Redbough

Character Name: Redbough
Name Meaning: -

Age: Very very old
Date of Birth: Early Second Age

Race: Ent
Residence: Fangorn Forest, but frequently wanders
Profession: Tree Shepherd


Appearance:
Despite towering at nearly fifteen feet tall, it's difficult to pick out Redbough amongst a forest of mundane trees, even with his namesake fiery-colored leaves. Standing still, bark-clad limbs held close to his sides, he appears as little more than a massive red maple with a crown of broad, twisting branches growing from his head and shoulders. Should he move, however, one immediately sees that what seemed to be a trunk was in fact gangly, flat-footed legs. These limbs support a sturdy bark-covered torso that transitions from broad shoulders to head with little neck in between. A roughly-humanoid face, comparable in form and expression to that of a kindly old man, houses a pair of eyes the same pale red color as his leaves. While he appears hale and hearty, particularly for someone centuries old, it's not easy to miss the old wound on the back of his head. The bark there is cracked and blackened, as if struck by lightning or flame. 


Personality:
You'd be hard-pressed to find someone more placid and patient that Redbough. While his love for the trees is as strong as any ent's, he holds equal love for the rest of the forest, from the crawling insects to the leaping deer. With no huorns of his own to shepherd, he has instead dedicated himself to restoring all the wild places of the world in the wake of destruction, and to helping the race of Men live in balance nature. He holds that every living thing, from the trees to the animals to the people, is part of one great cycle, and seeks to find a way for all elements of that cycle to exist in harmony. Redbough both speaks and thinks slowly, even for an ent. His voice is sonorous and gentle, although waiting for him to finish speaking can become trying at times. He is slow to anger and quick to forgive, but he does not allow himself to be pushed about and will assert himself in his own stubborn, gentle way when need arises.



Parents: Second-generation ent, originated as an enting grown by Birchheart and Greenshade, both now deceased.
Sibling(s): - 
Spouse: Gilderleaf, Entwife, deceased
Children: -

History:
Redbough's first memories are of bright sunshine, the heady scent of loam, and the songs of growth and love his parents sung to him. As a newly-sprouted enting, he was indistinguishable from a mundane sapling, but soon enough he would have the strength and consciousness to uproot himself and go walking with his mother Greenshade through their forest in Ithilien. Those woods were his whole world, and while his parents tended to the trees and other old growth, the young ent would often observe the lives of the forest creatures and much smaller growing things, entranced by their energy and movement. He knew of little else beyond the woods, until the day when a pair of young and energetic creatures he had never seen before wandered into the woods to play. Remaining still and hidden as a mundane tree so as not to frighten them, he'd often watch over the two children as they ran and cavorted through his woods, ensuring that no harm came to them and that the wild beasts left them be. He would later discover that they hailed from a village at the eaves of the forest, a small and ramshackle affair founded in the last decade or so. Despite his parents' concern at the encroachment of Man upon their woods, and their urgings to remain out of their sight, the young ent would often root himself nearby to watch the comings and goings of the humans, fascinated by the complexity of their lives. Their need for wood and other resources of the forest did not go unnoticed, but such a small village hardly took enough to cause concern.

One year, winter descended with a viciousness the world had not seen for some time. As temperatures plunged and snowbanks grew higher, Redbough and his parents did their best to help their forest weather the season, and for a time, he forgot about the human village. It was only when the ents happened upon a swath of leveled forest, the trees cut down in droves, that their ire was raised enough to reveal themselves. Birchheart and Greenshade strode from the forest angrily with their enting in tow, intending to level the village and scatter its inhabitants into the blizzard. What they found was a starving, freezing town of humans, who had cut down the trees for firewood in a desperate bid to keep the killing cold at bay. Like any other creature, Redbough realized, they were just trying to survive.

It was his pity that swayed his parents into forgiving the village. While they returned to the woods, Redbough stayed behind for a time to help in any way he could, using his considerable strength to clear the snowdrifts from the villagers' homes and helping their foragers find roots, nuts, and other forest fare. When spring finally returned and the snows receded, he was hailed as hero and protector. His friendship with Man troubled his family, however, who feared that as the town grew, they would threaten the woods in greater measure, replacing forest with farmland and disturbing the balance of nature. Redbough argued on their behalf, insisting that humans could learn to live in harmony with the natural world and offering to take the burden of shepherding them upon his own shoulders. His parents were ancient and weary, and for some time had desired to return to the primeval wilderness of Fangorn. They agreed, if somewhat reluctantly, to entrust the forests of Ithilien and the fate of its human inhabitants to Redbough's care.

Through the years, under his guidance and protection, the little village swelled into a prosperous town, yet one that never took beyond its needs. For every tree felled, another was planted to replace it, and nothing taken from nature was ever wasted. Redbough was happy with his lot in life, and soon would become even happier, for another wandering ent would soon join him. Gilderleaf was a merry, soft-hearted she-ent hailing from deep within the Greenwood, and the two struck up a close friendship that would soon blossom into love. While he tended to the forests, she roamed the fields and meadows, conjuring up wild and beautiful gardens among the humans' crop fields. 

Their bliss might have continued indefinitely if not for the rising threat to the east. When orcs poured out from Mordor, decimating all in their path, his beautiful town was one of the first to fall. For the first time in their lives, Redbough and Gilderleaf took the path of violence in order to defend their home, but against the fire, axes, and seige weapons of the horde, they had no chance. Redbough's final memories of that time are of fire and death and screams, and a flaming uruk ballista striking him from behind. When he came to, broken and burned, the town was in ashes, its inhabitants were slaughtered, the forests and fields were ablaze, and Gilderleaf was nowhere to be seen.

Whether from his physical wounds or the overwhelming grief, Redbough was never the same after that. Heartbroken and delirious, he wandered without aim until he eventually found himself upon the eaves of what remained of Fangorn forest. The surviving ents took him in and helped him heal, though he never truly found his feet among them and preferred to wander abroad. As grief dulled with the endless passage of time and painful memories faded, he began to cheer again, although there was always a somber quietness to him. Nowadays, he rarely remains within Fangorn for long, and can often be found wandering the wild places of Middle Earth, bringing regrowth with him wherever he goes. When asked, he will often say that he wanders in an attempt to find his dear Gilderleaf, despite there being no sign of any entwives for centuries.