Special Feature Applications

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Name: Spencer
Character name: Pierce Lachapelle
Feature you are applying for: Typh Advocate

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What interests Pierce more than anything is the world around him. He is an analytical, curious, and inquisitive young man with a great need to understand things. He is a logical tinkerer, needing to pick things apart and learn how they work. This makes him keenly observant, sometimes nearly hyper-aware of his surroundings and the environment of any given situation. His thirst for knowledge and new experiences make him an adaptable and fluid creature, never getting too attached to any one activity. He is easily able to iterate, to conceptualize complex ideas and devise new ways of solving problems. He considers himself to be clever, creative, scholarly, and prudent.

Such interest and passion for the world make him an active and dynamic being, changing course as quickly as the winds. This leads him to be energetic and athletic, open to all forms of exercise and physical activity. In particular, he favors Quidditch and climbing, having a deep fondness for reaching new, literal, heights. He is methodical and meticulous in his ways, sometimes even to the point of being pedantic. He likes things to be done well, to be done right, and to be done efficiently. Despite being clearly and openly led by his mind, Pierce is charismatic, genuine, and humorous. He loves people, learning about their lives and interests, always seeking to find some new insight into the overall human experience. He loves gatherings, social events, and any opportunity to meet people outside his regular circle.

He is cultured and well-educated, being the son of an artist and a ministry worker. His childhood home was as full of discussions on music, dance, and the arts as it was foreign relations and complex theoretical repartee. Pierce himself is familial, wanting to make his family proud and carrying a sense of duty on his shoulders as the eldest son. Similarly, he is a sentimental man, carrying a deep fondness and affection for his past and the events that shaped him into the person he's become. He strives to be honest, helpful, trustworthy and reliable, caring about his friendships and never wanting to let people down. He is protective and can be insightful, though he is more likely to help a friend come up with practical, logical solutions to their problems than be particularly emotionally nurturing.

In that vein, though Pierce strives to be his ideal self, he is far from it. The man is absentminded, ruthlessly ambitious, and competitive. He loves to argue and debate and can often be contradictory. He is stubborn and can be very private, particularly about his emotions and deepest concerns. He has a tendency to want to be in control, sometimes even to the point of being domineering. He is sarcastic and unafraid to be a bit petulant, particularly if he wants to get under someone's skin. He is playful, in both good and bad ways, sometimes lacking maturity and sometimes just outright rebelling against the whole concept. He tries to be moralistic, though sometimes only to hold the higher ground. He can be prideful, but usually in an effort to conceal his envy for other people and things that he covets.

His ability to change and adapt can sometimes be abrupt, too sudden, befittingly leaving some to think him airy and foolish. His analytical, opinionated, and stubborn nature can lead him to seem arrogant and distastefully egotistical if not kept in check. He is assertive, which can be helpful, lest he not be too overzealous. He is critical, demanding, and frequently impatient, especially in tolerating ideas or solutions that he feels are not superlative. Conflicts of this nature lead him to be querulous and, on occasion, irreverent and even disobedient. Such times give way to tempestuously moody, defeatist attitudes that leave him prone to escapism and distraction. He has a desire to be the best, wanting to please people and make things better. When he can't, he is often covetous, possessive, and snarky.

In his recent years he has tried to let go, let the winds carry him at their will, bringing him to new places, people, and experiences that he regularly would've never discovered. He has a newfound happiness and zest for life, a passion and a willpower that carry him through the skies. He is always ascending, climbing his way towards the summit, wanting to find enlightenment and meaning in the world. Every now and again, though, he likes to pull his head out of the clouds and enjoy his time here on the ground level.

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My interest in the elemental lore of Magical Hogwarts runs deep. I am most intrigued by the idea of Elementals as a magical subculture, these special beings possessing ancient and powerful magic while simultaneously living, working, and existing among their regular wizarding counterparts. One of my favorite aspects of Pierce's character is that while he is an elemental, he comes from a large family of regular wizards, and seeing as two of his siblings are currently sorted characters, opportunities arise to actually play that out and explore it in character. Similarly, Pierce has spent a great deal of his time trying to incorporate into the regular world. He wanted to make his family proud, to be a 'golden boy' of sorts, playing Quidditch at Beauxbatons and having lots of friends and excelling in his studies. All the while, he had Elementalism to maintain, to master, pressures and outside forces acting on him. Like the winds, he is a turbulent force, unable to be controlled or tethered down. His need to live, to explore, and to be free are big parts of his overall character.

The element of air is at the core of Pierce, in his spirit and soul. He is active and engaged, always wanting to be a part of everything going on. He is highly educated, a glutton for knowledge, having a strong mind for history and mythology. Devoted to the council from a young age, he spent an immense amount of time learning, reading, and devouring the lore of his people. A double edged sword, he's a bit of a know-it-all, wanting to boast and take pride in all he's learned. Like the traditional Typh, he cares little about money and material things, abandoning his life and security at the chance to travel adventurously, gain knowledge, and ransack ancient tombs.

He can be stubborn, firm on his opinion, holding the high ground and promising 'my way or the highway.' But, as fast as the winds can change, he realizes his mistakes, owns up to them, and reverses course, resetting his sails and letting the winds lead him to calmer waters. He is a natural born leader, the eldest of his siblings, learning from an early age the duty and responsibility that was expected of him. He has no qualms taking control, and honestly usually prefers it that way. Ultimately, he is a whirlwind of adventure and chaos, finally courageous enough to embrace his inner vagabond and explore all that the world has to teach him.

Pierce's Elementalism permeates his entire character, personality, and life. The element of air is as much a part of him as his heartbeat, beckoning him, whispers on the wind promising greatness. For his adolescent years he fought against it, wanting to control it and harness it on his terms (arguably, a very Typh quality.) It wasn't until letting it go, embracing the freedom of the wildest winds, that he found himself and his true passion. He's grown so much as a person in these recent years and that is because of his Elementalism, because of the bravery that the element of air instilled in him.

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Elemental Plot; One of the aspects of Pierce that interests me most is his role within the council. He was extremely dedicated as an adolescent, competitive and invested when it came to training at Inverness. When he got older, though, he followed the winds and found himself adventuring around the world with little time left to dedicate to the organization. Now that he's met so many different kinds of people, seen from many perspectives, he has begun to question whether the council is really as wonderful as he'd always believed. Truly, I do not know if he will stand with the council or abdicate and join the rogue faction, but I do know that either way, he's going to put up one hell of a fight.

Family Relations; When Pierce is first discovered to be an elemental, his family has their reservations. His father, prim and proper, worried that it was a burden his son would have to bear. As a foreign relations officer for the Ministry of Magic, it evens led him to wonder if Pierce could become a target or damage his career if discovered. His mother, being more of a free spirit, celebrates Pierce for his differences and considers it a special blessing. His younger brothers, however, are hesitant and think of him as a bit of a freak. Though now they all are used to his elementalism (and frankly far more concerned about the time he ran away to raid tombs for a living), his connection the element of air would play a distinct role in his relationship to his family, and specifically his played siblings Prosper and Adrien.

Julen; Tori's WIP Incin elemental, Julen would be a longtime friend to Pierce. They would've written during his travels, Pierce leaning on him during the days when things felt dire. Upon returning from his adventures and attempting to settle into every day life, Julen would reveal a troubling discovery about the council: murder, deception, and a cover up. Learning such troubling news and already skeptical about returning to Inverness, this interaction would undoubtedly fuel Pierce's doubts about the nobility of the council.

Zoé Deveaux; A fellow elemental and good friends with his younger brother, Pierce and Zoé would've always been amicable. After the incident at Prosper's birthday party, the boy would've felt compelled to ensure she was alright. They would become closer, and when Pierce goes off after graduation, they'd stay in touch. After returning and learning the troubling information from Julen, Pierce would confront his friend and ensure that she, a loyal council elemental, had no idea of what had unfolded. How Zoé will react to the news and to Pierce's passionate concern remains unclear, but one thing is for sure: there will be painful questions and uncomfortable truths.

Medusa; Arrogantly believing his numerous adventures have prepared him for it, Pierce will venture to the island of Medusa. Riddled with treasures and rare, mythical items, its unsurprising that the historian would be keen to take a look around. Quickly caught and at the mercy of the witch, Pierce would use his elementalism as a bargaining chip, agreeing to offer the woman his hair, blood, and beyond in exchange for his life, freedom, and access to the island's treasures. It is possible the pair will strike up a working relationship, Pierce bringing things to the island for the woman and earning her continued guidance in return.

Alain St. Clare; Perhaps Pierce's oldest friend, Alain St. Clare has always been close to the Lachapelle. Perhaps drawn together due to their affinity for the same element, they share a special connection all throughout their schooling years. Though it is hard to capture Alain's attention once he so desperately falls for Isabelle Laurent, Pierce is always loyal and faithful to his friend. When Pierce went adventuring after graduation, the pair fell out of touch, although they will soon reconnect as members of the Nightmare League. Alain and Pierce are both behind in their training, still being advocates at the council. They will help each other practice and improve as they attempt to master Typh spells.

Memphis Gredel; Introduced to Pierce through Alain, Memphis is a fellow Typh elemental and friend. As kids, the pair was extremely competitive during their lessons at Inverness and always maintained a playful rivalry. After Pierce leaves for his adventures, the pair remained in touch through his work. Being curious about mystical artifacts and working at the Third Aett, Pierce found success selling items and picking up tips via Memphis.

Nikodim Balaur; Taking on the role of a mentor, from a young age Nikodim looked after Pierce. Though they are not from the same element, they have a strong bond, and Pierce knows that he can go to Nikodim for anything, even if he gets into some not-so-innocent trouble. The pair fell out of touch when Pierce rapidly disappeared from the Council after graduation, but it is possible they will soon reconnect as members of the Nightmare League.

Rozenn Seznec; Council harbinger of his counter element no less, Rozenn holds many positions of power over Pierce. Ever since the woman's return to Inverness, he's been skeptical and cautious, avoiding her as much as possible. Though he would never admit it for fear of sounding weak, she terrifies him to his core, which could prove very interesting if Pierce ultimately ends up joining the rogue faction and working hand in hand with the seasoned Demin.

Volya Nikolov; Old enough to be his mentor but near enough in age to be friendly, Pierce's relationship with Volya is complicated. Though Typh and Hor are friendly elements, Pierce can never shake the odd and somewhat dampening effect Volya has on his mood, and their interactions with one another are perhaps best described as 'frenemies.' Though Pierce doesn't realize it yet, this innate feeling of tension stems from his secondary affinity towards Incin, counter to Volya's Hor, and his friendship with the man will one day play a role in this revelation.

Continued Plotting; If approved, I fully intend to continue plotting Pierce with other characters, elemental or otherwise, as well as hammering out specific, actionable ways to get him involved in Elemental board-wide plots.

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High above the jungle, floating, free and uninhibited. These were the best mornings, the only mornings that didn’t put him in a foul mood.

Morphing was by far Pierce’s favorite elemental power. Sure, there were many other useful, powerful spells that he’d learned in his years at Inverness, but none as pure and as natural as this. He was air. He was one with his element. Nothing else could ever feel so certain and so true. He imagined that his crew mates thought it odd that he preferred to “sleep” in the treetops, but it was just easier that way. He was a natural climber, always seeking the highest ground, always able to reach just high enough to be obscured from view.

No one seemed to mind that he preferred to keep watch, either. Sure, he needed his time to regenerate and work towards enlightenment, but mortal sleep was a luxury he didn’t require. Now that he was older, more experienced, able to see the world freely from his elemental state, he was the perfect watchdog. Sprawling, hovering, omnipresent. It was peaceful up here as he watched the animals in their habitat, jumping between tree limbs, scurrying along the vines. The air here was humid and thick and wonderful, palpable, and it made him feel alive.

There was a strong current in the air high above the jungle canopy, and Pierce had to fight the urge to let it take him as it wanted. That kept him in control, focused, ensuring that his element did not overwhelm him. He’d never quite wrapped his mind around it all, what it meant to be plucked from the winds and fused with a human soul. But, it was who he was. It was his entirety. The sun began to peek over the horizon and it was time to rally the troops. Here, deep in the Amazon, they had a small sliver of time to prepare before the sunlight illuminated the tomb they’d overtaken in just the right way, awakening ancient magic and promising powerful treasures.

With what felt like a grand sigh, the man descended, his body reassembling from fine, nearly imperceptible bits of dust. Like a billowing smokestack, he fell back into his humanity, back into his skin and bones and limbs. He felt strong, rejuvenated, awakened. He was ready for this. He was built for this. Stretching out his arms, he rolled his neck and began to work his way down the tree trunk, carefully placing each of his feet as he descended. With a final crunching thud his feet touched earth for the first time in nearly ten hours, and it reminded him of the adventure that was afoot.

With a smirk on his handsome features, Pierce wandered towards the makeshift campsite and prepared to awaken the crew. [/div]

[toy]approved[/toy]

Name: Kita
Character name: Sabela Portela
Feature you are applying for: Consensimens

Description of the character: This Galician witch is a very isolated young lady and her life is ruled by her anxious nature. She is overly cautious about everyone and everything. Sabela does not trust a person easily and is very secretive and deceptive and she does not reveal much about herself. Sometimes, an envious streak can make itself known, especially when she sees other people she likes playing and having fun without her. Ela, if overwhelmed by her fears and anxiety, is extremely paranoid and vulnerable. She runs away and hides and is impossible to reason with when she becomes overly paranoid. Despite all the secrecy and uneasiness she possesses, Ela is a wonderfully innocent and pure child. This is likely due to her lack of interactions with people and her overprotective and controlling parents preventing her from obtaining knowledge of how the world works. The sensitive witch can show her true nature very easily once she gets to know a person and trusts them (though this takes time), she is fiercely passionate. Once the layers of anxiety and mistrust of Ela's personality are removed, the true nature of Sabela is revealed. She is a very good and kind person deep down and can be very friendly. Despite this, neglect of human contact has caused psychological damage and is almost feral in nature at times. Unfortunately, Ela easily changes her mind and is unpredictable in how she behaves. Neglect of major human contact over the years has caused Ela to become a very resilient person who can keep herself occupied for days and days without speaking or seeing anyone. Ela is a very proud person and takes pride in her heritage, her abilities and hobbies and becomes tetchy if someone insults anything that could cause a blow to her pride and her ego.

Ela has no greater fear than the fear that someone will touch her. She can become extremely anxious at the mere mention of being touched, and anyone attempting to or successfully touch her will cause her to become absolutely hysterical in fear. Had she ever gone to a muggle psychologist, she would be instantly diagnosed with haphephobia. She actively avoids people to avoid this phenomenon actually occurring, because she becomes useless in such situations, in doing so, her phobia completely controls her life and the majority of her personality too. A large group of people in a crowd can make that very difficult. It is more likely that someone will accidentally brush up against her, so Sabela steers clear of anywhere where she knows crowds are likely.

Application: Okay, when I first joined MH just under 3 years ago, I promised myself that I'd never apply for a special feature. Ever. Not even an EFB. They looked like so much extra effort, with so much added stress and I was just like "I can make my characters special without an SF or an EFB!" And to a certain extent, that may well be true. Every time a new muse has popped into my head, there has always been 2 traits that defined them as a whole and the rest of the character grew from there. For Brietta, 'the logical, sly one'. For Frida, 'the bubbly, childish one'. For Sabrina, 'the calm, graceful one'. And for Marja, 'the emotional, perfectionist one'. But after I made Marja it felt like there was a pattern forming. There was a physical part or situation of the character that made them special and often explained why they behaved the way they did. Brietta's was originally being a twin, though this has evolved to her injuries from the fire. Frida's was her extensive family. Sabrina's illness and Marja's dysfunctional family.

When Ela first arrived in my head-space, the way I summed her up was 'the anxious, paranoid one'. And that got me thinking. With my other characters, the physical thing/situation made them who they are. So why was Sabela so anxious? Why was she paranoid? What was she so afraid of? There had to be a reasoning behind her worries and fears. And that was how I found myself scrolling through the special features guide and elemental guide. Originally, I came to the conclusion that I'd work on Ela with her being an ice elemental in mind. Once I finished the outline of her personality however and I read the elemental guide again, it didn't sit right with me. Sabela's personality didn't quite fit and I found myself somehow further deterred by the sheer amount of elementals that started popping up.

So, I continued my search and halted on the consensimency guide. The light bulb instantly flashed. It was perfect! It explained her anxious nature and fears very well and gave a reason behind her neglect of human contact and the subsequent psychological damage caused. I was even more intrigued by the fact that there are no played consensimens at the moment. I felt like it gave me a fair amount of room to play with and develop the feature to Sabela herself using the guide as my only rules. The feature and the character seemed to melt seamlessly into 1 and consensimency became a part of Ela. Take the feature away and Ela's fears and lack of social skills cannot be fully explained beyond controlling parents, which to me doesn't feel like a good enough explanation. From my own psychology studies, I know full well that plenty of overly-controlled kids can turn out to be absolutely fine.

Ela is really not fine. She is psychologically rather messed up. As it is, she'll be a huge challenge to play because of that alone, but the consensimency will add the final piece to the puzzle as well as pushing me into a challenging situation to really motivate myself to develop and improve as a driver/writer, instead of playing it safe like I currently have. The consensimency will affect all of Sabela's relationships; past, present and future. As she learns to control and develop her abilities, her relationships with others with also grow and bloom. In that way, Ela will also grow as a character, her personality changing in subtle ways as she improves on her abilties and becomes integrated into society. She'll discover that the world isn't so very scary, that she isn't totally alone and isolated, that people really do care. And that very development, as she discovers who she is, who she could be and who others really are, excites me to no end. Ela will always be able to develop her abilities further, improve her social understanding even better and that means her journey and development is almost everlasting, for as long as I want to play her. Such development to me is a writer's dream world! And that's really why I want the consensimency: It gives a deeper meaning and understanding to Ela's character, it will affect her relationships with other characters in ways that I can't fully imagine just yet, and most importantly it'll push me out of my comfort zone thereby improving me as a driver. Of course, all instances where the feature is used will require permission from my threading partner, which means prior collaboration. I prefer threads like these anyway as it gives me contextual background the majority of the time, and the extra time and effort means a better thread, no?

Future plots:

Emma Archambault: This really is the major plot point that will trigger off all future plot points that involve Ela's consensimency. Emma (naturally) thinks that Sabela is very weird for always wearing gloves and thick clothes and after a fight which leaves Emma angry, she will confront Ela about her odd choice of attire and deliberately touch her. Due to the intense anger, Sabela will be quickly overwhelmed and somewhat tortured by the influx of sensations caused by being touched by Emma. She will try to jerk away and cry out but will rapidly be debilitated. This scenario is literally the springboard to Ela being diagnosed and therefore her journey as a consensimens, as (unbeknown by either party) the event is witnessed by a professor.

Gauvain Améliore: Gauvain will happen to be the professor that witnesses the event above between Emma and Sabela and will request that Ela joins him in his office in order to see if his suspicions are correct. They are, of course, so he will be the first to discover her as a consensimens. This will prompt an official diagnosis of consensimency to be made and Sabela will now be fully aware of exactly what she is. Ela will always have a great respect for Gauvain (despite being scared of him) because of this, as she will finally know why she is different and will be able to get the guidance and support that she has needed, both to control her gift and to begin to integrate her into society.

Carolijn Westbroek: Carolijn will be assigned to be Ela's consensimency mentor by the French Ministry of Magic, so out of all the plots that I have planned, this will be the most crucial, the most long-term and the one that'll produce the most threads. According to the guide, it can take 3 to 5 years just to learn how to block out the sensations which is most of Ela's school life even if she decides not to continue training after that point (though Ela likely will continue training). So, Carolijn will become a major part and influence in Sabela's future life. Professor Westbroek will have her work cut out for her over the next few years, as trying to break through years of psychological damage and neglect isn't going to be easy. But with Carolijn's constant guidance and support, Ela will gradually learn how to socialise with other people in a way that is accepted in society and will, bit by bit, overcome her fear of people touching her and learn to control her abilities. Sabela will develop a sense of deep trust and affection for her mentor and will in later years see Carolijn as a maternal figure, since her actual mother is very controlling (and rather scary in Ela's opinion). I'm planning to play out every step of Ela's consensimency training, from her very first lessons to the point where she finally has to make the decision on whether or not to continue 5 years down the line. The extent of Sabela's control over her ability, her social skills and her character in general will grow and evolve alongside her relationship with her mentor with her mentor shaping much of her developed personality, something I'm very excited to play out!

Taras Kravets/ Shadow Rising: In an attempt to improve her social skills and to provide a sort of makeshift support network of students of all ages, Sabela will be persuaded to join the Shadow Rising. She is knowledgeable and passionate about celtic traditions and ways and although she wouldn't say much, sometimes the anxious layer of her personality can be bust through by her passion of the subject and she may, on occasion, make helpful contributions. Over the years, being a part of the group will really help her grow: as a witch, as a consensimens and most importantly as a functioning member of society, with the social skills she will develop and the people that she will learn to no longer be afraid of.

Nieks Krusen: This psychology loving student has hit the jackpot with Sabela being a very abnormal person with her many psychological issues (i.e. her phobias and severe anxiety). Learning about her through his sister who is in Ela's year, Nieks and Ela will eventually bond and develop a fairly concrete relationship, as Nieks will act as a mentor helping her and pointing her in the right direction when she needs guidance. The trust and close relationship will take years to form as Sabela doesn't open up and let her guard down easily (making most of these plots quite long-term) but the eventual deep trust Ela will develop for Nieks will really help her when her consensimency training seems too much to handle, particularly when she reaches the crossroads in her training once she can successfully block out sensations after being touched.

Elfie Marchand: Elfie will try to be friends with Sabela and I think, at some point in the future, she'll win Ela over through sheer determination. Despite making it very clear that she is not to be touched under any circumstances, Elfie will occasionally forget. This will help Sabela really appreciate the time and effort that she'll have to put into her training, as she will be extremely shocked that the sensation is still very enervating once she begins training. It'll be a turning point as she realises that being diagnosed and having a mentor will not miraculously fix everything. Ela has to be the one to the effort into something that she's extremely afraid of, creating a dilemma that will drive her and help her grow infinitely as a character. Plus, Elfie will be her future supply of shiny things, how could she possibly refuse friendship at that point?

Jonas Rosenthal: Later on in Ela's consensimency training, Jonas will learn about her abilities and become super interested and intrigued by them. Sabela will at this point have become socially strong enough that she will hesitantly accept the idea of being his test subject (though she'll never be fully comfortable with it). Ela agrees because she realises it gives her a chance to practice blocking out sensations and overcoming her fear of being touched without Professor Westbroek being present to guide her. It will really help her test her boundaries of what she's learnt.

Alessandro Marconi: As Sabela learns to control her abilities and not let her abilities control her, her true personality will begin to shine through the cracks and she will warm up to Ale after a couple of years. They are both a part of the Shadow Rising which lays the foundation to their relationship.  Since he respects many of Ela's odd quirks and idiosyncrasies, Sabela will find he becomes one of the few people she fully trusts and opens up to, making their relationship important for her integration into society.

Aina Viðarrsen: Aina is Ela's best (and pretty much only) friend, having known the Norwegian girl for many years already. Ela will be comforted and feel less isolated for having an odd ability as Aina would have already owled her about being an elemental [1]. When Ela is then later discovered as a consensimens, she will immediately tell her friend everything about it and will also try her best to learn all she can about Aina's 'specialness' too. The fact they are both odd will help them bond and become even closer as they support each other through their training throughout the coming years.

Julietta Ouellet: Jules and Sabela are cousins, so they already know each other quite well. Ela trusts Julietta a fair amount and while she is usually secretive, sometimes the Galician witch will just blurt stuff out randomly to her older cousin. After Ela has been discovered as a consensimens Sabela and Julietta will (not literally) bump into each other during the Summer holidays. Jules will be curious as to why Ela is wearing thick, long gloves in the middle of Summer and it will be at this point that Ela will tell her about her new diagnosis of consensimency. From that point on, Ela will send her regular updates through letters about her progress, which also helps her develop into a less socially deprived girl.

In general: The journey ahead won't be easy for Ela, she will have to overcome many things in order to become a functioning member of society and a functioning consensimens too. She will have to rise up and tackle what other say about her and learn to be comfortable (and eventually more confident) in her own skin, and accept that the ability she has been given is a part of who she is and to take it away would be taken part of her away. Sabela will eventually come to think of her abilities as a gift and not as a curse. There is so much potential for growth here! At the moment, Ela is neutral but she has much potential for being good and being part of the light. Though this may change as I play her out and she develops into her own character, I currently plan for her to choose to continue her consensimency training and work to become a healer with the time, effort and extensive guidance. Ela is going to have to learn how to make friends and how to socialise in an accepted manner, she must learn how to develop past her many psychological issues (i.e. her haphephobia, her social anxiety disorder, her neglect of human contact (which can make her a little sociopathic)) in order to flourish into a fairly normal person. At the moment, in current playtime, she is almost a feral child and while I'm never planning on her becoming perfectly functional (as that seems to me to be a little unrealistic based upon my own psychology studies), she will drastically improve over the many years and the one thing I like about this special feature is that Ela's journey will never be complete. She can always improve on her gift and abilities even further, she can always make mistakes, she can always be triggered into her old ways if she isn't careful. Her journey can manifest itself in so many different ways that I can't even comprehend yet and it will grow as Ela grows.

RP sample using the feature:

Ela had her hopes up when her father told her he was going on yet another trip to Norway for diplomacy talks. She was quite excited when her parents tentatively gave her permission to go with them. It meant she had a chance to see Aina, her best (and only) friend in the world! The Galician witch had known the Norwegian for many years and trusted her very much. She was eager to catch up with Aina in person since her last letter to her. Sabela knew that her mother, in particular, was very reluctant to allow her to go, especially after reports of her behaviour during her first term at Beauxbatons but she overheard her father gently persuading her, claiming it could be a holiday for the whole family. That apparently was enough to convince her, since Sabela was currently on her way to the Viðarrsen home in Norway.

The Galician witch couldn't rid herself of the butterflies in her stomach as the family made their way to Aina's house. It wasn't that she was nervous to see Aina, oh no. She was being closely flanked from all sides, her parents either side of her and her brother following her from behind. Ela feared anyone entering her personal bubble, so she certainly wasn't comfortable at all with her family deliberately being in such close proximity to her. Sabela tried to calm herself by repeating in her head that she had a thick coat on, so she wouldn't feel anything and that it was only her family and not one of the complete strangers in the crowded streets (which was why her family were surrounding her in the first place) but it wasn't working. In fact, the thought of there being so many strangers was making it worse. The growing anxiety caused her to hug herself and her eye began to twitch, the sooner she was with Aina the better.

Anxiously looking around her as she stood on the doorstep, Sabela waited impatiently as her mother knocked on the door, paranoid that they were taking too long to open it. Of course, it eventually did open and Ela quickly stepped inside and headed straight towards her best friend, instead of removing her coat like the rest of her family. She was so very happy to see the Norwegian! "Aina! I've missed you!" The Galician called out to her friend using her limited knowledge of Norwegian and ran up to greet her. She quickly panicked, however, as Aina clearly had the same idea and ran up towards Sabela. Ela started to back away as soon as Aina got too close, her breathing becoming heavier in fear. Her heightened awareness decided it was a great time to point out to the brunette that she wasn't wearing gloves that covered her entire wrists, and her coat stopped just before her wrists, leaving a small amount of skin exposed. Crossing her arms so that her wrists were hiding under her armpits, Sabela tried to pretend she was fine and was not, in fact, on the verge of a panic attack by quickly spitting out "H-how is D-du-durmstrang? Is it pr-pretty?"

The brunette relaxed a little as Aina animatedly told her that she had something to show her in her room and Ela slowly released herself from her self-hug though she still cowered a fair amount, hunching her shoulders making herself smaller. The thick coat Sabela was wearing restricted her mobility and she found that she couldn't quite keep up with her friend. Suddenly worried that someone in the household would get too close to her without Aina for protection, Ela frantically called out "Aina! Wait for me!" Her friend thankfully quickly noticed and ran back towards her but Ela's eyes widened as Aina got closer and closer to her and she froze in fear, utterly helpless to prevent what happened next. Sabela's eyes almost popped out of her head as Aina's hand reached out towards her and it was like life that become slow-motion as she tried to shield herself but failed as her Norwegian friend's hand gripped the exact area where Ela's skin was unprotected.

A flood of unidentifiable sensations and a rush of pressure flowed through the connection Aina had made and Ela suddenly couldn't think properly, her mind becoming overwhelmed by the debilitating feeling. Her vision tunneled and like reflex, Ela tried to rip her arm away from her friend's strong grip, tormented by the odd sensations. The waves of strange tingling was rippling though her skin, agonising the witch. This was her worst fear realised and the trauma of it caused her to fearfully cry out, desperate for Aina to let go immediately. After what felt like a lifetime, Aina finally let go of her arm and Ela stumbled back, tripping over her feet and falling onto the floor, continuing to push herself away from the Norwegian. The odd sensations flowing through the arm dissipated and despite the relief this brought Sabela curled into a ball, hot and heavy tears rolling down her face as she hyperventilated and shook from her nerves, in full panic mode trying to recover from the torture she had just experienced.

[OOC: I had prior collaboration and full permission from Tay to use Aina in the way I have!]

Name: Toyachu
Character name: Jehan Beaumont
Feature you are applying for: Illusionist
Description of the character: Jehan had potential. As a student at Beauxbatons, he devoured knowledge and spent more time with books than with people. He tried his hardest to make friends and gain connections. The only thing hindering him from success was the shadow of his parents infamy. One of the youngest children of the 'Bloody Beaumonts', a pair of violent Death Eaters taken down during the First Wizarding Ward, he was never able to get away from their bad reputation. Jehan went from being a studious, somewhat quiet boy, to an angry, malicious con artist. He is cunning, direct, and vulgar. He uses every thing that he can get his hands on to his advantage. On the outside, the tattoos and the snarky behavior hide an intelligent, devious. Jehan is always calculating possibilities, and outs, and chances. He molds his energy and his actions to fit the role that he's playing to get what he needs out of his crowd. He can play the charming pureblood prince to the T, and slide back into his role of uncouth pirate instantaneously. He has a need for control of the situations around him, and gets reckless when things unravel from his finger tips, scrambling to regain control.

Application: When I first thought of Jehan, I was tempted to make an elemental. An elemental pirate would be a boon to a ship, allowing the ship to have control of the winds from which they made their trade. Something didn't quite fit. Typh wasn't quite fitting for the boy who could sell a habit to a nun right off of her back. Nothing felt right until I came across the description for Illusionist, and said to myself 'Yes, this was something that Jehan could do.' At four, Jehan was taken in by the Durmstrang side of his family. This allowed him access to materials and learning that he wouldn't necessarily have as a student of Beauxbatons. When it was shown that he was talented in the Illusionary arts, to the point that he was called into his head of house's office multiple times for pranking the other students, his guardians made sure that he was trained in his talent so he wouldn't screw anything up. The only way that he would be able to gain control of the school of study was to master it. During the school year, he practiced tricks out of the school books that he was sent, spending hours on perfecting even faint vein lines on a single rose petal, just to get it correct. He observed everything, not judging, but trying to gain understanding of the things around him.

It was hard trying to compensate for self-teaching while he was in school, but during the summer, his guardians made sure that he went through rigorous study programs. Jehan had a reputation to rebuild, and the only way he could do it was if he did better than his parents, and was the star pupil of his year. His teacher was an older Durmstrang Alumni who was strict, but fair. Every task that Jehan succeeded in gained him a lesson in something more fun ro the boy, which was frivolous. By the time he was 16, he was using the talent to romance girls, giving them illusions of flowers that they'd never seen before, and while it was fun, it incited his peers to the fact that he still existed, and they took the time to bully him. While offensive magic was prohibited, there was nothing stopping Jehan from creating horrors to scare his bullies, so he could escape to higher ground. This marked the time where he began to use his Illusions aggressively rather than in the benign manner that he was doing before. By the time he graduated, he'd intimidated his peer group so much that they kept away from him, and looked at him in the same light that they looked at his parents. By that time, he was unbothered. Unable to get a job in the legal world, he relied on his talents to gain himself funds and information in a less than legal manner.

Jehan is in his 14th year of study of Illusions. He has mastered casting Illusions without his wand, and without incantations. Jehan's illusions are so complex that one can believe that they are trapped in the hull of a ship while on land, if even for 20 minutes. His illusions are not perfect, and he's constantly working on making everything perfect. He studies things to the smallest detail, and never stops learning. His biggest downfalls are creating taste illusions, finding the sensation of taste the hardest to grasp. Single Illusions he has perfected, able to create a single creature or object that looks so real that when one puts their fingers through it, it's a surprise when it slides right through. In his line of work, he has to dance the pureblood aristocrat tango, and uses minor illusions on himself to perfect his image. He projects what people want to see, whether it's an extra shine to a bit of jewelry to catch the eye, or an interesting imperfection. His talents are subtle, and only truly visible when he does bigger grander illusions.

Future plots:
Jehan's loyalty is to his family and his ship. He uses his talents to assist his brother in charming the pureblood masses into uplifting their family name. He uses his Illusions precisely, bring attention to what he wants people to focus on, and charming them away from the seedy side of the younger Beaumonts operations. Jehan uses his illusions in card games, planting thefts on other aristocrats, and small baubles to entice targets further into his spider web. His gifts are like leprechaun gold, with a limited life span.

At the age of 17, Jehan was down on his luck, unable to find job in a world that was predisposed to hate him. After a brawl with some law enforcement officials, Jehan found his home on the decks of the Bake-Kujira as a deckhand. Working his way up the totem pole because of his usefulness and his connections to the outside wizarding world, Jehan's main commodity was his gift with illusions. He was able to have the boat appear as if it wasn't even there as it slid through pits of too many enemies to count. He became switft friends with Katsuro Oshiro, and through the years that he spent on the ship, they became as close as brothers. During one of Jehan's numerous trips back home, he received the news that his entire ship had been slaughtered, and his brother was dead. By the time he was able to detangle himself from his brother Thierry's endeavors, and get to the Isle of the Pirates, the Bake-Kujira was pulling into port, with only @Isonade Oshiro manning the wheel. He swiftly joined back up with his adopted brother, only to feel trapped as the new captain wasn't very good as a captain. Instead of trading commodities, and being able to handle his outside business, Jehan was trapped on the ship, babysitting both captain and crew and making sure they didn't die. After a massive battle on board after Jehan lost his cool and had to be contained by Isonade, Jehan is transported off of the ship. When he comes back, he is back in his position, leading the charge against rival pirate crews with the use of his Illusionist talent. He and the crew work in tandem to confuse and intimidate their enemies, imagining fleets of Bake-Kujira's surrounding them when there is only one of the Demonfish.

For the months that Jehan was land bound and healing, he wasn't stuck in bed. Finding a partner in crime in @Julia König , he runs scams with her in various establishments, both muggle and magical to con people out of their monies. Using his illusions, and a healthy combination of acting skills and cunning, the two pair together to bedazzle and bamboozle unsuspecting folk as they drain them dry. His illusions hide defining parts of their appearance, bring their attention away from things happening during the job.




RP sample using the feature:
So, his shirt was aflame. That was great. No matter how hard he tried, Jehan always seemed to get into situations that were over his head. He hadn't even left the ship this time, and there was a hole through the hull. He could see Nemsi on a rope, rushing to repair it, but that didn't stop the fact that their were men on a boat coming closer to try and board their ship. The Demonfish had just acquired a load of stolen goods, and to lose them at this point would be losing so much money that he wasn't even aware of how they could even try to recoup. Just the idea of starting up from scratch again, and building from the ground up made his jaw clench. He was tired, not just of babysitting the children of this ship, but of people trying to destroy what he kept rebuilding.

Out the corner of his eye, he could see the tiny weather witch holding her wand out, prepping for some big magic. The hairs on the back of his neck rose as the smell of ozone appeared out of nowhere, the sky started turning grey. She could fry them all that she wanted, but he had to do something to distract them until she was ready. Fingers twitching, he began envisioning a dragon in the back of his mind. Opal coloured scales covered her body, elegant lines the characteristics of the Opaleye that he'd seen at the dragon reservation in Romania. She was fierce, and she was wild. Above cloud cover, he could see the outline of her body. It took a bit of nudging, but he had seconds before he was to set her upon them.

Hearing a roar from the raiders, his concentration almost faltered, but he focused on the dragon as if it was the last thing he'd ever see. His deep breaths echoed the deep breaths that could emanate from the barrel shaped chest, and when he'd finally had the picture firmly focused in his mind, he'd let her go. In his mind, and to the naked eye, and enraged dragon swept from the clouds, and headed towards the pirate ship. Wind cascaded from each beat of her powerful wings, and a roar echoed loudly around them.  The dragon queen swooped down to the enemy ship, and like it was rehearsed, opened her mouth and lightning shot out, followed by the ozone smell of the weather witch's lightning spell. The sailors on the other ship ran, trying to avoid the primordial beast, but it was too late. Lightning rocked the ship, followed by the giant form of the dragon hitting the boat. Instead of the beast rocking the ship, it flew right through.

There was a gaping hole where the lightning had struck a hole into the rival ship, but the other pirates were still scrambling to get unto the Demonfish. Jehan grabbed his wand, and pointed it in the direction of his enemies, making his spells seem bigger, and causing pirates to duck and dodge the over exaggerated spells. "Why am I doing ALL the work? Oh that's right? YOU GUYS ARE USELESS." Dodging a spell, he groaned as his shoulder impacted the deck, and scrambled up to his feet so he could bound across the now shortened space between the two ships. "SUCKERS!" And he entered the fray.

Name: Kita
Character name: Sabela Portela
Feature you are applying for: Consensimens

Description of the character: This Galician witch is a very isolated young lady and her life is ruled by her anxious nature. She is overly cautious about everyone and everything. Sabela does not trust a person easily and is very secretive and deceptive and she does not reveal much about herself. Sometimes, an envious streak can make itself known, especially when she sees other people she likes playing and having fun without her. Ela, if overwhelmed by her fears and anxiety, is extremely paranoid and vulnerable. She runs away and hides and is impossible to reason with when she becomes overly paranoid. Despite all the secrecy and uneasiness she possesses, Ela is a wonderfully innocent and pure child. This is likely due to her lack of interactions with people and her overprotective and controlling parents preventing her from obtaining knowledge of how the world works. The sensitive witch can show her true nature very easily once she gets to know a person and trusts them (though this takes time), she is fiercely passionate. Once the layers of anxiety and mistrust of Ela's personality are removed, the true nature of Sabela is revealed. She is a very good and kind person deep down and can be very friendly. Despite this, neglect of human contact has caused psychological damage and is almost feral in nature at times. Unfortunately, Ela easily changes her mind and is unpredictable in how she behaves. Neglect of major human contact over the years has caused Ela to become a very resilient person who can keep herself occupied for days and days without speaking or seeing anyone. Ela is a very proud person and takes pride in her heritage, her abilities and hobbies and becomes tetchy if someone insults anything that could cause a blow to her pride and her ego.

Ela has no greater fear than the fear that someone will touch her. She can become extremely anxious at the mere mention of being touched, and anyone attempting to or successfully touch her will cause her to become absolutely hysterical in fear. Had she ever gone to a muggle psychologist, she would be instantly diagnosed with haphephobia. She actively avoids people to avoid this phenomenon actually occurring, because she becomes useless in such situations, in doing so, her phobia completely controls her life and the majority of her personality too. A large group of people in a crowd can make that very difficult. It is more likely that someone will accidentally brush up against her, so Sabela steers clear of anywhere where she knows crowds are likely.

Application: Okay, when I first joined MH just under 3 years ago, I promised myself that I'd never apply for a special feature. Ever. Not even an EFB. They looked like so much extra effort, with so much added stress and I was just like "I can make my characters special without an SF or an EFB!" And to a certain extent, that may well be true. Every time a new muse has popped into my head, there has always been 2 traits that defined them as a whole and the rest of the character grew from there. For Brietta, 'the logical, sly one'. For Frida, 'the bubbly, childish one'. For Sabrina, 'the calm, graceful one'. And for Marja, 'the emotional, perfectionist one'. But after I made Marja it felt like there was a pattern forming. There was a physical part or situation of the character that made them special and often explained why they behaved the way they did. Brietta's was originally being a twin, though this has evolved to her injuries from the fire. Frida's was her extensive family. Sabrina's illness and Marja's dysfunctional family.

When Ela first arrived in my head-space, the way I summed her up was 'the anxious, paranoid one'. And that got me thinking. With my other characters, the physical thing/situation made them who they are. So why was Sabela so anxious? Why was she paranoid? What was she so afraid of? There had to be a reasoning behind her worries and fears. And that was how I found myself scrolling through the special features guide and elemental guide. Originally, I came to the conclusion that I'd work on Ela with her being an ice elemental in mind. Once I finished the outline of her personality however and I read the elemental guide again, it didn't sit right with me. Sabela's personality didn't quite fit and I found myself somehow further deterred by the sheer amount of elementals that started popping up.

So, I continued my search and halted on the consensimency guide. The light bulb instantly flashed. It was perfect! It explained her anxious nature and fears very well and gave a reason behind her neglect of human contact and the subsequent psychological damage caused. I was even more intrigued by the fact that there are no played consensimens at the moment. I felt like it gave me a fair amount of room to play with and develop the feature to Sabela herself using the guide as my only rules. The feature and the character seemed to melt seamlessly into 1 and consensimency became a part of Ela. Take the feature away and Ela's fears and lack of social skills cannot be fully explained beyond controlling parents, which to me doesn't feel like a good enough explanation. From my own psychology studies, I know full well that plenty of overly-controlled kids can turn out to be absolutely fine.

Ela is really not fine. She is psychologically rather messed up. As it is, she'll be a huge challenge to play because of that alone, but the consensimency will add the final piece to the puzzle as well as pushing me into a challenging situation to really motivate myself to develop and improve as a driver/writer, instead of playing it safe like I currently have. The consensimency will affect all of Sabela's relationships; past, present and future. As she learns to control and develop her abilities, her relationships with others with also grow and bloom. In that way, Ela will also grow as a character, her personality changing in subtle ways as she improves on her abilties and becomes integrated into society. She'll discover that the world isn't so very scary, that she isn't totally alone and isolated, that people really do care. And that very development, as she discovers who she is, who she could be and who others really are, excites me to no end. Ela will always be able to develop her abilities further, improve her social understanding even better and that means her journey and development is almost everlasting, for as long as I want to play her. Such development to me is a writer's dream world! And that's really why I want the consensimency: It gives a deeper meaning and understanding to Ela's character, it will affect her relationships with other characters in ways that I can't fully imagine just yet, and most importantly it'll push me out of my comfort zone thereby improving me as a driver. Of course, all instances where the feature is used will require permission from my threading partner, which means prior collaboration. I prefer threads like these anyway as it gives me contextual background the majority of the time, and the extra time and effort means a better thread, no?

Future plots:

Emma Archambault: This really is the major plot point that will trigger off all future plot points that involve Ela's consensimency. Emma (naturally) thinks that Sabela is very weird for always wearing gloves and thick clothes and after a fight which leaves Emma angry, she will confront Ela about her odd choice of attire and deliberately touch her. Due to the intense anger, Sabela will be quickly overwhelmed and somewhat tortured by the influx of sensations caused by being touched by Emma. She will try to jerk away and cry out but will rapidly be debilitated. This scenario is literally the springboard to Ela being diagnosed and therefore her journey as a consensimens, as (unbeknown by either party) the event is witnessed by a professor.

Gauvain Améliore: Gauvain will happen to be the professor that witnesses the event above between Emma and Sabela and will request that Ela joins him in his office in order to see if his suspicions are correct. They are, of course, so he will be the first to discover her as a consensimens. This will prompt an official diagnosis of consensimency to be made and Sabela will now be fully aware of exactly what she is. Ela will always have a great respect for Gauvain (despite being scared of him) because of this, as she will finally know why she is different and will be able to get the guidance and support that she has needed, both to control her gift and to begin to integrate her into society.

Carolijn Westbroek: Carolijn will be assigned to be Ela's consensimency mentor by the French Ministry of Magic, so out of all the plots that I have planned, this will be the most crucial, the most long-term and the one that'll produce the most threads. According to the guide, it can take 3 to 5 years just to learn how to block out the sensations which is most of Ela's school life even if she decides not to continue training after that point (though Ela likely will continue training). So, Carolijn will become a major part and influence in Sabela's future life. Professor Westbroek will have her work cut out for her over the next few years, as trying to break through years of psychological damage and neglect isn't going to be easy. But with Carolijn's constant guidance and support, Ela will gradually learn how to socialise with other people in a way that is accepted in society and will, bit by bit, overcome her fear of people touching her and learn to control her abilities. Sabela will develop a sense of deep trust and affection for her mentor and will in later years see Carolijn as a maternal figure, since her actual mother is very controlling (and rather scary in Ela's opinion). I'm planning to play out every step of Ela's consensimency training, from her very first lessons to the point where she finally has to make the decision on whether or not to continue 5 years down the line. The extent of Sabela's control over her ability, her social skills and her character in general will grow and evolve alongside her relationship with her mentor with her mentor shaping much of her developed personality, something I'm very excited to play out!

Taras Kravets/ Shadow Rising: In an attempt to improve her social skills and to provide a sort of makeshift support network of students of all ages, Sabela will be persuaded to join the Shadow Rising. She is knowledgeable and passionate about celtic traditions and ways and although she wouldn't say much, sometimes the anxious layer of her personality can be bust through by her passion of the subject and she may, on occasion, make helpful contributions. Over the years, being a part of the group will really help her grow: as a witch, as a consensimens and most importantly as a functioning member of society, with the social skills she will develop and the people that she will learn to no longer be afraid of.

Nieks Krusen: This psychology loving student has hit the jackpot with Sabela being a very abnormal person with her many psychological issues (i.e. her phobias and severe anxiety). Learning about her through his sister who is in Ela's year, Nieks and Ela will eventually bond and develop a fairly concrete relationship, as Nieks will act as a mentor helping her and pointing her in the right direction when she needs guidance. The trust and close relationship will take years to form as Sabela doesn't open up and let her guard down easily (making most of these plots quite long-term) but the eventual deep trust Ela will develop for Nieks will really help her when her consensimency training seems too much to handle, particularly when she reaches the crossroads in her training once she can successfully block out sensations after being touched.

Elfie Marchand: Elfie will try to be friends with Sabela and I think, at some point in the future, she'll win Ela over through sheer determination. Despite making it very clear that she is not to be touched under any circumstances, Elfie will occasionally forget. This will help Sabela really appreciate the time and effort that she'll have to put into her training, as she will be extremely shocked that the sensation is still very enervating once she begins training. It'll be a turning point as she realises that being diagnosed and having a mentor will not miraculously fix everything. Ela has to be the one to the effort into something that she's extremely afraid of, creating a dilemma that will drive her and help her grow infinitely as a character. Plus, Elfie will be her future supply of shiny things, how could she possibly refuse friendship at that point?

Jonas Rosenthal: Later on in Ela's consensimency training, Jonas will learn about her abilities and become super interested and intrigued by them. Sabela will at this point have become socially strong enough that she will hesitantly accept the idea of being his test subject (though she'll never be fully comfortable with it). Ela agrees because she realises it gives her a chance to practice blocking out sensations and overcoming her fear of being touched without Professor Westbroek being present to guide her. It will really help her test her boundaries of what she's learnt.

Alessandro Marconi: As Sabela learns to control her abilities and not let her abilities control her, her true personality will begin to shine through the cracks and she will warm up to Ale after a couple of years. They are both a part of the Shadow Rising which lays the foundation to their relationship.  Since he respects many of Ela's odd quirks and idiosyncrasies, Sabela will find he becomes one of the few people she fully trusts and opens up to, making their relationship important for her integration into society.

Aina Viðarrsen: Aina is Ela's best (and pretty much only) friend, having known the Norwegian girl for many years already. Ela will be comforted and feel less isolated for having an odd ability as Aina would have already owled her about being an elemental [1]. When Ela is then later discovered as a consensimens, she will immediately tell her friend everything about it and will also try her best to learn all she can about Aina's 'specialness' too. The fact they are both odd will help them bond and become even closer as they support each other through their training throughout the coming years.

Julietta Ouellet: Jules and Sabela are cousins, so they already know each other quite well. Ela trusts Julietta a fair amount and while she is usually secretive, sometimes the Galician witch will just blurt stuff out randomly to her older cousin. After Ela has been discovered as a consensimens Sabela and Julietta will (not literally) bump into each other during the Summer holidays. Jules will be curious as to why Ela is wearing thick, long gloves in the middle of Summer and it will be at this point that Ela will tell her about her new diagnosis of consensimency. From that point on, Ela will send her regular updates through letters about her progress, which also helps her develop into a less socially deprived girl.

In general: The journey ahead won't be easy for Ela, she will have to overcome many things in order to become a functioning member of society and a functioning consensimens too. She will have to rise up and tackle what other say about her and learn to be comfortable (and eventually more confident) in her own skin, and accept that the ability she has been given is a part of who she is and to take it away would be taken part of her away. Sabela will eventually come to think of her abilities as a gift and not as a curse. There is so much potential for growth here! At the moment, Ela is neutral but she has much potential for being good and being part of the light. Though this may change as I play her out and she develops into her own character, I currently plan for her to choose to continue her consensimency training and work to become a healer with the time, effort and extensive guidance. Ela is going to have to learn how to make friends and how to socialise in an accepted manner, she must learn how to develop past her many psychological issues (i.e. her haphephobia, her social anxiety disorder, her neglect of human contact (which can make her a little sociopathic)) in order to flourish into a fairly normal person. At the moment, in current playtime, she is almost a feral child and while I'm never planning on her becoming perfectly functional (as that seems to me to be a little unrealistic based upon my own psychology studies), she will drastically improve over the many years and the one thing I like about this special feature is that Ela's journey will never be complete. She can always improve on her gift and abilities even further, she can always make mistakes, she can always be triggered into her old ways if she isn't careful. Her journey can manifest itself in so many different ways that I can't even comprehend yet and it will grow as Ela grows.

RP sample using the feature:

Ela had her hopes up when her father told her he was going on yet another trip to Norway for diplomacy talks. She was quite excited when her parents tentatively gave her permission to go with them. It meant she had a chance to see Aina, her best (and only) friend in the world! The Galician witch had known the Norwegian for many years and trusted her very much. She was eager to catch up with Aina in person since her last letter to her. Sabela knew that her mother, in particular, was very reluctant to allow her to go, especially after reports of her behaviour during her first term at Beauxbatons but she overheard her father gently persuading her, claiming it could be a holiday for the whole family. That apparently was enough to convince her, since Sabela was currently on her way to the Viðarrsen home in Norway.

The Galician witch couldn't rid herself of the butterflies in her stomach as the family made their way to Aina's house. It wasn't that she was nervous to see Aina, oh no. She was being closely flanked from all sides, her parents either side of her and her brother following her from behind. Ela feared anyone entering her personal bubble, so she certainly wasn't comfortable at all with her family deliberately being in such close proximity to her. Sabela tried to calm herself by repeating in her head that she had a thick coat on, so she wouldn't feel anything and that it was only her family and not one of the complete strangers in the crowded streets (which was why her family were surrounding her in the first place) but it wasn't working. In fact, the thought of there being so many strangers was making it worse. The growing anxiety caused her to hug herself and her eye began to twitch, the sooner she was with Aina the better.

Anxiously looking around her as she stood on the doorstep, Sabela waited impatiently as her mother knocked on the door, paranoid that they were taking too long to open it. Of course, it eventually did open and Ela quickly stepped inside and headed straight towards her best friend, instead of removing her coat like the rest of her family. She was so very happy to see the Norwegian! "Aina! I've missed you!" The Galician called out to her friend using her limited knowledge of Norwegian and ran up to greet her. She quickly panicked, however, as Aina clearly had the same idea and ran up towards Sabela. Ela started to back away as soon as Aina got too close, her breathing becoming heavier in fear. Her heightened awareness decided it was a great time to point out to the brunette that she wasn't wearing gloves that covered her entire wrists, and her coat stopped just before her wrists, leaving a small amount of skin exposed. Crossing her arms so that her wrists were hiding under her armpits, Sabela tried to pretend she was fine and was not, in fact, on the verge of a panic attack by quickly spitting out "H-how is D-du-durmstrang? Is it pr-pretty?"

The brunette relaxed a little as Aina animatedly told her that she had something to show her in her room and Ela slowly released herself from her self-hug though she still cowered a fair amount, hunching her shoulders making herself smaller. The thick coat Sabela was wearing restricted her mobility and she found that she couldn't quite keep up with her friend. Suddenly worried that someone in the household would get too close to her without Aina for protection, Ela frantically called out "Aina! Wait for me!" Her friend thankfully quickly noticed and ran back towards her but Ela's eyes widened as Aina got closer and closer to her and she froze in fear, utterly helpless to prevent what happened next. Sabela's eyes almost popped out of her head as Aina's hand reached out towards her and it was like life that become slow-motion as she tried to shield herself but failed as her Norwegian friend's hand gripped the exact area where Ela's skin was unprotected.

A flood of unidentifiable sensations and a rush of pressure flowed through the connection Aina had made and Ela suddenly couldn't think properly, her mind becoming overwhelmed by the debilitating feeling. Her vision tunneled and like reflex, Ela tried to rip her arm away from her friend's strong grip, tormented by the odd sensations. The waves of strange tingling was rippling though her skin, agonising the witch. This was her worst fear realised and the trauma of it caused her to fearfully cry out, desperate for Aina to let go immediately. After what felt like a lifetime, Aina finally let go of her arm and Ela stumbled back, tripping over her feet and falling onto the floor, continuing to push herself away from the Norwegian. The odd sensations flowing through the arm dissipated and despite the relief this brought Sabela curled into a ball, hot and heavy tears rolling down her face as she hyperventilated and shook from her nerves, in full panic mode trying to recover from the torture she had just experienced.

[OOC: I had prior collaboration and full permission from Tay to use Aina in the way I have!]

[toy]~approved[/toy]

Revised

Name: Tay
Character name: Aina Viðarrsen
Feature you are applying for: Elemental | Garth Disciplus

Though she may seem a bit cold on the outside, Aina is actually fairly nice once one gets to know her, just quiet at first. She's a manipulative girl, or at least she tries to be; the Norwegian has an odd fascination with words and how they affect people. Aina sees it as a sort of sport to try and use words to her advantage. The Norwegian absolutely loves secrets. She loves knowing the things that people want to keep hidden, not to gossip, not to blackmail, she just loves knowing. However, she herself is rather secretive and much less forthcoming with her own unknown details than she prefers others to be. Over the years she has become a rather good actress, being obedient and well behaved around most adults but in reality fantasizing about rebellion. While she does actually respect some adults, these tend to be few and far between. The Norwegian girl is rather judgmental and opinionated, often forming her opinions quickly, though she often keeps them to herself.

Her entire life she's been pulled, molded, twisted, and bent by her parents and cousin and she does not like it one bit. She absolutely hates being controlled and harbors a bit of resentment towards some of her family members because of this. However, despite her mixed feelings about her family, she has a strong sense duty and loyalty to them and is more than willing to do her part and uphold the integrity of the family. The Norse girl is highly independent and very much wants to be her own person.

Because of the influence of her cousin, Aina has some twisted morals. She believes that the world is survival of the fittest and anyone who says otherwise must be smoking something. As a part of this outlook, Aina can be a bit ruthless in getting what she wants and has 'the end justifies the means' type of mentality. Aina is definitely a grudge holder, slow to forget and almost slower to forgive, keeping her feelings of resentment for a ridiculously long time

Aina is a creator, especially with her Alchemy. She sees it as an art and is constantly experimenting to improve the old or create something new. Aina is also rather idealistic. She knows that alchemy is generally viewed as something 'dark' but she doesn't see it that way. She wants to use her skills in alchemy to show other people that it's not all bad and that it can even be used to help people. Aina is quite a curious girl, always seeking to learn things. When she was little, Aina would constantly badger Eirik with questions, because of course she thought he knew everything. Though she is older now, her curiosity has not worn away. Aina often asks people, especially the professors about whatever is fascinating her at the time. The Norwegian absolutely loves balls and parties. She loves getting dressed up in big formal "princess" gowns, dancing, and just generally getting to feel like an 'adult.'

After Kyllikki was sorted, I swore that I would never again apply for a special feature. Apparently my muse had different ideas, because here we are!

Honestly, when I first adopted Aina, I wasn't planning to have her be an elemental at all. However, as I discussed her personality, the Viðarssen family, and her relationship with her brother Eirik with Billie, a 'what if' question popped up. What if Aina was an elemental as well? How would it affect their relationship? How would it affect her as a character? As I thought of the answers to these questions, the idea of her being an elemental began to take hold. It added an entirely new dimension to her character, a complexity that wasn't there before.

Should Aina be approved for this feature, it would put a lot of strain on her as she struggles to figure out who she really is. For the first long while, she will hate it. She'll hate that she's different from everyone else, unable to produce regular magic. She'll be afraid too, absolutely terrified that her parents or cousin will find out, that it will ruin the perfect image that she's created for herself, or worse, that they will send her someplace to be experimented on. This will be a good time for character development as she is pulled every which way and that by her brother, cousin, other elementals, and her own twisted sense of right and wrong.

Now why Garth? Why not a different element? One of the main reasons for this is obviously compatibility with Eirik. As siblings, they very well couldn't be counters (not that Incin fits her anyways), so it seemed a good idea for them to be similar elements. Hor, of course, does not fit her at all, so I picked Garth as the next most suitable choice since they are both water based elements. Not only will this promote teamwork and better enable Eirik to help her, but this will also help her grow into herself a bit as she will have the comfort of being similar to her brother, but also being different so she can blaze her own path without feeling the need to live up to anyone else's accomplishments. Is she the perfect example of a Garth elemental? No, not at all. Her personality does not fit perfectly within the Garth scope, but there are definitely some similarities there.

One final note: while her affiliation is dark, this is because that's all she's ever been taught. At this point, she’s not exactly sure what ‘good’ is, but through the interactions with other characters, she may very well become more ‘good.’ Of course, she could also become more dark than she already is, but that’s part of the fun, is it not? 

I suppose the last thing to address is why I personally would like this feature for Aina. Besides the amazing character development and thrilling plot opportunities, I feel as though it would give me a chance to expand and improve my writing skills. Aina is vastly different from the rest of my characters, locked in the struggle between good and bad. True, she will be similar without the elementalism, but it adds an extra closeness to her brother, another allegiance to choose from. Finally, there's a part of me that's looking forward to playing the whole elemental process, from discovery, to initialization, just everything, which is something I didn't really get to do with Kylli.

Eirik Viðarssen: Probably the biggest plot Aina would have concerning this feature would be with her brother Eirik. Eirik will be the one to discover Aina, and with his guidance she will grow accustomed to being an elemental. He will also introduce her to several of the elementals that he already knows, which will greatly widen her circles of elemental acquaintances.

Eirik will also be her voice of reason, her conscious of sorts. He will be the one to aid her on keeping on the straight and narrow path, dissuading her from making poor decisions such as joining the rogues or dropping out of school. Aina will seriously struggle to distinguish between right and wrong as she finds that what she was taught and what she believes in sometimes conflicts with the council ideology, and Eirik will be her light in the darkness.

Hinterikki Peura: As year mates and possibly house mates, Hinterikki and Aina will come to know each other fairly well, however, Aina will feel quite uncomfortable around him since, unbeknownst to her, they are counters. Yet, as he is one of Tero's closest friends and as Ikki and Eirik grow close, Aina will feel an obligation to at least try be friendly to Hinterikki. This will be an interesting experience for Aina as she battles trying to do the right thing and her uneasy feelings about him.

Volya Nikolav: Even though his garth is only his second affinity, Volya will assist Aina in her training as much as he is able. He will check up on her to make sure she is doing as she should, and give her tips where he can.

Nikodim Balour: With the right, or rather, wrong influences, Aina very well could become swayed towards the rogue side of things. Niko, or "Farbor" has known Aina since she was a baby, will be rather concerned as she grows to be more interested in the rogues. To keep her on the council side of things, Niko will arrange for her to have secret lessons with a rogue ice elemental, though only under very tight surveillance.

Gaspard Archambault: Michaela has kindly agreed to have Gaspard be Aina’s primary mentor. For once, Aina will actually have respect for an adult from the get go. As old and skilled as he is, Aina will be a bit scared to even attempt to defy him in any way, and see him as a good person to go to for advice.

Sabela Portela: Her closest and dearest friend, Aina will find it nearly impossible to keep her elementalism from her. Quite soon after Aina is discovered, she will send an owl to Ela explaining everything and pretty much rant about her 'condition.'  This will help her later as, unbeknownst to either of them, Sabela is a consensimens. Knowing that they both have something odd about them will bring the two closer than they already are (though not in proximity).

Antero Kirkkomäki: Besides her brother, Tero knows Aina better than anyone else, and while she will initially try to keep it from him, Tero will be able to tell something is bothering her. It won't take long for Aina to tell him, but she will only do so after swearing him into secrecy.

Training: Aina's elemental training will be a very large part of her life. Once Eirik discovers her, she will go to the council as often as he does, and will have a number of people to guide her along the way.

Other Elementals: There is a lot of talk about a possible rogue plot, and if/when that gets put into motion, I plan for Aina to be a part of it. I think it would be fun to see her kidnapped by the rogues, and have that be her first introduction to them, to kind of pique her interest a bit, though she will still be loyal to the council at that point

Furthermore, her interactions with other elementals, particularly the ones closer to her age, could influence her a lot. While there aren’t a whole lot her age (with the exception of the ickle Madins) there are a few slightly older that Aina could shadow or look up to. Of course, there is also a large amount of adult elementals for her to interact with as well.

Aina was frustrated. Why would this stupid stick not work right? It was ridiculous. She’d been at Durmstrang for a little over three months, and where some of the other kids her age had already mastered their first spells, Aina could hardly perform the most simple of spells. But why? She was a witch, right? Well, she had to be! Aina distinctly remembered her first sign of magic, and she had gotten her Durmstrang acceptance letter, so why couldn’t she do what the other kids could?

That was the question. Practice really did no help whatsoever so she’d concluded it must have something to do with her wand. However, after nearly two whole entire hours of examining the useless stick, she hadn’t been able to detect anything out of the ordinary. Or at least on the outside. Perhaps there was an issue with the core! Perhaps it had been unknowingly broken in the wand making process! Yes, that had to be it! That would explain everything!

But then again, perhaps it really was an issue with her. Since she had yet to try a different wand and hadn’t had anyone else try hers, there was a very real possibility that it was her fault. Maybe Eirik could get it to work! He was good at magic, and if anyone could get it to work it would be him! But then again, was it right to tell him? Would he send to their parents or Inge? That would be terrible! None of them would be pleased that Aina couldn’t do any magic and she very well could end up in a lot of trouble for it.

No. For now she’d keep her failures to herself. She’d tell no one, not Eirik, not Sabela, not anyone in her year, nobody, and that was that! She slammed her wand on the table to accentuate this point. Ha! Maybe that had beat it into submission. But as she went to pick it up again, she noticed something strange. Frost was creeping over the surface of the desk, coving the top and everything on it. Huh? What on earth was this? It wasn’t that cold in here! Aina knew that she hadn’t done it, how could she have! She wasn’t even touching her wand! But there wasn’t anyone else around to perform it . . . had she done it after all?

Name: Samm
Character name: Nemsi Mudavadi Khawale
Feature you are applying for: Animagus - Unregistered
    Species: Great Hammerhead Shark (Sphyrna mokarran)
    Markings: A light discoloration on the back of his neck, where his skull meets his spine, the shape resembles a triangle pointing down. It is mimicked on his primary dorsal fin.

Description of the character: Above all Nemsi is dauntless, on the outside it seems like nothing can phase him. He is not scared to die or to kill. The life he has been forced to lead has hardened him into a paranoid hunter. He is always surveying his surroundings, waiting for the next bad thing, and expecting danger. Being prepared for the worst has made him anxious and difficult to read. It is not unlike him to lash out preemptively if he thinks there is a threat. He rarely relaxes except for brief moments aboard the ship or when he is in company that he trusts. When he does get the chance to let his guard down he can be down right jolly. Though not the smartest of the crew, he does enjoy fooling around and making jokes, but only once the day's work is finished.

He is reliable, unforgiving, and unwavering. He takes his job on board the ship very seriously and never slacks in his duties. He knows the importance of good maintenance and he works hard every day. He is the type to wake up early, work until he can't see straight, and fall into bed only to do it again the next day. His job on board the ship gives him direction and purpose and he never falters from it. He needs a task or a project, something to keep his hands busy and the rage at bay. Nemsi has a penchant for blood lust, especially when it comes to vengeance. Its not often but when he falls into a mindless rage it is best to stay out of his war path. He is muscular, agile, and sometimes forgets his own strength. On the other side of the spectrum Nemsi can be a fearless friend to have in ones corner. Once a bond is made he would do anything for his loved ones, even if it hurt himself. It is rare that he manages to trust someone so deeply that he would die for them, only a small lot have made the list to date.

Though he tries Nemsi is not what some might call an "intellectual". He understands concepts, how to build things and make things work, and specific magics. There are some things he has natural talent for like woodworking and spell work but other things he is completely oblivious to. He wouldn't know the first thing about brewing a potion and he is denser than stone when it comes to certain social cues. He is not oblivious, just not always up to speed right away. Like a Hammerhead shark he often misses what is right in front of him. Though he isn't properly educated or naturally gifted with mind magic he is pragmatic and rational. Often he is the voice reason in this ship, especially when it comes to the Iso, but because he has to be.

Application: I would love this feature for Nemsi because I do think it fits him well. For years now I have been going back and forth contemplating applying for another special feature (in ten years I have applied for two) but nothing seemed to fit right. It always seemed kind of forced so I never really got to writing the application but this one was totally different. As soon as the idea came to me I couldn't stop writing about it and coming up with new plots and connections and it  jump started my muse. I think that it fits him because he is such a beast, he is tough and dangerous, an apex predator but he has a softer side too. He is a good hunter and dedicated to whatever he sets out to do.

The Great Hammerhead shark is solitary and feared by other sharks because it is cannibalistic and retaliatory. It not only eats other sharks and things like sting rays but it disables them first so they can't run. Nemsi is dedicated in this way, compelled to do something until he knows how to do it right and then owning it. Furthermore Nemsi is violent, vengeful, and more than capable and the streamlined body and razor sharp teeth of the Hammerhead embody these traits. He is also born and bred on the sea, which is why I chose an ocean creature for his animagus form. He is an avid swimmer and belongs on the sea, he gets antsy on land, like he is trapped. This particular breed of Great Hammerhead is the largest of Hammerhead sharks and some of their population live off the coast of Kenya and the Indian Ocean, which is the region he is from.

The main event driving Nemsi to become an animagus is his need for freedom. As a child his families ship was attacked by a pirating vessel named the Badda Sun and Nemsi, along with the other young men of the ship, were exchanged for a ceasefire. For the next ten years Nemsi was forced into servitude under a cruel captain. At night the boys would whisper about their dreams of getting off the ship and Nemsi claimed that one day he would become a shark, bite the head of the captain off, and swim away.

In addition to him being a fully fledged Animagus I would like to add a little bit more depth to it. Nemsi did not attend a proper magical school but he was trained from a very young age to focus on very specific magic, transfiguration being one of them. There are many things he simply can not do because he has no knowledge of them but becoming an Animagus came easier to him than it might to most. By the time he was 15 he had partially transfigured, and by 17 he had completed the full change. During his tumiltuous young adult life as a shark he met a handful of exceptional witches, wizards, and magical beings that shaped his abilties even further. First was Maia, a young siren who he unknowingly completed an ancient ritual with. By biting each other and sharing blood in magical waters the two became bonded, this affording him a taste of her abilities and she some of his. Due to a deal he made with a necromancer Nemsi has an aptitude for partial transformation. After being able to fully transform for over four years Nemsi spent 6 months doing nothing but focusing on partial transformation. During this time he honed his skills and became able to control which parts of his body morphed at will.

However this skill came with its own cost. Manipulating the way that Animagus magic works in this way caused Nemsi to inherit the weaknesses of a Hammerhead. He became more bloodthirsty, volatile, solitary, nomadic, and far more single minded. He will never master another type of magic, while he could learn some other things with the exception of transfiguration he will be below average in other subjects. Although he can control what transforms it is very difficult to do so, he needs to be able to focus on the magic. The timing of the change is also unreliable, sometimes taking moments, sometimes hours. Lastly it is exhausting to keep himself in partial form for very long, his body fights to complete the change or revert to his natural human state.

If awarded this Special Feature I will play it with the utmost respect. I think it will make for interesting thread and plotting opportunities that otherwise would not be available to me. I have already had the privilege of plotting with a few drivers and I am stoked with the possibilities.

Future plots:
Maia Etxegarai | The night that Nemsi escaped from the Badda Sun was a fateful night. After swimming for hours he finally found himself drawn to the cove of a group of sirens, he was confused, hungry, and curious and ended up biting one of them only to be bitten back. That night he became bloodfishies with Maia, both of them too young at the time to fully understand the ritual they had unwittingly performed by biting one another and sharing blood in the magical water of her cove. Shortly after they began to demonstrate characteristics of each others traits. Nemsi became a better hunter, able to manipulate the vibrations of the water like a siren would with her song. And Maia became stronger and blood thirsty like a shark. Now more than ten years later the pair are still bonded and able to understand each other, even the primal implications of their creature forms. They can sense one another's electricity and Nemsi can see her scales even when she hides them.
Vashti Khiabani | Vashti is one of the closest friends Nemsi has ever had but she doesn't know his darkest secret: that as a shark he eats humans and likes it. He keeps this from her because he doesn't want her to fear him but one day she will find out. Also without his knowledge she "acquired" one of his shark teeth and currently wears it on a chain around her ankle. It is an emergency beacon that connects the two. After she erased her memories she sent them gift wrapped inside charmed pearls on a bracelet to Nemsi. He later found her working as a tattoo artist and convinced her to join him on the Demonfish as strangers. He does not know that the bracelet she sent him holds the keys to her remembering him, but even if he did he would still have to decide whether or not to return them to her. He holds more than just her memories, true feelings for her lay dormant and perhaps one day they will rise to the surface.
Medusa/Amaranth | While hunting the waters of the Monster Islands in Greece Nemsi accidentally crosses paths with the Leviathan (who tries to eat him and nearly succeeds) gravely injured, disoriented, and nearly unconscious Nemsi washes up on the shores of Amaranth's island. She heals him, shows him kindness, and the two strange friends. In the future he will continue to visit her, often eating dead things around her island and letting her ask him questions about his partial transformations.
Isonade Oshiro | Due to his taste for human flesh his good friend Amaranth always saves him table scraps for when he visits. Unknown to him at the time Nemsi consumes the bits of the Iso's arm that she cuts away before replacing it with the Demon arm. In the future they will both realize this and it will be super awkward.
Alfons Ungeheuer (Billie's WIP) | This plot is tentative to the character becoming a Necromancer however when Nemsi escapes from the ship and goes on the run he spends a year hiding as a shark in the sea. When he finally returns to land he seeks out Alfons and makes a deal with him to fake his death. In order to buy Alfons' help Nemsi is asked to do two things: allow the necromancer perform experiments on him for six months because Alfons wants to test his magic on the partially transformed body of an Animagus and to dispose of bodies. In the beginning Nemsi hides the bodies at the bottom of the sea but one night he is nearly caught with the corpse and is forced to think fast, turning to his shark self to devour the evidence and embracing his cannibalistic nature. Once he has paid in full Alfons, with the help of his brother (see below), fake Nemsi's death. This is achieved by first administering a specialized potion brew and secondly with a complex blood magic ritual that links Nemsi's soul to Alfons long enough to render his body "dead". Technically for twelve hours Nemsi is corporeal with out a body or physical tie to the land of the living, and thus a spirit that has crossed the threshold. In the future the two wizards will come to learn that blood magic like that doesn't just fade away, since Alfons played "host" to Nemsi's soul the two are linked with a faint magical tether. When in his primal shark form sometimes he is drawn toward Alfons like birds are drawn to the poles, not telepathic or psychically.
Wilhelm Ungeheuer (Tori's WIP)| After Alfons kills Nemsi the body is transported to St. Mungo's where Wilhelm works in the morgue. He signs the paper work, making the death of Nemsi Khawale official in the eyes of the ministry and then smuggles his body back to his necromancer brother. Making it known to the world that Nemsi is dead will afford him a freedom from the crew of the Badda Sun that he hasn't known in more than a decade.
Fiona O'Flannigan (Tori's WIP)| This is also tentative on the character becoming a Banshee. Due to his brush with death and short lived time on the other side Nemsi's soul is cracked. Being a Banshee Fiona can sense this. In the future the two will be able to have threads discussing his time on the other side and he will be the first person she has come across that was dead previously.

RP sample using the feature:

From the moment he hit the water Nemsi knew two things: the first that he was finally free and the second that he had zero idea of where he was going. For the first time in over a decade he had the power to chose his own heading and that left him clueless. Nevertheless every moment he wasted brought the men of the Badda Sun closer to taking him back and so the young shark swam as fast as his powerful streamlined body could propel him. As he acclimated his senses were assaulted, it was overwhelming. His mind told him he was suffocating, that he needed to surface to breath, but his body refused, knowing better. At every turn he could feel the vibrations of the ocean pulsing against his scaled armor like skin. The electricity that traveled through the water registering with parts of his brain he'd never used before and it was nearly blinding.

Hours went by as the Hammerhead continued to push on. Night had fallen but as a shark he no longer needed much light to see, all of his senses had switched gears. He was hunting from the moment he had changed shape. No longer the weak powder boy, running down the hall trying to avoid getting cursed by the wicked Quartermaster. This new body afforded him strength and stealth and power like he had never known. It was intoxicating but not nearly as much as the smell of fresh blood in the water nearly a mile away. Swiftly he was caught up it in and Nemsi didn't fight the instinct of every muscle propelling him toward it. The flames of torchlights from the coast flickered in the water as his eyes adjusted to the level of luminosity he could see pale little legs and the jabs of a blade making contact with sea creatures. The puffs of red in the water made him push faster, hungrier than he had ever known.

A low magical sound emanated from the shoreline and he was drawn to it, boy and beast as one. Before he realized what he was being pulled into the dazed creature was swimming toward a most beautiful young merwitch. He found himself joining the audience of her notes, making laps with the other creatures toward their own death with not a care in the world. As she swayed the seashells and pearls braided into her fiery red hair clinked together in tune with her song. The Hammerhead carved himself a spot right out in front of her and his newfound animal instincts began to take over. He couldn't stop himself, maybe it was her song, or the primal instincts he was inheriting like a pound of bricks but Nemsi found himself biting at the young girl. Razor sharp teeth broke the skin on her leg as he dragged her into the water, the blood ramping up his primal nature and then she did something entirely unexpected.

The young Siren turned and bit him back. He felt her teeth clamping down on his primary dorsal fin in defense and his mind rang out from the pain. He twisted, shark body contorting under her grip, before he involuntarily began to return to his true form. Dark brown eyes stared at her from the muddy water of the cove, blood dripping from his mouth and from the back of his neck where she had returned the favor. His hand went to his neck, holding the gash tightly and trying to ignore the sting from the salty water as he did. The other hand reached for his wand, the one he'd tied to his chest before changing and he held it out toward her weakly. "I do not wish to fight you siren." His young voice said, cracking a little with anxiety but trying to . The last twelve hours had been nothing but fighting and running and swimming and worrying, he was exhausted, it showed on his face. Dark circles and sullen eyes. Emaciated and skinnier than a young wizard his height should be he stood up from the water, towering over her even at a young age and waiting for her to make the next move.

Revised

Name: Tay
Character name: Aina Viðarrsen
Feature you are applying for: Elemental | Garth Disciplus

Though she may seem a bit cold on the outside, Aina is actually fairly nice once one gets to know her, just quiet at first. She's a manipulative girl, or at least she tries to be; the Norwegian has an odd fascination with words and how they affect people. Aina sees it as a sort of sport to try and use words to her advantage. The Norwegian absolutely loves secrets. She loves knowing the things that people want to keep hidden, not to gossip, not to blackmail, she just loves knowing. However, she herself is rather secretive and much less forthcoming with her own unknown details than she prefers others to be. Over the years she has become a rather good actress, being obedient and well behaved around most adults but in reality fantasizing about rebellion. While she does actually respect some adults, these tend to be few and far between. The Norwegian girl is rather judgmental and opinionated, often forming her opinions quickly, though she often keeps them to herself.

Her entire life she's been pulled, molded, twisted, and bent by her parents and cousin and she does not like it one bit. She absolutely hates being controlled and harbors a bit of resentment towards some of her family members because of this. However, despite her mixed feelings about her family, she has a strong sense duty and loyalty to them and is more than willing to do her part and uphold the integrity of the family. The Norse girl is highly independent and very much wants to be her own person.

Because of the influence of her cousin, Aina has some twisted morals. She believes that the world is survival of the fittest and anyone who says otherwise must be smoking something. As a part of this outlook, Aina can be a bit ruthless in getting what she wants and has 'the end justifies the means' type of mentality. Aina is definitely a grudge holder, slow to forget and almost slower to forgive, keeping her feelings of resentment for a ridiculously long time

Aina is a creator, especially with her Alchemy. She sees it as an art and is constantly experimenting to improve the old or create something new. Aina is also rather idealistic. She knows that alchemy is generally viewed as something 'dark' but she doesn't see it that way. She wants to use her skills in alchemy to show other people that it's not all bad and that it can even be used to help people. Aina is quite a curious girl, always seeking to learn things. When she was little, Aina would constantly badger Eirik with questions, because of course she thought he knew everything. Though she is older now, her curiosity has not worn away. Aina often asks people, especially the professors about whatever is fascinating her at the time. The Norwegian absolutely loves balls and parties. She loves getting dressed up in big formal "princess" gowns, dancing, and just generally getting to feel like an 'adult.'

After Kyllikki was sorted, I swore that I would never again apply for a special feature. Apparently my muse had different ideas, because here we are!

Honestly, when I first adopted Aina, I wasn't planning to have her be an elemental at all. However, as I discussed her personality, the Viðarssen family, and her relationship with her brother Eirik with Billie, a 'what if' question popped up. What if Aina was an elemental as well? How would it affect their relationship? How would it affect her as a character? As I thought of the answers to these questions, the idea of her being an elemental began to take hold. It added an entirely new dimension to her character, a complexity that wasn't there before.

Should Aina be approved for this feature, it would put a lot of strain on her as she struggles to figure out who she really is. For the first long while, she will hate it. She'll hate that she's different from everyone else, unable to produce regular magic. She'll be afraid too, absolutely terrified that her parents or cousin will find out, that it will ruin the perfect image that she's created for herself, or worse, that they will send her someplace to be experimented on. This will be a good time for character development as she is pulled every which way and that by her brother, cousin, other elementals, and her own twisted sense of right and wrong.

Now why Garth? Why not a different element? One of the main reasons for this is obviously compatibility with Eirik. As siblings, they very well couldn't be counters (not that Incin fits her anyways), so it seemed a good idea for them to be similar elements. Hor, of course, does not fit her at all, so I picked Garth as the next most suitable choice since they are both water based elements. Not only will this promote teamwork and better enable Eirik to help her, but this will also help her grow into herself a bit as she will have the comfort of being similar to her brother, but also being different so she can blaze her own path without feeling the need to live up to anyone else's accomplishments. Is she the perfect example of a Garth elemental? No, not at all. Her personality does not fit perfectly within the Garth scope, but there are definitely some similarities there.

One final note: while her affiliation is dark, this is because that's all she's ever been taught. At this point, she’s not exactly sure what ‘good’ is, but through the interactions with other characters, she may very well become more ‘good.’ Of course, she could also become more dark than she already is, but that’s part of the fun, is it not? 

I suppose the last thing to address is why I personally would like this feature for Aina. Besides the amazing character development and thrilling plot opportunities, I feel as though it would give me a chance to expand and improve my writing skills. Aina is vastly different from the rest of my characters, locked in the struggle between good and bad. True, she will be similar without the elementalism, but it adds an extra closeness to her brother, another allegiance to choose from. Finally, there's a part of me that's looking forward to playing the whole elemental process, from discovery, to initialization, just everything, which is something I didn't really get to do with Kylli.

Eirik Viðarssen: Probably the biggest plot Aina would have concerning this feature would be with her brother Eirik. Eirik will be the one to discover Aina, and with his guidance she will grow accustomed to being an elemental. He will also introduce her to several of the elementals that he already knows, which will greatly widen her circles of elemental acquaintances.

Eirik will also be her voice of reason, her conscious of sorts. He will be the one to aid her on keeping on the straight and narrow path, dissuading her from making poor decisions such as joining the rogues or dropping out of school. Aina will seriously struggle to distinguish between right and wrong as she finds that what she was taught and what she believes in sometimes conflicts with the council ideology, and Eirik will be her light in the darkness.

Hinterikki Peura: As year mates and possibly house mates, Hinterikki and Aina will come to know each other fairly well, however, Aina will feel quite uncomfortable around him since, unbeknownst to her, they are counters. Yet, as he is one of Tero's closest friends and as Ikki and Eirik grow close, Aina will feel an obligation to at least try be friendly to Hinterikki. This will be an interesting experience for Aina as she battles trying to do the right thing and her uneasy feelings about him.

Volya Nikolav: Even though his garth is only his second affinity, Volya will assist Aina in her training as much as he is able. He will check up on her to make sure she is doing as she should, and give her tips where he can.

Nikodim Balour: With the right, or rather, wrong influences, Aina very well could become swayed towards the rogue side of things. Niko, or "Farbor" has known Aina since she was a baby, will be rather concerned as she grows to be more interested in the rogues. To keep her on the council side of things, Niko will arrange for her to have secret lessons with a rogue ice elemental, though only under very tight surveillance.

Gaspard Archambault: Michaela has kindly agreed to have Gaspard be Aina’s primary mentor. For once, Aina will actually have respect for an adult from the get go. As old and skilled as he is, Aina will be a bit scared to even attempt to defy him in any way, and see him as a good person to go to for advice.

Sabela Portela: Her closest and dearest friend, Aina will find it nearly impossible to keep her elementalism from her. Quite soon after Aina is discovered, she will send an owl to Ela explaining everything and pretty much rant about her 'condition.'  This will help her later as, unbeknownst to either of them, Sabela is a consensimens. Knowing that they both have something odd about them will bring the two closer than they already are (though not in proximity).

Antero Kirkkomäki: Besides her brother, Tero knows Aina better than anyone else, and while she will initially try to keep it from him, Tero will be able to tell something is bothering her. It won't take long for Aina to tell him, but she will only do so after swearing him into secrecy.

Training: Aina's elemental training will be a very large part of her life. Once Eirik discovers her, she will go to the council as often as he does, and will have a number of people to guide her along the way.

Other Elementals: There is a lot of talk about a possible rogue plot, and if/when that gets put into motion, I plan for Aina to be a part of it. I think it would be fun to see her kidnapped by the rogues, and have that be her first introduction to them, to kind of pique her interest a bit, though she will still be loyal to the council at that point

Furthermore, her interactions with other elementals, particularly the ones closer to her age, could influence her a lot. While there aren’t a whole lot her age (with the exception of the ickle Madins) there are a few slightly older that Aina could shadow or look up to. Of course, there is also a large amount of adult elementals for her to interact with as well.

Aina was frustrated. Why would this stupid stick not work right? It was ridiculous. She’d been at Durmstrang for a little over three months, and where some of the other kids her age had already mastered their first spells, Aina could hardly perform the most simple of spells. But why? She was a witch, right? Well, she had to be! Aina distinctly remembered her first sign of magic, and she had gotten her Durmstrang acceptance letter, so why couldn’t she do what the other kids could?

That was the question. Practice really did no help whatsoever so she’d concluded it must have something to do with her wand. However, after nearly two whole entire hours of examining the useless stick, she hadn’t been able to detect anything out of the ordinary. Or at least on the outside. Perhaps there was an issue with the core! Perhaps it had been unknowingly broken in the wand making process! Yes, that had to be it! That would explain everything!

But then again, perhaps it really was an issue with her. Since she had yet to try a different wand and hadn’t had anyone else try hers, there was a very real possibility that it was her fault. Maybe Eirik could get it to work! He was good at magic, and if anyone could get it to work it would be him! But then again, was it right to tell him? Would he send to their parents or Inge? That would be terrible! None of them would be pleased that Aina couldn’t do any magic and she very well could end up in a lot of trouble for it.

No. For now she’d keep her failures to herself. She’d tell no one, not Eirik, not Sabela, not anyone in her year, nobody, and that was that! She slammed her wand on the table to accentuate this point. Ha! Maybe that had beat it into submission. But as she went to pick it up again, she noticed something strange. Frost was creeping over the surface of the desk, coving the top and everything on it. Huh? What on earth was this? It wasn’t that cold in here! Aina knew that she hadn’t done it, how could she have! She wasn’t even touching her wand! But there wasn’t anyone else around to perform it . . . had she done it after all?

[toy]approved![/toy]

Name: Samm
Character name: Nemsi Mudavadi Khawale
Feature you are applying for: Animagus - Unregistered
    Species: Great Hammerhead Shark (Sphyrna mokarran)
    Markings: A light discoloration on the back of his neck, where his skull meets his spine, the shape resembles a triangle pointing down. It is mimicked on his primary dorsal fin.

Description of the character: Above all Nemsi is dauntless, on the outside it seems like nothing can phase him. He is not scared to die or to kill. The life he has been forced to lead has hardened him into a paranoid hunter. He is always surveying his surroundings, waiting for the next bad thing, and expecting danger. Being prepared for the worst has made him anxious and difficult to read. It is not unlike him to lash out preemptively if he thinks there is a threat. He rarely relaxes except for brief moments aboard the ship or when he is in company that he trusts. When he does get the chance to let his guard down he can be down right jolly. Though not the smartest of the crew, he does enjoy fooling around and making jokes, but only once the day's work is finished.

He is reliable, unforgiving, and unwavering. He takes his job on board the ship very seriously and never slacks in his duties. He knows the importance of good maintenance and he works hard every day. He is the type to wake up early, work until he can't see straight, and fall into bed only to do it again the next day. His job on board the ship gives him direction and purpose and he never falters from it. He needs a task or a project, something to keep his hands busy and the rage at bay. Nemsi has a penchant for blood lust, especially when it comes to vengeance. Its not often but when he falls into a mindless rage it is best to stay out of his war path. He is muscular, agile, and sometimes forgets his own strength. On the other side of the spectrum Nemsi can be a fearless friend to have in ones corner. Once a bond is made he would do anything for his loved ones, even if it hurt himself. It is rare that he manages to trust someone so deeply that he would die for them, only a small lot have made the list to date.

Though he tries Nemsi is not what some might call an "intellectual". He understands concepts, how to build things and make things work, and specific magics. There are some things he has natural talent for like woodworking and spell work but other things he is completely oblivious to. He wouldn't know the first thing about brewing a potion and he is denser than stone when it comes to certain social cues. He is not oblivious, just not always up to speed right away. Like a Hammerhead shark he often misses what is right in front of him. Though he isn't properly educated or naturally gifted with mind magic he is pragmatic and rational. Often he is the voice reason in this ship, especially when it comes to the Iso, but because he has to be.

Application: I would love this feature for Nemsi because I do think it fits him well. For years now I have been going back and forth contemplating applying for another special feature (in ten years I have applied for two) but nothing seemed to fit right. It always seemed kind of forced so I never really got to writing the application but this one was totally different. As soon as the idea came to me I couldn't stop writing about it and coming up with new plots and connections and it  jump started my muse. I think that it fits him because he is such a beast, he is tough and dangerous, an apex predator but he has a softer side too. He is a good hunter and dedicated to whatever he sets out to do.

The Great Hammerhead shark is solitary and feared by other sharks because it is cannibalistic and retaliatory. It not only eats other sharks and things like sting rays but it disables them first so they can't run. Nemsi is dedicated in this way, compelled to do something until he knows how to do it right and then owning it. Furthermore Nemsi is violent, vengeful, and more than capable and the streamlined body and razor sharp teeth of the Hammerhead embody these traits. He is also born and bred on the sea, which is why I chose an ocean creature for his animagus form. He is an avid swimmer and belongs on the sea, he gets antsy on land, like he is trapped. This particular breed of Great Hammerhead is the largest of Hammerhead sharks and some of their population live off the coast of Kenya and the Indian Ocean, which is the region he is from.

The main event driving Nemsi to become an animagus is his need for freedom. As a child his families ship was attacked by a pirating vessel named the Badda Sun and Nemsi, along with the other young men of the ship, were exchanged for a ceasefire. For the next ten years Nemsi was forced into servitude under a cruel captain. At night the boys would whisper about their dreams of getting off the ship and Nemsi claimed that one day he would become a shark, bite the head of the captain off, and swim away.

In addition to him being a fully fledged Animagus I would like to add a little bit more depth to it. Nemsi did not attend a proper magical school but he was trained from a very young age to focus on very specific magic, transfiguration being one of them. There are many things he simply can not do because he has no knowledge of them but becoming an Animagus came easier to him than it might to most. By the time he was 15 he had partially transfigured, and by 17 he had completed the full change. During his tumiltuous young adult life as a shark he met a handful of exceptional witches, wizards, and magical beings that shaped his abilties even further. First was Maia, a young siren who he unknowingly completed an ancient ritual with. By biting each other and sharing blood in magical waters the two became bonded, this affording him a taste of her abilities and she some of his. Due to a deal he made with a necromancer Nemsi has an aptitude for partial transformation. After being able to fully transform for over four years Nemsi spent 6 months doing nothing but focusing on partial transformation. During this time he honed his skills and became able to control which parts of his body morphed at will.

However this skill came with its own cost. Manipulating the way that Animagus magic works in this way caused Nemsi to inherit the weaknesses of a Hammerhead. He became more bloodthirsty, volatile, solitary, nomadic, and far more single minded. He will never master another type of magic, while he could learn some other things with the exception of transfiguration he will be below average in other subjects. Although he can control what transforms it is very difficult to do so, he needs to be able to focus on the magic. The timing of the change is also unreliable, sometimes taking moments, sometimes hours. Lastly it is exhausting to keep himself in partial form for very long, his body fights to complete the change or revert to his natural human state.

If awarded this Special Feature I will play it with the utmost respect. I think it will make for interesting thread and plotting opportunities that otherwise would not be available to me. I have already had the privilege of plotting with a few drivers and I am stoked with the possibilities.

Future plots:
Maia Etxegarai | The night that Nemsi escaped from the Badda Sun was a fateful night. After swimming for hours he finally found himself drawn to the cove of a group of sirens, he was confused, hungry, and curious and ended up biting one of them only to be bitten back. That night he became bloodfishies with Maia, both of them too young at the time to fully understand the ritual they had unwittingly performed by biting one another and sharing blood in the magical water of her cove. Shortly after they began to demonstrate characteristics of each others traits. Nemsi became a better hunter, able to manipulate the vibrations of the water like a siren would with her song. And Maia became stronger and blood thirsty like a shark. Now more than ten years later the pair are still bonded and able to understand each other, even the primal implications of their creature forms. They can sense one another's electricity and Nemsi can see her scales even when she hides them.
Vashti Khiabani | Vashti is one of the closest friends Nemsi has ever had but she doesn't know his darkest secret: that as a shark he eats humans and likes it. He keeps this from her because he doesn't want her to fear him but one day she will find out. Also without his knowledge she "acquired" one of his shark teeth and currently wears it on a chain around her ankle. It is an emergency beacon that connects the two. After she erased her memories she sent them gift wrapped inside charmed pearls on a bracelet to Nemsi. He later found her working as a tattoo artist and convinced her to join him on the Demonfish as strangers. He does not know that the bracelet she sent him holds the keys to her remembering him, but even if he did he would still have to decide whether or not to return them to her. He holds more than just her memories, true feelings for her lay dormant and perhaps one day they will rise to the surface.
Medusa/Amaranth | While hunting the waters of the Monster Islands in Greece Nemsi accidentally crosses paths with the Leviathan (who tries to eat him and nearly succeeds) gravely injured, disoriented, and nearly unconscious Nemsi washes up on the shores of Amaranth's island. She heals him, shows him kindness, and the two strange friends. In the future he will continue to visit her, often eating dead things around her island and letting her ask him questions about his partial transformations.
Isonade Oshiro | Due to his taste for human flesh his good friend Amaranth always saves him table scraps for when he visits. Unknown to him at the time Nemsi consumes the bits of the Iso's arm that she cuts away before replacing it with the Demon arm. In the future they will both realize this and it will be super awkward.
Alfons Ungeheuer (Billie's WIP) | This plot is tentative to the character becoming a Necromancer however when Nemsi escapes from the ship and goes on the run he spends a year hiding as a shark in the sea. When he finally returns to land he seeks out Alfons and makes a deal with him to fake his death. In order to buy Alfons' help Nemsi is asked to do two things: allow the necromancer perform experiments on him for six months because Alfons wants to test his magic on the partially transformed body of an Animagus and to dispose of bodies. In the beginning Nemsi hides the bodies at the bottom of the sea but one night he is nearly caught with the corpse and is forced to think fast, turning to his shark self to devour the evidence and embracing his cannibalistic nature. Once he has paid in full Alfons, with the help of his brother (see below), fake Nemsi's death. This is achieved by first administering a specialized potion brew and secondly with a complex blood magic ritual that links Nemsi's soul to Alfons long enough to render his body "dead". Technically for twelve hours Nemsi is corporeal with out a body or physical tie to the land of the living, and thus a spirit that has crossed the threshold. In the future the two wizards will come to learn that blood magic like that doesn't just fade away, since Alfons played "host" to Nemsi's soul the two are linked with a faint magical tether. When in his primal shark form sometimes he is drawn toward Alfons like birds are drawn to the poles, not telepathic or psychically.
Wilhelm Ungeheuer (Tori's WIP)| After Alfons kills Nemsi the body is transported to St. Mungo's where Wilhelm works in the morgue. He signs the paper work, making the death of Nemsi Khawale official in the eyes of the ministry and then smuggles his body back to his necromancer brother. Making it known to the world that Nemsi is dead will afford him a freedom from the crew of the Badda Sun that he hasn't known in more than a decade.
Fiona O'Flannigan (Tori's WIP)| This is also tentative on the character becoming a Banshee. Due to his brush with death and short lived time on the other side Nemsi's soul is cracked. Being a Banshee Fiona can sense this. In the future the two will be able to have threads discussing his time on the other side and he will be the first person she has come across that was dead previously.

RP sample using the feature:

From the moment he hit the water Nemsi knew two things: the first that he was finally free and the second that he had zero idea of where he was going. For the first time in over a decade he had the power to chose his own heading and that left him clueless. Nevertheless every moment he wasted brought the men of the Badda Sun closer to taking him back and so the young shark swam as fast as his powerful streamlined body could propel him. As he acclimated his senses were assaulted, it was overwhelming. His mind told him he was suffocating, that he needed to surface to breath, but his body refused, knowing better. At every turn he could feel the vibrations of the ocean pulsing against his scaled armor like skin. The electricity that traveled through the water registering with parts of his brain he'd never used before and it was nearly blinding.

Hours went by as the Hammerhead continued to push on. Night had fallen but as a shark he no longer needed much light to see, all of his senses had switched gears. He was hunting from the moment he had changed shape. No longer the weak powder boy, running down the hall trying to avoid getting cursed by the wicked Quartermaster. This new body afforded him strength and stealth and power like he had never known. It was intoxicating but not nearly as much as the smell of fresh blood in the water nearly a mile away. Swiftly he was caught up it in and Nemsi didn't fight the instinct of every muscle propelling him toward it. The flames of torchlights from the coast flickered in the water as his eyes adjusted to the level of luminosity he could see pale little legs and the jabs of a blade making contact with sea creatures. The puffs of red in the water made him push faster, hungrier than he had ever known.

A low magical sound emanated from the shoreline and he was drawn to it, boy and beast as one. Before he realized what he was being pulled into the dazed creature was swimming toward a most beautiful young merwitch. He found himself joining the audience of her notes, making laps with the other creatures toward their own death with not a care in the world. As she swayed the seashells and pearls braided into her fiery red hair clinked together in tune with her song. The Hammerhead carved himself a spot right out in front of her and his newfound animal instincts began to take over. He couldn't stop himself, maybe it was her song, or the primal instincts he was inheriting like a pound of bricks but Nemsi found himself biting at the young girl. Razor sharp teeth broke the skin on her leg as he dragged her into the water, the blood ramping up his primal nature and then she did something entirely unexpected.

The young Siren turned and bit him back. He felt her teeth clamping down on his primary dorsal fin in defense and his mind rang out from the pain. He twisted, shark body contorting under her grip, before he involuntarily began to return to his true form. Dark brown eyes stared at her from the muddy water of the cove, blood dripping from his mouth and from the back of his neck where she had returned the favor. His hand went to his neck, holding the gash tightly and trying to ignore the sting from the salty water as he did. The other hand reached for his wand, the one he'd tied to his chest before changing and he held it out toward her weakly. "I do not wish to fight you siren." His young voice said, cracking a little with anxiety but trying to . The last twelve hours had been nothing but fighting and running and swimming and worrying, he was exhausted, it showed on his face. Dark circles and sullen eyes. Emaciated and skinnier than a young wizard his height should be he stood up from the water, towering over her even at a young age and waiting for her to make the next move.

[toy]~approved[/toy]

Name: Toyachu
Character name: Jehan Beaumont
Feature you are applying for: Illusionist
Description of the character: Jehan had potential. As a student at Beauxbatons, he devoured knowledge and spent more time with books than with people. He tried his hardest to make friends and gain connections. The only thing hindering him from success was the shadow of his parents infamy. One of the youngest children of the 'Bloody Beaumonts', a pair of violent Death Eaters taken down during the First Wizarding Ward, he was never able to get away from their bad reputation. Jehan went from being a studious, somewhat quiet boy, to an angry, malicious con artist. He is cunning, direct, and vulgar. He uses every thing that he can get his hands on to his advantage. On the outside, the tattoos and the snarky behavior hide an intelligent, devious. Jehan is always calculating possibilities, and outs, and chances. He molds his energy and his actions to fit the role that he's playing to get what he needs out of his crowd. He can play the charming pureblood prince to the T, and slide back into his role of uncouth pirate instantaneously. He has a need for control of the situations around him, and gets reckless when things unravel from his finger tips, scrambling to regain control.

Application: When I first thought of Jehan, I was tempted to make an elemental. An elemental pirate would be a boon to a ship, allowing the ship to have control of the winds from which they made their trade. Something didn't quite fit. Typh wasn't quite fitting for the boy who could sell a habit to a nun right off of her back. Nothing felt right until I came across the description for Illusionist, and said to myself 'Yes, this was something that Jehan could do.' At four, Jehan was taken in by the Durmstrang side of his family. This allowed him access to materials and learning that he wouldn't necessarily have as a student of Beauxbatons. When it was shown that he was talented in the Illusionary arts, to the point that he was called into his head of house's office multiple times for pranking the other students, his guardians made sure that he was trained in his talent so he wouldn't screw anything up. The only way that he would be able to gain control of the school of study was to master it. During the school year, he practiced tricks out of the school books that he was sent, spending hours on perfecting even faint vein lines on a single rose petal, just to get it correct. He observed everything, not judging, but trying to gain understanding of the things around him.

It was hard trying to compensate for self-teaching while he was in school, but during the summer, his guardians made sure that he went through rigorous study programs. Jehan had a reputation to rebuild, and the only way he could do it was if he did better than his parents, and was the star pupil of his year. His teacher was an older Durmstrang Alumni who was strict, but fair. Every task that Jehan succeeded in gained him a lesson in something more fun ro the boy, which was frivolous. By the time he was 16, he was using the talent to romance girls, giving them illusions of flowers that they'd never seen before, and while it was fun, it incited his peers to the fact that he still existed, and they took the time to bully him. While offensive magic was prohibited, there was nothing stopping Jehan from creating horrors to scare his bullies, so he could escape to higher ground. This marked the time where he began to use his Illusions aggressively rather than in the benign manner that he was doing before. By the time he graduated, he'd intimidated his peer group so much that they kept away from him, and looked at him in the same light that they looked at his parents. By that time, he was unbothered. Unable to get a job in the legal world, he relied on his talents to gain himself funds and information in a less than legal manner.

Jehan is in his 14th year of study of Illusions. He has mastered casting Illusions without his wand, and without incantations. Jehan's illusions are so complex that one can believe that they are trapped in the hull of a ship while on land, if even for 20 minutes. His illusions are not perfect, and he's constantly working on making everything perfect. He studies things to the smallest detail, and never stops learning. His biggest downfalls are creating taste illusions, finding the sensation of taste the hardest to grasp. Single Illusions he has perfected, able to create a single creature or object that looks so real that when one puts their fingers through it, it's a surprise when it slides right through. In his line of work, he has to dance the pureblood aristocrat tango, and uses minor illusions on himself to perfect his image. He projects what people want to see, whether it's an extra shine to a bit of jewelry to catch the eye, or an interesting imperfection. His talents are subtle, and only truly visible when he does bigger grander illusions.

Future plots:
Jehan's loyalty is to his family and his ship. He uses his talents to assist his brother in charming the pureblood masses into uplifting their family name. He uses his Illusions precisely, bring attention to what he wants people to focus on, and charming them away from the seedy side of the younger Beaumonts operations. Jehan uses his illusions in card games, planting thefts on other aristocrats, and small baubles to entice targets further into his spider web. His gifts are like leprechaun gold, with a limited life span.

At the age of 17, Jehan was down on his luck, unable to find job in a world that was predisposed to hate him. After a brawl with some law enforcement officials, Jehan found his home on the decks of the Bake-Kujira as a deckhand. Working his way up the totem pole because of his usefulness and his connections to the outside wizarding world, Jehan's main commodity was his gift with illusions. He was able to have the boat appear as if it wasn't even there as it slid through pits of too many enemies to count. He became switft friends with Katsuro Oshiro, and through the years that he spent on the ship, they became as close as brothers. During one of Jehan's numerous trips back home, he received the news that his entire ship had been slaughtered, and his brother was dead. By the time he was able to detangle himself from his brother Thierry's endeavors, and get to the Isle of the Pirates, the Bake-Kujira was pulling into port, with only @Isonade Oshiro manning the wheel. He swiftly joined back up with his adopted brother, only to feel trapped as the new captain wasn't very good as a captain. Instead of trading commodities, and being able to handle his outside business, Jehan was trapped on the ship, babysitting both captain and crew and making sure they didn't die. After a massive battle on board after Jehan lost his cool and had to be contained by Isonade, Jehan is transported off of the ship. When he comes back, he is back in his position, leading the charge against rival pirate crews with the use of his Illusionist talent. He and the crew work in tandem to confuse and intimidate their enemies, imagining fleets of Bake-Kujira's surrounding them when there is only one of the Demonfish.

For the months that Jehan was land bound and healing, he wasn't stuck in bed. Finding a partner in crime in @Julia König , he runs scams with her in various establishments, both muggle and magical to con people out of their monies. Using his illusions, and a healthy combination of acting skills and cunning, the two pair together to bedazzle and bamboozle unsuspecting folk as they drain them dry. His illusions hide defining parts of their appearance, bring their attention away from things happening during the job.




RP sample using the feature:
So, his shirt was aflame. That was great. No matter how hard he tried, Jehan always seemed to get into situations that were over his head. He hadn't even left the ship this time, and there was a hole through the hull. He could see Nemsi on a rope, rushing to repair it, but that didn't stop the fact that their were men on a boat coming closer to try and board their ship. The Demonfish had just acquired a load of stolen goods, and to lose them at this point would be losing so much money that he wasn't even aware of how they could even try to recoup. Just the idea of starting up from scratch again, and building from the ground up made his jaw clench. He was tired, not just of babysitting the children of this ship, but of people trying to destroy what he kept rebuilding.

Out the corner of his eye, he could see the tiny weather witch holding her wand out, prepping for some big magic. The hairs on the back of his neck rose as the smell of ozone appeared out of nowhere, the sky started turning grey. She could fry them all that she wanted, but he had to do something to distract them until she was ready. Fingers twitching, he began envisioning a dragon in the back of his mind. Opal coloured scales covered her body, elegant lines the characteristics of the Opaleye that he'd seen at the dragon reservation in Romania. She was fierce, and she was wild. Above cloud cover, he could see the outline of her body. It took a bit of nudging, but he had seconds before he was to set her upon them.

Hearing a roar from the raiders, his concentration almost faltered, but he focused on the dragon as if it was the last thing he'd ever see. His deep breaths echoed the deep breaths that could emanate from the barrel shaped chest, and when he'd finally had the picture firmly focused in his mind, he'd let her go. In his mind, and to the naked eye, and enraged dragon swept from the clouds, and headed towards the pirate ship. Wind cascaded from each beat of her powerful wings, and a roar echoed loudly around them.  The dragon queen swooped down to the enemy ship, and like it was rehearsed, opened her mouth and lightning shot out, followed by the ozone smell of the weather witch's lightning spell. The sailors on the other ship ran, trying to avoid the primordial beast, but it was too late. Lightning rocked the ship, followed by the giant form of the dragon hitting the boat. Instead of the beast rocking the ship, it flew right through.

There was a gaping hole where the lightning had struck a hole into the rival ship, but the other pirates were still scrambling to get unto the Demonfish. Jehan grabbed his wand, and pointed it in the direction of his enemies, making his spells seem bigger, and causing pirates to duck and dodge the over exaggerated spells. "Why am I doing ALL the work? Oh that's right? YOU GUYS ARE USELESS." Dodging a spell, he groaned as his shoulder impacted the deck, and scrambled up to his feet so he could bound across the now shortened space between the two ships. "SUCKERS!" And he entered the fray.

[mer]approved![/mer]

Name: Emily

Character name: Audra Baxter

Feature you are applying for: Typh discipulus

Description of the character: Audra’s interest is easily captured. She is fascinated by the inner and outer workings of things and people, and frequently is an observer. However, she is also a very active person who seeks out adventure. Anything that piques her curiosity is fair game. She has a passion for flying and wants to make a career out of quidditch in some way when she leaves school. She can’t wait to graduate and have the world at her fingertips.

Audra gets along with most people, finding most traits inoffensive or tolerable, if not endearing. She is naturally contrary, though, and dislikes being told what to do. She prefers to find her own way to do things, even when doing them properly would probably work better. She sees no need to change herself for others, but she will adapt to make circumstances easier for herself.     

Application: I had no intention of applying for a special feature, under any circumstance, ever. It seemed like a lot of work and I am easily intimidated, and frankly none of them really caught my interest. But when I decided to revamp a previous WIP character into a student, I thought, I’ve already got a Hogwarts student. And Audra and Henry aren’t really distinct enough in personality for it to seem justifiable. What would make them different?

I’d been interacting with more Elemental characters lately and getting to see them in action, and that made the whole thing seem more approachable and doable, and also gave me more insight into how Elementalism works. I wondered whether any of the elements would fit Audra, whose personality I had kept the same from when she was going to be an adult. I knew she was too flighty for earth, too calm for fire. But then I found the description of the air Elementals. I thought her curiousity and interest in things fit well, as well as her adventurousness and willful personality. I had already written her with a passion for being in the air, and a fondness for the feel of a breeze on her skin.

I don’t think she would be a highly council-oriented Elemental. She would have chosen to hone her talent when she was young because it would have seemed much more exciting than being an ordinary wizard and she’d have been curious to see where that path would take her. But she doesn’t really see her Elementalism playing into her future, she has no ambition to work with the council. Also, she would hate that her element could sway her, influence who or what to like and dislike, and such things. I think it would be interesting to explore that part of her, and to develop relationships with people who understand that feeling.

Future plots:
Rhianu Jernigan: Audra is unsure why she dislikes her fellow student (Axel’s WIP) so much: it’s unusual for her to feel so strongly about anyone. Unbeknownst to her, Rhianu is a Demin Elemental, the counter to her own Typh. When she finds out about Rhianu’s powers, Audra will be frustrated and angry that her element can influence her friendships. She could be missing out on a perfectly good person. She will try especially hard to befriend Rhianu in spite of it.

Pierce Lachapelle: Another Typh Elemental, Pierce has been away from the council for years. His return has put him and Audra on a similar level. They can befriend each other, may help each other out with spells and such, and she will look up to him as a role model and elder brother figure.

Alain St. Clare: Alain will be Audra’s new main Elemental tutor. He has little patience for her, often being a little harsh in his methods. As a result, Audra has trouble with his authoritativeness and frequently gets frustrated, adding more stress and anger to relate to her powers. However, she will eventually learn things from him, and learn to respect him as a powerful Elemental.

Aiolos Logothetis: When at the council, Aiolos is Audra’s primary contact. His style of imparting knowledge is refreshingly different from Alain’s and she tries to live up to his views, embracing her element and connection to the world around her.

Zoé Deveaux: Soon after Audra first came to Inverness, Zoé took her under her wing. The older girl is like a sister to her, and they share some of Audra’s girlier moments. She writes to Zoé to discuss her experiences with womanly things, romance and sex, but also her frustrations and triumphs with her Elemental studies.

Eirik Viðarrsen: What Zoé did for her, Audra wanted to do for Eirik when he first arrived at the council. She understood the difficulties of being a young Elemental, barely out of that stage herself at the time, and wanted to help him through his transition. This developed into the sharing of languages and a lasting friendship with the younger boy, who she looks forward to seeing when they are at Inverness.

RP sample using the feature:

Someone had discovered a secret passage, and they were going to find out where it went.

Audra had jumped on the idea immediately. It could go somewhere cool, out of school, perhaps—hopefully Hogsmeade, it would be loads of fun to have a secret way out to go get a drink whenever she wanted. The group of explorers trooped down to the entrance of the alleged passageway, a painting of a pair of horses on the second floor. They crowded around as the discoverer of the thing tapped one of the horses with his wand. It whinnied and trotted out of frame, and the painting swung back.

The hole was quite small. So was Audra, and she had no doubt she could fit, but the thought of climbing in there made her skin crawl. The boy ahead of her had stuck a leg in already when everyone noticed the look on her face. “What?” she said. “No, I’m fine! I’m right behind you.” She knew what it was. She’d felt the same in locked places and dungeon classrooms; it was why the thought of caves gave her anxiety and why stale air made her choke. But she would be right behind them, Elementalism be damned. Last of the group, Audra ducked into the hole, eyes fixed on the path of lit wands.

She stopped short as the painting closed behind her, trying to calm her panicking heart. Rarely did she close doors, even in open rooms, and this, this was a nightmare come to life. She tried to focus on the destination, keep moving her feet and eventually they would get somewhere—it would be an adventure. But she couldn’t exist in this musty air, in this passage where she couldn’t extend her arms to the sides. She felt like something was being tightened around her, like she might snap, collapse.

Stumbling toward the entry painting and pushing it back open, Audra leaned out and gulped in fresh air. Everyone was looking at her. She hated to be this way sometimes, hated to be restricted by things she couldn’t control, hated being unable to control them.

“Sorry,” she mumbled as she climbed back out into the corridor. “Tell me where it goes.”

Hello~ I'm Billie, and I am here to apply for yet another Special Feature (I'm really sorry, I am!). The special feature I will be applying for is Necromancy for one of my up and coming work in progresses, Alfons Ungeheuer. I feel the need to let you all know that the lyrics to this spine are inspired by Nightmare by Avenged Sevenfold, because credit where do!

While I don't have Alfons' family quite outlined, I do know what he's like very well. Interested in a young age about necromancy, this boy has always been fascinated with life and death -- they always came in tandem. One could not survive without the other, it seemed, as as he grew, it was obvious that Alfons wanted to know more. He deeply became interested, rooted and lived by the story Frankenstein when he was about seven years old, which is still a huge factor in his life right now. He was stunned -- despite the fact that this tale mostly alluded the idea of patriarchy and men's society as "Gods" in a world that was created -- and baffled and wholly interested in this twisted and strange tale. He wanted to be just like Victor Frankenstein -- smart, clever, a grave robber, on a never ending quest to see what could and couldn't be done. Victor Frankenstein, after all, created a monster out of dead things -- why couldn't Alfons?

Alfons is a genuinely quiet person, though, compared to his more socially adept brother. Because of his strange obsession with all things death related, he's more of an out cast than anything, and chooses to have only a small handful of friends, compared to a lot of them. He has a hard time emotionally connecting to others because he can be extremely apathetic, and he's known to be an INTP from the Myer-Briggs personality type. He's a dedicated and hard worker, interesting in pushing the boundaries between human life and human death, and everything in between. He likes to see how long he can push someone until they can't be whole, or can't come back whole. He likes to see if death brings any abnormal and awkward dissonance and new characteristics to a person. He likes exploring the darker side of things that people don't normally deal with.

For the most part, despite being apathetic and quiet, he's a really hard worker who does not deal with people judging him. He's a bit more into reading and doing his own thing, and will often lash out when things don't go his way -- after all, he tends to be a little obsessive compulsive and a tad bit more of a perfectionist than anything. It isn't to say that Alfons necessarily beats himself up for mistakes -- they help him grow, after all -- but he is easily agitated and tends to lash out on things (or people) around him during those moments of frustration. He always owns up to his faults, and doesn't let that stop him from continuing his work. Also, he tends to like to rip people off by telling them that he can "talk to the dead" and then take tons of money because he does this. You know, classic rip off schemes are his favorite (besides stealing from graves and St. Mungos and stuff).

I'm going to admit that Alfons was an impulse character. I didn't want him. Sometimes, I still don't want him, but as he's developed in my head, I've become more and more attached to him. You already know what he's sort of like, so now I'm going to try and explain why I love him so much, and why he should have this specific special feature.

Let me start with the motivation for this character. I was a literature major in college, and books are like, my favorite thing. One of my favorite classes to read was, indeed, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. Not only did Shelley have a really screwed up life (let me tell you about Mary Wollstonecraft at another time) but I also wrote a paper on it in my sophomore or junior year. It was, quite frankly, about how Victor Frankenstein was similar to Prometheus in his idea of creation and destruction. On top of this, 2016 is the 100 year anniversary of it being published -- I found it only so suiting.

I wanted another special feature outside of the Elemental realm, and I realized, what better way to expand my writing than by writing something I'm not comfortable with? As is, there are very few Necromancers on the board, and they don't seem to be all that active in, well, their necromancy practices. Alfons will be constantly dedicated to his necromancy, and it will be a forethought of everything he does -- regardless of whether or not he actually uses it, or is just talking about it. Alfons' job is necromancy -- it is every part of him, as well as his world. There's no just "no mention of necromancy" in his life. It's not as easy as that for him.

The way I plan on playing Alfons is a bit unusual, too. I know that most necromancy deals with blood magic, but Alfons deals with it up to his elbows. Unless it is substantial, Alfons will use the blood of others or stolen blood that he has gotten along the way. His blood, after all, is way too precious to use unless he needs it in a spell. Alfons, like other necromancers, prefers pure blood over lesser blood, but in a pinch, he will begrudgingly use halfblood blood, you know, to spark his spells. Alfons generally collects his blood, but most of the time, his brother is the one who collects it.

One of the biggest things I am planning is the way Alfons deals with his use of his necromancy. One of the things I will focus on is the idea that his magic comes with a price: if he does something, there will always be a consequence in the outcome. Not necessarily for the idea of reanimating the dead, but for some of his bigger plots, and some of the things he plans on doing. For example, one of his plots (read in the plots section) involve him killing someone and bringing them back to life. This tethers the person and Alfons together in a bond that can never be removed. Sometimes, the outcomes can be small, and other times it will be significant.

That brings me to another focus on Alfons' necromancy: reviving dead bodies. Let me explain before you just stamp off completely and say no. Biologically, the function of decay happens in stages: within minutes of death, the brain starts to lose its function. Within three to six hours, rigor mortis starts, and the body becomes hard and unable to be moved easily. After twelve hours, more than half of the body heat has been lost, and by the time a full day has passed, all body heat would be lost. Therefore, when I say Alfons' necromancy can revive dead bodies, he means those who have died within twelve hours. Of course, this doesn't mean that they come back 100% clean and healthy. Whatever killed a person will still be in their body (bullet or spell wounds, poison, etc.), but they'd be alive enough that they'd be able to get to St. Mungos and get proper treatment. Also, the state of reviving someone costs a lot of blood on Alfons' end (not only his own actual blood, but his general collection of blood, as well), and he charges a literal arm and a leg for this process.

I should also clearly state that this process doesn't come out perfectly all the time. Alfons is still learning, and he's got an avid test subject he kills and revives all the time. Like with Nemsi, a magical bond is created between Alfons and any person he brings back to life through this process -- sometimes, it's a natural draw of wanting to be close, or the need to be close to each other, sometimes it's deeper than that: that they literally owe their life to Alfons and will do anything to repay him. Besides Nemsi (which has a more detailed plot relating to this down below), the only other person known to have been revived this way is his best friend, Korbin, who is his dead-and-alive test subject (again, also more of a plot relating to this down below).

On top of the process of it costing a lot of blood from Alfons and his collection, it also drains the wizard of his own energy, at least for a few days. Before, when he was just starting these experiments, he found himself drained for up to two weeks, unable to do much, let alone get out of bed. As he grew stronger in this area, he shorted it from two weeks to three days -- he is completely stuck in bed some days, and cannot even do basic magic. This is his price on his own. One of the things I've thought over, too, was that the more and more people he does this to, the less and less control over his own magic he gets. He has to keep a very tight leash on himself -- no more than fifteen people, total, can do this, otherwise his soul will start to split to each and every person he's revived.

Wilhelm Ungeheuer (Tori's WIP) || Wim is one of Alfons' biggest plots, mostly because his brother is an important aspect of him. Wim has always and will always support Alfons' love of necromancy, and is the one person Alfons is able to trust without a second thought. Not only is Wim an important aspect of Alfons' social life (if Wim is going, chances are, Alfon goes, too), but Wim is literally the only other person Alfons trusts with getting body parts or blood, often stealing it from whatever fancy organization or institution he works at. Wim has literally been with Alfons since the start of his weird and unusual obsession, and has supported him with every inch of his being -- so it's really no surprise that Alfons follows Wim wherever he goes.
Korbinian Geier (Sarah's WIP) || Outside of Wim, Korbinian, or as Alfons calls him, Korby, is Alfon's best friend. Korbin has been dragged through the gutters and back again because of his undying love. Korbin grew up with the twins, and when he was five, Alfons hid him away before he was shipped off to another cousin's home so that he could keep Korbin close. Because of this, he unconsciously started to grow a thread between Korbin and himself, and it would grow bigger and deeper as they went through school and into their adult lives. Korbin followed Alfons and Wim wherever they went, and Korbin subjects himself to all sorts of weird experiments at the drop of a dime for Alfons, because he's that dedicated. One of my favorite future plots will happen when Alfons' experiment goes too far, and Korbin becomes brain dead (or gets put into a coma of some sort), and Alfons "brings him back to life" from that point -- which will make Korbin a little slower to react without Alfon's words of guidance, but it also deepens their relationship more.
Nemsi Khawale (Samm's WIP) || Nemsi and Alfons meet a few years after Alfons graduates school -- and when he's working to swindle people for money by saying "he can talk to the dead." Nemsi comes to Alfons to see if he can help stage a death, and while Alfons is originally unsure about it at first, he does eventually work out a deal with the animagus: the first doing experiments on for a half year, and the other is Nemsi disposes the bodies of failed experiments for Alfons. Being extremely curious about the affects of necromancy on a non-human (or even part-non-human), Alfons does experiments with Nemsi for a half year, and once that is done, then he and Wim put on an elaborate plan to trick the world about Nemsi's death. Because of the spellwork that Alfons does and because Nemsi's soul is linked to Alfons for the twelve hours of his faked death, the two feel a magical tether that links them, and draws them together, but isn't a physical closeness. Alfons is one of the few people, likewise, to know Nemsi's more cannibalistic side, actually and actively encouraging the older male to eat the bodies when they're in the same location or when Nemsi is helping Alfons hide bodies.
Cameryn White (Taed) || In the timeline of things, Alfons, Wim and Korbin end up in the United Kingdom in about late 1998, which gives Alfons plenty of time to work this one out. When Cameryn finally comes out from the catacombs underneath Hogsmeade (her regeneration place, at least), Alfons is going to feel it. This makes him naturally curious and he drags himself to Hogsmeade to investigate, constantly missing the other necromancer every time. Whenever Alfons is in Hogsmeade, he can still feel Cameryn's presence around, although it was somewhat diminished with the dome (faint but still there, in reality). In the future, when Alfons and Cameryn finally meet, Alfons will ask her a lot of more personal questions about necromancy, and the two will embark on a more detailed journey of understanding necromancy and the abilities of necromancers in general.
Varvara Zakharova (Christine) || At one point in Alfon's earlier career of being a seventh year and recent graduate of Durmstrang, he studied under Varya for his potioneer mentor. Besides this, as Varya knew early on in this relationship that Alfons was interested in Necromancy, when she started to work on her necromancy potion, one of the people she reached out to (or will soon reach out to), is Alfons. Together, they work on Varya's newest creation, and Alfons has no problems using some of his work to be her testing subject (or even being her testing subject in some cases), as this also branches out to his own knowledge of necromancy.
Maia Etxegarai (Toya) || When Alfons and Nemsi become magically tethered together, one of the side affects is that Alfons and Maia become tethered together, too. While none of them know that they're all subtly linked together, it will become quite apparent later on in the future. For now, there will be plenty of mishaps in threads for the future, including stress for why they feel so close even though they're so far away, their first introductions, and eventually realizing what has happened between them.
Amir al-Busuri (Toya) || At the end of Alfon's fourth year, he sent a rather long, drastic letter to Amir, asking to study under the other man in necromancy. At first, Amir didn't quite believe that he was serious, and after constant letters from Alfons -- spanning from the end of his fourth year, all of the summer, and the first few months of Alfons' 5th year of Durmstrang -- he finally allowed the young student to study under him. For five years, Alfons learned his craft with a dedicated teacher, learning things that he otherwise would've never learned, and also was able to experiment on his own during this training. While Alfons' training is over, the young man still actively keeps in touch with Amir and asks about necromancy things all the time, although they rarely meet up anymore.
Medusa/Amaranth (Meridian) || In the future, word is going to cross both Alfons' and Amaranth's paths about each other. While, yes, distance is a thing, it will spark Alfons' curiousness enough that he will make a trip to her island. There, they will, well, explore the inside of human bodies together, and enjoy long conversations about necromancy. Not only this, but they are going to try and make heads from tails of old necromancy magic that Amaranth has stored about, even though she cannot teach it to him. It'll still be something that Alfons will be greatly interested in.

Candles flickered, casting the room in long, dark shadows. Alfons' lap, a slate of stone, metal and concrete, was cold, chilly to the touch, but the man didn't care. Covered up to his elbows in blood, the necromancer was focused, dedicated to his work. A body, miss-matched pieces of various ones, laid against the metal table. He wanted to see what could happen if he made this thing alive. He never got it farther than a few minutes; the weight wasn't even most of the time, and the monster collapsed in on itself, creating a pile of blood and soiled and spoiled body parts on the floor. Even now, Alfons was annoyed; the third time tonight that things hadn't gone right, but he was sure this one would.

"Double check everything," he muttered to himself. He stood, lanky and long, and stepped over to his journal -- a fluttering of pages strewn about in a haphazard mix and match of parchments that couldn't be found in rhyme or reason. The necromancer flipped through one and two and then three and four pages, leaving bloody fingerprints over his hard earned, his entire life's work, but he didn't care. "This one. It should work."

He moved again, fluttering more pages and grabbing two more. He laid all three over the chest of the body he was working on, and then stepped away. A bottle of blood returned with him, and he dipped his fingers into it, flicking it over the body of the corpse. Latin ritual came out, and he could feel the energy bubbling through his fingers, the blood, and then into the body. Yes, this was most definitely working! He could feel the blood magic linking him and his creation, a bond of leader and follower. His fingers dipped into the blood again, more being flicked onto the body. The skin turned taut, white, healthy looking, although scars and stitches still stayed. The fingers on his creation twitched, and he scurried to collect his notes. They fell to the floor in eagerness. He was doing it.

But as the creation, his monster, stood up, it, too, collapsed on the ground. He could feel the energy radiating still, but it was quickly diminishing. Yet again, everything went wrong. An angry sound escaped his lips, and the necromancer stepped away, shoulders hunched, and climbed the stairs to the kitchen. A drink of water to cool his mind, and a moment away before he ended up breaking things. It was all necessary. He needed to do more research.

Name: Emily

Character name: Audra Baxter

Feature you are applying for: Typh discipulus

Description of the character: Audra’s interest is easily captured. She is fascinated by the inner and outer workings of things and people, and frequently is an observer. However, she is also a very active person who seeks out adventure. Anything that piques her curiosity is fair game. She has a passion for flying and wants to make a career out of quidditch in some way when she leaves school. She can’t wait to graduate and have the world at her fingertips.

Audra gets along with most people, finding most traits inoffensive or tolerable, if not endearing. She is naturally contrary, though, and dislikes being told what to do. She prefers to find her own way to do things, even when doing them properly would probably work better. She sees no need to change herself for others, but she will adapt to make circumstances easier for herself.     

Application: I had no intention of applying for a special feature, under any circumstance, ever. It seemed like a lot of work and I am easily intimidated, and frankly none of them really caught my interest. But when I decided to revamp a previous WIP character into a student, I thought, I’ve already got a Hogwarts student. And Audra and Henry aren’t really distinct enough in personality for it to seem justifiable. What would make them different?

I’d been interacting with more Elemental characters lately and getting to see them in action, and that made the whole thing seem more approachable and doable, and also gave me more insight into how Elementalism works. I wondered whether any of the elements would fit Audra, whose personality I had kept the same from when she was going to be an adult. I knew she was too flighty for earth, too calm for fire. But then I found the description of the air Elementals. I thought her curiousity and interest in things fit well, as well as her adventurousness and willful personality. I had already written her with a passion for being in the air, and a fondness for the feel of a breeze on her skin.

I don’t think she would be a highly council-oriented Elemental. She would have chosen to hone her talent when she was young because it would have seemed much more exciting than being an ordinary wizard and she’d have been curious to see where that path would take her. But she doesn’t really see her Elementalism playing into her future, she has no ambition to work with the council. Also, she would hate that her element could sway her, influence who or what to like and dislike, and such things. I think it would be interesting to explore that part of her, and to develop relationships with people who understand that feeling.

Future plots:
Rhianu Jernigan: Audra is unsure why she dislikes her fellow student (Axel’s WIP) so much: it’s unusual for her to feel so strongly about anyone. Unbeknownst to her, Rhianu is a Demin Elemental, the counter to her own Typh. When she finds out about Rhianu’s powers, Audra will be frustrated and angry that her element can influence her friendships. She could be missing out on a perfectly good person. She will try especially hard to befriend Rhianu in spite of it.

Pierce Lachapelle: Another Typh Elemental, Pierce has been away from the council for years. His return has put him and Audra on a similar level. They can befriend each other, may help each other out with spells and such, and she will look up to him as a role model and elder brother figure.

Alain St. Clare: Alain will be Audra’s new main Elemental tutor. He has little patience for her, often being a little harsh in his methods. As a result, Audra has trouble with his authoritativeness and frequently gets frustrated, adding more stress and anger to relate to her powers. However, she will eventually learn things from him, and learn to respect him as a powerful Elemental.

Aiolos Logothetis: When at the council, Aiolos is Audra’s primary contact. His style of imparting knowledge is refreshingly different from Alain’s and she tries to live up to his views, embracing her element and connection to the world around her.

Zoé Deveaux: Soon after Audra first came to Inverness, Zoé took her under her wing. The older girl is like a sister to her, and they share some of Audra’s girlier moments. She writes to Zoé to discuss her experiences with womanly things, romance and sex, but also her frustrations and triumphs with her Elemental studies.

Eirik Viðarrsen: What Zoé did for her, Audra wanted to do for Eirik when he first arrived at the council. She understood the difficulties of being a young Elemental, barely out of that stage herself at the time, and wanted to help him through his transition. This developed into the sharing of languages and a lasting friendship with the younger boy, who she looks forward to seeing when they are at Inverness.

RP sample using the feature:

Someone had discovered a secret passage, and they were going to find out where it went.

Audra had jumped on the idea immediately. It could go somewhere cool, out of school, perhaps—hopefully Hogsmeade, it would be loads of fun to have a secret way out to go get a drink whenever she wanted. The group of explorers trooped down to the entrance of the alleged passageway, a painting of a pair of horses on the second floor. They crowded around as the discoverer of the thing tapped one of the horses with his wand. It whinnied and trotted out of frame, and the painting swung back.

The hole was quite small. So was Audra, and she had no doubt she could fit, but the thought of climbing in there made her skin crawl. The boy ahead of her had stuck a leg in already when everyone noticed the look on her face. “What?” she said. “No, I’m fine! I’m right behind you.” She knew what it was. She’d felt the same in locked places and dungeon classrooms; it was why the thought of caves gave her anxiety and why stale air made her choke. But she would be right behind them, Elementalism be damned. Last of the group, Audra ducked into the hole, eyes fixed on the path of lit wands.

She stopped short as the painting closed behind her, trying to calm her panicking heart. Rarely did she close doors, even in open rooms, and this, this was a nightmare come to life. She tried to focus on the destination, keep moving her feet and eventually they would get somewhere—it would be an adventure. But she couldn’t exist in this musty air, in this passage where she couldn’t extend her arms to the sides. She felt like something was being tightened around her, like she might snap, collapse.

Stumbling toward the entry painting and pushing it back open, Audra leaned out and gulped in fresh air. Everyone was looking at her. She hated to be this way sometimes, hated to be restricted by things she couldn’t control, hated being unable to control them.

“Sorry,” she mumbled as she climbed back out into the corridor. “Tell me where it goes.”

[taed]Approved! Look forward to seeing you at the Council![/taed]

Name: Aisling
Character name: Ivy Emberton
Feature you are applying for: Discipula Madin ~ Earth Elemental

After being a member of this site for eons, this is my first Elemental application, but the feature has always been very appealing to me. Although I've always had a desire to apply for this feature, I never felt as though I had any character who truly seemed like an elemental to me, until now. When I created Ivy, I honestly did not have the intent of making her an Elemental, but after some forcing suggestions from a few other members, I began to see how well this feature would fit her.

In applying for this feature, I realized that this does not change Ivy. In fact, at the core, she will still be the same person with or without this feature. What I'm most excited about is how much more I will be able to do with her plot-wise that I don't have the opportunity to do with my other characters. Ivy can still remain the clumsy, awkward teen that she is, but I can be involved in other aspects of MH with her. I love having the opportunity for plots, but I'm often left stuck with what plots can I do--Ivy being an Elemental opens up a lot of opportunity for me as a member here to have an abundance of fun, new and exciting plots as well as doing something different with a character that I haven't done before.

As I stated earlier, I've been fascinated by all the special features here at MH, but especially Elementalism, because it is so unique to this site. I've been wanting to play a special feature since I've started here, but I wanted to make sure it fit with one of my characters, rather than just shooting in the dark and hoping something fit. Almost a decade later (wow I'm old), I have Ivy who I believe fits this special feature very well.

Of all the elements, I think it's almost painfully obvious that the most fitting for Ivy is Earth. She is simple and kind, honest and loyal. Although she is not the brightest girl, her heart is huge, willing to give to anyone. Her empathy is unending--if someone comes to her as a shoulder to cry on, she will end up crying with them. She only knows compassion and has a somewhat naive understanding of the world, believing that everyone wants to be helped and wants a friend. Similar to what is stated in the Elemental background information, Ivy is exceptionally warm hearted, loving and she can be generous to a fault. She'll often stretch herself thin to help out other people, whether or not they will return the sentiment, because she desires for everyone to be happy and feel loved.

Besides this, Ivy already has an inclination towards plants and animals and her skill with the two is surprising, considering she does poorly in most intellectual situations. Her intelligence can be seen in her handling of living things--her natural green thumb, her innate knowledge of animal behavior, and her emotional understanding of other people. She is talented with anything involved hands on work, but seems to struggle with wand magic, even from her first year she was never quite able to grasp wand magic; it's always being hands on learning for Ivy.

The Hufflepuff enjoys the outdoors greatly more than the indoors. As a child her mother would often have to drag her inside or repeatedly explain why it wasn't a good idea to play outside in the rain during a lightening storm. Now as a slightly bigger child, Ivy will often spend as much time outside as she possibly can. She'll work on homework outside, spend time hiking along the outside of the forest, or find reasons to take long walks to classes that will bring her outside. If bad weather--non stop rain, blizzards, etc--keep her inside for too long, she often becomes moody and easily upset, but as soon as the sun shines through or the weather lets up enough, she's back outside. The recent dome over Hogwarts has left her spending most of her time in the greenhouses, where she can be at least be surrounded by and taking care of plants.

As of right now, should Ivy get approved for Elementalism, I plan on having her being quite uncontrolled with it. Since she's older, 16, and most other Elementals seem to discover their powers earlier and therefore begin to study earlier, I plan on taking Ivy along the lines of a young witch or wizard first exhibiting their magic. It comes in bursts, often fueled by a strong emotion--for instance, since in the first year of studying the element, the elemental would be able to produce small amounts of earth. Should Ivy be feeling sad or mad, since her emotions are already easy to switch, I would see her producing the small amounts of Earth, but not understanding why. In addition, with the Dome surrounding the school, Ivy has had little chance to be outside and with plants and animals. She would begin to get sick, since she has been out of her element--lol, get it?--for a long period. This would lead to my first plot:

@Linnet Willowsong -- A fellow Hufflepuff seventh year who has already been studying the Element and has had the opportunity to go to Inverness. With the Dome currently over Hogwarts, Ivy has no where to turn for help or teaching at the moment. Since Linnent is an older student who has been studying, Ivy would turn to her for help and to understand what is happening and why, using Linnet as a pseudo-teacher to help her deal with her ability and get over being sick because of lack of resource to her element while they wait until she can get to Inveness.

@Audra Baxter -- A seventh year air elemental. Ivy would view Elementalism as a secret and be frightened of it at first. Since the war is only recently ended and she suffered the fear of having a muggle parent, she would be nervous to have something else that might outcast her. She would limit the time she spent studying and practicing her element to ensure it was done in secret, until hearing the whispers and gossip of Audra also being an Elemental, since she doesn't hide her ability as much. This would lead to Ivy becoming more accepting of her gift and less fearful of it.

@Basil Stringfellow -- Her BFF. Basil is Ivy's closest, and possibly best friend, however she is currently unaware of him being a Parselmouth. He enjoys trying to impress her and make her happy, so once she shows him her ability to make plants grow and summon earth, he would in turn show her how he can speak to snakes--which Ivy would love since she views them as slippery, legless babies. Although it's as much of a "I'll show you mine, if you show me yours" kind of deal, it gives Ivy a chance to be open with her ability to someone who is not an Elemental.

@Zoé Deveaux-- An adult Ice Elemental. Both Ivy and Zoé would want to get along with each other, particularly Ivy who wants to make everyone happy. However, due to their clashing elements, the two would be uncomfortable with each other, thus giving me a chance to explore how Ivy would behave around someone who she can't understand why she doesn't enjoy being around, despite both girls wanting to try to be comfortable around each other.

@Dragos Şerbănescu -- Guy who is obsessed with Elementals. Ivy and Dragons would meet either when the Dome is broken or after Ivy can finally leave Hogwarts. At this point, Ivy would be more open and accepting of her ability, which trigger's Dragos' interest in her. Since Ivy is a trusting and naive individual, she listens to him and lets him study her--taking her blood, asking her questions, making her demonstrate her abilities. Ivy has never really gotten herself into a dangerous or questionable situation before and this will be the first time her naturally trusting instinct will get her into a weird situation.

In addition to these plots, I also have some threads lined up for her that involve meeting other Elementals and learning about her abilities with Elementalism.

Ivy sighed, relieved that after days of being unable to leave her dorm she was reunited with her green babies in the greenhouse. But as she walked in, her stomach dropped. The days, or possibly weeks, she wasn't sure of time anymore of being trapped in the castle had left her unable to tend to her newest batch of flowers. Now they sat in their pots, obviously unattended, browning and dying.

Her heart beat a little faster as she thought about all the time she invested into growing the plants from little seeds, now wilted and dried in front of her. As usual, she was unable to control her emotions, and tears began streaming down her cheeks. She hated this dome--this thing that was ruining everything. The teen had been unable to walk by the lake or even have a snowball fight in recent weeks due to the dark things that she wasn't quite able to understand. Ivy had begun to feel sick in recent time, what she assumed to be "cabin fever" or general restlessness of her carefree schedule being interrupted. She was stressed out and snappy at her friends for no reason, and now as she looked are her dying plants, she felt anger boil up inside her.

In a dramatic flair, the Hufflepuff threw her bag onto the ground and stomped her feet, letting out a sad wail. All her hard work, ruined. Defeated, she fell onto the floor in a sad pile, crossing her feet criss cross style, as usual, as she tried to think what she might be able to do to save the plants. However, the more she exhausted option after option--that fertilizer from Hogsmeade? No, she couldn't get there. The special water additive that the Herbology teacher kept? No, they had been out of that for weeks now.--the angrier Ivy became at everything that was beyond her control. She folded her arms, letting out a huff.

For moment, Ivy felt the ground under her shake slightly. No enough to really raise alarm--it could be someone moving something heavy nearby--but Ivy raised an eyebrow. She looked down and in the dirt by her leg, a small flower appeared. It was nothing noteworthy in variety, but Ivy let out a small gasp. It happened again, the thing she couldn't explain or figure out. She stood up quickly, looking around to see if anyone was around her or had noticed the small flower appear. The teen backed away, frightened from a flower. It was hard for her to explain, even to herself, so she had kept the...weirdness, as she had begun to call it, to herself. Maybe she hadn't been paying attention and that little flower had been there the whole time. Maybe when she angrily poked the ash in the fire pit in her common room earlier today and it turned to dirt was just a fluke of some kind, maybe she had been confused.

Ivy breathed in and out slowly, trying not to pay attention to her confusion and instead turned to her dying plants. They looked so sad, bent over like that, like they had been looking for someone to give them water. Ivy felt a few more hot tears sting in her eyes as she thought about how abandoned the poor things must have felt. A few droplets of tears fell off her face and as she gently touched the leaves of plant she was looking at. Ivy's brown eyes widened, swearing that the flower had just turned a little greener and perked up a little.

"What the fu--" Ivy cut herself off, blinking at the plant in confusion, moving her hand away. She had to be imagining things, this wasn't that happened in real life, not even in the wizarding word. Shaking her head, Ivy moved quickly, knowing curfew was coming up and began to fill a water pot for the plants. She watered quickly, noticing that ask she did so, each plant began to perk up exceptionally fast. Ivy's eyebrows furrowed, not understanding how they could seem to regain life so quickly.

A bell chimed in the distance. Curfew. She had to return to her dorm now. Ivy turned, ready to grab her things as a wave of nausea came over her. The thought of going inside made her head swim, she was so tired of being in those walls, unable to catch a fresh breeze for who knows how long. The longer she had been spending inside, the sicker she felt, but she couldn't explain the sensation to anyone. No one understood the longing she had to be out of classrooms and hallways and just stand outside for hours, even in the cold air of January.

Letting out another sigh and composing herself once more, Ivy swung her bag over her shoulder and began to head back into the castle.

Hello~ I'm Billie, and I am here to apply for yet another Special Feature (I'm really sorry, I am!). The special feature I will be applying for is Necromancy for one of my up and coming work in progresses, Alfons Ungeheuer. I feel the need to let you all know that the lyrics to this spine are inspired by Nightmare by Avenged Sevenfold, because credit where do!

While I don't have Alfons' family quite outlined, I do know what he's like very well. Interested in a young age about necromancy, this boy has always been fascinated with life and death -- they always came in tandem. One could not survive without the other, it seemed, as as he grew, it was obvious that Alfons wanted to know more. He deeply became interested, rooted and lived by the story Frankenstein when he was about seven years old, which is still a huge factor in his life right now. He was stunned -- despite the fact that this tale mostly alluded the idea of patriarchy and men's society as "Gods" in a world that was created -- and baffled and wholly interested in this twisted and strange tale. He wanted to be just like Victor Frankenstein -- smart, clever, a grave robber, on a never ending quest to see what could and couldn't be done. Victor Frankenstein, after all, created a monster out of dead things -- why couldn't Alfons?

Alfons is a genuinely quiet person, though, compared to his more socially adept brother. Because of his strange obsession with all things death related, he's more of an out cast than anything, and chooses to have only a small handful of friends, compared to a lot of them. He has a hard time emotionally connecting to others because he can be extremely apathetic, and he's known to be an INTP from the Myer-Briggs personality type. He's a dedicated and hard worker, interesting in pushing the boundaries between human life and human death, and everything in between. He likes to see how long he can push someone until they can't be whole, or can't come back whole. He likes to see if death brings any abnormal and awkward dissonance and new characteristics to a person. He likes exploring the darker side of things that people don't normally deal with.

For the most part, despite being apathetic and quiet, he's a really hard worker who does not deal with people judging him. He's a bit more into reading and doing his own thing, and will often lash out when things don't go his way -- after all, he tends to be a little obsessive compulsive and a tad bit more of a perfectionist than anything. It isn't to say that Alfons necessarily beats himself up for mistakes -- they help him grow, after all -- but he is easily agitated and tends to lash out on things (or people) around him during those moments of frustration. He always owns up to his faults, and doesn't let that stop him from continuing his work. Also, he tends to like to rip people off by telling them that he can "talk to the dead" and then take tons of money because he does this. You know, classic rip off schemes are his favorite (besides stealing from graves and St. Mungos and stuff).

I'm going to admit that Alfons was an impulse character. I didn't want him. Sometimes, I still don't want him, but as he's developed in my head, I've become more and more attached to him. You already know what he's sort of like, so now I'm going to try and explain why I love him so much, and why he should have this specific special feature.

Let me start with the motivation for this character. I was a literature major in college, and books are like, my favorite thing. One of my favorite classes to read was, indeed, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. Not only did Shelley have a really screwed up life (let me tell you about Mary Wollstonecraft at another time) but I also wrote a paper on it in my sophomore or junior year. It was, quite frankly, about how Victor Frankenstein was similar to Prometheus in his idea of creation and destruction. On top of this, 2016 is the 100 year anniversary of it being published -- I found it only so suiting.

I wanted another special feature outside of the Elemental realm, and I realized, what better way to expand my writing than by writing something I'm not comfortable with? As is, there are very few Necromancers on the board, and they don't seem to be all that active in, well, their necromancy practices. Alfons will be constantly dedicated to his necromancy, and it will be a forethought of everything he does -- regardless of whether or not he actually uses it, or is just talking about it. Alfons' job is necromancy -- it is every part of him, as well as his world. There's no just "no mention of necromancy" in his life. It's not as easy as that for him.

The way I plan on playing Alfons is a bit unusual, too. I know that most necromancy deals with blood magic, but Alfons deals with it up to his elbows. Unless it is substantial, Alfons will use the blood of others or stolen blood that he has gotten along the way. His blood, after all, is way too precious to use unless he needs it in a spell. Alfons, like other necromancers, prefers pure blood over lesser blood, but in a pinch, he will begrudgingly use halfblood blood, you know, to spark his spells. Alfons generally collects his blood, but most of the time, his brother is the one who collects it.

One of the biggest things I am planning is the way Alfons deals with his use of his necromancy. One of the things I will focus on is the idea that his magic comes with a price: if he does something, there will always be a consequence in the outcome. Not necessarily for the idea of reanimating the dead, but for some of his bigger plots, and some of the things he plans on doing. For example, one of his plots (read in the plots section) involve him killing someone and bringing them back to life. This tethers the person and Alfons together in a bond that can never be removed. Sometimes, the outcomes can be small, and other times it will be significant.

That brings me to another focus on Alfons' necromancy: reviving dead bodies. Let me explain before you just stamp off completely and say no. Biologically, the function of decay happens in stages: within minutes of death, the brain starts to lose its function. Within three to six hours, rigor mortis starts, and the body becomes hard and unable to be moved easily. After twelve hours, more than half of the body heat has been lost, and by the time a full day has passed, all body heat would be lost. Therefore, when I say Alfons' necromancy can revive dead bodies, he means those who have died within twelve hours. Of course, this doesn't mean that they come back 100% clean and healthy. Whatever killed a person will still be in their body (bullet or spell wounds, poison, etc.), but they'd be alive enough that they'd be able to get to St. Mungos and get proper treatment. Also, the state of reviving someone costs a lot of blood on Alfons' end (not only his own actual blood, but his general collection of blood, as well), and he charges a literal arm and a leg for this process.

I should also clearly state that this process doesn't come out perfectly all the time. Alfons is still learning, and he's got an avid test subject he kills and revives all the time. Like with Nemsi, a magical bond is created between Alfons and any person he brings back to life through this process -- sometimes, it's a natural draw of wanting to be close, or the need to be close to each other, sometimes it's deeper than that: that they literally owe their life to Alfons and will do anything to repay him. Besides Nemsi (which has a more detailed plot relating to this down below), the only other person known to have been revived this way is his best friend, Korbin, who is his dead-and-alive test subject (again, also more of a plot relating to this down below).

On top of the process of it costing a lot of blood from Alfons and his collection, it also drains the wizard of his own energy, at least for a few days. Before, when he was just starting these experiments, he found himself drained for up to two weeks, unable to do much, let alone get out of bed. As he grew stronger in this area, he shorted it from two weeks to three days -- he is completely stuck in bed some days, and cannot even do basic magic. This is his price on his own. One of the things I've thought over, too, was that the more and more people he does this to, the less and less control over his own magic he gets. He has to keep a very tight leash on himself -- no more than fifteen people, total, can do this, otherwise his soul will start to split to each and every person he's revived.

Wilhelm Ungeheuer (Tori's WIP) || Wim is one of Alfons' biggest plots, mostly because his brother is an important aspect of him. Wim has always and will always support Alfons' love of necromancy, and is the one person Alfons is able to trust without a second thought. Not only is Wim an important aspect of Alfons' social life (if Wim is going, chances are, Alfon goes, too), but Wim is literally the only other person Alfons trusts with getting body parts or blood, often stealing it from whatever fancy organization or institution he works at. Wim has literally been with Alfons since the start of his weird and unusual obsession, and has supported him with every inch of his being -- so it's really no surprise that Alfons follows Wim wherever he goes.
Korbinian Geier (Sarah's WIP) || Outside of Wim, Korbinian, or as Alfons calls him, Korby, is Alfon's best friend. Korbin has been dragged through the gutters and back again because of his undying love. Korbin grew up with the twins, and when he was five, Alfons hid him away before he was shipped off to another cousin's home so that he could keep Korbin close. Because of this, he unconsciously started to grow a thread between Korbin and himself, and it would grow bigger and deeper as they went through school and into their adult lives. Korbin followed Alfons and Wim wherever they went, and Korbin subjects himself to all sorts of weird experiments at the drop of a dime for Alfons, because he's that dedicated. One of my favorite future plots will happen when Alfons' experiment goes too far, and Korbin becomes brain dead (or gets put into a coma of some sort), and Alfons "brings him back to life" from that point -- which will make Korbin a little slower to react without Alfon's words of guidance, but it also deepens their relationship more.
Nemsi Khawale (Samm's WIP) || Nemsi and Alfons meet a few years after Alfons graduates school -- and when he's working to swindle people for money by saying "he can talk to the dead." Nemsi comes to Alfons to see if he can help stage a death, and while Alfons is originally unsure about it at first, he does eventually work out a deal with the animagus: the first doing experiments on for a half year, and the other is Nemsi disposes the bodies of failed experiments for Alfons. Being extremely curious about the affects of necromancy on a non-human (or even part-non-human), Alfons does experiments with Nemsi for a half year, and once that is done, then he and Wim put on an elaborate plan to trick the world about Nemsi's death. Because of the spellwork that Alfons does and because Nemsi's soul is linked to Alfons for the twelve hours of his faked death, the two feel a magical tether that links them, and draws them together, but isn't a physical closeness. Alfons is one of the few people, likewise, to know Nemsi's more cannibalistic side, actually and actively encouraging the older male to eat the bodies when they're in the same location or when Nemsi is helping Alfons hide bodies.
Cameryn White (Taed) || In the timeline of things, Alfons, Wim and Korbin end up in the United Kingdom in about late 1998, which gives Alfons plenty of time to work this one out. When Cameryn finally comes out from the catacombs underneath Hogsmeade (her regeneration place, at least), Alfons is going to feel it. This makes him naturally curious and he drags himself to Hogsmeade to investigate, constantly missing the other necromancer every time. Whenever Alfons is in Hogsmeade, he can still feel Cameryn's presence around, although it was somewhat diminished with the dome (faint but still there, in reality). In the future, when Alfons and Cameryn finally meet, Alfons will ask her a lot of more personal questions about necromancy, and the two will embark on a more detailed journey of understanding necromancy and the abilities of necromancers in general.
Varvara Zakharova (Christine) || At one point in Alfon's earlier career of being a seventh year and recent graduate of Durmstrang, he studied under Varya for his potioneer mentor. Besides this, as Varya knew early on in this relationship that Alfons was interested in Necromancy, when she started to work on her necromancy potion, one of the people she reached out to (or will soon reach out to), is Alfons. Together, they work on Varya's newest creation, and Alfons has no problems using some of his work to be her testing subject (or even being her testing subject in some cases), as this also branches out to his own knowledge of necromancy.
Maia Etxegarai (Toya) || When Alfons and Nemsi become magically tethered together, one of the side affects is that Alfons and Maia become tethered together, too. While none of them know that they're all subtly linked together, it will become quite apparent later on in the future. For now, there will be plenty of mishaps in threads for the future, including stress for why they feel so close even though they're so far away, their first introductions, and eventually realizing what has happened between them.
Amir al-Busuri (Toya) || At the end of Alfon's fourth year, he sent a rather long, drastic letter to Amir, asking to study under the other man in necromancy. At first, Amir didn't quite believe that he was serious, and after constant letters from Alfons -- spanning from the end of his fourth year, all of the summer, and the first few months of Alfons' 5th year of Durmstrang -- he finally allowed the young student to study under him. For five years, Alfons learned his craft with a dedicated teacher, learning things that he otherwise would've never learned, and also was able to experiment on his own during this training. While Alfons' training is over, the young man still actively keeps in touch with Amir and asks about necromancy things all the time, although they rarely meet up anymore.
Medusa/Amaranth (Meridian) || In the future, word is going to cross both Alfons' and Amaranth's paths about each other. While, yes, distance is a thing, it will spark Alfons' curiousness enough that he will make a trip to her island. There, they will, well, explore the inside of human bodies together, and enjoy long conversations about necromancy. Not only this, but they are going to try and make heads from tails of old necromancy magic that Amaranth has stored about, even though she cannot teach it to him. It'll still be something that Alfons will be greatly interested in.

Candles flickered, casting the room in long, dark shadows. Alfons' lap, a slate of stone, metal and concrete, was cold, chilly to the touch, but the man didn't care. Covered up to his elbows in blood, the necromancer was focused, dedicated to his work. A body, miss-matched pieces of various ones, laid against the metal table. He wanted to see what could happen if he made this thing alive. He never got it farther than a few minutes; the weight wasn't even most of the time, and the monster collapsed in on itself, creating a pile of blood and soiled and spoiled body parts on the floor. Even now, Alfons was annoyed; the third time tonight that things hadn't gone right, but he was sure this one would.

"Double check everything," he muttered to himself. He stood, lanky and long, and stepped over to his journal -- a fluttering of pages strewn about in a haphazard mix and match of parchments that couldn't be found in rhyme or reason. The necromancer flipped through one and two and then three and four pages, leaving bloody fingerprints over his hard earned, his entire life's work, but he didn't care. "This one. It should work."

He moved again, fluttering more pages and grabbing two more. He laid all three over the chest of the body he was working on, and then stepped away. A bottle of blood returned with him, and he dipped his fingers into it, flicking it over the body of the corpse. Latin ritual came out, and he could feel the energy bubbling through his fingers, the blood, and then into the body. Yes, this was most definitely working! He could feel the blood magic linking him and his creation, a bond of leader and follower. His fingers dipped into the blood again, more being flicked onto the body. The skin turned taut, white, healthy looking, although scars and stitches still stayed. The fingers on his creation twitched, and he scurried to collect his notes. They fell to the floor in eagerness. He was doing it.

But as the creation, his monster, stood up, it, too, collapsed on the ground. He could feel the energy radiating still, but it was quickly diminishing. Yet again, everything went wrong. An angry sound escaped his lips, and the necromancer stepped away, shoulders hunched, and climbed the stairs to the kitchen. A drink of water to cool his mind, and a moment away before he ended up breaking things. It was all necessary. He needed to do more research.

[mer]le approved! ~[/mer]

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NAME: Inga
CHARACTER NAME: Ségolène (surname tba ~ can't decide yet)
FEATURE YOU ARE APPLYING FOR: Postcognitive touch clairvoyant

DESCRIPTION OF THE CHARACTER: Ségolène recently turned 21, she is a Beauxbatons graduate who is just about to start her new job as an assistant librarian at Beauxbatons about which she is very excited. She is a very introverted and quiet person who is empathetic and doesn't want to intrude in anything. She is often vague and distracted, having trouble to focus on anything for a long time. The aspiring librarian loves to read and just to dream. While she likes people and will always try to make friends and help, she is scared of large groups of people and noise. Due to the fact that she gets a glimpse of the past every now and then when she touches other people, the young woman is very interested in the past and history. She always wants to learn about the context in which single events stand. She is a traditionalist, sticking to old values and sometimes frowning at progress.

One of the first visions she was actually aware of was early during her time at Beauxbatons, when she saw Zoé Deveaux in a scene connected to the elemental council. She did not understand it until after the rogue attack at the school and slowly became aware not only of her special ability to see things from the past but also of the existence of elemental magic and the fact that people kept secrets from others.

Seeing some rather dramatic and intimate things over the years has made Ségolène rather frightened of her visions as she doesn't want to cross any lines. She feels like it's her mistake when she learns about a secret because of a vision and most of the time she keeps her realisations to herself.

APPLICATION: This idea for this character came up weeks, even months ago, and has not left. On the contrary, when I watched a documentary about Françoise Hardy I felt like the character had come alive already. The shy girl who doesn't want to hurt anyone, who is kind, empathetic and often awkward around others... She is a young woman who is both blessed and burdened with the ability to see things from other people's past when she touches them. Naturally this does not happen every time she touches another person and is quite unforeseeable.

Ségolène, therefore, avoids to touch other people as she does not want to know things others keep secret. She respects their privacy and feels like she is intruding when she sees things. Furthermore the visions are very exhausting, making it hard for her to pretend that nothing happened. Usually she needs to rest after a vision, continuing her day as planned is barely possible after such an incident.

Sometimes Ségolène cannot make sense of her visions and then she cannot just let it go but will quietly investigate further until she understands what she has seen. However, she usually won't confront others with the things she has seen. There are exceptions, of course.

Getting these glimpses of the past makes her look back a lot. She usually is more interested in the past then the future as the past seems close and the future so distant. It will make it possible to relive moments from a character's past and bring them back into the present time which I think is a good thing for the roleplay because there are some really interesting backgrounds that are barely used for the present plots.

For me as a roleplayer it will be interesting to see how she deals with finding out things that she should not know, things others want to keep secret or aren't even aware of themselves. As mentioned above the girl does not want to have these visions but they also fascinate her as they open a door to the past. Sometimes the things she sees are fuzzy, barely comprehensible, so she will try to figure out what they are about as she cannot just forget what she saw. There will even be moments when she feels like she has to get involved. It'll also be interesting to see how others react to her when they find out that she might have seen things from their past and might do so again when they touch.

FUTURE PLOTS:
With her job at Beauxbatons there's a lot of potential for future plots that involve her special feature. Here are some that I've worked out with other members so far.

Aline Stanton: Ségolène will visit London at some point when she has a few days off. There she gets sick and goes to St. Mungos where Aline tends to her. When the healer touches her Ségolène sees how Aline got the potion to abort her pregnancy. Her shock because of this will probably show and Aline will notice that something's wrong which will bring Ségolène into an awkward situation.
Émilie Côté: While they haven't been overly close during their time at school, they are still on friendly terms. Ségolène meets Émilie again after quite some time and the other girl hugs her before she can do anything against it. Then Ségolène sees that Émilie and Volker broke up. To her Émilie and Volker were a perfect couple and it's a confusing thought that they aren't together anymore. Therefore, Ségolène breaks with her usual habit of not letting show that she saw something and will ask Émilie about the reasons for the break up.
Gaston Malinat: When they shake hands, Ségolène sees something about his past. She struggles to make sense of it at first but works it out after a while. He has left his old life behind and has become a professor without the proper background. She doesn't  know what to do with the knowledge and will have to figure out if she should tell anyone or keep it to herself.
Diederick van Dijk: While he is younger than Ségolène they have been friends for a while. One day Ségolène will see an incident with a toaster from Diederick's past and she probably won't be able to keep quiet about that and rather tease the boy and might give him a toaster for his birthday or for Christmas.
Eloise Tessier: Eloise has been in her year at Beauxbatons and they have been friends at school. However, after their graduation they had little contact. Then, when they meet again after quite some time, Ségolène has a vision about a bunny she cannot make sense of. She will try to find out what connection there is and will enquire further until, one day, she finds out about Eloise being an animagus.
Dino Caviezel: Ségolène will have a very fuzzy kind of vision of Dino, revealing the fact that his father is not really his father. It will be interesting to see how she interacts with Dino then. She will probably try to find out if he knows about this by asking some innocent questions and seeing how he reacts.
Sebastian Chatard: Bastian has been kidnapped by his grandparents and been brought to 'new' parents when he was five years old. He has been influenced so that he does not really remember what has happened and sees his new family as his biological family. Ségolène will get a brief glimpse of him with the Westbroek family and this will make her think and be more observant of him and the Westbroek family members who are at Beauxbatons. We haven't worked out the extent of this plot yet but there are plenty of chances to make a long term thing out of that.
Nieks Krusen: At some point Nieks will see when she has a vision and will observe her and enquire further. He'll be curious to learn what that was about and will sooner or later find out about her ability. For Ségolène this will be strange as for once it's not her seeing something from the other person's life but someone kind of spying on her life. It'll be awkward and frightening for her but her secret is safe with Nieks.

RP SAMPLE USING THE FEATURE:
Ségolène saw her old friend from afar and slowed down. She was actually looking forward to meeting him again but she recalled very well how he used to touch her arm, brush a strand of hair out of her face or poke her side when he would try to make her smile. All this was innocent, pleasant, even cute but the girl feared his touch. They hadn't spoken in a while and the last time they had met he had spoken about the war going on in wizarding Britain and how he'd want to help. Ségolène felt relatively certain that he had gone there, that he had been involved. Obviously he had survived but what had he seen?

Sometimes when she touched someone she had these flashbacks, these postcognitive visions. She didn't want to see the war! She lowered her gaze when she approached him, feeling tense and uncomfortable. "Salut," she whispered, briefly looking up to offer him a little smile. When he made a decisive step forward, she tried to evade but he had already pulled her into a hug. It was warm and comforting and she sighed in relief when she realised that this time she was not seeing anything.

He laughed, held her at arm's length and lifted her chin with his hand so they'd have eye contact. He asked what was wrong with her and Ségolène felt how a blush crept up her cheeks. She could not tell him about her visions. It was not anything she was proud of but rather something she saw as a burden. Sometimes she saw these very intimate scenes from other people's lives. They were usually about something people tried to hide from others and she could see them, she could invade their privacy and the girl felt guilty because of it.

"Everything's alright," she muttered, feeling how the tension of her body lessened the longer he was holding her. She even managed a genuine smile.

'Then give me a little kiss,' her friend demanded. Again she blushed but she did as he told her.

As her lips touched his cheek she saw the border of a forest, flashes of light and him. He was shooting spells at a masked man. The fight seemed to continue for hours when, in fact, she only saw a minute or two of it. Suddenly the masked figure was catapulted backwards and hit the ground hard. He didn't move anymore.

She retreated, pale and shocked. She wasn't sure how long her lips had been on his cheek. She wasn't sure either if he had killed someone. It had been in a battle, it had been one of the dark wizards, but still - her friend had killed another person. She shuddered, unable to speak for the time being.

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