Coco Background (Patreon)

Even more so then other the documents covering the other characters back stories, I recommend avoiding this one if you don't want spoilers. Coco's true identity is crucial to her own personal character development, even if it's not important to the greater story as a whole.

Basic Facts

Coco is a nineteen-year-old Beastfolk girl, of the canine variety. She is primarily based on a corgi, albeit with a much fluffier and larger tail. She has been an adventurer for around two and a half years at the start of the story. Promoted to Silver-rank one year and nine months into her career, three months before the transfer to Cransmere. The Guild set her class as 'Beastman,' a catchall class given to Beastfolk who fight primarily using their animalistic traits and race-specific Arts exclusive to them. Yes, this is somewhat racist as the arts canine Beastfolk vary greatly when compared to a feline Beastfolk and so on.

Her true name is Cordelia Vanderly, of House Vanderly. House Vanderly's coat of arms features three proud dogs on a field of sky-blue. Though presumed dead, she is the heiress to the current Count Vanderly of Perlshaw. She was born in Perlshaw, in the castle Vanderhold.

Family

Coco has two families, her biological family that she remains unaware of and her adopted family.

Her father is Count Donovan Vanderly. He is a kind older man somewhere in his forties who is widely regarded among his people. He lives very humble life for a nobleman and spends little gold on luxuries, save for spoiling his beloved canine companions. He is a man who loves dogs, exceedingly so. His clothes are always covered in dog hair and he refuses to go places that won't allow him to bring at least one of his beloved pets.

Her mother is Countess Candace 'Candy' Vanderly, a Beastfolk in her mid-thirties. Raised and trained to become a housemaid by the Besthal Employment Agency before being 'adopted' by House Vanderly. Eventually became the Count's Mistress. His wife at the time approved, but that didn't last. As will be detailed below, a chain of events followed that led to the Count divorcing his first wife and later marrying his Mistress despite the political backlash which ensued. She is very much a commoner still, never getting used to the elaborate fancy clothes she has to wear or picking up proper manners or eloquent speech.

Coco unknowingly has a little sister who is ten years old, Lira Vanderly. She is everything that Coco is not. Prim, proper, a refined lady despite her young age. A very sweet girl who will no doubt be quite taken with Coco whenever they meet in the future.

Coco's adopted family are the Direwolves of the Fangrush Ferns, an incredibly dangerous forest to the northwest of Perlshaw where she was abandoned. Her main caretaker was the powerful, feminine nature spirit who ruled the forest and protected the Direwolves, an entity that goes by the name Mooncaller. This entity takes the shape of an ethereal bluish-white Direwolf larger than all the others, but is capable of taking on a Beastfolk form resembling a beautiful woman with wild eyes and long unkempt hair. Mooncaller took a fondness for Coco as she sensed a powerful drive to survive inside the young girl and stopped the Direwolves from eating her. With all the other Direwolves' help, she reared Coco into a wild girl capable of defending herself. She views Coco as her daughter.

It must be stated that Coco has no qualms with killing the Direwolves of the Gnarled Woods. They aren't her pack, and if they challenge her or her friends and lose that it was their own fault and Coco has no sympathy for them.

Early Life

Donovan Vanderly was thrust into a political marriage from a young age. This was arranged by his father, who was Count before him. His first wife was Laressa Hollowan of Hollobell's House Hollowan, third daughter to the Count Hollowan of the time. They were not hostile towards one another at the start, and were cordial in all matters. Rather than even attempting to make this work between them, Donovan and Laressa respectfully reached an agreement where they would be allowed extramarital affairs. It was an open secret and no one really minded so long as Laressa produced an heir.

Shortly after, Donovan's relationship with Candy began. He got them pregnant around roughly the same time, but only Candace made it to term. Out of respect for Laressa, Donovan didn't fawn over his new bastard daughter, even though it was obvious to all that the girl was his pride and joy. Candy raised her daughter alone among the other servants who lived in the Vanderhold, only ever seeing glimpses of her father who seemed very kind man who always took the time to smile and wave at her.

Coco was happy being with her mother and the other servants, but that happiness wasn't to last.

Separation

Donovan stopped his affairs with Candy after Laressa's miscarriage, as was only polite to do, but even after Laressa moved on and mentally recovered from the tragedy she felt a certain level of spite growing towards the child and Donovan's Mistress. This animosity grew even greater after Laressa's second pregnancy ended in a stillbirth. The postpartum depression was very severe, resulting in a nearly successful suicide attempt.

To his credit, Donovan played the role of a faithful husband in these times and desperately tried to help see his wife through it. It wasn't much use. Laressa was too far gone and began blaming his former Mistress for this somehow, someway. She believed that perhaps Candy was poisoning her so that Cordelia would become the de facto heiress, which absolutely wasn't the case. This led to the hatching of a plan that would change young Coco's life forever.

Laressa schemed with ne'er-do-well types to eliminate Candy and take her daughter out of the picture. A time and place was arranged- Candy was sent away with Coco to a luxurious inn with a spa on what she believed was a reward for all her hard work. She quickly determined something was up when the carriage took a turn into a dark and suspicious alley. Cue ambush.

Thugs appeared with smokescreens made from burnt primalvine, an intoxicating substance to most Beastfolk which renders them unconscious. In that split few seconds between waking and dreaming, Candy assumed this was a deliberate attack. Laressa underestimated what Beastfolk are capable of when protecting their kin. In her sluggish state, the young maid fought off the attackers with her bestial strength. She suffered a lot of damage and even lost a portion of her ear in the fight, but her defense was successful except for the fact that one of the thugs had slipped away with Coco amidst all the chaos. She was too drugged to notice when it happened, and she left the alley screaming and covered in blood, crying for her daughter. Some passing Knights of House Vanderly found her shortly after and recognized her for who she was, then brought her home.

At the same time, the thug which had gotten away was fulfilling Laressa's orders. She didn't want the child to have an easy, painless death. She believed Coco was the source of her misfortune, after all. The thugs were to dispose of her in the Fangrush Ferns, where nature would take its course and she would likely be eaten by Direwolves. She was stripped of her clothing and thrown into the thicket, only for the thug himself to be mauled by wolves as he turned to go.

The Direwolves initially thought to do the same to the young girl, but Mooncaller prevented it. She did not adopt Coco straightaway, but thought instead it might be interesting if she let this girl live and see whether she was more beasts than folk.

Ramifications and Fallout

After Candy was brought home to the Vanhold, her account of events sent Donovan and the rest of House Vanderly into a fury. Bastard or not, young Cordelia was still of noble blood and was kept in the castle near her father on purpose. Candy herself had no idea Laressa was behind it, but when Donovan's wife learned of Candy's survival, her reaction let on to the truth of the matter. She was greatly distraught and nearly confirmed her involvement entirely, if it weren't for the last of her senses urging her to keep vague. The reaction was enough to alert Donovan, however.

Laressa's chambers researched and a disturbing number of notebooks, notes and correspondences with the lowlife thugs and key castle staff who helped orchestrate the plot. It was obvious that Some members of House Vanderly pushed for severe punishment over this slight on the Count, but Donovan was more mature. Laressa wasn't evil, she was mentally ill. He blamed himself for not taking better care of her, and not loving her in the first place even though it was mutual. It wasn't like he didn't feel depressed that neither of his children through his first wife made it, either. His grief was genuine and sincere.

Count Hollowan was summoned from across the province and these notes and confessions from castle staff who had been rounded up were enough to get the old Lord to agree on a mutual divorce. He was ashamed of his daughter's actions, having fathered bastards himself. An offer was made politely to gift Count Donovan another bride, but it was a formality and Count Hollowan assumed correctly it wouldn't be agreed upon.

Laressa was taken back to Hollobell and has remained unmarried in the years since, despite regaining a portion of her sanity.

Donovan Vanderly remained single for a while afterwards, keeping mostly to the company of his hounds. He became a very grim person during this period of his life. Given that his father was dead by this point, Donovan didn't have to be pushed into another political marriage and so he brooded for quite a while. It was Candy who eventually approached him, not out of a desire to improve her station in life, but out of genuine concern. She asked to start taking care of her Count's meals and seeing to his needs, and the castle steward ended up agreeing. They might not be able to get a political marriage out of him, but perhaps healing his happiness was more important than that, and they figured this girl was the only one who could pull that off.

Donovan was stunned that the maid wanted to still be by his side, but eventually he realized she only wished for him to know he wasn't alone in his mourning. They both lost their daughter, and he didn't have to suffer alone. They found comfort in each other- wholesome comfort at first, followed by the sort of comfort they found together years ago. They were married after two years, and aside from slight disappointment from the many noble houses looking to marry upwards, there were few objections to Count Vanderly marrying a commoner given all that he'd been through. As stated before, he was very well-loved among the nobility and the smallfolk alike.

Life in Fangrush Ferns

Unknowingly, their daughter was alive and well. When Coco came to, she was traumatized and scared. Her early memories were either lost or addled, and to this day she can only remember scattered bits and pieces. The stone castle, the lady in the pretty black dress and white apron, and the smiling man who waved. None of that mattered anymore. Naked and only four years old, Coco was soon pursued by beasts driving her deeper into the huge forest. This was Mooncaller's doing, preventing the young girl from trying to leave.

From there, Coco had no choice but to regress and rely on more of her instincts to survive. It turned out that as Mooncaller expected, this girl had latent power inside her. Instead of mana, Beastfolk have a red energy source inside them which is a crystallization of the fight for survival, the drive to live, and the power to adapt. Karnallian have coined the term 'feral' for this power, and all Beastfolk are capable of drawing on the feral to some extent. Some, like Coco, much more than others. In their Homerealm of Besthal, all Beastfolk are greatly gifted in it. It's only Karnallian-born Beastfolk who have adapted not to need it as much.

Coco started mastering her feral over the course of several months. After she gained a decent grasp over the concept and was able to prove she could survive, Mooncaller made first contact. The spirit came to her in a dream, beckoning her to fight her way to the heart of the woods if she wished to find a way home. Coco, unsure of where home even was anymore, followed her instincts and made the journey. Many tests were put in her way and Coco had to fight a large number of beasts to get there. When she did, she met the Direwolves of the Fangrush Ferns for the first time and their guardian spirit, Mooncaller.

Mooncaller didn't know Coco's full story, so she told the young girl how she had been abandoned in these woods like many other infants have over the long, long time she'd overseen them. Stressing that the world outside these woods didn't want Coco, Mooncaller told the girl to trust her instincts. The Direwolves had ears, claws, fangs, and tails just like she did. They could become her family, if Coco wished.

After being alone for so long, there was no other option she could've chosen. Coco joined the pack and learned how to tap into her powers and become stronger. After a few years with her pack, she even achieved a state that most Karnallian Beastfolk have to train their whole lives to access. Feral Regression. In Besthal, all Beastfolk look like anthropomorphized furries. This transformation takes the user back to their roots, growing fur all over their body as well as most other animal traits that their Beastfolk form is missing. In Coco's case, that means she grows a muzzle.

After achieving Feral Regression, Coco would stay in the form through most of her life before rejoining society later.

As she grew to the age of fourteen, Coco began to grow discontent with her life. She had been to every part of the forest, hunted every beast, pissed on every tree. She was the strongest creature in the forest aside from Mooncaller herself and she was now the leader of all the Direwolves. Her animalistic instincts were unsatisfied. She wanted more.

Mooncaller attempted to dissuade her, reminding Coco that the world outside wanted nothing to do with her, but Coco countered she didn't want the outside world either, but would take from it all the same just as she took from the forest. This answer pleased the nature spirit, who stopped trying to prevent Coco's leave- as long as she promised she wouldn't kill any humans whenever she was out. That would only lead people coming to the forest and hunting them down. Coco agreed.

Terrorizing People

Coco's life now extended beyond the Fangrush Ferns. She led a pack of the strongest Direwolves across the Rhoivan province, causing mischief and generally exploring. Over the next four years she got up to all kinds of exploits. There were times when she attacked caravans and traders because she liked the smell of what they had in their cargo, and other times, she would randomly attack travelers because they looked strong and she wanted a fun fight. She would always return to the Fangrush Ferns eventually, but her excursions filled her with more enjoyment than her home ever did.

There were times she would see groups of humans together talking, laughing, singing and what have you. Whenever this happened, Coco felt a longing in her heart that wasn't being filled by the company of her Direwolves. When at last she voiced these feelings to Mooncaller asking for advice, the spirit discerned Coco wanted to rejoin society on some level even if she didn't know it. Coco thought this was ridiculous and to prove it she went out and overcompensated for her doubt.

Coco started increasing the frequency of the looting and pillaging parts of her adventures, bringing back more and more interesting things from the human world to her forest. Mooncaller kept telling her not to but Coco was stubborn and wouldn't listen. Eventually, around the time she turned eighteen, her fame started catching up with her. While she was considered an annoying nuisance beforehand, Coco was proving a growing threat to the people of the Rhoivan province. Something had to be done, and ironically enough, Count Vanderly himself issued a quest for the newly constructed Perlshaw Guild in order to take down this threat which his merchants shut up about.

Worth noting here is that Donovan did not connect the dots because Coco lived life almost exclusively in her Feral Regression form, and the description didn't match anything like the daughter he remembered. People believed Coco was likely some sort of werewolf, or violent nature spirit. Not a Beastfolk girl.

Meeting Britni

Britni and Marlie were the ones to accept the fateful quest, and they proposed an idea to the merchant who hired them. They asked the merchant to prepare a wagon full of whatever shit the werewolf liked to steal the most- meat- and they would ride in the back waiting to ambush the monster as soon as it made its appearance. This plan worked like a charm and Coco was lured out. As strong as she and her pack were, Marlie took on the Direwolves who accompanied her while Britni fought Coco into submission. They were racking up heavy losses and Coco had to order a retreat for the first time in her many years of leadership.

The pair of adventurers pursued Coco into the Fangrush Ferns where Coco expected Mooncaller to help her. She did not, only telling Coco that she was warned this would happen and that she had to deal with this herself. That wasn't good, but Coco had her pack run to safety as she fought Britni and Marlie on her home turf. The two had to work together very hard in order to defeat her, but before Coco was finished off she ran out of energy and was unable to maintain her Feral Regression form.

Recognizing that this wasn't the monster was just a Beastfolk girl made the two back off and reconsider their options. Coco spoke roughly in the common tongue at them, asking why they haven't killed her. Her conversational skills at this point in time were very weak, limited mostly to what she'd been taught when she was young and things she picked up while spying on humans.

Britni thinks that maybe there was another way this could end and proposes Coco stop her constant attacks on innocent traders. Coco refuses, saying they have things that she wants. Britni then points out that if she came to town them, she could get Coco anything she wanted. Marlie was surprised at the sudden impulse of Britni's, but Marlie told her to back off and that she's always wanted a pet. Coco could tell Britni had strange intentions even then and was scared, so she fled deeper into the forest.

Britni knew she wanted Coco, though, and she wouldn't be taking no for an answer. They pursued her for days in the forest as Coco continually tried calling out to her pack and Mooncaller, only for both to ignore her. It was a strange feeling, being the hunted. Coco didn't want to get used to it. Eventually, she made it to the heart of the woods where her pack and Mooncaller were waiting for them. She expected her surrogate mother to change her mind after seeing what rough shape she was in, but it didn't turn out like that. Instead, Coco's own pack attacked her at Mooncaller's behest.

The nature spirit made herself into something of a villain for Coco, knowing that the girl would never give in to what was best for her without drastic measures being taken. Coco couldn't fight against her own pack, but it was made clear to her that she was no longer welcome in these woods. She wasn't a true beast, after all. Coco felt betrayed by the family she found and turned away, running from both Britni and Mooncaller.

Britni and Marlie tracked her down again and acted much more sympathetic this time around, with Britni being friendly and telling Coco about how great the city is. Coco wants to know what she would do with herself, as she doesn't know how to live in the outside world. Britni already has an idea. She can come with them and Britni will take care of her, and they can go on adventures together. Marlie was skeptical but knew better than to attempt arguing with Britni was her mind was made up. She advised Coco to just let it happen.

Britni asks Coco for her name, but Coco doesn't have one now. Britni is excited that she gets to name her new pet and after some thinking she comes up with Courtney. Coco has trouble pronouncing it but it awakens something in her. It's so close but not close enough. She stumbles the name, saying 'Co... co?' and Britni is like shit that's way cuter. Coco likes the name Coco, it being emblematic of her desire for more out of life and representing the many questions she has about herself.

Coco agrees to come along so long as Britni is there to help her adjust. The quest was failed since they didn't want to reveal that the beast girl they brought home was the target in question, but Britni did stress that they killed the beast and it wouldn't be making any more trouble. They were just unable to secure a trophy which meant no payday.

After that, Britni paid Coco's registration fee and she became an adventurer. The Association really doesn't care about anything else other than getting their fee, in most cases.

Life in Perlshaw and Adventuring Career

Coco always felt deeply uncomfortable living in the city of Perlshaw. Something about it scared her to her core, gave her a sense that nothing felt right when she was in it. She was most nervous around its dark alleys and whenever looking at the castle.

Coco got into a lot of trouble early on because of how unadjusted to society she was, picking fights, attacking dogs, stealing because she didn't understand the concept of money, etc. As detailed below, Britni pulled her through this and after a year or so Coco was about as well-adjusted as she could be. At Britni's behest, Coco stopped using her Feral Regression form as her default and stuck to her Beastfolk form. Lots of people weren't used to seeing it and it scared them.

She was most comfortable when they went out on adventures. Coco proved her worth time and time again because of how well she knew the Rhoivan province, her skills at combat, and the power of her nose. She frequently got them into trouble just as much as she got them out of it, though. Coco has a tendency to chase anything that catches her eye and at times she will go off on her own and not come back until whatever it is she was doing is completed. She can be very aloof like that.

She has no use for money and her share of the quest is split between the other members, but they all buy Coco presents often enough to make up for that.

Relationship with Britni

This is a very complex subject. Britni has more or less tamed Coco, and she is the only one Coco will listen to without question- even if bribes of treats are sometimes required.

Coco trusts Britni with her life, and to her credit, Britni took very good care of Coco early on. She helped the wild girl talk better, got her used to living among humans, and generally helped eradicate most of Coco's bad habits. It took a humongous effort on Britni's part to accomplish all of these things, even if Marlie helped here and there. Coco isn't good at showing it, but she's incredibly grateful to Britni and this is the source of her loyalty.

It wasn't until they started sleeping together in a sexual manner that things started becoming questionable. Coco tolerated the whole 'master/pet' thing Britni mentioned because it was mostly in jest, but in bed, it was more literal and Coco was expected to behave a certain way. This is where the whole speaking in third person thing comes from, which Coco isn't entirely comfortable with but does so because he gets her treats.

As a lover, Britni is very selfish and either toys with Coco to her own satisfaction or makes Coco do things to her that she rarely reciprocates- if ever. Coco doesn't want to be anyone's pet, or at least not all the time. She does enjoy the role-play sometimes, but the biggest thing is that Coco wants to be the master too occasionally. The fact that Coco is a switch just like Coye is something they will bond over, as at the time Coye will be trying to be more aggressive to expand his skills.

Coco still has her virginity intact, which is especially cruel since Britni is fond of making her wear a one-sided strap on and give her attention that she never gives back.

Part of the reason their relationship deteriorates is because Britni is so focused on Coye that she neglects Coco's needs and begins taking her for granted. Coco is not a dog, she's a person. You can't just ignore her and play with her every now and then and expect her to be happy with how things are. She wants a real relationship with equal power dynamics and mutual love and respect. A mate, not a master.

Another source of tension between them is that Britni constantly dismisses Coco's concerns over who she really is. Coco has dreams of her life before the forest and even if she can't remember specifics, she wonders things like how is it she knew the common tongue when neither the Direwolves or Mooncaller spoke to her in it. Britni has a habit of constantly brushing it off rather than trying to help Coco make meaningful progress on her self-discovery. She'd tell her that dreams are just dreams or that who she used to be didn't matter anymore because now she has Britni and the others. Coco would keep quiet and act like this was good enough for her, but just like when her heart longed to rejoin society, she kept the truth hidden inside.

Marlie and Tiph are both somewhat uncomfortable with how Britni has started treating Coco. Tiph doesn't show it much because she is working through her own shit, but I do plan on revealing how much she likes the mutt during Tiph's arc mainly through narration. Marlie, on the other hand has tried multiple times to very bluntly point out how shitty Britni has been, but like most advice she gives it went unheard.

To end this segment on a slightly more comical note, Britni also uses Coco as a dress-up doll and a test bed for her makeup experiments. Coco does not mind so long as she is properly rewarded, but she does have a habit of itching at expensive clothes. Whenever she's wearing something funny, it's because Britni bought it for her.

Cransmere and Coye

Coco didn't mind the transfer between Guilds one bit, rather, she welcomed the chance to put the city of Perlshaw and the many questions it posed behind her. She likes the Gnarled Woods, is unaffected by its hunger and mental effects because she's already wild at heart and always hungry. As for the town itself, Coco doesn't really care one way or another. Her home is wherever Britni and her friends is, at least until things start to get shaken up.

Coco doesn't know why Britni fell in love with Coye, who she calls runt, but it's not her job to ask questions. It's her job to do whatever Britni asks, and over the course of the last year she has been a willing participant in the bullying of Coye. She didn't think anything of it and she certainly didn't think anything of him, until the incident in volume 4.

After that, she starts to see him as a man and will have to struggle with that for a while in a number of amusing ways. After he seduces Tiph, Coco will finally admit her attraction to herself. At the same time, Tiph's defection from the Baddest Bitches will worsen Britni's behavior and she'll start treating Coco worse as a result.

Unlike Tiph falling for Coye, Coco's 'betrayal' of Britni will have been a long time coming and the innocent pup will be presented as in the right for leaving her. Coco will represent a flag for Britni. The point where she should have stepped back and reevaluated herself in her personality for causing this in the first place. That's not how it will go. It will only push her further into her own toxicity and there won't be any guilt on Coye's part, and there will surely be an incident similar to what happens when Tiph officially comes clean about her new relationship with Coye.