Lily Bellrose
The Three Keepers
Long before the rise of the Seelie and Unseelie Courts, the oldest tales of the Feywild speak of three sacred mantles entrusted to those chosen to preserve the balance of memory, mystery, and possibility. Known collectively as the Three Keepers, these ancient Fey are neither rulers nor gods, but impartial custodians whose duties are said to predate the Courts themselves.
Though the identities of the original Keepers have long been lost to time, their mantles endure. The present Keepers are believed to be the second generation to bear these ancient responsibilities, each safeguarding a different aspect of existence.
The current Keepers are Callum Dunloch, the Keeper of Secrets, who safeguards truths too dangerous, too sacred, or too personal to be freely known; Ronan Elderbloom, the Keeper of Dreams, whose slumber grants him fleeting glimpses into countless possible futures; and Lily Bellrose, the Keeper of Stories, who faithfully preserves the lives and legends of the Feywild and beyond within her ever-growing Archive. Though their duties often lead them down separate paths, the Three Keepers have stood alongside one another for over three thousand years, united not by authority, but by their shared responsibility to preserve the balance between what is remembered, what is concealed, and what is yet to come.
Race Fey
Occupation Keeper of Stories
Age Approximately 3,200 years old
Class Bard
Subclass College of Lore
Level 20
Alignment Neutral Good
Hair / Eyes Light ash brown / Pale blue
Overview
Little is known of Lily Bellrose before she inherited the mantle of Keeper of Stories over three thousand years ago. Like many of the oldest inhabitants of the Feywild, Lily is simply regarded as Fey; a broad term encompassing the countless magical beings who call the plane home. Unlike the races of the Material Plane, there is no singular people known as "the Fey"; rather, they are as varied and diverse as the stories they inhabit.
As the current Keeper of Stories, Lily's duty is to travel throughout the Feywild (and, on occasion, the Material Plane) collecting stories wherever they are found. To Lily, there is little distinction between the tale of a humble baker and that of a legendary hero; every life is worthy of remembrance, for even the smallest story may one day inspire another.
When not wandering in pursuit of new stories, Lily can often be found indulging in quieter pastimes. She has an enduring fondness for libraries, archives, and bookshops, and is known to disappear for days at a time simply reading forgotten journals or listening to the recollections of passing travellers over a warm pot of tea.
Values:
Every story has value.
Every person deserves the freedom to write their own story.
Understanding begins with listening.
Little Details:
Favourite food: Honey cake
Favourite season: Spring
Favourite hobby: Reading, people-watching
Biggest pet peeve: People who interrupt, speak over, or attempt to finish another person's story before they've had the chance to tell it themselves.
Lily’s favourite colours
The Grimoire
Lily carries with her an ancient grimoire that serves as both the symbol and vessel of the Keeper of Stories. Despite its appearance, the book contains no pages. Instead, resting at its heart is a single luminous crystal, within which every story entrusted to the Keeper is safely preserved.
The grimoire cannot be stolen, misplaced, or separated from its bearer by force. So long as the mantle of Keeper of Stories belongs to Lily, the grimoire remains faithfully at her side. Only when a Keeper's duty comes to an end does it pass to their successor, carrying with it the countless stories gathered across generations.
The Witchlight Carnival
Although the Three Keepers spend much of their existence apart, they gather from time to time to share what each has witnessed in the course of their duties. It was during one such meeting that Ronan Elderbloom, Keeper of Dreams, spoke of a vision unlike any he had seen before.
For countless nights, the same dream had returned to him: four young souls whose paths intertwined again and again across a tapestry of possible futures. In many of those futures, they stood at the heart of a story connected to a long-standing disturbance within the Feywild; a story whose ending Ronan could never clearly see.
Curious rather than convinced, Lily chose to investigate for herself.
Remembering her long friendship with Mr. Witch and Mr. Light, Lily accepted a modest role among the staff of the Witchlight Carnival whenever it journeyed to the Material Plane. Every eight years she would travel alongside the carnival, quietly observing the countless visitors who passed through its gates, wondering if any might be the children from Ronan's dreams.
For years, she found only ordinary stories.
Until one autumn evening, when four young girls crossed the carnival grounds together.
From that moment onward, Lily resolved not to interfere with the paths they would choose, but simply to walk alongside their story as its faithful witness. She would watch them grow, celebrate their triumphs, mourn their losses, and record each chapter as it unfolded; for the greatest stories are never written by those who observe them, but by those courageous enough to live them.
A Note from the Dungeon Master
Although Lily is mechanically built as a Level 20 College of Lore Bard, she is not intended to accompany the party as an adventuring companion. Her role in the campaign is that of a recurring NPC, observer, and occasional guide.
In keeping with her beliefs as the Keeper of Stories, Lily deliberately avoids resolving conflicts or making important decisions on behalf of others. She believes every story belongs to those who live it, and therefore chooses to observe, encourage, and document the party's journey rather than become one of its protagonists.