Hagar Bennett

***Full Name:*** Hagar Bennett

***Birthdate:*** September 7th, 1891

***Age:*** Mid 40's

***Gender:*** Male

***Height:*** 5’8

***Weight:*** 139 pounds

***Hair Color:*** Dirty brown

***Eye Color:*** Blue

***Species:*** Ghost

***Alias:*** Hagar

Boy-hunter

***Family Members:*** Harriet Bennett

Unnamed father

***Occupation:*** Serial murderer

***Residence:*** Ghoulsby, Massachusetts (formerly, temporarily)

Salem, Massachusetts (formerly)

***Abilities:*** Manifestation

Invisibility

Corporealization

Intangibility

Flight

Teleportation

Amortality

Telekinesis

***Status:*** Deceased

***Quote:***

**“Your teachers never talk about me, one of the most infamous men in Massachusetts? They never talk about how feared I was, how feared I AM? That’s a bit disappointing…I left my mark on this state. You would think they would show their appreciation by warning kids your age about monsters like me."** *–Hagar to Dobrev inside his nightmare, Chapter 4*

**Hagar Bennett** is the first antagonist in the novel *DOBREV*. He attaches himself to Dobrev Reign during his class field trip to Salem, and follows him to Ghoulsby, Massachusetts and begins haunting him.

### Early Life

**"No one speaks his name, no one inquiries about his fate. Bennett has been written-off by oral storytellers, but the past cannot be forgotten—especially not when the past is this nauseating, this immoral, so far past the boundaries of human decency it is impossible for parents, for law enforcement, for our children to ignore."** *-A news article about Hagar Bennett*

Hagar was born on September 7th, 1891, to Harriet Bennett and the son of Ghoulsby's mayor. Since Hagar was conceived months before the wedding was to take place, Harriet attempted to have an abortion, but the procedure failed. Hagar was raised in wealth, but didn't take to his mother's high-class lifestyle, exhibiting dark and disturbing behaviors even from a young age. He was known for torturing stray animals, peeping into open windows, harassing the maid's children, and even got in trouble for stalking and stealing underwear. His mother had difficulty controlling Hagar and could not dissuade his psychopathic tendencies; after several run-in's with the law, Harriet kicked her son out of the house while Hagar was still in his early teen years.

On his own, Hagar traveled between Ghoulsby and Salem, not minding being homeless because it gave him easier access to potential victims. While his killing spree was originally thought to have been between 1912, another victim was discovered from the year 1909, which puts Hagar as being eighteen-years-old at the time of his first murder. Hagar's first known victim was a twelve-year-old boy named Jesse Feldman, a homeless boy living outside Salem: he was abducted by Hagar, who later stabbed him in the heart and consumed the boy's remains. Hagar's preferred type were boys between the ages of seven and thirteen.

It can be presumed that Hagar was eventually caught and executed for his crimes sometime after 1935, given the gruesome details and extensive kill count. He now resides as a malevolent spirit in Salem, Massachusetts, where he spent many years murdering as a human.

### Appearance

Hagar is described as having a greasy, unkept appearance, wearing a dusty brown jacket over a striped button-up shirt, along with tattered jeans and scuffed Oxford shoes. He has dark stubble covering his chin and hollow jaw bone, and is said to have an empty expression and void eyes.

### Personality

**“I know there’s a lot of Bennett’s around here, but considering what Hagar did for a living, I’d say the chances of his headstone being that unkept and vandalized are pretty good."** *-Achille about Hagar in Chapter 5*

Being a notorious serial murderer, Hagar carried his unfavorable traits from life into death; he enjoys tricking and manipulating humans, using cruel tendencies to break down their will until they are too weak to resist. He targets Dobrev Reign specifically because Hagar can sense his fear, another tactic he likely used to lure victims during his murder sprees. Hagar was known to be cruel, violent and troublesome even during his childhood; by the time he was a preteen, the boy had run-ins with the law and didn't seem to think there were any consequences to his actions. Even before committing his first murder, Hagar had a sadistic streak, torturing animals, stalking, peeking into windows and harassing the maid's children.

Once Hagar ran away from home, his true personality was no longer bound by parental figures or the authorities. He most likely did anything he could to survive on the streets, hardening his already-disturbed personality; Hagar had no empathy for others in similar situations and only sought to befriend them in order to kill and devour their bodies later on. It isn't likely Hagar had any friends or acquaintances, given his selfish methods of thinking and inability to connect with others. As a ghost, Hagar is even more callous and twisted, attaching himself to humans he deems weak as a way of torturing them with terrifying nightmares.

### Relationships

**Family**

**Harriet Bennett**

Hagar's mother Harriet was a wealthy socialite engaged to the Ghoulsby mayor's son. When she became pregnant with Hagar months before their wedding, Harriet attempted to abort the baby, to no avail. She managed to convince the townspeople that their son had not been birthed out of wedlock and raised Hagar in wealth. Their relationship did not start out well, and would only continue to worsen as Hagar got older and began exhibiting disturbing behaviors. Harriet did not know how to control her son, which eventually led to her kicking him out of the house as a young teen. Hagar didn't seem to care that he was hurting his mother by acting this way, nor did he truly care about her at all, only focused on his sick obsessions.

It isn't known if Hagar knew about Harriet's attempt to get rid of the boy before he was even born; given Hagar's lack of empathy or love for anyone, he likely wouldn't have cared even if Harriet admitted this truth. Harriet was likely horrified to hear what her son had been up to after kicking him out, damaging her reputation in the process.

**Others**

**Dobrev Reign**

When Dobrev visits Salem on a class field trip, he accidentally reveals his clairvoyant abilities to Hagar, who immediately starts to initiate contact. He is able to attach himself to the teen and follow him back to Ghoulsby, despite Achille Descoteaux's attempt to come between the two. Hagar mentally tortures Dobrev with nightmares, and even goes so far as to scratch his arm when Dobrev declines to "help" the ghost. It is likely that, had Hagar continued to be attached to Dobrev, would have broken his spirit down further and completely overwhelmed the boy with violent visions, and may have even assaulted Dobrev in the process.

Eventually, Achille and Alessandro Alemagna IV manage to break the attachment and send Hagar back to Salem, freeing Dobrev from his hold.

**Achille Descoteaux**

Hagar first comes across Achille when the Ghoulsby middle school classes are on a field trip to Salem. While Hagar is in the middle of attacking and attaching himself to Dobrev Reign, Achille intervenes, ordering Hagar to stop. Sensing Achille isn't as vulnerable as Dobrev, Hagar vanishes, though he had already formed a negative attachment to the latter. Achille isn't afraid of Hagar, but knows through his human past that the spirit is not to be taken lightly.

Later, as Hagar continues to haunt Dobrev, Achille takes it upon himself to determine Hagar's identity, which he does through locating the ghost's grave. During the time Dobrev is prevented from seeing Achille by his uncle, Achille takes it upon himself to contact a ghost expert and break the attachment himself.

### Trivia

-The name *Hagar* is from Hebrew origin, meaning "flight" or "forsaken"

-Hagar's mother, Harriet, attempted to have her son aborted due to her not being married yet, but the procedure failed

-In his childhood, Hagar set fires and tortured animals, two out of three signs from the homicidal triad

-Despite being raised in wealth, Hagar's ghost form wears dirty, unkept clothing

-Hagar's killing spree lasted from around 1909 all the way to 1935; his main victims were pubescent boys between the ages of 10-13.