Jay

Backstory

What Hogwarts House were you sorted into, and why did the Sorting Hat make that selection? Were you a hatstall (where it took the Sorting Hat a long time to decide) or was the decision immediate? What classes do (or did) you like the most? Which did you like the least? Any classes you did well in but didn’t particularly enjoy? Are you a muggleborn, a half-blood or pureblood? How has your blood status affected your life in the Wizarding World? If you were in the UK during either time He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named rose to power, what was that like? What is your greatest strength? More importantly, what is your greatest weakness? What are you looking to do after you finish school? If you’ve graduated, have you found your dream job? What do you feel is the most fascinating aspect of magic? Do you want to use magic to help others, or to further your own ends? If you are being honest with yourself, what do you really want? Do you have any pets? What’s their name, and how do they act? Is there anything interesting about your family? Any oddities or disagreements?

Jessica (Jesse) Rhea Pottwel is a halfblood witch, born to a Muggle father and a witch mother. Her father works as a professor at the local university when he's not learning all he can about magic, and her mother (career tbd). Jesse's mother is the Slytherin daughter of Alphard Black (Sirius Black's disgraced uncle) and _____ Prince (sister or cousin to Eileen Prince, Snape's mom). She also has an adopted younger brother, Lyall, who is a Muggle werewolf taken in after he survived the attack that killed his parents as a young child. Because of her brother, Jesse is very attuned to the phases of the moon, and takes a strong stand against any anti-werewolf sentiments she encounters. She also is more accepting of Sirius Black's innocence, due to her grandfather's stories of the rebellious, Muggle-loving teen he was at school and her own distrust of the Ministry's legal system (especially given their harsh treatment of werewolves and other nonhumans).
Jesse is roughly two years older than Harry Potter, putting her in the same year as the Weasley twins (sorted in 1989). She is slightly shorter than her mother, standing at 162cm (~5'4") fully grown, and has dark brown hair and eyes, with fairly pale skin (like most of the House of Black). Her most defining attributes are her stubbornness, loyalty, and self-honesty, and although she has a bad habit of being arrogant at times, she does her best to be a kind person to anyone who hasn't recently crossed her. She is a taciturn person by nature, preferring to sit to the side and watch others rather than participating herself, but when she does join in an activity, she is remarkably competitive. Friends of Jesse's will also realize that while she does not contribute much in most settings, once she gets going she can be rather talkative and dominant, even brash. It is this combination of traits for which the Sorting Hat placed her in Gryffindor. While all of her family have been Slytherin, she shares her father's determination and recklessness, without nearly the cunning or self-preservation required of a Slytherin.
As a student, Jesse is fairly middle-range. While she is rather intelligent, she also has a bad habit of tuning out during classes, sometimes quietly fighting or doodling rather than taking notes. She much prefers hands-on instruction, and as such greatly enjoys such classes as Care of Magical Creatures and Potions (even with Snape as a teacher). She enjoys reading, but find it difficult to stay in one position for long stretches, particularly when reading unengaging texts such as history or spellbooks.
to be continued...