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Warning: The history in the following biography mentions family death/suicide and ensuing depression. Read with caution.

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[Physical Description:] Maxwell Macduff embodies his family heritage through his dark features and strong silhouette. He stands at an even six foot and sports dark brown hair, the style of which is often changing, but generally stays short and never below chin-level. His face is attractive to those who appreciate a strong jaw line, sun-tanned skin and light eyes. Often times he will feel too busy to bother with his facial hair, leaving him with the occasional stubble. Max has a definitive athletic build, with broad square shoulders and defined muscles. Years of working under extreme conditions and involving long periods of physical activity has left him in good shape.

[Personality Description:] Maxwell was usually a very friendly, optimistic person, despite his less-than-luxurious childhood. He was intensely loyal to the friends that he made, and during his time in Hufflepuff, he learned to appreciate and demonstrate hard work and dedication. He always left a strong impression on the people he met, and was a very laidback individual. He tried to avoid conflict wherever possible, and when unavoidable, to use words before wands. He was known to be a very charismatic person, and never put people down or gave them reason to dislike him.

However, things in his life have taken dramatic turns and he has undergone a rather recent change of heart. His disownment on its own was enough to dampen his spirits at one point, but the more recent loss of one of his daughters and his wife has made family a very difficult topic for him. Let alone love. His wife took her own life, so the "illusion of love" remains in the darkest parts of his mind. He has lost all desire in finding someone else to share his life with (he believes his daughter Melody is the only one he needs), and it has gotten to a point where Max will immediately stop any flirting that comes his way - as kindly as possible, of course.

Max was usually unafraid to express his opinions on matters, but he has found himself bottling up his emotions as of late. It is sure to all come crashing down at an inopportune moment, but for now he has immersed himself in his work and his daughter. The fact that his job deals with something he enjoys is something he is eternally grateful for. He enjoys learning about life and nature, hence his love for the job; however, lately Max has a hard time finding the beauty in a world without Amelia (his late wife).

Max cherishes the relationship he has with his daughter. Melody is the "light of his life" and he would literally do anything for her. After losing the rest of their family, he at first distanced himself from her. Realizing the toll it was taking on both of them, he eventually returned to being the doting father he once was. She tends to come with him everywhere. Even to work. It is at a "zoo," after all, and she shares a passion for magical creatures that could grow as large as his. He tries his best to do right by her, but he is more than aware that his current best is not always enough.

In general, Maxwell is very kind and respectful. He can't be rude without good reason. His current job position requires a charismatic person, but recent events have dampened his approachability. Even though he tries to appear friendly when approached, he will often get lost in his thoughts and appear quite troubled to passersby.

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Maxwell Sean Macduff was born into the Scottish Macduff family on 3rd January 1983 to Scott and Eliza Macduff. Both parents' pureblood lineage gave him pure-blood status, keeping with the proud Macduff family expectations. His birthplace in Aberdeen, Scotland would remain his home throughout his childhood.

Maxwell, fondly nicknamed Max by his mother at a young age, grew up rather content despite their family being far from wealthy. Max was only four when his brother Nathan was born. His younger brother actually came as a bit of a surprise to his parents, but they managed to get by. Max soon found that he preferred being his brother's role model and protector rather than his tormentor. They grew up very close to one another. It was around the time of Nate's birth that money grew more tight, and the Wizarding World was filled with rumours of dark happenings. His parents grew more reserved and stressed by distant relatives, and debts that were piling up.

They were both raised to be proud of their lineage and their parents set an example as blood purists (though Maxwell never felt comfortable with this - he secretly made friends with a few Muggle children in the nearby village).

Upon reaching Hogwarts, Max was a hatstall. His desire to prove himself and live up to his family's expectations made him an excellent candidate for Slytherin, but ultimately it was the hard work he was willing to do that determined his place in Hufflepuff. None of his family had expected Max to be put in Hufflepuff - if anything, his parents would have guessed Slytherin, perhaps even Gryffindor. He was nervous about his house, and incessantly sceptical of the hat's choice during his first month at school. However, this year was one in which Hufflepuff had enormous house pride. Hogwarts' Triwizard Tournament champion was Cedric Diggory, and the enthusiasm of the year transmitted to even Max. He ended up cheering alongside plenty of his housemates and Diggory's participation made Max be more excited about being a Hufflepuff.

He realised that all of the houses had their own shining aspects, including Hufflepuff, so Max allowed himself to get comfortable there. He left a strong impression on everyone he met, despite his laidback attitude. He was sociable and helpful, never hesitating to meet new acquaintances. His friendships were strong and unwavering during his time at Hogwarts. It was in his third year when he was finally able to start pursuing what he loved. Care of Magical Creatures became his best subject.

Despite the Wizarding War's impact on most individuals, the Macduff family tried to continue on as normally as possible. That meant that Max was present during the year of the Battle of Hogwarts, but he was far too young to participate. He was forced to retreat with all the other young students at Hogwarts. Max's younger brother's arrival the following year did little to impact Max, but Nate was sorted into Slytherin and showed much more promise in his core classes. The latter fact was something their parents never hesitated to rub in Max's face.

Max picked up a full-time job at the Magical Menagerie during the summer before his final year at Hogwarts. He was taking a stroll into Muggle London and ran into a sixteen-year-old American tourist. Despite the fact that she was clearly a Muggle, Max did not even try to deny the instant attraction they felt towards one another. He was smitten the moment he set eyes on the red-headed Amelia Smith.

Amelia and Max ended up meeting up at least three days per week throughout the summer holidays, forming a strong friendship. The long-distance thing kept their relationship from advancing, for neither wanted to jump into anything that would only be temporary. Nevertheless, they became incredibly close during their walks in London and their friendly meetings at various Muggle locations. It was clear that they were very compatible with one another, and by the end of the summer, neither wanted to lose contact with each other.

Amelia headed back to America at the end of that summer with a better attitude and her newfound relationship with Maxwell Macduff.

During his final year at Hogwarts, Max managed to keep in contact with Amelia via letters. He had long since convinced her that his owl had been part of a trained circus or some sort of far-fetched story she was willing to believe, for she used his owl to send replies and agreed to keep it secret from her parents. Nearing the end of the school year, he lost contact with Amelia and had no way of knowing what happened to her. He graduated with a heavy heart, believing her to have found someone else and want nothing to do with him. He did not let his heartbreak get him too down, though, for he had high hopes for his career having graduated with five NEWTs, and been offered a partnership with the experienced Wizarding Naturalist Rolf Scamander.


Post-Graduation
During the summer following his graduation from Hogwarts, Max continued to work in the Magical Menagerie before his internship with Scamander began. His parents hardly tried to keep him grounded in Scotland, because they were placing most of their expectations on his brother Nathan. Although he loved his family and his home, he jumped at the chance to pursue a career in Magizoology.

Max travelled to the Americas, Africa, and Asia during his time with Rolf Scamander. He studied plenty of magical creatures and learned more than he ever thought he would in such a short amount of time. He and Scamander became good friends, and he associated with plenty of other Magizoologists and Wizarding Naturalists around the world. He made connections and was recognized as a promising new talent by the world of Magizoology.

After a couple of years working with Scamander, Max had to return to England and just so happened to run into Amelia. By a crazy coincidence they met up in Muggle London and caught up over lunch. Amelia's grandmother had passed and she had only returned for the funeral. Attempting to soothe a sudden crying jag Amelia went into, Max walked her to the inn she was staying in. The night led to the rather careless consummation of their love for one another, resulting from the high emotions let out during the night. Amelia agreed to stay for a month longer with her grandfather, and during that month, Max could honestly describe himself as being in love. He knew Amelia felt the same. But when it was time to part ways, Max was subject to waking up with just a note with her goodbye. The note also included one detail that Max felt he could not ignore. Amelia was pregnant, but didn't want him to throw away his life for her, so she would raise the child on her own.

He chased after her, of course, and his family soon thereafter disowned him upon learning the news that he had fallen for a Muggle. He refused to abandon Amelia. He left England without much notice, either, so many of the friends he had there were left wondering what had happened to him.

During the ensuing months, Max managed to secure a position as a Magizoologist in the American ministry, and he secured an apartment for himself and Amelia. Amelia went to a Muggle university as a veterinarian, and things went surprisingly well, even the revelation that Max was a wizard. Despite being so young and without guide, they pulled through and their twin girls Melody and Heather were born on 3 February 2004.

They purchased a farm in Texas where Max was allowed free reign to gather a collection of Magical Creatures for study. People turned to him when they needed a creature studied or investigated. Throughout his successful career, he maintained a healthy relationship with his wife and daughters. Working from their home was an immense contributor to this fact, and he couldn't have been in a better place. Amelia was just finishing up her veterinary studies at the time, and she was able to provide care to the farm animals they owned. They both raised their daughters.

In December of 2005, Max achieved Deputy Head of the Department of Magical Creatures, and made significant advancements in the regulation and control of said creatures in America. Although he worked away from home more often, he was proud of what he was able to do for the good of the creatures. In November of 2008, work on something known as the "Magizoo Project" began, and Max was asked to head the project with help from other well-respected Magizoologists. His interest was immense and he had high hopes for it, so of course he took the job. He transported most of the magical creatures from their farm to the project space in Australia. Thus, his work became entirely away from home, and he worked late many nights. He had to sacrifice more of his time with his family, but considered the cause to be worth it.

Tragedy Strikes (Sept 2009)
It was on an otherwise normal night that a very rare occurrence happened. An extremely young Seer had her first prophecy, which woke her from her sleep. Maxwell walked into his daughters' room to console his five-year-old Melody, who had been consumed by tears and an inability to form coherent words. After nearly half-an-hour spent consoling her, Max managed to get her calm enough to form a few words. All she kept repeating was:

"Heather. Danger. Bad things."

Neither Max nor Amelia could make sense of her words, and allowed her to fall asleep with them. The morning brought with it nothing out of the ordinary, and even Melody seemed to have forgotten her crying jag in the middle of the night. They had planned a family outing, but Max had to deal with an impromptu meeting with an employee of the zoo. He promised to meet up with them later at the park, and so he kissed his three favourite girls goodbye and went off to the meeting.

He was just apparating home with work papers in hand when his cellular phone went off (Amelia insisted he have one just in case, since it was much faster than owling). When he picked up, he heard his wife in hysterics talking about a car accident and Heather being in the ICU. By the time he arrived at the hospital, Heather had passed away and his wife was bawling her eyes out, talking about how it was all her fault. Melody wouldn't speak and merely watched through the glass doors as the Muggle doctors placed a white sheet over her sister's body.


The ensuing month was stressful, as Amelia seemed to have an incredibly difficult time dealing. They tried medication, therapy, everything. Nothing seemed to work, and Max was barely holding it together for the family. He took an extended absence from his job to stay at home and care for his family, but apparently it wasn't good enough. Not even a month after Heather's death, Amelia committed suicide.

Max was devastated, to say the least. He fell into a rapid depression, and cut himself off from his daughter. He hired a sitter most days and quit his job at the American Ministry. He instead devoted everything to the Magizoo Project, remaining at the headquarters for days on end, occasionally.

Melody was the one that eventually snapped some sense into him. She was perceptive, and although she was hurting too, she reached out to her father. The fact that Melody was trying to console him made him feel terrible and realise that he needed to start acting like the parent again. He wanted what was best for Melody, and so once he got his priorities straight, he made some arrangements and sold the farm, renting a smaller place in England. In late February of 2010, Max and Melody moved into a flat in Wales.

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JOB HISTORY Magical Menagerie (Summer 2000, 2001) Shop Assistant Rolf Scamander (2001-2003) Assistant / Naturalist-in-training American Ministry of Magic (2003-2005) Magizoologist consultant American Ministry of Magic (2005-2009) Deputy Head of the Department of Magical Creatures

QUALIFICATIONS - 10 years working with magical creatures - Experience handling XXXXX class creatures - Obtained NEWTs in Ancient Runes, CoMC, DADA, Charms, and History of Magic - Multilingual and familiar with Ancient Runes (fluent in English, French, Gobbledegook, Mermish, and Swahili) - Trained under renowned Naturalist Rolf Scamander SKILLS - Accurate and effective wandwork - Speech experience - Efficient multitasker AWARDS - Bravery Against Fantastic Beasts Award[1] -  Order of Merlin award, First Class[2]

The Magizoo Project is a large undertaking - the first and only of its kind - that is currently being worked on by naturalists around the world. It is basically an all-around effort to create a zoo of magical creatures for the wizarding public's observation. The task is even more difficult than it sounds, but the past two years put into the project has made some significant progress. Maxwell's job is basically to organize trips and coordinate with foreign naturalists to gather all the creatures they want to include, and be able to recognize what will be needed in accordance with each creature. He organizes a lot more than just that, and even goes out with other naturalists or on his own to seek out certain creatures. He is "the face of the project."

The zoo is in Australia, and it is currently not open to the public, though there have been recent discussions of how it may be beneficial to start allowing tours and such of the finished parts.

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[Sum up your character in one paragraph:] Maxwell Macduff is a well-respected Wizarding Naturalist. He was disowned from the Scottish Macduff family after falling for a Muggle. He created a family of his own with his wife in America, having two twin daughters soon after his disownment. He recently returned to the UK (Wales) due to the death of his wife and one of his daughters. His personality lacking the charisma it once had, Max is drowning himself in his work and time with his only daughter.

1.	June 2002: For fighting off a loose, diseased chimaera that had attacked a Welsh Muggle family vacationing in Greece, allowing time for reinforcements and the Capture Division of the British Ministry of Magic.
2.	October 2008: For tracking down and locating a Quintaped that had somehow gotten away from the Isle of Drear, and making the first successful capture of said creature. This capture led to major advancements in the study of the creature, and the Quintaped is currently under the care of the Magizoo Project