Forum:Cordelia Zhao

Ildsjel (talk)

The Character's Background

1) Give a description of your character's personality. It must be at least two paragraphs long, seven sentences each.


 * Cordelia Zhao is nothing short of the perfect multitasker. With an active mind, she's always looking for new mental challenges. Whether it's doing math puzzles, reading new history books, it doesn't matter. She just needs something to keep her preoccupied that isn't physical, because in spite of ingesting approximately four cups of coffee a day, Cordelia is incapable of lifting a finger to do anything that involves sweating. She isn't an athletic person. Never has been, likely never will be, but it doesn't mean she hates her walks in beautiful places, like the beach. (Yeah, so much for that, here in the UK.) Always an academic, Cordelia is also a very curious person, and whenever she isn't busy doing something for her job (which is hardly ever, truth be told), her time is consumed by exploring new places and visiting important landmarks in different European countries.

2) Write about the history of your character. How did they grow up? Is there an incident that made them the way they are? It must be at least three paragraphs long, seven sentences each.


 * Cordelia Zhao was not a planned child, but was brought to the world and raised as if she had been. Born to wealthy parents, she was undoubtedly better off than many other unplanned children. It was her parents' wealth that allowed her to grow up comfortably in New York City, attending the best schools for anyone her age. She was the embodiment of their hopes and dreams, and from a young age was molded to be a fierce, strong, independent woman. They wanted her to achieve everything she wanted and more, and she was more than happy to live up to their expectations. They had a lot riding on her education, though not necessarily as much as with her older brother, Leighton, and her younger sister, Theodora. It didn't have much to do with being the middle child, but rather with the fact she, unlike Leighton and Theodora, hadn't inherited their ability to perform magic, setting her at a disadvantage in their eyes. Nevertheless, Cordelia persevered, always achieving perfect marks in spite of attending some of the most challenging schools the state of New York had to offer. Beyond that, Cordelia further developed who she was by doing every extracurricular she could. It often meant she had to go nights without sleeping, but it never visibly affected her. She ran the school newspaper, did swimming, was head of the prom committee, participated in the debates club, and was known to found a plethora of organizations during her time in high school. She was the ideal student, and everyone aspired to do what she could. She was ranked the most likely to be successful in her senior year, and on college decision day, proved everyone right when she accepted her admission to the University of Cambridge, where she would begin her preparations to become a professor. It hadn't ever really kicked in what she wanted to do beyond finish school with perfect marks, but by the time college decision day rolled around, she had realized, looking at all the people that had inspired her and pushed her to get to that point, she wanted to do the same for others.  During her time attending the University of Cambridge, a number of things happened to Cordelia. Her older brother joined the aurors and her younger sister decided the wizard life wasn't for her, so she made the decision to reintegrate to muggle society and become a veterinarian. Her parents had been in the middle of their trip around the globe when they had found out her mother had been diagnosed with cancer, but it wasn't long before she had succumbed to her illness. Her brother came out as gay, much to the utter disappointment (but eventual acceptance) of their father. Those next few years, while she finished her studies, were clearly a wild ride, but despite this, Cordelia made the most of it. She kept going even if she wanted to give up, but anyone with two eyes could see she was struggling to cope. It was then she turned to alcohol. One drink every few days turned into one a day, two a day, three a day, until she had to be sent to rehab several weeks after graduation. It was a wild ride, but she came out on the other side.  Learning how to cope with significant changes in her life was difficult at first, but as she looked into what was ahead of her, she knew she had to do this. There just wasn't anything else to do. Before she knew it, she had completed her practice, and was teaching. She knew this wasn't going to cut it for her, though. History excited her, obviously, as well as psychology - those were the subjects she was most prepared to teach. But it didn't really click until a conversation over the phone with her brother. He was excitedly talking about what had happened in his last mission when she realized: she wanted to be involved with the wizarding world. For so long, she'd longed for something interesting that revolutionized her world. She just hadn't realized what she needed. But as soon as she did? She put an application in for Hogwarts. It had been done mostly through her siblings, and Hogwarts initially turned her away, but it seemed a vacancy in their faculty had opened right before classes began. They flew her out, and only when she arrived did everything truly seem to get in place for her.

3) Write about your character's appearance. What do they look like? Are you planning on using a certain model for your character? If you already have a picture in mind, you can put it here!



4) Is your character a Pure-Blood, Half-Blood or Muggle-Born? Do you have any notable magical relations? (Remember, you cannot be related to important characters from the Harry Potter Universe!)


 * Does none of the above count? Cordelia is a squib.

5) Does your character have any special magical abilities? Or special abilities in general (photographic memory, etc.)? Is he or she of a different magical race, such as Veela, Vampire, Werewolf or the like? Part or half of that magical race counts! (Remember, you cannot have a character with special abilities/of a different magical race as one of your first two characters!)


 * Not only does she not have any special abilities, she doesn't have any at all.

6) What is your character's profession? Does your character plan to enroll your character into the Ministry of Magic? Does your character not work? Is your character a teacher?


 * Cordelia was employed at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry as professor of Muggle Studies!

The Sorting Quiz

A. Select the option that best fits your character. (Remember, this part is optional for adult characters!)

1. What are you looking forward to learning at Hogwarts the most?


 * A. Transfiguration


 * B. Hexes & Jinxes


 * C. Magical Creatures


 * D. The castle's secret areas

2. Pick one:


 * A. Moon


 * B. Stars

3. If flowers adapted their scent to attract the unwary, what would it smell of in order to lure you in?


 * A. Freshly baked bread


 * B. Parchment


 * C. The Sea


 * D. A crackling log fire

4. Pick one:


 * A. Dawn


 * B. Dusk

'''5. Four boxes are placed before you. Which one do you open?'''


 * A. The ornate one, promising secret knowledge and unbearable temptation


 * B. The small, pewter box that reads "I only open for the worthy"


 * C. The gleaming black box marked with Merlin's rune


 * D. The small, tortoiseshell box, embellished in gold, with a small, squeaking creature

6. Pick one:


 * A. White


 * B. Black

7. What road tempts you the most?


 * A. The cobbled street lined with ancient buildings


 * B. The narrow, dark, lantern-lit alley


 * C. The twisting, leaf-strewn path through woods


 * D. The wide, sunny, grassy lane

8. Pick one:


 * A. Forest


 * B. River

9. What scares you most?


 * A. Speaking in such a silly voice, people will laugh at you and mock you


 * B. An eye at the keyhole of the dark, windowless room where you're locked


 * C. Standing on top of something high, without anything to stop you from falling


 * D. Waking up and realizing your family & friends don't know you

'''10. It's late, you're walking alone, and hear a peculiar cry you believe has a magical source. What do you do?'''


 * A. Draw your wand & search for the source


 * B. Proceed with caution, keep a hand on the concealed wand, and keep an eye out


 * C. Draw your wand & stand your ground


 * D. Wait for developments, while mentally reviewing the most appropriate spells

OOC Questions

B. Whilst the first two questions will not affect the character's house (and are mandatory), the others are designed specifically to help users come up with their character's ideal job (and are optional).

1) Is this your first character?


 * A. This is my first character.


 * B. No, this is not my first character.

2) If your answer to the previous question is B, how many characters do you have? How many of them are "exotic"? If you do have exotic characters, please list both the name and the type of exotic. Remember you are only allowed one of each type with the exception of nymphs.

3) What would people who know your character well say they're really good at?

4) What do they really want to avoid in their job/career? Do they hate working in an office? Do they hate the field?

5) Aside from family and peers, what motivates your character the most in life? What drives their passion?

6) Where does your character's weaknesses lie?

7) Wand cores and woods speak volumes about a person's character. What is your character's wand? Why does it answer to them?