LOVEGOOD, Xenophilius

[xenolovegood]

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About You - -

Name: Penny
Gender: Female
Age: Sixteen
Years of RPG Experience: Three and a bit. Many more, if you count the roleplaying section of Neopets.
Other: [Removed by Staff]

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Quick Quiz - -

How did you find us? Google, originally! But this time, I suppose, because I have another character.
What about ISS inspired you to join? How active and organized it is.
Do you have any suggestions for us? Nope. =D

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About the Character- -

Name: Xenophilius Chrysander Lovegood
Age: Eighteen
Gender: Male
Year: Seventh
Face Claim: Henry Cavill

Canon or Original? Canon

Facial Properties:
One could be forgiven for assuming that Xenophilius (or, as he prefers to be called, Xeno) is insane, but he's by no means unattractive. Indeed, he's quite the opposite, and whilst he no longer really retains any vestiges of the baby-face that he possessed as a youth, his appearance now is generally regarded as being arresting and even compelling, though that may be stretching it the slightest bit. His facial structure is strong and masculine, beginning with a broad, almost dominating forehead and tapering down slightly to end in a square, well-defined jaw. He quite likes his chin and jawline, as they lend a ruggedness to his face that it would otherwise lack. Unlike many people, whose jaws connect with and meld into their necks nicely, Xeno's juts out somewhat, giving him the impression of a defiance that he doesn't actually have. A cleft in the exact center of his chin appears to be deep at first glance, but when the boy smiles it all but disappears as his face stretches. In stark contrast to his protuberant jaw, his cheekbones are not readily apparent in the slightest. Some at Hogwarts have been gifted with angular bone structures and fine, haughty cheekbones, but Xenophilius definitely doesn't number among those lucky few. Certainly, they're visible, but they just don't stand out all that much and when one takes into account the rest of his features, perhaps it's for the best. The boy's lips are soft and almost sensual looking, and are naturally curved up slightly at the corners in a manner that ensures that he never looks entirely unhappy unless he's frowning. Xeno's smile has been described as 'lazy' in that it's always one of those slow, relaxed grins that often cause other people to respond in kind. It's a little bit cheeky, too, as though he's been doing something especially naughty (although other than when he's Crumple-Horned Snorkack hunting, he is a stickler for the rules) but he has never been able to fathom a reason for this, as roguishness isn't generally a part of his nature. His teeth are straight (he is one of the few who have never needed anything done in the way of either magical or mundane tooth alignment) and very white, and so when he does flash his elusive grin, the effect is at the very least pleasantly surprising.

He has a tendency to forget about shaving sometimes and as a result can often be seen sporting a light stubble - something which, unfortunately, adds to the general consensus that Xenophilius Lovegood is quite mad. It's not as though he looks bad when this transpires, but Xeno does try to avoid going about unshaven for the most part, simply because stubble can get itchy and he'd rather not have to contend with a prickly face. Xeno's brows are dark, but not especially thick - average, if you will. They arch slightly in a fashion that makes him look permanently inquisitive (and he is, for the most part), but also causes him to appear very serious, and even stern. Beneath these eyebrows rest what are by far Xeno's best features - his eyes. Bright, sky blue rings form his irises, although they do darken to a sort of stormy hue toward the outer edges. When he's feeling under the weather and his eyes go bleary with sickness, they appear to be almost a dull grey in colouration, however. They immediately seize the attention of those who are looking at him, and every other aspect of his face just about pales in comparison. His eyes are perhaps the only trait that he's inherited from his mother, and while this is of cause for some concern to Xenophilius, he is aware that he has a direct, almost challenging gaze and is grateful for that fact. He's the sort of boy whose eyes are never particularly guarded or reserved, because indeed, they convey just about his every emotion, and he seems like a more genuine person as a result of it. When he smiles, the expression reaches all the way to his eyes and he practically exudes a feeling of warmth - apparently, despite the fact that many label him 'that nutty Ravenclaw', he's very easy to be around once people get to know him and not even particularly intimidating at all to begin with. He's not exactly sure if this pleases him, but at least it's a good thing that he seems approachable? It's a rather different story when he's angry, though - his face flushes pink and his eyes become positively flinty, actually making him look quite as crazy as some who only know him by reputation or the scarcest acquaintance believe he is.

Xenophilius' nose is an odd one, and he supposes that in comparison to the rest of his face, it's a little short. It's also very straight, though by no means could it ever reasonably be called aristocratic, simply because it's what some refer to as a 'button nose'. The tip of his nose isn't upturned, however - it's quite the opposite actually, flattened slightly when he took a fall from his broom many years ago after his brother used him as a moving target for Beater practice. He can't quite put his finger on it (not in the physical sense, of course) but his nose does give his face as a whole an odd kind of charm, and since the words 'odd kind of charm' pretty much sum up his entire personality, he's decided that it's actually a good thing. His ears stick out a little bit from his head (not enough to cause concern or anything), but they're an average size and his hair partially covers the tops of them anyway. Indeed, his hair is another one of his better features - dark brown in colour for the most part, although in winter it appears darker and when the sunlight hits it just right it appears to be shot through with lighter undertones. It's thick and lustrous, but somehow instead of feeling coarse and wiry, it remains smooth and feathery to the touch. For the sake of being able to read without the interference of a bothersome fringe, his hair is kept at a manageable length - not extremely short, but not overly long either. It's usually straight, but if he sleeps on it wet it'll acquire a gentle curl to it. Xeno has a habit of ruffling his hair constantly when he's thinking about something in great detail, and so more often than not he looks like an absolute mess because of it. Considering the fact that he can't go for more than a few minutes without pondering some interesting fact or other, his hair is hardly ever completely neat unless he makes a conscious effort to keep it that way, despite the fact that he washes it regularly and combs it every day. To attempt to glance at the bright side of this perpetual unruliness, at least the mad scientist look kind of suits him, appearing more cute than unkempt most of the time if he's lucky. Nonetheless, he's aware that his hair is one of the major reasons that people take him for a disorganised maniac, and so he's attempting to rectify this foible of his.

Physique:
Xenophilius Lovegood isn't exactly the sort of person that the majority would expect to be well-built, and that's a good thing, because if the situation were otherwise then he'd be sure to disappoint. That being said, however, he's not a thin rake of a young man, either - the best way to describe the boy's physique would be to call it lean and leave it at that, but he was always one for analysing things and has decided that 'lean' doesn't quite sum it up as well as it should. Xeno possesses broad shoulders, though whether he came by these through advantageous genetics or through the rigorous physical exercise that his elder brother Apollonius put him through when they were children, he's not quite sure. He is certainly tall, however, coming in at an impressive, but easily beatable 6'2", and this balances out those shoulders of his, averting the potential disaster of him looking stocky and bulky. Height isn't always a blessing, though, and in Xeno's case it's made for some rather interesting falls over the years as various growth spurts have ensued. To this day, he still manages to trip over his rather large feet with more regularity than he'd like, and he's come to terms with the fact that it's very likely he'll never be quite as graceful and light on his feet as some of his friends are. He has enough dignity and self-preservation about him to avoid dancing if he can (though he often gets persuaded to try), because the results of such endeavours are not very attractive. Indeed, they're downright laughable - when forced to perform uniform movements and confine himself to a particular way of walking or swinging his arms, he becomes nervous and rather focused on trying to get it just right, but what occurs is exactly the opposite, and his self-consciousness makes him ungainly - all arms and legs. He is most at ease within his own comfort zone - that is, anywhere that is not a dancefloor. Oddly enough, he only stumbles when he's trying very hard not to, and when this realization came about, he began relaxing and attempting to be less like the compulsive Ravenclaw he was so accustomed to being. Now, he moves with a sort of loping grace - nowhere near flawless fluidity, but not all that clumsy either. Most of the time.

He's never been overly fond of physical activity, because sport is like dancing and one has to be able to move in certain ways to...say, play football well. Still, he's somehow managed to develop a toned musculature, despite the fact that he has no idea where it came from. He swears by the explanation that years of Plimpy fishing and Wrackspurt swatting are to blame, but in reality, it's more likely that his years of helping his older brother practice Quidditch (and, by association, practice it himself) and a fast metabolism are the cause. Yes, he's fit and, to stretch it somewhat, even muscular, but definitely not in a way that is visible just by looking at him. Indeed, the boy would probably have to whip off his shirt to prove that he's not just scrawny, and since the odds of that ever happening are somewhere in the negatives, he'll have to settle for being thought of as a lanky boy, because, in truth, apart from his shoulders and the slight (so slight that it's actually nearly unnoticeable) muscle definition that he has, that's pretty much what he is. Xeno has somewhat big hands (to go with his equally large feet) and this only exacerbates the rather stretched look he has about him. The school uniform helps him out a little bit here, because the way that it sits on his frame is actually flattering, hard to believe though it may be. Xeno tries his best to wear the uniform neatly, but he has the tendency to allow his thoughts to run away with him and as a result often shows up to class with some buttons undone and a half-loosened tie, which Professors often ask that he fix. Out of uniform, he's even more careless about his appearance, dressing for comfort rather than style (because beauty is pain, and it doesn't suit him all that much anyway) and without any regard for colour co-ordination. He has actually literally dressed in the dark before, and certainly looked it, but in the interests of maintaining some pride in the Ravenclaw house and preventing Xenophilius from wandering around the school like he's dressed for a mardi gras, his friends often stop him and make him wear something decent before allowing him to set foot outside Ravenclaw Tower. When he makes a concerted effort about his appearance and stops thinking about new things to write or inventions to cobble together, he actually scrubs up very nicely and looks...well, handsome, even.

Personality:

DON'T YOU GET IT, DON'T YOU GET IT?;; impatient

Now, it is often said that with great intelligence comes a certain sense of general disquietude, and when someone is as prone to having crazy ideas as Xeno is, it makes for an odd combination. The boy has a rather short attention span, and it sometimes shows when he's associating with people who aren't necessarily so quick to grasp his zany thought process. In typical Ravenclaw fashion, he gets exasperated by sheer stupidity and ignorance, and actually taps his foot fitfully if someone he's conversing with is being particularly dense. Often, he makes huge, intuitive leaps and becomes rather frustrated when it takes more time for him to explain these proclaimed 'breakthroughs' than it did for him to come up with them. He doesn't actively try to be short with his peers - it just happens that way sometimes, when he's feeling particularly antsy (...almost all the time). Xeno tried tutoring people in younger grades for a little while, just to see how it worked out for him (and to figure out whether or not he could impart important knowledge about Blibbering Humdingers to his fellow students) but the experiment was a failure, mostly because his proteges were more concerned with blowing spitballs at each other than focusing on what he was trying to say. Fact: Xenophilius Lovegood does not enjoy being dismissed or ignored, and when this happens (because some have taken it upon themselves before to pretend that he's not there just so that they can avoid his awkward conversation) his inherent impatience emerges, and he'll stand there blinking disconcertingly, foot tapping away to a steady, if not irritating beat, until he's acknowledged. He seems filled with a perpetual energy, always ready to do this or that, as long as it's interesting to him or there's something to be learned, and he moves through days and weeks so zealously that his enthusiasm is almost startling to behold.

'CAUSE THAT'S JUST RIDICULOUSLY ODD;; eccentric

He's odd, to put it simply, and always has been. Xenophilius is a man of many irregularities, and he dances through life to his own erratic offbeat. The boy positively adores uncommon facts and whimsical objects, and he makes no secret of the fact that he is quirky to his peers. Some call him a lunatic - others find him amusing, but no matter what their opinions of him are, Xeno is singular and unique, and wouldn't have it any other way. He's been fascinated with all things strange since he was very young (perhaps a side effect of spending countless hours puzzling over what his father did at the Department of Mysteries) and is very unpredictable, to the point that trying to follow his endless supply of peculiarities is nothing short of dizzying. He can compose himself enough to be rational and logical in a conversation (simply for the purpose of not driving everyone insane), but it's always there, that excitement at the prospect of going and reading up on something new and outlandish once it's over. He bounces between personalities like a ball, capable of being perfectly serious, absolutely crazy or boyish in his desire to discover. A self-professed explorer, he prides himself on knowing insignificant details that nobody else would pay the slightest bit of attention to and supplying this information at the strangest (and in many cases, most inappropriate) of times. He is also a collector, quite magpie-like in his fondness for acquiring stamps and odd ends, because he is one of the rare sorts of people who can see value in everything and everyone even if nobody returns the favour. The word 'conformity' leaves a bad taste in his mouth, simply because it's so mundane. Then again, lumping him with all the other non-conformists out there would probably offend the boy, because he's his own special brand of abnormal, and he'd like to believe that he's very close to, if not wholly inimitable.

PRAYING FOR LOVE AND PAYING IN NAIVETE;; gullible

When the gift of being able to judge whether or not a person's lying was being given out, Xenophilius was facing the opposite direction. He's always been a very open minded fellow, and tends to believe what he's told without question. It makes him an extremely good listener, true, but by the same token it can also be a problem if people attempt to take advantage of his unusual nature. Indeed, the psychiatrists that his mother made him visit as a child concluded that the causes of his imaginative and unnaturally inclined personality were the fairytales that his father used to read to him and his older brother, which Apollonius scoffed at but Xenophilius took to heart with complete childlike belief in the extraordinary. He'll believe just about anything as long as it's within logical boundaries, and sometimes he even dissolves these said restrictions if he wants to trust in someone or something enough. He thinks that most people are cynics, choosing never to take something seriously until it is proven, but he's the exact opposite, forever challenging the disbelievers to disprove one of his theories. He's quite deplorable when it comes to younger, misbehaving students, as they take capitalize on the fact that he can and will listen to whatever excuses they come up with, no matter how ridiculous they happen to be. For a very intelligent person, he can be quite dense, because sometimes he even takes people's jokes and sarcastic remarks seriously, which leads to misunderstandings, awkward situations and general confusion, for the most part. But then again, what's new? That's generally what ends up happening when Xenophilius so much as enters a room. He even thinks that Santa Claus exists, a belief that his peers grew out of many years ago - yes, indeed, when it comes to myths and legends, Xenophilius' mind is almost childish, choosing to persist in its belief in the abnormal rather than think as rationally as Xeno is capable of being.

WHAT A WONDERFUL CARICATURE OF INTIMACY;; warm-hearted

For all his fellow students assume that he's absolutely off his rocker, Xenophilius is actually a marvellous person, if a bit of a character. His father calls him 'a heart of gold with a wacky exterior' and although Xeno would never presume to think so highly of himself, it's true. He's always got time for others, because even if he's busy he'll actually make time. His opinion is that if a person needs help or someone to talk to, investigating Heliopaths and Nargles can wait indefinitely. He genuinely despises witnessing people's unhappiness, and seeing people (especially girls) cry mortifies him - he'll pretty much do anything humanly possible to avoid tears. Yes, that includes calming down from his usual oddball self in order to comfort and give advice, although admittedly sometimes his sage words of wisdom aren't quite what a normal person would offer. He performs acts of kindness without really thinking about them, holding doors open, helping people pick up dropped books, and providing help with homework questions where possible, even though sometimes he has been known to get tricked into doing entire assignments by particularly shrewd peers. He's weird, yes, but he'll listen for hours to someone's problems without complaint, and really, that's what matters, and not how many Wrackspurts he thinks he can see floating around people's heads. Xeno has all of the best intentions possible, but sometimes they just don't translate all that well into his behaviour. Slightly socially awkward as a result of his unconventional beliefs and the responses that his schoolmates have to them, he has a tendency to ramble a bit when trying to help because ideas about how to assist people pile up on top of each other in his mind and somehow all come out of his mouth at the same time. He'll eventually get the right words out there, but even when he remains silent to avoid embarrassing waffling, he's sort of a comforting presence to be around anyway.

WHERE YOU'RE A CUT ABOVE ALL THE REST;; sweet

By no stretch of the imagination could someone like Xenophilius Lovegood be called romantic, but he does handle matters of the heart in his own special way. He rarely develops 'crushes' on girls, but when he does he's fervent, often tongue-tied and, if it's even possible, stranger than normal. He's even gone so far as to send some of them containers of Plimpy soup or his own special Gurdyroot infusion as signs of his devotion, and he assumes that these gifts are well received. Fortunately for the objects of his affection, however, for the most part he merely admires girls from afar, appreciating beauty and vibrant personalities. Strangely enough, Xeno does make an effort to stay away from the girls that he takes to, because not only does he sometimes lapse into bouts of characteristic Ravenclaw shyness around the fairer sex, but he's also quite simply terrified of saying the wrong thing and scaring them off. He has a habit of just observing girls he finds fascinating, but he has never mastered the art of subtlety and so if they catch him at it, he immediately becomes horrified and looks away, completely embarrassed. Still, if he manages to get over this initial bashful attitude, he is gentle and thoughtful, and provides no challenge whatsoever for some of the more manipulative girls at Hogwarts to wrap around their little fingers. Indeed, if he grows comfortable enough around someone he admires, he becomes very accommodating - servile, even. This attitude extends to all members of his family, too, though (minus the Plimpy soup), because he'd do anything for them. He's always had close ties with his relatives (even his brother), and is surprisingly 'normal' around them - or at least, as much as he can be. The one sure-fire way to get Xeno's back up is to threaten his family or make negative remarks about them - if he perceives a danger about his family, he will do whatever it takes (morals discarded) to prevent or remove it.

WE'LL PICK BACK UP ON THAT ON ANOTHER PAGE;; inventive

They say that great minds think alike - in Xeno's case, this is a lie, but he is frightfully intelligent. He's always been able to grasp difficult concepts in about the same time that it takes him to click his fingers together. Numbers, words, chemical equations - they pose no problem for him, and he has the ability to retain information (most of it irrelevant) for as long as necessary. It's said that curiosity killed the cat, but Xenophilius is fairly sure that no harm will come of his healthy appetite for knowledge. So, alright, he can be a little annoying if someone interests him (he tends to almost follow them around trying to figure them out, completely unintentionally and unconsciously) but he can draw a line. Sometimes. The boy absolutely loves to write - the genre doesn't matter to him, as long as he's using words and shaping stories. He often chooses to take his pen to the oddest and most controversial topics, because he believes that there is nothing more important than startling people and making them come to realizations that they would probably otherwise never arrive at. Xenophilius is...creative, if that's the most accurate word for it, and he channels his innumerable ideas into ingenious (or so he claims them to be) inventions. To date, he's created and put his name to a pair of flying shoes (taking the idea from the legend of Hermes' magical sandals) and he's always churning out little, intriguing gadgets for the purpose of entertaining others. With his astounding intellect has come the ability to be very witty in conversation if people stick around long enough to hear what he has to say to them. In the rare event that he realizes that someone's making fun of him, he's quick to come up with a snappy retort, and a discussion with him is certainly never boring.

THAT'S WHEN YOU ST-ST-STUTTER SOMETHING PROFOUND;; honest

The idea of always telling the truth is repulsive to some people, but Xenophilius can't imagine going about life any other way. He has a habit of always making apparent facts about other people's looks and personalities, to the point where it makes some of the other students at Hogwarts completely uncomfortable. If he knows that a person is mocking him, he'll say so in a very matter-of-fact and truthful manner, and such statements are often accompanied by a tangible feeling of pride in the fact that he's picked up on a cruel aspect in someone's nature. Just as he is incapable of sensing when people are lying to him, he's also completely hopeless when it comes to telling them fibs, because he's never had the inclination to deceive someone before. Xeno speaks with such a fervent intensity in his voice (often supported by wild arm-flapping and hand gestures as he tries to make his point) that it's near impossible to doubt what he's saying anyway. This is probably one of the reasons that most people think he's downright dotty, because it's obvious that he actually believes all of the crazy tales that he tells about Aquavirius Maggots. The Ravenclaw is often avoided by his peers, because he's very frank and forthright when he's speaking, and he doesn't possess the inherent (in most people) ability to guess whether or not what he says will offend or startle people. Xeno's a quick thinker but miraculously his mouth is sometimes faster than his thought process, and as a result he has a tendency to says things without bothering to be very diplomatic or considering the possible outcomes. At least people can rely on him for reputable and impartial opinions, but his refusal to sugar-coat situations has left many people wary of his company.

SLOW, LEAVE WALKING TO THE WORLD;; vague

A few people at Hogwarts seem to hold the idea that Xeno is not quite 'all there'. He's as sharp as a tack, intellect-wise, but it does have to be conceded that his hold on reality is tenebrous at best. Sometimes...well, a lot of the time he has a habit of getting caught up in whatever interesting text he happens to be reading and therefore he misses out on valuable social interactions. It's because he can live through his books, and travel to where it is physically impossible nowadays - novels can transport him to the building site of the Pyramids of Giza, or to stand before the Emperor in a Roman Coliseum. The most obscure things can suddenly become real, and he appreciates that. He has been known to occasionally ignore people without meaning to because he tends to lose contact with the world around him completely when his attention is fully focused on something else (in these cases, books). It doesn't cause too many problems in the long run, but he has been left wondering every now and then why some acquaintances who don't know him very well get angry at him for no apparent reason. The same thing goes for the few conversations that he deigns to involve himself in - if, for some reason, they cease to intrigue him he'll frequently tune out and sit there for minutes on end with an obviously vacant expression in his blue eyes. He still takes in what's being said and absorbs it, but he'll often forget to respond as his mind wanders to far off, impalpable places. People have commented before that he doesn't seem to know what his purpose is when he shows up somewhere, and this has been known to happen. He'll walk around aimlessly, thinking about something or other, and wind up somewhere that he hadn't even thought of visiting. Sometimes he is sketchy about providing full details, and sometimes he gives too many to be taken seriously - it all depends, because he's truly never predictable.

Likes:
+ Books
+ Vibrant personalities
+ Odds and ends
+ Imagination
+ Writing
+ Inventing ingenious new items
+ Pretty girls
+ Plimpy soup
+ Crumple-Horned Snorkack hunting
+ His family
+ Helping others out
+ Gurdyroot infusion
+ Quidditch
+ Honesty
+ Mythical creatures
+ Good jokes
+ Bright colours
+ Uncommon facts
+ Santa Claus
+ Challenging normalcy
+ Anti-authoritarianism

Dislikes:
– Cynics
– Liars (though it's not like he actually knows any)
– Conformity
– People who threaten his relatives
– Nargles
– Being shy
– Getting ignored or underestimated
– Dancing
– Seeing people cry
– Wrackspurts
– Those who lack imagination
– Having his inventions laughed at
– Psychiatrists
– The mundane
– Being judged based on first impressions
– The Ministry of Magic

History:

BIRTHPLACE: Ottery St. Catchpole, England
BIRTH DATE: 21st of February, 1959
FAMILY:
Lysander Lovegood - Father [51]
Nicolette Lovegood (nee. Thornton) - Mother [49]
Apollonius Lovegood - Brother [21]

YOU JUST MIGHT SWALLOW YOUR TONGUE;; the very beginning

Lysander Lovegood was the sort of man who was referred to by all he knew as a 'Pureblood with a purpose'. Graduating from Hogwarts as a Ravenclaw with flying colours, he was hailed as one of the brightest young minds of his time and quickly offered a high paying job at the Ministry of Magic - to be precise, a position in the Department of Mysteries. His coveted job as an Unspeakable involved his being sent away on several classified jobs to retrieve all sorts of strange and marvellous items, but he absolutely loved his work because it made him seem so very intriguing to anyone that he encountered. One of these people was Nicolette Thornton, a young woman who was...well, a bit of a snob. She'd been raised in one of those households - a purely Pureblood family who made sure she had a simultaneously luxurious and miserable existence whilst constantly reminding her of her own superiority. She took everything very seriously, and hoarded attention just about as much as Lysander collected oddities. She had been a Slytherin at Hogwarts, but she wasn't exactly horrible, per se - she was more composed and aloof than anything else. Quite the intellectual, she went to Belgium to learn Flemish after she left school, and it was there that she and Lysander first met. He had been sent to the country to try and capture a specimen from a particularly rare sub-species of Ashwinder because it was purported that the magical snake's entrails had prophetic properties and he specialised in all things mystical. Lysander had to find a wizard or witch in Belgium who was capable of speaking enough English to direct him towards the Ashwinder nest, and the contact that the Ministry set him up with was none other than a fellow English native. He went in to meet her with enthusiasm, but was surprised to find that she viewed the help she was giving him as a trivial task which was getting in the way of her studies. To say the least, Lysander was offended, but Nicolette was unconcerned - after all, she was the one being gracious enough to assist him, and so he couldn't complain about the fact that she wasn't being as friendly as he'd expected her to be. Nonetheless, the fact that she could speak English freely again was rather nice.

His charm was contagious, and although she did her best to resist it, she was too interested to decline when he invited her to go and search for the Ashwinders with him. They went out together on an overcast Winter morning, because Lysander claimed that cold weather was the best way to negate the extraordinary heat that Ashwinder eggs emanated. It was a long trek, and Nicolette started by remaining utterly silent - a fact which irritated Lysander to no end. Usually when faced with an Unspeakable, most people tripped over themselves to ask him questions about his occupation, but she didn't say anything at all. She was barely even civil, and so out of determination he began to pester her, bringing up random topics in an effort to engage her in conversation. They didn't find any elusive magical creatures, but by the end of the day she knew just about everything there was to know about him (that he could tell her without violating the conditions of his job) and he still knew next to nothing about her. Resolute, he asked to meet her again, but she refused. Lysander was not the type to give up easily at all, and so he literally stalked her for a while, following her to a coffee shop one day with the intent to get her to at least speak to him. Her reaction when he took a seat across the table from her was not pretty, but after she'd beat him around the head for a good five minutes with her handbag he managed to get her to calm down and assure her that he wasn't insane and that he didn't have intentions of killing her. The next two hours passed with Lysander heaping compliment after compliment on Nicolette, trying to convince her to tell him more about herself, and eventually she got so sick of being pestered that she relented. Nicolette waxed eloquent about having spent many years brought up in a stiff and proper family, and about how she made it her mission at Hogwarts to prove that she was better than everyone else and live up to her family's expectations. Lysander perceived that she was distant, yes, but he also recognized the great charm and wit with which she spoke, and yes, he became attracted to her, because the fact that she was very pretty only helped matters along.

IT'S TIME FOR US TO TAKE A CHANCE;; baby boy in a rook-shaped house

Once Nicolette completed her studies of Flemish in Belgium, she returned to England to be with her family once more. Over the years that she did her course, she'd stayed in touch with Lysander, writing letters to the bold and sometimes inappropriate Unspeakable. What she didn't expect when she walked into the arrivals hall of the airport was to see him again, waiting for her with the rest of her family. As soon as she drew near them with her luggage, Lysander got down on bended knee and drew out an impressively large Harry Winston. He professed love and all other sorts of poetry to her and then asked her to marry him, and she was intent on refusing him (because it was hardly the sort of way that she wanted to become engaged) but one glance over the kneeling man's shoulder saw that both of her parents were nodding their heads emphatically, urging her to accept. She did, although in the coming weeks she found herself regretting her desire to please her family as Lysander dashed about planning the wedding even more fervently than her mother was. He was full of devotion for his bride-to-be, desperate for her to become less stern and forbidding. She was not a particularly happy bride on the day of her marriage, but that changed soon afterwards. Lysander showed her more kindness than anyone else she'd ever known before, and he placed her firmly on a pedestal in his mind - his adoration of her was perfect for her attention-seeking personality. Nicolette found herself gradually opening up - laughing at his jokes, occasionally touching his arm tenderly, and eventually she realized that she was quite in love with the man, no matter how ridiculous she considered his work in the Department of Mysteries. Their first son was born not long after the couple's third wedding anniversary, and Lysander fondly christened him Apollonius, after the Greek God of the sun, in the hope that he'd bring even more light into their lives than they already had. As he grew older, it became apparent that he was quite average intelligence-wise, but he did have a prodigious talent for Quidditch - something which Nicolette encouraged, throwing him onto a broom as soon as he could walk.

Right before Apollonius reached his third birthday, Nicolette gave birth to another baby boy, and in keeping with the theme of Greek names, Lysander named him Xenophilius Chrysander Lovegood. Xenophilius actually meant 'lover of strange things', because Lysander was determined that his new son would grow up to appreciate his father's work. Shortly before Xenophilius was born, Lysander and Nicolette had moved their young family into a new home, near the peaceful village of Ottery St. Catchpole. This home was in fact more of a tower than anything else - a giant, black stone structure shaped very much like a chess rook, it was the place that Xenophilius grew up in, and the aura of peculiarity that the place exuded was a large influence for Xenophilius while he grew up. It was soon established that Apollonius was the sporty son and that Xenophilius was the intellectual - while Apollo played Quidditch and flew endless circles around the cylindrical house, Xeno would sit in the garden, trying to teach himself how to read. Apollonius was definitely the more dominant personality, too, often roping the pleasant and accommodating Xeno into helping him perform Beater practice. Xeno played the part of the Chaser, zooming around with a Quaffle under one arm and performing as many swerves as possible to avoid his older brother's deadly aim. It never completely worked out for him, as he took more than one fall from his broom, but eventually he became quite good at flying and dodging - almost, but not quite skilled enough to always avoid his brother's well-positioned strikes.

FIRST NAME BASIS WITH ALL THE TOP PHYSICIANS;; they don't exist, xeno

Xenophilius loved stories of any nature, and Lysander was more than willing to provide them to his enthusiastic, quick-witted little boy. He wove splendid tales of Blibbering Humdingers, Aquavirius Maggots and even Santa Claus, of all people, and Xeno practically devoured them. Apollonius always looked upon these stories with a sort of lofty disbelief, but Xeno took them to heart in the way that only a truly innocent child could. He soon came to believe in these mythical creatures, preferring daydreaming about them to keeping actual human company. Lysander was tremendously proud, but Nicolette was concerned - why did her son believe in these silly little things? Lysander reasoned that Xeno was still young, still learning, and that he'd soon grow out of it, but no such development came about. When Xenophilius began going on Crumple-Horned Snorkack hunts and started batting at Wrackspurts, it was the last straw for a horrified Nicolette. She took him to see a psychiatrist soon after he started 'behaving oddly', but the doctor provided no conclusive results. He told Nicolette that her son's behaviour was nothing to worry about and that he'd pass through the phase, as all children did (and as Apollonius had), but he didn't. Another year passed, and Nicolette became increasingly fretful. More visits to what Xeno began referring to as 'shrinks' took place, and Apollonius would tease Xenophilius about being 'loony' and needing 'help, you nutter'. Nicolette would never be satisfied with the answers that the people would provide, and so Xeno was bounced from psychiatrist to psychiatrist, always getting the same answer (that there was nothing wrong with him), until one brave 'shrink' provided Nicolette with the diagnosis that she was looking for. Xenophilius was too excitable, too trusting and possessed of a childish mind, and he had to be kept away from all things that would stimulate his over-active imagination.

Soon Xeno's books disappeared and Nicolette tried to stifle his magic, but it emerged anyway on the boy's ninth birthday. Lysander couldn't find a match to light the candles on the birthday cake, and so with the proud exclamation that he could do it, Xeno pointed one small finger at the candles and ended up setting the whole cake on fire. Lysander was amused and pleased, but Nicolette was horrified - all she wanted was for her son to be normal. She told Lysander to stop giving Xeno stories, but the boy's father thought this approach to be nothing short of ridiculous. The boy's bond with his father grew so much stronger over the next few years, as Lysander would take his son in his arms and quietly tell him where to find all of his books. At Xenophilius' insistence, Lysander would go into his son's room after Nicolette fell asleep and tell him the stories that he so desperately craved to hear. Old British castles, roaring dragons and Nargles were painted vividly in Xenophilius' young mind, and he revelled in his imagination, because it was just as good as being there in the stories. Lysander cherished Xenophilius' eccentricities, and told him never to change, no matter how much trouble he was given by his mother for his personality. Lysander said that Xenophilius was a rare mind, and that of course his intelligence was going to manifest in creative ways. Xenophilius believed him, and his father's words stuck with the boy - he was never going to change.

YOU'D GET ALL OF THE ATTENTION;; to hogwarts! ...will there be plimpies?

When Xenophilius' letter from Hogwarts arrived, Lysander was delighted, despite the fact that of course he'd been expecting it. Apollonius had gone to the school three years before, and Xenophilius had spent that period of time constantly urging his parents to let him go too, because he was smart enough and he could handle it, he was sure. Lysander had said that Xenophilius would have to wait his turn to go to school, and finally it had arrived. Nicolette was slightly resentful - who was going to keep him away from all those books now? Still, neither Lysander nor Xenophilius paid her feelings on the matter much mind, and after going to Diagon Alley to buy all of Xeno's school supplies, he went to Hogwarts. It was fairly anticlimactic, as far as taking classes went, but it was still a castle and Xenophilius could hardly believe that fact. He soon made a name for himself as being a bit of an oddball, and quickly learned that students either liked him very much for his quirks or hated him for them. He was called many names throughout his early years at the school, but steadfastly took his father's advice and refused to change to fit in - besides, how would he have done so? He didn't know any other way to behave. Apollonius, for the most part, pretended that his little brother didn't exist, but they still went out of a weekend and practiced Quidditch together - a testament to their strong familial bond. Xenophilius excelled in almost all of his classes, being possessed of a very keen mind, but he was bored. Soon he took to writing stories of his own and inventing odd objects with which he aimed to make the wizarding world a better place. When Apollonius graduated from the school, Xenophilius was left confused by the fact that he was all alone for the first time in his life for a little while, but soon came to embrace the freedom that this meant for him. He threw himself into his books with more energy than ever and started conducting research about the topics which had always interested him.

News reached him that Apollonius had been offered a position as a curse-breaker for Gringotts and that Nicolette was fit to be tied with absolute pride. Xenophilius, of course, was glad for his brother, as it was exactly the sort of occupation that he'd always imagined Apollo taking up. Still, the idea of such a dangerous and glamorous life didn't appeal to him - he wanted to write, to invent, and to share his ideas with the wider world. People, he discovered at Hogwarts, could sometimes be narrow-minded, and so early in his Seventh Year, he made it his goal in life to try and open their eyes to all of the possibilities before them (or at least, what he perceived to be the possibilities).

Sample Post:

(AS RABASTAN LESTRANGE ON ANOTHER SITE)

Fury practically pounded through Rabastan's veins as Andromeda did nothing more than raise one unconcerned eyebrow at him and give him a retort that was far more disrespectful than he'd been expecting (after all, what right did she have to disrespect him?). Deciding that he wasn't going to put up with her attitude, Rabastan scowled darkly at Andromeda, simultaneously clenching his hands into fists. Looking imperiously down his nose at her, Rabastan mirrored his former friend's actions and crossed his own arms over his chest, glaring at her in a way which he was certain would have intimidated anyone but Andy. She'd never been frightened of him. Nonetheless, there must have been some sort of madness in his eyes, because all of a sudden Andromeda Black (the infallible, and incorrigible) was shifting nervously on her feet, awaiting something. It made Rabastan feel powerful. Determined. That sense of empowerment was what moved him to sneer and respond, "You don't have the right to demand anything from me anymore, my dear Andy. Still, since you asked so...nicely..." A flicker of amusement passed through Rabastan's cold eyes, "I suppose I can explain. We needed to talk. I'm not a patient man. And now, here you are." He paused, shrugged, and in that moment revealed a bit of the little boy he used to be, back when he and Andromeda had still been closer than close.

"Well, whether or not you would have stood for it, I doubt I would have given your feelings much mind," he threw out tonelessly, holding one large hand out in front of him (and conveniently blocking his view of her face with it) and inspecting it. "Your...opinion...doesn't matter much to me anymore, you see. I'm sure you understand." It was all bluff and bluster at this point, but Rabastan couldn't help but imagine Tonks's corpse, bloodied and broken, lying at the bottom of a Hogwarts stairwell. Well, what? It was a part of his nature. "I've come to terms with reality, but nobody could blame me if somehow I hadn't. After all, you have just gone and married a mudblood. That's a little odd. Just a bit." Rabastan waved one hand carelessly as she mentioned things about sticks and arses, and got all self-righteous and in his face. "Oh, Andromeda. I've no problem with the world that I live in. I'm rich, good-looking and I've bedded more girls than you probably know by name. There's nothing wrong there. But, you see, I am better than you. Now, at least- as you seem so keen to remind me, you're no longer part of my world. As a result, you're no longer worth my time. The fact that I'm debasing myself by talking to you now is simply because I enjoy closure. Congratulations to you." However, bitterness was rife in his voice and he wondered (not for the first time) whether or not he'd come mentally unhinged. He was making no sense, not even to himself- and Rabastan Lestrange was normally quite well known for his ability to make quick quips.

It seemed as though the Slytherin had come to the meeting very badly prepared. For instance, he could never have anticipated the stinging blow to the cheek that he received shortly after he took another stab at Ted. Well, the dam broke then, and any self control on Rabastan's part vanished. His upper lip pulled back from his teeth as he gave a soundless snarl, and he seized the Gryffindor by the shoulders. Hard. "You bitch," he hissed venomously, hiding a wince as his cheek stung in protest. Every word she said then made his ire mount. The fact that she could still stand there and say those things about how she was 'the same person' attested to her ignorance, and even though she claimed that she was different to him, Rabastan could still see hints of trademark Pureblood arrogance. "I'll talk to you any damn way I want to, thanks very much," he snarled in retort. His fingers clenched involuntarily around her shoulders as he fought to keep from taking a hold of her by the neck and shaking the life out of her. And then his grip slackened slightly, as one of her questions hit too close to home for his liking. Do you even know me? No. Of course he didn't. He knew her just about as well as she knew him- and whilst that had been a great deal when they were younger, it meant nothing now. "I know what you suffered," he almost sighed, nearly relenting as he remembered all of those stories she'd told him when they were in second year, and the way she'd looked so scared when she'd been speaking. Then he remembered why he was there, and his eyes hardened again. "But they're still your family, no matter what."

"As if your happiness matters to me!" He scoffed, pushed back towards the brink by her infuriating nature and her refusal to accept that he was, as always, right. The anger mounted as the badly chosen words 'self absorbed prick' left her lips, and his hands once again took on a vice like quality as he started to push her backwards, step by step. Because step by step, they were breaking up a friendship, and he was still trying to deal with that. "Done with it?" Step. Step. Step. "Done with it?" Step. Step. Step. "You think that you can just walk away from all of this?" Pause. Step. "You'll never break free. People have tried it before. This life...will always be a part of you." He deliberately ignored her words about how 'happy' she was now, deciding not to take her up on that matter. Her comment about 'hell', though, made him let loose a rather insane bark of a laugh. "I'm already in hell, Andromeda, as far as I'm concerned, and by the time that I actually make it to the real place I think I'll be accustomed to the climate." How he managed to be so droll, and at a time like this, he didn't know, but the sight of a tear rolling down his (former) best friend's cheek had two effects. He was overwhelmed by the sudden urge to hit her (hex her, throw her out a window- anything that would hurt her), and at the same time he desperately wanted to wipe away that tear, too. The conflict that these twin feelings presented was too much, even, for Rabastan to handle, and he released the Gryffindor girl, giving her a final vindictive shove backwards into the classroom wall.

And then he broke. "Merlin, Andy," Rabastan muttered, reverting back to using his old nickname for her. "Where did we go wrong? As friends, I mean?" He allowed a pause to fall between them, in which he sourly reflected on his life up to that point. "Because...I mean. You're right. I don't even know who you are anymore, and you certainly don't know me." To his horror, he realized that there was a prickly feeling in the corner of his eyes and immediately set his jaw stubbornly. "I don't think we can be friends now, either," he pushed on with determination, his voice mild in comparison to the way it had been a few seconds earlier. "We haven't been, really, for a long time."

^{__________________________________________________________}

And Finally - -

I, PENNY, have read the rules, understand clearly what my responsibilities are now that I am joining ISS, and will abide by these standards set by the staff.

[bella]

1.) Him and J are definitely gunna be friends. I don’t care what house he ends up in. Okay? Cool.
2.) Reading something about Rabastan that isn’t my Rabastan is so awkwardly interesting. XD
3.) Xeno a weird little child but I like him, ahahaha.

` ` a c c e p t e d !