Charming is a Victorian Era Harry Potter roleplay set primarily in the village of Hogsmeade, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and the non-canon village of Irvingly. Characters of all classes, both magical and muggle — and even non-human! — are welcome.

With a member driven story line, monthly games and events, and a friendly and drama-free community focused on quality over quantity, the only thing you can be sure of is fun!
  • Newbie Guide
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  • Rules
  • Playbys
  • Policy
  • Buddy System
  • History Lists
  • Occupations
  • Census
  • Adoptables
  • Hogwarts '87
  • CML
  • Daily Prophet
  • Witch Weekly
  • Lonely Threads
  • House Points
  • 1887
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    News
    You have found our archive! Charming lives on here!
    02.05 One last puzzle before we depart!
    02.01 AC? What AC?
    01.26 Impending URL changes!
    01.11 I've got a bit of a reputation...
    01.06 AC underway, and a puzzle to solve!
    01.01 Happy new year! Have some announcements of varying importance.
    12.31 Enter the Winter Labyrinth if you dare!
    12.23 Professional Quidditch things...
    12.21 New stamp!
    12.20 Concerning immortality
    12.16 A heads up that the Secret Swap deadline is fast approaching!
    12.14 Introducing our new Minister of Magic!
    12.13 On the first day of Charming, Kayte gave to me...
    12.11 Some quick reminders!
    12.08 Another peek at what's to come...
     
        
     
    Esther Abbott
    #1
    In Character
    Full Name: Esther Vivian Abbott nee Higglebottom
    Nicknames: Essie
    Birthdate: July 29, 1850
    Current Age: 34 years
    Occupation: Gryffindor House Matron
    Reputation: 4
    Residence: Hogwarts
    Hogwarts House: Gryffindor
    Wand: Birch, 10 1/2 inches, yielding, Unicorn hair. Right handed.
    Blood Status: Pureblood
    Social Class: Middle
    Family:

    Father. Geoffrey Higglebottom b. 1815
    Mother. Honoria Higglebottom nee Roth 1821-1851
    --Sister. Adeline --- nee Higglebottom b. 1844 + Family
    --Sister. Lucinda --- nee Higglebottom b. 1847 + Family
    --Sister. Honoria Higglebottom b. 1851
    Stepmother. Agatha Higglebottom nee --- b. 1842
    --Half-Brother. Edmund Higglebottom b. 1861
    --Half-Brother. Anthony Higglebottom. 1864-1867
    --Half-Brother. Nicholas Higglebottom. b. 1869

    Husband. James Abbott 1832-1880

    Appearance:

    Esther has always seen herself as something of a plain Jane. With her mousy brown hair and rather angular features, she does not count herself to be very interesting to look at. Her eyes are also brown, set on either side of a nose that's just a bit too big for her face, and above lips thin enough to all but disappear when she smiles. She is about average height, and her relatively thin frame is almost exclusively clothed in robes, as she's never cared particularly for muggle fashion trends.

    History:
    1850. Esther is born on the 29th of July, and is the the third daughter born to Geoffrey and Honoria Higglebottom, an upper class couple. Her parents are disappointed in the birth of yet another daughter, but they still treat their newest daughter well, though she is mostly passed off to the servants to be raised.

    1851. Another daughter is born. This labor is especially difficult, and Honoria dies from complications a few days later. The child is subsequently named after her mother.

    1855. Esther shows her first sign of magic in April. Adeline leaves for Hogwarts in September.

    1856. Esther joins Lucinda in lessons with their governess. She takes particular interest in reading, and picks it up rather quickly--faster than her sisters did, which is a matter of secret pride.

    1858. Lucinda leaves for Hogwarts. Lessons aren't too lonely, however, because Honoria joins Esther.

    1859. Geoffrey announces that he has decided to take a bride, and that fall the family is joined by the newly minted Mrs. Agnes Higglebottom. Esther gets on well for the most part with her new stepmother, who feels more like an older sister than a true parent, as she is barely seventeen.

    1861. Agnes delivers a healthy baby boy in the spring, and Esther is once again mostly ignored by her family. To be fair, she doesn't put up much of a fuss. In September, she joins her older sisters at Hogwarts where, to everyone's great surprise, she is sorted into Gryffindor. She is somewhat intimidated by this, but generally enjoys her time at school, finding a special interest and true, practical skill in Charms.

    1862. Honoria leaves for Hogwarts. Adeline graduates.

    1863. In her third year, Esther chooses Ancient Runes--which she excels at--Arithmancy and Ghoul Studies as her electives. Adeline marries shortly before Christmas.

    1864. Another son is born, though this one is much weaker than Edmund and proves to be a sickly child.

    1865. Lucinda graduates. Esther is pleased to discover she has been made prefect.

    1867. Lucinda marries in June. In late August, Anthony becomes very ill and there is some question over whether or not Esther and Honoria should return to Hogwarts, or if they should request time away, but by then there is not enough time to petition for such, and the girls are sent off to school. They return less than a month later for Anthony's funeral.

    1868. Esther graduates and debuts. It is a colossal failure, as she is too shy to really make much of a splash.

    1869. Honoria graduates. Agnes delivers another son, Nicholas, in the fall. Esther has another disaster of a season.

    1870. It gets a bit desperate, to the point that Geoffrey increases Esther's dowry to hopefully entice some poor sod to take her off his hands.

    1871. Esther passes her twenty-first birthday without anyone showing even the slightest interest, and her family has mostly given up hope for her.

    1872. Esther makes the acquaintance of Mr. James Abbott and is instantly smitten. He is charming and--at least to her rosy view--handsome, and seems to take an instant, genuine interest in her as well. There are a few whispers about him, though he comes from a respectable--if middle class--pureblood family, and this is enough for Esther to ignore any misgivings anyone she knows tries to voice to her. They marry in the summer, shortly before Esther's twenty-second birthday--thank God--a decision that is met with mixed feelings by her family.

    Married life soon proves to be not all she dreamed it would be however. She soon finds her husband to be far more temperamental and irresponsible than she expected. Having secured a bride with money, James mostly ignores his wife and proceeds to squander her generous dowry.

    In September, Edmund leaves for Hogwarts.

    1873. By early this year, the money has already run out and Esther is forced to seek employment. Drawing on skills gained at school--and the impressive NEWT scores she achieved in her final year--she seeks employment as a healer, finally securing an internship at St. Mungo's in the Spell Damage ward.

    1874. Esther finishes her internship and becomes a full healer. She gains a great deal of confidence in herself and her own abilities through working--and particularly having an excuse to be away from her husband for most of the day. She finds that she is quite good as a healer, and she enjoys the work even if she is not pleased at all about the necessity of it, and resents James for forcing them into this situation, though her family is quick to remind her that she has only herself to blame for the state of her life.

    1877. The Abbotts move to Hogsmeade with the rest of the wizarding community, and Esther transfers to Hogsmeade Hospital to continue working.

    1878. In August, Esther miscarries. She is devastated, though it was too early for her to know about the pregnancy. After six years, she has still not produced even a daughter, and it is clear that James is increasingly frustrated with her apparent barrenness.

    1879. In the spring, Edmund graduates from Hogwarts.

    1880. James dies in February of a sudden illness, and Esther is less mournful and more relieved to be rid of him. Still, she is not able to afford the upkeep of their house in Bartonburg and is forced to move in with Adeline and her family, a situation her sister agrees to on the condition that Esther look after her young nieces and nephew who are still too young for Hogwarts. She leaves her position at the hospital to do this. Though she loves her sister's children, she is again reminded of her lack, and also misses her work. Healing childhood scrapes isn't quite the same.

    1881. Nicholas leaves for Hogwarts.

    1884. With Adeline's youngest off to school in the fall, Esther is quietly, but firmly, urged to again seek proper employment, or to remarry. Not wanting to repeat the trials of her last marriage--and doubting she would have much more success now at the advanced age of thirty-four, having proven herself to be incapable of baring children--Esther applies for the newly created position of Gryffindor Matron at Hogwarts, thinking now that her school years were among her truly happiest, and is accepted.
    Personality:
    • Bookish
    • Moderately blood purist
    • Disciplined
    • Calm
    • Maternal
    Sample Roleplay Post: Nope nope.
    Out of Character
    Name: Steph
    Age: 26
    Contact: PM Henry Berkwood
    Other Characters: See CML
    How did you hear about us?: Little birdie told me.
    [Image: w1_zps3f60db94.png]
    #2
    APPLICATION ACCEPTED!


    — You should be titled in a few moments. Please post with your new character in the Character Master List thread.

    — If you have a playby you would like to claim, you can go here.

    — Don't forget to record your character's past position(s) in our history records.

    — Not sure where to start? You can introduce yourself in a new topic here and fill out the plottage preferences form so people know what you're interested in. If you're looking for assistance in getting integrated into Charming, check out our Welcome to Charming: Getting Into the Game doc written by newbies!

    We also have a newly developed buddy system. If you are new to Charming, you will be contacted by your assigned buddy within 48 hours. Once initial contact is made, you can decide whether you'd like to continue to participate in the buddy system or if you'd prefer to figure things out on your own.

    — Our Networking Forum is here. You can also hop in on a thread in our Lonely thread list or start an open thread of your own.

    — Don't forget to check out our Stamp Station for some extra fun!

    — We also have a member submitted and staff run Daily Prophet that reports on in character happenings. Check it out so you can see how it might effect your future plots.

    Thanks for deciding to join us, we hope you have a blast! :D


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