Character History:
The O'Shea family was a pureblood family hailing from Donegal, Ireland. As far as anybody knew, they were a well-respected and generous family, a common sight at wizarding functions and charities. In truth, they frequently smuggled dark artifacts between Ireland and other parts of the United Kingdom. In late May of 1970, the newest addition to the family, Liam, was born. Like the rest of his family, he was dark haired and dark eyed. His early childhood was spent much the way any other newborns would be - coddled by his parents. By the time he could walk and talk and understand, however, his father started teaching.
It is the assumption that every first born male in the O'Shea family would inheret the 'family business', which from the outside doesn't look like much of a business at all, but simply a family of inherited wealth. Liam's case was no different. He was given every effort to succeed in wheeling and dealing. When Liam began showing magical signs (he got the cookie jar down off the top of the cabinetry just by looking at it), his parents began to teach him basic magical tricks, so that when the time came for him to enter Hogwarts, he would be prepared to excel. No O'Shea would ever be a sub-par witch or wizard, as the family saying went.
During his childhood, the O'Shea family were frequent suppliers of dark materials and artifacts to the Death Eaters and Lord Voldemort. Despite their willingness to assist the Dark Lord, when they were unable to provide him with the materials he needed, Voldemort sent a squad of Death Eaters to his home. Liam watched them murder his mother right in front of his eyes. He was eight years old. To save what was left of his family, Liam's father, Lucas, was forced to stop helping the Death Eaters from the sidelines and become one. By the time Voldemort was defeated, his father was knee deep in Death Eater activies. Even claiming to be acting under the Imperius Curse couldn't save him, as the O'Shea family was ousted as the true smugglers and dark wizards they were.
Nearly all of the O'Shea family were brought to trial before the Wizengamot and sent to Azkaban. The closest living relative that was not convicted was an estranged Aunt who had moved to Monaghan, having distanced herself from the family upon discovering what they did. Liam hated living with her, and he hated losing his father. Shortly after moving to live with his Aunt, he received his letter to attend Hogwarts. He was quickly sorted into Slytherin (the sorting hat barely even touched a hair on his head), but word travels quick in the wizarding world, and the O'Shea family was now considered traitors to most wizards and witches. He made no friends.
Instead, he utilized the fact that everybody underestimated him and his earlier teachings as a child to quickly excel in his schoolwork. Despite his good marks, he started to become a troublemaker, using the ruckus he caused as an outlet for the anger and hatred he felt from his losses as a younger child. By his fourth year, some of the stigma regarding his family began to wear off on the students that spent their time with him, and he began to be regarded as a 'quality Slytherin'. He began to notice that girls seemed quite taken with him, and boys often sought his advice with simple spells.
He quickly built an entourage, that by the time his was in his sixth year, had grown to include a quarter of the fifth to seventh year students. He continued to be a troublemaker, but both of the Slytherin prefects, and even one Ravenclaw prefect (a girl who quite fancied him), helped him to avoid losing any points or being blamed for his actions. Liam sat his NEWTs in his seventh year: Ancient Runes (E), Arithmancy (A), Charms (O), Defense Against the Dark Arts (O), Magical Law Enforcement (O), Potions (E), Transfiguration (E). His NEWT grades qualified him for several positions in the Ministry, and though he wished to become an Auror in order to utilize the position to protect himself as he rebuilt his family's former business, the stigma of the O'Shea name was not forgotten at the Ministry.
The only position he was allowed to apply for was as an Investigator at the Improper Use of Magic Office, at first overseeing small breaches of underage magic use, and slowly climbing up the ladder. Since graduating from Hogwarts, he has been busy trying to remake connections with his family's former 'partners', but most of them are either in Azkaban or unwilling to resume such practice. It would seem that Liam will need to wait for the world to calm down from the threat of Lord Voldemort before he will be able to resume the old family business. In the meantime, he'll have to earn his own keep. Maybe, in time, he may even begin to like what he does.
Personality:
Liam is a hard nut to crack. Given his aptitude with people and charming them to no end, his personality can seemingly change in the flap of a Snitch's wing. One moment he may seem distant and foreboding, the next warm and amicable. Whatever the situation, he will adapt to whatever the people present will find most comfortable. When you get down to bear bones, though, Liam is a no-nonsense wizard who will use whatever means necessary to fulfill his own ends. He is primarily selfish and motivated by the preservation of himself and his family name, dedicated to returning his once wealthy family to that former glory. This is not to say that he cannot feel warmth - he feels a kinship with those who are willing to look past the stigma of his name (despite the fact that he's trying to resume the family business), and is proud of his pureblood heritage.
To Liam, a halfblood witch or wizard is one step to a Muggleborn witch or wizard. Raised with the belief that those of a pureblood heritage are better and have the most power, his personal witnessing of his mother's own swift demise (a witch he believed to be quite powerful, accurate or not in that belief) by the hands of other purebloods has cemented this along with the power and connections wielded by Lord Voldemort during his rise to power. His obsession with the dark arts goes beyond what his family had ever done, simply using it as a means to make money (albeit illegally). This is odd, considering those same arts murdered his mother and broke up his family. But deep, deep down is a man quite scared that the world will find no place for him.
Other Information:
- His Patronus, if he were capable of summoning one, would take the form of a Salamander.
- His wand is ten inches, and very rigid. It is made of rowan, with a dragon heartstring core.
- He is a skilled Occlumens, and a half-decent Legilimens.
Memorable Quotes:
None yet.
Trivia and Notes:
None yet.