Leah

Leah

Type	Villager
Birthday	Winter 23
Lives In	Cindersap Forest
Address	Leah's Cottage
Marriage	Yes

Leah is an artist and a marriage candidate who lives alone in a small cottage in Cindersap Forest, south of Marnie's Ranch. She left the city to follow her dream of making art, and she spends her mornings carving wood sculptures. She loves the outdoors, forages for wild food and draws by the water on most afternoons. Her story follows a talented but nervous artist as she finds the courage to show her work, with the farmer's help deciding how she does it. Her gift list is one of the easiest to fill from foraging alone, because she likes almost every wild plant and mushroom in the valley. Her heart events are known for the art show, a picnic in the forest and a run-in with her ex-partner from the city.

Lore

Leah moved to the valley from the city to become a full-time artist. Life as an artist is hard, and she admits that it is not easy to pay the bills. She is talented and has a large body of work, but she is too shy to put it in front of the public. Much of her story is about building the confidence to do so.

She enjoys a simple life close to nature. She often mentions the trees, the wild fruit she finds in the morning and the meals she cooks from foraged food. Living far from the town square suits her, and she thinks of the farmer as a close neighbour. Fresh vegetables matter to her: she says the ones in the city never tasted so good.

Leah left behind an ex-partner called Kel, who never took her art seriously. Kel phones her and asks her to come back to the city, and later turns up in the valley in person. Her choice to stay is one of the key moments of her story.

Schedule

Leah spends every morning sculpting in her cottage. In Spring, Summer and Fall the cottage only lets the farmer in once she reaches two hearts. In Winter anyone may visit between ten in the morning and six in the evening.

On a regular afternoon her route depends on the season. In Spring she walks to the river near the small island southwest of her cottage, then draws at the end of the pier over the forest pond. In Summer she draws at the Beach, beside the tide pools once the bridge there is repaired. In Fall she stands on the east bank of the river in town, above the Blacksmith. In Winter she paints at home and then spends the evening at the Stardrop Saloon.

Every Monday she shops at Pierre's General Store from late morning until five. On Fridays, Saturdays and rainy days she paints at home and heads to the Saloon in the late afternoon, staying until close to midnight. On the fifteenth of Winter she visits the Night Market. On a Green Rain day in her first Summer she stays near her cabin. She may also take a random trip to the Beach Resort on Ginger Island once it opens.

Relationships

Leah lives alone and feels she has few friends in town. Her closest friend is Elliott, the writer who lives by the Beach, and the two often spend evenings at the Saloon. Her past relationship with Kel shapes several of her heart events.

Gifts

Leah loves Goat Cheese, Poppyseed Muffin, Salad, Stir Fry, Truffle, Vegetable Medley and Wine, along with every universal love. Salad is the easiest loved gift early on. The Stardrop Saloon sells it, and its recipe uses spring forage. Wine from a Keg suits a later farm with fruit to spare, and Truffle is a natural fit once pigs are on the farm.

Her liked list is a forager's dream. She likes nearly all wild forage, including Daffodil, Dandelion, Leek, Spring Onion, Wild Horseradish, Hazelnut, Holly, Snow Yam, Winter Root, Morel and the common mushrooms. This makes her an easy villager to befriend with whatever turns up on the walk to her cottage. She also likes Driftwood, a piece of beach trash most villagers refuse.

Many popular cooked dishes upset her. She dislikes Carp Surprise, Cookie, Fried Egg, Ice Cream, Pink Cake, Rice Pudding, Survival Burger, Tortilla and Seaweed. She hates Bread, Hashbrowns, Pancakes, Pizza and the Void Egg. Most gems and minerals are also poor gifts for her. Her birthday is in Winter, when gifts count eight times as much.

At the Movie Theater she loves Mysterium. Her favourite snacks are Panzanella Salad and Stardrop Sorbet. She dislikes It Howls In The Rain and Journey Of The Prairie King: The Motion Picture.

These gifts are the ones this villager loves most.

Gift	Image
Goat Cheese
Poppyseed Muffin
Salad
Stir Fry
Truffle
Vegetable Medley
Wine

Heart Events

At two hearts, a visit to her cottage finds her at work on a sculpture, talking about how the true nature of the wood shows beneath the surface. A "creepy" request for a kiss costs a large amount of friendship and shuts off her eight-heart event for good. She then admits that art does not pay the bills. Suggesting an art show in town or selling her art online decides which eight-heart event follows.

At four hearts, she is on the phone arguing with her ex, who wants her back in the city. She asks whether she was selfish to leave. Telling her it had to be done, or that her ex sounds like an idiot, keeps her happy. Any other answer costs friendship.

At six hearts, she comes to the farmhouse door one dry morning with a gift: the sculpture she has been working on, which shows how she feels about the farmer. A second six-heart scene in Cindersap Forest finds her trying to reach a fruit high in a tree. The farmer lifts her onto their shoulders, and she says that if her art ever fails, she will always have someone to catch her.

At eight hearts, the event follows the earlier choice. The art show version takes place in Pelican Town, where she nervously presents her sculptures to the whole town and thanks the farmer for the idea and the courage. The online version finds her at her new computer, delighted as orders for her work come in.

At ten hearts, she surprises the farmer with a picnic in the forest and the two share a kiss. Kel steps out of the bushes and demands that she come back. Leah refuses, saying Kel never cared about her art until it became a success. The farmer may punch Kel or try to reason; if the farmer holds back, Leah throws the punch herself.

At fourteen hearts, after marriage, Leah meets the farmer outside the Farmhouse one sunny morning. Later the two paint a portrait of Marnie together in the forest, each in their own style.

Marriage

Leah can be married once she reaches ten hearts and has accepted a Bouquet. The proposal uses the Mermaid's Pendant, sold by the Old Mariner at the Beach on rainy days. After the wedding she moves into the Farmhouse and adds her own art studio beside the bedroom. She keeps up her art as a spouse and sets up a small sculpting spot behind the Farmhouse. On Mondays she walks back to the forest near her old cottage and returns to the farm in the evening.

Notes

Leah may post requests on the Help Wanted board outside Pierre's General Store. Each completed request pays three times the item's base price and raises friendship with Leah.

All Marriage Candidates

Every entry in this group, with its key details.

Name	Birthday	Lives In
Abigail	13 Fall	Pelican Town
Alex	Summer 13	Pelican Town
Elliott	Fall 5	The Beach
Emily	Spring 27	Pelican Town
Haley	Spring 14	Pelican Town
Harvey	Winter 14	Pelican Town
Leah	Winter 23	Cindersap Forest
Maru	Summer 10	The Mountain
Penny	Fall 2	Pelican Town
Sam	Summer 17	Pelican Town
Sebastian	Winter 10	The Mountain
Shane	Spring 20	Cindersap Forest