Claire Evangeline Slater

Claire Slater is the eldest Slater child. She is an Auror, and is credited with tracking down the Purifier, Desirae Rousseau, and killed her in the ensuing duel. She is an active member in Heliopath.

## Personality

Claire dons the appearance of the perfect daughter. She was born perfectly on time, and was taught from a very young age how to impersonate perfection in every possible way. Smile, back straight, don’t talk back. She is a perfect example of her parents ruthless determination. Not a child, but an investment. But, for Claire, her tunnel vision prevents her from seeing the flaws in her mother and father. To her, her parents simply want the best for her and her siblings. She is proof of that, having done exactly what she was told, and found success and comfort from it, right? Or, so she tells herself. No matter that she is riddled with anxiety when it comes to failure, that her nails are constantly short and stubby as she bites them with a vicious intent. She cannot see how ‘expectation’ has failed her. She can only see the flaws within herself.

Despite the fact that Claire is an extremely intelligent and determined individual, this did not come naturally to her. Very early on, Claire discovered that if she wanted to impress her parents, she had to work for it. Studying twice as hard as her peers, forgoing social events to cram for a test or practice a potion. This has molded her in to a hard-working, but hyper aware, young woman. She is constantly monitoring her own appearance and effort, very capable of picking apart herself - but also others, especially her competition. She is unflinchingly honest when asked, and has cut down a competitor by simply retelling the minute details she has observed over time. But, she does not do this with cruelty.

This mentality has made her the pinnacle child to her parents, but has caused tension between Claire and her younger brother. To her, Grey is an example of poor decision making and a lack of drive. While he can see his parents for what they are, she struggles and so she blames him for his own failures. Just like she would for herself. In comparison, her relationship with her sister is very different. Claire has always taken pride in the fact that Addilyn looks up to her. Maintaining that facade of flawlessness for Addilyn’s benefit, as much as her own. She’s so used to navigating the high expectations of her parents, Claire doesn’t even realize how high she has them for herself.

However, as stiff and single-minded as Claire might appear at first glance, it is not all she is. She also has a goofy sense of humour, almost childish. Having secretly marveled and enjoyed comic books and muggle technology since she was teenager. That self-consciousness disappears when Claire is around friends she trusts, and underneath it all she is still young and youthful. She is not just what her parents have made her to be, and underneath it all Claire wishes that everybody knew that. But, her terribly low self-esteem prevents her from shedding that comfortable mask of perfection. This is mostly due to her parents, even if Claire doesn’t see that. She still has a lot to learn, no matter how well read as she is. And the only way for her to learn that is for her to experience life separate from her own fear of failure.

## History

For all intents and purposes, Claire Slater is the perfect child. Firstborn of wizard, Tim Slater and witch, Shela Slater, Claire arrived promptly on time and with perfect little chubby cheeks. She was their newest investment, and they lavished her with attention. Claire enjoyed the first four years of her life doted on by her family, and she blossomed under their constant love and effort. She learned to walk earlier than expected, was talking beyond her years and generally impressed her parents in every way possible. When her brother arrived, this attention wavered and split a little. Claire did not enjoy sharing the limelight as a child and this forced her to quickly realise that should she want to keep her parent’s attention, she better perform twice as well as she had been before. It shouldn’t have been like that, but the Slater’s had a way of pitting their children against one and other. And Claire just so happened to be their shining example for who they expected their son to be. This caused tension between Claire and her brother Grey from an early age and they butted heads constantly. If Claire was learning on her practise broom, Grey had to do so, as well. She wasn’t used to sharing and it pushed her to challenge herself in an effort to keep her parent’s approval - even at the expense of her little brother.

Luckily, the siblings didn’t have to fight alone for too long as, two years after Grey was born, Addilyn arrived. She was like a perfect reflection of Claire, but she didn’t enjoy hearing that as a child. Her parents constantly reminding her that she wasn’t special anymore because now there was two of her, but also expecting her to look out for her younger siblings as they grew and developed. Which she, of course, did. All the while, she continued to try and reach and exceed every challenge laid before her. As long as Claire had the pride of her parents she could handle sharing the limelight with her brother and sister. After all, she still loved them dearly, even if they fought some.

However, as Claire continued to impress her parents with her excellent skills and early magical development, they wanted more and more from her. Never satisfied by their children’s individual effort; there was always something to do, some box to tick and Claire was the first one to throw herself in to each one, headfirst. When her acceptance letter to Hogwarts arrived, her parents were smug but unsurprised. Of course their little genius was going to attend the most prestigious wizarding school in Britain. The letter was pinned to the fridge for a whole week before one of Addilyn’s little early-learning math tests found their way on top of it. She bit down all of her fingernails the following night while practising for her sorting. In each performance she was a Ravenclaw or a Gryffindor, the two houses she’d heard relayed back to her fondly from her parents. Nothing else would suffice.

When Claire arrived at Hogwarts she was promptly placed in Gryffindor, though the sorting hat had considered Ravenclaw as well. Claire was thrilled, buzzing with excitement at the prospect of learning - and maybe a part of her was relieved that her parents wouldn’t be around to shadow her anymore. Alas, a week in to her time at the school and she received her first letter from her parents and her carefree enjoyment came to a full stop. They were quick to inform her in great detail that ‘failure’ was not an option. She had to work hard, keep her priorities straight and most of all ‘make them proud’. Claire wasn’t sure there was anything she could do to truly gain their pride and acceptance, but from that day on she buckled down and did everything in her power to earn it. This meant that much of her time at Hogwarts was spent alone. She had top marks and never strayed away from the straight and narrow, but it was lonely at the top. They were the most solitary years of her life, but Claire felt sure it would pay off in the long run. She could have fun once she’d graduated, when she was an adult. Even when Grey arrived, Claire never wavered. Despite the fact that they had wildly different approaches to academia - he wouldn’t listen to her mentality.

Claire graduated from Hogwarts at the top of her class. Her parents were there, and she thought she’d finally given them what they wanted. Having done exactly as they desired all throughout her schooling, at the expense of her social life and creative freedom. But, it wasn’t quite over. For many years, her parents had alluded to their plans for her. How amazing it would be to have an auror in the family. How noble their work was, and of course, how fantastic it would look among their high society peers. And so, that is what Claire did. She was so used to doing what she was told that rebellion didn’t seem like an option. Grey was already doing his own thing, much to the chagrin of their mother and father. There was no room for her to consider anything else.

Training as an Auror wasn’t that difficult for Claire. She’d spent much of her life working hard, this was just the same level of dedication, with different physical and mental challenges. In fact, she actually enjoyed it. Plus, she could finally live off her own back, while still doing as her parents instructed. This meant that she had time to experience other factors of life outside of work - though limited as it was. It was while training that she met Casey. Having never really fallen in love before, Claire fell hard and fast the first time. He was older than her by seven years, but more mature and settled. In all her inexperience he taught her how to live outside of her work and her parents. Though she kept much of their burgeoning love affair secret, for fear that her parents wouldn’t approve. Claire wasn’t sure how she’d handle that, and so she avoided the confrontation at all costs.

Meanwhile, the wizarding community continued to be shaken by new and dangerous attacks. From muggleborns being targeted at Hogwarts, to the eventual kidnapping of over a dozen students. Claire was very busy at work, every attempt to thwart the terrorists seeming futile. It frustrated and infuriated her to feel helpless, and so she threw herself in to it. Though, things were still becoming serious between her and Casey outside of it all. Still, when he proposed to her she was shocked. Claire never envisioned herself as a wife, her entire self image molded by her parents expectations. She said yes, suddenly excited and challenged in a different way. Despite this, she didn’t let it take away from her work. And so, when Kings Cross Station was attacked, Claire was one of the first-responders. Alongside Casey and many other Aurors. It was a devastating attack, but she hadn’t expected to lose Casey in the making. He was one of the three Aurors killed at the station and Claire was left to mourn alone. Nobody really knew about the two, so her grief was a lonesome and consuming thing. In the end, it just made her angry.

Following the attack at Kings Cross, Claire let her work consume her. While her parents proudly spoke of how their daughter had ‘been at the heart of it’, she was focused on some form of justice. She thought wholeheartedly that if she could just get one, then maybe losing Casey wouldn’t be so bad. Claire quickly got a name for herself for her passion and determination in the task of finding and disassembling this new terrorist organization. She wouldn’t catch a break for four months. Not until a lead led Claire and Abigail Shacklebolt to an abandoned church in London. They had been informed that it was being used as a hideout and were both dispatched to catch anybody found there, dead or alive. Claire, alongside Abigail fought the terrorist hiding their and finally, they’d won something, It came at the price of notorious blood purist, Desirae Rousseau. She was killed in the fight, and at first Claire felt elated. Finally, something had been done. Justice was to be had for those who had been lost in these senseless attacks.

And the papers raved about it for weeks. Blood Purist Desiare Rousseau - DEAD, though Claire did not approve of her name being leaked as one of the Auror’s responsible. That elation faded to a stark realisation that she had taken a life, and that was something she had to get over as well. No matter if she ‘deserved it’ or ‘better her than me’, it wasn’t something she wanted to take pride in. And she cringed as her parents regaled people with exaggerated tales of what exactly went down. Despite the fact that Claire hadn’t the clearance to tell them anything. That was perhaps the first time she finally found a dislike for her parent’s attitude to death. It was all a fairytale to them.

Time went on, and the news faded with it. Claire was just another faceless Auror, though she had earned he stripes with style. She took her job very seriously and that social life she was carefully cultivating outside of it? Disintegrated. Most days were automated, a routine she stuck to with militant accuracy. The terrorists grip seemed to grow despite losing one of their high ranking soldiers. Claire refused to let it bring her down. They’d win in the end, she reminded herself. Good always prevailed over evil, all of her favourite comics said so.

However, the attacks became more and more wide spread. The most devastating being the bombs detonated on the foreign students leaving after the Triwizard Tournament. Claire had known about the press surrounding the Tournament, but never in her darkest nightmares had she thought they would be targeted so viciously. The loss was terrible and Claire could see the mounting pressure as war lingered on the horizon. She’d read about what happened the last time such a mentality grew roots, and that in itself was worrying. She did all she could from her position, but it never felt like enough. They were losing too much. And like a domino effect, the attacks came one after the other. Another win seemed impossible to grasp. Even across the ocean, tensions were rising as the summer of 2024 brought down Ilvermorny Castle. The esteemed American wizarding school. Claire had offered her assistance in any way she could, just like Hogwarts had as it opened its doors. They were unsure of the attack was related to the blood purists they were dealing with, but it seemed dangerously similar. As a proud auror, even now Claire lives for her work. She will do everything in her power to prevent hate from consuming her beloved community.

Claire’s hatred for the Purifiers and everything they stand for is strong, though perhaps fueled by her grief, as they were responsible for the death of her fiance. She works tirelessly as an auror to thwart any destructive plans they may have in place, but even she can only do so much. As it was when Harry Potter first went missing, their lack of information is their worst enemy. Though, despite rumours that the famous wizard was dead, Claire was relieved to hear that he had returned some time later. However, that was somewhat overshadowed by the escape of several dragons from a local reserve. Claire was among the few aurors who battled to wrangle the beasts as they terrorized the small Scottish village of Hogsmeade. She was furious to learn that it had all been a distraction, as Azkaban was simultaneously attacked, releasing a handful of dangerous prisoners and destroying an ancient artefact - thought to be the sole motivation for the terrorist attack. Though, at least both sides seemed to lose something in the making of this. For once.