ASHFORD, aurora claire

[AURORA CLAIRE ASHFORD]

( AURORA CLAIRE ASHFORD )

( THEBASICS )

NAME: Aurora Claire Ashford. Aurora is the Roman Goddess of dawn. Claire means bright and clear.

NICKNAMES: None
AGE: 37
GENDER: Female
BIRTHDAY: May 29
SCHOOL: New York University
MAJOR: History
GRADE: Graduated
OCCUPATION: Euopean History Teacher
SEXUAL ORIENTATION: Straight
ETHNICITY: Irish/English

( THEAPPEARANCE )

FACE: Jessica Chastain
HEIGHT: 5'4"
WEIGHT: 127 lbs.
HAIR&EYE COLOR: Aurora has bright red hair and green eyes.
DISTINGUISHING FEATURES: Just her hair!

( THEPERSONALITY )

LIKES: the outdoors, taking pictures, traveling, Europe, reading, writing, dancing, music, running, mountain climbing, hiking, learning new things, entertaining guests, throwing parties, drawing, art, visiting art galleries, shopping, the beach, summer, dogs, incorporating hands on activities in the classroom
DISLIKES: not being active, boredom, being alone, when people give her too much sympathy, feeling irrelevant, conflict, criticism, when she over thinks things, cruel people, emotionless people, extreme weather, early mornings, mathematics, contact sports, bad liars, small spaces, drugs, her past life
STRENGTHS: Knowledgeable about history, fun, energetic
WEAKNESSES: Eccentric, easily bored, unrealistic, reckless

FEARS: dying alone, becoming boring, losing herself

SECRETS: I'm afraid I'm going to get into drugs and alcohol again.

I'm self conscious about what people think of me.

I hate my mother.

OVERVIEW: Over time, Aurora has grown up to be successful and strong. She has experienced the good and bad in life. She understands many of her decisions were poor in her youth, but she's forgiven herself and has moved on. She's loving, and cares deeply for those closest to her. Her heart is accepting of all people, so she has many friends from many different backgrounds. Aurora's travels have allowed her to see the world for what it truly is. She has seen the glorious sights like the sea of stars in the Maldives, the tulip fields in the Netherlands, the Victoria Falls in Africa, and the Great Blue Hole in Belize. But she has also seen the sick and starving in Africa, the refugees in Somalia, and many other upsetting things along the way. Seeing both the beautiful and ugly has given her immense wisdom she never would have gained otherwise.

Her ability to communicate with others is incredible. She is good at talking people through emotional strife and life changing happenings. Many of her friends go to her for advice, and she is more than willing to listen. She is a people person in the most sincere way possible. She enjoys socializing and going to parties. In fact, she often throws them herself. Although she is grown up, there is still a bit of that wild teenager in her especially when it comes to parties.

Deep down, she is still angry at her mother and insecure about herself. She has tried to work through that time in her life, but can't seem to bring herself to forgive her mom. Aurora's hatred can come out at the ugliest times and cause her to have a frighteningly unexpected temper. It is certainly not something she's proud of, and she's working hard to change.

( THEHISTORY )

PARENTS: Jeffrey Ashford, Investment Banker, 70

Faith Ashford, Homemaker, 69
SIBLINGS: Julian Ashford, 47, brother

Anderson Ashford, 46, brother
OTHER FAMILY: None

PETS: None

SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS: Middle
HISTORY: Aurora Claire Ashford was born on the twenty ninth of May in New  York, New York to Jeffrey and Faith Ashford. She was the last child the couple had and only daughter. Her older brothers, Julian and Anderson were much older than her. To say the least, she was a surprise baby. After Aurora's birth, her mom suffered from severe postpartum depression. Unlike her brothers, she was bottle fed, and her mother didn't spend a lot of time with her. Sadly, she ended up being raised primarily by her father and brothers.

Growing up, she was a fairly quiet child. She didn't want to upset her parents nor annoy her siblings. She spent a lot of time alone, playing by herself. For most of early childhood, she spent most of her time in isolation away from the neighborhood kids, even her own family. She felt like her mom didn't love her, and that made her feel like she did something wrong. When it was time for her to start public school, she was terrified. But surprisingly, she did OK in school. She even began to make some friends and come out of her seclusion.

By the time she was in second grade, her older brothers were both enrolled in college. They were only a blink in her life. Julian particularly. To this day, her brother is somewhat of an enigma to her. She was now practically an only child. When elementary school ended, she changed to another district for middle school. She began to fall in love with art, and displayed talent for drawing, painting, and photography. She absolutely adored photography, and spent much of her after school time taking pictures of beautiful things. Her father noticed the love she had for the art form and bought her a camera for her thirteenth birthday.

In high school, she started associating herself with the art kids. They were free spirits who indulged in progressive and new age ideas. She defied authority, skipped class, drank illegally, and escaped into the middle of the night for the sake of 'art.' Her parents disapproved of her behavior and threatened to take away her freedom. Aurora didn't care. "What are you going to do, chain me up?" she'd say to them. Jeffrey and Faith lost control over their daughter. Meanwhile, her brothers excelled at Yale and Harvard. Julian was in med school soon to be married to a woman Aurora described as a "preppy, rich, snob," and Jeffrey was on his way to becoming a successful lawyer. Her parents oozed with pride whenever they spoke about their eldest sons, and it made her want to rebel even more.

Her schoolwork started slipping. She was a smart girl, but she was too tied up with her social and personal life. She missed deadlines, skipped class, and flunked tests because she didn't study. Artistically, she was the most talented girl in her school. She won a huge award for a photograph she took of a giant tree illuminated by the sunrise. Her history teacher noticed her behavior and spoke with her after class. She encouraged her to shape up and start thinking about the future. Aurora tried harder, and then attended  college in New  York University.

She started off as an art major. Aurora associated with the wrong people and started taking drugs, particularly cocaine. She claimed it helped clear her mind and allowed her to create beautiful works of art. And the thing was, she did create stunning works of art. She partied a lot, drank, and slept around. Midway through her sophomore year, her substance abuse started to catch up with her. One day, she overdosed and was sent to the emergency room. Her parents were shocked when they saw how awful she looked. She lived, but not without consequences. The school required she go to rehabilitation before she could come back and finish her education. 

Aurora hated rehab, and she suffered from severe drug withdrawal. But within a year, she, supposedly, was healthy enough to go back to school. She wasn't all better though. She didn't use cocaine, but she drank excessively and stopped eating. She was sickly thin, pale, and looked tired. Her health declined, and she had to leave college to collect herself. She called home, but her mother refused to let her come home. She called her an 'absolute disgrace.' She disowned her. Alone and frightened, she didn't know what to do. She had no friends who could help her. Desperate, she called the only person she could thing of, her brother Anderson.

She ended up staying with him for a while. He helped her get on her feet better than anyone at Rehab. He got her eating again and helped her kick her alcohol addiction. When she was as good as new, she thanked him and took her leave. She returned to school and changed her major. She no longer wanted to be an art major; she was moving on from that time in her life. Instead, she got a degree in history.

After college, she bought a little studio apartment in New York City, but spent the majority of her time traveling the world. She spent three years in Europe; two in London alone. She wanted to travel and experience life before going out into the work force. When she returned from her travels, she got a job working as an archivist at a museum in the city. She didn't mind her job, but it wasn't as entertaining or exciting as she would have hoped.

After a few years working at the archives, Aurora went back to school and got her teaching certificate. This past year she was given the position of the European History professor at Hawthorne Academy. She's a bit nervous, but excited to embark on a new adventure in life.

( &ETCETERA )

ROLEPLAY SAMPLE: nope
ANYTHING ELSE?: negative

ALIAS: Rachel
SECRET WORD: edit