T
Therese
Role Cook and maid
Nationality French
Status alive
Age Elderly
Overview
Thérèse is an elderly cook and maid at Le Coteau des Ombres, Émeric’s family estate. Mostly deaf and bent with age, she is nonetheless warm-hearted and observant in her quiet way. She has ser
Overview
Thérèse is an elderly cook and maid at Le Coteau des Ombres, Émeric’s family estate. Mostly deaf and bent with age, she is nonetheless warm-hearted and observant in her quiet way. She has served the Puyrault family for decades and refuses to abandon her post despite the estate’s dark reputation.
Appearance & Demeanor
- Age: Elderly (70s+, assumed)
- Appearance: Bent with age, dressed in simple black dress and white apron. Her hands are perpetually stained with flour and herbs.
- Manner: Warm, motherly, but hard to understand due to her deafness. She communicates partly through sign language and partly through intuition.
- Voice: Thin, reedy, but kind
Personality
Thérèse is a woman of simple faith and direct observation. She does not understand the supernatural, but she senses when something is wrong. She is superstitious but not unreasonably so. Her greatest concern is Émeric’s well-being, which she expresses through cooking and fussing.
She will never abandon the estate or Émeric, and she is immune to bribery or intimidation on that point.
Role in Chapter 2
If Investigators Visit the Estate
Thérèse:
- Greets them warmly and ensures they are fed
- Provides maternal concern and simple wisdom
- Refuses to enter the chapel (she senses something wrong there)
- May inadvertently reveal information about the estate’s history through rambling stories
- Acts as a moral compass for Émeric
Characteristics (CoC 7e)
| Attribute | Score |
|---|---|
| STR 40 | CON 50 |
| SIZ 55 | DEX 40 |
| INT 55 | POW 60 |
| APP 50 | EDU 45 |
| HP 5 | MP 12 |
Build: — | DB: — | Luck: 55
Skills
- Listen 20% (nearly deaf; must speak very loudly)
- Spot Hidden 55%
- Cooking 85%
- Medicine (herbalism) 60%
- Persuade 50%
Keeper Notes
- Thérèse is a comfort figure, not a plot device
- She provides atmosphere and grounding for scenes at the estate
- She should not be harmed or corrupted; she is too innocent
- She is hard to understand and communication with her should be played as slightly frustrating but ultimately rewarding
Connections to Other Files
- Emeric_de_Puyrault — Her charge
- Le_Coteau_des_Ombres — The estate she serves
Relationships
- Serves Emeric de Puyrault — Cares for him as a mother would