Accepted! ~Elle
Name: Zayzie
Have you read the Code of Conduct?: Yes
How did you find us?: Friend
Do you play other Characters on AO?: Yes
If Yes, list them here: ErikCollins, Naomi Foley, Adric Foley (Quidditch Only), Azize Mulogo, Naila Ferrari, Delilah Foley, Torquil Foley, Ananke Cosmos,
Is this a Primary of Secondary character? Primary
Character’s Full Name: Rubeus Hagrid
Character’s Birthday and Age: December 6, 1928; 81
City/Country of Birth: Somer, England
Blood Purity: Half-Breed
Alma Mater: Hogwarts; Gryffindor
Job/Position: Care of Magical Creatures Professor
Wand: Broken: Oak, Sixteen inches, bendy, unicorn hair core—embedded in a pink umbrella.
Physical Description: When described by friends or famous celebrities, such as Harry Potter, Hagrid is described as having eyes like, “black beetles” and a pleasantly wrinkled smile. Then there’s his iconic height and size: he is a stout and tall man who looms over normal wizards at a daunting twelve feet and five times as wide as any normal human. He has an average build, with his arms and hands being proportionately larger and thicker than normal.
His black hair and beard are long, but are more tame and trimmed than they use to be, making him appear much more presentable; he even enjoys having his beard cut and stylized (as long as it’s within the realm of practicality) and prefers his mustache to be lengthier than his beard.
However, his clothes are often less than perfect because of his working with creatures all the time, and he will appear to be dressed more like a hunter, wearing a bearskin cloak, boots, thick pants, and well-worn shirt, than a professor. So, as expected, Hagrid’s odor often varies from that of a damp and leafy forest and freshly turned dirt, to that of a dank swamp, and then finally to that of whatever creature he may have been involved with at any given day, or time of day.
Personality Description: Hagrid moves like a giant and carries the demeanor of a seasoned hunter, but this is also contrasted by his friendly and sensitive personality. Despite how caring his personality is, he can also be very defensive, and isn’t afraid of throwing his weight around and pulling a few punches if he must.
He enjoys hunting and is very comfortable around creatures, and has a motherly fondness for the large and dangerous ones. While this may lead to naïve and foolish decisions for normal wizards, they are rather harmless and fixable mistakes for Hagrid to handle as an individual.
Because he suffers from being a little shy and being somewhat insecure, due to his long history, past, and wizarding prejudice, Hagrid can be rather hesitant to go through with his own ideas and wants, and tries to be subtle. However, Hagrid isn’t very good about hiding his intentions from others and he comes off as very suspicious or questionable, even with the most harmless of reasons.
History:
1928-1980:
Rubeus Hagrid was born to a wizarding father and a giantess mother named Fridwulfa, in 1928, but this loving family only lasted about three years; for unknown reasons, Fridwulfa abandoned Hagrid to return to be with other giants. As a result, Hagrid was raised by his father, and grew up as a wizard, receiving his letter to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry at the age of eleven, and sorted into the house of Gryffindor. There, he became quite the troublemaker and also quickly grew to favor the Transfiguration teacher at the time, Albus Dumbledore.
While Hagrid suffered much bigotry for his height and size, he also found his ancestry useful and helpful to him; his height and size made his age rather ambiguous, and he was often considered older than he really was. So he found useful ways of earning money and other useful items, such as through gambling and shady means, quickly learning how and where to get things he needed for his own interests and living requirements, even if it required a nasty trip down Knockturn Alley. Through these methods, Hagrid acquired many dangerous pets, and one in particular helped shaped the direction of the rest of his life, which was a pet acromantula he received from a wandering traveler during his second year at Hogwarts. Despite how dangerous the arachnid was, the creature, Aragog, was domesticated and trained very well—he never attacked or preyed on humans, but this was not enough to save Hagrid from the nefarious schemes Tom Riddle, a young Voldemort. By implicating Hagrid and Aragog, Tom framed Hagrid for the death of Moaning Myrtle, when Riddle and his Basilisk were truly to blame; but Tom was successful and Hagrid was expelled from Hogwarts and after the perpetrator was believed to be caught the school remained open. Hagrid’s last act as a student was to release Aragog into the Forbidden Forest, where he believed his friend would be kept safer than what he could manage.
Before the year was over, with a wand snapped and his wizarding life near shambles, Hagrid had another sorrowful burden to bear: the death of his father. Orphaned, uneducated, and homeless, Hagrid had lost everything that had ever mattered in his life, and believed he possibly had a better life living among giants, where losing everything meant losing everything, and also anymore pain and suffering that went with it. However, Hagrid overlooked something important he still had left in the wizarding world.
An old friendship, in the form of a tall lanky wizard with long auburn hair, framing a gentle face with bright blue eyes energetically peering through half-moon glasses, perched on a crooked nose, extended a caring hand. Hagrid’s old Transfiguration Professor, Albus Dumbledore, took it upon himself to care for Hagrid from that day on, embedding the boy’s broken in an umbrella he bought for him and making him the Keeper of Keys and the Gamekeeper on the grounds of Hogwarts.
Hogwarts then became Hagrid’s home, where he grew, learned, and cared for the creatures of the Forbidden Forest (and hunted some too,) for the safety and protection of the school and students. He also served Dumbledore as a loyal friend, staying by his side through any and all dangers and perils, through the first Wizarding War to its bitter end, and through the loss of two good friends: James and Lily Potter.
1981-1997:
Hagrid could only pick up the pieces of what was left of Lilian and James Potter: a little unsuspecting bundle of an infant that was The Boy Who Lived, Harry Potter. With Sirius Black’s motorbike, Hagrid was the one who delivered the infant Harry Potter to safely live with his muggle aunt and uncle, only to hunt them down eleven years later with a birthday cake and an acceptance letter to Hogwarts, to finally inform the young boy, “You’re a wizard, Harry.”
From that moment on Hagrid’s life became a strange and complicated mess filled with his blind loyalty for Dumbledore, and constant concern for Harry Potter, making sure the boy survived the treks into the Forbidden Forest, lived through the trials of the Triwizard Tournament, and learned everything he needed to know about Care of Magical Creatures (at least once he was assigned the position in 1993.) Despite the constant dangers of the years Harry attended Hogwarts, Hagrid would never trade those years for anything. His name was cleared of Moaning Myrtle’s death and Tom Riddle was accurately identified as the perpetrator of the crime, he was able to raise his half-brother Grawp to attend Dumbledore’s funeral, and he gained a valuable family and life.
The Second Wizarding War then arrived, thriving on the death of Dumbledore and the expulsion of many Hogwarts staff who were against the Death Eaters, including Hagrid. He went on to fight against the Death Eaters, but was eventually captured by giants, alongside his brother, Grawp. Afterwards, Hagrid delivered Harry back to Hogwarts, after the boy’s willing “death” where Harry finally defeated Voldemort, and brought an end to the War.
1998-2009:
After the war Hagrid decided to finish his education that abruptly ended in his second year of Hogwarts and took his OWLs and NEWTs. He was proud of his two O’s in DADA and CoMC, two E's in Transfiguration and Herbology, and two A’s in Charms and Potions for his NEWT’s.
After that, Hagrid took himself and his brother Grawp to travel the world, where they served on various Reserves (mostly for dragons) and handled dangerous creatures for many years. His capabilities as a half giant made the job much easier, and with his brother, Grawp even more so. However, Hagrid longed to return to Hogwarts again, as it was the only place that felt like home to him, and he always kept an ear open for job openings on the school grounds.
Hagrid’s patience served him well, for while he was in England and mucking about, he caught word that the CoMC position had an opening at the last minute; It was an opportunity he couldn’t pass up. The half-giant quickly gathered his fat resume and his best suit, and after a quick interview he was quickly given the position as the CoMC professor. Regardless of whether it was out of desperation or his skill, Hagrid was ecstatic, but remained anxious and insecure at how the school might have changed—not only that, but there was also Durmstrang and Beauxbatons to impress! And with the TetraWizard Tournament at hand, Hagrid was sure he had a long year ahead of him.
Describe your job duties and how you go about them:
Hagrid has high expectations for students, and he teaches students how to care for animals, treat them, respect them, understand them, and interact with them. These are the subjects he often covers in class, which often takes place outdoors and with live animal subjects, even during bad weather. He enjoys sharing his love of creatures with other students, but his methods can also be considered risky as he can often overestimate students’ capabilities.
Outside of class, Hagrid assigns work, to students, that relates creatures to other subjects and aspects of the wizarding world, with many assignments covering the history, magic, and materials that involve creatures, and also anatomy (however this is also learned during class through trial and error, but he expects students to learn this on their own time as well). Hagrid also enjoys self-discovery, so he encourages students to have some freedom in choosing the subject matter of their assignments, and only focuses on giving them the well-laid groundwork for the skills they will need to achieve their goals.
Once students reach the NEWT level of his class, he expects students to do much more critical thinking, and to be much more independent in choosing their subject matter. He will teach them all they need to know for NEWTs, but he also believes that by having them become more independent with the academics involved with his class, that they will have a personal investment in the subject that will carry them through their chosen professions.
Besides his class duties, Hagrid keeps a close watch on the creatures who inhabit the grounds, and makes frequent visits to the Forbidden Forest for his own interest and projects. He also does this to take care of certain creatures living in the forest, to hunt them, or to hunt down students (out of habit).
Hagrid doesn’t show favoritism in class, however if he knows a student well or becomes friends with them, he will start expecting a lot of them, and refuses to show them any disrespect. However, if a student does begin to misbehave Hagrid will assert his authority, and possibly assign extra work or a rather disgusting detention, but he would be hard-pressed to take points away from students.
Elaborate on your expertise in your field:
Gamekeeper and Keeper of Keys of Hogwarts School and Witchcraft and Wizardry 1941-1997:
After the death of his father, Albus Dumbledore was able to keep Hagrid at Hogwarts as a Gamekeeper to take care of the creatures on the grounds, due to his ability raise Aragog as a calm and non-violent creature. Not only that, but his respect and love for these creatures caused them to respect Hagrid n return, and that mutual respect for the creatures that not only made his job easier, but gave him allies. And so when it came to protecting the students, secrets of the forest, and other dangers of the school, Hagrid had an extra edge in supporting the safety of the school without sacrificing it’s unique creatures.
Care of Magical Creatures Professor: 1993-1996
After he was cleared of causing the death of Moaning Myrtle in the previous school year, Hagrid was allowed many more social freedoms, and with his proficiency with creatures he was given the position of Care of Magical Creatures professor. However, due to his unique knowledge of creatures and very direct approach to caring for them, Hagrid’s class was very difficult.
Freelancing and Hired Help on Dragon Reserves: 1997-2009
After the war Hagrid decided to finish his education, and gained more experience with school, learning, and studies that way. After he took his OWL’s and NEWT’s he began to travel the world, from one dragon reserve to the next, and stopping at various other creature reserves and offering his help there in the process, especially for big and dangerous projects. This has given Hagrid much more realistic expectations for people around him, but he still expects a lot from normal people.
Writing Sample:
Sum up your character in one paragraph:
Hagrid is a big half-giant with big expectations, for himself and the people around him, because he always hopes for the best and feels that is the best example to set for others. Because of this he also can exert authority, and will not hesistate to use his size to his advantage. However, despite his large form and how assertive he can be, Hagrid has a very sensitive side to him; he cares about the approval of others especially for people whom he holds a fondness for, but tends to ignore and tune out negative people. He is an outdoorsman, and is a lover of all things dangerous, risky, and ridiculous, but does know when it is a good time to stop because things are getting out of hand.
Rubeus Hagrid: Care of Magical Creatures Professor