Qilin Merchant.
name - 萱瑷 , xuanyao
alias(es) - the informant , the information broker
age / dob - 900+ , 01.25
identity - genderfluid , he him
orientation - queer , polyamorous
affiliation - the aletheia agency , mene
path / element - nihility (gameplay) permanence , erudition/remembrance (lore) , wind
img desc. xuanyao and mini xuanyao ... src.
Persona.
Immediately noticeable, XuanYao is quite friendly, though a bit reserved. Whether in business dealings or simply regular interactions, it appears that his personal privacy is of utmost concern to himself, exposing as few details as possible while still following respectful norms and avoiding coming off as cold. At the same time, however, one may notice that he may seem to be trying to simultaneously pull as much information possible from you... this comes off as being a gossip more than anything else, but is habitual from his work as an information broker. Knowledge is power, and after so many years, it appears that he cannot always completely break habits formed by his work. XuanYao is a person who prefers exchanges- whether be information, favors, or other things- to one sided favors, though these exchanges do not necessarily need to be equal by any means, and hates to owe anyone anything. He will always promptly repay debts and favors, on the rare occasions he does owe them, seeing as he's generally quite meticulous in making sure this doesn't happen.
He is also someone who is very devoted, to close friends, partners, or even just life goals. To people, especially, those he loves, he seems to be willing to do just about anything. While he is a generally courteous person, it's when the people he truly cares about are involved that this pleasant smile of his becomes a bit more real, and he's a bit more passionate. This devotion and passion of his can be notably seen with his husband, but does extend to other partners he may have in the future, and his most dearest friends. He is also very indulgent- as long as those he loves are happy, he is also happy, simple as that.
And when it comes to his work, particularly, XuanYao is very focused... he takes his business quite seriously, and is reknown for this very reason.
etymology - from 萱 (xuan), day lily, and 瑷 (yao), precious jade, also meaning fine/precious/good.
headcanons
- - his face claim is the qilin merchant skin from identity v , specifically the white guard form. his birthday is a reference to this, being the month and year when the packages containing this skin were first beginning to be shipped out to buyers. ( all art used for this site is official art from identity v, and source links will be provided. )
- - as a qilin, xuanyao posesses the ability to change his form, though he prefers not to do it outside of a few specific circumstances. primarily for more discreet exchanges of information, or if there is a need for disguise. he will also alter his form when his gender identity aligns more femininely, though this usually isn't much more than altering a few details of his appearance to fit more into his personal view of feminine, and not changing his entire appearance to fit a disguise.
- - lore-wise, xuanyao follows a few different paths. he follows permanence as a member of a long life species, while the world he lives on and operates from now, mene, is one that follows the paths of erudition and remembrance, which is also followed by the agency that he is a part of.
Backstory.
Specific details regarding XuanYao's origins and life on his homeworld are few and far between, a result of his preference for personal privacy.
At some point, he moved to the planet Mene, a former moon colony for a planet that no longer existed and had become a thriving civilization of it's own, where information was considered the highest form of currency. It is some time after this that, with a private detective friend of his, the Aletheia Agency is formed, becoming quickly known first through Mene, and then throughout the vast expanse of space, for their ability to reliably find or dispense information. For the sake of his work, XuanYao visits many planets, forming connections and even friendships, including the Xianzhou Alliance, and a specific quintet that would eventually come to be famous. He finds himself particularly close to the blacksmith, YingXing, enough so that he would come to develop romantic feelings for him, but the nature of the relationship between YingXing and the High Elder DanFeng was reason enough for XuanYao to quietly refuse to act on these hidden feelings, valuing his current friendship with them and the others far more than his own romantic desires. He could not always be on the Luofu, however, spending more time off of it than on, though his visits were more common than one would expect. However, it is between these visits that the dissolution of the High Cloud Quintet and all of the tragedy surrounding it took place, and XuanYao was left to believe that YingXing had also perished.
For many, many years after this, he would quietly mourn, not just the loss of the man that he loved but the friends he had lost as well. That friendly smile of his became a bit less so, cold with grief, until the day he once again ran into that man, under a new name. He met Blade, and knew immediately that it was his YingXing, and XuanYao vowed to himself not to let him go this time- unless Blade himself asked for it. Eventually a relationship blossoms between the two, and they get married.
Due to the nature of his work, and general lack of discrimination in regards to his clients, XuanYao had worked several times before with the Stellaron Hunters. Thus, when his husband was recruited by them, he himself had no qualms- and it was, naturally, Blade's decision anyways, and he would support whatever he chose. He was not there for that ordeal, but was supportive nonetheless... under the single condition that his husband would call him at least once a day, because he would miss him dearly in their inevitable long periods of separation. But he trusted that he would be in good hands, among friends- for some of them, he would consider to be his friends, notably Odesia, who would often have tea with him even outside of business dealings.
Thus, he has continued on as he has, popping up in truly strange locations, with all the information one could desire... for a price, of course.
Gallery.
img 1. xuanyao reference photo. src.