ABOUT BENJY FENWICK.
Benjy Fenwick is a halfblooded fairy, despite best efforts to ignore the fairy half. While he does possess the visage of a wizard in his mid-twenties, it may shock to know that he’s somewhere in his early fifties, and afflicted with an arrested ageing process. It certainly was a shock to all of his former friends, and classmates, after he was confronted about it when they grew up, and he didn’t.
After spending nearly three decades under lock and key, waiting to be made a host for his fairy mother, Benjy escaped and was whisked away to wizarding society. For all his efforts to acclimate, being half a fairy left him bullied, lonely and near-ostracized. Fortunately, his time at Hogwarts wasn’t completely ruined. He found a father-figure in the Charms Master, who’d made Benjy his teaching assistant. Â
Apprenticed to a Charms Master set Benjy on the path of scholarly pursuits. After finishing up at Hogwarts, Benjy travelled to the Mountains of the Moon, and polished his innate gift for wandless magic till proficient, among other interests. He practised duelling with an enigmatic witch in Russia to her heart’s content, in exchange for knowledge about darker and lesser-known arts. And, he was apprenticed to an accomplished spellcaster and magical scholar who needed help establishing a wizarding school in the Himalayas – Atharvaveda.
Benjy taught at the fledgeling school that accepted students from throughout South Asia. It was meant to be temporary, but a full decade had passed before he relinquished the now-sought after position. Intending to travel to North America, Benjy found himself filling in for a professor at Mahoutokoro. When he finally made it to North America, it was to apply for a teaching position at Ilvermorny School.
After seven years on the job, Benjy started to think of America as home. Especially after embarking on a relationship with a wizard and fellow educator. Though aware of the growing disturbances back home, he lived untouched by it. Not until his father-figure, the single most positive influence in his youth, was murdered by Death Eaters who’d failed to recruit him for their Dark Lord. Returning to Britain to handle the funeral arrangements, Benjy found himself staying longer, at Albus Dumbledore’s request.
What started out as an offer to fill the now-vacant position at Hogwarts, transitioned into a request to join a resistance group. One headed by Dumbledore, himself. Prepared to decline, given the life waiting for him over the pond, Benjy, instead, found himself accepting, but not to be noble or courageous. He wasn’t as concerned about saving others, and would readily watch the world burn if he could. Believe it or not, this was the better outcome and one of his late mentor’s kindest achievements. Â
The deceased professor had, somehow, balanced the loneliness and the cruelty that Benjy suffered, with an abundance of compassion and attention. Had he not, Benjy would likely be sporting a Dark Mark of his own while personally setting the world ablaze. His efforts spared the world another dark wizard and gave Benjy the chance of becoming someone extraordinary. In exchange, he accepted Dumbledore’s offer because he selfishly meant to avenge the wizard who did the most for him. It was the least he could do.
Though a cover, Benjy has filled his late mentor’s shoes and picked up where the former Charms Master has left off at Hogwarts. Where the war is concerned, he has fought, and continues to fight, for the Order and its beliefs. Cementing himself as a decent-enough tactician and a first-rate duellist with a talent for poking holes in Order strategies. Better to be prepared than dead, has become something of a catchphrase. Â
In what little free time he is allowed, he has been conducting his own investigation into his mentor’s murder. So far, Benjy has tracked down and killed two Death Eaters who were there that night. His interrogations yielded him little more information, beyond the fact that there were three of them, and the missing third was the one who cast the killing curse. He hasn’t found any new leads yet, but he’s close, and he is persistent. Once the elusive dark witch or wizard has been dealt with, Benjy is done with the war.