Name: Esme Kendal

Age: 22

Year: 2nd year (She has skipped 1st year due to prior training).

Discipline: Natural Magic.

Speciality: Herbalism

Physical Description: There is nothing exceptionally outstanding in regards to Esme's girl-next-door appearance. Her stature falls perfectly within the limits of any healthy weight to height ratio chart. Whilst failing to adhere to the waif like expectations most women aspire to, it leaves her slightly on the curvier side.  Esme's most notable feature would be her eyes. The pale peridot shade stands out against the backdrop of a flawless peaches and cream complexion, complimented by rosebud lips and framed with light blonde hair.  Esme's wardrobe veers on the side of casual, but she makes more of an effort on occasion. Though normally, she wears whatever she feels comfortable in and not always clothing that necessarily belongs to her. After living in a house of multiple occupancy, she believes in sharing and her expectation is everyone else should too.

Distinguishing Features: Esme's body is peppered in tattoos, starting behind her left ear, over her left shoulder blade, reaching down her torso to her left hip and thigh. To the undiscerning eye it would appear the theme would be a constellation of tiny blue stars with a more prominent larger star on her inner left wrist with a blank circular area to it's center to accommodate the total number. An Elitist Magician would regard such markings with distaste, however for Esme, she wears them with pride. Once her entrance to Brakebills was confirmed, the Professors offered to remove the tattoos. Esme promptly refused having earned every single one of those stars and at times risking her life in challenges. She wasn't willing to part with them.

Personality: Her sardonic approach is often misunderstood by those lacking an adequate sense of humor. It is usually seen as a defense mechanism and although in some regards that could be considered true, people find it hard to understand that Esme rarely takes herself or those around her seriously. Life experiences have made her a realist, enabling her to read through unnecessary niceties and empty compliments with a clear transparency. She tends to disregard loyalties until proven beyond fragile claims, appreciating truth above all else and is therefore rarely disappointed when people let her down. However once she does forge a true friendship with anyone, she's a solid ally to have in their corner.

Personal Goals: Esme has a strong desire to learn more about her Parents. Alistair and Oscar; despite their differences, had one thing in common. Both refused to give Esme any information. Thus far she has been unable to find any records pertaining to them. Leaving her to first question whether she was even related to Alistair and Oscar, and what her true heritage might be to the point of her very existence. She's hoping the resources available to Brakebills will help her remedy that. Additionally, regarding the circumstances behind Oscar's death and possession of the ring which caused it, Esme knows there's a target on her back. Although for the time being she's protected within the strong wards of Brakebills, it's imperative she finds out whose responsible.

Likes: Magic; spell casting is as essential as breathing and one of Esme's worst fears is losing her magical ability. Any coming of age Movies or TV shows, she missed out on the experience of High school along with Film and Television so binge fests are essential to her social development - Plus she enjoys them and isn't ashamed to admit it. The outdoors. She spent too many years cooped up inside, studying. Meditation. Esme has a tendency to push herself too hard. Meditating helps her unwind.

Dislikes: Mindgames, especially when it comes to flirtation and relationships. She doesn't understand the cat and mouse dynamics and why people can't be honest about how they feel, it needlessly complicates things. Limitations, nothing should be considered impossible.

History

Esme's upbringing was far from conventional. She knew nothing about her Parents. From the age of three she was raised by a man she believed to be her Grandfather, Alistair Kendal. Alistair was an eccentric eremite, he was also a talented Master Magician and by any sane person's assessment, raving mad. He flouted the laws of society by keeping Esme away from main stream schooling. Instead she was classically trained in the ways of magic and spell casting to prepare her for what he believed would be her true calling in life, to follow in his footsteps and attend the Prestigious Brakebills University in order to become a fully fledged Magician.

Her daily routine was strict and regimental in nature. There was no contact with the outside world. No Music. No Television. No Movies or Theater. No modern technology or friends. Alistair believed her austere existence would heighten her magical ability. There were only books and learning. She was afforded thirty minutes of recreational exercise per day where she was allowed the freedom to walk the vast grounds of her Grandfather's estate on the outskirts of Charlottesville, Virginia.

That was all Esme had ever known until at the age of fourteen, she found her Grandfather dead in in his study. What was equally alarming was the strange man standing before a mirror staring at her in shock. Naturally, Esme panicked and instantly jumped to the conclusion the man was responsible for her Grandfather's demise. To his surprise, she wasn't easy to restrain and he found himself stunned at how fluidly the young girl was able to cast both defensive and offensive magical spells. It would seem Alistair had taught his protégé well.

However the stranger eventually succeeded in restraining Esme. Convincing her he was her Brother was a harder task still. Oscar Kendal made it clear that there was no love lost for their Grandfather and considering she had no prior knowledge of his existence, Esme could only assume the feeling from her Grandfather's side was mutual. He assured her to the ends of consuming a truth potion of Esme's making that he wasn't responsible for Alistair's death. The old man had died of natural causes which had resulted in the dissipation of a powerful ward, thus allowing Oscar to enter through a mirror portal. There were too many questions unanswered to sate Esme's trust and understandably an explanation was needed as to why she had never known about Oscar who was fifteen years her senior. He clarified, informing her that Alistair had tried the same oppressive approach with him and failed, though successfully managed to cut him entirely out of his sister's life thereafter.

As Esme's only living relative, Oscar took over the Guardianship of his younger Sister. After a quiet non-religious Funeral with only Oscar and Esme in attendance, Alistair was buried within the Family crypt at the estate. Oscar then packed up their Grandfather's magic paraphernalia and abandoned the large stately property, preferring it fall in to ruin than sell it. A choice Esme found confusing due to her Grandfather's obvious wealth.

Oscar took Esme with him to an old Farm house in Tuscany and that was where she experienced life outside the strict bubble her Grandfather had created. For the first time in her life, she had a taste of freedom. Others lived at the farm house, some friendly, some not so much. All of whom found Esme's retarded social skills both entertaining and peculiar. However Esme was a quick study, and once she discovered what the outside world had to offer, she couldn't soak it up quick enough.

People frequently came and went, most of them unsavory and Esme was swiftly introduced to the existence of Hedge witches. Inconsequential, her age didn't matter. Esme was given no preferential treatment by Oscar. To remain, she had to prove herself and not surprisingly was already quite proficient as a magical practitioner which enabled her to hold her own. Their practice was quite different to what she was used to from Alistair, the spells she learned from the Hedges were sloppily executed, unrestrained and frequently went awry. They used different terminology, had no clear understanding of circumstances and broke every rule Alistair had taught her. Over the next several years Esme was frequently challenged and in turn, challenged other Hedges. For each spell she cast successfully during those challenges, she earned herself a seven pointed star in the form of a tattoo of blue ink, a trophy as such and serious boasting rights among the Hedges.

What Esme didn't know was like Alistair, Oscar was molding her to his own means and very soon she started to see a much darker side to her Brother. Driven by the greed for power, Oscar used his magical influences for personal gains. Money was no object, not when they could freely take what they wanted. Oscar's greed came in the form of magical artifacts, rare ingredients and spell-books, most of which were not easily attainable to those outside of the trusted circles of Magicians. He used his abilities to provide services within organised crime. He was involved with underground syndicates, pitching magical practitioners against lesser demons, Vampires, fairies and Werewolves. The wagers were high and the rewards even higher.

As her Mentor, Alistair had a true gift in the art of Healing, specifically enhancement spells, potions and crystals. Having passed much of his talent on to Esme, Oscar utilized those skills to gain advantage in matches. It became clear to Esme that Oscar was only using her and her decision to leave came after Oscar used a young Hedge who was no match for his demonic opponent. The man died before Esme's healing spells could take affect and she blamed Oscar for having his blood on her hands. Oscar didn't stop her, he knew that if he tried, Esme would retaliate. She was done with the corruption.

Esme tried to build a normal life for herself back in the States. She returned to her Grandfather's home and after years of neglect, she started to fix up the rambling old house. She took mandatory courses, spun a story as a late developer and easily got the high school diploma and SATs she'd missed out on to apply for college. She found a local safe house of Hedges and earned her way in by sharing her knowledge. Away from Oscar, her future started to look a little brighter, until he contacted her after discovering her whereabouts with a location spell. Esme might have told him to leave her be had he not sounded so panicked and claimed to need a safe haven. He wouldn't tell her why, informing her it was too dangerous and reluctantly, she agreed he could come to the estate.

When he arrived Oscar confessed the back story behind his fear. He had acquired an extremely rare artifact, thought only to be a mythical legend. The item was simply called Angelica's ring, said to be possessed by Angelica, princess of Cathay. It's power would give it's wearer immunity to all magic and render the user invisible when placed in their mouth. Esme scoffed at the possibility. She had never heard of such a ring and if something so unique existed, how on earth did Oscar get a hold of it.

As it happened, the item was indeed real and Oscar had acquired it by innocent chance —or so he claimed. The problem lay with it's original owner, he wanted it back and that was the source of Oscar's fear. When Esme suggested he do just that to resolve himself of the problem, Oscar became exasperated that she could suggest such a thing. For a man who showed no indication of a moral compass, Oscar was developing a conscience and pointed out how dangerous that would be if it was to fall in to the wrong hands. He had a point, complete immunity to magic with invisibility to boot would make it's wearer untouchable. Which begged the question, why was Oscar so scared?

Being the safest option and the only person he could trust, he insisted he leave the ring with Esme with the promise he would eliminate the threat. She protested, citing he might need it to protect himself. But Oscar refused, he couldn't take the chance of losing the ring. Oscar left the Estate with too many pieces of the puzzles missing. There was so much he hadn't told Esme and within twenty four hours, Oscar was dead, leaving Esme with the realization that whoever had killed him was coming for the ring, and she would be next. Esme's options were limited. She could use the ring but to what end? Did she seriously want to live her life constantly hiding? She had no idea who might be coming after her.

Had Alistair been wrong? She'd never had her calling like he'd promised. When he spoke so fondly of his memories, she'd always suspected Brakebills was the fiction of a delirious old man's imagination and the unusual key with the strange bee like insect carved to it's bow, simply a trinket. But what if he had been right? What if Brakebills was real?

There was only one way to find out.

Esme retrieved the key from the hidden drawer of her Grandfather's old walnut desk in his study. Enchanted with McNaughton's Unstealable, the spell failed to engage. Alistair was dead and by the natural rules of inheritance, the key now belonged to Esme.

The moment she opened the red velvet box and lifted the key from the black silk inlay, the room around started spinning and Esme found herself unceremoniously dumped on a sprawling lush green lawn at the feet of a distinguished gentleman in a smart tailored suit. He studied her with dark brown eyes and a stern expression before offering a hand to assist. Stunned, Esme took his hand and climbed to her feet and the man introduced himself as Henry Fogg - The Dean of Brakebills University.

Henry Fogg listened with remarkable patience as Esme spewed out what might sound like a contrived story. Aware she was taking a risk, Esme attempted to strike a bargain. She would relinquish the ring in payment for protection. The Dean refused her offer, informing Esme that jurisdiction authorized him to take the ring anyway and she had no leverage to bargain with. Though after some consideration, he did make her an offer. If she passed the entrance Exam to enrol in to the university, then he would allow her to stay. Esme readily agreed to his offer and due to the extensive education she had previously received from Alistair, she was placed directly in the second year with the Naturals and the unexpected surprise of Herbalism as her specialty.