Katherine Regnard (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
auntiewitch) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
thallowdale2023-07-23 05:28 pm
auntiewitch) wrote in thallowdale2023-07-23 05:28 pm
Entry tags:
NPCs
Katherine Regnard
The witch responsible for the creation of the realm, Kitty Regnard can always be found somewhere or other within it. Some will note an uncanny resemblance to one Xerxes Break and his younger Kevinny selves, and indeed, Katherine is a version of them from another timeline -- she even grew up in a similar situation, born in the early 1800's to a family that had produced knights for generations. Being a girl of a proper and traditional family, however, Kitty wasn't given the opportunity to learn the sword. She was married off instead, with a head full of dreams, an awkward personality, and a bitch of a temper that made it impossible for her to truly settle in as the lady of a household. Feeling more and more trapped by the day and ultimately hit by a trauma she had very little support for, Kitty has turned inward to escape, and those dreams have become Thallowdale.
For the most part, Kitty is well-intentioned. She has a tendency to draw in other souls who are or have been lonely, and maybe hate their homes and lives a bit or a lot, in the hopes of sharing her escape and maybe finding a little understanding. (Although, let's be honest, others she snatches up simply because they interest her and she wants to watch them and see if anything neat happens, thus the multiple male versions of herself running around the place. Boys?? How quaint!) Fascinated by the notions of "growing" and "becoming", it delights her to see what happens when chances are given that wouldn't be otherwise, and she loves to shower impossible gifts upon those she brings in to the realm. However, Kitty is young yet, doesn't always understand the wishes she's attempting to grant very well, and came by her magic by sheer force of will. Because of that, despite her desire to take care of the souls in Thallowdale, it's not at all uncommon that her attempts to fix everyone's everything land just a little to the left and a mess of some sort is made instead.
For the most part, Kitty is well-intentioned. She has a tendency to draw in other souls who are or have been lonely, and maybe hate their homes and lives a bit or a lot, in the hopes of sharing her escape and maybe finding a little understanding. (Although, let's be honest, others she snatches up simply because they interest her and she wants to watch them and see if anything neat happens, thus the multiple male versions of herself running around the place. Boys?? How quaint!) Fascinated by the notions of "growing" and "becoming", it delights her to see what happens when chances are given that wouldn't be otherwise, and she loves to shower impossible gifts upon those she brings in to the realm. However, Kitty is young yet, doesn't always understand the wishes she's attempting to grant very well, and came by her magic by sheer force of will. Because of that, despite her desire to take care of the souls in Thallowdale, it's not at all uncommon that her attempts to fix everyone's everything land just a little to the left and a mess of some sort is made instead.
Balthazar Billingsly
Every great manor house requires staff to keep it running. Given that Kitty is throughly sick of the way her title causes a sense of distance between herself and the servants at home, she keeps only one at Thallowdale — her treasured butler.
Never mind that he is a cat, and stands a little under three feet high.
As to how he manages to serve as the butler and also, apparently, everything else, never mind that either. If you need assistance with something within the house badly enough, sooner or later — on his own time — Balthazar will appear, regarding you with the amused silence cats so often wear. He never speaks, but if it suits him, he'll slink off and disappear, and later you will find your problem conveniently solved in some improbable fashion.
Don't worry about it. He is very well dressed and walks around on his hind feet, so he's clearly magic.
Never mind that he is a cat, and stands a little under three feet high.
As to how he manages to serve as the butler and also, apparently, everything else, never mind that either. If you need assistance with something within the house badly enough, sooner or later — on his own time — Balthazar will appear, regarding you with the amused silence cats so often wear. He never speaks, but if it suits him, he'll slink off and disappear, and later you will find your problem conveniently solved in some improbable fashion.
Don't worry about it. He is very well dressed and walks around on his hind feet, so he's clearly magic.
Lenore
The Keeper of the Bells, Lenore watches over the local graveyard, the bells of those she's recovered from their coffins ringing gently at her belt. Don't let her ghostly complexion and the sharp horrific teeth in her grin, easily capable of tearing through flesh, fool you. Lenore is kind, the feel of her presence calm...almost matronly. While you are in the graveyard, particularly if you're a lost soul who has just arrived, Lenore will treat you as though you are one of her own children.
Death and all associated with it is a frightening thing, and the feelings of those left behind are almost worse for being so inescapable. Lenore stands as reassurance that regardless of the state the living are left in, someone with love underneath all the threat is watching over those who are gone.
Given her circumstances, she doesn't get very many visitors. She'd love it if there were those brave enough to drop by for graveyard tea, from time to time. Looking at you, Reaps.
Death and all associated with it is a frightening thing, and the feelings of those left behind are almost worse for being so inescapable. Lenore stands as reassurance that regardless of the state the living are left in, someone with love underneath all the threat is watching over those who are gone.
Given her circumstances, she doesn't get very many visitors. She'd love it if there were those brave enough to drop by for graveyard tea, from time to time. Looking at you, Reaps.
Bronwyn
Often, when a witch creates a dimension, those the witch cares for in her real life manifest in that new dimension in other forms. Bronwyn, a crow who can shift between the forms of man and bird, is one such individual. In his other life, Bronwyn really is just a bird, a crow who fell into Kitty's garden with a broken wing after being mobbed by a nasty bunch of starlings. She and the gardener nursed the crow back to health and he remains a frequent visitor, often bringing Kitty little treasures -- buttons and broken earrings and other shiny bits of trash -- in exchange for snacks and scritches. Kitty loves the bird as her dear friend, and thinks he is one of the best listeners she knows.
To that end, Bronwyn can often be seen perched on Kitty's shoulder as a bird as she roams about. When he isn't keeping her company, he passes his days doing the things birds do, exploring and playing and stealing bits of other people's lunches. But he has a special power of his own. He can change the physical forms of others, too...for a price. Want an animal form of your own? Just wings? Different eye color, different face, perhaps a body that better matches your gender? Seek out Bronwyn in his home at the edges of the Stormlands, and he'll give you the ritual necessary to make it happen.
Bring snacks.
To that end, Bronwyn can often be seen perched on Kitty's shoulder as a bird as she roams about. When he isn't keeping her company, he passes his days doing the things birds do, exploring and playing and stealing bits of other people's lunches. But he has a special power of his own. He can change the physical forms of others, too...for a price. Want an animal form of your own? Just wings? Different eye color, different face, perhaps a body that better matches your gender? Seek out Bronwyn in his home at the edges of the Stormlands, and he'll give you the ritual necessary to make it happen.
Bring snacks.
The Woodsman
The guardian of the Tyrantslayer Wood — indeed, the Tyrantslayer himself, whose burning will is all that keeps the lingering spirit of the wicked dragon beneath the forest in check. There are many frightening things in the forest and the Woodsman is certainly one of them. Despite being a good seven feet high without the antlers and a grand, booming voice, he can move with such stealth as to seem almost invisible until he's right on top of you, and if he decides you're an enemy you probably won't even have time to register the giant spear aimed at your heart.
Fortunately, things rarely go that direction. And, left to his own devices, the Woodsman is a man who believes in nothing more than he believes in love. The soul he reflects is that if the gardener in Kitty's estate, you see. Easily her dearest human friend and the only one of the staff who treats her like a person, he's the veteran of a war he doesn't like to tell her about. Instead, he lets the fine lady of the house play in the dirt at his side, and tells her that love is the key to helping things grow.
Fortunately, things rarely go that direction. And, left to his own devices, the Woodsman is a man who believes in nothing more than he believes in love. The soul he reflects is that if the gardener in Kitty's estate, you see. Easily her dearest human friend and the only one of the staff who treats her like a person, he's the veteran of a war he doesn't like to tell her about. Instead, he lets the fine lady of the house play in the dirt at his side, and tells her that love is the key to helping things grow.
The Captain
When Kitty was younger, not yet married and still daring to believe her life could be exciting, she was acquainted briefly with a bright and shiny young man who had enlisted in the navy. He told her with great excitement about how enormous the world was and how he hoped to explore every part of it, planting the idea of wonders that had never even occurred to her in her head. If she were braver, she thought, she might like very much to run away with him — not for the sake of romance, but so that she could experience how grand the world is with someone so enthusiastic about it at her side. Perhaps she might even dress as a boy. She'd be taken seriously then, surely.
Word came some while later that the young man's ship had been lost at sea. What a waste, Kitty thought, as her cold, practical marriage was arranged and doors between herself and the world began to close. What a waste.
He lives on in Kitty's memory now as a symbol of lost chances, and so, when the night sky over Thallowdale is bright, a beautiful sailing ship can sometimes be seen making its way across the stars. If you catch sight of that ship and wish hard enough, in your dreams that night you can visit another world entirely — someone else's world, or perhaps some other dimensional nexus that gathers up souls. Kitty always looks pleased when she sees the ship. It’s the best tribute she can think of to a man who only wanted to love the unknown.
Word came some while later that the young man's ship had been lost at sea. What a waste, Kitty thought, as her cold, practical marriage was arranged and doors between herself and the world began to close. What a waste.
He lives on in Kitty's memory now as a symbol of lost chances, and so, when the night sky over Thallowdale is bright, a beautiful sailing ship can sometimes be seen making its way across the stars. If you catch sight of that ship and wish hard enough, in your dreams that night you can visit another world entirely — someone else's world, or perhaps some other dimensional nexus that gathers up souls. Kitty always looks pleased when she sees the ship. It’s the best tribute she can think of to a man who only wanted to love the unknown.
The Prince
The castle in the center of the Stormlands is, indeed, a proper castle. In it one may find the Prince of Vampires and his Court, assuming His Highness is not off doing something dashing and ill-advised. He is a master swordsman with a troubled background. You see, he is really only half vampire and was raised among humans. His mother was super powerful, though. When he found out about the darker side of his heritage he fought tooth and blade to gain real standing among his people, and now keeps careful watch over the wicked creatures of the Stormlands. Under his rule, a shaky truce stands between that darkness and the rest of Thallowdale. He has to squash a rebellion from time to time, which will be much easier once he finds a feisty young lady who isn’t afraid to step on him and finally gains a queen. He hasn’t met her yet, though, so he broods a lot.
He’s Kitty’s vampire OC in a book she’s writing, yes. We are all self-indulgent here.
He’s Kitty’s vampire OC in a book she’s writing, yes. We are all self-indulgent here.