Ashley Graves
Ashley "Leyley" Graves is one of the two titular main protagonists of The Coffin of Andy and Leyley. She shares this role with her brother, Andrew Graves.
"You chose me! ME!! You backpedaling fuck of a brother!! You chose me, you did!! YOU DID!!" ― Ashley when she argues with Andrew in Room 302[source]
Ashley Graves
Physical Appearance
Ashley has light pink eyes and fair skin, but her physical appearance is contrasted with dark clothes. Most of her clothes are black: she wears a black choker with a pendant hanging from it, black ankle socks, and gray denim shorts. She also wears a black top that bares her cleavage; a pair of matching black bra straps can be seen underneath it as a result. While the rest of it is usually covered, her bra itself is shown to have white polka dots and lace on it in some of her official art. Her hair is similarly messy and uncombed; she keeps it tied at the back in a ponytail. Much like the other characters, her in-game sprite is a stoic grayscale pixel-art version of her.
Personality
Ashley exhibits sociopathic and antisocial traits throughout the game. She feels no remorse after committing violent crimes, such as murder and cannibalism. Not only is she verbally violent as well, she's apathetic when it comes to other people's feelings-- even as a child, she felt no remorse for murdering Nina after finding out she had a crush on her brother. She also berated and hounded Julia for dating Andrew, which resulted in them breaking up.
Ashley has demonstrated an unhealthy obsession with Andrew, to the point that she'd do anything if it ensured his continued presence by her side. This jealousy means she has no qualms with killing the people closest to them or indulging him in any of his desires, whether romantic or sexual. As he was her sole caretaker, she became reliant on him because of the neglect her parents imposed on her.
Just like Andrew, she is codependent on her sibling, which leads them to enable each other in their insanity. The toxic relationship means their interactions often border on the extreme, with events such as lengthy conversations about suicide, murder, and incest. However, unlike him, she has a confident, unconcerned, and upbeat attitude which often annoys him.
Background
Ashley is the second child and only daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Graves. Since their parents thought she would be "easy" to raise, Ashley's primary caretaker had been Andrew. It is suggested that Ashley did not have a proper and comfortable place at the family's dining table. More than that, Ashley felt constantly neglected and pushed away by her parents. It was Andrew who fulfilled the role of both mother and father for Ashley but, as a child himself, he would spoil her and cater to her every demand in exchange. One of Ashley's fondest memories includes Andrew spending his allowance to buy her lemon muffin cakes for her birthday.
Ashley also had few friends; her only friends, two girls named Nina and Julia, were wary of her yet smitten with her brother. Ashley felt betrayed when Nina confessed to her that she had a crush on Andrew and as such, persuaded Andrew to help her 'teach Nina a lesson.' This lesson involved trapping the young girl in a dusty storage box in an abandoned warehouse, only for the siblings to leave her trapped overnight. The next day, Ashley was surprised but not horrified by Nina dying and helps Andrew hide her body in the nearby forest.
At some point, Andrew started dating Julia and Ashley's friendship with the girl soon fell apart. She would send her numerous voice mails and mailed death threats to insult and harass Julia. According to Andrew, Ashley would also constantly call him and ask him for help that would compel him to cancel on his dates with Julia.
Prior to the events of the game, Andrew and Ashley had to be quarantined alongside their whole apartment building due to a 'parasite infestation' in their water supply. Ashley would then spend the next three months in quarantine with Andrew and starts to starve once they run out of food and their building's wardens stop supplying them with food. She would also attempt to call their mother numerous times, to no avail.
The Coffin of Andy and Leyley
Episode 1: The Coffin
Ashley and her brother are starved inside the building due to their food supplies running out and the guards not giving them any food, that is until their neighbor dies during a botched demonic summoning. Ashley again pressures Andrew into helping her chop up the neighbor's body so they could both eat him. When the guards finally notice the neighbor is missing Ashley is attacked but the guard is killed by her brother before she is hurt.
Ashley and her brother now plan to escape but during their attempt end up killing the other guard inside the building by sacrificing him to a demonic entity. The siblings both escape the apartment complex and go into the city as criminals running from the law with a now uncertain future ahead of them.
Episode 2: Graves
The episode's ending varies depending on a pair of choices. The first condition is whether or not Andrew spends all of the ammo in Ashley's stolen gun. The second condition is whether or not Ashley trusts Andrew in keeping watch over their parents.
These change both Andrew's and Ashley's dispositions and their interactions, which can range from being hostile and terse to affectionate and teasing. It also reflects on Ashley's sense of safety around Andrew, and whether she fears his 'change' in contrast to the Andy she previously knew.
Burial
In this route, Ashley is initially bothered by Andrew's change in disposition: she worries about his lack of indecision and constant anxiety. At the same time, she enjoys his attention and his endeared teasing. The Burial route further splits into two: the Love route and the Friendship route, depending on Ashley's choices in her next vision.
Love route
This route prominently features a prophetic vision with Andrew and Ashley post-coitus. Although Ashley is embarrassed that Andrew also saw her vision, she's not disgusted by the implication that their relationship can turn sexual, if not romantic. When Andrew wants her to promise 'they aren't like that,' Ashley has the choice to say 'never' or 'never say never.' Regardless of her choice, the ending of the Love route suggests that Ashley saw their sexual relations as both inevitable and a way for her to keep Andrew around.
Friendship route
In this route, the siblings do not get a prophetic vision of them post-coitus. Ashley's vision is merely her interacting with spirits, one of which is implied to be Andrew, and Andrew does not experience any vision. Later on, the two seem to restrain their interactions; they start to set boundaries to their relationship as platonic and familial. Ashley is also bothered by Andrew's apparent distance, but she plays along with his banter.
Decay
When the Graves siblings dine on their parent's corpses after killing them in this route, Ashley will tell Andrew that she ate people's flesh because she believes doing so will make her feel superior to other human beings and she will gain their knowledge and absorb their lives into her.
In this route, Ashley's next vision is interrupted by the presence of an aggressive and hostile Andrew. She attempts to escape, only for Andrew to catch up to her and he holds her at cleaver-point. The route further splits into two, technically three, outcomes: An Andrew route and an Ashley route. An outcome where Andrew kills Ashley, however, is determined by whether or not Andrew spent all of the gun's ammo on the hitman at the start of Episode 2.
Andrew route
If Andrew spent all of the ammo, Ashley is unable to defend herself and Andrew slits her throat. Ashley is terrified upon waking up and resolves to mend their relationship to no avail. Andrew's distance is more hostile, even rude, and Ashley vacillates between provoking him and becoming meek to appease him. After they discard their parents' remains, Ashley is worried about what Andrew would do and if their relationship is still fine.
If Andrew did not spend all of the ammo, Ashley can choose to shoot him or let him kill her. If the player chooses the latter, Ashley teases Andrew before he can kill her. He whispers, "Then I'll see you in a bit," and slits her throat. The rest of events are the same as when Andrew kills Ashley before she can defend herself.
Ashley route
If Andrew did not spend all of the ammo, Ashley can choose to shoot him or let him kill her. If the player chooses the former, Ashley threatens Andrew with the gun before she shoots. She then shoots his corpse multiple times, crying as she does so, and then wakes up. The rest of events are the same as when Andrew kills Ashley in either 'no ammo' or 'with ammo' outcome.
Trivia
- Ashley is the first protagonist introduced in Episode 1, and the only one playable in the first episode. This changes when she shares the spotlight with Andrew in Episode 2.
