Astoria Starling

"I have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night."

Astoria Starling is a Half-Blood witch and the middle of three children born to Mohinder and Juliet Starling, two muggleborns who met while working at the Ministry of Magic. Starling is quiet, dreamy and a little enigmatic and possesses a deep, abiding love for the stars and planets.

She attended Hogwarts from 1998 to 2005, a First year in the first class after Voldemort's defeat. She was a brilliant pupil in Astronomy and Divination and went on to work in the Department of Mysteries for some time before being recruited at Hogwarts' interim Professor of Astronomy when the previous one decided to leave in order to join a Moon Cult in 2015. She served the rest of the school year and was popular enough to stay on, officially getting the job full-time starting in the 2016-2017 school year.

Biography
Astoria Starling was born during the calm before the storm. Her childhood was tumultuous as Voldemort's return threw the whole UK into chaos. In 1996, she and her family fled London and went on the run, hiding in France until Voldemort was killed.

Astoria was a curious child with a voracious appetite for learning. Her favorite thing was to look at the constellations with her father, himself a philosopher and Astronomy enthusiast. She was fascinated with celestial bodies and had a particular love of science fiction films and books her father had collected in his youth.

Hogwarts Years (1999-2006)
Astoria attended Hogwarts when she turned eleven and was sorted into Gryffindor, like her father before her. Astoria was a quiet wallflower who preferred the company of books and magical beasts to that of other people.

She was a brilliant young woman, but she had a hard time with most spellwork. She shined brilliantly when it came to Astronomy and, eventually, Divination. Both of these subjects came to her as flawlessly and easily as breathing.

Adult Life
After graduating, Astoria went on to work in the Department of Mysteries, where she worked on several very secret and very dangerous projects.

Over Christmas of 2015, she was contacted by her old Headmistress, Minerva McGonagall. Apparently, Hogwarts' Astronomy Professor left the school to join a Moon Cult in Switzerland and they needed someone to fill until they found replacement. Astoria agreed and taught for the remainder of the year. She proved popular enough that she was offered the role full-time. Astoria was hesitant but eventually agreed to the job after a conversation with Neville Longbottom, fellow Gryffindor teacher and hero of the Second Wizarding War.

As of 2018, Astoria has been teach for two and a half years.

Physical Appearance
Astoria is short and lean, with intelligent eyes and dark hair she normally wears up. Her clothes tend to be traditional wizarding wear (for her family's ancestral heritage). She is considered to be quite attractive, as several of her students (including Louis Weasley) have a crush on her.

Personality
Astoria is a quiet and observant woman with intelligent eyes. She doesn't show outward emotion too often, possession a distant, enigmatic sort of demeanor. She enjoys the company of both Professor Longbottom and Rubeus Hagrid and she is penpals with a Centaur philosopher. Astoria is a lenient teacher but stresses that students pay attention during her class and take it seriously.

Magical Abilities and Skills
Astoria is a competent witch, with skill enough to have worked in the Department of Mysteries. Her major skills are Astronomy and Divination. She is not a bad dueler, but she's not as good as most Gryffindors tend to be and she's a terrible flier. Her strength tends to be inward, reflected in an abnormally strong willpower.

Trivia

 * Astoria is of Indian decent, but a fourth generation Brit.
 * She is ambidextrous.
 * Loves both Star Wars and Star Trek. Had a crush on Spock when she was a little girl.
 * Owns a Blue Star Trek nightgown.
 * Dreams of going to the Moon and/or Mars.