Post by savethestars on Oct 28, 2008 5:32:18 GMT 1
Introducing...
Name:
Deirdre Rois Barclay {pseudonym is Dei}
Age:
June 3, 2008 {14 years old}
Gemini
Gender:
Female {Witch}
Year:
Fourth Year
Birthplace:
Edwinstowe, Nottinghamshire, England
Ethnicity:
Caucasian {Half Irish, Half English}
Blood:
Half-blood {Dad's a wizard, mum was a Muggle}
Relatives:
Father - Samuel Reginald Barclay {pureblood, belonged to Gryffindor}
Mother - Aisling Rois Barclay {Muggle, nee Baine, deceased}
Brother - Marcus Reginald Barclay {half-blood, belonged to Ravenclaw, deceased}
Pets:
Dei has one pet: a female barn owl called Maeve. She's been Dei's constant companion since first year, and always prefers to sleep perched at the head of her human friend's four-poster bed. Sometimes the girls' dormitory does get a bit stuffy for Maeve, so she often flies out the window and above the castle spires for some fresh air. (Provided someone leaves the window open or partially unlatched. Maeve's not bad at picking locks.)
Wand Type:
Twelve inches, rowan and unicorn hair. Best used for Divination, although produces excellent results in Transfiguration and Charms as well. (Funny, because Divination is her second favorite subject, her first being Astronomy, her third being Defense Against the Dark Arts, her fourth Charms, and her fifth Transfiguration.) Dei's wand is sturdy but a little unstable; it's successful at healing spells and adequate/efficient at active battle spells (including the defensive ones.)
Appearance
Picture:
Hair Colour:
Auburn, and it falls to her lower back
Eye Colour:
Dark brown, but they appear dark amber when she's in darker clothing. (Dark amber is lighter than dark brown.)
Build:
Dei is slender and thin, but not anorexic.
Skin Tone:
White/peachy. Her cheeks have a natural rosy glow, and she has some light freckles scattered across her face. (Another thing that she inherited from her mum.)
Height:
5' 8" (Rather tall.)
Dress Style:
When not in uniform, Dei's dress style varies. Usually it can be classified as urban, as she often wears t-shirts, tank tops, spaghetti straps, leather belts, jeans, skirts, you name it. The things about her style that are constant and unchanging are her adoration for the color pink, her love of neutral-colored shawls, short jackets, belted overcoats, turtlenecks, and her vast earring collection. In the warmer months she definitely lets loose and wears a ton of pink shirts, beige short jackets, and flowery skirts. In the colder months she usually wears her school uniform since she never returns home for the holidays. She also wears long, dark-colored overcoats, turtlenecks, belts, jeans, and a lot of wool.
Specifics:
Deirdre inherited her late mother's auburn hair and her father's calm, brown eyes. Dei has her mother's gentle nature and curious mind, and her father's perseverance and bravery. She's a crazy mixture of both of her parents, and as a result, she tends to be indecisive and slightly bipolar. Dei's father often says she bears a striking resemblance to his mother, due to her high forehead and slightly pouting lower lip.
In Front Of Friends
Sexual Orientation:
Heterosexual
Self Image:
She definitely perceives herself as fashion-forward and knowledgeable in the clothing department. At the same time, she knows she's extremely brainy and doesn't mind the label of "know-it-all" that she's identified by.
However, she hates being antisocial and wishes she could work up the muster to make new friends, but she's been held back the last four years by fear. Dei's afraid of her grades dropping if she focuses on friends too much, she's afraid that people don't or won't like her, and she's afraid of her friends dropping out of school or moving away (which has happened to her before on a few occasions).
To the Outward Eye:
The students at Hogwarts think of Deirdre as extremely brainy and hard to approach. They just pass her by in the hallways, not taking a second look at her. Despite Dei's beauty, no one's bothered to ask her out, because they don't know she's beautiful on the inside, either. The teachers, on the other hand, adore her. They enjoy having her in their classes and they're happy with her contributions to the class community. She's a great student overall, but her professors have noticed her lack of socialization.
Social Status:
Definitely a misunderstood outcast. Why? From her first year onward, she couldn't get past her generally shy nature. She's gotten over her fear a little as the years went by, but she still hasn't made any friends. Unless you count Callista Espin, a fellow fourth year, and they've only just met.
Positive Traits:
Negative Traits:
Skills:
Deirdre prides herself on precision of language. She loves using words that confuse people, and often spends her free time reading dictionaries, thesauri, and encyclopedias.
Likes:
Dislikes:
Patronus:
A tiger. Calm and beautiful on the outside, but not so cool under pressure. Collected but a little unstable, somewhat like Deirdre.
Boggart:
An Arithmancy textbook. Why? Arithmancy is her worst subject, and she despises it.
World Passing By
Subjects:
Astronomy - O
Care of Magical Creatures - O
Charms - E
Defense Against the Dark Arts - O
Transfiguration - E
Herbology - O
Potions - O
Divination - O
Arithmancy - A
Report:
All of her teachers (except maybe her Arithmancy professor) describe her as a diligent, hardworking student who puts excellent effort into her work and shows great promise in many subjects. However, the staff at Hogwarts has noticed that she's rather antisocial, and they wish she would put a little time into finding some suitable friends.
Personal Statement:
Dei absolutely adores Astronomy, Divination, Care of Magical Creatures, and Defense Against the Dark Arts. She does have excellent marks in Potions and Herbology, but she finds that she has to work a bit harder to get O's in those subjects. Potions is really complicated for Dei and Herbology can become monotonous after a while, but they're definitely not beyond her capabilities. As for Arithmancy... let's just say she'd rather have detention in Potions class than listen to Professor Grey lecture. And yes, she often gets drowsy in that class, but never once has she fallen asleep. (But she has been known to daydream.)
History:
Deirdre Rois Barclay was born on June 3, 2008 to Samuel and Aisling Barclay in the tiny village of Edwinstowe, in north Nottinghamshire, England. She was born the younger of two children, her older brother being Marcus Reginald Barclay. He was ten when Deirdre was born. The first thing her mother Aisling said after she was born was to her husband: "She looks just like your mum!" to which Mr. Barclay replied "Yeah, but she's got your hair." Marcus, who'd been outside playing during Deirdre's birth, simply rolled his eyes and pursed his lips in distaste. Starting from when Deirdre was born, she and her brother never saw eye-to-eye. However, her lack of a relationship with Marcus didn't stop her childhood from being happy and healthy, for the most part. Growing up in Edwinstowe meant increased Muggle activity because of the popular destination spot of Sherwood Forest, which coincidentally happened to be Deirdre's favorite place to hang out. Beginning at age six, she used to sneak out of her family's cottage at night and walk to the forest, which was only about two minutes away. After all, the village of Edwinstowe is located at the heart of Sherwood Forest. She'd sit under the legendary Major Oak, which was said to be the former base of the mythological hero Robin Hood. Ironically, Deirdre would sit and read Robin Hood there. If you haven't already guessed, Muggle literature fascinated her. The reason she didn't visit the forest during the daylight hours is because there were always too many Muggles around for Deidre to have her peace and quiet.
When she was eight, the Muggle authorities finally noticed that someone had been sneaking past the night guards posted at the side entrance to the visitors' center parking lot. The chicken wire fence had dents in the exact same places each week, and small juice boxes kept mysteriously appearing under the Major Oak. (It took them a while to figure that out, didn't it?) They organized heavier nighttime security, and as a result, Deirdre could no longer sit beside the Major Oak and read fascinating stories of bravery, romance, and adventure, much less sneak into Sherwood Forest. But Deirdre had always been resourceful. She decided she had to tell someone about her late night outings, so she informed Marcus of her transgressions. He was immediately appalled and inclined to tell their parents, but then Deirdre made a pact with him. She would agree not to tell their parents that he was dating a seventh year Hogwarts student if he would take her to the Major Oak every other Friday of the month by Side-Along Apparition. Reluctantly, her eighteen-year-old brother agreed. At first, Marcus was apprehensive about the whole thing. He knew the Muggle authorities wouldn't and couldn't detect Apparition, but he didn't want their parents to find out he'd been letting his little sister break Muggle laws. (He hadn't gotten out of his parents house at the time.) Over time, as they continued to Apparate to Sherwood Forest, they did put aside most of their differences and formed a much closer bond as brother and sister. They began to affectionately refer to each other as "Marc" and "Dei."
Their friendship grew ever stronger over the next three years, and before long, it was Dei's turn to receive her Hogwarts letter. No one was surprised when it arrived the day after her eleventh birthday, carried in the talons of an old snowy owl, which Marc recognized as the very same bird that gave him his letter almost ten years earlier. Sam Barclay surmised that someone had done a little research into Marc's immediate family to pull that one off. Two days later, Marc took Dei to Diagon Alley for some much needed school shopping. She was fascinated by everything. "I... I heard Dad talk about this place, but I never really expected it to be this... magical." Marc smirked teasingly, and replied, "What did you expect, Dei. We're magic." Their first stop, after making a withdrawal at Gringotts, was Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions. Her fitting didn't take much more than fifteen minutes. They then began making their way down the alley, stopping at Eeylops Owl Emporium, Flourish and Blotts, Ollivander's Wand Shop, Pottidge's Cauldron Shop, the works. By the end of the day, all their money was spent on first year essentials. As they entered The Leaky Cauldron, Dei whispered quietly, "Now all I have to do is wait until the first of September."
Sadly, however, Dei's family would experience a horrible tragedy barely two weeks later. While Dei and her father were celebrating her upcoming trip to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Aisling and Marcus had elected to stay home. (They felt that Dei and Sam needed some father/daughter bonding time, and they wanted a quiet night in at home.) The next morning, Marc had planned to take his mum by Side-Along Apparition to London to give Marc a housewarming party for his new apartment. When Samuel and Deirdre returned from their evening in town, they arrived to find their single-story house completely ramsacked. Mr. Barclay's spellbooks were strewn everywhere, with pages ripped and torn out. Shelves were bare, their contents lining the floors. Mysteriously, however, all the Muggle items they possessed had not been harmed. "Why're all of your things wrecked, Dad?" Dei had asked, not fully comprehending the gravity of the situation. "This'll probably take weeks to clean up, won't it?" Mr. Barclay didn't reply. "Deirdre. Find Mum and Marc." Dei had actually smiled. "Okay. Um, I'll check the parlor." And she did so. Sam, only a few paces behind her, heard her scream. "It's Mum and Marc! T-th-they're n-no-not moving." Both pairs of eyes widened in shock. And that's when Dei lost it. "What are we supposed to do?! Should we call the Ministry?!" Mr. Barclay was still perfectly calm. The shock of seeing his wife and son motionless on the carpet had not quite grasped him yet. "I want you to go to your room and stay there until I say otherwise. I have no choice but to contact the Muggle authorities."
All night, Dei had wept in fear and loss and abandonment. The next day, her father informed her that her mum and Marc had been pronounced legally dead by the Muggles. The cause of death was the same for both victims: a clean blow to the head with a heavy object. After examining the bodies and all possible murder weapons in the vicinity of the house and garden, no fingerprints were found. No one could be charged with the crime of a double homicide. As far as the Muggles were concerned, the case remained open. A week later, they were buried atop a hill a few miles outside of Edwinstowe, after Mr. Barclay had convinced the Baine family to let mother and son be buried together, and outside of Aisling's native Ireland. A month later, Dei left for Hogwarts. But all the hustle and bustle of the King's Cross station didn't excite her, neither did the method of reaching Platform Nine and Three Quarters. Five minutes before the Hogwarts Express was to set off, Dei boarded the train. She was still numb. She couldn't cry. She couldn't get angry. She told her father, "It should have been Marc taking me here. It should have been you and Mum waving goodbye."
Her first year at Hogwarts went by, and she learned to cope with her losses. Her second and third years were uneventful, other than getting teased by the older students for being socially inept and as a result, having no friends. Her grades, however, stayed consistently excellent. She only ever received As in Arithmancy, and that wasn't surprising. (Numbers, remember?) Deirdre is about to begin her fourth year, and she hopes it will be different. Her goal, actually, is to make at least one friend. She wants a change of pace.
Roleplay Sample:
Fwoom! Swoosh! Bang! Finished homework, blank pieces of parchment, quills, ink vials, and various other school supplies toppled onto the carpet beneath Dei's four-poster bed. She practically jumped to the floor and began to stuff her fallen belongings hastily into her magenta over-the-shoulder bag, checking to make sure that nothing had been damaged or broken. Fortunately, no ink had been spilled and her assignments hadn't been ripped irreparably. Most importantly, her thirteen-inch paper on the behavioral traits of the Dugbog for Defense Against the Dark Arts was still intact. After she finished loading everything up, she heaved the satchel onto her bed. Sighing heavily, she glanced at her father's old pocket watch and her eyes widened in disbelief. "Oh no. I'm gonna be late for Divination!"
It had been about ten minutes since Deirdre had left the common room, and she was approaching the stairwell to the seventh floor of the castle. Stupid staircase. Ugh. It better not move. She paused for a moment, tensing her muscles, preparing for a running start. Yeah. Okay. No pressure. She took a deep breath, and took off. "AGGHHH!" Dei had made it halfway up the stairs when they started to move again. Silently cursing her luck and lack of organizational skills, she bit her lip and waited until motion completely ceased. She stepped off, and immediately realized where she was. "Fourth floor? You've gotta be kidding me. You have got to be kidding me." Fourth floor was where her Arithmancy class was located. "Geez, it's like a curse or something. The one class I'm horrible at. I'm late for Divination and, to make matters worse, I'm standing just outside the Arithmancy classroom."
Typical Deirdre. After a few seconds of staring appallingly at the wooden door that marked the "entrance to boredom," as she sometimes called it, she leapt back onto the staircase. She didn't want to be on the fourth floor any longer than she was required to. Besides, Arithmancy wasn't until the afternoon. Anyway, it took a little over five minutes for Dei to make it to the seventh floor, and another half a minute to reach the trap door/ladder combination that connected to the Divination classroom. She hurriedly pulled the trap door open and began to climb the ladder, but paused for a moment. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a thin strip of white parchment floating to the ground. She stepped down the ladder, and put her feet down on the seventh floor. Dei picked up the parchment. In spidery handwriting, the note read "To all Divination students: class will be cancelled today. Your homework is to read Chapter Five of Unfogging the Future. I will also not be available for weekend tutoring sessions this weekend only. If you require assistance, I suggest you ask a fellow student for help, such as Miss Barclay." Well, it certainly didn't look or sound like Professor Addair's writing, so she assumed one of the prefects had written it. Dei smiled nonetheless. She secretly enjoyed being a teacher's pet. And she wasn't all that pleased with this class in particular being postponed. She sighed. "Second time this week."
Out of Character
Name:
Miral
Age:
14
Name of Playby:
Nikki Cole Capalbo {ModelMayhem}
Other Characters:
N/A
How you found Hex:
This site was recommended by a friend in real life. She's Callista Espin. I also recruited someone else here with the help of Callista. Her name is Daphne Walker.
Name:
Deirdre Rois Barclay {pseudonym is Dei}
Age:
June 3, 2008 {14 years old}
Gemini
Gender:
Female {Witch}
Year:
Fourth Year
Birthplace:
Edwinstowe, Nottinghamshire, England
Ethnicity:
Caucasian {Half Irish, Half English}
Blood:
Half-blood {Dad's a wizard, mum was a Muggle}
Relatives:
Father - Samuel Reginald Barclay {pureblood, belonged to Gryffindor}
Mother - Aisling Rois Barclay {Muggle, nee Baine, deceased}
Brother - Marcus Reginald Barclay {half-blood, belonged to Ravenclaw, deceased}
Pets:
Dei has one pet: a female barn owl called Maeve. She's been Dei's constant companion since first year, and always prefers to sleep perched at the head of her human friend's four-poster bed. Sometimes the girls' dormitory does get a bit stuffy for Maeve, so she often flies out the window and above the castle spires for some fresh air. (Provided someone leaves the window open or partially unlatched. Maeve's not bad at picking locks.)
Wand Type:
Twelve inches, rowan and unicorn hair. Best used for Divination, although produces excellent results in Transfiguration and Charms as well. (Funny, because Divination is her second favorite subject, her first being Astronomy, her third being Defense Against the Dark Arts, her fourth Charms, and her fifth Transfiguration.) Dei's wand is sturdy but a little unstable; it's successful at healing spells and adequate/efficient at active battle spells (including the defensive ones.)
Appearance
Picture:
Hair Colour:
Auburn, and it falls to her lower back
Eye Colour:
Dark brown, but they appear dark amber when she's in darker clothing. (Dark amber is lighter than dark brown.)
Build:
Dei is slender and thin, but not anorexic.
Skin Tone:
White/peachy. Her cheeks have a natural rosy glow, and she has some light freckles scattered across her face. (Another thing that she inherited from her mum.)
Height:
5' 8" (Rather tall.)
Dress Style:
When not in uniform, Dei's dress style varies. Usually it can be classified as urban, as she often wears t-shirts, tank tops, spaghetti straps, leather belts, jeans, skirts, you name it. The things about her style that are constant and unchanging are her adoration for the color pink, her love of neutral-colored shawls, short jackets, belted overcoats, turtlenecks, and her vast earring collection. In the warmer months she definitely lets loose and wears a ton of pink shirts, beige short jackets, and flowery skirts. In the colder months she usually wears her school uniform since she never returns home for the holidays. She also wears long, dark-colored overcoats, turtlenecks, belts, jeans, and a lot of wool.
Specifics:
Deirdre inherited her late mother's auburn hair and her father's calm, brown eyes. Dei has her mother's gentle nature and curious mind, and her father's perseverance and bravery. She's a crazy mixture of both of her parents, and as a result, she tends to be indecisive and slightly bipolar. Dei's father often says she bears a striking resemblance to his mother, due to her high forehead and slightly pouting lower lip.
In Front Of Friends
Sexual Orientation:
Heterosexual
Self Image:
She definitely perceives herself as fashion-forward and knowledgeable in the clothing department. At the same time, she knows she's extremely brainy and doesn't mind the label of "know-it-all" that she's identified by.
However, she hates being antisocial and wishes she could work up the muster to make new friends, but she's been held back the last four years by fear. Dei's afraid of her grades dropping if she focuses on friends too much, she's afraid that people don't or won't like her, and she's afraid of her friends dropping out of school or moving away (which has happened to her before on a few occasions).
To the Outward Eye:
The students at Hogwarts think of Deirdre as extremely brainy and hard to approach. They just pass her by in the hallways, not taking a second look at her. Despite Dei's beauty, no one's bothered to ask her out, because they don't know she's beautiful on the inside, either. The teachers, on the other hand, adore her. They enjoy having her in their classes and they're happy with her contributions to the class community. She's a great student overall, but her professors have noticed her lack of socialization.
Social Status:
Definitely a misunderstood outcast. Why? From her first year onward, she couldn't get past her generally shy nature. She's gotten over her fear a little as the years went by, but she still hasn't made any friends. Unless you count Callista Espin, a fellow fourth year, and they've only just met.
Positive Traits:
- Intelligence - Dei's always been a smart cookie, and has always excelled in pretty much every subject. Unfortunately, she's like her mum in the sense that numbers have always eluded her.
- Sensitivity - No one at Hogwarts really knows Dei personally, so they don't know that she's a very sensitive, caring, understanding person. She can really tell when someone needs a hug, or an "It's gonna be okay," but she can't work up the courage to comfort them.
- Perseverance - When Dei wants something, she won't stop trying until she's reached her goal. She strives to meet not only her own goals, but the expectations of others.
- Bravery - Ever since her mother and brother died, Dei's had to stay brave and strong for herself and her father, who's been in denial the last three years.
- Imagination - Dei has a creative mind, and she always thinking of some new, radical way to solve a problem.
Negative Traits:
- Frustration - When Dei does something wrong, or if someone treats her unkindly (which is usually always), she'll get frustrated and feel she's worthless and she'll never have a life.
- Shyness - It's something Dei's been battling her whole life. She's never really been a people person, except if it's someone she knows extremely well.
- Indecision - She can never make decisions properly for fear of making a wrong choice which could effectively hurt someone. (Or herself and her grades.)
- Jealousy - Being an outcast, Dei has few friends and is often jealous of the popular girls who have seemingly perfect lives.
- Anger - This coupled with revenge is what Dei feels for the unknown killer who murdered her mother and older brother three years before.. She has vowed to search for the assasain, and it is this quest which has made her wary and untrusting toward people who come off as negative.
Skills:
Deirdre prides herself on precision of language. She loves using words that confuse people, and often spends her free time reading dictionaries, thesauri, and encyclopedias.
Likes:
- The color pink. Doesn't really fit her personality, does it? She likes it because it reminds her of her late mother, who never took the color pink off.
- Forests. She grew up in one, and they make her feel secure. Or at least, most do. The Forbidden Forest she's not too sure about.
- Breakfast. Other than it being the most important meal of the day, she basically likes the food served at breakfast better than any other food during the day. Yes, she is a little strange.
- Halloween. It's her favorite holiday, and she likes it for the general atmosphere. The mood it sets. Dark colors, which are not her norm, and of course scary stories. So it reminds her of her life, in a weird sort of way.
- Chocolate. It can make all the bad feelings and taunts and teases go away after a long day at school.
- Myths and legends. She grew up listening to her mother tell her stories of heroic characters, daring adventures, and incredible rescues. This was her biggest insight into Muggle culture, aside from the fact that she was half of one.
- Owls. Why else would Maeve have been her constant companion since first year? Her favorite species is the barn owl, her second is the snowy owl, her third is the great horned owl, her fourth is the tawny owl, and her fifth is the Eurasian eagle owl. She doesn't care for any of the pygmy owls, however. She thinks they're simply too small.
Dislikes:
- People who treat her badly. Dei's run into plenty of these in her lifetime, such as several Hogwarts students and the unknown killer who murdered half of her immediate family.
- Arithmancy. Ah yes. The one concept she was never able to grasp. She has nothing against people who like it, but she herself tries her best to avoid thinking about it.
- People who think they're all that. You know. Pompous. Dei hates the whole "high and mighty" routine. Everyone is equal in her eyes, unless proven otherwise.
- Coffee. Way too bitter for Dei's taste. Plus it makes her gag.
- The color yellow. It reminds her of unpleasant things. In some Muggle magazine she'd leafed through in the past, she read that it caused anxiety in some people. Plus she hates wasps.
- Vampires. She's never met one, and she hopes she never will.
- Cold medicine. The Muggle stuff. Her mother used to force it down her throat whenever she became even slightly ill.
Patronus:
A tiger. Calm and beautiful on the outside, but not so cool under pressure. Collected but a little unstable, somewhat like Deirdre.
Boggart:
An Arithmancy textbook. Why? Arithmancy is her worst subject, and she despises it.
World Passing By
Subjects:
Astronomy - O
Care of Magical Creatures - O
Charms - E
Defense Against the Dark Arts - O
Transfiguration - E
Herbology - O
Potions - O
Divination - O
Arithmancy - A
Report:
All of her teachers (except maybe her Arithmancy professor) describe her as a diligent, hardworking student who puts excellent effort into her work and shows great promise in many subjects. However, the staff at Hogwarts has noticed that she's rather antisocial, and they wish she would put a little time into finding some suitable friends.
Personal Statement:
Dei absolutely adores Astronomy, Divination, Care of Magical Creatures, and Defense Against the Dark Arts. She does have excellent marks in Potions and Herbology, but she finds that she has to work a bit harder to get O's in those subjects. Potions is really complicated for Dei and Herbology can become monotonous after a while, but they're definitely not beyond her capabilities. As for Arithmancy... let's just say she'd rather have detention in Potions class than listen to Professor Grey lecture. And yes, she often gets drowsy in that class, but never once has she fallen asleep. (But she has been known to daydream.)
History:
Deirdre Rois Barclay was born on June 3, 2008 to Samuel and Aisling Barclay in the tiny village of Edwinstowe, in north Nottinghamshire, England. She was born the younger of two children, her older brother being Marcus Reginald Barclay. He was ten when Deirdre was born. The first thing her mother Aisling said after she was born was to her husband: "She looks just like your mum!" to which Mr. Barclay replied "Yeah, but she's got your hair." Marcus, who'd been outside playing during Deirdre's birth, simply rolled his eyes and pursed his lips in distaste. Starting from when Deirdre was born, she and her brother never saw eye-to-eye. However, her lack of a relationship with Marcus didn't stop her childhood from being happy and healthy, for the most part. Growing up in Edwinstowe meant increased Muggle activity because of the popular destination spot of Sherwood Forest, which coincidentally happened to be Deirdre's favorite place to hang out. Beginning at age six, she used to sneak out of her family's cottage at night and walk to the forest, which was only about two minutes away. After all, the village of Edwinstowe is located at the heart of Sherwood Forest. She'd sit under the legendary Major Oak, which was said to be the former base of the mythological hero Robin Hood. Ironically, Deirdre would sit and read Robin Hood there. If you haven't already guessed, Muggle literature fascinated her. The reason she didn't visit the forest during the daylight hours is because there were always too many Muggles around for Deidre to have her peace and quiet.
When she was eight, the Muggle authorities finally noticed that someone had been sneaking past the night guards posted at the side entrance to the visitors' center parking lot. The chicken wire fence had dents in the exact same places each week, and small juice boxes kept mysteriously appearing under the Major Oak. (It took them a while to figure that out, didn't it?) They organized heavier nighttime security, and as a result, Deirdre could no longer sit beside the Major Oak and read fascinating stories of bravery, romance, and adventure, much less sneak into Sherwood Forest. But Deirdre had always been resourceful. She decided she had to tell someone about her late night outings, so she informed Marcus of her transgressions. He was immediately appalled and inclined to tell their parents, but then Deirdre made a pact with him. She would agree not to tell their parents that he was dating a seventh year Hogwarts student if he would take her to the Major Oak every other Friday of the month by Side-Along Apparition. Reluctantly, her eighteen-year-old brother agreed. At first, Marcus was apprehensive about the whole thing. He knew the Muggle authorities wouldn't and couldn't detect Apparition, but he didn't want their parents to find out he'd been letting his little sister break Muggle laws. (He hadn't gotten out of his parents house at the time.) Over time, as they continued to Apparate to Sherwood Forest, they did put aside most of their differences and formed a much closer bond as brother and sister. They began to affectionately refer to each other as "Marc" and "Dei."
Their friendship grew ever stronger over the next three years, and before long, it was Dei's turn to receive her Hogwarts letter. No one was surprised when it arrived the day after her eleventh birthday, carried in the talons of an old snowy owl, which Marc recognized as the very same bird that gave him his letter almost ten years earlier. Sam Barclay surmised that someone had done a little research into Marc's immediate family to pull that one off. Two days later, Marc took Dei to Diagon Alley for some much needed school shopping. She was fascinated by everything. "I... I heard Dad talk about this place, but I never really expected it to be this... magical." Marc smirked teasingly, and replied, "What did you expect, Dei. We're magic." Their first stop, after making a withdrawal at Gringotts, was Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions. Her fitting didn't take much more than fifteen minutes. They then began making their way down the alley, stopping at Eeylops Owl Emporium, Flourish and Blotts, Ollivander's Wand Shop, Pottidge's Cauldron Shop, the works. By the end of the day, all their money was spent on first year essentials. As they entered The Leaky Cauldron, Dei whispered quietly, "Now all I have to do is wait until the first of September."
Sadly, however, Dei's family would experience a horrible tragedy barely two weeks later. While Dei and her father were celebrating her upcoming trip to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Aisling and Marcus had elected to stay home. (They felt that Dei and Sam needed some father/daughter bonding time, and they wanted a quiet night in at home.) The next morning, Marc had planned to take his mum by Side-Along Apparition to London to give Marc a housewarming party for his new apartment. When Samuel and Deirdre returned from their evening in town, they arrived to find their single-story house completely ramsacked. Mr. Barclay's spellbooks were strewn everywhere, with pages ripped and torn out. Shelves were bare, their contents lining the floors. Mysteriously, however, all the Muggle items they possessed had not been harmed. "Why're all of your things wrecked, Dad?" Dei had asked, not fully comprehending the gravity of the situation. "This'll probably take weeks to clean up, won't it?" Mr. Barclay didn't reply. "Deirdre. Find Mum and Marc." Dei had actually smiled. "Okay. Um, I'll check the parlor." And she did so. Sam, only a few paces behind her, heard her scream. "It's Mum and Marc! T-th-they're n-no-not moving." Both pairs of eyes widened in shock. And that's when Dei lost it. "What are we supposed to do?! Should we call the Ministry?!" Mr. Barclay was still perfectly calm. The shock of seeing his wife and son motionless on the carpet had not quite grasped him yet. "I want you to go to your room and stay there until I say otherwise. I have no choice but to contact the Muggle authorities."
All night, Dei had wept in fear and loss and abandonment. The next day, her father informed her that her mum and Marc had been pronounced legally dead by the Muggles. The cause of death was the same for both victims: a clean blow to the head with a heavy object. After examining the bodies and all possible murder weapons in the vicinity of the house and garden, no fingerprints were found. No one could be charged with the crime of a double homicide. As far as the Muggles were concerned, the case remained open. A week later, they were buried atop a hill a few miles outside of Edwinstowe, after Mr. Barclay had convinced the Baine family to let mother and son be buried together, and outside of Aisling's native Ireland. A month later, Dei left for Hogwarts. But all the hustle and bustle of the King's Cross station didn't excite her, neither did the method of reaching Platform Nine and Three Quarters. Five minutes before the Hogwarts Express was to set off, Dei boarded the train. She was still numb. She couldn't cry. She couldn't get angry. She told her father, "It should have been Marc taking me here. It should have been you and Mum waving goodbye."
Her first year at Hogwarts went by, and she learned to cope with her losses. Her second and third years were uneventful, other than getting teased by the older students for being socially inept and as a result, having no friends. Her grades, however, stayed consistently excellent. She only ever received As in Arithmancy, and that wasn't surprising. (Numbers, remember?) Deirdre is about to begin her fourth year, and she hopes it will be different. Her goal, actually, is to make at least one friend. She wants a change of pace.
Roleplay Sample:
Fwoom! Swoosh! Bang! Finished homework, blank pieces of parchment, quills, ink vials, and various other school supplies toppled onto the carpet beneath Dei's four-poster bed. She practically jumped to the floor and began to stuff her fallen belongings hastily into her magenta over-the-shoulder bag, checking to make sure that nothing had been damaged or broken. Fortunately, no ink had been spilled and her assignments hadn't been ripped irreparably. Most importantly, her thirteen-inch paper on the behavioral traits of the Dugbog for Defense Against the Dark Arts was still intact. After she finished loading everything up, she heaved the satchel onto her bed. Sighing heavily, she glanced at her father's old pocket watch and her eyes widened in disbelief. "Oh no. I'm gonna be late for Divination!"
It had been about ten minutes since Deirdre had left the common room, and she was approaching the stairwell to the seventh floor of the castle. Stupid staircase. Ugh. It better not move. She paused for a moment, tensing her muscles, preparing for a running start. Yeah. Okay. No pressure. She took a deep breath, and took off. "AGGHHH!" Dei had made it halfway up the stairs when they started to move again. Silently cursing her luck and lack of organizational skills, she bit her lip and waited until motion completely ceased. She stepped off, and immediately realized where she was. "Fourth floor? You've gotta be kidding me. You have got to be kidding me." Fourth floor was where her Arithmancy class was located. "Geez, it's like a curse or something. The one class I'm horrible at. I'm late for Divination and, to make matters worse, I'm standing just outside the Arithmancy classroom."
Typical Deirdre. After a few seconds of staring appallingly at the wooden door that marked the "entrance to boredom," as she sometimes called it, she leapt back onto the staircase. She didn't want to be on the fourth floor any longer than she was required to. Besides, Arithmancy wasn't until the afternoon. Anyway, it took a little over five minutes for Dei to make it to the seventh floor, and another half a minute to reach the trap door/ladder combination that connected to the Divination classroom. She hurriedly pulled the trap door open and began to climb the ladder, but paused for a moment. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a thin strip of white parchment floating to the ground. She stepped down the ladder, and put her feet down on the seventh floor. Dei picked up the parchment. In spidery handwriting, the note read "To all Divination students: class will be cancelled today. Your homework is to read Chapter Five of Unfogging the Future. I will also not be available for weekend tutoring sessions this weekend only. If you require assistance, I suggest you ask a fellow student for help, such as Miss Barclay." Well, it certainly didn't look or sound like Professor Addair's writing, so she assumed one of the prefects had written it. Dei smiled nonetheless. She secretly enjoyed being a teacher's pet. And she wasn't all that pleased with this class in particular being postponed. She sighed. "Second time this week."
Out of Character
Name:
Miral
Age:
14
Name of Playby:
Nikki Cole Capalbo {ModelMayhem}
Other Characters:
N/A
How you found Hex:
This site was recommended by a friend in real life. She's Callista Espin. I also recruited someone else here with the help of Callista. Her name is Daphne Walker.
