Nicknames: Only one person in this world is allowed to call her “Marnie” and he doesn’t
Birthdate: June 18, 1860
Current Age: 32 Years
Gender: Female
Occupation: Wife of Edward Flourish
Reputation: 9 - has done nothing of interest, her greatest ‘scandal’ being a lady with more than one suitor who wished to court her, once upon a time.
Residence: London
Hogwarts House: Former Slytherin
Wand: Vine, 10 ¾", alarmingly bendy, dragon heartstring core
Blood Status: Muggleborn
Social Class: Middle Class
Family:
- Husband, Edward Flourish (b. 1856)
- Mother-in-Law, Mrs. Flourish (b. 1834)
- Percival Flourish (b. 1881)
- Robin Flourish (b. 1883)
- Mother and father, Vera and George Archer - Estranged in Muggle London
- Siblings, younger brother and sister - Estranged in Muggle London (as far as she knows)
General | Marion has a surprisingly athletic build and stands at an average height of 5’1”. She has a medium complexion, a heart-shaped face, and five small beauty marks scattered over her face like a constellation. Big chocolate brown eyes are her most noticeable feature, and dark hair frames her face in either meticulously styled ringlets or messy whisps falling out of its ties (there is no in between). She’s right-handed and has remarkable penmanship.
Expressions | Marion has always kept her opinions to herself, and so her expressions might seem a bit blank if she can help it. She was taught from an early age to never furrow her brow or frown or smile too much to prevent unsightly wrinkles. Though when she’s among friendly company, Marion is certainly much more expressive - particularly her eyes, the first to betray precisely how she feels.
Deportment | “A bit cold” – Marion keeps her distance and is not very physically affectionate with her husband, her children, or friends. She does not touch or like to be touched. Her hands are generally kept clasped in front of her, when not favoring her reticule, her fan, her umbrella, or a drink. She has an expansive glove collection and wears them often, year-round.
Fashion | Marion adores going to the modiste but never has the courage to walk out with some of the latest risky fashions, and she is almost irritating in her indecisiveness at most stores. A majority of her clothing is either gifted or purchased with friends as a result, at their behest that it looks fabulous on her – she generally wears none of them, as she likes none of them. She wears mostly pale pinks, a color she’s been told she looks nice in.
Scent | Marion smells like lavender and lemons, her preferred essential oils for the home.
Face claim | Adria Arjona
History:
just a little lass --
1860 | Marion’s born in Westminster, London to muggles Vera and George Archer. George is a talented physician and much older than Vera, a (former) maid he met in Spain. The happy couple went on to have two more children.
1869 | The Archers move house, convinced there is a ghost when everyone witnessed a heaping extra serving of birthday cake levitate from the kitchen into their eldest child’s lap. Unfortunately, these sightings continue to follow them.
1871 | One of Marion’s future professors and a house matron come to inform Marion and her parents of a school called Hogwarts, and that their daughter is a literal witch??? Their coffee table is transformed into an adorable baby piglet to illustrate the professor’s seriousness, and its cuteness did not stop Mr. Archer, a strictly scientific man, from fainting. Mrs. Archer writes Marion’s professor a check, and the girl is sent away to boarding school after that.
1872 | That summer before her second year, Marion returns home to find parents and siblings terrified of her. It was as miserable as it sounds, and she spent a majority of her time reading books and hiding from sight. She does not return home after this summer.
1873 | In her third year, girls got meaner. Someone mentions that Marion is a muggleborn, and for some time it’s all she hears about. A classmate defends her, and she latches on quickly to them– essentially indebted to them for the rest of time. Eventually, her classmate invites Marion to stay with her for most of the summer. Marion leaps at the chance, and sees her first game of professional Quidditch, and becomes a lifelong fan of the Holyhead Harpies.
1874 | In her fourth year, Marion wins a potions competition. She’s teased for it, and called on in class more often, which means she could be wrong more often – Marion stops being too good at potions after that.
Turbulent confidence aside, by now Marion’s found her rhythm and made a fair circle of friends, mostly from Ravenclaw and Gryffindor. One friend, Annette, quite fancied Nick Blott. And because the girls begged her to, one day Marion goes right up to him and asks if he fancied Annette. She doesn’t remember what he said, just that it was the bravest she ever felt.
She spends breaks at Hogwarts and summers with friends, or with her dear house matron who more-or-less adopts her and oversees the lump sum allowances provided by her parents. Looking back, she thinks this was when she was happiest.
1875 | In her fifth year Marion takes Arithmancy, Ancient Studies, and Earth Magic. Maybe forgetting that incident with Annette, Nick Blott became a bit of a fixture at Marion’s preferred table in the library. She realized he’s quite funny, even if it’s not on purpose.
1876 - 77 | For her NEWT courses the young witch takes History of Magic and Ancient Studies, quite determined to put her muggle history behind her. She additionally keeps up her courses in Arithmancy, Earth Magic, and of course, her favorite subject Potions. She performs well enough on most, and receives near-perfect scores in Potions.
At the height of conflict between muggles and wizards, Marion learned to not blink an eye at nasty comments about muggles. She couldn’t quite decide herself if she agreed.
June 1878 | Marion debuted marvelously at the Coming Out Ball, and hates the prospect of returning to her family home for the first time in years. The only saving grace was that Marion’s mother showed a final act of love and courage, defying her father in funding Marion with her dowry as her birthright. She learns through letters that her mother always blamed herself for Marion’s ‘unnatural affliction’ of magic – noting that her estranged father and aunt suffered the same condition.
Marion does not return home, choosing to live with friends or her old house matron who continued to sponsor her in proper society, noting the girl had a good head on her shoulders.
debuts as a lady --
August 1878 | Marion is as poised and pretty and perfect as she can be, and yet is devastated to not be halfway-to-proposed by now. That is until she makes the mistake of taking someone else’s carriage one evening after a party. Realizing her mistake, she returns to the party to find whom she’d stolen from– one Mister Flourish (and mother). Whilst subjected to a ten-minute harangue from Mrs. Flourish about the proper identifiers of carriages and how ladies get murdered over these mistakes, Marion kept smiling at him, and he kept smiling at her right back.
September 1878 | Flourish and Blott. Marion realized she knew a Blott, and immediately wrote Nick– er, Mr. Blott– for tea, to learn if he knew Mr. Flourish. Fortuitously, he did– and they’d all be at the same party later that month. At that party, Nick formally introduces her to Edward Flourish, and the three spend all evening talking together.
It would seem Marion got exactly what she wished for– twice. In a matter of hours both Nick and Ned present themselves at her (old matron’s) doorstep to call on her. Terrified of making the wrong choice and frankly not sure how she felt, or worse, not wishing to offend either of them, Marion waffles. Eventually she tells both she needs a fortnight to consider their request for another call. And proceeds to tell both, in a fortnight, that yes – she would be delighted.
Late 1878 | The situation wears on Marion, who loses weight and looks ill. She is urged by her old house matron to come to a decision, and solicits nearly everyone she knows for opinions, only to have even votes for both Ned and Nick. They were an infuriatingly evenly matched pair, after all. Both of the same station, same promise in career, one might be younger but the other was wiser, one might be wittier but the other was cheekier, why, they even spent the same on their gifts for her, down to the same number of bouquet stems and frequency! Considering her own feelings on the matter seemed silly, there ought to be a better reason to fuel her decision, shouldn’t there be?
The decision comes down to a Seer that Marion consults with, who merely shrugged to her and cryptically asked– would she rather live her life in flourishes or in blotts?
Finally Ned proposes, and Marion accepts, the second-bravest she’s ever felt. This is announced in the paper within the day thanks to Ned’s mother, and understandably, Nick ceases all calls.
Early 1879 | Marion and Edward are married in a very beautiful, if not slightly small, wedding. Marion’s side remains empty. Though Marion had hoped that she would find a mother-in-law sympathetic to the realities of leaving one’s Muggle family behind, she found instead a woman snippy and grieving the loss of her son.
enters wedded bliss --
1881 | Things are lovely to start. Marion and Edward welcome their first son, Percival, their pride and joy… as well as his mother, Mrs. Flourish, who moves in with them for his first year of life. The women certainly did not see eye-to-eye since a bellowing argument about the color of the flowers at their wedding, or which brand of tea to purchase, or how to decorate the rooms. But at this rate, Mrs. and Mrs. Flourish argue about every little thing – from Ned’s obsessive focus on the business (how dare Marion not be supportive!) to how often she held her baby (too much! and too little! and never quite right!). One day Ned finds Marion in tears, and she begs him to send his mother away. Shockingly, he does as she asks, and thinks nothing less of her for it.
1882 | Things are… good. Ned is quite busy with his books and his business, and insists she needn’t fuss about things, to focus on the baby. Marion develops an odd sleeping schedule of sleeping in two-to-three hour shifts, and dislikes taking Sleeping Draughts. She feels quite lonely and bored, spending all day talking to a gurgling baby and leaping at any caller she receives or spot of good weather for a stroll.
1883 | Perhaps the problem is that she is just bored. And she loves Ned, he is a wonderful father! It’s easy to have another child with him, and the couple happily welcome their second boy, Robin.
1884 | Things are… fine, really. Marion starts taking long walks during the day. The boys are often with their grandmother or a nanny, and on those days, Marion… decides to disguise herself. Silly things, really – a wig, or odd clothes, or anything that might make her look and feel like she’s not herself as she walks around London or Hogsmeade.
1885 | Things are decidedly not fine. Marion adores her children, but this is the only thing she adores. She is bored enough to lose her mind, even her walks no longer help. She gets into the habit of reading Potions manuals to her boys, which seems more practical than children’s books. This year, she also works up the courage to be the third-bravest she’s ever felt– she asks Ned if she can help him in the bookshop. She’ll bring the boys, and promise to not get in the way. Shockingly again, he does as she asks, and thinks nothing less of her for it.
1888 | It turns out that Marion is quite good at what she does. She loves writing with authors and publishers, inviting them to speak or sign at the shop, putting together events– it is, for the first time in a long time, the one area of her life she feels she has perfect control. (She still likes to talk long walks during the day and pretend to be someone else, but these flights of fantasy are fewer and further between now.)
Things were going well.. Until they weren’t. Marion isn’t sure what Ned saw. This rising young author and publisher was quite wealthy and would be an excellent connection for their business, and he was really just being nice, it wasn’t as though she’d go off and dishonor the family by simply speaking with him when he was in the shop or writing a few letters! When Ned confronted her over such letters, Marion was embarrassed, shocked, and mortified. After all she’s done, this felt like a true slap in the face. Though the couple never really argue. Marion refused to speak with him, instead.
1889 | Things are more often frosty than not between Marion and Ned, though both refuse to let this hurt their boys or their business in any way, so at least there’s that. Marion never knows how much of this Ned’s mother knows, or how much fuel the nasty hag adds to the fire of their ongoing… half-bickerings. While their flash of anger thaws, it’s clear that Ned prioritizes his mother, his business, and his boys above all else. Marion goes back to her long walks during the day, disappearing for hours at a time if she can afford to before the boys or her husband are home
1891 | Good grief, Ned’s book is all that Marion hears about for an entire year. She never knew her husband was writing a book at all. A very small, very distant part of Marion is quite happy to see her husband happy. A much more pervasive, dominant part of Marion is jealous– frustrated by her circumstances, and lack of any proper outlet for what she may or may not be truly capable of. She’s made a few new friends through her walks over the years, however, so at least she has some safe space where she can get away to scream into the void.1892 | Percival leaves for Hogwarts, and for a distracted grief-stricken moment, Marion and Ned are left clutching each other and teary-eyed on Platform 9 ¾. They catch each other crying, and then she smiles at him, and he smiles back. But the feeling flickered out as soon as it came.
Personality:
indecisive | diffident | perfectionist | agreeable liar | people pleaser
To others, Marion seems like an agreeable and sociable woman who is thriving in her lifestyle. A devoted mother, a doting wife, a pleasant, familiar face supporting her husband’s business Flourish & Blotts. She is best known for community events she helps throw at the bookstore, and is responsible for arranging many of the speakers, book signings, and charities they might have.
When Marion sees herself in the mirror she finds only wasted potential. The witch knows what she’s capable of - she’s quite good with numbers and formulas, a formidable potioneer, and worked endlessly to make up for her lack of wizarding world knowledge through ancient studies and history of magic. She’s small but strong, quiet but opinionated, decorous yet individualistic.
Yet none of this comes through, Marion being her own worst enemy. Where she is strong, she’s hidden the fact from others because she wishes to fit in. Where she has opinions, she doesn’t voice them because of her fear of rejection. And where her individual strengths and talents could shine, she hides behind a timidity that she never quite could shake. Marion hoped that she’d be past all these childish fears by now, she’s been the wife of Edward Flourish for far too long to be thrown off balance by her own doing; she may be a socialite manqué, but not such a failure as her mother-in-law suggests!
Though Marion moves through life much like a marionette might. Does as she’s told, acts as is expected, swallows her pride and her frustration in favor of peace and tranquility. At least until the marionette strings grow thin and break.
Other:
- Her mother is Spanish, her father is English
- Rarely sleeps through the evening and never has a dream; she sleeps in two-to-three hour increments since her firstborn
- She speaks fluent Spanish as well as English, and recently picked up a bit of goobledegook
- Fervent (in her brain) advocate for the protections of non-humans and women, but has complicated feelings about muggles
- Unusual and extremely hidden collection of odd clothing
- Unusual and extremely hidden ability to throw a good punch
- Unusual and extremely hidden extensive knowledge of cards and how to gamble
Sample Roleplay Post:
Age: 30+
Contact: Discord Nolie#3319 or PM Ida Chang
Other Characters: Ida Chang, Sophia Voss, Diana Selwyn, Cassian Valenduris, Thomas Harvey, Maxwell Beck
How did you hear about us?: ~
