Post by FIONA GAYLE WITHERSPOON on Sept 9, 2012 17:10:16 GMT -5
FIONA GAYLE WITHERSPOON
Born in a town near the coast of Scotland, Fiona was the third child and only daughter to her parents, Rhona and Desmond. Her brothers were much older, already at the ages of 8 and 11 when she came into their world. The family ran a small ranch with a neighboring family, raising cattle and pigs to sell to nearby towns as food or working animals. They also had a small selection of horses that they loaned out to other ranches and farms. From a very young age, Fiona showed an affinity with the livestock they handled, turning a wild horse gentle, a squealing pig silent, and a kicking bull still with just a touch of her small and tender hand.
Her father doted upon her, feeling her gift with animals was a special mark from the Lord above. Her mother, on the other hand, felt there was something off about their unplanned child, something unnatural and tainted. She disciplined Fiona more sternly than her sons, and in turn, the young girl challenged her mother's patience on purpose. She talked back, disobeyed directions, and ran wild on the ranch against her mother's wishes. After a particularly bad spanking when she was 6 years old, Fiona ran from her parents home to the paddock in the field behind the house. Her brothers were there, preparing to unleash a bull into the open area in attempts to mount and ride it.
As Fiona ducked between rungs of the fence and into the paddock, the bull was unleashed and caught sight of her blonde hair. It charged her, and mowed her over like a ragdoll. She was trampled and knocked unconscious, but when she awoke, she was completely uninjured. Her father praised the Lord for blessing Fiona so well, but her mother was frightened and further convinced their child was the work of the devil. For fear of the wrath of Satan, Rhona began disciplining Fiona less, and took out her aggression and frustration with the child with cleaning and preparing cow and pig meat for sale.
Fiona was excited when her acceptance letter to Hogwarts came. No one else in her family had magical capabilities, and her different abilities were better explainable now. Her father, ever so in love with his child, praised her and vowed to accept and support her. Her brothers grew estranged, now sharing the beliefs of their God-fearing mother. Attending Hogwarts came as a bit of a relief for Fiona, being able to get away from the suffocating religion in her household. It was a new sort of freedom for her.
The last 6 years at Hogwarts have been entertaining, educational, and revealing. Fiona has found that there are others like her, with an affinity for animals, and believes she'll pursue a career with magical creatures when she graduates Hogwarts. It was no surprise to her when her patronus popped out as a horned bull - after all, she was trampled as a child, and then when she was 13 she learned how to ride one. She's had several first kisses, many small fights with her dorm mates, and a few heated moments with professors in the hallway. She's a fine chaser when it comes to Quidditch, and has made it onto the team every year since her 3rd year. She's noticing herself changing some this year, becoming a little calmer and more mature. She thinks that growing up isn't such a huge and difficult thing to do, but she'll see this year just what sort of challenges it could bring.
Fiona is the sort of girl that can enter a room or conversation and fill all the empty space in it at once. Her high level of energy and charisma make it so that she's almost always noticed and involved by her peers, and she is only ever excluded in something if she wants to be. She's positive and light-hearted, and seems able to sense in others when they need a pick me up or kind word of encouragement. Some don't like her based solely on how vibrant and enigmatic she is, and those people are rewarded with her whip-like sarcasm and catty comments. When she's upset, angry, or in disbelief, there is no filter between what comes into her brain and comes out of her mouth.
She seems to thrive under pressure, waiting until the last minute to complete tasks and but still ending up with a brilliant final project. She's easily distracted and therefore distracts others easily, and some would consider her a bad influence because of it. Around animals, Fiona comes alive in an entirely different manner than she does around people. She oozes calmness and confidence that radiates out around her like a halo. Her positive attitude and energies attract other people like her, but she finds herself drawn to those that have yet to come out of their shell and seem on the shyer side.
There is great enjoyment to be had in adventure, and Fiona finds most of that joy by being outdoors in the trees and fields. She won't hesitate to scale the sides of cliffs and climb up the branches of tall trees. A daredevil, she challenges boundaries and authority, but also the patience and tolerance of her friends that tend to find her nonsensical and aloof. She likes to pretend she's unaffected when people disagree or go against her, but it hurts her more deeply than she knows it should. A lifetime of rejection from her mother has made her long for acceptance from others.It was the strangest sensation Imogen had ever experienced. Kissing the back of her hand in practice, preparing for this very moment, was no comparison for the warm lips that were pressed against her's. She could feel the scar that marred his bottom lips, and even the texture of that was amazing. She hadn't expected softness, and though it pleased her, it shocked her into immobility. Her eyes, which had found themselves closed, fluttered open as Kadan broke contact and pulled away. A part of her twinged in mourning that the sweetness of that moment was over, while another part cheered because he had in fact returned the kiss. Had he liked it as much as she had? Her face flushed a brilliant pink and she let her gaze drop to the desk that sat before the judge, as the keys to their new cookie cutter home were handed to Kadan.
Her face was still flushed as Kadan made his statement about leaving. She nodded her head, unable to form any words yet as her mind still raced with the brief memory of their kiss. When they turned to exit the room, they both had a ring on their left hand. It felt warm and solid on her hand, though it was a little bit too large. She could spin it around her finger with her thumb, though it didn't threaten to slide off. She'd have to tell Kadan before she forgot so that they could have it re-sized. The government provided the rings, so it was no fault of her new husband's, but they couldn't send it back to the government and demand a new one. She would have to wrap some tape around the back of the band to keep it from sliding in the mean time.
She let Kadan lead her to his car once they were outside, remaining silent as her thoughts began to overwhelm her. She didn't want to talk his ear off and potentially bore him to death with her relentless rambling. There were all kinds of questions Imogen wanted to ask him, about his preferences and childhood, and about their future together. She wouldn't ask him if he wanted to try for children, because she felt that those things should come naturally. Could she add her own touch to the decor in their home? Could she make the rooms project the sunlight from outside in a way that was cheerful and uplifting, or did he prefer the dark? So many questions, but she kept silent. She didn't want to appear too eager to be his friend, and in the process scare him away. She doubted he trusted people as easily as she did, anyways.
When they reached his car, she sent him a small and curious smile. She waited to see if he would open the car door for her, or if she would have to do it herself. Kadan had appeared to be quite the gentleman so far, but if he deserted her to get behind the wheel, she would be okay with that. Once they were inside the car and it was in motion, Imogen finally broke the silence. "My ring is too large," she said, holding up her left hand and twisting the ring around to briefly show him. She didn't want to keep his gaze off the road for too long and potentially cause an accident. "I'll have to take it to the jeweler in a couple of days, to get it re-sized. I would have thought that they would get the right size.." She trailed off for a moment, not wanting to turn the mood between them negative. "Does your ring feel all right?"
As they fell back into silence, Imogen glanced down at herself and her attire. She was glad that she had opted to wear the pantyhose and that the hem of her dress went almost to her knees. It was dawning on her now that maybe Kadan was uncomfortable with the sight of so much flesh, his own being as scarred as it was. Her blue eyes glanced at him, noting his facial expression and posture. Polite conversation about meaningless things wasn't going to cut it for her anymore. "Do you have any nicknames, Kadan? Anything is particular you want me to call you?" She was curious to know if there was an army code name for him to reflected his job or abilities, but she didn't want to dredge into that. She was pretty certain at this point that the service was the cause of all those scars.
