a kerosene lantern, burning blue Requiescat, the shovel

tsuchi ni kaeru — return to the soil

Enna Mai

the gravekeeper · a small crooked house for art, lore and noise

✟ the keeper

Anxious graveyard keeper with a short fuse and a sharp tongue. Reburies the restless dead with her shovel, accompanied by a black cat.

That is the short version, the one she would give you if you cornered her at the gate. The long version is below, and she would rather you read it while she is busy elsewhere.

the sheet

full nameEnna Mai
calledenna
pronounsshe / her
speciesblack cat
height163 cm (5'4")
buildslender, very pale
occupationkeeper of the cemetery — tending, watching, reburying
toolsRequiescat, an all-iron shovel
companyMr. Nero, a small black cat (?)
tonedark fantasy · atmospheric · melancholic · strange but cosy

how she started

In a graveyard of endless mist, soft rain and damp stone, Enna woke inside an open grave with her hands already closed around a shovel, as if she had been buried holding it. She had no memory of anything before, and no idea that her own life had already ended. So she climbed out, looked around, and started working.

Nobody handed her the job. There was simply a hole that needed closing, and then another, and then a great many more.

what is going on inside her

Enna feels every emotion at maximum volume. The cold, distant surface is a lid, and underneath it sits a dense knot of grief, quiet rage and general overload. Under that: a very short fuse and a dry, sharp wit that works as a release valve.

She startles easily. She is anxious in a way that never quite switches off. She talks and sings to herself constantly, mostly so the silence does not get a word in. She is unfailingly gentle with the dead and openly prickly with the living, which she does not consider a contradiction.

the parts she was built from

feline traits

Black cat ears and a black tail, fixed features that carry across every design. The tail thins toward the tip until the bone shows through the fur. In the casual outfit her feet read as paws — the only look where she goes barefoot. The inside of her mouth is black, tongue included.

the left eye

Kept under an eyepatch. It catches sight of things that linger where they should not, so she keeps it covered and lifts the patch only when she has to look. She does not enjoy having to look.

requiescat, the shovel

All iron, no ornament, the one she actually digs with. The blade carries a runic inscription — ᛊᚿᛈᚿᚱ ᚰᛆᛄᛆᚱᚾᛉᛄ · ᚾᛆᚷᚿ ᚶᛄᚲᚰᚹᛄᚼ — sopor aeternus, nemo excitet: the rest it grants, and the warning to leave that rest alone.

the orb

A small orb hangs from the chain of her choker and shifts between black, pink and lilac depending on her mood. She insists it is decorative. It is not only decorative.

mr. nero

A small black cat (?) who is always with her, wherever she goes. Both of them hold more than they let on.

the two looks

graveyard keeper — debut

Her primary appearance: the cemetery keeper, on duty, dressed for weather and work.

  • #C3BCDDleft eye
  • #E1CAE4left eye
  • #92909Eright eye
  • #FCE3E7hair
  • #FFF4F8skin
  • #5A607Aclothes
  • #B2B7D7clothes
  • #30343Ddetails

casual outfit — current

Enna off duty, in the dead hours when no graves need closing. Same sleepless soul, softer clothes. This is the only look where her feet stay bare, so the paws show. A shorter alternative hairstyle is on the way, and the choker has picked up an update at the sides.

  • #FEF8F8skin
  • #9FA4C2hair
  • #28272Dears, tail & paws
  • #CCAAA9inner ear
  • #EAE4D8exposed bone
  • #45454Fclothes
  • #6B6A78hoodie fur
  • #94A0CAdrawstrings
  • #B1B2C7warmers, stripe I
  • #4E4E5Awarmers, stripe II
  • #9D9797torn tights
  • #F2E2D3bandaids

visual direction

Storybook illustration with a crooked edge: soft hand-drawn shapes and a slightly off, dollhouse strangeness that never tips into scary. Muted, moody palette. She lives on the other side, among the dead, where its own quiet rules apply — so the uncanny should read as cosy and lived-in, never threatening.

Character concept and current design by enna. Original artwork and early design contributions by Azzy. Please do not use, trace or repost the design as your own.