Oliver Wood @ Amesoeur

[dan1hart1ey]

Oliver Tavish Wood
Puddlemere United!

THE BASICS

Name | Oliver Tavish Wood
Nicknames | Ollie, Captain, Cap'
Age | 28 Years Old
Birthday | 21 June 1976
House/Year | Gryffindor '94
Location | England
Current Residence | A modest home north of Glasgow on the shore of Loch Lomond.
Previous Occupation | Puddlemere United Reserve
Current Occupation | Starting chaser for Puddlemere United, Captain.

FAMILY/RELATIONSHIPS

Douglas Alban Wood | Father | Oliver and his Dad have a great relationship. The two of them are truly the biggest Quidditch fans in Scotland and possibly the entirety of the British Isles. It was his Father who had always fed Oliver's own interest in the sport, which obvious success. Now that Oliver plays professionally, there is always a couple seats reserved for his Dad, whether or not the old man is able to attend.

Sheena Lindsay Wood nee MacCulloch | Mother | More often than not Abigail had to be the disciplinary parent, but Oliver loves her none the less. With Douglas encouraging him with "boys will be boys" attitude, Abigail was often left frustrated in a house full of boys. Oliver tends to try and make up for his rambunctiousness by helping out whenever he's home. He'll always greet his Mother first, with a big hug and an affectionate kiss to the cheek.

Finlay James Wood | Brother, 33 | Oliver has always looked up to his older brother. As a child, he always wanted to be were Finlay was, no matter how irritated Finlay might be with him. Between Oliver's two siblings, he tends to bicker with Finlay more than he does with Colin. His Mother always said they two of them were so alike in personality that it was no wonder they argued like they did. Neither of the boys, however, see such similarities.

Colin Alastair Wood | Brother, 22 | Oliver enjoys spending time with his little brother, simply because he likes the fact that there's someone who looks up to him as much as he looked up to Finlay growing up. There really isn't anything that Oliver wouldn't do for Colin, including burying the body in the back yard if need be.

Friends | Angelina Johnson, Katie Bell, Alicia Spinnet, George Weasley, Lee Jordan, Percy Weasley, fellow classmates of '94, fellow Puddlemere players, ect.

Significant Other | None.
Children | None that he is aware of.

THE POLITICAL

Loyalty/Allegiance | Oliver doesn't particularly have a significant loyalty or allegiance to any one group outside of his family. He does, however, have a very strong sense of right and wrong. If he feels that what you stand for is right, he'll support you with everything he's got. On the contrary, if he feels what you're doing is wrong, he'll do everything he can to prevent you from succeeding.

Role in the War | As the war was reaching it's peak, Oliver was no longer at Hogwarts having graduated four years before war broke out. He remained playing Quidditch as long as the Department of Magical Games and Sports determined it was safe. When he wasn't playing Quidditch he returned to his home in Scotland, all the while keeping in contact with the friends he could reach and following the news for those he couldn't. Though he had not been a part of Dumbledore's army, he returned with the rest of his friends for the final battle in order to help fight everything negative Voldemort and his Death Eaters were trying to bring about. He was one of the lucky few not to receive any lasting injuries.

Politics | Oliver is very pro-muggle. He doesn't understand why everyone is in such a snit about Muggle culture being absorbed into the wizarding world. Muggles and their culture have been incorporated into the magical world for generations and magic still exists. He thinks it's more about some people feeling superior than anything else.

THE APPEARANCE

Height | 6 feet, 3 inches.
Weight | 220lbs
Eyes | Blue
Hair | Blonde, shoulder length (much to his Mother's dismay)

Detailed Appearance | Despite his Scottish accent, Oliver looks more like a Viking than a Scotsman. This can be attributed to the Scandinavian lineage in his Father's background overpowering the strictly Scottish background of his Mother. With Blonde hair and bright blue eyes, he's the odd man out more often than not at any Scottish pub ... that is until they start drinking and his accents gets all the heavier. Standing at an impressive six feet, three inches, Oliver towers over most of his family, save his older brother Finley who is just as tall. Oliver, however, has a much broader set of shoulders, helped along by the continued and regimented training schedule of Puddlemere United.

Oliver, as many of the Quidditch fans have commented, is particularly attractive. Despite these praises, he's humble about it. He's not overly concerned with what others think of him, attractive or not. His focus is intently geared toward his stats and style of play and he rarely spares a fraction of his attention on his looks. His jock-ish style was created out of necessity rather than any sort of fashion sense. It's ridiculously hard to find a shirt that fits comfortably over his shoulders these days and he'll take what he can get. You're much more likely to see him in one of three things; sweats, jeans and a t-shirt, or his Quidditch gear. He'd like to argue otherwise, but he truly does spend more time in his Quidditch gear than anything else. The only time he ever bothers with formal wear is when he's obligated to attend a Ministry/Quidditch function as a member of Puddlemere United. He takes his position with the team particularly seriously, especially now that he's been made the captain.

Is there a time when Oliver isn't dressed for Quidditch ... not really. He does, from time to time, go out with his mates. This usually involves a pub or the like and he does make a little bit of an effort to clean up his appearance. As of late, however, he's simply let his hair grow. His Mother continually asks when he's going to cut it, but he's grown rather fond of it and has no immediate intentions of cutting it.

THE PERSONALITY

Wand | 10 1/2 inches, Oak, Phoenix Tail Feather
Boggart | Sinkholes ... the thought of getting sucked down into the ground is just plain frightening.
Patronus | Border Collie

Detailed Personality | Oliver's personality can best be associated with the border collie with which his patronus creates. He's incredibly loyal to those he trusts (friends, family, and even friendly strangers if for whatever reason he thinks they deserve it). For Oliver, being part of a family means always being there for each other and Oliver lives up to the expectations with little difficulty. No matter his busy schedule, he'll make time for anyone who needs his assistance. He's forever reaching things on the top shelf for his wisp of a mother, much to the endless teasing of his brothers. Even with the teasing, he enjoys having a large family around him and hopes to be able to have his own someday.

Oliver is also particularly hard working, it's the main reason he was able to secure a long-standing position with Puddlemere so soon after graduation. When he showed up for tryouts, he put everything he had into it and didn't stop working until the final whistle was called. At the time his skills had not been entirely up to par with an individual on the starting line up but the promise that they soon would be was clearly evident. Once Oliver sets a goal for himself, he works toward it diligently. He's certainly not one of those people who never finish what they start. If he doesn't finish a task it's because something uncontrollable forced him to stop his attempts, much to his displeasure.

It's a difficult thing to balance working hard with leisure time, but Oliver does his best to do so. Sometimes it's good while between visits with his friends and/or family, but the dry spells never last too long. He's an incredibly guilty person and will try to make everyone happy and to include everyone in his life. If, for instance, he sends an owl to one of the Gryffindor girls, as he calls them, the invitation will always be clear to state that all of the old gang is welcome as well. He doesn't like to feel like he's spending more time with one person or another.

Finally, Oliver is a closet romantic. He can't help it, particularly with his parents as role models. Sheena and Douglas were Hogwarts sweethearts. They've been together since they were fifteen and are still very much in love. He won't write you a sonnet or serenade you, but he very much wants what his parents have.

THE HISTORY

Childhood | Oliver was born the second son into the Wood household and he was immediately welcomed into the warm atmosphere. Both Douglas and Sheena had always wanted lots of children, so the birth of a second son would not go by without certain celebrations and Douglas made sure everyone got the chance to meet his youngest son. With an older brother ahead of him, Oliver toddled after him the moment he could escape his Mother's grasp. Like most little boys he wanted to be just like Finley. He wanted to wear the same clothes and do the same things. With the age difference between them, Finley didn't always appreciate the toddler trailing after him ... particularly when their Mother said "Take your brother with you!" In fact, Finley hated it.

As Oliver grew, he began to realize the resentment that Finley sometimes had when Oliver followed after him. While sometimes the curiosity got the better of him, Oliver did try to give Finley some room. Whether or not Finley appreciated this, Oliver never knew. Instead, the two moved into the bickering stage as Colin, the youngest and final Wood child, entered the household. At 6 and 11, Finley and Oliver had a tendency to make it difficult for Colin to be heard over their din. It was all Sheena and Douglas could do not to lock them both in separate rooms until they learned to behave.

Once Finley went off to school, however, things in the Wood household seemed to quiet down a bit. Colin, for his part, put his big brothers to shame on good behaviour .. .much to Oliver's irritation. He was forever hearing "why can't you be a good boy like your brother?" It wasn't that he INTENDED to be bad. It just sort of happened. His curiosity often got the better of him and Oliver couldn't very well leave well enough alone. Despite this, however, Oliver rather enjoyed being the oldest of the children in the house. Of course, the feeling never really lasted as Finley always came home and ruined it. Even with Finley home, however, things never did return to the chaos they had been prior to Finley's attendance at Hogwarts. Finley had friends outside of the house and he was often in and out of the floo network to visit them, leaving Oliver to play with Colin.

When it came time for Oliver to attend Hogwarts himself, some of the old rivalry between Finley and him returned, but it didn't last very long. Oliver had his own interests now and Quidditch was on the brain long before he stepping off the Hogwarts Express.

Hogwarts | Unlike his ravenclaw brother, upon arrival at the castle Oliver was promptly sorted into Gryffindor. Like his Mother before him, he was ridiculously pleased to be wearing the red and gold of the house. With a warm welcome by the rest of his house, Oliver seemed to easily slide into place at the table beside one, Percy Weasley. It would be the start of a rather strange friendship between the two of them. More than once Oliver would wonder just how it was that Percy hadn't ended up in Ravenclaw with Finley. They were surprisingly similar ... more importantly, it was a wonder how the two of them could tolerate each other when Oliver and Finlay had such a difficult time of it.

With the sorting ceremony down and classes just beginning, Oliver was anxious to get a glimpse at the Quidditch teams and Pitch. He'd been forewarned by his Father that it was extremely rare that first years ever made the team, but Oliver was determined to try. An excruciating two weeks after the start of class, Oliver was finally given the chance to try out. Even though he was a first year, Charlie Weasley convinced the rest of the team to let him try out. It wouldn't hurt to see what sort of skills he had. Unfortunately, while Oliver was determined and could handle himself on a broom, his Quidditch skills needed some refining before he could hope to make it onto the team. With heavy disappointment, he returned to the Gryffindor common rooms where Charlie would find him later in full pout mode. Three years his senior, Charlie had laughed and said "I doubt anything will stop you next year". That was all it took to snap him out of his gloom and, from then on, Oliver was a big supporter of Charlie Weasley. The other bloke could barely do anything wrong.

As expected, the following year Oliver tried out again. This time he had slightly better luck and managed to sneak into a reserve spot. It wasn't what he'd hoped for, but at least it was something. He spent his days looking forward to the times in the week when the team would be practicing. After the starting line moved through it's rotations, it was the reserves turn to work on their skills. Oliver had originally tried out as a Chaser. While he didn't do to badly, it was clear that the position just wasn't for him. After sticking him in as a beater and a seeeker, Oliver found his position in front of the net. He was particularly good with his hands and even with his limited experience managed to block a lot of the shots from the more experienced players.

From then on out, Oliver's Hogwarts career was heavily lined with Quidditch. He did well in his studies, but his true love was the game. It became quite clear, early on, that he took Quidditch very, very seriously. Half way through his second year, Oliver managed to play in one of the games after their first line Keeper was injured. It was both thrilling and ridiculously frightening. Unfortunately, Gryffindor did not win the match, but Oliver had proven that he could handle it.

By his third year, Oliver was a comfortable member of Gyrffindor's starting line and it only helped to further develop his serious love of the game. Luckily for Oliver, there was still more surprised coming his way. In 1990 (his fourth year) Charlie Weasley was nominated as Quidditch captain and (in a moment of sanity, Oliver's sure) turned it down, instead suggesting Oliver for the role. Oliver had never nor has he been so floored since. He'd only played with the team as a starter for a single year. Charlie was clearly the better choice and here he was, nominating Oliver based on his sheer will and drive toward the game. Unable to say anything else, Oliver accepted the role. He will, however, be the first the first to admit that he leaned heavily on some of the older players for assistance that first year.

with Charlie and many of the other players graduating, he was left with building an entirely new team. He took the challenge head on and aimed only for the Quidditch cup. When McGonagall pulled him out of Quirrell's class in 91' he'd been just as excited at the prospect of a new and talented seeker. He might have been slightly jealous of the fact that Harry was making the team, despite being a first year, but the prospect of winning the Quidditch cup that year beat out those feelings. His ideas of winning only strengthened when he put Harry onto the field. The kid was good, he'd give him that. Really good. With the new addition, it seemed Gryffindor was on an unbeaten path toward victory ... but everything good must come to an end. With Harry's injury, Gryffindor was denied the cup.

With new hope for the next year, Oliver's dreams were once again crushed as the final game was cancelled due to the basilisk attacks upon the school. Returning home for the summer that year, Oliver was a moping mess. One year. All he had was one year left. If he didn't win the cup at least once in his captaincy, he'd very likely cry. It was a tense year to be sure. Oliver was a tyrant on the pitch and his passion pre-game speeches were often repeated teasingly by Fred and George on more than one occasion. It all seemed to pay off, however, as Gryffindor finally took the cup. He'll deny it until the day he dies, but there may or may not have been a few tears in Oliver's eyes as they celebrated on the pitch that day.

Post-Hogwarts | With a Quidditch cup under his belt, Oliver could graduate a happy man. Sure, his marks were excellent, but that really didn't mean as much to him as the cup did. It was clear to all (including his parents) where Oliver was heading. He'd only just tasted the Quidditch world. He wanted something bigger and better than just Hogwarts Quidditch. In the end, he'd see his dream realized. After trying out for a couple of the British league teams, Oliver was offered a reserve position with Puddlemere United. Grateful for the opportunity to show the world his skills, he happily took the position with the promise that he'd work his arse off to be bumped up to starting line.

And for two years that's what Oliver did. He pushed himself harder and refined his skills the best that he could. Finally, in the middle of the 96/97 season, Oliver was given his chance. With a lasting injury to their starting Keeper, Oliver was bumped up. The original intention was that he'd take over until the previous keeper could be switched back in. Unfortunately for the other Keeper, his injury lingered and Oliver was on fire. This was what he'd been born to do. The crowds were bigger and he fed off of that. He wanted this and there was nothing anyone could do to stop him.

As the war continued to brew within England, Quidditch and it's turn out slowed much to Oliver's irritation. Not only was Voldemot threatening the structure of Wizarding society itself, he was also messing with Quidditch and that was simply unforgivable. Despite not being an active member of the DA, Oliver returned to Hogwarts to fight alongside his friends. He lost several friends in that battle, but somehow managed to be one of the lucky few to escape without any lasting injuries. No matter the amount that was lost, he will never regret showing up and lending his wand.

It took a while to get everything back into working order, but with all the loss and sadness that seemed to be lingering within the Wizarding world, Oliver was extremely anxious to get back to the game he loved. The World Cup had been scheduled for the summer of 1998, but understandable was pushed back to the following year. Much to his pleasure, Oliver was offered a position with the Scottish national team, which he accepted with great exuberance. Sadly, Scotland did not take home the cup that year, but it's an experience he got to repeat in 2002. This time, however, they team celebrated a fantastic win over Ireland and he swore Scotland was in chaos for days (a good portion of it while inebriated. After all, there's two things the Scots are good at: quidditch and whiskey).

Oliver is currently in his eight year with Puddlemere and his second year as team captain. Other teams have approached him with some interest in getting him to switch teams, but Ollie is particularly loyal to Puddlemere. They took a chance on him, giving him his big break, and he'll stick with them for as long as they want him.

THE MISCELLANEOUS

Common Knowledge

Starting chaser and Captain for Puddlemere United. He's been with them for eight years now and has no intention of leaving.

Is known for his sheer size ... a big difference from his time at Hogwarts.

Is VERY family oriented.

Like to tease the new recruits with the same story he teased Harry with before his first game. That brief look of panic never gets old ... of course, he usually feels guilty for it after the game and will buy the poor soul a beer to make up for it.

Played for the Scottish National team the last time the World Cup came around.

Despite his accent, he looks NOTHING like a Scot ... thanks Dad!

Secrets

Is curious about this soul mate potion. As a closet romantic, he wouldn't mind finding that one person that fits at his side. He's given it his best go, but so far, he hasn't found the right person.

He still feels horribly awkward around George. It's ben six years since Fred's death, but he still isn't sure how to act around him. He's afraid of bringing up bad memories and the like.

Used to have a HUGE crush on Penelope Clearwater ... which naturally ended once she started dating Percy. You simply don't crush on a friends girlfriend. Bad form.

Really would have bumped off the Slytherin team if he thought he could get away with it. He REALLY wanted to win the cup at least once as Captain of the Gryffindor team.

Participation | Oliver will hold out for a while, but ultimately give in to his romantic notions. He wants to find the person best suited to him and settle down. His Quidditch career will only last for so long, after all.

Soul Mate Attributes | If he's honest ... someone like his Mother. Fierce but loving. He'd get along best with someone who has the same sort of fire driving them. Outside of that, however, he's not particularly looking for any one characteristic. He just wants someone who clicks with him.

Plot Ideas | A few here and there. We'll see as we move along.