Tepoh originated from the Mid Rim planet Naboo and identified as genderfluid and human. Beginning as a worker on Naboo, zhe eventually found employment with the Naboo diplomatic corps, which led to zher exploration of the galaxy beyond zher homeworld. In the year 22 BBY, Tepoh's skills attracted the attention of recruiters working for Senator Padmé Amidala, who invited zher to interview for a handmaiden position. Dormé, another handmaiden, was impressed by Tepoh during the interview process. However, Dormé ultimately selected other candidates to serve as aides to Amidala but recommended Tepoh to Representative Saché, a former colleague and a member of the Naboo planetary legislative assembly. Following an interview, Saché decided to hire Tepoh and bring zher along on a mission to the planet Karlinus to renegotiate a bill impacting the Chommell sector.
While traveling on a transport vessel, Tepoh, in the role of aide, studied a Karlini guidebook to prepare for upcoming diplomatic engagements and engaged in conversations with zher employer regarding zher gender identity. Upon arriving on Karlinus, Saché introduced Tepoh to Harli Jafan, a former associate from Saché's time as Amidala's handmaiden. Jafan then escorted the pair to the house of Governor Kelma in Karlini City. Tepoh exchanged greetings with Kelma before assisting Saché in drafting a legislative compromise related to the bill. Throughout their time on Karlinus, the aide supported zher employer, aiding Saché during diplomatic meetings and other endeavors. Once the mission concluded, Tepoh and zher employer departed Karlinus.
Tepoh, a human who identified as genderfluid, entered the world on the planet of Naboo located in the Mid Rim. During the Republic Era, this Naboo worker began zher career with the diplomatic corps based on zher homeworld. During zher tenure in the corps, zhe participated in various assignments, serving both as an aide and as part of a protective detail. At some point, Tepoh made time to explore the galaxy beyond the borders of Naboo.
In 22 BBY, the Naboo's former queen, Senator Padmé Amidala, had recruiters who noticed Tepoh's work in the diplomatic corps. Amidala's handmaiden, Dormé, invited zher to an interview to determine if zhe was a suitable aide for the senator. Despite initial hesitations, Tepoh attended at least one interview out of curiosity and made a favorable impression on Dormé. However, Dormé ultimately chose other candidates as handmaidens for Amidala, acknowledging that Tepoh's diverse talents were too similar to her own. Subsequently, Dormé recommended Tepoh to her former colleague Representative Saché, who was employed by the Naboo planetary legislative assembly.
Soon after, Saché reached out to Tepoh and scheduled an interview for an aide position. The representative inquired about Tepoh's interest in a handmaiden role with Amidala. Tepoh explained that she had not initially been interested but had been sought out by the senator's recruiters. The two discussed Saché's experience as Amidala's handmaiden during her reign as queen. Tepoh elaborated on zher journey of affirming zher gender identity and self-awareness. Trusting Dormé's recommendation, Saché chose to hire Tepoh as her aide.
Following this, zhe prepared to accompany zher new employer to the planet Karlinus for a diplomatic mission aimed at renegotiating a bill that affected the Chommell sector—a sector of space encompassing both Karlinus and Naboo. Tepoh assisted in packing the representative's belongings and organizing travel arrangements, impressing Saché with zher attention to detail. During the transport vessel journey to Karlinus, Tepoh studied a Karlini guidebook to become more familiar with the planet's culture before the diplomatic meetings, as zhe had not previously visited the world. Upon arrival on Karlinus, Saché introduced Tepoh to Harli Jafan, a former associate from her time as Amidala's handmaiden. As Jafan escorted them to the home of Governor Kelma in Karlini City, Tepoh eagerly observed zher surroundings as they traversed the city. After their arrival, Kelma welcomed Saché and her aide to Karlinus and greeted Tepoh upon learning zher name. As zher employer began working with the governor, Tepoh furnished the representative with her official legislative recording device, datapad, and stylus.
On the first day of meetings, Tepoh accompanied Saché during the early dinner break. As zhe quickly took notes on zher datapad, Kelma requested a private conversation with Saché. Saché suggested zhe depart, take a break from screens to rest, and then take a tour of the gardens. Although the dismissal was abrupt, Tepoh was familiar with political dealings and took no offense. While Tepoh was away, Saché met with Karlini citizens to hear their stories of liberation from slavery and wished Tepoh had joined her.
When Saché returned to the city, curious to discover who was responsible for the liberation of individuals, Tepoh began working with her to plot the origin planets of the freed individuals on a galactic map. After some hours, near midnight, Tepoh proposed a theory as zhe projected a three-dimensional map from zher table to the air. Zhe theorized that the connection of the Outer Rim planets centered around the frontlines of the Clone Wars conflict between the Republic and the Separatists. Saché confirmed each world was affected by Separatist incursions that received a response from the Republic Army and where Republic law did not exist. Tepoh then suggested that small merchant-run companies who had initiated transporting supplies due to the war were responsible for freeing enslaved individuals. After the conversation ended, Tepoh yawned, and Saché sent zher to bed.
Later, Tepoh joined Saché as the community of representatives discussed amendments to the legislation. During the economics discussion, Tepoh informed Saché when matters required her attention. After the successful reworking of the bill, Tepoh joined Saché at the celebration, accompanied with zher datapad, where zhe informed her that all their belongings had been packed and zhe was ready to schedule the pair's departure in thirty minutes; they then left Karlinus together.
Tepoh, a highly driven and well-organized aide, found joy in meticulous attention to detail. Zhe took immense pride in zher work and consistently sought to enhance zher professional skills. Tepoh held strong convictions about the fluidity of zher gender identity, experiencing fluctuating desires to be perceived as female. By the time zhe served as Saché's aide, Tepoh had developed a comfortable relationship with zher internal sense of self. Despite initial nervousness about applying for Amidala's handmaiden position, zhe found solace in Saché's assurance that zhe would have excelled as the senator's aide. Tepoh valued recognition for zher work and was pleasantly surprised when Kelma acknowledged zher presence at diplomatic meetings alongside Saché and inquired about the appropriate way to address zher.
Having gained experience in the Naboo diplomatic corps, Tepoh demonstrated a remarkable talent for managing Saché's demanding legislative schedule. Zhe was a diligent, detail-oriented individual who took pride in zher professional performance. Dormé regarded Tepoh's skillset as akin to that of the Naboo Royal Handmaidens, a group she considered multi-talented and versatile.
As Saché's aide, Tepoh possessed a wardrobe filled with practical clothing that reflected zher personality. Zhe placed great importance on zher choice of attire and only accepted positions that allowed zher to dress according to zher preferences. During zher interview with Saché, zhe wore a flowing green skirt. While on a mission to Karlinus, zhe sported a silver, embroidered blazer and dark blue trousers. On the same trip, Tepoh wore a flowy, knee-length tunic with several pockets, which zhe used to carry various items.
Tepoh's responsibilities as Saché's attendant required zher to utilize and carry numerous devices throughout zher day. Zhe owned a datapad, which zhe used for taking notes swiftly during meetings. Tepoh also acquired a Karlini guidebook and studied it during the journey to Karlini. Additionally, zhe carried Saché's datapad, official legislative recording device, and stylus, providing them upon request during negotiations.
Tepoh made an appearance in Queen's Hope, a young-adult novel penned by E. K. Johnston in 2022. In response to a fan's inquiry, Johnston revealed that while she did not envision Tepoh to resemble any specific person, she imagined zher with long hair styled in an updo. The author also noted that Tepoh's clothing choices were often fancier than Harli Jafan's, emphasizing that zher overall look depended on the gender zhe was presenting at any given time, mirroring the aide's desire for zher clothing to reflect zher fluid gender identity. In 2020, Johnston suggested on Twitter that Amidala would welcome a non-binary handmaiden on her team. The author later incorporated this concept into Queen's Hope by introducing Tepoh as a non-binary interview candidate for the senator's team, including prose that supported the idea of an individual of any gender—not just girls—being able to assume the role as long as they could fulfill their duties.
Johnston regarded the story of how she developed Tepoh as one of her favorite tales to share. She mentioned that zhe was present in the first draft of Queen's Hope and initially used both "he" and "she" pronouns, alternating them within scenes to reflect the aide's gender fluidity. Eventually, the author decided to create a new neopronoun set for Tepoh to simplify the scenes for readers. At the suggestion of Jennifer Heddle from Lucasfilm Story Group, Johnston agreed to change from the original set of pronouns she created to "zhe/zher" pronoun set, which was first introduced within Star Wars canon by author Chuck Wendig in Star Wars: The Aftermath Trilogy and used for the non-binary pirate Eleodie Maracavanya at the suggestion of Jennifer Heddle from Lucasfilm Story Group. While writing, Johnston paired Tepoh specifically with Saché because she was the most independent of Amidala's handmaidens still working in the political scenes, and noted that Dormé's passing of zher details to the representative was intentional. When the author sent in the draft, the Story Group asked her if she would be willing to make Tepoh a trans character instead. However, after thinking about the topic for a few moments, Johnston indicated she would not be willing to, as the character's gender was not static during zher interactions with Saché and zher dialogue was very dependent on zher gender fluidity. The author then added the transgender clone trooper Sister to the second draft in addition to Tepoh to meet the request, an addition that was celebrated by the Story Group's Emily Shkoukani, who she had several conversations regarding the aide with.
The author included Tepoh in the book specifically to be a character who could not be Amidala's shadow in the way that Sabé was—not because of lack of physical similarity—but for personal and emotional reasons. She considered the aide's role integral to Sabé's development in Queen's Hope despite the two never crossing paths as a person who could not be Amidala's double but was nonetheless capable of great things. When writing Tepoh's scenes, Johnston was inspired by a scene including the genderfluid character Alex from the second Magnus Chase book, The Hammer of Thor, in which Alex's gender changed several times within a scene. She wished to capture the same essence as Alex's inclusion in that Tepoh would wake up some mornings and be capable of putting on a dress to be Amidala's shadow but be incapable of such on other mornings, which would preclude zher from the position of handmaiden when body doubling was needed.