Barbary Escher

*“Do the best you*
can until you know better. Then, when you know better, do better.”—Maya Angelou

**Barbary Escher** is a half-blood wizard born to noted eccentrics Maurtis and Vivica Escher. He was named after his late uncle.

In 2013, Barbary started his education at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Inheriting a love of mystery from his parents, Escher is a cool guy and a talented flier, if not something of a showboat.

## Biography

### Early Life

Barbary Cornelius Escher was born on 23 May, the younger of two children to Maurtis and Vivica Escher, both of whom have worked for the Department of Mysteries since their graduation from Hogwarts. The two are noted eccentrics, but their strange outlook on the world has allowed them to make several notable discoveries about the nature of the strange things that are found in the Ministry's most secretive Department. As such, their children are both a little strange.

He seemed to have a love for flying and being in the spotlight from a young age. He started doing tricks on his baby broom when he was only three years old; he started surfing on it when he was six and he did his first successful handstand at nine. He was a common sight around their home, zipping around the halls and stairways on his little baby broom, chasing the family pygmy owl or otherwise just trying to "beat his best time".

He was also a very physical boy, climbing, balancing and leaping from all manner of things from a young age. He was known to drive his grandmother crazy as a kid. His first expression of magic was floating around his room, where he swam through the air, evading capture for nearly an hour, when his grandmother finally caught him with a pillowcase.

Escher had friends but he was always the odd one out. He was a strange kid who said strange with weird parents. He was not especially popular with the other kids his age but he wasn't without friends, most notably Anna Perriwinkle, the daughter of his parents' co-worker.

Escher received his Hogwarts letter on his eleventh birthday, like most children. He went to Diagon Alley to get his school supplies. It took nearly four hours to get him paired with a wand. He didn't make things easier when he spent most of his time trying to get to the Quidditch supply shop, which caused his mother to scold him.

### Notable Accomplishments

#### First Year (2013-2014)

* Began education at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, and was sorted into Gryffindor.

#### Fourth Year (2017-2018)

* Tried out for the Gryffindor Quidditch Team but was taken out early due to a rogue bludger.

#### Fifth Year (2018-2019)

* Became Seeker for the Gryffindor Quidditch Team.

#### Sixth Year (2019-2020)

* Became Lead Chaser and Team Captain for the Gryffindor Quidditch Team.
* Led the team to victory, winning the Quidditch Cup.

#### Seventh Year (2020-2021)

* Kept his position on the Gryffindor Quidditch Team.
* Attended the Yule Ball with Erica Puddle, after which they told each other that they did, in fact, like one another and agreed to start dating.

## Physical Appearance

Escher is very tall at 6'04" with an athletic, runner's build. He has unruly light brown hair and brown eyes. Escher is a handsome guy, but his oddness is a bit off-putting to most of his classmates. Notably, he is almost always wearing a Hawaiian shirt and sunglasses. He seems to be able to conjure his sunglasses from nowhere using magic.

## Personality and Traits

Escher is a strange guy. He speaks in a sort of disjointed, philosophical rambling not unlike his Divination Professor. He often references creatures or things that nobody else has ever heard of and he commonly references people's aura and/or energy. A laid-back, cool guy, Escher is easy to get along with.

A Gryffindor at heart, Escher is bold beyond measure or even reason. He is a showboat on a broom and prefers spells with flashy, impressive effects. He is reckless and known to take unnecessary chances, both on a broom and off, because he feels like it's the more interesting thing to do.

## Magical Abilities and Skills

Escher's weird outlook on the world has given him unique insight into Divination work and even Transfiguration. His dueling skills are subpar as in a fight he tends to favor spells that are flashy and impressive rather than, you know, being useful.

* **Flying:** Escher is a highly skilled flier, capable of pulling off stunts and maneuvers many professional Quidditch Players would balk at. He tends to be a showboat, though since he's started playing Chaser and focusing his talents on handling the Quaffle and leading the Team as Captain, Gryffindor has excelled, going so far as to win the Quidditch Cup in 2020.
* **Transfiguration:** Escher is extremely skilled at Transfiguration magic, especially conjuration and changing his clothes.

## Major Relationships

### Family

Escher is not especially close with his family. His parents are eccentrics who spend most of their time at work and treat him more like a pupil than a son. As for his sister, Barbary was only three years old when Joan left for Hogwarts. Being eight years her junior, he never really got to know her; her holidays were mostly spent at school and during her summers home (when she physically wasn't allowed to be at the school anymore) she spent her time locked in her room or out of the house, when she got older, staying and interacting with Barbary only when she was roped into babysitting him. Because of this Barbary and Joan are not particularly close. The only family member he has any reasonable connection to is his grandmother, who was his only real source of maternal care growing up.

### Anna Perriwinkle

Anna was Escher's only real friend for many years. The two were close, virtually inseparable, and Escher developed feelings for Anna at a young age. He was hurt and a little upset when she started dating the male 5th year Prefect and after he confessed his feelings for her shortly after, she rejected him and began giving him the cold shoulder. The two haven't really repaired their relationship ever since, despite Escher's efforts. He is very sad at how it's all turned out.

### Erica Puddle

Erica, the Hufflepuff Seeker, is as good a Seeker as you'll find anywhere. Escher respects her skill and conviction on the field, but more than anything, he admires that she's a good sport and a kind person overall. Since the final match of the Quidditch Cup, the two have become friends and even remained in contact over the summer. As of now, she's quickly become his best friend and he tends to sit with her and her friends at the Hufflepuff table during meals.

After the Yule Ball in their Seventh Year, Escher and Erica decided to start dating, as they had liked each other for some time.

### Cary Nordegraf

Escher looks out for Cary, the youngest member of the team. He often stood up to their House Mates who tried to give Cary shit after they lost their first game against Slytherin and often had to remind people that HE was the Seeker who lost sight of the Snitch. Escher would often stick with Cary during training rounds, providing him with a friend on the team. He gave Cary pointers about flying and about Quidditch and the two developed something of a friendship.

## Trivia

* His favorite color is a soft, lavender purple.

* Loves muggle music and is a capable indy-rock vocalist. Which is to say, he's not like, terribly talented but he's charismatic. His music is Of Montreal-levels of nonsense.

* Escher's father is a fifth generation wizard and his mother a muggleborn witch, making him and his sister Half-Bloods.
* He has a pet; a Pygmy Owl named Snidget.
* Favorite food is Indian food, specifically most varieties of curry.
* Desires to be a professional Quidditch Player after Hogwarts.