Physical Description: Gwendolyn Baird, or Gwen to her older siblings and close friends, doesn't differ greatly in appearance from many eleven-year-old Scottish girls. She has a fair complexion and stubbornly straight copper-brown hair; she generally wears it in twin braids to keep it out of her face. Her dark brown eyes shine with intelligence and her mouth seems to always be poised with a knowing smile. Her nose and cheeks are dotted with freckles that her mum lovingly says map the stars in the sky. At eleven-years old, Gwen is taller-than-average at almost five feet. She is lean and could be described as gangly if she wasn't so nimble in her movements.

Mental Description: Gwen is wise beyond her years. She has been said to look at people and see right through to their soul. She has a generally happy disposition, but her wisdom weighs on her at times. Her mind is often running six steps ahead, analyzing everything in front of her and storing memories like files in a vault. She is empathetic and kind, but sharp-tongued and quick-witted when the situation necessitates it.

Biography: Gwen grew up in the small town of Alva, Scotland. She is the youngest of three and her older brothers often refer to their hometown as the "foot" of Scotland. They claim it's because it stinks and nothing interesting ever happens there. Their moniker is a play on "Hillfoots" - the collective name locals have given to Alva and several surrounding towns. Gwen and her brothers, Ewan and Finn, were raised in a cozy home full of love and laughter. Her parents, Kenna and Malcolm Baird, believed in teaching their children independence and a love for the natural world. All three Baird children spend most of their waking hours outdoors, climbing the huge trees in their backyard, or wading in the stream that runs behind their house. Before Hogwarts, Gwen could often be found in the treehouse nestled in the boughs of the massive oak situated between her house and her neighbor's house. This neighbor's house happened to be the home of Gwen's best friend, Evelyn "Evie" Caldwell. Gwen and Evie practically lived in their treehouse, living out fantastical imaginings of adventure and bravery. Sometimes they were swashbuckling pirates looting the high seas, other times they were benevolent queens defending their fortress from the wayward forest knights (Ewan and Finn), and once they even flew high into the sky and discovered new lands beyond their own. Sometimes in the summer, Evie and Gwen would sleep in their treehouse at night, falling asleep to the sounds of croaking frogs with the moon as their night light. In these times, Ewan and Finn would usually wake them up abruptly in the morning by dumping buckets of the still-cold stream water over Gwen and Evie. This usually resulted in lots of shrieking and a chase through the woods until Kenna and Malcolm called the kids in for breakfast.

First Instance of Magic: Gwen's first instance of magic occurred on a particularly chilly late-summer morning. The night before had been one of the last evenings warm enough to sleep outside in the treehouse, and Evie and Gwen were not going to miss it. However, a cold front moved in while they slept, leaving them shivering in their makeshift sleeping pallets. To make matters worse, Gwen had fallen asleep on top of the compass her and Evie often used in their adventures. As a result, she tossed and turned all night and couldn't get comfortable. Ewan and Finn, not ones to miss the last water-dumping opportunity of the season, woke up early on that chilly morning and filled their buckets by the stream. They crept up the treehouse ladder, carefully balancing their full buckets as they climbed. Right before they reached the top of the ladder, a huge crow launched itself into flight from the branch closest to Ewan. He let out a startled cry and caught himself from falling off the ladder at the last second, sloshing water out of the top of his bucket as he did so. Gwen heard Ewan's cry and woke from her fitful sleep just as Finn reached the ledge above her and Evie's heads, preparing to tip his bucket of freezing-cold water over them. Gwen filled with rage towards her brother's endless mischief and opened her mouth in protest of the watery attack. Before she could say a word, she watched in stunned silence as Finn tipped the bucket forward, but the water defied gravity and leapt over the edge of the bucket back towards him! Finn yelped as the icy liquid sloshed all over him, soaking through his pajamas and seeping into the tops of his sneakers. Gwen broke into a fit of giggles at the just revenge as Evie awoke in confusion at the commotion in front of her.