Post by: Iona 'Bruce' Ballentyne on April 12, 2019, 12:06:47 PM
Iona “Bruce” BallentyneHead of Werewolf Wing, Werewolf
Character Birthday & Age: 18th February 1968 - 43-years-old
City & Country of Birth: Cardiff, Wales
Blood Purity: Muggleborn
Alma Mater: Gryffindor
City & Country of Birth: Cardiff, Wales
Blood Purity: Muggleborn
Alma Mater: Gryffindor
Wand: Bruce’s wand is distinctly average looking. It isn’t ornate or exciting. It is functional. It is inflexible and smooth, made from beech wood, with a dragon heartstring.
Physical Description:
Iona, known by most as Bruce, is probably spotted first by her fiery red hair. Naturally curly, thick and long, it is her most striking feature. Her hair is usually scraped back into a messy ponytail or roughly combed and left to its own devices. Her eyes are a piercing bright blue, and often commented on by her wife. They are, perhaps, too expressive, because, quite often, her emotions are very easy to read.
Bruce reaches 5 foot 5 inches and is fairly slim. It is clear to see that she has spent a life exercising and in the field, but that life has left her behind. Due to suffering a horrific werewolf attack in 2008, one which she barely came out of with her life, Bruce has gruesome scars over her abdomen and her left leg. During the attack, her leg was bitten and it now suffers from some muscle loss and gives her immense pain around the full moon. She now walks with a limp, and is often seen with a walking cane to ease the pressure on her damaged limb.
When it comes to clothing, Bruce believes in practicality above anything else. For years, she was the woman that wore cargo shorts and boots no matter the weather. It could have been snowing and she was out in her shorts. Now, she would never dream of it. She is, however, still a fan of practical clothing, and has only once been seen in a dress. That was the hospital gown she wore for months in St Mungo’s.
Personality Description:
Throughout her life, Bruce has fought for what she has. She is an extremely determined person, and has always been a very active person. As the Head of the WCU, Bruce was hands on and would throw herself into the field work with no qualms. She has always been somewhat of an adrenaline junkie and enjoys a good time. Work hard play hard has been a motto throughout most of her life, and has, up until 3 years ago, served her very well as she had a great job that allowed her to be physical and release her frustrations, a great wife and a great kid.
Direct and to the point, Iona doesn’t hold back verbally or physically. If she thinks something, she will have everyone know it, and this has landed her in trouble in the past. She is known for being outspoken, but has historically been calm in a disagreement. Her usual go to reaction to most arguments is to cross her arms and stare in silence. Sometimes, if she doesn’t want to hear something, she’ll walk off. Nowadays, however, depending on the time of the month, her temper can flare, a characteristic of the wolf rather than the person.
Iona is a loving and caring mother, but knows that she hasn’t been as present as she perhaps could have been in the past. Both her and Zora have always been workaholics; so they provided for their daughter, but spent a lot of time away from home, and once a month, Iona’s work hours were crazy and unpredictable. Due to this awareness, Iona is far too soft on their daughter; a point of contention between her and Zora.
Unfortunately, her own body now holds her back. Being unable to do half of the things that she could before, or even that make her her, Bruce has grown deeply frustrated. She wants to be the same person that she always was, but is now severely limited. She finds that now, her life lacks purpose, and she needs this to change soon. She knows that she has become a challenge to live with, but has struggled to adapt, and loves her wife even more for putting up with her and pushing her to just get on with it.
History:
Iona Ballentyne was born in 1968 to muggles Judith and Simon Ballentyne. Judith was a florist, and her husband was a lorry driver. They lived a perfectly average life in St. Mellons, just outside of Cardiff city. Their little red headed daughter, however, was not perfectly average, a fact that they were presented with countless times when she was excluded from countless schools for weird occurrences. Something strange would happen, Iona would be questioned by her peers and she would lose her temper. Then, stranger things happened.
By her parents, Iona was given the nickname Bruce. Her father had been an avid history fan, and drew comparisons between his plucky little daughter and Robert de Brus, a scottish leader known for his enduring perseverance. His little girl persevered with school despite the challenges, and she took the nickname proudly. It did, in fact, become the name she chose to go by.
Questions about the oddities that followed Bruce around were answered when she was 11 and she received her Hogwarts letter. They would never have believed it had she not had the situation personally explained to her by a professor from the school. Her parents reluctantly allowed her to go, and Iona was sorted into a house called Gryffindor. She knew nothing about it, and found the house’s colour scheme clashed considerably with her hair.
Bruce went on to love school. She fell in love with charms and defence against the dark arts and care of magical creatures. She also fell in love with her best friend, Tamzin, who didn’t fall back in love with her. She hated potions, and found history of magic to be a painful drag. Quidditch was great, and she made the Gryffindor team as a beater in her 4th year. She left Hogwarts with a decent enough set of grades, and joined the Ministry of Magic as an apprentice in the Werewolf Capture Unit.
Out of school, Bruce became a lot more open about who she was and who she liked. When she met Zora Roh, Bruce had wanted to make things public a lot sooner than her girlfriend had felt comfortable with. From an early age, she’d told her parents that she was gay. They’d been far more shocked by the fact she was a witch, and were just grateful that she was happy. Zora’s family were not so encouraging, and when they chose to adopt in 1995, were dead against it.
At this stage, Zora had completed auror training, and Iona was working her way to a decent reputation in the WCU. The war put a halt to this, and when muggleborns were being brought in for questioning to not be seen again, with agreement from Zora, and insistence from her boss, Theobald Mainwaring, Iona took the infant Waverley and left the country. She remained abroad until after the battle of Hogwarts and things had once more become safe.
Iona took the mantle as head of the Werewolf Capture Unit in 2000. She’d shown herself to be shrewd, dedicated, and not a witch to trifle with. With support from her team, Iona led a tight ship and became very close to her team over the years. Her second in command, Kurby Bagnold, became her most trusted team member and, outside of work, a friend.
In September 2008, on the full moon, Iona had arranged her elite team for a call they’d received of a werewolf sighting. What greeted them was far more than one werewolf, and the team were ambushed. Peter Harfooey, an experienced and talented wizard was taken by surprise, and while he was being ripped open, Iona had tried to save him. She’d not noticed the wolf coming from her side who threw her to the ground and tore at her leg with his teeth.
Iona woke up a couple of days later in St Mungos and in an unbearable amount of pain. She had no memory of the incident, and later found out that Kurby, her second in command, had saved her life. She never got the chance to thank him because she didn’t see him again.
Iona left hospital several months after the accident with ‘wicked cool scars’ as described by her daughter. Her recovery had been slow and painful, as every time she started to improve, a transformation would set her back weeks.
With her life having changed irreparably, and her unable to return to work at the WCU, Iona struggled to find any purpose. She had to endure the intense discomfort of returning to Level 4 to officially register as a werewolf, and was met with an extraordinarily unpleasant reception. She was paid a pension from the Ministry due to being injured in the line of duty, but it would never be the same as working.
For 3 years, Iona has been somewhat irritable, frustrated, and difficult to live with. She is angry with herself, angry with the wolf that attacked her, and angry with the Ministry for dropping her. Her anger only crescendoed when she found out that the wolves that had ambushed them were barely punished; they only received a slap on the wrist for not having registered. The anger led Iona, a couple of years ago, to do something out of character, morally terrible and illegal. She released the names of the wolves involved to a source behind the werewolf fighting ring. She now believes them to be dead, and feels an intense guilt about this.
Iona has spent the past few years trying to accept her new lot in life, and finding something to do with herself. She has realised with no uncertainty that she is not cut out to be a housewife. She has written a fairly informative, but terribly written book on tracking werewolves, and has tried to work on her cooking skills. Zora and Waverley have tactfully suggested she focus her efforts elsewhere to cooking.
Describe your job duties and how you go about them:
Bruce is responsible for running the Werewolf Wing on Level 4 of the Ministry of Magic. She is directing the werewolf registry, the werewolf capture unit, werewolf mentors, and the resource centre. Her main responsibilities will be in ensuring the smooth running of the division, but her focus will also be to work with the staff to tackle the issues presenting themselves with direwolves. She has been tasked with coming up with plans and approaches to dealing with the situation.
Elaborate on your expertise in your field:
Until 2008, Iona was a member of the Werewolf Capture Unit. She led the unit for 8 years until an attack that left her fighting for her life and becoming a werewolf. She is very clear on werewolf policies, and now holds a very unique perspective, as hunter turned hunted. She understands the plights of both the public and the WCU, but also of werewolves.
Her experience and no nonsense attitude are reasons for why she was asked to return to Level 4 when the Direwolf problems are once more occurring. A clear and defined leadership is needed, and it is believed that Bruce can give this.
Sum up your character in one paragraph:
Iona ‘Bruce’ Ballentyne is a werewolf and former head of the Werewolf Capture Unit. She is a fiery and hardworking witch who struggles with her own recent physical limits. She is eager to return to work and having a purpose once more, other than wife and mother.
Post by: Iona 'Bruce' Ballentyne on April 12, 2019, 12:10:02 PM
Approved! - N
Character Name: Iona "Bruce" BallentyneURL Link to Biography: http://absitomen.com/index.php?topic=20165.msg180003;topicseen#new
Type of Creature: Werewolf
How did they become a creature? In September 2008, on the full moon, Iona had arranged her elite team for a call they’d received of a werewolf sighting. What greeted them was far more than one werewolf, and the team were ambushed. Peter Harfooey, an experienced and talented wizard was taken by surprise, and while he was being ripped open, Iona had tried to save him. She’d not noticed the wolf coming from her side who threw her to the ground and tore at her leg with his teeth.
Are they registered with the Ministry of Magic?: Yes
If yes, what does registry entail? Registry on Level 4 of the Ministry for Magic. Transformations must take place in a ministry approved safe house. Wolfsbane to be taken.
Are they considered a 'Dark' Creature?: Yes
If yes, are they currently under pursuit by the Ministry of Magic?: No
What crimes have they committed? Were they convicted? Yes. Iona passed on the names of the werewolves that attacked her to those leading the werewolf fighting ring.