In-Character
Full Name: Merritt DavisNicknames: Merry
Birthdate: August 31st 1877
Current Age: 10 Years
Occupation: incoming firstie
Reputation: 4
He’s a known bastard, raised in the worst part of town, has been caught stealing and many of his relatives are in and out of prison, workhouses and hard labour. His shabby clothes and dishevelled appearance do little to endear him to his peers.
Residence: Somewhere dodgy in London. In a tiny single room with his mother and whichever siblings and cousins are kicking around.
Hogwarts House: Unknown (if I get to choose for first years, Hufflepuff)
Wand: unknown (what’s the cheapest wand known to man? He’ll probably end up with that)
Blood Status: muggleborn
Social Class: working
Family:
Mother: Sena Davis née ____ [b.1755]
Father: unknown
Siblings:
Coy Davis [b.1871] and Maye Davis [b.1873] are Merry’s half siblings born to Sena’s late husband. They and a bunch of maternal cousins are generally in and out of prison, the spike, and Merry’s life.
Tim Davis [b.1874 d.1878]
Alida Davis [b.1875] is Merry’s older sister and first sibling to be obviously born out of wedlock. She showed some magical ability as a child but entered a workhouse at 10 and that was the last the family heard of her. She may be attending Hogwarts on a scholarship.
Orin Davis [b.1879] is Merry’s younger brother, best friend and only sibling still living with their mother.
Olaf Davis [b.1883 d.1883]
Icie Davis [b.1886 d.1888]
Appearance:
Merry is a small scraggly boy, the result of years of inadequate nutrition, with deep tawny brown skin. At the moment with summer upon him he’s freckled and a little darker than usual. Coming in just under 4ft tall with wide brown eyes and a childish face, Merry barely looks eight years old.
At the moment Merry wears his black hair long and it’s easily the best kept part of him. It’s a right pain to be honest but it will fetch a good price for mother when he sells it to a hair broker.
Merry is constantly in motion, whether it be twisting something around in his hands (he uses both hands equally) or pacing a room. He can come across as flighty on first impression.
Merry has a big, genuine smile that shows off his rather incomplete collection of teeth. He has various nicks and burn scars on his hands from domestic accidents and nearly faded scars on his back, the only remaining mark of the punishment for when he was caught stealing last year.
When he starts at Hogwarts he’ll trade in his threadbare muggle clothes for a plain robe held together as much by magic as stitches.
History:
PRE MERRY [1755-1877]
Sena never had an easy life growing up. She spent a lot of her childhood on the street and then in a workhouse. She got out on an apprenticeship when she was eleven, she was treated like dirt. Her master’s business went under when she was fifteen and rather than re-enter the workhouse she ran away with Merrel, an apprentice from a nearby shop.
The next couple of years were the most stable of her life. She ended up marrying Merrel. Since he’d almost completed his apprenticeship when they left he was able to find decent work and they lived modestly but comfortably. Sena had two children; Coy [late 1871] and Maye [early 1873].
Scarcely six months after Maye’s birth Merrel died [mid 1873]. This left Sena destitute and desperate for her children would never see the inside of a workhouse. This meant near starvation and taking any work that came her way, including prostitution. She reconnected with her brother who was able to offer a little support but as he had his own family to feed this was only the difference between definitely starving and almost.
The next year Sena gave birth to another son, Tim [mid 1874]. Doing the math it isn’t quite clear whether he’s Merrel’s son or a bastard. Either way he was born close enough for people to let it slide. Alida on the other hand was born the following year [late 1875], far far too late to be Merrel’s child. People started talking in earnest and it became impossible to find decent work.
PRE LETTER
Merry was born in August 1877. He was half named for his mother’s late husband. By this time the family was constantly flirting with starvation. Tim was so weak he died of the flu the next winter [late 1888]. Orin was born [mid 1879] leaving Alida with five children under eight. The older three were already begging and stealing on the streets.
When Merry turned four [1881] he joined his siblings. He had an uncanny skill of making a target fumble for money and drop it from a distance even at a young age.
Coy, Maye and his older cousins started flitting in and out of his life as they’d run away for days on end, spend time in prison, give up and go to the workhouse etc.
Merry was lucky enough to spend some time in a ragged school. Not a lot but enough to teach him the basics of reading and how to write a little beyond his own name.
Sena had another son who died in infancy.
At seven [1884] Merry was caught stealing. While the policeman mysteriously stumbled and sprained an ankle on perfectly flat ground (he swore Merry had tripped him) Merry was ultimately caught and sent to prison. He was in there for two weeks and whipped before being released. After that he lost a lot of his nerve and turned to performing sleight of hand tricks on street corners for money. Those who didn’t tip him seemed oddly likely to drop things or stumble around Merry’s corner.
As young boys Orin and Merry were best friends and they’d play and joke around even while they were working. Alida was picked up off the street and sent to a workhouse. The family never heard of her again. Around the same time Sena gave birth to another daughter Icie [1886]. Having lost one brother and hearing the stories of the other Merry tried to close his heart to her but she wormed her way in anyway.
Personality:
While Merry doesn’t always follow the law to the letter he doesn’t mean any harm by it. If he’s hungry he’s going to eat even if the food isn’t his and if you pick on his brother, then maybe you deserve to fall down those last few stairs. He is a good person when he feels like he can be safely.
His strengths come in the form of his resilience, curiosity (although that gets him in as much trouble as anything) and deep loyalty for his friends and family. He will miss the latter terribly when he goes to Hogwarts. He isn’t afraid to cry when it comes to feelings and family but when it comes to physical things (hunger, pain, etc) you’ll find him stoic as a rock.
At first glance Merry is deeply suspicious and so twitchy you might not be surprised if he took flight in an instant. He hasn’t had much to do with people from the upper and middle classes so when he does he’ll be both shocked and bitter that people live like that. If you get past all that you’ll find Merry to be a great friend.
Other:
Skills: He knows some sleight of hand tricks (aided by unconscious magic), is good at hiding, has a great memory and can pick a lock
Wants: to go to this Hogwarts place and get a solid meal.
Dream: To get himself, his mother and his brother out of the slums
Can’t even: Write more than his own name (he can sort of read), be alone or have something happen to his mother or brother, the only constants in his life
Patronus: He’ll likely never cast one but it’s a field mouse
Boggart: His mother and brother dead. This plays into his fear of abandonment as well as his fear of something happening to his family.
Sample Roleplay Post:
Out-of-Character
Name: ElbeessAge: 22
Contact: PM Lilian Hill
Other Characters: Lilian Hill
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