The Willowbleu family, in Crathe, was known for their proud yet stern leaders. What once began as a house of agricultural study, a modest farmer's dream, grew into a prosperous and noble household over the decades that passed. The title of Duchess had long been inherited by the first woman of the Willowbleu ancestral line, and since then, it had always been passed down through a system of matriarchy, the surname always assumed by the husband marrying into the family.

Cordelia was the only child between her mother, Plumeria, and her Father, Daxton. Both of her parents were avid researchers and educators in Crathe, respectively—though her father had once been part of the military forces that aided in its protection from outside forces and from Taoiseach's cruelty. Following the news of his wife's pregnancy, Daxton had retired thereafter to help raise Cordelia. Plumeria had never been of frail health, but because of the Willowbleu's status, it helped to have another guard and pair of eyes to ensure no one looking to seize control of the household was successful in their treachery.

Cordelia grew up deeply connected to nature, not only on account of her family's agricultural background, but also due to Crathe's close proximity to Xester. Nature was quite beautiful to her, and it wasn't rare that Mother or Father had to locate where their young daughter had pranced off to for the day, leading her back home by the hand. What Cordelia did in nature wasn't entirely play, however; the fledgling fawn had a particular attunement for magic. Magics under the Roaring Tempest came naturally to her, yes, but where Cordelia’s affinity fell most was toward the drifting spirits of the land--sometimes restless ones, sometimes playful. Sometimes dangerous. Amid her control over the environment's vines, much of Cordelia's social interactions also came from her relationships with lesser elementals and spirits. Of all her magic and study, she took interest most in the spiritual and its connection to the world around her.

Fancies of being an environmentalist and her interests in the Spiritual Realm all took a backseat, however, the moment her mother fell ill suddenly.

Perhaps matters would have been simpler had her mother been claimed by the Midnight's Bane of Themba. Yet life was never that simple; in the subterfuge that often plagued houses of nobility and disgruntled third parties, assassination attempts would always complicate matters. A slow-acting poison had claimed her mother, one that had slipped through undetected. It did not instantly kill her, but overtime, it had made her mother weaker and weaker, more of a shell of a woman than the proud Plumeria most in the household remembered. Some suspected it was even members of the Willowbleu's estranged family…

Plumeria's condition was not a death sentence yet, but she also could not assume her duties anymore when fits from her poisoning kept her bedridden and, at times, incoherent. Tradition in the family mandated that only Willowbleu blood relatives could inherit the title of Duke or Duchess. Daxton could help from a limited position as a parent, but management of the house and affairs would fall solely on Cordelia so long as her mother was debilitated by her condition.

Maintaining the legacy was all that mattered to Cordelia—all that could possibly matter to her. So, at just shy of seventeen years old, Cordelia became Duchess, Lady of the Willowbleu house. Gone was the fawn of her youth, replaced instead by the commanding presence she often sought in Plumeria.

While her mother stuck to the ways of the old, one area Cordelia and her mother differed was in how they handled tradition. True, there were some traditions Cordelia could not change, but she could alter how she spoke with other houses and how she wished to enfold her community. Connections, Cordelia found, were one of her strong suits, part of what she had loved to do with her own spiritual magic; to ally herself with other influential families (not limited solely by their wealth). Close, longstanding confidants often found this method of hers dangerous, entrusting her affairs to persons she had no broader knowledge of.

Though Cordelia was by no means foolish like her older associates often accused. She instead researched every merchant, family, and house she connected with. And she also took the time to properly cover her assets. Hiring a helping hand, both to protect and to help around the house, became of utmost priority. While her magic could certainly keep her protected well enough, the young lady Cordelia had hired—Cerise—was specifically assigned to watch over Plumeria for the time she remained alive.

As time passed, her mother eventually succumbed to her condition, leaving no lingering question to Cordelia's authority over the household.

Much of Cordie's life's work went into assisting with Crathe's rebuilding and structural integrity. Although she was familiar with the other cities in Themba, she did not always find the time to venture out herself. So, following Plumeria's passing, Cordelia subsumed Cerise into her charge and tasked her often with making those journeys on Cordelia's behalf. Though she may be content with her position, at times, she can't help but yearn to pick up where she'd left off those many years ago...