Tea and Honey
Name ❀ Arlo Svarholdt
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Gender ❀ Male, He/Him
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Age ❀ Mid-Late Twenties
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Nameday ❀ 19th Sun, 5th Astral Moon
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Height ❀ 6'0.5"
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Relationship Status ❀ Single
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Orientation ❀ Pan
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Personality Basics ❀ Rough & secluded
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Things of Note ❀ Tattoos, scars
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Workplace ❀ Kugane Teahouse
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Inspo ❀ Xiao (Genshin Impact), Howl Pendragon (Howl's Moving Castle)
RP Profile
On first encounter with Arlo, he usually ignores folks around him or wants nothing to do with whoever is trying to talk to him. Of course, this is mostly due to his temper and what he's focused on at the moment- which is usually thinking about work. Arlo works at a Kugane tea shop and mostly socializes there. He's not reclusive, just unwilling to talk to folks unless they really need him or he thinks whoever's talking to him is at least of some intrigue.
Even through having resting bitch face and having a bit of a rude side to him, he still means well, he can just come off as cold at times. Most of the folks he regularly talks to and interacts with are those he can trust, almost like family to him. They probably met him through his tea shop business as well.
Running a tea shop, especially in Kugane, can be hard work but he truly enjoys it. It's where he mostly talks to folks, socializes and shows off his true personality. Even if it isn't a tea shop, if he has himself a hot cup of tea that's to his liking, he'll typically mellow out and be much easier to talk to. Mostly.
Basic Backstory
Arlo Svarholdt is a Viera that was raised in the "elsewhere", what he likes to call Norvrandt. He didn't have much of an interesting early life, being raised in the Crystarium and living a decent life there with his parents. There, he worked at a market stall his parents had set up for him, selling assorted flavored teas and different herbs you'd find local to Norvrandt. It's how he began his liking for tea and other hot drinks of the sort, they became a sort of comfort for him in early life. It's when the rift between these two planes- Eorzea and Norvrandt- collided and opened that his life seriously became something more than he thought it was. Sin Eaters wherever he went whilst looking for the herbs and flowers he used in his family's own blends, so he had to tread extra carefully whenever he could.
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It was years within Norvrandt that it took for Arlo's life to take a turn for the worst as the Sin Eater conundrum started coming to a peak. Upon one of his expeditions outside of the Crystarium, looking for his herbs alongside his parents, he had somehow managed to get too caught up in searching that it was already late. His parents never called for him, never informed him of how long it had been. He had only thought he had strayed too far, but not a long walk away from where he was searching, well...
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Arlo locked himself up in his room within the Crystarium, not coming out for days on end. The folks running the inn there took extra care and precautions when looking after him, and a kind Hrothgar took him under his wing. He taught the young Arlo how to fend for himself, how to deal with conflict without hurting anybody. He was especially taught how to defeat Sin Eaters, learning the expertise of the Rogue, an assassin class he didn't mind investing into. But as the rift was opening wider and wider.. folks from Norvrandt were going to and from Eorzea, and he saw this as an opportunity. An opportunity to escape, to try and stop secluding himself.
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The Warriors of Light had already taken care of a majority of the Sin Eater threat at this point. Arlo had been working at a tea shop nestled within the streets of Kugane, something he felt comfort in. Smelling tea and hearing the clinking of ceramic cups felt like a warm hug to him, a sense of love that he felt like he had forgotten long ago. Of course, he still feels secluded and unwanted due to being orphaned when he was much younger, but he still can enjoy himself. He doesn't socialize much when he's away from the tea shop, it's the only place he feels comfortable in to talk about himself, his interests. The comfort and the warmth of a tea shop drives him to being much kinder, as if he were still with his parents.
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Arlo still continues to work for the nestled away tea shop in Kugane, but he has taken up other interests as well. He had been training himself more in the way of the Rogue, centering himself. It felt refreshing to fend for himself and actually make a difference, and now he oft takes periodic odd jobs inbetween working shifts.Whether it's handling a rampant mandragora infestation or dealing with the ever-present beast tribes, he'll take any chance he can get to train his daggers and learn more about his own fighting style.
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Arlo still keeps in touch with his Hrothgar mentor, a sweet older gentleman who still thrives within the Crystarium as a library assistant now. They often meet up on days off they share, and reminisce on the past and talk about the present, over a cup of steaming tea, of course.
Brainworms
A couple friends have genuinely helped me figure out this character, so if you really want a deep-dive into how he works, these'll probably help LMAO
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More about me + Socials!
Hi, I'm Lily! I'm 21+, and I'm a big sucker for RP and enjoy it a lot! I'm just a generally social person as a whole, so don't be afraid to say hi or ask if you can walk up! ^^
I typically am active on Twitter, if not Final Fantasy XIV. My main account I use generally for Art purposes is @StrawberrySuicu!
I also have a screenshot account, @StrawbbyXIV if you'd like to check me out there as well!