In-Character
Full Name: Brooks Sheppard WatsonNicknames: B, mostly goes by Watson
Birthdate: February 13th, 1860
Current Age: 34
Gender: Male
Occupation: Unspeakable
Reputation: 7? 8? abandoned muggleborn; later left at the altar by Morrigan Selden
Residence: London
Hogwarts House: Slytherin
Wand: 11" ash, ashwinder scales, inflexible
Blood Status: muggleborn
Social Class: Middle
Family:
Vaughn Watson | [18xx] fatherAppearance:
Amelia Watson née - - - | [18xx] motherChandler Watson | [1857] brother, muggle lawyer
Aurelie - - - née Watson | [1863] sister, muggle and family
Jasper Watson | [1865] brother, muggle
Amity Watson | [1869] sister, muggle
Fletcher Watson | [1871] brother, muggle
All of whom do not speak to him and pretend he does not exist.
History:True to his parents’ Gujaratis heritage a couple of generations back, Brooks has dark features. His hair and eyes are a rich dark brown, and his skin a warm sepia. His hair is on the long side, though kept neat for work. Most notable is his well-groomed mustache and facial hair that he’s almost a little obsessive about. Without it he looks incredibly young and so he keeps it trimmed to perfection. With a slim build, Brooks tops out at 5 foot 10, but is in a perpetual state of slouch thanks to his work and the fact that he doesn’t like to stand out in a crowd. His neutral expression borders on bored or disinterested, but it is more like he is guarded and unsure in most social situations. He starts his day very put-together and professional, but often by the end of the day in the Department of Mysteries, he has rolled up his sleeves, and his hair is tousled from constantly running his hands through it. He carries himself as one who likes to blend into a crowd; always in a hurry and slightly harried.
Personality:
A Second Son
1860 - 1871Brooks joins older brother Chandler, in an uneventful birth. Several siblings are added to the brood over the next ten years, his youngest brother born just before he gets a visit from a mysterious man claiming that Brooks is in fact a wizard and should go to wizarding school. Huh? It is explained to the family that the random unexplainable incidents that had plagued his childhood are in fact spurts of magic that he cannot yet control. Brooks is immediately fascinated and his parents are… cautiously worried. They agree to send him to the school, but the decision sparks a huge debacle. Chandler is angry and jealous. Vaughn is disturbed and Amelia is leery, but optimistic. The rest of the siblings are undecided and now curious if it will be them. It creates a new, unwanted tension in the household until Brooks leaves for Hogwarts in September. Hogwarts
1871 - 1878Awestruck and nervous, Brooks quietly takes it all in starting with the train ride from London to the castle to the Sorting. He makes an instant friend in - - - after he is sorted into Slytherin. Magic is utterly fascinating and he is immediately enthralled with the whole thing. Classes on magic? Awesome. Magical hallways and rooms and creatures? Even more awesome. Brooks takes to magic in theory and in practice like fish to water. He is pretty social and soaks up as much as humanly possible throughout his first year.Christmas is tense, but Brooks is just hoping it’s because he’s been gone and the summer will be better. At the end of the year, full of stories and knowledge, he’s ready to go home but finds himself categorically uninvited back. Devastated and floundering, Brooks is saved from figuring it out by being invited to his new BFF’s house for the summer.
This trend continues for the rest of Hogwarts. The once bright and bubbly Brooks has dimmed to a child who focuses on his studies and shies away from social situations. He is determined not to be a burden to the family that has taken him in and poses as the perfect guest. His family has agreed to supply him with tuition and supply money, but nothing else. It’s heartbreaking and hard to fathom, but he does his best to continue on by himself.
Graduation looms at the end of seventh year and though he still hasn’t been kicked out of his BFF’s family but is determined to do it on his own. He graduates with good marks, enough to get into the ministry, eventually landing in the Department of Mysteries.Independence
1879 - 1889As soon as he’s financially independent, Brooks lets a room at a boarding house and bids his surrogate family a fond farewell. It’s unexpectedly lonely, but he feels better relying on just himself to get by. While always appreciative of the kindness of his BFF’s family, Brooks hates to be a mooch and would never impose longer than is necessary (even if they never made him feel that way growing up). As his career progresses, he continues to upgrade himself, working from the bottom up. He takes all the grunt work he can, trying to prove himself to both his superiors and himself. He’s always been hard on himself, but even he can admit he’s built a career he can be proud of.
It is when he meets Morrigan Selden that he’s thrown a little off track. Their run-ins at the library are always entertaining and he finds himself drawn to her, even if he tries not to show it. After a lifetime of disappointment in relationships, he has his walls up and she carefully, if potentially unintentionally breaks them down little by little. He gets brave, at a good point in his life in many respects, and asks first to court her and then to marry her.
And then she leaves him standing at the altar by himself with no explanation.The Bender
1889 - 1890Brooks spends the next year on a bender that barely keeps him functioning. He tries potions and booze and drugs that keep the bad thoughts at bay. He’s in a fog, but it doesn’t start to show until he gets a wake up call at work. The Wake-Up
1890An accident, (due to his inebriation) at work lands him in the hospital for a couple of weeks. The stern talking-to from his supervisor is all it takes for him to cut the shit and get back to himself. Brooks’ only consolation is that he only injured himself and nobody else, but it could have been far worse. The New & Now
1891 - 1894After finding a new niche within the office, Brooks has settled again into a better state of mind. He puts Mor and the disaster behind him. He even meets somebody new and things are progressing nicely. For now.
CRITICAL | INTROVERTED | ACADEMIC | DETERMINED
Generally a closed book, Brooks is distrustful of new people and situations as he’s had very few people he can rely on over the years. Morally, he thinks he has things together, but he tends to cross the line sometimes both at work and in his personal life. He is more at home among his books and at the office than anywhere else. He is nothing if not determined to make something worthwhile of himself. There is a deeply-rooted need to be successful and independent, which he has become professionally and is still working on emotionally. He wants to love and be loved, he just doesn't know how to go about it the right way. Even in his new relationship he isn’t as open as he once was and it is a defense mechanism he doesn’t know how to turn off.
Out-of-Character
Name: Bee
