FFXIV Swap Discord

Jess Varlineau is a 29-year-old Highlander woman from Gyr Abania. She is the long-time partner and wife of the Warrior of Light, Varrus Varlineau, and the second Azure Dragoon of Ishgard. She is a wielder of the Echo and holds the Blessing of Light, and is a capable combatant. She is quick-tempered and known for taking direct approaches to problems, and is fiercely protective and loyal to the Warrior of Light.

Jess was born to a Highlander couple in the fringes of Gyr Abania during the Ala Mhigan civil war against Mad King Theodoric. Her mother, Gisela, raised her on her own for her first years, as her father, Roric, was fighting in the Ala Mhigan resistance alongside his childhood friend, Conrad Kemp. Her father retired from the military in the brief quiet after the civil war concluded, intent to spend his days on his homestead with his wife and daughter, only to be convinced by Conrad to rejoin the military once more when the Garlean Empire began their march into Ala Mhigo. Though Roric refused to join the frontlines, he and Gisela agreed to help ferry refugees across the border into the Black Shroud.

Jess was often left in the care of neighbors and relatives while her parents were away, but, fearing the Empire’s increased conquest, her parents opted to bring her to the Black Shroud as the fighting grew closer to the border. It was during the night they fled that Jess first heard the call of Hydaelyn, spurned on by the sight of fire raining through the war-torn sky. Her parents left her in the care of the Ala Mhigans they’d escorted to Quarrymill, intending to return to Gyr Abania and finish evacuating their village before ultimately joining her and starting life anew in Eorzea. However, some time before they were able to return, they were caught by the Imperials and slaughtered, leaving Jess alone in Quarrymill.

The refugees, suspecting what had happened, took the four-year-old Jess into their care - primarily Meffrid, a teenage man who felt guilty for having left his homeland. Over the years, he taught her most of her basic life skills, including reading, writing and rudimentary math, among other things.

As she grew, Jess was plagued by strange visions and dreams, what she would come to know as the Echo far later. Fearing for her safety, Meffrid approached the conjurers of Gridania, who sent a Hearer to examine the girl, suspecting she may have been a Padjal hearing the voices of the Elementals. They ultimately rejected the notion, and rejected taking her in, proclaiming that her troubles were merely a sign that the Elementals wished for the Ala Mhigans to leave the forest.

Jess often preferred to spend time alone as a child, stealing away into the forest with whatever books she could find. She was bullied by the local Twelveswood children, as an outsider, and she was mostly shunned by the few refugee children who remained in the settlement, the others resenting her for the ‘preferential’ treatment she’d been given by the Hearers and the other Gridanians. She enjoyed reading tomes of heroes and grand adventures, as well as pretending to be one such hero on her exploits through the wood.

When she was a teen, Meffrid announced his intent to leave the Twelveswood, leaving Jess to either join him or make a life of her own in the Black Shroud. Buscarron stepped forward, offering the girl a home at his inn to the west of Quarrymill in exchange for her help running the tavern.

Jess remained at Buscarron’s Druthers for a decade, until she chanced to meet a dragoon-turned-Serpent Commander, Varrus Varlineau, when she was 24. Varrus caught her attempting to learn to fight with a stick, and offered to teach her instead. During their subsequent meetings when he patronized the tavern, he gifted her a lance and encouraged her to move to Gridania and join the Lancer’s Guild. It was during one such training session that Jess discovered that Varrus, too, suffered from the same inexplicable visions as she, though he didn’t have an explanation for them any better than she did.

Though she was hesitant to leave everything she’d ever known behind, Jess, with encouragement from Buscarron, ultimately accepted Varrus’ proposal, allowing him to escort her to Gridania. She knew no one and had nothing to her name, relying on Varrus’ kindness to aid her in joining the Lancer’s Guild and getting herself sorted.

Together, the two uncovered a plot by a mysterious masked man and thwart his attempts at the Guardian Tree, earning Varrus the Elder Seedseer’s favor. They travel to the other city-states on her behalf, where the two part, Varrus claiming he has business in Ul’dah and staying behind.

Jess continues her training with the Lancer’s Guild, ultimately graduating after facing Foulques. After their confrontation, she finds a Crystal of Light on the ground and is granted the same vision of Hydaelyn that Varrus had seen at Lifemend Stump. She finally reunites with Varrus during the Gridanian Remembrance ceremony, where he reveals he’d joined the Scions of the Seventh Dawn. He gifts her an ornate lance before he leaves, identical to his own.

The two work together to achieve diplomacy with the Sylphs of Little Solace and uncover the murders surrounding Haukke Manor, before they’re permanently reunited after the Scions are ambushed in the Waking Sands. Varrus returns to Gridania to seek Jess’ comfort, and she pledges to help him track down Cid’s missing airship.

In Coerthas, Alberic sends Jess and Varrus to find Estinien, Varrus’ cousin, and when they do, the Eye of Nidhogg reaches out to Jess, selecting her as the second Azure Dragoon. While there, Alberic entrusts her with his job stone and a set of ornate dragoon armor befitting her new role.

They meet Haurchefant Greystone during their trials in Coerthas, who takes an instant interest in Jess. He propositions her to join him in his bedchambers, to which Jess frustratedly admits her love for her companion, Varrus, confiding in Haurchefant that she’s too much of a coward to admit it.

Jess is ultimately forced to face Estinien in battle, and defeats him, but before he surrenders, he steps backwards off a cliff, falling to (presumably) his death. She agonizes over the fact that she’s responsible for killing a member of Varrus’ family, but Varrus repeatedly assures her that she only did what she had to do.

Jess insists on accompanying Varrus to slay Garuda, and after, she stays by his side during Operation Archon, infiltrating Castrum Meridianum and the Praetorium, and defeating Gaius van Baelsar, the Ultima Weapon and Lahabrea. As the only one left conscious, she drags both Varrus and Thancred out of the smoking ruin.

She attempts to leave and return to Gridania following the events, feeling as though she doesn’t belong among the Scions, but Varrus convinces her to stay. The two nearly share a kiss before being interrupted by Alphinaud. Though she doesn’t feel like a Scion, she’s given her own room in the Rising Stones. Jess assists Varrus in slaying Good King Moogle Mog XII, Leviathan, Ramuh and Shiva, as well as investigating the Crystal Tower, confronting Midgardsormr and fending off the dragons’ attack on Ishgard.

Jess and Varrus arrive at the Ul’dahn banquet together, only for word to arrive that Varrus was needed by the Crystal Braves. Jess offers to go in his stead so he can make his appearance at the political party. While out, she catches sight of who she thinks is Alphinaud, discovering it’s instead Alisaie, who reveals the banquet was a setup to frame the Scions of assassinating the sultana. Together with Urianger’s aid, the two women secure a means of escape, and Jess rides off with Brennan to rescue Varrus, Alphinaud and Pipin.

The events of Heavensward remain relatively unchanged from canon for Jess and Varrus. The two only grow closer during the trials in Ishgard. Despite this, Haurchefant’s interest in Jess never wavers, something she’s keenly aware of.

Jess and Ysayle become fast friends during their travels together, bonding over similar interests and dreams, while Jess and Estinien repeatedly butt heads, as she still resents him for the agony he put her through the prior year.

In the Vault, Jess and Haurchefant race ahead of the group in an attempt to catch the archbishop before he leaves, and Haurchefant ultimately dies protecting Jess, reaffirming his feelings for her with his dying breath. She’s utterly distraught and feels horribly guilty for his death, crying herself to sleep in Varrus’ arms that night.

After defeating Bismarck, Jess is ambushed by Thordan and Igeyorhm and held hostage by the Ascian’s aetherial chains over the edge of the island. She begs Varrus not to hand over the key, to let her life be forfeit in order to stop Thordan, but Varrus does so anyway - only for Igeyorhm to drop her off the ledge regardless, leaving Varrus to save his friend as their enemies make their escape.

In the Aetherochemical Research Facility, Varrus struggles to contain the Ascians’ souls within the auracite, and Jess, recalling the last time they faced a similar struggle, nearly sacrifices herself to offer him the aether he needs, as Moenbryda did. It’s only at the last second that Varrus begs her to stop and bids she use the Eye instead. After they defeat Thordan, they share a tearful embrace, where they nearly kiss once more - only to be interrupted by Estinien.

Jess grows increasingly aware of Aymeric’s very obvious feelings for Varrus throughout their journeys in Ishgard, which is only made more evident as he asks Varrus to champion Ishgard during the ceremony, but doesn’t ask Jess. She opts to join the Gridanian forces for the tourney, much to Varrus’ dismay. During the tournament, she and Varrus involuntarily team up to take out Raubahn, before finding themselves evenly matched. With lances locked, Jess offers to allow Varrus to win, to bolster Ishgard’s mood.

Hraesvelgr takes a special interest in Jess during her and Varrus’ trial in Sohr Khai, as he faces the two together and recognizes the bond between them as similar to the bond between he and Shiva. He entrusts Jess with his Eye on the Steps of Faith, which allows her to finish off Nidhogg. It’s from that point on that Jess harnesses the power of Hraesvelgr with her powers as the Azure Dragoon, rather than Nidhogg’s.

During their investigation in Little Ala Mhigo, Jess offers to go undercover as a refugee to meet the Griffon, but her plan goes awry as the Griffon recognizes her as a fellow refugee from Quarrymill. Jess is rightly confused, as, to the best of her knowledge, she was born in the Shroud, not in Gyr Abania.

It’s after the fall of the Warriors of Darkness that Jess and Varrus finally admit their feelings for one another and officially begin their relationship, though Jess wishes to keep it secret, fearing the reaction she’d garner as the Warrior of Light’s lover.

During the attack on Rhalgr’s Reach, Jess is mortally wounded by Zenos and nearly loses her life. She spends countless days in the infirmary, where Varrus pledges to abandon the cause for Ala Mhigan independence and even refuses to accompany the others to Doma, until she convinces him to go, and convinces him to allow her to come as well. Their relationship becomes common knowledge during her stay in the infirmary, seeing as Varrus’ behavior left little up to interpretation.

Once they return to Ala Mhigo after liberating Doma, Jess learns the truth of her heritage from Conrad, that her parents were Ala Mhigan resistance fighters and she is, in fact, Ala Mhigan herself. Conrad admits he blames himself for her parents’ deaths, and assumed she was dead, too, until she met him in Rhalgr’s Reach. He promises to tell her more after the assault on Specula Imperatoris, but loses his life before he can.

After they liberate Ala Mhigo, Jess and Varrus take a much needed vacation to the beach.

While battling Elidibus in Zenos’ body, Jess falls unconscious and has her soul called to the First by the Exarch, arriving unexpectedly in the Ocular, completely nude and unfathomably angry. Her anger turns to desperation, however, when she hears of Urianger’s vision of Varrus’ death, and she spends her time pestering the Exarch about summoning Varrus. In the interim, she spends her time aiding the citizens of the Crystarium and wasting away her hours in the Cabinet of Curiosity, earning her the adoration of Moren, the librarian. She spends a lot of time with the Exarch, where he often requests her to regale him with tales of her and Varrus’ exploits.

Jess spends a total of four months in the Crystarium before Varrus arrives, constantly fretting about the possibility that enough time had passed on the Source that he may have already died, or moved on without her. They’re once again inseparable once he arrives.

In order to enter Eulmore, Alphinaud proposes that he disguise as an artist, with Jess and Varrus playing the part of his parents. Though Jess protests, insisting the plan won’t work, it, surprisingly, does, and she plays the part of a loving, doting mother to the mortified teen.

During their trials in Rak’tika, Y’shtola reveals that Jess, too, possesses the Blessing of Light, much to her own surprise (and Y’shtola’s exasperation). Because of this, she begs Varrus and the Exarch to allow her to absorb the corrupted light as well, to ease Varrus’ burden, but both insist Varrus must be the one to take in the aether.

As Varrus continues to absorb more aether, Jess begins to feel the effects of the corruption on her own soul as well, as observed by Y’shtola herself, though none can explain why. It culminates atop Mt. Gulg, where Varrus collapses after defeating Vauthry and begins to turn. Jess manages to stay the transformation and funnel some of the light from his souls to her own, though neither she nor her allies know how she did so. She becomes rather hostile with the others, especially Urianger, and refuses to let anyone else touch the Warrior of Light as she carries him back to the Crystarium - before collapsing of exhaustion herself.

In the weeks following that Varrus remains unconscious in the Pendants, Jess throws herself into combat, barely allowing herself to rest (for she can’t sleep, not without the flashbacks of that moment and the nightmares of what’s to come consuming her) as she assists in bringing down all of the Cardinal Sins, relying solely on alcohol and determination to see her through. After defeating the final Cardinal Sin, Lamitt, she and Jess’ souls rejoin, though Jess wouldn’t know what truly happened until after the events of 5.0.

She returns to the Crystarium to find Varrus attempting to leave by himself to confront Emet-Selch, and, in a tearful confrontation, insists that he bring her with him (and the rest of their companions join as well).

In Amaurot, the two meet Hythlodaeus, who makes cryptic comments neither understands, joking about how they’re “still together”, how their souls are “unmistakable” and how they must “still be infuriating Emet-Selch to this day”. They don’t have much time to dwell on the subject, however, given their troubles.

Varrus once again attempts to persuade Jess to stay behind before they confront Emet-Selch, but Jess refuses, admitting to him that she knows that if he turns and becomes a Lightwarden, she’s the only one who can kill him. Something that terrifies them both.

When they attempt to face Emet-Selch above Amaurott, he catches Jess off-guard and sends her flying back with the rest of the Scions. She awakens during Varrus’ trial, finding him trapped by the Ascian, wrapped in chains, and she quickly leaps to his aid and frees him. After the battle, she finds, somehow, the corrupted Light aether within her soul has vanished alongside Varrus’. The two enjoy a joyous, emotion-filled night back in the Crystarium.

When Varrus leaves to travel back to the Source, Jess somehow finds herself waking in her own body back in the Rising Stones. Neither they nor their allies have any explanation, but she is able to return to the First with him, her body whole - much to G’raha’s relief, as, after she disappeared, he sent all of their allies searching for her in fear that something had befallen her.

Beq Lugg reveals that Jess and Varrus’ souls are linked, two unique souls entwined together, through a magick “beyond mortal means”, though they have little else to offer by way of explanation.

When they meet Hythlodaeus once more in Amaurot, while collecting the mysterious crystals, he gives the final one to Varrus, sharing a story of a man known as Azem who traveled the world alongside his dearest companion, the two never far apart. Later, when they return to the Crystarium and race to the top to confront Elidibus, Jess offers to stay behind with the ailing Exarch and ensure he makes it to the top safely, bidding Varrus go on ahead, much to her own dismay. But their separation doesn’t last, as she soon finds herself whisked away, magickally teleported to Varrus’ side atop the tower, though she has no idea how.

With their allies back on the Source, Krile and Tataru bid Varrus and Jess to seek out Estinien, much to Jess’ disdain. Though they travel alongside him in freeing Tiamat, Jess still distrusts him after all that has happened - something Estinien notices and confronts her on in the Rising Stones sometime later. The two manage to work through their issues, for Varrus’ sake, as they agree they’re practically family now, and come to a truce.

Jess is eager to travel to Sharlayan, somewhere she’s only ever heard about and never thought she’d get to see with her own eyes. The sudden appearance of Hydaelyn, however, leaves her more confused than enthused for the journey ahead.

As Jess, at that point, still lacks a surname, her entry through Sharlayan’s customs is questioned - until Varrus jumps to her aid and explains she’s his wife, the two sharing a last name, which matches the forms the agent has been given, much to her confusion. This ends up being a bit of a running gag through the entirety of Endwalker.

While in Sharlayan, Alisaie and Y’shtola show Jess the myriad of bookstores and book stalls, something her bibliophile heart adores. She ends up finding quite a few unexpected books about her beloved Warrior of Light in the romance section, and sneakily purchases a few - much to Varrus’ horror.

Varrus reveals to Jess that he’s been having mysterious dreams for several months about two Ancients from Amaurot - Ancients that bear striking resemblance to the two of them. He explains that he believes them - Helios and Eos - to be the ancient forms of the two of them, and that Helios goes on to become Azem, though he doesn’t have any explanation for how they could still be together even in their sundered forms.

In Labyrinthos, Jess is particularly taken by the heartblooms, and, when Krile gives one to Varrus after speaking with Hydaelyn, he tucks it into Jess’ hair for safekeeping, where she keeps it throughout Endwalker. (She also nearly kisses a frog in Labyrinthos but would rather no one mentioned it).

Jess is rather angry about having to travel to Garlemald to aid the citizens, instead focusing on taking down the Telophoroi, as she still holds a grudge against all the Garleans have done to her, her family and the star as a whole.

(This section will be updated as I continue writing my fic through Endwalker, but important notes are that both she and Varrus nearly die at the end of Ultima Thule, Jess is the one to finally kill Zenos, and she and Varrus wed after 6.0)

(This will be filled in as I get to DT on my fic. As it stands things happen mostly as canon, though Jess is constantly annoyed at being disrespected and not being allowed to just solve problems herself)

Jess’ only romantic relationship has been with Varrus Varlineau, the Warrior of Light. The two quickly bond upon meeting, and fall in love during the events of A Realm Reborn, though the unfolding chaos keeps them from admitting their feelings. They only enter a romantic relationship after the events of Heavensward, from which point on they are inseparable. Varrus proposes shortly before the flight to Ultima Thule, and the two wed between the events of 6.0 and 6.1.

While Jess is close with all of the Scions, she considers her closest friends to be Thancred and Krile. She views the Twins as younger siblings, and is often fiercely protective over them. She became fast friends with both Moenbryda and Ysayle before their respective deaths.

Though she has only held romantic interest in Varrus, several others showed interest in her: Haurchefant, whose lust turned to love during the time he knew her, ultimately culminating in him giving his life to save her, though he knew her feelings belonged to someone else. Ardbert, who felt a connection to her through the link of their souls, but was a ghost at the time and had bigger problems to deal with than trying to sleep with anyone. And Moren, who bonded with the woman during their hours spent in the Cabinet of Curiosities, though he was too shy and smitten to say anything.

• Jess’ ancient is a woman named Eos, who worked as a secretary in Anamnesis Anyder until she became Azem’s partner and assistant (at Venat’s bidding). She wielded light-based magicks, could transform into a glowing phoenix and created both the dove and the pegasus. After her untimely death, she was brought back from the Lifestream by Emet-Selch, who bonded her soul to Azem’s in order to do so, leaving the two to reincarnate together in every lifetime across every shard.
• Jess’ shards on other reflections include Lamitt on the First and Durante on the Thirteenth.
• Jess has always had an interest in history and exploration. As a child, she often dreamed of going on grand adventures and saving the world.
• Jess’ non-combat hobbies include reading and cooking. She considers herself a very talented chef.
• Jess’ favorite cuisine is seafood.
• Post-Endwalker, Jess and Varrus buy a house in Gridania, where they live during the brief downtime. With the aid of Varrus’ mother, she learns to garden and maintains an extensive flower garden in the backyard.
• Jess’ chocobo is named Helios.
• If Jess didn’t become a Dragoon, she would have instead become a White Mage. She has an innate talent for manipulating white magick, though she doesn’t know it. It’s what allows her to temporarily still the Light within Varrus’ soul on the First.
• Jess’ unique Echo power allows her to perfectly sync her soul with Varrus’, allowing them to perform feats in combat that would otherwise be impossible, and know each others’ movements as though they were their own. It also leaves them perfectly matched, unable to gain the upper hand over one another.
• Due to Hraesvelgr gifting Jess his Eye, her dragoon powers take his magick and form instead of Nidhogg’s. The two maintain a bond, seeing in each other another who would do anything for the one they love.
• Jess’ soul is violet, identical in color to Varrus’.

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Longfic chronicling Jess' life from ARR forward on Archive of Our Own
Gpose and Art Gallery on Tumblr
Writing Excerpts on Tumblr