Should I have gotten this while unemployed? Probably not. Am I still really glad I did? Also yes. This wonderful ref was made by missqueenshi on bluesky https://bsky.app/profile/missqueens...../3lah6ohqvrm2c and twitter I suppose https://vxtwitter.com/MissQueenShi/.....25859833679877 and her discord if you want to be kept up to date on her discounts which she does often https://discord.gg/QXKH59zJrc

But meet Autumn. One of my earlier characters but her appearance ideas came slow. She's here now though and I think she came out just. So. So amazing. So let's get to her lore. Hope you all enjoy~

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When a forest blooms. When enough life grows in a single spot. A seed of life is planted. To one day grow into a dryad. A guardian spirit of the forest. They each differ greatly depending on their local forest and fauna. But they all share a single goal. To protect their homes from dangers. While their seed grows. The animals of the forest become duty bound to protect them from danger until they've bloomed. Indeed. A dryads planting is a special occasion for all living things.

Autumn was planted and grown in a far away forest. Close to civilization. But still special. It was filled to the brim with life. And the animals would visit her often to enjoy her company. Until the day it all came apart...

Humans had always been the one creature who had rejected the blessings of nature. Often choosing to trample and destroy for their own ideas of progress. Though many dryads. Autumn included. Saw humanity as misguided rather than evil. However. She has witnessed the depths of human selfishness and cruelty first hand when her forest was burned down in an "accident". A fire that spread out of control. Even reaching the human settlements. Causing thousands of creatures to die and even more to lose their homes.

But the truth is often crueler than the sweet lies of humanity. Someone was hired to start the fire. Specifically by a businessman. Trying to purchase the protected land for a golf course. Autumn learned of this during the fire. From the human payed to start it. Not fast enough to escape the fire. All while she desperately tried to do whatever she could. By the end of it. She was weakened. Close to death. But she was saved by Miyuki. Brought to her home with magic. And laid in the garden to heal.

Autumns recovery was slow. But with the care of the manor. The energy of the surrounding forest. And her will to continue slowly brought her back. A fate many dryads did not share. With her home burned down. And Miyukis blessing. She decided to live in the garden. Taking care of it and bringing it to the beautiful state it remains in today. She enjoys talking to the other residents. And despite her past. Remains a hopeful ray of sunshine. Happy to provide fruit and vegetables.

Now. Her old home slowly regrows. And construction efforts there are always met with undiscovered plant life rendering the site protected again. Eventually when a new forest grows from the old. The site can lose its old guardian. But until then. She'll continue to do her duty as the forests guardian. In her own way~