a closer look. i'd rather let the pain destroy me, than everyone else.
appearance==================
hair. black eyes. chocolate brown skin. fair, sensitive to sun height. 144cm weight. 35kg build. slender, non-athletic scent. bibliosmia, tba glasses. silver-rimmed, round
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physical description.
Reducio
Athenia closely resembles her mother, with pin-straight black hair and dark chocolate eyes that tie her unmistakably to her partially Chinese heritage. On the other hand, her pale skin reflects that of her British father’s, easily tinged a rosy pink by physical activity or the occasional venture outdoors. In terms of stature, Athenia stands at an impossibly average 144cm, but (to her delight) seems to have been shooting up recently. She is rarely seen without her silver-rimmed glasses (most likely dangling from her shirt collar) and owns an impressive collection of earrings, through which she cycles regularly.
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personality===================
mbti. entp enneagram.tba
alignment.tba temperament.tba
=mental description.
Reducio
Perfection was the standard. As the prized sole child of the heir of a longstanding wizarding family and a first degree Oxford graduate, Athenia Rycroft had been held to the highest expectations her entire eleven years of life. Although she frequently resented her parents for imposing such unattainable standards on her, the truth was that her naturally ambitious and competitive nature led her to chase them endlessly, never satisfied with her own performance. Also, Athenia’s teachers consistently recognized her as unusually bright. There was no doubt this prowess originated from a lucky draw in the genetic lottery, but diligence in school and unquenchable thirst for knowledge outside of it only amplified this trait. Athenia’s peers would recognize her as an extrovert, as she is unafraid to speak her mind–most often to assert a more intellectually stimulating or logically correct opinion–and might be considered rather popular at her Muggle primary school, but she does enjoy the occasional solitary moment. With her passion for promoting her own opinions, she can easily come across as insensitive and argumentative when she downplays others’ emotions in favor of the rational explanation.
Last edited by Athenia Rycroft on 22 Aug 2024, 08:45, edited 1 time in total.
how can the sky be the limit when the stars lie beyond?
pre-hogwarts. 1985-2024 =↳ a prodigal auror. a genius astrophysicist. an unsuspecting daughter.
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the lore.
Reducio
Quinn Rycroft seemed to be destined for success from the very beginning. With his piercing slate grey eyes indicative of the surname he bore, high intelligence immediately clear to his childhood tutors, and first instance of magic at the early age of three, he quickly became the poster child of the well-respected Rycroft family. Dating back hundreds of years at Hogwarts and the wizarding world as a whole, members of the Rycroft line were best known for their sharp wit. Largely Ravenclaw, their consistently high marks in magical examinations made many Rycrofts sought-after Aurors, who together created not only a strong image for their family, but also a considerable sum of money. So, as the eldest of his generation of Rycrofts–he had two younger siblings and two cousins–Quinn Rycroft carried quite a heavy yoke, but also stood poised to inherit fame and a fortune.
Clara Lin was easily the top of Oxford University’s graduating class of 2007. Although she may have been a relatively plain girl, only made distinctive by her Asian heritage when standing among a majority of Caucasians, there was no doubt that her intellect was unmatched by that of her peers. Born Jiayi Lin, the younger of two daughters of a Chinese first-generation immigrant family, she spent much of her childhood under the shadow of her sister, the elder by just two years. But when Jiayi’s family emigrated to England one year shy of her secondary school graduation, she knew it was a chance to start over, to make a name for herself–literally. Her highly superstitious parents had named her Jiayi because it signified luck, but Jiayi knew luck wasn’t what she needed. Once given the liberty to select her own English name, she quickly chose Clara–first of all because it sounded pretty, but more so because it meant bright and famous. Clara wanted success so badly she could already taste it, and something told her that her admission letter to Oxford University was her ticket.
Quinn and Clara met seemingly by chance, encountering each other the middle of Oxford University’s Radcliffe Square on a rainy November day. Having recently graduated with high honors from Hogwarts, Quinn had taken to haunting Oxford by day to learn about the Muggle world–the other world he had grown up ignorant of. Now in her second year at Oxford, Clara had just received a research opportunity from her astrophysics professor, shocking her into a giddy daze that made her immune to the raindrops splashing onto her–that is, until she encountered a mysterious hooded young man.
Quinn held an umbrella he did not know how to use, while Clara was fully capable of using an umbrella but did not have one on her person. He was magical, she was a Muggle. He was thriving off of the Rycroft fortune, and she was just getting back on her feet in a new country. The two could not have been more different, but yet their shared hunger for knowledge drew them together, even at the dismay of both sets of parents. The Rycrofts were horrified that their son was not just intermingling with the Muggles, but was interested in one, even threatening to disown him–their precious heir–if he eloped. Meanwhile, the Lins disapproved of their daughter’s hasty actions and worried a relationship would significantly impede her academic career, which had been meteroic thus far.
Still, the pair was undeterred, meeting on occasion to share bits and pieces from the completely polar lives and worlds they came from. Monthly meetings became weekly, then even more frequently, and the two soon fell for each other, each interested in the other person, rather in just their world.
After a couple of year, the two married, their love for each other transcending the great personal cost it came at. Furious at their eldest and most promising son for eloping with a Muggle, the Rycroft parents practically disowned Quinn, largely stripping him of his fortune despite not being able to bring themselves to completely cut contact. Completely gone was the family’s most sacred value of intellect, their wizarding supremacist views blindsiding them as they looked down upon their son and his Muggle love in disgust. The Lins were slightly more forgiving, being willing to tolerate their daughter’s romance despite extreme skepticism. Being traditional Chinese parents, an Auror was hardly an acceptable career for their daughter’s partner, especially since Clara really couldn’t explain what it meant, much less that she was marrying a wizard. Perhaps the only thing protecting Clara from her parents’ anger was the fact that she had completed her undergraduate degree at Oxford with first degree honors, and was already a respected researcher in her chosen field of astrophysics. Still, the Lin parents worried she was squandering her bright future, making the family relations incredibly strained.
Shortly after they married, Quinn and Clara welcomed their first and last child, Athenia Rycroft. Both of them being intellectuals, it seemed only appropriate to name their child in honor of the Greek goddess of wisdom (among her many domains). As Athenia grew, it was immediately clear that she, like her namesake, surpassed her peers in wit, jumping a grade in primary school and consistently emerging at the top of her class.
Although the small family of three had one foot in each the wizarding and the Muggle worlds, Athenia’s parents chose to bring her up largely in the Muggle world. Being an Auror, it was impossible for Quinn to hide his magical identity, but he kept quiet as much as possible, worried about the additional dangers Athenia would face if exposed to magic. However, Athenia was an unusually inquisitive child, and her parents took advantage of this, as well as her intellect. Even before she could enter school, she spent hours accompanying her mother in her Oxford-based research, flipping through heavy physics textbooks soon after she could read and often pestering the students working under Professor Rycroft. Clara also ensured that Athenia read a great deal, contributing to a vast vocabulary and perhaps even to rather concrete opinions for a child. She would share these views with anyone who would listen, or, even better, argue with anyone who disagreed.
As she grew older, her parents’ grip on her tightened, their expectations for the young girl growing out of proportion. They believed it was in their daughter’s best interest–to transform her into the best little scholar she could be–and their own–to perhaps earn back their own parents’ favor–but to Athenia, it was downright cruel. When she wasn’t in school, she was given additional maths work and endless books to page through. Her mother signed her up for a local debate team (which she begrudgingly loved) and chess club. Despite excelling in not only school but also these additional activities, Athenia hated her parents for putting her through these grueling routines. She couldn’t fathom why they could do this to her, all the while claiming they loved her.
Of course, there was no protecting her from the magical world forever. Athenia's magical ability first surfaced during an all too frequent clash between her and her mother. Whether it was Athenia causing too much chaos in the research lab, failing to understand a concept, or not completing the work she was expected to, her mother was impossible to please. During such an episode when she was nine years old, Athenia had fallen short of her mother’s sky-high expectations once again, sending Clara on yet another tirade. Caught, for once, without a counterargument, Athenia had stormed up to her bedroom, only just entering when the door suddenly slammed behind her. Clara paid no mind, as the door to Athenia’s bedroom was well used to such treatment. However, Athenia was thoroughly spooked. She knew for a fact that she hadn’t laid a finger on the door, so no law of physics could explain how it had simply closed. Even in her young naivety, logic taught her that ghosts did not exist. But then how was this possible? Intrigued, the girl shared the incident with her parents several days later, in response to which they shared a knowing–and unmistakably apprehensive–glance.
Instantly, it was obvious that her parents had been keeping something from her. Something big. And she resented them greatly for it. Upset at her complete ignorance about the magical world, she began pestering her father about his job and anything about magic he was willing to share. To her frustration, she understood very little, except that she would attend a magical academy instead of secondary school, trading maths and English for subjects like Charms and Transfiguration–whatever those were.
While Athenia faced her impending entrance to Hogwarts skeptically, her logical mindset still unable to wrap itself around the idea of magic, she couldn’t deny that she wasn’t a little excited. After all, for the first time in her life, she would be miles away from her parents’ expectations.
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threads.
Reducio
tba
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first year. 2024-2025 =↳ the story of a little bird learning to fly free.
