Jenna Silverbirch/Dogodan Halfling/Wandering Storyteller

Name Jenna Silverbirch

Gender Female

Age 39

Race Mostly Halfling. Her father was half human.

Tribe Dogodan

Occupation Something of a bard and writer- she writes of her travels and hopes to make a book of them some day, but makes money from storytelling, singing, and selling her small wooden carvings.

Title Wandering Storyteller

Overview A tall hobbit girl who wanders the lands in boy's clothing with her journal and quill always close at hand, Jenna hopes one day to write a book of her travels. She is friendly and unassuming, preferring to watch events go by rather than being a part of them, jotting down anything of interest to add to her great epic.

Height-One ped and nineteen nailsbreadths

Weight-Six hebs, a Hafheb and two Ods
Hair Colour-Dark blonde

Eye Colour-Hazel

Jenna's Profile Picture
My unfinished picture of Jenna. I'm very proud of it

Appearance
Jenna is very tall for a Dogodan hobbit at one ped and nineteen nailsbreadths, thanks to her human heritage. She is fairly slim as well, though to human eyes she still appears stocky, if not as chubby as most hobbits. She has hazel-brown eyes and thick, loosely curled dark blonde hair, cut short and falling just below her ears, which frames a tanned and cheerful visage. In the Shire she was often told she had a fair face, if not exactly a beautiful one, possessing large almond eyes and shapelier cheekbones than most. But as she is far from vain she doesn’t bother to take advantage of this, and her scruffy appearance, coupled with her man's clothing and short hair, mean she is often mistaken for a boy by the big folk, at least at first. A closer look shows hers is definitely a feminine visage, but initially many have called her 'lad' and perhaps believed she is male for all their brief acquaintance with her, as of course, in the world beyond the shires no man or elf or dwarf would take a real interest in a hobbit’s looks.
Stretching the length of her left arm are thick bands of ugly, knotted scar tissue from where she was badly burnt as a child, with more delicate, papery scars over her hand. More noticeable, however, is the fact she is missing her little finger and the very tip of her ring finger, which does not have a nail. But despite these blemishes, her hands remain very delicate for a hobbit- her mother used to call them 'wordsmith's fingers'.

Clothing
For practicality and comfort on the road, Jenna dresses in men’s clothes. Her outfit consists of a old, long-sleeved white shirt, a simple dark brown waistcoat full of pockets, tough leather breeches and a thick brown cloak with a hood. Hidden beneath her shirt is a silver necklace given to her by her mother on her thirty-third birthday, the pendant carved in the shape of a rune of hospitality.

In her pack, Jenna keeps two spare outfits that she generally reserves for any formal occasions she chances to attend. The more frequently worn set is made up of a marginally cleaner shirt, black cotton trousers and a rather beautiful green waistcoat embroidered in silver and and light green threads with a pattern of vines and leaves. Crumpled somewhere in the very depths of the pack is an almost never worn dress. It is pretty enough, made of good quality green fabric, and cut very simple, with no pleats or frills or bunched fabric that Jenna calls 'unnecessary twiddly bits'. Still, her dislike of skirts means she can rarely be bothered to wear it, unless it is absolutely necessary.

Personality
Good natured and generally liked, Jenna gets on well with big folk, even if she seems a little odd to hobbits. She is quite reserved, preferring to listen attentively rather than talk herself, as she retains a slight distrust for complete strangers from her days in the secluded Alianian hills. Though the more she learns of the world, and grows used to big folk ways of life, the chattier she has become, and can ramble about very little for a very long time, especially if it makes her seem more hobbit-like.

She loves stories and songs, whether she is listening to them, penning them herself or telling them, and has a good hobbit sense of humour. Her love of tales is so deep that Jenna often finds herself thinking as if life really was a story. She calls it her 'literary mindset', and becomes positively ecstatic if things take a turn for the literary. To her, everything is fuel for a potential tale ready to be written. Needless to say, she’s very inquisitive and always enjoys learning something new- one of her reasons for wandering the lands is to see and learn about as much of the world as possible, because, in her own words ‘the world’s so full of wonder it’d be a shameful waste to live without seeing as much of it as you could’ve’.

To the big folk she seems a regular hobbit, cheerful and humorous, but those who know her better find beneath her front of innocence is a sharp, tough, and intelligent mind. In fact, Jenna deliberately cultivates her cheerful hobbit persona for the big folk. She's found that being thought of as a simple, good natured, yokel of a hobbit is a quick way to gain the trust, and, if not respect, at least the amusement of others. Which is far better than being a suspicious stranger of a small, fairly unknown race in the cities of Santharia. Beneath this assumed exterior Jenna still has flashes of self-doubt. She berates herself about these last remnants of her awkward adolescence, but still swings between acting confidently and hating herself and her mistakes. Not all of her hobbity traits are affected, however, as she is hard to anger, and while not exactly a pacifist, avoids confrontation, conflict and combat if she can, preferring to go about her business quietly and unnoticed.

Strengths
Excellent swimmer - Jenna had an unusual love for the sea as a child and so is a very good swimmer. She was nicknamed ‘Pinnip’ by her family because of it.

Agile - Because of her prowess at swimming, for a hobbit, Jenna is slim and nimble, if not physically strong. Her speed matches and can even excel the average humans.

Literate and a gifted storyteller - Jenna has a flair for both telling and composing tales. She is a scholarly reader but can just as easily entertain a tavern with her stories and songs. She’s not exactly a virtuso, but plays the lute fairly well to accompany her singing.

Intelligent and practical- She might not seem it, but Jenna is very intelligent, and also quite sensible, remaining calm in almost any situation.

Some ability with a blade- She's no great swordswoman, but Jenna has a basic training in combat with a blade, and is far more skilled than the average hobbit in it, although she prefers to avoid combat. Her small stature and agility give her an advantage over humans, even if she's not very strong.

Weaknesses
Stubborn - While she is perfectly happy to follow others and accept their ideas if she can see sense in them, if she wants to do something her way or has a set opinion of something it is difficult to persuade her otherwise.

Quick to judge - As she sees everything as a potential story, Jenna jumps to conclusions about people and situations quickly, assuming certain people will always behave certain ways, sometimes incorrectly.

Fear of fire- Because of a childhood accident that left her badly scarred she is deeply distrusting of fire. She will light a fire if she has to, but often tries to avoid doing so or gets others to do it for her, and she doesn't mind being around small campfires or hearths too much, but any larger fire, even a controlled one, still scares her and can even cause panic attacks.

A little cowardly - Jenna has a strong sense of self preservation, to the extent of being a little cowardly, as if things start to become too dangerous she'll try to extricate herself from them. If given the choice between saving herself and saving a friend, she'd save herself.

Physically weak- She is not particularly strong, especially for a hobbit, being weaker than the average human, which means that although she's hard to catch, once someone has a hold of her it's easy to overpower her. Her scarred left arm in particular is still a good deal weaker than the right. The damage to her fingers, in particular, has lessened that hand's dexterity.

Tends to ramble- When telling a story Jenna likes to give as much detail as she can, but can become so caught up in this she begins to ramble, often on completely unrelated themes, and ends up losing her original train of thought, and in the process, the audience's attention.

Often overlooked - Along with her tendency to ramble, simply because she is a halfling, Jenna has a hard time holding a non-hobbit audience's attention, who see hobbits as unimportant and often overlook them, or consider them quaint novelties with no actual talents. It also means her serious writings are rarely taken seriously by the Big Folk.

History
Jenna is unusual amongst hobbits, and after a lifetime trying unsuccessfully to fit in she has left the Dogodan shire to travel the world.
Her troubles began when her mother, Lillen Godro, a wild girl in her youth, took a liking to the giant of a hobbit staying in the local tavern. He was a wanderer, and as soon as he set foot in the shire all manner of tales about him sprang up, mostly saying he was little better than a thief who lived off other’s hospitality. If it hadn’t have been for his good custom in the pub, the landlord would have gladly thrown him out.

But young Lillen thought nothing of the stories and as soon as she could she escaped the family hobbit-hole to try and get a look at this intriguing stranger. She found him sitting at the bar by himself, and he truly was a giant, and very slim for a hobbit. Lillen was a brave girl and seated herself beside him, ignoring the looks she gathered from the old hobbits. She found the stranger to be charming and they talked for some time. He said his name was Fadran, and when she commented on his great height he remarked, offhandedly, that his father had been human. This only increased his glamour and world-wise air to young Lillen, and as they chatted she thought more and more of how handsome he was, and how good-natured. When Fadran told her he thought her pretty she had to turn her face away, afraid he’d see how much she was blushing. They parted later that evening, agreeing to meet in the tavern the next day.

Soon they met in secret, for rumours spread quickly in such a small community and while Lillen was a rebellious girl she didn’t want to attract more attention then necessary. After knowing him only a week she was certain she was in love with him, and she thought, or at least hoped, that he loved her back. But then one evening Fadran didn’t arrive in their secret meeting place. He had left in the night, leaving no word behind, and only the landlord had seen him go. Not long after his disappearance, Lillen found she was with child. Heartbroken and despairing, she confided in her older sister, the only hobbit she really trusted. Her sister advised her to marry as soon as she could, to try and hide the scandal.

So Lillen, only thirty-one years old, began flirting with one of the older sons of a wealthy farmer, Tummel Silverbirch, who had been infatuated with her since they were children. Tummel was delighted, and the rituals of hobbit courtship soon followed. They were married a few months later and Lillen settled down in the Silverbirch family smial. Tummel was a kind man, and she began to love him deeply, if not with the fiery passion she’d felt for Fadran. Gradually, as she grew used to the life and responsibilities of a respectable hobbit wife, Lillen’s wild ways and rebelliousness lessened, although she was sharp-witted and stubborn for the rest of her life.

When Jenna was born many commented on how quickly the Silverbirch’s had been blessed, knowing Lillen would have had to have conceived before her marriage. Back in the Godro home her siblings whispered of Fadran, but said little to outsiders. Tummel was well respected and no-one wanted to shame him. It wasn’t long before Lillen became pregnant again, and by the time Jenna came of age she had six brothers and three sisters.

Jenna grew quickly, and had to help look after the growing family from a young age. When she was free from her household duties she liked to visit taverns and meeting halls, listening to stories and songs and soon composing her own. At first she tried telling them to the tavern crowds, but as they were epics and tragedies with no connection to hobbit history, and frequently prose instead of hobbit’s preferred poetry, they were not well received. Hurt, Jenna kept her tales and songs private, scribbling them in her journals, and reading voraciously. Although, she had a good voice and was often called to sing traditional hobbit songs at festivals.

As a child Jenna also developed a fascination for the sea. The Silverbirch smial was near the coast and Jenna loved to make trips down to the beach, where she could sit and read and write whilst watching the waves. She persuaded one of the few hobbits in the area who could swim to teach her, and by the age of fifteen she was a confident swimmer, who became as familiar with the Ardian coast by the Alianian hills as she was with her own home.

Not long after she developed her love for the sea, Jenna became terrified of fire. While gathered around the bonfire at a hobbit’s eleventy-first birthday party, she tripped and caught her arm in the flames. Although the party-goers quickly put it out she was left with very bad burns stretching all of her left arm. The damage to her little finger was so severe it had to be amputated. In the years following the accident she nurtured a deep, private fear of fire and avoided cooking, making sure to keep a good few feet from any flames. As she grew older she conquered her fears somewhat, and as an adult doesn’t mind lighting or being around small campfires or hearths, but any large fire, even a controlled one, still scares her.

While the Dogodan hobbits respected her for her great memory for songs and tales, she was always something of a black sheep. As she entered adolescence and grew far taller than was normal, the Godros, and others with good memory, remembered the Great-Hobbit Fadran, and it became common knowledge that Jenna’s father was probably not Tummel. The community was a little wary of her, saying ‘there’s just something un-hobbit like about the lass’ although it was hard to pinpoint exactly what, aside from her height. Her only real friends were within her family. The local hobbit children were reluctant to talk to her and to let her join in their games. While she was never bullied outright, and often played with the Dogodan children, they were never particularly friendly towards her.

And so, as she entered adulthood, Jenna’s dreams of exploring the world grew. She loved the shire, but was still an outsider there. Her brother Rigby, the oldest boy of the Silverbirches, had long ago taken over her role as head of the family, along with their parents, and she felt she was not really needed, as no one would be too keen to marry her. A few years after she came of age Jenna announced she was leaving to travel the world, hoping open day to compile a great volume of stories of what she’d witnessed. The idea of a hobbit leaving the safe confines of the Alianian hills was unthinkable and all the old hobbits of the community muttered darkly about ‘the human blood showing true’, although they still gave her a grand sending off party, and the letters she sends back to her family are read aloud to congregations of hobbits, eager to hear of the strange world beyond their doors, even if they don’t want to explore it themselves.

And so Jenna roams the world, seeking adventures to fuel her own writing, although she doesn’t like to be a part of them herself. She makes money telling stories and singing songs, accompanying her singing with a lute for while she prefers written tales she’s still a good story teller and singer.

Weapons
-A simple human dagger, that is more of a short sword by her proportions, with a nicked blade and a stained brown hilt. While it's old, and isn't exactly the best-crafted of weapons, it still has quite a bite and Jenna wields it well.
-A smaller cooking knife that she sometimes uses as a weapon, though it's not particularly effective.

Belongings
Her all purpose cooking knife (also used to whittle her carvings)
A set of small collapsible cooking pots
A large waterskin
A rather battered lute
Her bedroll
Her leather journal
Quill and ink
A coin pouch that also holds trinkets she’s collected in her travels
A clay pipe and a small amount of smokeweed
Whatever scraps of wood she's collected to carve
Her spare clothing