About You, the Writer:
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Your Nickname: Elle
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How did you find us and decide to write with us? Helped make the place.
If you have written other characters here, list them all: Fauna Blake, Aileen Reid, Margaret Groust, Eirene Antonopoulos.


Full Character Name: Abigail Adair Reid
Character Birthday & Age: 16 years old, born October 15th, 1992
City & Country of Birth: London, England
Pureblood, Halfblood or Muggleborn?: Pureblood
Alma Mater: n/a
Job & Description: Squib, dependent on her family

Physical Description:

Some have called Abby a mini-version of her older sister Aileen. They have the same coloring (blonde hair, fair skin), and similar facial structure. It’s the eyes that tie them together as sisters, though. Like Aileen’s, Abby’s eyes turn down slightly at the outer corners, are prone to widening innocently, and are framed by nicely arched brows.

Her nose is upturned at the tip and her mouth is small, with a slight pout. She doesn’t have the elegance or poise of her sister, but she gives off a fresh and spontaneous air. Like many pureblood teenage girls, she pays attention to fashion, and also enjoys mixing things up and wearing outrageous things just to irritate her family. Abby sometimes puts streaks of blue or pink in her hair just for the pleasure of seeing her mother faint, and she’s not afraid to wear something from a thrift store and an expensive boutique in the same outfit.

(Optional list)
Build/Body type: a slender, girlish frame, but still growing
Estimated Height/Weight: around 5’4’’ and 115 pounds
Hair color: blonde
Eye color: brown
Skin color: fair
First Impression: Comes across as sweet, ditzy, impulsive, and sheltered. She usually has a goofy grin on her face and laughs easily. Talks fast, boundless energy.
Any odd/outstanding features?: Her hair’s naturally curly and tends to frizz. Her teeth are slightly crooked in the front.

Personality Description:

When first meeting her, Abby seems positive, bubbly, and a bit of a spaz. She talks fast, but in a very detached, dreamy sort of way, and what she says often gets her labeled as a typical dumb blonde.

She’s also grown up in a very sheltered, controlled environment, which adds to her naivety. Around people she trusts, her behavior is more mature and she doesn’t act as ‘out there’. The ditzy role is something she uses more as a defense mechanism – if people don’t expect much, she can’t disappoint them or fail. Sometimes she’ll discover a talent or interest in a subject and obsessively pursue it for a while, dropping it as soon as the hobby requires more dedication from her. Abby doesn’t believe she’ll get anywhere even if she does work hard, and as a squib who has only been exposed to pureblood society, there’s some truth to that concern.

Abby uses her squib status as a way to guilt people into doing things she’s perfectly capable of doing herself (like chores or anything that involves helping her mother). Her favorite phrase is “I’d love to, but I can’t”.  Her parents hate being reminded of her lack of magical ability and will often give in just so they don’t have to hear about it. Since her methods have worked for sixteen years, Abby is reluctant to learn how to do things for herself and throws around the word squib as an excuse whenever things seem too challenging.

She is of average intelligence, but her reluctance to learn, her dependency on her family, and the very sheltered environment she’s grown up in puts her at a distinct disadvantage to her peers. She’s not only a squib, but a squib who has no real understanding of life outside of pureblood society, and who has little idea how to do things the muggle way because her parents refuse to let her be around ‘those sorts’. In short, if she ever wants to make something of herself, she has a lot of catching up and growing up to do.

Though she’s rarely caught in a bad or bummed out mood, Abby stores a lot of resentment and hurt feelings. Her parents do little to hide their disappointment and disapproval of her, and she feels that she’ll never be worthy in their eyes. She also feels ignored and abandoned by her older siblings, who see her as an embarrassment. So, Abby acts out for attention and to get some control over her life, ranging from little, annoying actions: offering the house elves a sock and then laughing at her mother’s reaction, to the extreme: running away from home for a few days.

Beneath the ditzy and helpless façade, Abby wants something more out of her life and is the least snobby and judgmental out of all the Reids. Abby was raised on purist ideals and believes in them, though she’s rather impressionable, and has the potential to cement those beliefs or shake them up a bit based on what happens in the future.

History:

Abigail was born in 1992 as the fourth child of Douglas and Cullodena Reid. She came as an unwanted surprise to the aging parents, and her arrival made them a bit of a joke for a little while. Having two children was typical in a wizarding family. Three was pushing it. But four? Four was laughable, a disgrace.

With little enthusiasm or warmth, her parents put her through the usual pureblood activities, shuffling her off to play dates, parties, and other social events, teaching her etiquette and preparing her for a magical education. Abby was a people pleaser, doing her best to abide by her parent’s wishes and make connections. She was fairly successful at charming the aloof adults, but less successful at getting along with the other children, who she competed with for attention.  Abby quickly discovered that acting silly or saying dense, naïve things got her farther than trying to be smart or serious – many adults she met considered it cute or endearing. The problem was, she never quite grew out of that behavior and in her teens, it’s less cute.

Abby liked attention and was accustomed to getting it while her siblings were busy at Hogwarts or had started their own lives. Out of all her siblings, she saw Simon the most during his breaks from school, and the tension between her parents and her brother made her more determined to please them. However, one nagging concern plagued her throughout her childhood. Abby showed absolutely no signs of magical ability, and when she learned how much this bothered her parents and what lengths they went to trying to hide it from everyone, she attempted experiments that would bring out that magical spark- experiments that landed her in St. Mungo’s more often than not.  Finally, as a last resort, she set her bedroom curtains on fire and pretended magic had caused it, though even her desperate parents began to realize that her 'magical accidents' only happened when they weren’t around to witness them.

When Abby turned 11 and received no Hogwarts letter, her parents could no longer deny that their daughter was a squib. Everything changed for her then. Abby was used to her parent’s coldness and apparent indifference, but she was not used to their disgust or revulsion. The way they treated her changed, not so far as to lock her up in her room and hide her from the world, but more subtly. She rarely left home without some kind of escort. She attended fewer parties and social occasions. Her usual attempts to please her parents were met with scorn or disappointment.

Abby was understandably crushed. Family friends turned cold towards her or pitied her, childhood playmates moved on to attend Hogwarts and she had little in common with them anymore. Rather than send her off to live with muggles, her parents stubbornly kept her at home, too affected by their prejudices to consider that a muggle life might be easier for her. They hired tutors to teach her as much about magical theory and history as they could without her putting any of it into practice, of course. She learned the more practical subjects of Herbology and Potions and depended on a tutor to do the spells for her. All in all, her magical education has been solid, but there’s only so much she can do without a wand. Her muggle education is woefully lacking, and her only exposure to muggles has been when she’s stumbled into Muggle London by mistake.

Abby often feels isolated and lonely. She has few people her own age to talk to, and the pureblood kids who have been homeschooled are only mildly tolerant of her – many see her as inferior or  someone to use for their own ends. She recognizes this and often plays along with their schemes just to have something to do. Sometimes, if it goes too far, she'll turn the tables on them out of spite.

One of her main advantages is that people tend to underestimate her. She’s good at listening in on conversations and hearing about plans because she acts like she’s not paying attention. Some people also might let their guard down around her and tell her things because they believe she doesn’t have the brains or know-how to do anything about it.

Abby has grown more and more rebellious over the years, fighting with her family and challenging them at every turn. She dreams of the day when she’ll be out of her parent’s house and on her own, and somehow more practical concerns like a job or a place to live haven’t entered into her daydreams. Her parent’s main goal is to marry her off to someone acceptable when she turns 17, so they can get her out of their hair. Abby’s not quite so sure how she feels about that, and knows her older sister hates the idea and is trying to get her to do something with her life so she’s not dependent on her parents or a husband.

Abby is both intrigued by Aileen’s sudden concern for her wellbeing and resistant to it. In the past year or so they’ve been speaking more frequently and sending each other regular letters. Recently, Abby has suggested moving in with Aileen, which Aileen is vehemently opposed to. Though Abby is counting on the possibility that she won’t be able to say no if she appears on her sister’s doorstep one day…

Sum up your character in one paragraph:

Abby comes across as a cheerful, ditzy, impulsive girl who has no real understanding of the world around her. She is very sheltered and continually tests her parent’s patience by acting out and causing trouble. She craves attention and wants change in her life, but doesn’t know how to achieve it or work for it effectively.

Career Change

Character Name: Abby Reid
Character Biography: http://absitomen.com/index.php?topic=4392.0
Previous Job/Position: Muggle Affairs Intern, fall ‘09
Position Applying For: Dept of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes/Muggle-Worthy Excuse Committee Intern

Why have you chosen to change careers?:
Abby learned a lot from her internship in the new Muggle Affairs department working under Dreogan Eleor. It was her first real job, so she got exposure to the Ministry environment and discovered what parts of the job appealed to her most. The department’s cause was important to her, and she felt like she had a place and was accepted as a squib.

Unfortunately, after Mr. Eleor disappeared in December, it hit home how dangerous working in the department could be*. Abby was willing to continue interning, but as time continued to pass without news of his whereabouts, Abby’s older sister, Aileen, no longer felt comfortable with her working there. Abby left the internship during the winter holidays, and the sisters took that time to map out her next steps.

Their relatives, Tarron and Aisling Knight, suggested that Abby look into interning in a different Ministry department. After some thought, Abby decided to give Magical Accidents and Catastrophes a try. She liked the idea of working under Aisling, and met Edwin Glass at the opera. Interning in the Magical Accidents and Catastrophes department would allow her to continue at the Ministry, develop new skills, and to manage chaos rather than attract it (we hope). Aileen is happy with this plan because it would mean Abby would work in a less controversial department close to family, while remaining at the Ministry with all its career prospects.

*: As far as I understand, Dreogan Eleor's disappearance had little to do with his job, but Abby wouldn't know that.

Elaborate on your expertise in this new field:
She has a strong understanding of magical theory, history, and how magic works. She’s good with people and enjoys working in teams. She’s also been learning more and more about the muggle world through a few classes she took over the summer, her obsession with her cell phone, and her growing interest in The Internet. As a squib, she lacks the ability to solve problems with magic, but she compensates by using her gift for gab and furthering her understanding of things both magical and mundane. She has no problem jumping into chaotic situations. Though there are times she gets in over her head, experience will help teach her caution.

Describe your new job and how you go about doing it:
Abby would learn the basics of the job by shadowing Aisling and various employees, assisting with administrative tasks, communicating with other Ministry departments, and working on projects as assigned. She'd be well-suited to projects that would allow her to come up with creative solutions and use her social skills. As time goes on she would likely be out in the ‘field’ more where the magical accidents primarily happen.

Career Change

Character Name: Abigail Reid
Character Biography: Bio
Previous Job/Position: Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes Intern
Position Applying For: Personal Assistant to the Head of the DMLE

Why have you chosen to change careers?:
Abby's interned at the Ministry previously, and was always interested in returning in some capacity. After a year away, Abby applied for the open PA position, hoping to keep busy, work with friends and others she admires, and contribute to rent.

Working on Level Two also affords some degree of protection, although not from pranks. She'll be pulling  pranks too, I'm sure.

Elaborate on your expertise in this new field:
Abby interned for several months under Aisling Knight in the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes, where she took care of administrative tasks, meeting minutes, and coffee fetching.

Describe your new job and how you go about doing it:
Tea, at 4pm sharp.

Otherwise, she'll be managing appointments, sending memos, organizing schedules, battling conference room scheduling mishaps, guarding the desk, decorating the desks of unsuspecting Aurors, and collaborating and communicating with other departments.

All without magic. Time to break out the squib-friendly parchment and quill.