Tomomi Asakura

[Tomomi Asakura]

Application for Hogwarts School

→ CHARACTER INFORMATION.
Name:
Tomomi Asakura

Birthday:
December 12

Hometown:
Fukui, Japan (since moved to London)

Bloodline:
Pureblood

Magical Strength:
Charms

Magical Weakness:
Divination

Year:
4 (preferred) or 5

Biography:
Tomomi Asakura grew up as a pureblood princess by every definition. Her parents had been praying for a child for years by the time of Tomomi’s birth, and the pregnancy itself ravaged her mother’s body; perhaps this was the reason why she always seemed a bit aloof around her daughter. Still, Kiyoshi and Fumiko thought of their daughter as a blessing regardless of the circumstances of her birth, and they made sure she wanted for nothing. Fukui, a sparsely populated town nestled in the Japanese countryside, was the perfect place for a wizarding family to live without much scrutiny from Muggle eyes, and Tomomi’s childhood was uneventful, although lonely. Elementary education had been made compulsory after the Second World War, so Tomomi attended a Muggle school, but as this had not been the case for either of her parents, they could not have prepared her for Muggle society, and although her classmates were not unkind to the unusual girl in outdated clothing, they made no special effort to befriend her either, so she spent most of her free time alone.

Everything changed with the time warp. The safe and peaceful Japan Tomomi knew had very suddenly become an imperial empire at war with China, and although Tomomi was too young to fully understand the significance, her parents, recognizing this era from their own childhoods, were terrified — for a day or so at least, until the warp caught up with their memories and erased all but a distinct feeling of unease. All Tomomi herself noticed was that very suddenly and without explanation she was not going to school anymore and that the scenery surrounding her home, which had been still recovering from the devastation caused by American bombs, was suddenly pristine, as if untouched by the hand of war. Still, although none of the Asakura family could precisely explain what exactly had happened that they found so terribly worrisome, Kiyoshi and Fumiko were determined that their daughter be spared the tragedy they knew was sure to come, and so they left Fukui behind, seeking sanctuary in Britain.

Although Tomomi had always felt like something of an outcast at home, that was nothing in comparison to her experience in London. Thrust from her quiet, rural home into a bustling city full of strange-looking people who spoke a language she could only understand snippets of, for a while she gave up completely, retreating to her bedroom and refusing to interact for anything but necessity. It was her Hogwarts letter that finally brought her around (although she had been on the edge of giving up on her silent protest for a while, managing to maintain it with stubbornness alone); cheered at the prospect of finally spending time among other witches and wizards like her, Tomomi dutifully threw all of her hopes and frustrations into her English study. Although still lightly accented and suffering from the occasional syntax error, her language skills thankfully improved just as rapidly as her attitude.

→ ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.
House Request:
Slytherin or Ravenclaw
Although not necessarily ruthless, Tomomi does tend toward some self-serving tendencies because she’s never been taught otherwise, so she might be a good fit in Slytherin House. On the other hand, books and reading have been her only solace since she left Japan, so she could do well in Ravenclaw as well.

Personality:
Perhaps as a result of her parents’ doting attention or her early classmates’ bemused indifference, Tomomi has developed an almost defensive self-important streak; she isn’t afraid of pointing out what she (thinks she) is good at, much to her parents’ dismay, as they view this kind of pride as a distinctly un-Japanese trait. She also has a nasty habit of questioning rules that she doesn’t understand or agree with. But despite these things, she does mean well; in the grand scheme of things, Tomomi is just a lonely girl who would probably mellow out with the addition of a friend or two.

Appearance:
Tomomi is, of course, Japanese, and she looks the part with long, black hair and wide, brown eyes. She’s a wisp of a thing, standing barely five feet tall and weighing about seven stone, and she’s not like to get much bigger. Her hair is her pride and joy, and she generally lets it hang, long and straight, down her back.

→ SAMPLE ROLEPLAY.
Option 2
Everything was ruined.

To say that Tomomi Asakura was in a foul mood would be an egregious understatement; this was, in every sense that could be imagined, not her day. It had begun quietly, as did most insidious happenings. With complete silence, in fact; Tomomi had woken screaming from a nightmare (home, finally home, but no, this is wrong, why is everything burning) to find  that the other girls of her year had dressed and left completely without her. Skipping breakfast had not saved her from skidding into class five minutes late, but it had left her ravenously hungry.

In the short break between classes and lunch, Tomomi had made the woefully misinformed decision to take a beautiful, sunny morning as an excuse to bring her studies outside. Her error in judgment had become apparent when she awoke from an altogether unexpected nap (not Tomomi’s intention but, thankfully, not another nightmare) to discover that the tree whose branches she had chosen as shelter from the vibrant sunlight would not be as helpful in case of sudden downpours. The essay she’d been working on for a week had become collateral damage.

And just so matters couldn’t possibly get any worse, she’d slept through lunch too.

Tomomi was stomping back to the common room in shame when Astrid found her, and she almost ignored her until Astrid’s words registered. If it’s for the newspaper, maybe someone will notice me? She had hoped it would be easier to make friends in the wizarding world than it had been at her Muggle school, but that wasn’t proving to be the case so far at Hogwarts. Maybe if she said something exotic or fascinating for the paper, people would find her interesting and seek her out! It was possible that something good could come from today after all. Even better, Tomomi had heard of people eating frog legs before in Japan; she actually had something she could say on the subject.

She hastily wiped the rainwater and salt from her face and turned to face Astrid. Here goes!

“Frog legs? We have that where I come from. In Japan!”

Not the best, but it was a start.

→ ABOUT YOU.
Previous Characters (if applicable):
N/A

How did you find us?:
Referral by a friend! Her character is Evelyn Takamura.

[B. Llewellyn Thatcher]

Miss Asakura,

Congratulations, your application to Hogwarts School has been accepted. Term begins 01 May 2014. Currently, students have gathered at Camp Loki. Your admission is joint for both the school and Camp Loki, and we encourage you to spend your summer there. Should you choose, you may also visit our Elsewhere board via the Floo Network to visit or purchase school supplies. We look forward to seeing you at the School.

Regards,
B. Llewellyn Thatcher,
Ravenclaw House Ghost/Duelling Coordinator