Adaline

NAME Adaline

ALIAS Ada

OCCUPATION Swamp Guardian

GENDER Cisfemale

PRONOUNS She/Her

ORIENTATION info

SPECIES / RACE Kalon/Humanoid

STATUS info

WORTH N/A

ABOUT

Adaline’s parents abandoned their strange-looking toddler as deep into the Wilds as they dared, afraid of how the touch of nature had begun to distort her. They did not want to anger nature by outright killing her, so they left her in the swamp, hoping nature would reclaim its child. They envisioned her dying naturally and becoming one with the soil and in no way expected her to be found by Baikal, a servant of nature’s magic. Nature has no clear language or voice, but it must have guided Baikal to save Adaline. With some reluctance, Baikal raised Adaline and soon this reluctance turned into true love and care for the child. Adaline soaked up everything her mentor taught her about the swamp and how to use her nature magic (her’s is much less direct than Baikal’s but she has some abilities), but her curiosity did not stop there. Adaline created a relationship with the creatures in the swamp unlike any Baikal had ever thought possible, truly befriending the critters and becoming involved and invested in their personal lives. Baikal was revered as a guardian and guide, but Adaline was seen as a friend. This, of course, made it very hard for Adaline to let her animal friends go when it was time for them to pass, but over time she learned to focus on the time they shared together. Adaline was content living in the swamp with Baikal and the animals for many years as she grew up, but there was always the thought of the outside world in the back of her head. One day she decided to risk it and wandered to the edge of the Wilds. She had done her best to choose an edge that did not border a village, just hoping to see some open grass or maybe a river, but instead stumbled upon a mansion, standing alone and isolated from any other buildings. Adaline crept up to it and managed to glimpse someone in the window, who quickly disappeared when Adaline stepped out from behind a tree. Unable to contain her excitement, Adaline continued to return every few days to try to see this person. The idea of having a friend who could have a conversation besides Baikal, who preferred silence, was tantalizing. Over time, the stranger in the window seemed to overcome their fear and allow Adaline to get closer. The two of them would just spend time looking at each other through the closed window. Adaline started bringing her new friend flowers and little gifts she made from fun feathers and sticks she found and was delighted when the woman in the window finally cracked the window open to look at them. Adaline soon learned that the window lady’s name was Imelda and she was not allowed to leave the house. Adaline did not fully understand Imelda’s situation, but vowed to make her days brighter and more enjoyable in any way she could. Adaline brought Imelda stories of the swamp and the squabbles between various animals, updates on newborn critters, and Baikal’s latest annoyed sigh. Imelda began to teach Adaline how to read and gave her some pencils and paper, sparking a love of drawing for Adaline, who brought slightly muddy drawings of Imelda and herself or plants or anything she thought of to share. The two of them became great friends, but Adaline could always tell there was a deep sadness within Imelda. After quite a while of knowing each other, Imelda made a strange request. There was a town a little ways away from the mansion and Imelda asked Adaline if she could deliver a letter to Imelda’s mother. Imelda gave Adaline extensive details on how to find the house and what to look for and offered to lend her a dress, as Adaline’s normal clothing… well, she had been wearing the same tunic for most of her life. Adaline was extremely nervous about entering the town, both because of her appearance and lack of any knowledge about being outside of the swamp, but the excitement in Imelda’s eyes gave her courage. The next day she washed in a stream (incredibly surprised to see how bright white she was), had Imelda help brush and braid her wild hair, and covered herself with a cloak, hoping to hide any visual traces of nature’s touch. With that, Adaline set off. Wandering through the town was the most exhilarating day of Adaline’s life: the hustle and bustle through the streets, the wide array of different people, vendors hawking goods, it was incredible. It took Adaline a while to find Imelda’s mother’s house and Adaline certainly took many detours to explore, but she finally made it. Adaline’s only intention was to knock on the door, tell the mother who the letter was from, and leave, but Imelda’s mother, after reading the letter and weeping with joy, invited her in. Adaline was terrified of being fully seen, but did not know how to properly say no, and was dragged inside. Imelda’s mother surprised Adaline by pulling off her cloak with no warning, but after a minute of shock, she was surprisingly accepting. That night, Adaline ate dinner with Imelda’s family, who accepted her appearance to varying degrees, telling them all about Imelda and how wonderful Adaline thought she was, making sure to leave out any sad details. The family was overjoyed to know Imelda was relatively safe and had a friend, and gave her a letter to bring back to Imelda. Adaline returned home late into the night, left the letter on the windowsill with Imelda’s clothing, and walked back into the swamp, where Baikal was angrily waiting for her. Adaline managed to make up a believable excuse and escaped suspicion, but knew she needed to be more careful. Adaline continued to deliver letters between Imelda and her family, even bringing her friend baked goods from her mother every so often. She got to know the family and became comfortable with them, struggling sometimes with wishing she could live a normal life with a family. But the best thing about the situation was seeing the joy the letters brought Imelda. There was always some sorrow that she couldn’t be there herself, but Imelda adored the connection. Imelda’s mother even made Adaline aware of another nature touched child who was living in an alleyway on the edge of town, who Adaline managed to rescue, but you’ll need to read Eden’s story to learn about that. Adaline kept this up for years until Imelda passed away, drained by the abuse she suffered from the others in the mansion and Adaline had only caught glimpses of. Delivering that information to the family was the hardest thing Adaline had ever done. Adaline dearly missed her friend and wept for days. However, a visit on a whim several years later led her to discover that Imelda had left behind two children, who were now toddlers. Adaline felt it was her job to provide friendship to Imelda’s children just as she had to Imelda and did just that when the kids got a little older, telling them all about their mother and helping fill their days with joy. Adaline also met another person over the years, but that’s a story for Graham's character page.

STATS

CHARISMA

CREATIVITY

EMPATHY

HUMOR

INTELLIGENCE

PATIENCE