Melissa Thelaris

Melissa Thelaris, Matriarch of House Thelaris

A young girl with a keen eye for business and a creative talent, Melissa has gone through hell and high water trying to bring the Thelaris name out of the dirt. At the tender age of 110- young for an elf- she is not highly respected by most drow in general, and most elves. And as a result of her drow lineage, often a suspect of great mistrust. As the Matriarch of House Thelaris, she has managed to pull the failing family out of the horrible predicament her mother put it in, and rebuilt it into a respectable business, trading both in potions and alchemical items for adventurers, and in coffee and tea for anyone who might wish it.

Melissa is also known as a somewhat sleepy person. Her eyes glow with the power of her magic quite often, but as that glow dims from the use of her potent healing abilities, she tends to get more tired... Sometimes even falling asleep for a moment on her feet! She is a very mellow and gentle person overall.

## The Thelaris Matriarch

Melissa was appointed as the Matriarch of the Thelaris Family roughly ten years ago by her mother as Ardenia Thelaris' only remaining daughter. Before this, she had been practically disowned, living in her manor in Absalom. She had grown to be rather close friends with the Weiß family's firstborn, Eos, and is sometimes seen working alongside her and her sister.

Having lived in Absalom most of her life, estranged to her family- still held up by the family's strange sense of importance in blood, but viewed as lesser due to her proclivities and therefore given a home and place to stay- Melissa grew to know and love the city, however often kept her name a secret to those around her. Knowing what the Thelaris name meant to most people, she wasn't very willing to speak on it.

Now, however, as the matriarch, she often works to represent the family as it is now: A new power, rising in the economy, and wholly dedicated to ensuring a good future. She's known to be almost everything a drow should not be: Humane, trusting, and caring. On the other hand, she often is highly intelligent and passionate about her work, and approaches alchemy with a similar passion, even if she focuses more on healing than harming.

## Coffee Houses

When she was younger, Melissa visited Katapesh while her family was trying to force her to get involved in the poison trade. She inadvertently helped them get a much better deal than they normally would have gotten, however, when taking part in a Katapesh tradition: Drinking coffee at the start of a business proposal.

The young girl quickly fell in love, asking many questions about the drink: How it was prepared, how it was drunk, what people enjoyed about it. She loved it so much, in fact, that the man who they were working with- an enthusiast himself- ended up forgetting about the deal temporarily entirely, speaking with her at long length about the practices of Katapesh Coffee, about the coffee houses, and proper preparation, even gifting her her own coffee pot! The relationship went so well, that afterwards, he bought twice the amount of poison he had originally intended. Ever since, her family would bring her on negotiations to Katapesh, even after they gave up on getting her in the trade, since her love of coffee went over well in the foreign land. This is part of why they elected to keep her in the family, even if she was somewhat detached.

Once she became matriarch, she needed to decide how to make sure the family survived... And was naturally drawn to the one thing she loved most- Coffee. Using alchemy, she chose to improve the quality and effectiveness of coffee instead of brewing poisons like her predecessors. This went from coffee to tea, and eventually grew into also selling crafted alchemical items in general as well- but the coffee houses that her company set up are still focused on coffee and tea.

## Shop and Produce

Melissa's coffee houses sell basic cups of coffee by the pound- the typical 5 copper for a pound of Khave, 8 for a pound of Mwangi Jungle Blend, and 1 silver for a pound of Thelaris blend special coffee, a particularly powerful blend of coffee that put her family's business back into an at least tolerable public eye. Ten years ago, people wouldn't touch the stuff... But now, it's become something of a delicacy in many parts of the world.

Thelaris blend coffee is more effective than the already powerful Mwangi Jungle blend, where a single cup can not only make individuals feel less tired, but it makes them more energetic, able to stave off lack of energy and do more during the day, and has become a favorite of guards and travelers. This coffee put her family back on the map, and even to this day she travels and adventures, looking for ways to improve the already potent effects of her coffee.

To this day, she often chooses to meet with people in her stores, offering them a cup of coffee... both because she feels it's right to start a meeting with someone over coffee from her time in Katapesh, and also to try to help market her brand and be more personable in general. She isn't as readily sociable as her family before her, but she is clearly intelligent, and often gains the respect of those she works with due to her open and gentle nature, and love of her craft.