Rita Skeeter

[Rita Skeeter]

WIZARDING APPLICATION

Rita Irene Skeeter

VITAL INFO

Date of birth: 10th June, 1951

Age: 27 years

Father: Richard Skeeter

Mother: Tilda Skeeter

Siblings: none

Bloodline: Pureblood

Back Story:

Rita was born to Richard and Tilda Skeeter, a happy middle-class, pureblood family in northern England. Rita's childhood was unremarkable; a friendly girl who took an early interest in books and story-telling. Growing up in a mixed wizarding-muggle village, Rita was accustomed to interacting with all sorts of people, which she credits to supporting her ability to fit comfortably into any social scenario. As a preteen, Rita spent much of her time writing short stories about the neighborhood children, taking small events on their street and dramatizing and inflating them into something exciting, thrilling, and captivating. Those were her three favorite words as a young girl - it's normal for children to have favorite words, isn't it?

Upon acceptance to Hogwarts, Rita was hesitantly sorted into Ravenclaw. The Sorting Hat seemed to take a bit longer than average when trying to determine which House would best suit her, and depending on who was asking, Rita often had a different answer as to what the other House possibility had been. In school, Rita made friends and focused on her studies, but in her fourth year she decided that excelling in all of her lessons wasn't enough for her. She set her eyes on joining the infamous Slug Club, starting the school's first student-run newspaper since 1729; The Hogwarts Herald. As the editor (and sole journalist and photographer for the first year), Rita began making a name for herself among the students, and teachers (namely Professor Slughorn) were starting to take notice. Eventually, she was able to recruit others to help write and edit the paper, but Rita retained a heavy hand on her project and was overjoyed when she was finally offered an invitation to one of Slughorn's parties. This was the event that would open doors for her outside of Hogwarts, if it weren't for Bilton Bilmes, a boy in her year who had chosen to squander his invitation to the party - and by extension, Rita's chance of officially joining the Slug Club - by spiking the professor's tea with Bulbadox powder. 

Never accomplishing her goal of being taken in, and raised up, by the influential wing of Horace Slughorn, Rita was determined to make something of herself. After graduation from Hogwarts she immediately took on two internships with well-established publications: Witch Weekly and the Daily Prophet. Rita worked day and night, seven days a week, until finally she was offered a paid position at the Prophet. She continued her internship at WW for another year but when nothing substantial came from that opportunity, she decided to dedicate herself full time to the Prophet. Exciting, thrilling, and captivating stories were rarely assigned to Rita in her early career, and despite now being on the payroll she felt she needed something extra to help her shine. In her attempts to "get the scoop" she found that people were not as open and chatty about less savory subjects, and so she Rita determined that if people wouldn't tell her what she needed to know, she'd find another way to get the information. It took some time, between researching and actually completing the magic correctly, but eventually Rita became an animagus - a secret she kept for only herself, despite wizarding law that she willingly add her name to a registry.

In 1974, at the age of 23, Rita published her first book highlighting the life and untimely death of Anthony Braxton, a Hogwarts professor who mysteriously went missing before end of year exams. Several of her "anonymous" sources were Hogwarts staff, whom Rita had overheard while spying investigating, discussing their colleague's disappearance and the events prior that may have played some part in the whole ordeal. Although the MLE has yet to officially conclude that the former Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher was even dead (still having Mr Braxton listed officially as "missing"), Rita was hailed for her investigative writing. Following her semi-biographical success, Rita wrote Armando Dippet: Master or Moron? in 1976 which officially became a best seller only two weeks after its release. It was at this point that Rita leveraged her publishing success for a promotion at the Daily Prophet to investigative journalist and insisted that her byline include a photograph of herself - to increase their readership by bringing in fans who are used to seeing her picture on the best-seller list. 

APPEARANCE

Height: 5'2"

Hair: Blonde

Eyes: Green

Style/Other characteristics: Rita is always fashionably dressed, and understands the value of a well-styled handbag. Although her day-to-day looks are often eye catching, she knows how to blend in in order to get a good scoop. Professionally, she tends to stick to more modest outfits - though still colorful, reminiscent of her byline photograph that has appears alongside her name on every article she has written for the Daily Prophet since 1976.

Photo:
 

TEMPERAMENT

Rita Skeeter has little time for friends, and even less time for fools. While appearing as though she is being perfectly pleasant, her sweet charm can actually be quite stinging. She enjoys being the smartest person in the room (or at least she believes herself to be) and as such, she finds few whom she deems worthy of calling a real friend. Rita is smart enough to know that she cannot get to where she wants in life without the help of others, and has amassed a network of connections for every sort of need, be it professional or social. These contacts are possibly the closest thing Rita has to friends, and while some may view that as sad, she is more than happy to not have the cumbersome baggage that accompanies such personal relationships.

None of this is to say that Rita is unlikable, unpopular, or offensive. In fact, Rita can be quite charming, especially if she finds the person useful in some way; whether that be a story subject, an informant, or a future contact to add to her collection. Hers is a regular face in many a wizarding establishment and a welcomed one at that. She is on good terms with several restaurateurs, politicians, and socialites, which allows her access to all manner of places and details. Despite some claiming her works are 'tabloid esque', Rita knows what the readers want, and is more than happy to oblige.

MAGIC

Wand: Hawthorne, Unicorn Hair, 10 inches

Boggart: Lord Voldemort

Patronus: none
Animagus Form: Beetle, unregistered

EDUCATION

House: Ravenclaw

Time at Hogwarts: 1962-1969

EMPLOYMENT

Type of Application (Order, Death Eater, or Civilian): Civilian

Job/Position: Journalist for Daily Prophet & Author

How long: 8 years

Qualifications: where to begin... *pulls out resume*
*twice published author
*8 yrs Daily Prophet columnist
*2yrs Daily Prophet intern
*3 yrs Witch Weekly intern
*4 yrs Hogwarts Herald journalist/photographer/editor

OTHER

Play By: Emma Roberts

Player Name: Lyra