Tessa Anderssen || Occult Magic Professor Application

[Tessa Anderssen]

 

CHARACTER INFORMATION
Character name: Tessa Anderssen
_{Face Claim: Lynn Gunn}

Previous and/or Current Character(s) if applicable: Hel and Co.

Character age: 25; born on March 15, 1928.

Character education: Ilvermorny; class of 1947.

Applying for: Occult Magic - Other Elective

Strengths: Resilient, humble, and incredibly hardworking. Once she has an idea in her head, she'll either see it fail or come to fruition; which can be both a boon and an anchor. She's a problem solver through and through, and can always see multiple sides to a problem/event. Musically talented.

Weaknesses: She's a self-described introvert, and can get very withdrawn. Her close work with spirits renders her vulnerable to their influence, resulting in increased susceptibility to weakness, illness and depression. Pushes the bounds with authority.

Physical description: Tessa is immediately recognisable by her platinum blonde hair, coloured dark brown at the roots, and hazel eyes. She has a lean, athletic build (thanks to her extensive training at MACUSA's auror office), and stands at 5'7" (1.7m). Her right nostril is pierced with a silver ring, and her earlobes are stretched. Tessa sports multiple tattoos, and they can be found on her forearms, ribs, and behind her left ear. Black clothing is a staple in her wardrobe.

Personality: Quiet at first, Tessa is one to open gradually, and as a result her introversion can come off as being aloof or distant. She's amiable in company, and can carry a conversation perfectly well provided that she has enough quiet time to process it afterwards.

She's not so much a party person, and prefers quiet reading, or tending to her plants, or quiet conversations with close friends. Her pro-sociality hinges very much on the company she mixes herself with, and how close she is to them.

Her work as an auror in the US has ensured she's become an intelligent, creative thinker; something which shows in her willingness to solve puzzles and her creativity.

(Refer also to Strengths and Weaknesses for points on personality.)

Hopes and dreams. Why are you teaching at Hogwarts?: Since graduating Ilvermorny and working in MACUSA's auror office, it's become more and more apparent to Tessa that the darker side to magic is hardly explored in school curriculums, except in defense towards it.

She maintains the belief that a deeper understanding of dark magic, especially the unconscious subversive work of negative spirits and ghosts are paramount to a healthy magical education-- she believes there is a wealth of knowledge ready to be used for one's purposes in a variety of magical fields.

She wishes to provide an education in the field of occult magic; where students will learn about all things spooky and how to use them to their advantages. The classes will cover a variety of magical and non-magical fields, such as the use of herbs, powders, incenses and tinctures; astrology and spiritualism, runic magic and divination, and aspects of necromancy.

Biography: Dark ash from a smoked cigar was strewn across the living room, just where she was facing. yes, there, over the burnished wood and onto the windowsill. The smell of it lingered in the air. If Tessa closed her eyes and raised her hands, she could feel the remaining vibrations of life leave the room. 

There were fingertips smudged on the broken glass, impressions left frozen in time. deep; defined; they were pressed in a panic. Much like the rest of the room, Tessa could feel the echoes of a presence haunting around it, pulling her attention from one side of the room to the other.

And even further along, minuscule chips of glass embedded in the panelled wall. forced into the wood by explosive force; bombarda or reducto. Tessa's fingers mapped the nocks and relief when her mind stood elsewhere.

Tessa's partner ambled uneasily by the door.

"We need to leave, Tessa," he said, and looked out past the front door-- 3 and a half thousand years blown open, and barely hanging onto the rusted hinges, "This wasn't part of the assignment."

"Relax, Josef," she said, and moved back over towards the windowsill. the temperature drops; the tourmaline hums. this part of the room resonates loudest. "We'll only be here another moment."

"What are you even doing?" Josef was impatient; his voice flecked through with dark anxiety. Tessa was not surprised-- even No-Majs were susceptible to spirits.

"Someone was murdered here," Tessa said, and stood back to watch the evidence laid out in front of her. he had been smoking; tried to escape through the window when the prosecutors knocked at his door; blown it open when the glass didn't break. There was no need for a trial.

"Murdered?" Josef sounded incredulous, "This house has stood empty for a couple of thousand years, Tess. You know there's rumours of it being haunted?"

Tessa smirked, and turned back to the panelled wall with a smirk. "Wouldn't surprise me," She said.

The curtains fluttered, then, and the piece of tourmaline in Tessa's pocket glowed warm. She breathed in through her nose, released through her mouth.

Josef faced the empty road outside the house and a ghost emerged from behind the moulding curtains.

He was young, barely twenty, and he looked like Tessa's father. Fair blonde hair turned silver, a slight build and distinct Scandinavian features. There was a cigar in his hand; rope friction around his throat. The ghost hovered by the window, and Tessa felt a deep cold seeping into her body.

"Say," Josef turned back and the ghost melted into the wall, "Didn't you say this house was raided during the Salem Witch Trials?"

Tessa turned away from the window. Cold energy lingered around her spine, but the tourmaline offset it slightly, and left her bones just warm enough to feel like her own.

It was time to leave.

"Let's go," she said, and Josef exhaled a sigh of relief.

"Thank God," he said, and lead out through the decimated front door, "I was beginning to feel like we were being watched."

Tessa turned in the doorjamb. Willard Andersen was already standing by the window, watching.

"I'll find out who murdered you," she vowed to him; to the only Andersen who was never born as one, "I'll bring you peace."

Willard Andersen tipped his head, and the tourmaline in her pocket hummed until the closing of her palm stilled it.

His eyes were on her long after she'd left the house.

Tessa,

I hope this letter finds you well, and not too beaten up. Mom still hasn't recovered from the last time, so I'd love to report back that you're in one piece.

Things have been hectic since you left, but that probably doesn't come as a surprise.

I found Aunt Linn's old books up where you'd hid them in the attic. Does it surprise you that the herbs and flowers between those pages still haven't wilted? I spent the entire day paging through them-- I never understood why you'd been so drawn to the whole spirits and ghosts and spooky deal, but I do now. Can that owl of yours carry them all? I'll send them to you.

Mom's taken a page out of your book and redecorated the garden to grow her own plants-- she's got succulents on nearly every windowsill in the house. I think it's making dad a little stir-crazy, but he still has his library, so he barely complains. Plus, I catch him sitting outside by the sunflowers all the time, so it's not all that bad.

Dot's getting bigger and bigger by the day, and the doctors are telling us the twins appear to be right on schedule. She complains a lot more that she knows she's carrying two babies instead of one-- you should see her waddling around the yard. She's adorable, Tessa; I really wish you could see her.

I'm so proud of her, and of myself, and of you.

Who would have thought all those years ago that those two little kids from a small town in Massachusetts would grow up to be so cool? I won’t lie and say that hearing about everything that went down at that school of yours was easy-- but that's in the past now. When I look at Dot, or at our unborn sons, it feels magical. That's enough for me.

Write back soon, baby sister. Tell me about all the spooky things England is serving up for you.

Love, always,

Brad

SAMPLE ROLEPLAY

It was the largest office in Hogwarts and, perhaps to students and newcomers, the most intimidating. The shelves were filled with various odds and ends, with a place of honor for the Sorting Hat, and the walls held all the portraits of past Headmasters and Headmistresses.

In the middle of the room sat a large desk. Everything was in order, for the current occupant had always despised a messy desk. It was the sign of a messy mind, and she had always favored neatness.

A clock sat on the desk, which currently showed the time to be 2:05. The meeting was supposed to begin at 2:00 precisely. 

Along with order, Anneka valued punctuality. She was a very busy woman these days. Even during the summer, she had a number of matters to attend to. Interviewing and hiring staff was only of those matters. The newest potential member of her staff wasn't making a good impression.

She paced the room, black heels clicking against the stone floor. When the door finally opened, Anneka turned, her expression reminiscent of a Russian winter. "You are late."

Explain yourself was what her face said.

Roleplay Response:

Tessa Anderssen needed no form of spiritual connection to know that her tardiness was to make the very worst impression on Headmistress Ivanova-- but there was still hoping the crystals around her neck and fingers would concentrate enough positive cosmic input to salvage the afternoon.

[ green aventurine on the fingers for confidence and optimism; turquoise on the throat for increased clarity of expression ]

Her boots clacked along the stone floor, ringed fingers tucked hair messily behind the ears. Hogwarts' halls were dreaded and unfamiliar; hallways ended abruptly, staircases moved whilst she was halfway up, portraits whispered as she walked past.

There was so much spiritual energy contained between the walls-- far more than Ilvermorny. It made sense, of course, because Hogwarts was one of the oldest magical schools on the globe. The tourmaline sitting at the base of her sternum vibrated so often that Tessa ached to leave the meeting and connect to the castle's energy instead.

But she was already late. Best not to tempt the spirits even further. She did not know their kind.

Headmistress Ivanova turned as soon as Tessa entered.

[ tense. the turned back indicates confidence but hides true intention. environment emphasises strength. she knows there is a power imbalance here. ]

 

"You are late."

"Yes, Headmistress," said Tessa, and closed the door behind her. She twisted Aunt Linn's agate ring around her finger. "But if I may consider the way those staircases moved, I'd say the castle almost wanted me to be late."

[ divert; divide; conquer. three twists of blue lace agate to bolster goodwill. ]

"Shall we discuss the position?"


In addition to posting a completed application in this forum, we also ask that you submit a PM to Anneka Ivanova with details of your class and with the lesson plans for that class (include at least a minimum of 4 lessons). Also, please be sure to check the Available Positions thread located in this forum to make sure the class you want is available before applying.