Physical Description:
Slightly tall for his age, but not so much as to draw much comment, Edmund was always more of a wiry child than a stocky one. He tries to keep his short cut dark hair neat and slicked back, but as the day goes on it has a habit of getting away from him. His skin is suitably fair to be at risk from the sun in even ordinary summers but he is devoid of freckles. His only real stand out feature are a pair of crisp blue eyes, which his mother always kept gushing on about.

Mental Description:
Until very recently the boy was quite confident and outgoing, at least in domains he knew well, with a few notable exceptions. But his recent discovery that wizards are apparently real along with who knows how many other things he had just grown out of believing, along with being thrown into a world he knows almost nothing about, has undermined all of that at least for now. He always seemed to get on better than most children with adults and teachers, but a deep-seated need to avoid embarrassment, and to please them sat behind his interactions with those older than him. A habit likely to only worsen in an unfamiliar world.

He generally prefers to maintain a small circle of friends rather than a wide net but he is not antisocial. Historically he may have taken the lead in such relationships, or at least thought he did. But again, he is now unsure of his status and is more likely to defer until he knows his ground.

The boy has always had a keen academic interest, in particular the study of history, though he applied himself well to all of his subjects, struggling occasionally with foreign languages. He had a particular fondness for the great moments of the past, the rise and fall of great civilisations and great men. Both the myths and legends of those figures, and the reality. He would love to go walking great historical sites and battlefields of old, then give presentations to his class, or just talk about it with his family.

Whilst not truly sporty, he was always willing to pitch in, and had a genuine love for the outdoors, camping and trekking. Perhaps his greatest joy before coming to Hogwarts was being in the cub scouts, where of course he was a sixer and his thirst for badges knew no ends.

Beyond that he has a keen mind and perhaps undue relish for strategy. From checkers, to chess to kriegsspiel. Though the later two in particular would serve him up harsh reminders that he was only a boy and whilst older children and adults would encourage and teach him, they would not loose on purpose to young Edmund. Whilst this was vital to improving, he would sometimes take it poorly if his defeat was witnessed in a group setting. He had the ability to smile and shake hands in public. But would soon find a place to be alone and become upset.

As an only child he is used to entertaining himself though fantasy and writing, and does not suffer too much from time spent alone. On a free evening, it was an even bet you would find him playing in the woods, writing a story or reading one of the many books his father had around the house, more for his own education an interest than anything else.

Edmund also instinctively defers to and respects authority, he obeys orders and rules and expects others to do the same, even when he does not understand them. He obeys diligently, but on the occasions when he is leant authority, such as being the sixer of his sick or when in charge of a group project, he hands out instructions with the same certainty with which he obeys them, and is irked when he is ignored.

More than anything, right now, he is trying to find his feet in this new world. Work out it's rules and expectations, how he fits into it. Where his talents lie, if any. How magic itself works. Not just so he can start to build his new life. Nor simply out of a deeply held genuine academic curiosity. But so he can feel safe and secure for the first time since learning he had magic in his blood.

Biography:
Born to a pair of muggle parents with no family connection to the wizarding world, his early life was painfully mundane, at least to most wizards. His parents were kind and loving, though his father did more to support and encourage him whilst his mother was more of a fuss and a nag, but it came from affection. He never had any siblings, and life on the edge of the small City of Salisbury was everything a young boy could ask for. The comfort and convenience of a beautiful historic city to one side, rolling hills, farms and woods to the other.

His family was more than comfortably off, but not rich. They were the kinds of people who had nice cars, sent their boy to a good school, and went abroad every year. Not private planes and pools. His father was well to do accountant and his mother had been an HR worker before becoming a housewife and the family was rounded off by a particularly energetic and goofy pair of black Labradors, which seemed to be more slobber than dog. Edmund is still slightly heartbroken that he had to leave them behind.

Outside of school, where he consistently did well, usually trading places for top of his class with his rival since the age of 4. He was a dedicated, and slightly too keen cub scout. Relishing in badges, parades, jamborees and weekend long camps.

His slightly competitive streak expressed itself not just through competing for the top spot in class and the most badges in the pack. But also indulging in every kind of strategy game he could find. It started with chess and Nine Men's Morris. It only grew from there, to card games and even kriegsspiel! A hobby rarely indulged in by anyone under 40, but which combined his love of strategy and history. Even if the somewhat bemused middle ages and older men who dominated the hobby had to very patiently induct him in to it, and tolerate the occasional childish error.

He had been rather looking forward to the life he thought he was going to have, even if he was still working out what he was going to do with it. But when the letter from Hogwarts came, hand delivered by a member of staff who had some aptitude at explaining matters to muggles, everything rapidly spiralled. Everything that was certain, was uncertain, and Edmund needs to find his feet again before any sense of normalcy and his old confidence returns. Fortunately children are better able to cope with these changes. But his parents, they were another matter. They took the most convincing. It took time, a lot of time, but eventually his father was persuaded. What really sealed the deal was when Edmund himself said he wanted to go, even though he was not happy that his world had just collapsed, he had stepped out of Plato's Cave. He could never step back in. So after as many assurances of safety as a Hogwart's professor could truthfully give, Edmund's father agreed.

His mother was a harder sell, convinced it was a lie, or a scam, or someway of stealing children. The memory of his parent's raised voices coming through the closed kitchen door, as the professor tried to distract him with talk of wands and spells, is fresh in Edmund's mind. His parents had disagreed before of course, but this was the first time he could recall them properly arguing. He could not make out what was said, he only knows that eventually his father won. His father alone came out of the kitchen to tell Edmund they supported his decision to go. When the time came for them both to wave him off, his mother cried like she was watching her boy go off to fight the Great War, not go to school.

First Instance of Magic:

His first use of magic came when he was eight years old. He was taking part in a regional interschool chess tournament for under 10s, and was doing quite well. But as he reached the final rounds, he realised that he had been cornered into a losing position. Defeat in private was one thing. But to lose in front of the teachers, his parents, and his fellow students was quite another. As the game reached its conclusion he struggled more and more to keep his embarrassment and upset in check. Two moves away from checkmate, as his cheeks flushed red and he fought back the welling in his eyes, the sprinklers suddenly went off and the fire alarm rang. Despite there being no sign of a fire anywhere. As the building was evacuated the game was clean forgotten. Little did he know, this was the result of magic, rather than coincidence.