovs. He resides in Mor Dhona with Fallon Rivensail, but regularly visits his sister and her children at their home in the Shroud.

Odilah

Eldest daughter of Vahleh Khamzov and Golha'to Epocan, sister to Odehta and Vahleh'to. Once slated to assume the role of matriarch, Odilah chose a simpler life studying alchemy on the distant isle of Thavnair, mostly estranged from family. However, like her younger brother Leto, she has reconnected with her siblings after the events of the Final Days. She and her two children, Ihri and Lah'a, now reside in the Shroud not far from her sister's home.

Golha'to

Father to Odehta, Vahleh'to, Odilah, and the late Vahleh'a. This wise, jovial old miqo'te was once a seasoned botanist and respected scholar. His travels led him all over the realm in search of rare and useful herbs, flowers, and seeds. Now he retires to a peaceful life in the Shroud on territory maintained by his daughters. He claims to have fathered some six and seventy children within and adjacent to his original clan of Epocan. Surely he is all bluster.

"Kletska"

This ravenous feline freeloader appeared one day on the doctor's doorstep. Once fed, however, he did as most strays do and stuck around in hopes of another meal. And another, and another, and another... Note the unnatural feeling one gets from staring too long into those beady black eyes. Or the manner in which he walks, almost as if floating. And did anyone else observe that there appeared to be two Kletskas loafing in the breezeway? A meow-stery, indeed...

Vahleh

Late matriarch of Khamzov's Pah sect, mother to Vahleh'a, Odilah, Odehta, and Vahleh'to. A respected chirurgeon and obstetrician. She departed the frigid northern mountains to move her little family south to the western borders of the Shroud. Her many theses on woodsin and elemental aetheric imbalances were recently archived in the Studium libraries of Sharlayan. The surviving Khamzovs miss her greatly, and annually celebrate her historied life.

Vahleh'a

Eldest child of Vahleh Khamzov and Golha'to Epocan. Beloved by his family—and especially endeared toward his matriarch and younger brother, Vahleh'to—this ingenious young armorer was killed during an outbreak of fighting between Ala Mhigan Resistance fighters and an Imperial patrol. It is widely accepted by the surviving Khamzovs that grief over his death led to matriarch Vahleh's gradual decline.

Odovh, Mater Magna

The Great Mother: Trace the Khamzov lineage back some nine and twenty grandmothers and you will discover high witch Odovh, progenitor of the current sect and lineage known as 'Pah.' Many daughters are named for her, and even some sons—though little evidence remains regarding the details of her enigmatic life. One legend stands: Odovh taught the sacred anti-magic to defend Khamzov's many mothers against the Garlean reapers of eld. To name a descendant for her is to invoke protection against the phantoms who once haunted those frigid mountains...

Ihri the Grey

The legend of this Khamzov ancestor predates the sect of Pah. Matriarch Ihri established an order of transitory protectors to defend Khamzov's snowy ridges from outside threats. In her twilight years, Ihri surprised her sisters by departing from the mountains and making west for ranges unknown. A single word from Menphina's beloved, Oschon the Wanderer, had come to her ears from heaven above: "go." Since then, every generation of Khamzov has seen a mother or two go a-wandering far from home, answering "Ihri's call" to seek distant knowledge far from home.

Fallon

A most endeared compatriot and surrogate family member. This fellow mountain-traveler is a regular sight around the Khamzov demense, and a welcome one: Miss Rivensail may have entered Odehta's life by means of her errant twin brother, but her admiration for the dashing duelist is entirely her own.

Gaelle

A comrade for life, whose acquaintance was made during the physician's tenure in Ishgard. Odehta's regard for Miss Favagenieur reached new heights when she witnessed the capable sharpshooter take down a most onerous foe in the buzzing Gnath hives of Dravania.

Lucius

A former patient and a fond friend. In an effort to finish her thesis on rehabilitative practices for veterans of the Dragonsong War, Dr. Khamzov took up temporary residence in the chateau de Guiscareaux, where she assisted the young lord in recovery from his own personal burdens.

Fiona

Few greetings can perk the doctor's ears like the kindly words of Miss Delaine. She considers their joint journey into the depths of Dravania a high point of her adventuring life, and often wonders if there'll be a round two.

Artwork and Art References

splash cameo art by Keitchez

Memes and Mildly Esoteric Inside Jokes

Voice Reference (Jennifer Ehle)

Soundtracks

• Playlist (Spotify)

and Roleplay Hooks

♦ KEEPERS OF THE MOON may know this old, unorthodox clan from the snowy mountains of northern Ilsabard. After the Calamity—and many wars, conflicts, and other far-reaching tragedies—Khamzov's numbers have dwindled. This young matriarch seeks to strengthen her clan's legacy through new, cooperative bonds.♦ THE DOCTOR IS IN — need you a chirurgeon's services? Odehta operates a small clinic in the northwestern reaches of the Shroud. Request an appointment today, adventurer, and get that physical you've been putting off...♦ ACADEMIC PURSUITS remain a focus of Odehta's busy life. She regularly corresponds with and offers assistance to fellow chirurgeons and researchers in the Studium, Idyllshire, Rhalgr's Reach, Radz-at-Han, and the Phrontistery of Ul'dah.♦ HOME BEYOND THE HORIZON — given their ancestral home in the frozen peaks, many Khamzovs find Garlemald, both as a nation and an imperialistic force, a touchy subject. Dr. Khamzov participated in the Contigent's push for aide in the wake of the Empire's dissolution, despite fighting Imperial legions in the Bozjan Resistance.♦ AND MORE... Inquire within for further hooks or ideas for connecting!

the Player

⬩ Pacific Time Zone (PDT)
⬩ they/them; writer is 30+
⬩ frequently afk
⬩ carrd design is mineHello! If you're interested in writing with me and potential story involvement, feel free to send me a tell in-game! I'm looking to make new connections on this character and am open to many narrative routes. I am a selective, story- and development-driven writer with several years of experience in collaborative RP.While FFXIV contains fantastical themes/tropes that lean into contemporary parallels (e.g., xenophobia, racism and related stereotypes, class inequality, misogyny, and many others), I will not engage with players or groups whose OOC conduct, character design, or roleplay I find offensive, insensitive, or otherwise unpleasant.

✔️✔️✔️

⬩ new connections
⬩ established connections
⬩ "help, I need a healer!" RP
⬩ medical/chirurgic-themed RP
⬩ exploration and research RP
⬩ slice of life RP
⬩ lore/MSQ-adherent themes
⬩ short/mid-length storylines
⬩ LGBTQIA+ characters

⚠️⚠️⚠️

⬩ shipping/romance RP
⬩ lore/MSQ-relevant NPCs
⬩ WoLs
⬩ venue/event RP
⬩ FF-focused homebrews/fancanons
⬩ excessive headcanoning

❌❌❌

⬩ players & characters under 18
⬩ godmoding, metagaming, and metaposing
⬩ non-Final Fantasy characters
⬩ casual & "meme" characters
⬩ TERFs, use of transphobic terms like "f*ta", and/or any other IC or OOC trans-/homophobia
⬩ poor IC-OOC boundaries & roleplayers who test them
⬩ general bad/weird vibes

(13th Sun of the Second Umbral Moon)Dear Miss Favagenieur,
May I introduce myself unto thee as a physician and mender, one Dr. Khamzov, now currently established in thy fair capitol. I write to thee in hopes of thy benefit, and of making further thy acquaintance. As of this sennight, I am lodged in the employ of a family I do believe known to thee—the house Guiscareaux, vintners and knights-dragoon besides. As thy good name has passed fondly past mine ears during my tenure hither, I have made bold to seek thee out for beneficial exchange.Pray indite in timely accord if I might seek thee out ‘pon the coming fortnight, in whatever house or establishment merits thy comfort best.Kindest regards,
Dr. O. Khamzov

(15th Sun of the Second Umbral Moon)Dear Doctor Khamzov,I confess it is with some consternation that I receive your missive.Pray, take no offense to the discernible trepidation found in my present reply, but 'tis with forthrightness deserving of your station that I question the nature of your employment upon the grounds of my closest associate.Should, perchance, your request to meet be one made in earnest, I do (in great humbleness) submit unto thee an invitation to join me within Saint Reymanaud's Cathedral some bells following the conclusion of evening mass. 'tis quiet then, and no clergy nor congregation shall be present--save for the watchful gaze of the Fury Herself--to disturb our meeting.Yours cordially,
Lady Gaelle de Favagenieur

(24th Sun of the Second Umbral Moon)Most esteemed Chancellor,I write thee in goodwill and grace, hoping thus to make thy acquaintance here in ink and, graces be good, anon in person. I am Dr. Khamzov, a physician of Ilsabard and the Twelveswood, established now within the borders of Coerthas and snowy Ishgard afar. 'pon this very sun and sennight, however, I have made leave for the west, and lodge myself in fair Limsa Lominsa 'til the conclusion of this most necessary business abroad. A matter of this business I yield to thy attention, for oft has been spoken the great rapport of thy Institute and those that do empower and endeavor within it.On my person I carry the selected works of my late matriarch, one Vahleh Khamzov of Ilsabard, who was in her time a valued and vaulted chirurgeon. As she lived, she was known to be a historied healer, inculculated to a most tender proficiency in caring for mothers and their babes. Her study and expertise did result in the authoring of some thirteen annals of work, all scribed and reviewed by her collegium peers, of which only three were ever formally published. Ever the sharp wit, my matriarch did possess both mien and wont to speak her mind's truth, and t'was her truthful tongue that did limit distribution of her articles to the west--chiefly within Ul'dah, for their premises and content did upbraid harsh criticism against Gridania, the Seedseers, and their many restrictive statures therein.Yet, 'tis worthy to mark 'pon these contemporary suns that times have indeed changed, and in changing they have spun within me new hope for the possible proliferation of my matriarch's work. Dear chancellor, I entreat thy assistance in the preservation of these rare selections, in either active publication or archival reserve. Would that I might earn a bell of thy time for a meeting anon, in which I would happily exchange with thee the breadth of the work for thine own personal review and peroration.I thank thee most heartily for thy consideration.Kindest regards,
Dr. O. Khamzov

(25th Sun of the Second Umbral Moon)Doctor Khamzov,I hope this correspondence reaches you post haste and that you remain – if presumably previously – whole and hale. I offer you my sincerest thanks inquiring into my institution and was most humbled to find your letter upon my desk. Many meetings have I suffered through without so much as a consideration for the process of admissions I must go through in order to uphold a modicum of decorum for my establishment – I admit to you, it is a breath of fresh air to have the process taken with some level of sanctity and consideration by an applicant. I do hope Vylbrand has treated you kindly, as it has myself and my family. The people are boisterous and the air thick with salt, but from my previous experience within Ilsabard, I can only figure you perhaps find the company of such a warm welcome as a native of the far north. If not, forgive my continued assumptions.To spare us the time and ink, I propose a meeting this coming sennight if you are able to make such. This (Wednesday) perhaps, in the morning if you are able. I will expect you, unless you correspond with a decline or simply do not show. It is no bother regardless. I am not wont to waste time with back and forth when there is work to be done – from the sounds of your accolades, you seem just the sort of woman I wish to continue progressing the research of Raithwall. I would too, rather, speak further about your mother’s occupation in person, I feel it the due respect she deserves. As well the proliferation of her hard work. I am sure you are most aware, given I trust you have looked into Raithwall before penning for a meeting to apply, we are an archive for a great many things – some more dangerous than others. If I feel you are a suited fit amongst our scholars, I can assure you, Khamzov, your mother’s work will not fade to time. Safe will it be amongst the many halls of great renown and knowledge – or amongst the progressive ideas of our newest minds.
I hope you are able to make our meeting, if not we will find a way to gather. I look forward to reviewing you and yours life time work.Safe travels,
Dr. Rayne Hungana
Chancellor, Raithwall Institute of Aetherial and Corporeal Science, Limsa Lominsa

(5th Sun of the Second Umbral Moon)Dear Dr. Khamzov,My letter reacheth thee from Vylbrand far, so ye may be informed that I, Rageant Lacordaire, have arrived in all safety and health. I have arranged for the Eorzean Alliance and Adventurer's Guild both to deliver unto my office in the Raithwall Institute all mail and parcels, thus it is my purpose by penning this letter may thee be informed, per my continued interest toward enduring correspondence regarding one Ser Lucius Guiscareaux for whom I am greatly concerned. It would debt me unto thee no dearth of gratitude to be kept abreast of his recovery's progress, and further I would proffer any assistance, either informational, institutional, or financial that within my power may be bestowed.Pray pen thine response in due expedience that I may be certain the estate has received this letter. Further, pray forgive my brevity per this correspondence, I am a sun and less fresh from the vessel what delivered me hither, and have only thence the peaceable clime and toll to scribe these words.In all sincerity,
Sir Rageant Lacordaire
Researcher, Raithwall Institute of Aetherial and Corporeal Science, Limsa Lominsa

(10th Sun of the Second Umbral Moon)
Dear Dr. Khamzov,In mirth this missive is penned, and trepidation in equal part. Pray forgive me to have availed unto myself undue skepticism and forgive too my brevity in prior correspondance. 'Twas my forecast the unwell lordling would avaunt dispatch thee in breadth of a sennight, and I linger to surmise that he has been thusly tempted, conjecture which perchance ascribes merit unto thine unbeguiling ways. I shall commend too thine professionalism and persistence which habits thine genuine animus to convey succor unto my comrade-in-arms, this inkwrought inference begiven in Twelvesprayer to be rightly profferred so. Mirth is wherefore thitherborn, and naught of trepidation need be conveyed which is not by context freely lent.The anecdotal advisory seekest thou am I hard-pressed so to provide. No doubt 'tis readily evident unto thee his private manner, thine account doth suitably mirror unto mine according no startle. O'er tother estate lingereth a pall; a yawning neglect pervades each hall, yet the goodly retainers what loiter are tethered by invisible irons wrought maychance from a smoldering love they bear their home and lineage they toil now/hence to serve. This melancholy emptiness excludeth phantasmal peril not, as attendants (I recall) are affright to circle corners in leisurely haste. Given am I to wonder what fanciful menace is conceived to prowl those grounds and corridors. In sooth scant substance of the subject particulares may from me be reap'd, for during my brief tenure as guest therein that dreary holdfast of vestigial gentility, like unto the good lordling did I frequent my quarters. Ere art thou given to speculate I retained a bedchamber in breadth of a fortnight and too some spare suns (thine very same, like as not.) Neath those sheets my respite was taken not half those nights, and I spare thee cause to inquire wherefore in saying to Dravania wend my heading for sport of hunt, and in pursuit of a most vexatious guildleve.Yet wont as I am to wander from the proper point, I wend my quill wiser heading hence to write that ne'er hath Engilram by mine eyne been aspied. Of Lianne cold and comely (that she to thee be familiar if bloodshared likeness betrays it not) I can declare elsewise. Lest ye wonder my interim residence therein the estate Guiscareaux succeeded self-imposed exile in the gallsome wastes of Gyr Abania (again to spare thine ink in asking, 'twas a spiritual avocation) whereupon Lucius absconded me and my feline companion by way of commissioned airship. Thence I made Lady Lianne's acquaintance in brief, and precious little may I rightly say of her. Our ailing lordling came in another's company, a Gridanian serviceman by name of Llyren if I justly orthographize, who cordially divested himself of our company amid a refueling recess in Gridania. Like unto me may he be reached by written letter, if our lordling speaketh earnest with regards to wherefrom their original conversance was made - I cede this knowledge to thine able discretion. Of hobbies, I can account for the principal practice just as you. He trains, ever and always, in preparation for his own phantasmal peril. Perchance this misdemeanor is too his solace, I volunteer this notion shrewdly. Else aught which can be offered either eludes my knowing or transcends my place and comfort to speak of, save of this and wist it well: His heart, thinks I, does tremble to know one Lady Gaelle Favagenieur. Unto thee may I evince my postulation's governing reason in a subsequent correspondence, as 'pon this toll I am beleagured by an onslaught of duties, disturbances, and restlessness besides.Ere spent is my inkwell I must naturally attend thine cordialities. Beset oft are we of Vylbrand by rain and mist, and whilst the Warden's dozy keep render'th my window anon aglow, a smell upon the wind betrays a foggy night to come and lanterns must-needs be lit (lest a lost and drunken sailor gives proof to the Maelstrom's motto) as too the cierge hither my dimming office, ilm by ilm eclipsed 'yond windowsill from that sleepy sun. Thine agate balm is 'pon this day a shivering blue, and those easesome white cliffs thole its pale and barmy paws. Per recent regional developments, peacetalks and perils alike, Limsa Lominsa is anxiously abustle. Once I soothly decried this port a varlet's knavish port, now I dare name it home... though afeared am I to tempt the Spinner's wheel, and yet moreso to brook shame for having exchanged brevity for levity, pray forgive me the trespass.Yours in all sincerity,
Sir Rageant Lacordaire
Researcher, Raithwall Institute of Aetherial and Corporeal Science, Limsa Lominsa

(15th Sun of the Second Umbral Moon)
Dear Dr. Khamzov,I pray good den unto thee when this letter reacheth. 'Tis well and good mirth be from mine ink and parchment bestow'd, knowing well as I do the bleak veil which drapeth the common and noblefolk alike in old Ishgard. I dwelt therewith some few the Lover's turns, afirst among clergy and eft ward to noble house (not named Guiscareaux, but Bayle rather.) In slake thine imaginable curiosity, my name is sourced from the former; in tradition of Ishgardian orthodoxy saints hath the name I pen been mantled, that it be not forgotten, and my any good feat thereunto attributed; I labor to remember if 'pon first and only meeting did I say so, and say venture forgiveness unto me if indeed I did. Of this gloomy veil, pray receive'st not my affirmation for condemnation toward the good republic - I bear it great love, as I do all of Eorzea (though perchance not each her constituent elements ever and always equal in measure, a lapse I labor for to atone.) Peace unto pale Ishgard conferred nascent conviviality - the grand melee was called a spectacle for the ages, and indeed my mere words strive to properly impart. 'Twould be neglectful too not to mention the Hastiltude of the Fury, a fortnightly jousting competition thou hath conjured unto memory to mention of "tilt" in thine caper. Ishgardians are so inured to war, they celebrate their good times by mocking it. Wellaway I confess to have been truant the second grand melee, yet I attended the preamble Ishgardian rally and triumphed in the fighting tournament besides! I roundly trounced some few fighters ere my final foe fled the field and I was declared champion, and pray, pray forgive me this lapse in humility - for excessive tolls I honed my swordwork to make it so.I too rode the lists though only once ere Ser Basile, a greater knight 'pon that day by any account, did effortlessly unhorse me and render my breastplate concave. A pitiable performance, mayhap bedeviled was I by the fated favor I carried - bequeath'd unto me by she whom I now regard as my sole and oldest friend. Yet my half-triumph I could not bear into the second grand melee, possessed as I was by an interminable and anxious desire to wander and hunt in the small company of my chocobo and morbol. The former perished by old age and the latter, she is departed too. And lest you wonder, 'twas the unquenchable Immortal Flames whom triumphed in that second melee.Lest I overbrim this correspondence with affairs amiss its scope, I castigate my hand and direct this inkpen again to a rightful heading. I am heartened to glean thy purpose and assuaged to know its verity; and admittedly undeterred in learning 'twas by macabre jape born. Relinquish not thine reverence for fate nor its vicious vagary, and know I take thine coming and care for my comrade-in-arms for an encouraging turn of Her wheel. I beseech capricious Nymeia thou art untroubled by any phantasmal perils or pests, and thine personal effects be not absconded nor rent by fang and claw; I likewise pray a vigorous recovery unto the goodly groundskeeper while I hope the servants welcome thee better than I. He was affable unlike to some few others, though we seldom spoke save for the barest how-do-you-dos. Soothly must I profess again to have scarcely explored the grounds whenas I thither dwelt and perceived not the pestly scent nor portents thou hath in thine letter described. If peradventure dwell'st thou in the self-same quarters you may check for holes ahind an unsightly portrait hung thereunto the wall... if the commensurate fortitude can be mustered to look upon it.'Pon thine own discretion the good lady Gaelle may be consulted, and I can but praise thine initiative insodoing. Thou needn't seek'st my leave nor fear my reprisal, Odette, as I accede to thy wisdom and expertise upon this matter. 'Tis no flippant flattery, yet instead a further expression of my gratitude I ruefully suspect my previous letter did not rightly convey. Prithee take precious leisure midst the task of bringing wellness unto the good lordling for the capacious charge it shall surely ripen into; though I speculate thine end to resurrect the mentioned nursery is thine distinctive notion of recreation. In knowing my nature I can by no means protest. Gaelle may perchance offer good company, she is an upright and genial lady, and so I solicit thee to convey unto her my warm regards. Same too the lady Lianne on the incident by thee she may be ensared; I recall to have termed her cold, however Ishgard's higher-reaches may dust even flesh with frost oft through no fault.This lengthsome letter shall soon be brought to close, yet I shan't leave thine hindmost inquiry without resolution. Of Ishgard you speak rightly, art conveys the heart and Halone's chosen guard them well, for the late Holy See did so spitefully scrutinize the soul. Yet whilom didst I dwell with the Convictory midst the quickening din of the final chorus, and 'twas there I heard belabored men unshackle their hearts to sing. Shanties, hymns, and a health to the company 'twas the mode. It rings curious to me even now: immersed in such hardship was the most credible revelry oft raised and solace disposed. Alas, my chronometer doth toll rathe-ripe and my mail is in early hours collected, so this letter must be hither concluded. Thank you for keeping me abreast of Lucius's progress, however little may be offer'd, and I entreat thine patience in that matter. May this letter find ye well, and may the mirth ne'er depart.Sincerely yours,
Sir Rageant Lacordaire
Researcher, Raithwall Institute of Aetherial and Corporeal Science, Limsa LominsaP.S.: Of our continued correspondence may'st thou be assured I am wholly nonplussed. I forgot in penning this to note that I myself write poetry when my soul doth murmur. Nothing particular stirring though, I assure thee.

(8th Sun of the Second Umbral Moon)Dear Sir Lacordaire,With felicity I receive'd thy letter, and with good-will I reply: 'tis fine news, to hear of thy safe journey and installation to Vylbrand proper. Chorded by the urgency in thy words, I shall spare thine eye and mind the niceities of palaver, and rather soothe thee to speak on the matter center and true: the state of thy comrade, Ser Guiscareaux—of whom I confess I have seen sparse since mine own arrival.Pray note: as I am in his employ, and beguile my charges none whence they are such engaged, I shall withhold a mean detail of his state and condition in deference to his privacy and person. Believe me, sir, that I wish to lodge myself as tenable and ethical a physicker as e'er did labor under yon Scholar's scroll, and would present myself as such to both thine eye and the lord's weary own. Yet, as he avouches thee a friend both good and large, I entrust this correspondence shall read and be read under benevolent collogue betwixt us both.Now, sir, the genesis of thy great matter, and mine own. Our lord keepeth much counsel, yet heareth from others none. He invites neither guest nor broker; the servants—what staunch souls they remain under these fusting rafters—inform me that no fetes, visits, courts, nor common pleas have passed save that which the Orthodoxy deems rite and ritual required. Within the halls of his own house my lord spends a modicum, two to three bells at most, and whence he does arrive he is nigh as quick to depart. He dresses same as yestersun, and yester ere such, and ere; his mode, though constant, is narrow in fashion. He dresses in sables, as if to endure whole suns of business and training. Sir, of business and training my lord seems full scarfed. Of the former, he gives no indication of neither state nor affairs, or whither in fair La Noscea he goes or stays; of the latter, he goes with a vigor that might far reduce a slighter man. I know not when he sups, sleeps, wakes. (Mark this: I believe he does very little of all three.) What meager sport he avails, he does so with lance and poniard, in aught but the company of a leashed hound. His cups, though toped, have yet to drown him.In leverage of thy proferred assistance, I do seek of thee: what might you tell, in either advisory or in anecdote, unto any such person as myself that cares for the lord henceforth? Has he fondness for hobby? sport? wit or writing? Has he great love of any brethren, living or late? I see naught of his twin, named Engilram; of his lady sister I have caught no glimpse. Prithee enlighten me as thou wilt, and I shall turn both ears to thy voice, and heed.
And worry not, sir; lest these words leave thee troubled, know I harken unto first light of prognosis. Of the lord's foibles I take note, but of his iron mien I do wax more aware. He is cold, yea—but nary is he churlish. Though hard, he wears no symptoms of gall, only bile and mild spleen. Though distempered, he carries none of the dread inherent to so many who incur harm from an untoward hand—and I wouldst leave thee at peace, sir, to know his own seems no such villain. A reasoned treatment shall manifest in due time, and with further content to treat and speak I do bide it such. My matriarch did oft say 'by patient hands that true succor did soothe'—and what threads of mind, body, and spirit lie apiece, such hands have committed to mending whole.I leave thee with assurance that I shall write again—in haste, if my augury turns severe—and keep thee abreast of thy lord's manner and property.Yours in all kindness,
Dr. O. KhamzovPost-Script:
Pray tell—if, by leave of thy fair organization's security, and busy bells do permit—how fares the clime of yon Southwestern shores? Sun, wind, or great rain? For some nine moons my late charge did furnish me no liberty to dispatch this- or that-a'-way, as is the old wont. There was an ease in those white cliffs, and the agate surf a balm on the salt-sick eye.

(13th Sun of the Second Umbral Moon)Dear Sir Lacordaire,Would that thou couldst see my face 'pon the discerning of thy letter! By troth, I did suspect our young lord, given his woolgathering, would be more inclined to forget my presence 'pon this estate ere he toss me from it; thus, the visionary of Ser Guiscareaux upending myself and mine chattels a-street gave me great amusement. Mirth, indeed! Mark thee, sir: I did laugh, and though the purpose of these letters might wax wistful, thou art a melodist with which to tilt.Given thy open honesties, t'would be most equitable if I dispense unto thee honesties in kind, namely: the reason for my estately arrival. For nine moons I have labored in the houses of the dying—and, though ne'er did I encounter such a ruthful cloud as what lingers upon Guiscareaux, I tenured work in administering final aide and succor unto a fading lord and knight-dragoon. (Mind: nonesuch houses were mine own, nor of my thin Northern ilk). After the good knight passed, a colleague did refer unto me the vintner family's name, speaking, 'if thou wouldst shepherd spearmen into the Fury's Grace, get thee unto the house of Guiscareaux, for some men there do leap to Decease!' Presently I came to understand this comment as a jape, and a blue one, too—for, with eyes narrowed, I did portend this family (its lord especially) in hard need of a healer's aide. I have heard it portioned that ne'er should the Spinner be taken for a lark lest She rack the loom with jests homespun and cruel—so, all jests aside, I stand here, and hence remain, endeavoring to mend.Onto said matter: of the young lord's mien, I bring little with which to suffice thee. He remains ever elusive, companion only to his hound, his lance, and his cups. Once I did aspy the comings-and-going of his lady sister in habiliments black, yet I could not garner whether she hied in mourning or simply choiced a more glaciate mode. Lover grant me patience, but I had not dwelled one of Her moons in fair Ishgard ere sensing its denizens did so adore a gloomy go!Yet 'tis thy mention of pall and menace that resonates much: I see it, sir, and it has teeth. The groundskeeper—who smolders true with the love thou didst describe yet also the most mulish case of Coerthan ague—bid me note damaged fences, chewed bastions per the southern yards. Some pest, he remarked, hath jawed 'round there, and afield beside the jakes. What manner of pest he did not speculate, though it gave him great pause and disdain to proceed. Thus I have entreated Master Groundskeeper my assistance in spotting the creature whilst I tend herbarium, as it slouches needful of repairs. Mayhap next he will see beyond moil and permit me treat his long malaise, as I ken he could imminent be bettered by take of leech or tonic brewed.Of trembling hearts I do take note, sir, and liegemen like, besides. Unto Master Llyren I will dispatch a correspondence; and, if thou wouldst not scold, I'd conjure thee to know: I have sent upon this sun a plain greeting to one Miss Favagenieur, whose address I attained with mild pursuit. Trust thee in mine discretion, kind sir—I would yea affirm it, lest you relieve me of such already bestowed. I am of a people worn by our Star's most precipitous woes, and thus inured to show goodwill when we can spare it—so it is with least harm this missive seeks most polite discourse at her convenience and withal in her preferred demesne. I aim not to trouble, nor vex, nor disturb—only to know, and in knowing give to whatever sanative ease I be allowed.Ere I nonplus thee in thy toiling hours, I shall remit the rest for a later letter, begging the need of such, and I leave thee with my full gratitude at the coastal portrait painted in thy fair reply. No verse of thine hath trespassed 'pon mine eyes, and though in forgiveness I am wont to live, nonesuch is thus required to give.Yours in all kindness,
Dr. O. KhamzovP.S.: Among Ishgardians, is there such great trespass in poetry? In its craft I am quite bootless, and ask thee without pretense—for I suspect these Coerthans brick up their arts as sternly as they do sense, and sediment...

(16th Sun of the Second Umbral Moon)Dear Sir Lacordaire,A marvel, thy prior missive; and what tales within! I confess two bells of my evening—a vesper rife with respite, mind, for t’was naught amid our lord’s manor with which to engage a weary mind save for what Erilloux, one of the maids, set aside in the parlor—were spent in leisure of perusing it. (Marry, I would tell thee: she left out a basket of yarn; a fresh Ishgardian jape, perhaps, as I plumped not even a modicum for knitting.) Nay, by troth, I must dispense with honesties and preach it such: Were I presented with the selection of consuming thy letter or the irresistible beckon of three clews of carmine wool, I do say, sir: I wouldst fain choose the letter. What joy, what levin laughter yoked me, to find I have exchanged letters with a knight and champion besides! I wouldst dare not tax thine eye and mind, as thou art dutifully occupied, yet confess further I would spare a toll or two of mine own to hear further of thy achieves and glories, and with ears attentive, too.Thus I receive thy thanks, know that it is I who must thank thee for thy continued correspondence—and, hark you, good sir Rageant, I mean the whole: every fulm traveled in it, and each earthly fathom delved—for, in light of laggardly developments, I have had nigh aught with which to divert myself and my delayed endeavors. The herbarium I have repaired (thou cleaveth true my reason for labor!), the groundskeeper I’ve yet to persuade; the lordling remains at arm’s length; his sister, frigid and so fair as thy regards did twine, ruminates in chambers ill-attended. Neither height nor hair hies for wayward Engilram, and the staff keep a glib tongue on his mien and matter. Yet from our Lady Favagenieur I hath earned a reply, and in replying strive to make in person her acquaintance anon.
Dear, dear Ishgardians! How you know them, sir, whilst I do not! Ere thy musings, I had mused in thought: Wherefore hath such devotion borne these votaries along in wonts so awesome yet austere? Grateful as I am that thy august recollections tamed my query, mine own manner still brooks my slant of it. I am a stalwart of the Lover and Her wanderer besides, sir, and have lain long in meditation at the banks of the Scholar. I admit that when I did attend service at St. Reymanaud’s and gazed upon yon war-queen bold, hoplon’ed and a-helmed, mine eyes did full opine they beheld the visage of a maiden latent. The spear; the spear! Wherefore the spear?Ah, but I might nuisance thee with hoary deliberations! To thy expertise I accede, good sir. Know that I am ever a student in perpetuity, as was my matriarch when she did live. Once she said unto me: ‘the same moon what rises above thy motherland rises too above all the roads of thy father. Thus, should thou too some day sit as high as Her splendid arc in the Heavens, remaineth a polestar ere thy good and natural rounds.’ Mayhap with guidance like to thine own, I shall understand further, and wile unto lances as I wield scalpel, shot, and alembic.Sir, thy humility goes unquestioned, but rather presses me into queries new. In thy travels past, hast thou traipsed the borders of Ilsabard? I am of its northern reaches: a region bleak and treeless betwixt tower’d peaks black and pale. Of mine ilk I am youngest, born last unto my matriarch in pursuant to two brothers—one of eld by some twelve summers, and the other my twin and eld by some ten minutes—and a fair sister five summers my senior. Those that still live remain my own sole and oldest friends. (My twin, especially; he, too, was wont to dispense favor that oft resulted in untimely upendings. he is a rapscallion!) ‘tis but yearling memories of Khamzov’s stormy crags that I retain ere we departed for the Shroud during my fourth or fifth summer. Of the realm I have tales a-plenty, but of Home I garner few to share. Ah! This letter doth grow weedy, and lest I exhaust this parchment I must temper thine expectation of query and story ‘til the next—should thou endear to hear it.Kindly yours,
Dr. Odette KhamzovP.S.: fie! there remains enough space on the page! Assure me naught but this: is thine poetry published hither? thither? Speak where I might acquire it, sir—I wouldst read it!