#elusiveillusionist

[wandmore]

elusiveillusionist submitted to wandmore:

Thanks very much for your analyses of the Only Child, again! Seeing your thoughts is always great fun. Here’s another character I was toying with:

Illegitimate daughter of a wealthy Muggleborn businessman, has one legitimate sister a year younger. Despite her illegitimacy, she’s naturally talented at pretty much everything she sets her mind to, which, juxtaposed against a less academically able younger sister, means that any initial poor treatment of her by her decidedly amoral father is quickly set aside and, to her sister and stepmother’s resentment, she becomes if anything the favoured child. She doesn’t really suffer from Cinderella syndrome, though-if anything, she’s the domineering one due to the father being very much the dominant force in the family, something that renders her stepmother and sister unable to really do much but resent. 

She’s somewhat arrogant due to this upbringing, very confident in her talents, appearance, but she’s also too smart to fail to realize that ultimately it was her father’s whims that determined her position of privilege, which keeps her somewhat grounded. This might extend to the point of being an insecurity for her, a constant awareness dogging her childhood that she’s walking a tightrope of approval that could go very, very badly for her if she at some point falters and no longer is able to play the role that’s brought her so much success so far. This probably manifests as something of a stubborn streak.

As mentioned earlier, she’s pretty naturally talented in general-she learns quickly, has a good memory, and will definitely prove to be very, very magically able when she arrives at Hogwarts. Whilst she’s the sort who’s likely to score highly in all her classes, I’d imagine an especial proclivity for Defense and Transfiguration. She’s also charismatic, but not extremely good at making friends - she holds herself too aloofly for that, and as such she’s more the sort who inspires admiration than affection. Her main flaws stem from her pride and stubbornness - she also has something of a hero complex in that she’s very bad at leaving things alone if she perceives them to be unjust, and sometimes might stir hornet’s nests that would be better left untouched. 

She’d probably be most at home in Gryffindor despite probably being able to fit into any of the houses decently well, and would likely be someone who constantly finds themselves in the center of great events as an active player as she grew older. Her lack of ability to really slow down and actively consider the rightness of her own actions does mean that she’s as likely to be a well-intentioned antagonist as she is a hero, though. 

Wood: Aspen, Larch or Pine. Core: Phoenix Feather if Larch, Dragon Heartstring if Aspen or Pine. Length: 12″-13″, with 13 3/4″ for the absolute upper limit. I’d say around 13″. Flexibility: Stubborn Maker: Garrick Ollivander Details: I’m not terribly sure about the details here, because you’ve described this character’s situation rather than they themselves.

[wandmore]

Character Analysis Request: Only Child, years later

@elusiveillusionist submitted:

Thank you so much for your earlier analysis of the ‘only child’ character I submitted, it was really interesting to read your thoughts-even if I was a little startled that you attributed to him the same wand that you did to post-Resurrection Tom Riddle!

If you wouldn’t mind, I’d be curious to hear what you think his wand would be when he reaches full maturity and leaves Hogwarts. After graduation, his mental dissonance regarding his insecurities about whether his friends reciprocate his affections would have been pretty much entirely resolved, with him enjoying the company of his close friends and trusting their good intentions for him. However, whilst he’d be if anything more charismatic and socially capable even than in his youth, he’d not form genuine bonds anywhere near as easily whilst still treasuring the ones he created as a more open child-in short, he would value his existing friends greatly but whilst he would easily get along with people he’d not yet been opposed to, any sign he’d show of affection would likely be falsified. 

Publicly, he’d be a rather upstanding member of society at this point-wealthy but inclined towards philanthropic endeavours, as careful as possible to skate around matters of blood purity and whilst not always capable of remaining entirely aloof still generally capable of alienating either side of the debate. His primary public concerns would be ensuring the smooth running of Wizarding Britain and the well-being of its population, dabbling in politics and leaning on Ministry-aligned friends to get things done. These intentions are genuine, albeit played up-as with his friends, the emotional ties he formed as a child tether him strongly to Britain despite his amorality elsewhere. This public persona would be even more confident, slightly erring towards flamboyance, and often display a versatile knack for exotic and curious magics from his travels across the world-again, all undeniably true aspects of his character carried over from his youth, but consciously played up to present a certain image of himself to others and obfuscate other aspects of himself. He’d also cultivate a perception of himself as a pacifist by choice. 

Privately, and closer to his true nature, his curiosity and hunger for knowledge would remain one of the most fundamental parts of his character and now with the power and means to fully exercise that curiosity. He’d likely dabble with every branch of magic that he could get his hands on, with especial interest in the Dark Arts and Healing, the Mind Magics and Transfiguration but secondary focuses on practically everything from Astronomy to Magical Creatures to Herbology. By this point, he’d have become very self-aware as to the insane ambition of wanting to understand and accumulate as much as he does, and thus his priority would be the attainment of immortality, more likely the creation of a Stone than a Horcrux due to lack of desire to splinter his soul before understanding what the consequences of that might be (I can imagine that his interest would probably lean towards the creation of a Dark Stone as outlined in the Encyclopaedia Arcana)

With this focus on immortality in mind, his true self would be far, far more inclined to subtlety and patience than his public persona-his actual magical predilections would be for a wide range of subtle but powerful magics with long-lasting, insidious effects. He’d be very willing to approach his key ambitions (survival and knowledge still, but shorter term goals could be extremely diverse, ranging from attaining positions of power under disguises, befriending useful people, stealing interesting magical items, etcetera) extremely slowly, losing some of the directness of his youth due to the awareness that he can afford to play the long game, but still likely be bold enough to get things done more directly when it proves necessary. This might extend to the point of being a character flaw, where he’s so aware that he’s capable of absorbing a temporary loss due to the long-term scope of his goals that he sacrifices a potential success without fighting for it as hard as he ought to have. Ultimately a dangerous, antagonistic and malevolent figure, but one thoroughly uninterested in dramatics or needless harm and one still very unable to act villainously in Britain or with friends he already values-part of his avoidance of Britain would very much be down to a subconscious terror of having to face his friends directly. 

…I realise that this was far longer than I anticipated and apologise.

No, no, don’t be sorry! This is tremendously interesting. That said: are you sure you haven’t got a Tom Riddle raised as a Pureblood with affection enough he can actually care and sorted into Ravenclaw? He feels like it, sometimes.

ANYWAY, onwards.

I think he’d shift from the high intelligence requirements of Walnut to something like the sincere self-awareness of Black Walnut or the ruthless intelligence of Vine. I think Vine would suit him very well, as it seeks those “who have a vision beyond the ordinary and who frequently astound those who think they know them best”, which seems very fitting here. Paired to Dragon Heartstring you’d get the flamboyance you mentioned earlier, perhaps Chinese Fireball would provide the flair sought, as well as being self-aware enough to suit this person.

This individual’s great confidence, to the point of readily sacrificing or ignoring losses speaks to great confidence, perhaps close to arrogance, so 13 3/4″ for the length, and I think... supple for the flexibility - adaptable, but only as needs must.

Wood: Vine Core: Dragon Heartstring (Chinese Fireball) Length: 13 3/4″ Flexibility: supple Maker: Garrick Ollivander Description: Glossy, polished, neatly carved with thorn-vines around the handle, that leave a slight impression on the palm and fingers. The wood is stained, greenish and grey, though the raised carvings are not, and remain a soft middling brown.

[wandmore]

Character Profile: Only child, raised as a pureblood. Family extremely wealthy but not especially respected in the UK-not one of the sacred-twenty-eight due to a number of blood purity scandals. Extremely bright and a worrying natural aptitude for magic, but not an immediately obvious one-whilst they always score highly academically, they coast by on natural talent for their early years at Hogwarts and only begin to really delve into their potential once natural talent proves insufficient. 1/3

Very good at making friends, but tends to underestimate how strongly their friends feel about them and thus out of a mistaken sense of reciprocity avoids investing emotionally-however they often fail at this, valuing their friends despite not trusting that they are valued in turn, keeps them from becoming the natural edgelord that their other personality traits-arrogance, power, a deep hunger to both be acknowledged as great and most importantly of all to discover EVERYTHING about magic. 2/3

A tendency towards planning and caution, but in the heat of the moment (when confronted unexpectedly, or if a plan goes very wrong) they have a tendency to rush into the situation and address it very dramatically. Despite Slytherin and Gryffindor tendencies they’re most likely to be sorted into Ravenclaw since ambition and bravery alike, whilst key parts of their character, are less crucial to them than intellectual curiosity. They are more than willing to dismiss ethics for more knowledge. 3/3

Walnut. Literally everything about this person says Walnut to me - intelligent, willing to dismiss ethics.... Walnut and Dragon Heartstring, 14″, rigid.

Wood: WalnutCore: Dragon HeartstringLength: 14″Flexibility: rigidMaker: Garrick OllivanderDescription: Not stained dark, but with dark burls very visible. Otherwise, golden and glossy, well polished. A smooth, largely undecorated wand.