Caitiffan, Broderick: History, Etc.

[Broderick Caitiffan]

Character History:
Broderick, the oldest of the Caitiffan clan, knew his father better than the rest. He was ten years old when his father was killed by Aurors, and the family name fell into public shame and scandal.

Before that, however, he was like most boys his age - fiercely competitive, highly energetic and devious. He was equally cruel and protective when it came to his siblings, just as liable to break his brothers' noses as he was to pummel anyone who dared to mess with them.

His rivalry was strongest with Amareth, the brother nearest to him in age. Since Jareth was content to side with Broderick most of the time and preferred a unified front to individual acceleration within the ranks, they got along fairly well, except for the few times when Jareth would side with Amareth. The twins, of course, were the exeption; Broderick was protective of them to a fault, and when their father died, leaving Broderick a very young "man of the house," that stubborn protectiveness took on a whole new level.

A year after their father died, Broderick went to Hogwarts. Though he would never admit it, even to himself, he missed his siblings like sore gums for missing teeth. The first year as a lone Caitiffan in a school full of children who had read all about his father and hated every inch of him was tough, but Broderick was grimly up to the challenge. After several schoolyard scraps and a number of well-aimed hexes, even fourth and fifth year Gryffindors had learned better than to mess with him, and he started making a few friends even outside of Slytherin.

After that grueling first year, however, things got remarkably easier. Amareth came to Hogwarts in Broderick's second year, and while their sibling rivalry continued, they watched each other's backs like hawks and developed something of a friendship that they had never had at home. He scored a position on Slytherin's Quidditch Team as a Chaser, which earned him some kind of respect from the other Houses after Slytherin won the house cup, even if it was begrudgingly given. Then, in his third year, Jareth came to school, and the Caitiffans became something of a legend.

By the time the twins came to school in Broderick's fifth year, nearly everyone at Hogwarts had learned not to mess with anyone whose last name was Caitiffan, and that knowledge filled Broderick with pride. The wizarding world at large may still hate them for their father's involvement with the Dark Lord, but they had succeeded in shutting the collective mouth by sheer strength, determination and force of will. Together, they were invincible, and again, while he would never admit it to his siblings, he was immensely proud of them. Not a spineless wretch in the brood.

After Hogwarts, Broderick returned home to care for their mother and help with the store, living up to his responsibilities as the eldest sibling and the man of the house. His mother always felt guilty about it, but they both knew the family would fall into ruin without him to keep everything in line.

Though he resented the fact that he didn't have the freedom to pursue his post-school academic and career interests like Amareth, Jareth and the twins, he knew it was all for the best. Jareth, he knew, was perhaps even more disgruntled about it than he was himself - Jareth's ultimate goal in life seemed to be the desire to shove Broderick and Amareth both into high ranking positions of power.

Yet, after a few years in which he grew accustomed to such overwhelming responsibilities, Broderick discovered that he had quite the head for business. When he was 22, his mother officially signed the store over to him, and four years later he was turning 300% profit, making Caitiffan's Cove the most fierce competition that Borgin & Burke's had ever known. While he had no aspirations of putting B&B's out of business, he still enjoyed a good gloat whenever he passed the large store on his way to Diagon Alley.

But one day, an old friend of their father's approached the door. The Dark Lord had returned, and was recruiting new followers. He planned on taking over the Ministry, and apparently remembered Phanis Caittifan's unswerving loyalty.

Broderick did not need to be asked twice. He immediately volunteered, along with Amareth and Jareth. Whether the twins wanted to or not, however, was a moot point - they were absolutely forbidden to by Broderick. It was a dangerous job, after all, and in the event Broderick, Amareth and Jareth died in service to the Dark Lord, Aidan and Nadia would need to carry on the family name by making respectable pureblood marriages and raising respectable pureblood children.

While Jareth was promoted into the Red Masked Guard not too long after, Broderick's job was to recruit new members. The Dark Lord needed an army, after all, and when it came to families who dabbled or were severely caught up in Dark Magic, Broderick had his fingers in all the cookie jars.

»»A LITTLE INSIGHT[/color]

Likes:

• Serving the Dark Lord, one new recruit at a time
  
• Sex and the idea of marriage.
  
• Seeing that his siblings and mother are taken care of.
  
• Quidditch - his favorite teams are Ballycastle Bats, Falmouth Falcons and the Vratsa Vultures.
  
• Making money, baby.
  

Dislikes:

• Not getting his way.
  
• When a one-night-stand gets all psycho and clingy.
  
• Goody-two-shoes, which is ironic, given how responsible he is.
  
• Vapid, unintelligent women.
  
• Annoying customers.
  

Fears:

• Failing the Dark Lord.
  
• Letting his family down.
  
• Having his middle name become common knowledge.
  
• The twins getting caught in the middle of the war.
  

Goals:

• To make Caitiffan's Cove a successful enough business to pass onto one of his siblings, enabling him to pursue a career of his choice.
  
• To ensure the Dark Lord has enough supporters to lessen the chances of him failing again, thus casting the Caitiffan name back into disgrace.
  
• To find a suitable pureblood woman who will compliment him and the family name in every way and have many sons by her.
  
• To finally solve the charmed rubik's cube in his office, the one that changes its color pattern every two minutes.
  

Skills:

• Business savvy.
  
• Excellent at hexes and curses.
  
• Vast knowledge of magical items, especially Dark items.
  
• Lots and lots and lots of social networking.
  

Quirks:
Brody has a rich, deep, infectious laugh. He doesn't like to sit or stand still very long, and even if he's absorbed in a conversation, he will usually get up and pace or find something to keep his hands busy if it carries on for too long. When he's frustrated or bewildered, he rakes his hands through his hair several times, making it even messier than usual. When he's angry, frightened, sick or simply has high blood pressure, his birthmark appears as a red mark dead-center between his eyebrows, right above the bridge of his nose.

BOGGART
His boggart would likely be the Dark Lord, vanquished and powerless, symbolizing the fall of the Caitiffans yet again. In that case, he would reinflate the Dark Lord like a balloon, making him larger and even more powerful than before. Of course, his boggart could also be any one of his family members mortally wounded, blaming him for their injuries. To banish it, he would make the wounded sibling turn into one of his enemies.

PATRONUS
If he were to cast a patronus, it would be a crocodile.

ERISED
Himself, standing apart from and above his siblings, finally able to pursue his own life while still keeping them in sight.

Personality:
Broderick can be friendly, charming, respectful and kind, but he can also be cruel, unflinching, and vengeful when the need arises. He's not squeamish, and like any intelligent, self-preserving man, his morals can be easily compromised. He enjoys light banter, good debates and engaging conversation, but when that other mood overtakes him, he is uncharacteristically quiet and intense.

»»SCHOOLING[/color]

Year:
Graduated, class of 1988
Preferred House:
Slytherin Alumni
Classes:
core classes: charms, potions, transfiguration, defense against the dark arts, flying, history of magic
electives: history of magic, herbology, astronomy, care of magical creatures, arithmancy

WAND
Black Walnut, 12¹/₄ inches, supple, with a core of Dragon Heartstring.

BROOMSTICK
Nimbus 2001, of course, as well as a few ancient collector brooms, some of which are for sale, and others (autographed by famous retired Quidditch players) not.

OTHER MAGICAL DEVICES
Aside from having an entire store devoted to Dark items and devices, Broderick has a barn owl named Circe.

»»THE WAR[/color]

Affiliation:
The Dark Lord, himself.
Why:
His father died rather than denounce the Dark Lord or rot away in prison for exercising his beliefs. The return and subsequent rise of the Dark Lord has pulled his family's name out of the gutter - however, he's intelligent enough to realize that if the Dark Lord fails again, that means his name will be tarnished once more. Thus, most importantly, he is loyal to himself and his family's best interest.