Meet LUCIA ALBERTI. They are FOUR HUNDRED and TWO years old and hail from FLORENCE, ITALY. Lucia embodies the constellation, CIRCINUS, and the planet VENUS. They use she/her pronouns. Lucia teaches ELEMENTAL LIGHT MAGIC and THE ART OF DUELING at Polaris. Their faceclaim is GWENDOLINE CHRISTIE.
Venus reminds me of blue waters so clear you could lose yourself in them, a gentle heart tucked safely away, not knowing what to do with your hands, comfort and convenience, a sense of deja vu, nails chewed down to stubs, strong tea, and the safety of a warm blanket after a harsh day.
Picture it: Siciliy. 1922. Except it’s actually Florence, and it starts in 1618. While magic wasn’t exactly hidden behind closed doors in Florence, it was far from being anything to note. Politics were by far the driving power within the city, and magic users were more or less viewed as any other citizen. For Lucia, magic was a part of her upbringing, but nothing that left a major lasting impression on her identity. It simply was. The first century and a half of her life were spent never leaving the city, content to stay at her father’s side. Even after he passed (at the ripe age of 987, having lived the very definition of a long and happy life), Lucia still chose to stay. Her family name wasn’t prevalent for anything that would go down in the history books, but there was a certain sense of duty she felt to the people in the city that had come to rely on her and her father over time. Theirs was a brand of magic dedicated to doing right; if they weren’t going to use it to uphold what was good, what was the point?
Unfortunately for Lucia, while the people had looked to their family for guidance under her father, she lacked the charisma that had made him so approachable. He’d taught her the importance of duty and altruism, and these were traits she wore with pride. But the actual social aspect had never been her forte. When she left Florence (roughly around 1780), it was with feelings of both guilt and liberation — the former for leaving her family home, the latter in the hopes that she could do something grander that went beyond the city’s limits. And she did — throughout her life, Lucia has taken the lessons given to her by her father, and used them to shape herself and the people she meets. When Circinus chose to sponsor her, it was a shock though anyone who might have known her would say it was a perfect match. Lucia’s morality has always been her strongest guide. Possibly too much so. Her view of the world can be very black and white most of the time, though that’s changed over the centuries as she’s witnessed the world for its overwhelming shades of grey.
Coming to Polaris was nothing if not serendipitous and, if you ask Lucia, Venus choosing her to sponsor was a complete fluke. The tales say that Venus chooses those with the gentlest hearts, but Lucia thinks of herself as simply doing what’s just. It’s neither selfless nor selfish — it’s simply right. Within days of her planetary sponsorship, Lucia was approached by none other than Celestina Morgenstern herself, bearing a job offer. At the time, Lucia was still making her way through Europe, having learned much from the war and destruction she’d seen over her lifetime. Quite frankly, Lucia tried to turn down the offer. Surely there was someone else they could get who would be much more proficient in light magic than her. What finally had her saying yes was the role of dueling professor. Everything she knew, she’d learned in practice and from observation, teaching herself so as to better protect others. If she could formally teach that the the school’s students, so that they might be able to defend themselves as well, that seemed all the better. So, after centuries of wandering, Lucia finally came to settle at Polaris She feels like a fish out of water, particularly since she’s young by the standards of the other professors, but Lucia’s main focus is on the students. They are the ones who’ll shape the future, and that’s all she needs to think about.
INCLINATION & PLANETARY MAGIC
As a celestial force, Venus — known primarily as the ruler of love — takes a witch or wizard’s heart into account when choosing a host. Usually — but not always — it’ll choose a user of light magic. Venus gravitates towards someone whose desires go far beyond themselves and, as such, grants it’s users with a strong capability in defensive magic. The current Venus has broken that mood slightly; while capable of strong defensive magic, they’ve taken to strengthening their offensive magic to protect in that way as well.
Filling the role of Erik Lauridsen’s The One.
Soft Spot: Lucia’s not too focused on being overly friendly with students, but she does have a soft spot for this one. Her brand of tough love pushes them and, in exchange, they’re capable of bringing out her softer side.
Suitor: Either another teacher or someone in town. They’re nice enough, and don’t make any secret that they would be into Lucia, but they come on rather... strong. Too strong really, and Lucia is too polite to actually turn them down.
