Bayleaf is cheerful and always in high spirits. She knows the curative power of a good laugh, and she strives to bring a little bit of sunshine with her wherever she goes. Under the surface, she's actually kind of shy - cracking jokes and goofing off helps her connect with others a bit more easily.
At heart, Bayleaf is an adventurer. They love braving the wilderness and seeing what's out there. However, despite having trained under the reknowned explorers of the Twinkling Clearing, they were never able to make a career of it, so now it's more of a fun hobby than anything.
Instead, Bayleaf applies her skills and good spirits working as an assistant to Pumpkin, a disabled not-cat who needs help with everyday tasks. Bayleaf particularly enjoys helping aer dress up pretty and engage with aer interest in fashion.
One peculiar trait of Bayleaf's is that she doesn't believe in magic. Though she's been living on Not-Earth for years, she's still pretty sure there's a rational explanation for all the weird stuff going on here. When asked about all the mysterious things she's seen out in the woods, she admits she's quite convinced those were just some weird kinds of bug. Pumpkin especially finds this quirk incredibly endearing - ae has felt the cosmos shift and the magic lying dormant within the earth since the moment ae arrived here, but Bayleaf doesn't need to know that. Bayleaf is scared of going to the bathroom alone at night, she doesn't need to know she's been regularly picking fights with ghosts, ghouls and the shadow of a minor god.
At heart, Bayleaf is an adventurer. They love braving the wilderness and seeing what's out there. However, despite having trained under the reknowned explorers of the Twinkling Clearing, they were never able to make a career of it, so now it's more of a fun hobby than anything.
Instead, Bayleaf applies her skills and good spirits working as an assistant to Pumpkin, a disabled not-cat who needs help with everyday tasks. Bayleaf particularly enjoys helping aer dress up pretty and engage with aer interest in fashion.
One peculiar trait of Bayleaf's is that she doesn't believe in magic. Though she's been living on Not-Earth for years, she's still pretty sure there's a rational explanation for all the weird stuff going on here. When asked about all the mysterious things she's seen out in the woods, she admits she's quite convinced those were just some weird kinds of bug. Pumpkin especially finds this quirk incredibly endearing - ae has felt the cosmos shift and the magic lying dormant within the earth since the moment ae arrived here, but Bayleaf doesn't need to know that. Bayleaf is scared of going to the bathroom alone at night, she doesn't need to know she's been regularly picking fights with ghosts, ghouls and the shadow of a minor god.
Background:
Bayleaf migrated to Not-Earth alongside her littermates, parents, piblings, and a few cousins. Eager to strike out on her own and forge her own destiny, she split off from the rest of the group to go explore this new world.
She eventually moved to the Twinkling Clearing, where she took part in the village's extensive training program, dreaming of one day becoming a great adventurer. However, upon completing her training, Bayleaf struggled to find adventuring work elsewhere, and she ended up stuck in the Twinkling Clearing for a long while longer than planned.
One day, they were offered a shot at working together with an adventuring team over in the neighboring village of Little Respite. Bayleaf was eager to prove themself, but to their great sadness and frustration, they were a poor fit for the team, and they were ultimately turned down.
While staying in Little Respite, Bayleaf met Pumpkin, whom they soon learned was looking for an extra pair of paws to help aer get through the day and improve aer quality of life. Suddenly something clicked for Bayleaf, and while before they had never been able to picture themself as anything other than an adventurer, they suddenly saw a brand new potential future ahead of them!
She took on the job as Pumpkin's assistant and started training under aer other assistant, Rosemary. In the beginning, Bayleaf continued to look for adventuring work elsewhere on and off, and Pumpkin continued to search for someone to work for aer longterm, but within no time at all, the little group grew very close. When finally Bayleaf was offered work elsewhere, she knew in her heart she had to turn down the offer. Little Respite had become her home, and there was nowhere else she'd rather be than right beside Pumpkin and Rosemary.
Sometimes Bayleaf feels a little silly having worked so hard trying to become an adventurer when their true calling turned out to be something else entirely, but they try not to get too hung up on it. After all, if they'd never pursued adventuring, they never would have met all the wonderful not-cats over in the Twinkling Clearing! They wouldn't trade the time they spent with their mentors for the world.
In Little Respite, Bayleaf was also reunited with her relative, Melon. The two were close when Bayleaf was a kitten, but during a mishap on the journey to Nestor's portal, their extended family was scattered to the winds, and the two were separated. While Bayleaf had been busy training in the Twinkling Clearing, Melon had migrated to Not-Earth alone, and ultimately wound up in Little Respite right next door by complete coincidence. The two were overjoyed to be back in each other's lives, and they've sworn to stay together from now on. Who knows - maybe in time, they'll be able to find more of their lost relatives!
A good while after Bayleaf moved to Little Respite, Rosemary would become the ringleader of a group of not-cats all plotting to make friends with Beth, a deeply shy and sensitive not-cat who also came from the Twinkling Clearing. Beth was coming to Little Respite in the hopes of learning to open up a bit and socialize. Rosemary and beth quickly became friends, and it was clear for all to see that Rosemary was growing very fond of Beth.
However, while most found their budding friendship endearing, Bayleaf, was overcome with jealousy. She had secretly been pining for Rosemary for a very long time, too shy to make a move, and now she feared she may be too late. Realizing it was now or never, Bayleaf pushed herself to finally confess her feelings.
Rosemary was shocked, but delighted! Though she had never realized it before herself, she knew right away that she reciprocated Bayleaf's feelings. The two started a loving - if very silly - relationship, and became very happy together.
... And Pumpkin breathed a sigh of relief. Apparently ae had long ago realized what was going on with Bayleaf and was secretly rooting for her to work up the courage to make a move. All is well that ends well!
Bayleaf migrated to Not-Earth alongside her littermates, parents, piblings, and a few cousins. Eager to strike out on her own and forge her own destiny, she split off from the rest of the group to go explore this new world.
She eventually moved to the Twinkling Clearing, where she took part in the village's extensive training program, dreaming of one day becoming a great adventurer. However, upon completing her training, Bayleaf struggled to find adventuring work elsewhere, and she ended up stuck in the Twinkling Clearing for a long while longer than planned.
One day, they were offered a shot at working together with an adventuring team over in the neighboring village of Little Respite. Bayleaf was eager to prove themself, but to their great sadness and frustration, they were a poor fit for the team, and they were ultimately turned down.
While staying in Little Respite, Bayleaf met Pumpkin, whom they soon learned was looking for an extra pair of paws to help aer get through the day and improve aer quality of life. Suddenly something clicked for Bayleaf, and while before they had never been able to picture themself as anything other than an adventurer, they suddenly saw a brand new potential future ahead of them!
She took on the job as Pumpkin's assistant and started training under aer other assistant, Rosemary. In the beginning, Bayleaf continued to look for adventuring work elsewhere on and off, and Pumpkin continued to search for someone to work for aer longterm, but within no time at all, the little group grew very close. When finally Bayleaf was offered work elsewhere, she knew in her heart she had to turn down the offer. Little Respite had become her home, and there was nowhere else she'd rather be than right beside Pumpkin and Rosemary.
Sometimes Bayleaf feels a little silly having worked so hard trying to become an adventurer when their true calling turned out to be something else entirely, but they try not to get too hung up on it. After all, if they'd never pursued adventuring, they never would have met all the wonderful not-cats over in the Twinkling Clearing! They wouldn't trade the time they spent with their mentors for the world.
In Little Respite, Bayleaf was also reunited with her relative, Melon. The two were close when Bayleaf was a kitten, but during a mishap on the journey to Nestor's portal, their extended family was scattered to the winds, and the two were separated. While Bayleaf had been busy training in the Twinkling Clearing, Melon had migrated to Not-Earth alone, and ultimately wound up in Little Respite right next door by complete coincidence. The two were overjoyed to be back in each other's lives, and they've sworn to stay together from now on. Who knows - maybe in time, they'll be able to find more of their lost relatives!
A good while after Bayleaf moved to Little Respite, Rosemary would become the ringleader of a group of not-cats all plotting to make friends with Beth, a deeply shy and sensitive not-cat who also came from the Twinkling Clearing. Beth was coming to Little Respite in the hopes of learning to open up a bit and socialize. Rosemary and beth quickly became friends, and it was clear for all to see that Rosemary was growing very fond of Beth.
However, while most found their budding friendship endearing, Bayleaf, was overcome with jealousy. She had secretly been pining for Rosemary for a very long time, too shy to make a move, and now she feared she may be too late. Realizing it was now or never, Bayleaf pushed herself to finally confess her feelings.
Rosemary was shocked, but delighted! Though she had never realized it before herself, she knew right away that she reciprocated Bayleaf's feelings. The two started a loving - if very silly - relationship, and became very happy together.
... And Pumpkin breathed a sigh of relief. Apparently ae had long ago realized what was going on with Bayleaf and was secretly rooting for her to work up the courage to make a move. All is well that ends well!
Social circle: [The Book Club] [Construction Squad] [The Adventurer's Guild]
- Pumpkin: The not-cat Bayleaf is charged with assisting. Bayleaf helps aer out with chores as much as ae needs, but she specializes in helping Pumpkin engage with aer hobbies and interests.
- Rosemary: Pumpkin's other assistant and Bayleaf's coworker-turned-partner. Rosemary often nags Bayleaf for being too silly and lacking discipline, while Bayleaf picks on Rosemary for being a stick-in-the-mud. However, they are actually very close and it is all in good fun.
- Melon: Bayleaf's second cousin (or was it third?). Though they are different as night and day, they enjoy each other's company a great deal and are very loyal to one another. Bayleaf is one of the only not-cats who really understand Melon, but she is determined to protect their privacy, so she won't explain to the others what Melon's deal is.
- Sandgrain: Bayleaf's in-law through Melon. Though Sandgrain finds Bayleaf's extrovertedness a little intimidating, Bayleaf thinks Sandgrain is an absolute sweetheart and often asks to hang out. Seeing the way Bayleaf is scared of lots of things and yet faces life head-on without any hesitation has helped Sandgrain in its journey toward accepting its own problems, while also daring to live its life to the fullest!
- Cloudcover: Bayleaf's best friend. They both enjoy building things, and Bayleaf inspires Cloudcover to build stuff just for fun sometimes, and not always to help others out. They tell each other everything and are closely involved in each other's lives.
- The Bayleaf-Melon clan: A large family group, which both Bayleaf and Melon descend from. They notably all seem to have chocolate- and/or brown-colored fur, mid-level white, common patterns like broken or mackerel, and larger-than-life personalities. On their journey toward Nestor's portal, an accident separated several branches of the family tree, and now they're trying to locate and reunite with as many as possible. Bayleaf has remained in close contact with her littermates, parents, piblings and most of her cousins, all of whom live in Gardenhome City. She often writes home to tell them all about her life in Little Respite. Even though Melon is more distantly related to them and a bit nervous about overstepping, Bayleaf urges them to write to the others too.
- Cantaloupe, Gourd, Peach and Moldspore: Bayleaf's not-niblings and their not-littermate. She acts somewhat more like a fun older sister toward them than like an adult family member. The kids think she's very silly, but tons of fun.
Notes:
- Traded for from MyopicDinobird in summer, year 9, to be a fourth member of my main adventuring party, but she unfortunately turned out to be a poor match.
- Ultimately kept her because no one else had wanted to take her off MyopicDinobird's hands and I felt bad for the poor kitty.
- Quite attached to her forest's eye pendant, as it reminds her of her adventuring days.
- Made her relatives with Melon because they look so similar and had fun, clashing personalities.
- Became partners with Rosemary through a scenario where they had a cozy nap together in some blankets in summer, year 9.
- Monogamous.
- Favored (side-)job: builder (primarily Pumpkin's aid).
- [C][NS][SL][BBFD3][YYTS][YN4L][??][BL]
Plans:
- Make her adoptive/found-family with Melon and their kids, and friends with Sandgrain.
