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Briony
Briony Bayleaf
| Name | Briony |
|---|---|
| Status | Active |
| Occupation | Shepherdess and Tavern Maid |
| Age | Young |
| Race | Man |
|---|---|
| Residence | Bree |
| Kinship |
| Outward Appearance |
A comely, friendly lass of perhaps nineteen or twenty summers to the eye, with a slender frame, a loving smiles and a kindly way about her. Her pale skin is often tanned and freckled from long hours out of doors. Often there can be detected a strong smell of floral soap about, a not-always successful attempt to conceal the faint smell of sheep, stale ale and pipe-smoke that follows her home after a hard days toil in field and inn. Outside the pony, Briony's cloth is simple and often old enough to be almost threadbare in place, but kept admirably clean and in good repair. She owns but two dresses, and the cloth of both is poor. For a nights work in the Pony she wears her finest cream skirt, blouse and brown corset, a gift from Barliman Butterbar to mark her first shift working for the inn. She is almost never armed, not even with a dagger, and carries her hooked staff only when out with the flocks. She has neither the build, the eyes, the talk or the walk of a fighter, but she is known to have courage in defense of her wooly charges. |
|---|
Background
Briony is a sweet and popular lass, and (until recently), well regarded in the lands of Bree and thereabouts, often lending her time and her strong back to her neighbors and refusing all offers of reward despite her obvious penury. Some consider her too proud for her own good - for by all accounts, she could most certainly do with the extra coin. At times, she has something of a temper which manifests as a waspish tone of voice, most often when attention is drawn to her poverty or in the face of offers of coin for favors done or for work unearned.
Increasingly over the years she taken up her drunken father's duties as one of the towns' sheep-wards or shepherds, herding and protecting the town-folk's sheep in the nearby hills. What little pay her father does not spend on strong drink is spent in keeping her four younger sisters fed and clothed -supplemented by her own income as an inn-maid and serving-lass at the Prancing Pony. Briony herself will not admit that her father is a wastrel and a drunk, no matter the evidence presented to her, claiming merely that he is "ill" in a futile bid to save face.
Family:
Father: Dunstan, (41 - murdered by Wulfthrud), Sisters: Annabelle (13), Darci (7), Juniper (5), Hazel (3)
April 2018 Update:
Now though, a shadow has been cast upon her reputation by the deeds and actions of one Wulfthrud, a foreigner branded "Wolfshead", "Thief" and worse by the people of Bree. During his trial he called her by name and held her up as example of the "down-trodden poor" whose lot he sought to improve. Shortly thereafter, the wolfshead and a female companion broke into Briony's home and murdered her father. With the herding license having been in her father's name, Briony can no longer tend the flocks and can barely afford a pauper's funeral for her father. Worse, there are some among town who whisper that Owena herself may have been involved in her father's death.
Fortunately, she has accepted employment as the maid of Owena Baker to replace this lost income. Even so, she is presently one bout of illness or injury away from a life of caring for her sisters under a tent in Beggar's ally. The weight of this knowledge hangs heavily upon her, and the pall it casts upon her customary warmth and cheerfulness is clear to all who know her, even if it's source is not.
Opinions:
"My da -died- protectin' his daughters from a branded thief who burst into our home. He was sick, he was tired, he was weak, and he was fighting a man younger, bigger, better rested, better armed, and better fed than he. But he didn't hesitate. Not for one moment. You all think my da died a a tyrant and a failure! But I'll tell you this: my Da died a hero; died like he lived his whole life. A shepherd guarding his lambs. Make sure you spread -that- bit o' gossip around."
| Friends | Brynwyth, Ashwynth, Carria, Hazeldra, Oweena. Briony counts the regulars at the Prancing Pony as her friends, but rarely has time to socialise outside of work. |
|---|---|
| Relatives | none |
| Rivals/Enemies | The brigand Wulfthrud Wolfs-head has taken a disturbing interest in Briony, one which causes her much distress and disquiet. |
| Loves | Her father, her four younger sisters, her work. |
|---|---|
| Hates | Ill-mannered inn-guests. Violent or lazy drunks |
| Motivation | Provide for her family. |
| Quotes |
