Campbell Albieart Murray

The Mundane

Name:  Campbell Ailbeart Murray (he generally goes by his middle name or a nickname)

Nickname(s): Al, Bertie, Cam

Age: 18

Hometown:  Vancouver, British Columbia

The Magical

House: Pukwudgie (after turning down the Horned Serpent)

Year: 7th

Specialty: Bertie hasn’t reached the point of picking a specialty but he favors charms and has shown potential for Legilimency, something he hopes to explore this year.

Wand: At 10 1/4” Bertie’s wand is a shorter than most but does size really matter?  Like his sister's (and his sister), it’s a bit swishy, loyal but occasionally silly.  If it was an animal he’d think it a cat and like a cat it’s proud, often making it clear it only deigns to listen to him because it wants to, not because it has to and should he ever forget that it’s liable to show its displeasure by turning its back on him until he’s made amends (usually in the form of learning a new spell or at least playing with it).  In appearance it is deceptively simple, made of a Beech, the wood slightly twisted down the length with the occasional burl.  The core is phoenix feather but it sometimes vibrates like its purring so he wonders if perhaps it wasn’t mislabeled and is actually wampus cat.  He’s never gotten around to asking anyone else with a wampus cat wand whether theirs purrs too.

Familiar:  Ailbeart has never had nor wanted a pet.  That’s not to say that he doesn’t like animals, he’s just not attuned to them the way his sister and mother are (or the way most wizards are for that matter).  Though he doesn’t dislike animals, the same can’t be said in return, especially so far as Penelope is concerned, who clearly doesn’t appreciate his company.  He’s pretty sure she’s just jealous of the fact that he’s known Katelyn longer.  They’ve reached an uneasy truce now and simply stick their tongues out at each other as a form of greeting.

The Physical

Height: 6'

Weight: 170 lbs

Physical Description:  Ailbeart got the Murray Mouth (all caps), which comes with full lips and a broad smile.  According to their mother, he got it twice.  He got all of the blue for his eyes, which explains why Katelyn’s were grey though if she ever complained he’d quickly point out that they are one of her most distinguishing features so she should just shut up about it (or more fittingly, say ‘thank you’).  His are just as expressive though possibly less revealing, that or he’s just always thinking of something amusing or insightful or planning on doing something amusing or saying something insightful.

Taller by far than his twin and thankfully less feminine and slim, they share the same short brown hair though his, even when tangled and wild seems somehow less disheveled.  The same can be said of his clothes, though he’d argue you can have it all, style AND comfort though it would be easy to note he put style first and quite possibly lied about the comfort part.

Distinguishing Features:  He has the Murray Mouth (twice) and all the Blue in his eyes.  Beyond that, he has a rather nasty and relatively fresh scar down his right wrist, there's a story there, it's not at all tragic and more than a little amusing though he can't tell it without it making him blush.

The Personal

Personality Description: If one was to sum up Cam in three words, they could just steal them from his sister and they’d get pretty close.  That wasn’t to say they were carbon copies of each other.  Besides the notable differences in appearance, the flavor of their personalities was different.  It was true, Bertie was loyal, especially to Katelyn but he was generally loyal to a lot of people, underdogs mostly, which meant the students of Ilvermorny (the staff could suck it, not that he didn’t like them, they were just on the other team in the game of growing up), those who hadn’t come from quite as nice a family as his and No Maj, who held a particular fascination for him.

Perhaps in response to his sister’s antics, he’s gotten very good at covering their tracks.  Originally this came in the form of being a suck up, as he began to learn magic, more and more that meant the judicious use of Reparo, Reparifors, Episkey and the like.  His latest trick was to learn a Refilling Charm after having drained a bottle of really good Blueberry Brandy from his father’s desk drawer.

That isn’t to say he doesn’t get into his own share of trouble (see Blueberry Brandy above) but his tends to be less because he’s brought some cute (albeit fire-breathing) critter home and more because he was bored and looking for some fun or annoyed and looking for some generally non-life-threatening payback.

He’s not known for saying no, which gets him into a whole different sort of trouble.  In addition, he’s emphatic (in the traditional sense, not anything magical) and a good judge of someone’s mood (and sometimes the reason behind it).  When it comes to thoughts, he mostly guesses  Whether he guesses right or wrong, he’s not good at ignoring those initial impressions and is liable to listen to them without a lot of contemplation, acting more instinctively than rationally in most instances.

He’s not known for being as dedicated a student as his sister or many others (getting by instead on his luck, natural talents and winning personality).  This year, he’s supposed to apply himself, at least that’s what he was told by pretty much everybody, his parents, his professors and even the occasional friend who was willing to tell him like it is.

Goals:  The apply himself this year (maybe).  To learn more about Legilimency (which he’s told first means learning about Occlumency), as well as how to use a Pensieve (which he’s told he’ll be allowed to do if done so ‘carefully’).

Likes:  Bertie has been fascinated by the No Maj world ever since his father (mistakenly) brought home a No Maj comic book for him to read.  He’s since expanded his interest in the No Maj world to include their music (though his taste is suspect), movies (still suspect), history, and of course, more comic books.  His interest in history extends beyond No Maj history and includes magical history, in the Americas and abroad.  That’s led to an interest in memory and perception, which has led to an interest in philosophy and psychology though his knowledge of all of the above is rudimentary at best.  He likes having fun and has recently learned that he likes berried brandies and sweet drinks of just about any sort, especially colorful ones

Dislikes:  He doesn’t particularly like stubborn or close-minded people and is liable to tease or tempt them when he finds them, either to make them trip up or to get them out of their shells, depending on how much he likes or dislikes them.  He doesn’t like tests which is one of the reasons he’s squarely in the middle of the pack in his classwork.  He doesn’t like rules either and the only tests he does like is testing the rules (though only so far as to see how serious they really are).  One rule he really doesn’t like is curfew, whether imposed by his parents or rules of the school and he’s likely to sneak out when the opportunity presents itself, even if it’s just to sneak out to grab a bite from the kitchen or a book from the library (such a rebel, he knows).  He doesn’t mind hearing no but he dislikes saying it because it makes him feel like he’s closing a door that might lead somewhere interesting whereas saying yes feels like opening a present, exciting no matter what it is you find inside, after all, it really is the thought that counts.

History: Campbell and his twin sister were born as the only children to a pure-blooded magical family.  Her parents, Martin and Layla both attended Ilvermorny when they were growing up and both belonged to the same house as Campbell does now, Pukwudgie.  Martin went on to become an Auror while Layla became a Herbologist.  They were married not long after graduation and in two years had Campbell and his sister.

Growing up Campbell was described (by his parents) as ambitiously unfocused.  Even before he and his sister first attended Ilvermorny at age 11 he demanded he be called by his middle name Ailbeart because he said it sounded “more wizardly”.  He didn’t know the origin of the name, either its meaning (noble and famous) nor it was a great-grandfather who had been both noble and famous.  He just knew it sounded more dramatic and Ailbeart (affectionately known as Bertie) was always a bit dramatic.  That wasn’t to say he’s been cocksure or arrogant, he just thinks it’s more fun.

“Why be ordinary?” he would ask Katelyn, sometimes for no particular reason and it was a phrase he’d adopt almost like a mantra or a motto; Carson a bhith cumanta!  Of course, neither of them were.  Katelyn was a goof with eyes that were ten times too big for her head and he was a clown with a mouth two times bigger than his.  Between them, only their smiles were the right size.

While Katelyn took after their mother and her interest in nature (albeit animals over plants), he took after their father (only in No Maj over magical criminals).  He didn’t quite understand why the magical world was separate from the No Maj one.  He understood why it had been, more so now that he had a few years of HoM classes under his belt but it wasn’t the 17th, 18th, 19th or even 20th century anymore.  It was an attitude which had gotten him into trouble now and then as he’d spend time in No Maj neighborhoods back home or abroad.  He’d learned restraint, especially after spending the summer living like a No Maj (or at least trying to live like one and failing at it miserably).

Point being, while she was fascinated by animals (magical and otherwise), he was fascinated by people (magical and otherwise).

Last year, prior to his ill-fated summer holiday, one of his professors identified a potential talent for Legilimency and has suggested studies in that direction this year, including the recommendation that he learn to use a Pensieve (and of course, first and foremost, Occulmency).  His father, somewhat excitedly, purchased the Pensieve for him, thinking with a little application and diligence, Campbell (ahem... Ailbeart) might be on a path towards a respectable career with the FBCBNMM (what a mouthful) or the DNMM (still a mouthful but he had a big mouth).

And so, this year, he’s supposed to apply himself and who knows, he just might.