(ESO FanFic: House of Dubois – Intro)

House Motto: Strength & Prosperity
House Colors: Black, Blue & Silver

Although their bloodline stretches back to the first emergence of the Bretons, House Dubois was only established as its own distinct noble family name within the last few centuries. Rumor has it a poor but brave Dubois warrior did a very particular favor for a desperate queen, & was raised to the rank of Earl in reward. The family is rather secretive about exactly what kind of assistance their ancestor bestowed on their royal benefactor to receive such a boon, which has led to much wild speculation & theories, none of which have ever been confirmed. However, it is known that it very oddly had something to do with a crab apple tree, and one is planted at every property the family owns.

House Dubois started off humbly, but is now known as one of the most prosperous of the Breton noble houses in High Rock. The family’s wealth is largely based on shrewd business dealings and a thriving trading business that imports & exports goods all over Tamriel. They own an ample estate in Daggerfall, as well as a handful of other properties scattered throughout many territories, including personal homes, farms, rental properties, and trading outposts. The headquarters of the Dubois Trading Syndicate is currently located in the port city of Stros M’Kai, where they also house a small fleet of trader ships.

The family has spent much of their time over the past twenty years traveling all over Tamriel & living in various territories as they expanded their trading routes. Thus, they have been quite removed from the politics & personal lives of the Breton nobles in High Rock. However, they have now decided to settle down on a more permanent basis, especially as Earl Lazare finds it increasingly painful & difficult to travel.

Due to their trade routes across Tamriel, and their many connections in almost every territory, House Dubois often finds itself transporting more than just simple goods for sale. They have also been known — in certain quiet circles — to provide transport for persons and objects of great delicacy or value, as well as provide conduits for the careful transfer of dangerous information.

In re-establishing their home base in High Rock after several decades traveling & living in various places, Lazare & Elona hope putting down more stable roots may encourage their children to find their own mates & perhaps even provide them with some much desired grandchildren. While their children have recently established their own households outside of High Rock, they consider their parent’s estate there to be their home base and all visit extremely frequently.

The current living members of House Dubois have blood ties to several other Breton noble houses in High Rock, including House Tamrith & House Dorell, among others.

Partial List of Family Properties:
Dubois Estate – Daggerfall Overlook, Daggerfall
Hawke Manor – Strident Springs Estate, Reaper’s March
Training Outpost – Dawnshadow, Reaper’s March
Dubois Trading Syndicate – Hunding’s Palatial Hall, Stros M’Kai
Dubois House Farm – Moonmirth House & Farm, Khenarthi’s Roost
Permanent Rooms – Sister of the Sands, Sentinel, The Rosy Lion, Daggerfall

House Members

Earl Lazare Dubois (Patriarch)
Age: 46 – Race: Breton – Class: Former Templar
Gender: Male – Sexuality: Heterosexual
Primary Residence: Dubois Estate, Daggerfall, High Rock

Background: Earl Lazare was the eldest child and heir of his parents, who died in a carriage accident when he was 37. His father was the only Dubois child of his generation. His mother was a minor nobile from House Dorell. His only surviving close relatives, besides his children, are his brother Thomase and his two offspring. He was married at the age of 22 to Lady Elona Tamrith when she was 18. Before becoming the patriarch of the family, Lazare was a Templar Blademaster of Zenithar, the patron Divine of House Dubois. He retired from his duties as a templar at 35 after sustaining severe wounds that even now cause him great pain & difficulty in mobility.

Description: Lazare is classically handsome in that noble warrior kind of way, with a strong jawline, near black hair, and piercing gray eyes. However, he is also extensively scarred, although his face is mostly spared, due to his battle history & the extreme injuries he suffered that forced him to retire from being an active Templar of Zenithar.

Personality: Lazare keeps a serious facade, and fights depression & anxiety stemming from his chronic pain & disability. However, underneath he has a wicked sense of humor & a kind, generous heart. He has not picked up a weapon since he was forced to retire as a templar, but has written numerous books & training manuals on the art of battle, as well as essays and guides on the histories and cultures of various locations the family has lived. He rules over his household and his dependents with intelligence, grace, kindness, and a fierce protective nature.

Countess Elona Dubois née Tamrith (Matriarch/Spymaster)
Age: 42 – Race: Breton – Class: Sorcerer
Gender: Female – Sexuality: Bisexual but monogamous to her husband Primary Residence: Dubois Estate, Daggerfall, High Rock

Background: Countess Elona was a minor nobel of House Tamrith in Rivenspire before her marriage, and a cousin of Lady Aurine Tamrith. Before her marriage, Elona made a name for herself as a championship archer & huntress. She also received extensive training in the art of intrigue as a member of her family’s spy network.

Now the head of House Dubois’ spy network, Elona is also a secret member of the Thieves Guild, & a highly placed associate with the Ring of Daggers — which is known only to her husband & two daughters. She can’t, unfortunately, trust her son’s glib tongue with such dangerous information. Elona’s magical gifts lie mostly in the arts of concealment & illusion, although she can summon powerful storm magics if she is put under severe duress – but they are too strong for her and endanger her life.

Her marriage to Earl Lazare Dubois was arranged to strengthen the alliances & finances of House Tamrith & House Dubois. Although it was a political match, Elona & Lazare fell madly in love on their wedding night & maintain a passionate & unbreakable relationship.

Description: Elona is unquestioningly beautiful, although her deep, hazel brown eyes can sometimes seem sad. Her rich, silky brown hair falls just past her shoulders when loose, although she generally keeps it up out of her way. Her pale, near flawless skin does not reflect at all how much time she spends outside with her hawks & horses, riding & hunting.

Personality: Elona portrays herself as a somewhat fragile beauty to those outside of her immediate family. However, in truth she is deceptively strong, shrewd & highly intelligent, with a deep love of strategy, business management, falconry, and weapons work. She deeply loves all of her children, and would defend them all to her last breath – even her adopted Bosmer daughter, Rill. Although she tends to prefer to observe rather than participate in social situations, she is a gracious hostess and adept at putting people at ease with her gentle words and subtle cleverness. Her greatest sadness in life is knowing her husband suffers daily, and there is nothing she has been able to do to change that.

Viscount Tristane Dubois (Heir to House Dubois)
Age: 24 – Race: Breton – Class: Dragonknight
Gender: Male – Sexuality: Heterosexual
Primary Residence: Hawke Manor, Reaper’s March

Background: So far, Tristane has led a rather charmed life. As the heir apparent of a prosperous & wealthy house, Tristane wants for nothing. Even so, he isn’t lazy, and doesn’t just rely on the family name to get by. He was gifted with a strong dose of war magic, and spent much of his young life training in the ancient Akaviri martial arts tradition of battle-spirit. He never ceases learning as much as he can, and has an especially close relationship with his father due to the bond of their fighting hearts.

Despite being charmingly dashing, and irresistibly handsome, Tristane is not a ladies man. Although he has had his dalliances, he hopes someday to find a love like his parents have. They’ve vowed to let him marry for love, despite being the House heir, but he is feeling the increasing pressure to wed soon. Although he is birth twins with his sibling Lirielle, who is only a few minutes younger than he, Tristane is actually much closer with his adopted Bosmer sister, Amarie.

Description: Tristane is roguishly handsome, with dark brown hair just brushing his shoulders, but usually tied back out of his face. His gray-green eyes always hold the hint of a smile in them, even when he’s in the midst of a fight. His face is softer than his father’s, taking more after his mother in some ways, but he has his father’s generous, sensual mouth.

Personality: Although Tristane is serious about battle, he is anything but in regard to just about everything else. He inherited his father’s sense of humor, and his mother’s quick wit. Because of his frequent late night outings & love of hosting days long parties, Tristane recently purchased his own estate to spare his parents from his constant disturbances.

Laird Lirielle Dubois (Head of Dubois Trading Syndicate/Apprentice Spymaster)
Age: 24 – Race: Breton – Class: Nightblade
Gender: Non-Binary – Sexuality: Asexual
Primary Residence: Dubois Trading Syndicate Headquarters, Port Hunding, Stros M’Kai

Background: A prodigy in math & logistics, Lir took over as the head of the Dubois Trading Syndicate when she was only 25. For them, it is all about the challenge of the trading game, & the care of the people under their domain. Lir has little interest in the trappings of wealth & nobility, even though she is the guardian of both for House Dubois. They prefer not to be called Lord or Lady. Instead, they have taken on the more obscure title of Laird. They currently reside in a private apartment at the Dubois Trading Syndicate Headquarters in Port Hunding, Stros M’Kai, but visits and stays with their parents in Daggerfall quite frequently.

Lir is apprentice to their mother as the Dubois family Spymaster, as well as the House’s head of trade. The two are intricately intertwined as Lir has their ‘Ears’ integrated into the merchant business all over the continent. While passing along trade goods, the Ears also pass along information, and special items needing discrete transport. Lir’s magic is much like their mother’s gifts, which makes them far more suited for the role than either of their siblings. While Lady Elona relies more on her magic, however, Lir is more skilled in physical stealth, deception, manipulation, and a mastery of daggers and bow.

Description: Lirielle, or Lir as they prefer to be called, is delicate in feature, pale skinned, & lithe like their mother, but tall with strong hands like their father. They keep their near black hair long, but usually tightly braided up or otherwise bound out of the way. Their deep brown eyes reveal little, and Lir’s poker face is legendary. They rarely reveal any emotion on their face, except with close family, where they are much more willing to let their inner selves show. Lir is adept at passing for either a rather androgynous but attractive male or female with ease when the situation demands.

Personality: Quiet and unassuming, Lir is able to fade into the background any time they wish, but can also command the attention of a room full of soldiers if they choose. In general, however, they prefer to remain in the background and let others take the lead while holding the reins in secret. Although they have received marriage offers from men & women of nobility, and several wealthy merchants as well, Lir has no interest in wedding anyone or having children. While they are asexual, they are not averse to romantic or intimate relationships, as long as they understand their boundaries, and had a previous non-sexual, loving relationship with a fellow asexual male Breton merchant.

Lady Amarie Rillisandra “Rill” Dubois – Adopted (Assassin)
Age: 21 – Race: Bosmer – Class: Warden
Gender: Female – Sexuality: Pansexual
Primary Residence: Hawke Manor, Reaper’s March

Background: Amarie, or “Rill” to her family & friends, is a Bosmer foundling officially adopted into House Dubois. She was discovered as an infant, left in a tree, by Countess Elona while the lady was on a hunting trip in the forests of Reaper’s March. Despite an exhaustive search, Elona was never able to find the baby’s family, and so decided to adopt the bright, bubbly infant as her own. She had been unable to have more children after the difficult birth of her twins, so the Bosmer babe seemed like a gift from the Divines.

Rill was given both a Breton & a Bosmer name to honor her heritage, and educated in both Breton & Bosmer culture, magic & weaponry. Rill was gifted with a strong, illusion-based magic and animal magic, which she finds very useful in scouting new trade routes & routing out bandits who dare to attack Dubois caravans or ships. While most Bosmer are far more comfortable in the forest than the city, Rill is equally at home in both the crowds of urban areas and the solitary peace of the deep woods.

Being a Bosmer in a noble Breton house has not always been easy. Rill has undergone her fair share of bullying & even cruelty. However, her family has always had her back, and so she has developed a strong and confident persona despite her ill treatment at the hands of others. As a way to ingratiate herself to others, Rill became quite skilled at playing a variety of instruments and has a lovely singing voice. She also uses these skills to masquerade as a wandering minstrel on occasion in order to collect information & observe persons of interest. Well, more than observe sometimes. Rill also serves as the family’s assassin – every noble house has one – and is a member of the Dark Brotherhood as well, although this is not something she speaks of with family or friends.

Description: Amarie, or Rill as she prefers to be called, is pretty for a Bosmer, although no one would call her striking. When dressed up in formal attire for family or social functions, she could almost be considered lovely, except for how many grimaces that pass across her face at being forced into uncomfortable dresses & pinching shoes. Rill’s most distinctive feature is her vibrant red-orange hair, which she tends to play with in a mix of Bosmer & Breton styles. Her light blue eyes are mischievous, and stand out against her slightly freckled skin. Rill’s parentage is unknown, but it is notable that she looks, especially in her eyes and less angular features, like she has a good bit of human blood mixed strongly in with the wood elf somewhere in her ancestry.

Personality: Rill has a sharp mind & a sharp tongue, but a soft heart for her family, friends, and those in need. Although it pains her not to know her origins, she feels much loved and beloved by her adopted family, especially her older brother Tristane. Although she is considered by most to be a wild child with little thought about the deeper world around her, this is a carefully cultivated act to disguise her true intelligence & constant observation of everyone and everything around her. Due to being raised by a Breton family, Rill does not find follow the Green Pact and honestly finds the whole idea rather tiresome — although she never expresses this out loud to anyone outside the family.

Niara Indoril (House Protector)
Age: 79 – Race: Dunmer – Class: Templar of Mara
Gender: Female – Sexuality: Lesbian
Primary Residence: Dubois Estate, Daggerfall, High Rock

Background: Most would find a Dunmer’s total devotion to a noble Breton house extremely strange, if not perhaps a little mad. Warrior-Mage Niara Indoril, however, owes no one an explanation for her loyalty. The only person she owes is Earl Lazare’s late father, who saved her life after nearly killing her when she attempted to assassinate him for a business rival.

Even though she had tried to murder him, he forgave her, healed her wounds, and nursed her back to heath. He also paid an exorbitant amount of gold both to his homicidal business rival, and her employers at the Dark Brotherhood, to free her from her contract. He never explained why, and he gave her a home & a purpose other than the path of blood she had been pursuing.

Before her encounter with the former patriarch of House Dubois, Niara had been raised to be an assassin and dealer of death by her daedra worshiping parents. They had never viewed her as a child, only as a weapon to be abused and used as they saw fit. After her metaphorical rebirth, Nirai threw Dunmer traditions aside and dedicated herself as a Templar of Mara, the Divine goddess of compassion, security, peace, home, & family. While she helped to train Rill in the arts of assassination, she herself is now dedicated solely to the personal guard and protection of the Dubois family members.

Description: Niara might be considered beautiful, for a Dunmer, if she didn’t look so fiercely intimidating. Her light gray skin is smooth & glows from within, with only a few scars from the very rare times an enemy or a target has gotten through her defenses. None of them lived to get through them twice. Her glowing orange-tinged amber eyes can shift from enticing to frightening depending on her mood. She is tall but graced with eye-catching curves, not that many have ever gotten to appreciate them.

Personality: Niara is a hypnotic presence, but in the same way a cold & deadly snake can be hypnotic and entice you to your death. Her interior, however, no longer matches her exterior. Although she is death incarnate if she is protecting her chosen family, Niara has evolved into a very kind and gentle soul. She is also humble, shy, and so very different in attitude & personality than the usual Dunmer that she has very little association with her own race anymore. In all honesty, she’d rather be wielding a garden trowel than a sword most days – although she could still easily kill you with the trowel.

Dubois Relatives:

Lord Thomase Dubois (NPC) – Brother to Earl Lazare Dubois

Background: As the younger brother of House Dubois, Thomase inherited no land or title when his parents passed. However, he was given the position of lord, liaison & courtier for the House by his brother. This is a role that suits him entirely, as it requires very little physical work, and he receives a generous salary to wine & dine nobles & merchants for the benefit of the House. He is currently stationed at Evermore Castle in the court of Queen Arzhela. Despite being repeatedly rejected, Thomase has an obsession with Lady Astrid Silane (NPC), and is determined to somehow woo her into marriage.

Description: Thomase keeps his brown hair cropped short in a vain effort to hide he is balding. His languid brown eyes are the color of dull leather, and his skin is marked with the leftover dents of a pox from childhood. He isn’t entirely unattractive, as most Dubois men have decent looks, and he is fastidious about his appearance, but he certainly isn’t anyone the ladies are clamoring after. His late wife certainly didn’t, although she did provide him with two children — from the very few times she ever allowed him into her bed, entirely for the purpose of getting with child.

Personality: Although Thomase can schmooze with the best of the courtiers, he finds them tiresome & often just entirely disgusting. He’s a bit of a lush, and spends too much time in brothels, but these bad habits are overlooked due to his effectiveness in negotiating alliances & trade deals.

Lieutenant Dubois (NPC) – Son of Lord Thomase Dubois
Jenna Dubois (NPC) – Estranged daughter of Lord Thomase Dubois
Lady Morrigan Dubois (Crisendorf01) – Distant Cousin
Lord Erathin Dubois (Crisendorf01) – Distant Cousin (family does not associate with him)