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♦ Timeline Information ♦
It is currently August; classes have not started yet. The weather is still somewhat warm, but pleasantly so. The Staff and Faculty of Haunting Academy are preparing for the upcoming school year, and the students are beginning their trip to school on the Hauntington Express.
Desdemona Blackthorne - Nomagical Core Studies « Result #4 on Oct 18, 2009, 10:44pm »
Out-of-Character Information Name: K-chan Reason for Applying: We needed NMCS classes, and adding some variety to the staff is always good. Resumé: See Gayle's thread
Character Information Name: Desdemona Jaquenette Blackthorne Age: 41 Birthday: November 13 Gender: Female School Attended & House (if applicable): Haunting Academy, Viridis Position: Nonmagical Core Studies, Literature Electives Blood Status: Pure Wand: 10 5/8”, Ivy, Veela hair, sturdy Other Info of Note: Desdemona teaches an orientation seminar for First Year students and is also the sponsor of the school's Drama club, and certainly looks the part. She even teaches from a miniature stage set up in the front of her classroom. Also, she prefers to be called by the following names: Desdemona, Professor Blackthorne, Professor, or Ma'am. Any attempts to call her Dessy, Mona, Demona, or any other nickname will be harshly shot down.
Appearance: Desdemona is a very dramatic witch, and she shows it. Her hair is usually tied back in a sort of quasi-pompadour, and she wears very rich, flowing witch's robes, often made of velvet or similarly expensive materials. She tends to favor contrast in her clothing, such as accenting dark colors with a vivid splash of color, but will sometimes go for a more uniform look involving lush, luxurious color palettes. She is tall, but not overly so, with a willowy figure and the coloration shared by many of Hauntington's older families: black hair, fair skin, and – in the case of the Blackthornes – black eyes.
Personality: Desdemona is at once both straight-laced and dramatic: her family's strict etiquette training left her with impeccable manners and an expectation of the same from her students, while her love of all things dramatic has given her a vivacious love of life and everything it has to offer that many “prim and proper” daughters of wealthy families never experience. She respects authority, but if the person in a particular position has not earned that respect, she will give only token appreciation to that individual's commands. She also has a very strong sense of morals and justice, and will throw authority out the window to do what she knows is right. This has caused her to become somewhat of a black sheep in her family: a trait she shares with her aunt, Arachna Haunting (and, ironically, by her mother, a maiden Levanselor who is shunned by her birth family for marrying into a Hauntington line). Likes: Literature, drama, history, spiced tea, experiencing new things Dislikes: The behavior exhibited by most of her family, rude people, rye bread, buffoons
History: Desdemona Jaquenette Blackthorne was born as the second child and only daughter of Sebastian and Lavinia Blackthorne, members of one of Hauntington's oldest and richest families – but also the one with one of the most unpleasant reputations. While the Blackthornes have never been Dark – far from it, actually; they have produced many fine Aurors and other professionals who work in anti-Dark fields – their strict, old-fashioned ideals and somewhat snobbish nature have given them the reputation of being, well, thorns in the Hauntings' sides.
Desdemona, however, was different. She was more like her Aunt Arachna, who, instead of living totally in the past or in the present, chose to bring old-fashioned ideas into the modern world by updating them with a more contemporary twist. Because of this, Desdemona's normally strict family raised her even more strictly, determined not to raise another “embarrassment” (an ironic statement, considering the fact that Arachna married Jack Haunting XI and thus became the most influential woman in Hauntington). This, however, had the opposite effect, and Desdemona – inspired by her Aunt's example and by stories of other great witches – grew up with both a good sense of etiquette and a saucy attitude that would serve to get her in trouble in Primary, and later on at Haunting Academy.
It came as a great shock to many when she was sorted into Viridis instead of Rutilus, as vibrant a girl as she was, but Desdemona's general passion for life could only be eclipsed by one thing: her passion for learning. She was immensely fond of reading in particular, and would devour any book she could get her hands on. Because of this she was always above average in studies that had anything to do with reading; more abstract and intangible arts, however, were difficult for her. An example of this would be divination: she understood the theory and the history perfectly, but all she ever got out of a crystal ball were last week's muggle lottery numbers, and every tea leaf reading revealed yet another fascinating and previously unknown facet of the social lives of common house mice.
That said, she did quite well in school, and she graduated with honors before going on to a muggle University just to learn more about the “other world.” She was shocked to discover just how much of the basics – such as English or mathematics - Haunting Academy didn't offer, and ended up completing a double Bachelor's degree in Elementary and Secondary Education, as well as a Master's Degree in Arts in Education from Harvard University. She was also employed as an actress at a minor theater company, continuing a career she began as a member of Haunting Academy's drama club.
Having spent a total of five years continuing education (her master's degree was only a one-year program as opposed to the two years some other degrees take to complete), she went on to pursue a career in the spotlight, acting for six years with the Boston Wizarding Theater Company. While she loved the stage, she soon found her heart pulling her back home to her native Hauntington, where she moved to take up a job that would put her degrees to good use: the teacher of a fifth grade class at Jack Haunting Primary Academy.
She did well in that job, and was loved by her students, but it soon became clear to her that she was meant to work with a slightly older group of students. And so, when Professor Gayle Aberdeen took over leadership of Haunting Academy and added nonmagical education to the school's core classes, Desdemona applied to the position and was hired as the school's first ever Professor of Nonmagical Core Studies. She has since put her drama skills to good use by sponsoring the very club she used to belong to as a student, and has begun offering literature electives as well.
Course Description:
Nonmagical Core Studies:
This class is exactly what it sounds like: a foundation of general education upon which students build their academic careers. Topics covered include English, Mathematics, Social Studies (not including History of Magic, of course), and basic Sciences. Of these fields, English and Mathematics are stressed most heavily, while the other two are secondary in the curriculum. Students in the same NMCS class will not necessarily be in the same year; students coming from Jack Haunting Primary Academy or a strong muggle academic background will often test into a more advanced class.
Magical and Muggle Literature:
Desdemona offers various literature electives at Haunting Academy, though the specific courses she offers vary from year to year. Courses include British, American, or World Literature, as well as specialized courses on Shakespeare, contemporary literature, or poetry.
Gersemi Kemp Student Visregalis Third Year member is offline
I can autograph that for you...
Joined: Jun 2008 Posts: 7 Karma: 0
Re: Setting Off! To Haunting Academy! (All Student « Result #5 on Oct 18, 2009, 10:38pm »
"You certainly did!" the young blonde agreed with a nod.
"I'd love to join you," Gerry accepted happily, "I hadn't sat down yet, so I would have been looking still. It's so crazy today! So many transfers and all that. Tokaidan was called to help, but I wasn't really needed so I popped off. So, Teen Witch aside, how was your summer?"
Re: Setting Off! To Haunting Academy! (All Student « Result #6 on Oct 18, 2009, 10:28pm »
"Weren't they?" Tabby asked excitedly. "I so wanted to keep the outfits I modeled, but they were on loan from the designers, so I couldn't. But I got pretty close, didn't I?" she asked, spinning around to show off her new clothes. Let's see.... was this... yes! An empty compartment! Finally! "You already sitting somewhere," she asked, "or would you care to join me?"
Gersemi Kemp Student Visregalis Third Year member is offline
I can autograph that for you...
Joined: Jun 2008 Posts: 7 Karma: 0
Re: Setting Off! To Haunting Academy! (All Student « Result #7 on Oct 18, 2009, 9:56pm »
"Oh, it was monsterful of course!" Gerry grinned, clapping slightly in exciting and bouncing a bit on her heels, "I love the colors this time! They were so dark the last issue and now they're so much brighter and better!"
It was no joke, Gersemi had been completely against the last magazine's color usage. Of course, this was coming from her inexperienced viewpoint, but anyway...
"And then the styles were witchin', of course," the third year gushed enthusiastically.
« Last Edit: Oct 18, 2009, 9:57pm by Gersemi Kemp »
Re: Setting Off! To Haunting Academy! (All Student « Result #8 on Oct 18, 2009, 9:48pm »
Tabitha was interrupted in her search for a compartment by a vaguely familiar voice, but of course she didn't mind the attention. She saw it as a compliment to be recognized as the girl in the magazine, even though it was rather hard to mistake someone with her family's features. Still, she couldn't help but break out in a huge grin when she realized who was talking to her.
"Gerry!" she exclaimed happily, flashing the third-year a friendly smile. She didn't know the younger girl that well, but they were in drama club together, and Tabby had always found her to be a fun, energetic individual. Just the kind of person Tabby liked the most. "You saw it, then?" she asked happily. "What did you think?"
Gersemi Kemp Student Visregalis Third Year member is offline
I can autograph that for you...
Joined: Jun 2008 Posts: 7 Karma: 0
Re: Setting Off! To Haunting Academy! (All Student « Result #9 on Oct 18, 2009, 9:38pm »
Gersemi's attention amidst the group of her fellow Tokaidan members and Leslie Wilson and the transfer students rapidly shifted away and onto a brand new item that passed their way: Tabitha Haunting!
A gasp escaped her as the fifteen-year-old who was one of her idols continued on her way saerching for a compartment, waving at somebody that Gersemi couldn't see and so obviously wearing the latest fashions that the thirteen-year-old had not been able to convince her mother to buy for this fall.
Glancing around her, Gersemi recognized that she wouldn't be missed if she 'slipped off' to try and talk to the fifth year Haunting. Coming up behind the still-searching Tabitha, Gersemi was not at all nervous as she put on the act of the breathless fan.
"You are Tabitha Haunting," the excitement ould easily be heard in the blonde's voice, "who was on the cover of the last issue of Teen Witch, aren't you?"
« Last Edit: Oct 18, 2009, 9:43pm by Gersemi Kemp »
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