Barley/Relationships

The Crop-Tending Farmer, Formerly Known As "Dad"
When Barley was first discovered alive by the latter farmer, he immediately presented him to the stunned and frankly perplexed current Scarecrow forebear. After a lengthy talk and a bit of persuasion from the crop-tender in question, it was initially decided that Barley would stay with the owner of the Munchkin cornfield and that the Scarecrow would have bi-weekly visitation rights during school breaks.

Perhaps due to an odd case of imprinting, Barley quickly began calling the farmer "dad. That said, to say that "Dad" wasn't the most suitable father figure is an understatement. Whenever the farmer wasn't keeping up appearances during Scarecrow's visits, Barley spent most of his days outside of the farmstead to work out in the cornfield, tending to the crops and (failing to) fend off local crow infestations. He was almost never allowed to stay in the house – he avoided the elements by either rooming in barn or staying inside the shed, preferring the latter's stash of hidden almanacs and farmers' encyclopedias.

Over time, it became obvious that "Dad" was only keeping Barley around as an exploitable, non-tiring workforce. "Dad" constantly kept Scarecrow from knowing that he saw his successor as a glorified, literal trophy-child, and Barley was often left to wonder if "Dad" would have treated him differently had he already had a brain. The work was barely rewarded, and "Dad's" enchanted-object racism was quick to show whenever Scarecrow was away.

But the neglectful ,so-called family dynamic was quick to change after the events to Way Too Wonderland now that freedom of choice was officially now an option. After bringing it up during a difficult, yet well-needed conversation with his best friend Cora, the daughter of Nick Chopper was not going to let him remain unhappy working on a neglectful man's farmstead. She was quick to contact her own father and his friend Scarecrow about Barley's situation, and after "Dad" was given more than a few repercussions for his neglect and scarecrow-aimed prejudice, Scarecrow finally took the teen under his wing.

The Scarecrow of Oz
Though he was once more of a mentor than a father to his protege, Scarecrow cares deeply about the straw-stuffed teen. He was the first to see his potential, and thought that Barley had a bright enough (even though brainless) mind to apply to Ever After High. After the enrollment was accepted, he officially became the younger scarecrow's sponsor.

Eventually, after the events of Wonderland passed, he managed to take custody of him once the farmer's true colors were made known. Though he more than makes up for the Munchkin man's neglect, Scarecrow feels guilty for not realizing it earlier just what kind of selfish person he'd let into his life; and not just because his own brains weren't enough to piece it together.

In the meantime, he tends to spoil young Barley with his growing collection of books and ever-present insightfulness. He's a brilliant-minded stawman who wants the best for his child's education and well being, case in point.

Friends
Barley is quick to trust most anyone and considers many students, Ozian or otherwise, to be his friend  – whether they want to be or not. His excitable demeanor can be quite a bit polarizing, but he's all the more eager to form friendships nonetheless.

Cordelia Chopper
Barley met Cora after literally crashing into her upon arriving at school via wishing well teleportation (as described in the Ever After High novels). Despite the crash-and-meet, the odd duo managed to become friends. He admires the girl for her thick skin, generosity, and strong will; meanwhile Cora finds his optimism and quirky mannerisms especially endearing, and though his lack of experience sometimes concerns her, he puts his best efforts into being her BFFA.

After the events of Legacy Day (although before WtW), for a while there was an elephant in the room. While Cora was unsure about fitting inside of her father's tin shoes, Barley didn't quite understand her sentiments. Things on that subject had been bit rocky, but they both remained friends nonetheless.

Once Wonderland was restored, and Barley had explained explaining how troubles in his personal life affected his worries for the future, his friendship with Cora had grown closer than ever when she helped Scarecrow gain custody of him. The two of them are exceptionally protective of each others' well being, their (platonic though) strong bond for each other transcending the Royal-Rebel conflict.

Airmid Valerian
Albeit out of ignorance, a number of acquaintances that happen to know Barley consider him "brainless." Airmid isn't one of them, and they've both certainly passed that beginning stage of acknowledgement. Along with treating him as a person worthy of their intelligence and knowledge, the next Physician of Death helps to sustain the scarecrow's learning-bent enthusiasm. They're true brotp material companions who can talk to each other on varying subjects without the anxiety that comes with being looked down upon.

Coincidentally, he attends the same research uni as Airmid. The two of them ride the bus together between schools, making the ride to and back a little less lonely.

Bathilda Waits
When the future waiting-maid came across Barley, she didn't intend on having a soft spot for him. Then everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked, or specifically after tricking him into doing her clothes shopping. When the two arrived at a boutique in the Book End plaza, the conversation that followed went something like this: Cue the maid-of-honor, who happens to be trans, trying very hard to maintain her composure despite having reason to empathize with a socially dysphoric MOGAI haysack. Instead of dropping Barley off at the boutique to finish her shopping (as was the plan), Bathilda went in with him and helped his sort out his views on gender rolls and gender identity in general. She offered to buy some cute dresses and feminine-labeled accessories for him and herself, and they've been friends since.
 * Tilda: ~jokingly~ So anything you'd buy yourself?
 * Barley: Weeeeeell, I really like the dresses! But I think those are girls' clothes. Not that I can think, but-
 * Tilda: Well who told you that? :I
 * Barley: Uhh... ~scratches head~ I 'unno. But all the girls wear dresses at school and in the magazines, not the. Girls are just really lucky. :v
 * Tilda: Well, don't just believe it just because you see it. I mean, plebeians like you can wear can wear whatever the spell they want, right?
 * Barley: I guess so... ~shifts uncomfortably~
 * Tilda: Hey, you're gonna go in or what? You look like a guy with-
 * Barley: Nono, that's it! I know I'm not a girl, and I'm supposed to be a guy, and maybe I am a guy and I need brains to see it, but, ~beat, lowers voice~ I 'unno if I feel like it.
 * Tilda: (awkward pause) Oh?
 * Barley: ~beat~ ...Just. Welp. I don't feel like anything. I'm scarecrow and I'm nothing and I really don't like being either or, but, what if it's all me and I'm just too brainless to know what I am? ;;n;;

Barley views her as something of a role-model who won him over with her confidence and a helping hand; meanwhile, Bathilda views Barley as an oddly endearing (albeit naive) Ozian who is much more thoughtful than others give him credit for. Alongside going on shopping sprees, the two love to gush about the performing arts and humanities together.

Deryn Corbeau
Baubles, shiny things, and all sorts of randomly assorted "junk". These are at least three things that Barley and Deryn share an interest in, and neither seem to mind the irony of a crow becoming close friends with a living scarecrow. Despite the crow-girl's skepticism and Barley's boundless trust towards many an acquaintance, the two balance each other out with a supporting dash of shared excitability and enthusiasm.

He values his friendship with Deryn very much, though at times he can't help but feel that there might be something more between them. These feelings are quite confusing however given his lack of a physical heart, so for now he keeps these feelings quiet and enjoys her company (whether or not he wants to express them).

"Pet"
Once upon a time, Barley once came across a grackle that was injured by a flock of crows. The bird had gone blind from their ruthless attacks, and so he used a spare needle and thread to sew on a pair of blue button eyes to replace the ones that had been gouged out. Though Barley doesn't treat her as a literal pet, the grackle was thankful and adopted the nickname "Buttons" that Barley gave her while patching her up.

Before he was taken in by Scarecrow, Buttons was the only one Barley had for support whenever the current Scarecrow in question was away. The bird would lead the young scarecrow into the farmer's shed and used the Munchkin's almanacs, helping the teen with his reading comprehension and writing skills. And because Ozian magic is a rather unpredictable beast, Barley can still understand and communicate with Buttons while in Ever After, possibly resulting from the buttons sewn into her sockets having remote traces from the Powder of Life.

Romance
It's been said once and it'll thus be said again: smarts are better than hearts~

But on a serious note, his love life doesn't take too much priority over his living circumstances. Could it be said that, deep down, that he may or may want some sort of meaningful companionship, thus why he wants to stick to his story? Perhaps. Does it mean that said companionship has to be romantic? Until he finds reason to, not necessarily. He currently may or may not be crushing on Deryn, however.

That said, one thing that Barley worries about is not having the heart to form in a relationship. Literally. He's meant to have a brain after all, so wouldn't not having a heart in the first place be off-putting to others? In the meantime, this is the main reason why he's yet to mention his feelings to a certain young crow – let alone anyone he's ever crushed on, really.