Post by Cindra Rourke on Jun 24, 2009 21:15:49 GMT -5
FULL NAME:[/b] Cindra Tae Rourke
HAIR: Ginger
LIKES:[/b]
The calm before a storm
Cloudy days
Rain against a rooftop
Walks by moonlight
Autumn
Tea with three lumps and milk
Reading
Puzzles
A cracking fire
Being wet
Hot, sunny days
A crowded room
Small, dark spaces
Being lied to
Hiding behind a mask
Brandy
Loud Music
Scent of vanilla
The smell of antique books
Peonies
Fingertips grazing her back
Determined
Quick-witted
Intuitive
Trusting
Not easily angered
Secretive
Logical
Eager
Arithmancy
Charms
Trusting
Temper hard to control once angered
Doesn’t handle confrontation well
Stubborn
Emotional
Proud
Too optimistic
Desire for knowledge
Protective
Potions
She hates the lime light and will avoid any undue attention, preferring to slip by unnoticed, where it‘s safe. Weary at first, once she feels comfortable, and trusts someone, she will be less inclined to monitor her every action or word. Cindra hates confrontations and often attempts to alleviate tensions between others. Though she takes comfort in solitude at times, she prefers having company, even if only through proximity.
Control over her temper was learned at a young age, as he father’s was far greater than her own. She tries hard to please him and keep him happy, as well as others, which often makes her the miserable party. Aware of this, Cindra wishes she could be more bold and stand up for herself, but has had no luck so far.
FATHER: To both their knowledge, Luan Rourke
Tutored from an early age by her father, Cindra never attended a Muggle school, but often watched the neighborhood kids wistfully. Her best friend before entering Hogwarts was a calico cat her mother gave her for Christmas when she was five. Named Griggs, the cat lived only a few years before disappearing one night when she was ten. At Hogwarts, she was sorted into Ravenclaw and quickly found happiness in her lessons, the freedom of no longer being under her father’s watchful eye, and the companionship of peers her age. Though she had a few friends, she was closest to Mychal Brynn, a Muggleborn Hufflepuff, who shared her love of reading and puzzle-solving.
Her fifth year, her mother became pregnant with Luan’s child, and that following summer died giving birth to her baby brother. Luan was so devastated to lose his only heir, he forbid naming the child and any mention of him to this day. Cindra was at her mother’s side when she died; her last request being that Cindra do her best to be the daughter her father needed her to be.
Once she left Hogwarts, Cindra moved to Leeds in order to begin her Arithmancy apprenticeship, as her father desired. Since she loved the subject, she went willingly and studied under Master Devon Stasik, an acquaintance of her father’s. Often she wondered what role Luan may have played in Stasik accepting her, but she never had the nerve to act on it. During her studies, she saw first hand the harsh reality of Muggle and Muggleborn prejudices, her Master a prime example. Not wanting to miss the educational opportunity, upset Luan, and frankly afraid to cross the menacing wizard she saw night and day, she bit her tongue and did her best to absorb the truths around her and ignore them at the same time.
Her one comfort during this time was Mychal. Working as a curse breaker, he did his best to visit her when time allowed. What neither anticipated was the shift in their relationship, which was increasingly more intimate. Stasik stumbled upon them in their first relatively innocent embrace just weeks before she finished her studies. The day Stasik confirmed her successful completion, Luan informed her of Mychal’s death, an unfortunate accident at work.
Cindra suspects her father and former Arithmancy Master are involved in more than they let on, but like her mother, she prefers to turn a blind eye. She knows her father is a strong, connected wizard and though she loves him, she fears him as well. Her prayers were answered when the Arithmancy position opened at Hogwarts, and though she thinks the fact she studied under Stasik may have played a role in her getting the job, she gladly accepted it as she wanted to teach as well as keep her distance from both wizards.
ALIAS: Cristin
Pulling her jacket tighter around her, Cindra walked up the grassy hill, the Black Lake disappearing from view behind her as she headed back towards the castle. It had been dusk when she set out for a walk along the Lake’s edge, enjoying the crisp, cool air of late September and the rustling of leaves in the Forbidden Forest, heard even along the wet shore with each strong gust of wind.
There she found a tranquility and peace she hardly found elsewhere, the sound of her footsteps and the feel of her hair whipping around her face soothing as her thoughts were free to wander without worry. Here, there was rarely ever an eye on her, she could let her features change with her thoughts without them being read or interpreted by inquiring minds. She could relax.
Often she found herself thinking of Mychal on these walks. Time was beginning to fade his image in her mind but she still recalled how she felt when she first looked at his eyes and saw more than friendship in them, causing a smile to spread on her lips. It was cool outside, the temperature continuing to fall each minute that past, but she didn’t feel it. Cindra was warm thinking of those eyes.
She let the memory wash over her again as she reached the graveled path that would lead her back inside, the soles of her shoes making loud crunching noises as she moved forward at a leisurely pace. The sky was dark now, and the moon bright, and it wouldn’t be wise to be out much longer, but she couldn’t help taking her time to enjoy this simple pleasure. Walking past a tree that blocked the sight of the moon, she paused to admire it’s strangely beautiful landscape when she heard a footstep on the gravel several yard behind her.
Jolted from her reverie, Cindra whipped her head around and looked behind her. A moment passed silently, her heart climbing in her throat, her eyes scanning the path behind her as she slid her hand in her pocket and fingered her wand. “Hello?” Her voice broke with the word, but she couldn’t have prevented it.
The wind blew past, weaker than before, and nothing out of the ordinary moved, no one replied, not even a wayward shadow was to be seen. Still, she no longer felt comfortable out there in the deepening dark. Quickly, she turned back towards the castle, picking up her pace as she slid her wand into her sleeve, ready should the need arise. A few yards down the path she heard the footsteps again, matching her new pace.
Instead of stopping, this time she broke out in a run, the gravel of the path being hammered loudly behind her. Her jacket forgotten, it flapped wildly as she ran the short distance left to the large oak door that seemed more like a haven than ever before. Her feet slid as she came to a stop in front of it, her left toe slamming into the stone step painfully, and quickly pulled the door open. Her pulse was pounding in her ears so loudly she could no longer be sure if she heard anything anymore. Whether the were still footsteps or not, she shouldered the door and slammed it shut with all her might, grabbing the wooden crossbar and dropping it in place before spinning to press her back to the stone wall beside it.
Perhaps she had imagined it all, it was rather crazy to imagine someone would be on the grounds stalking like that, let alone with a reason to cause her such alarm, yet she couldn’t help the sense of unease running through her veins. Closing her eyes, she let her head fall back against the cold stone with a sigh and tried to convince herself she was just overreacting. It was working too.
Until there was a loud crash at the door.
