Bartholomew Blackfrost

*"*Those who don't believe in magic will never find it." ~Roald Dahl

## History

**Birth**

To most, Bartholomew's conception and birth remains a mystery, but a few key people know the true story. His mother, Alice, a recently widowed archeologist had been offered a job in Khoms, Libya. To help take her mind off of her rescently passed husband, Alice agreed to it and arranged to be there soon enough. WIth her mind distracted, she went about preparing and even had her friends throw her a going away party to ease her nerves about traveling. It was on that night, the night before she flew, that she met a man named Abe. The chemistry was instant, and their night together one she would never forget. Mostly because she later found out that she became pregnant. Of course, her father, Lord Byron III, would never accept this, so she hid it for her entire stay in Libya.

**Growth in the field**

What had started as a 6-month sabbatical in the fields to help her adjust to life alone, ended up taking years. The longer Alice stayed with her son in Libya, the more she loved it. She became a friend to the locals, adjusting to her life with her son. It should be noted here that this was her second son. The first child had left her when he was 11 to be raised by his Grandfather, Lord Byron III. He was a cruel man who’s teachings drove the boy to a life of crime. Another important thing to know is that while Bartholomew was a normal child for his situation, he has one of the most symmetrical faces anyone had ever seen, save for when his left eye would shift colors from a burnt umber to an emerald. As such, the more superstitious people of the village to an interest in him, and began teaching him things his Grandfather would later refer to as Hogwash. However, every mystical thing they taught him echoed in his mind, like some awakening of a sleeping truth calling him to his destiny. For Bartholomew and Alice life was well, at least until Byron found out and demanded that his grandson be sent home for a ‘proper’ raising.

**A strange encounter**

Now Bartholomew’s father Abe had been entirely out of the picture, all but vanishing from their lives, so it would not come as a shock that neither of them recognized each other when they first met. You see, Abe had been an under the employment of Byron for about a year now,  helping to maintain the museum (as was his nature of such things). It was by this nature that Bartholomew, even for the shortest amount of time, was in fact raised by his father. Of course, because of how Byron treated many of those working for him, Abe soon left the museum (with a broken heart of course). It was under the guidance of Abe that he found the only magical trinket he has even know to work and he keeps it as close to himself as possible at all times.

**Inheritance**

Due to the unfortunate scandals surrounding his older brother Byron IIII, his brother was deemed unfit and ill-prepared, but in truth, his brother could have been a model citizen and Bartholemew would have been set up to recieve the family estates. His grandfather had always taken a liking to him, and even through his bouts of rage, he had managed to show the boy kindnesses he did not afford to his namesake. It also helped that in some strange way, Bartholemew had a natural affinity for maintaining the museum and collecting new relics for the displays. Either way, the museum had to be willing to him, his brother had up and vanish three years ago without a trace.

**A world to explore**

Given this entirely expected development, Byron III allowed for Bartholemew one last expedition into the world, to learn and experience as much as he could before becoming tied down to maintain the museum. Many strange and wonderful things happened to Blackfrost on his journey, reigniting his interest in magic and teaching him many fantastical tricks. He made sure to see as much of the world as he could, learning many basic remedies, and ancient medicines. He even learned to channel his Ki in the Tibetian temples after spending a year meditating. While he is not perfect in everything he learned, he finds the arts not so lost to him that he could not relearn them with practice.

**Settling down**

Soon, however, it was time. He received in the post a letter from his Grandfather explaining that he did not have much time to live. While the doctors say it could be up to five years, he felt it was time to come home, and Bartholemew Agreed. He had learned many great things, some would even fuel his research into the mystic arts today. For the last year (as he went home at the young age of 47) he has been doing just that. Preparing the museum for life after his grandfather, and furthering his own studies into the old magics. Recently he has decided to teach history at the Blue Ridge University focusing on both Anthropology and General Social Sciences.

## Appearance

Blackfrost, being a man of wealth, has always preferred the finer things in life, and his clothing is no exception. Often he enjoys wearing tailor-made designer suits or current fashionable day wear. Two things he always carries with him are his golden cane and his satchel full of archeological research papers and findings.

## Personality

In the light, Blackfrost is very serious, always thinking about forwarding his own goals and studies. He lacks many basic communication skills, preferring to leave people in the dark until the last minute. This has caused him some grief, but overall tends to work out for the better, being that he is not an upstanding citizen.

## Friends

Several, though it would not be a public affair by any means.

## Enemies

None as of yet, but some trolls on the internet might not be fans of him.

## Aspirations

The child of one of the greatest collectors, Bartholomew seeks to own a copy of every magical trinket he can find.