Sylvester is on the taller side for his age, standing at just over 5 feet and quickly growing. This being accompanied by a lean frame of only 88 pounds makes him look rather gangly, and for now he is a bit disproportionate. He has light skin, and his cheeks and nose are speckled with faint freckles. His brown hair is very fine and gets tangled and bedraggled easily, forcing him to keep it on the shorter side for ease of care.
His grey-green eyes are large but strangely expressionless. Sylvester has an excellent neutral poker face, and his inner emotions and thoughts are difficult to guess. He does smile, but it can be an uncommon sight. Oddly, slapstick comedy and absurd humor are the things most likely to get him to grin uncontrollably.
As someone who grew up on a farm in Louisiana, Sylvester isn't afraid of getting dirty when needed, but he doesn't like staying that way. He's a very hygienic person overall, and that extends to his wardrobe; his clothes are always clean and free of holes or blemishes. Sylvester does have a Southern drawl of an accent. It is not as pronounced as it once was, and the longer he lives in England the more it will fade. But he will easily slip back into it during moments of anger or alarm.
‹ personality ›
‹ mbti ›
entj
‹ enneagram ›
8w9
‹ alignment ›
lawful neutral
‹ zodiac ›
scorpio
Reducio
Sylvester is a kid who has Big Dad Energy. He's responsible and prudent, and wishes his oh-so-childish peers were more like him. He has little appetite for the typical shenanigans of other children, and can come off as a dour fuddy-duddy. Sylvester staunchly refuses to get roped into pranks or other mischievous antics, but he never snitches to professors or other authority figures, and will instead glower in the corner while watching closely. Once the tomfoolery (sometimes literally) blows up in his friends' faces, he will always be the first one there to check on them and help clean up - while muttering "I told you so!" the entire time, of course.
Perhaps surprising for his grumpy demeanor is that Sylvester is a principled person who always wants to make the "good" choice. Good doesn't necessarily mean following the rules to the letter, but living with integrity. Above all, Sylvester strives to be trustworthy, fair, and honorable. He's not a haughty do-gooder who goes around tattling on every misbehavior he sees, but rather he is the law. The boy has a tendency to be a meddling busybody. Sylvester doesn't hesitate to confront anyone, friend or foe alike, if he notices a situation going too far in the wrong direction. He is not prone to angry outbursts, and will instead admonish his peers with a finger-waggling lecture; he's not mad, he's disappointed.
He is confident in his own judgment, and once Sylvester has dedicated himself to a cause or opinion it is incredibly difficult to sway him in a different direction. He is hypocritical in that way, as he expects everyone around him to listen to his rock solid 12-years-worth-of-experience advice, but he is not receptive to the thoughts of others. However, as a child, Sylvester's worldview is still mostly all-or-nothing and he doesn't quite grasp the nuance of some situations yet. Sylvester can get mildly annoyed with people who are unlike him, the indecisive and meek. But being callous or rude about it is not his style and he will patiently attempt to guide them towards the "correct" viewpoint with increasing overbearance.
He is not impulsive, and everything about him, from his actions to his words, is deliberate. Confidence is not an excuse for recklessness. He is comfortable with risk - as long as the risk is not needlessly foolish and he has a plan. Sylvester is a planner, and even his backup plans will have backup plans. If a plan falls apart, he will struggle to adapt on the fly, and is not the best at coming up with quick, creative solutions. If failure happens, Sylvester can get stuck wallowing in the "should haves" of his mistakes instead of accepting it and moving on.
‹ background ›
Reducio
‹ family history ›
Sylvester was born and spent his early years in the backwater of Louisiana, United States. His mother was Jessamine Wilde, an American pureblood witch. The Wilde family seemed destined for tragically short lives, as Jessamine had lost her father in childhood, and her mother had died mere months after Jessamine graduated from Ilvermorny. She was left alone and knutless in an unforgiving world. Despite being pureblood, she'd never been a particularly powerful witch, and had struggled in her classes. Her career prospects were bleak. The witch got a job as a bartender at an underground wizarding lounge, but she dreamed of someday establishing a farm on her family's neglected land.
Sylvester's father is Alexander Green, a British pureblood wizard. In truth, Sylvester is the product of an affair, and at the time of his conception Alexander was married and had another son with his wife. His marriage was going through a rough patch, so the Brit visited New Orleans, Louisiana to have a good time and met Jessamine at the wizarding lounge where she worked. He became infatuated with her, and would visit at least twice a month, showering her with money, gifts, and attention. The infidelity was surprisingly easy to conceal from his wife, since the two women were half a world apart, and whatever guilt Alexander may have had at first quickly dissipated.
She knew he was married, but Jessamine was not ashamed. Many may have thought their relationship was inappropriate, but Alexander helped her through a very difficult time in her life, and she was grateful.
Upon hearing that Jessamine was carrying his child, Alexander offered her a considerable amount of money to "keep quiet," while promising he would help with their child as much as he could... considering their circumstances. Not wanting to get involved in whatever marital drama Alexander was tangled in, Jessamine accepted the offer and used the money to finally jumpstart the farm on her family's land.
‹ early childhood ›
Jessamine raised Sylvester largely by herself on the modest farm. Hidden deep in the bayou from No-Maj eyes, on the farm grew magical plants and a small number of creatures for supplying apothecaries throughout the southeastern region of the country.
Sylvester was happy in his life on the farm, but at times he did feel lonely. There were, obviously, no other children for him to play with, and being so isolated in the swamp meant his mother was usually the only other person he would see for days at a time. Jessamine was a kind mother, but not exactly the best playmate. She taught him to read, write, do math, and even basic science was learned via the daily farm chores. Typically once a week they would drop by various wizarding shops for his mother to sell her ingredients, and Sylvester frequently took the opportunity to pester the shop owners with questions.
Alexander would visit numerous times throughout the year, bringing gifts for Sylvester, and hefty "child support" payments for Jessamine. The wizard always told his son that he worked as an Unspeakable for the Ministry of Magic, and that was why he could not be around more often, and why Sylvester could not contact him under any circumstances. Sylvester easily accepted this as fact, and idolized his father, always excitedly looking forward to the next visit.
‹ mother's death ›
At 8 years old Sylvester's world was upended.
While harvesting fluxweed on a full moon's night, his mother was attacked and killed by a rougarou. Sylvester was, unfortunately, the one who discovered her body and the grim scene. Near midnight he was roused from sleep by screams and growls. He hesitated in fear before leaving bed, and by the time he had the nerve to step foot outside of the cabin, the worst had already happened. His mother's wand was found nearby, severely damaged and half buried in the mud.
In the aftermath, Sylvester felt grief, but also confusion and even anger at his dead mother. He'd heard the haunting howls of far off rougarou before - they were native to the swamps of Louisiana, after all - but his mother had always assured him the farm was protected by defensive charms and the dark creatures knew to stay away. How could she let this happen?
Unsure of what else to do, Sylvester had contacted one of the familiar shop owners via Floo. The proper authorities were alerted, and even a small MACUSA taskforce was dispatched to track down and eliminate the manhunter beast. It had been a shock when Sylvester's father received an urgent message from a MACUSA agent that he would need to assume immediate and full custody of his son.
After requesting a leave of absence from work, Alexander traveled to Louisiana. The boy had been bewildered to see his father. How was he able to escape from his super important job to be here? The wizard delicately explained to his son that this was more important.
Jessamine was buried underneath the boughs of the farm's largest cypress tree. Sylvester tearfully said goodbye to her grave, to the farm and the cabin, and even to the swamp. Collecting his packed things, he departed with his father to start a new life.
‹ first magic ›
With no choice otherwise, Sylvester was moved far away to his father's home in Leeds, England. He'd never visited his father before, and was surprised to see his father lived alone in an upscale townhouse in the city centre - a far cry from the small backwater cabin Sylvester had grown up in thus far. His father made sure he was comfortable, settling him into a spare bedroom, and promised to take him to Diagon Alley so he could buy personal decoration and make the space his own.
In the days following, the astute Sylvester began to notice strange things about his new home. Why had he found a woman's robe tucked far in the back of the hallway closet? Why had he found a box of old children's toys? Why did the bookcase in his father's study contain multiple books on relationships and parenting? Why did he get the feeling his father hadn't always lived alone in this three bedroom townhouse?
He decisively confronted his father one evening, laying bare all of the strange things he had noticed. His father deftly tried to dodge the questions at first, attempting to turn the discussion back to the very interesting Daily Prophet article he had been reading.
No! Sylvester would not let his father distract him. He knew his father was hiding something, and it was so insulting to assume just because he was a little kid that he was too stupid to notice and he would get answ- Suddenly, it was like a whirlwind materialized in the room. Papers, quills, and other lightweight objects were spinning around as if caught on a strong breeze.
The whirlwind settled within seconds, and Sylvester looked around the room in astonishment at the haphazardly scattered papers. Had he done that?! He expected his father to be cross, but instead the man rose to his feet and enveloped his son in a comforting hug.
‹ father's lies ›
Alexander had intended to tell his son the truth, but only once the boy was older and could understand. Now, so soon after his mother's death, was not the best time. But the wizard, realizing how upset his son was after the unexpected display of magic, chose to come clean. He explained everything, age appropriately, and Sylvester became unnervingly quiet as he listened.
Sylvester was in disbelief. Most of what he knew about his father was a lie! His father had always told him he was an Unspeakable, and that's why he only rarely visited and couldn't give any details about work. But his father wasn't an Unspeakable at all, and worked successfully as a senior economist in the Goblin Liaison Office at the Ministry of Magic. His father used to have a wife, but they had divorced two years prior after a decade of unhappiness. And yes, his father had met his mother and Sylvester had been born while his father was still married to the other woman. Sylvester didn't need it blatantly stated, he understood the implication... Both he and his mother were unwanted mistakes.
But the biggest betrayal of all was learning about his brother. Sylvester had a half-brother who was 12 years older than him! Zachary Green. His brother was a Squib, his father explained, and that fact had caused stress in his marriage. His ex-wife was also a pureblood witch, and neither one of them knew exactly what to do with a Squib. They still cared for their son, but struggled in giving Zachary the support he needed. That was the main reason his father had decided to continue the double life façade; he didn't want Zachary to feel like Sylvester was just another chance at having a magical son. Alexander promised Sylvester would meet his older brother eventually, when the time was right.
Alexander acknowledged that he was a flawed person who had made many mistakes, but it didn't mean he didn't love his son. He had even loved Jessamine, and was himself grieving her death in his own way. Sylvester was not convinced. Why had his father allowed his youngest son to go months at a time without seeing him? Why had he allowed the mother of that son to raise him entirely by herself? Why had their needs come second?
Foolishly, Alexander actually tried defending himself. Hey, at least he hadn't outright abandoned them! An infrequent presence was still better than being non-existent, right? He'd given Jessamine loads of Galleons over the years, and Sylvester had always seemed happy. Sometimes difficult choices had to be made and he'd done the best he could for both of his sons.
His father was terrible. Sylvester vowed to never be like him.
‹ english life ›
Alexander returned to work after a few weeks, hiring a witch tutor to be with his son while he was away during the day. Sylvester's mother had taught him to read and write, but his knowledge of geography and history were sorely lacking - a problem Alexander wanted fixed before the boy went off to Hogwarts.
Sylvester's mother had often told him about her time at Ilvermorny, but he knew very little about his father's alma mater. He listened with rapt attention every time his father, or the tutor, talked about the school. His father had been in Ravenclaw, and often expressed that he would be proud if his son was placed in the same house. Inwardly, Sylvester decided he didn't want to be in Ravenclaw if someone as dishonest as his father had been granted a place amongst them.
As the months turned to a year, Sylvester began to adjust to his new life in England. He missed his mother, he missed her Southern cooking, and he even missed the swamp and the nightly chorus of frog calls. But he enjoyed the frequent trips to Diagon Alley and being altogether more immersed in wizarding society. He began to follow Quidditch after his father took him to his first ever match. Go Appleby Arrows!
On the first anniversary of his mother's death, Alexander took Sylvester back to Louisiana, back to the farm, so they could pay respects to her grave. The relationship between father and son was still delicate. Sylvester didn't trust half of the things that left the man's mouth, but his anger began to fade. It was replaced by determination - to be better this his father, to make his mother's memory proud, and to be a good person.
‹ hogwarts bound ›
Sylvester's Hogwarts acceptance letter arrived the summer after his 11th birthday, as expected. What was unexpected is when his father announced Zachary, Sylvester's older brother, would be joining them on their shopping trip for school supplies. Sylvester was eager to finally meet his brother, but had doubts about the time and place. Since Zachary was a Squib, wouldn't he feel uncomfortable participating in an experience that had been denied to him?
As it turned out, that was not a concern. Zachary displayed a close physical resemblance to his younger brother - they both had dark hair and green toned eyes - but the similarities ceased there. He was, simply put, goofy and cracked jokes nearly nonstop as they shuffled through Diagon Alley. Even the ordinarily serious Sylvester caught himself laughing until his stomach ached at the humorous stories his brother told about Muggle technology. Whatever those printer things were, they sure sounded awful! He seemed to have taken his life as a Squib in stride.
Still, Sylvester got that feeling again that something was being hidden from him... Every time he tried to inquire about his brother's childhood, how he had been raised by their father, his brother pointedly avoided the question with another wacky tangent. Sylvester had hoped to commiserate with his brother, but was left dissatisfied and disappointed. Had his father told Zachary to withhold from sharing anything, or was this simply how his brother coped? Sylvester had no way of knowing.
September 1st soon arrived. As they stood on Platform 9 3/4, his father once again urged Sylvester to "think Ravenclaw!" Ha, there was no way he was going to let that hat put him in with those birdbrains. As he boarded the train he hardly spared his father a backwards glance, and instead looked forward to shaping his own future at Hogwarts.
