Name: Fiona BrodieNickname: Ms. Brodie, Coach
Age: 25
Birthday: May 18
Sign: Taurus
Gemstone: Emerald
Blood Type: Type A
Fav. Food: Pasta salad. From the simple whole wheat pasta with feta and a bit of olive oil, to Suddenly Salad's vast varieties.
Hated Food: Seafood. She knows it's good for her but... ew. She can, however, devour a plate of cocktail shrimp and cocktail sauce.
School: Physical Education and Health Teacher for Meadowview High School. She also serves as the school's coach for the Girls' Soccer team (Beginning of August - Late October), Ice Hockey (all welcome, Late October - Mid March), and Girls' Track team (Early April - June).
[ School wise, Fiona attended Medowview herself after moving from Scotland for her Sophomore and Senior year. She then attended DCU where she got her Bachelor's in Health and Physical Education, with a minor in Kinesiology. She began her job at Medowview at age 23. ]
[Basing the seasons above on my high school's, so if any shop canon has been established for anything different than what I've got please let me know! oxo]
Hobbies:
____Running
xxxxxThere's a reason she's got those kickass Nike kicks, and why she was willing to shell out the cash for them. Fiona has a need for speed--the physical, self-propelled variety, that is. Every morning finds her taking at least a quick jog around the block before jumping into her day. Not that she restricts herself to just a jog if able. She's participated in cross country marathons before, and actively pursues running marathons in the city for charity. The freedom of the wind in her hair, moving at speeds all fueled by her own body instead of just some vehicle--she loves it. If she knows she'll be running errands in the city, she'll just throw on a backpack instead of grab a purse, and go by foot instead of car. All for that extra excuse to go for a run. Fiona is also guilty of going a bit off road more often than not. She's a immense fan of parkour, though she'll never admit to such a thing in front of her students. No, in front of them, she's only the type to stick to sidewalks and marked trails. Yep. No vaulting over walls and rails here. Nope. Never.
____Sports
xxxxxFiona's a sports fan by genetics alone--her family's active lifestyle and near religious attendance at local sporting events on both sides of her family has ingrained the habits into her bones. She was but a wee lass herself when she first started playing football--the European version--which she continued to play upon moving to the States. After moving here, she began to dabble in a variety of other sports. Hockey and Baseball she played on school teams for, however other sports like American Football and Basketball, she learned in friends' backyards and on open park grass. These days, she's more of a spectator than a player herself, though she does play on unofficial teams for Soccer whenever she's got the time. Teaching high school kids various sports has helped to give her an excuse to keep herself in a few games here and there, if only to cheekily say she still knows a few tricks. For the most part, Fiona's love for sports is restricted by time to just coaching, teaching P.E. classes, and yelling her lungs out on games on TV or live with family.
xxxxxOne sport she takes classes in weekly herself, is a class that combines kickboxing and women's self-defense. Fiona first began attending this class right after she took her job at Medowview, more for personal outlet and knowledge than anything. In recent years though, with this ever growing rise in terrorist attacks and strange sightings, Fiona's begun to look into adding this content into her Health and P.E. classes. With all the hostility out in the city, she'd sleep easier with the idea that she could give something to her students to help keep them safe.
____Meditation
xxxxxIt isn't too often you'll find her flops down with nothing to do. Either Fiona's got a class schedule in her hand, a planner for practices and games, sports gear and a large duffle bag, or maybe some book she's been dying to catch up on. Even she needs a time to stop, relax, and rewind though. The most effective method, she's found, is through meditation. She's bought the books, she took a public class in college, and Fiona's not at all against buying some gems now and then to decorate her home with to support healthy energy flow. Rarely is her meditation done at home, however. She just has too much around her she knows she's got to work on there. Outside, however, while on her runs... now there are some good places to settle down and take a good look inside. Meditation has become as much a time for personal reflection and relaxation, as it is a spiritual moment for Fiona. Sitting among nature, she feels more in touch with her roots from the blood and soil of her homeland than ever. She will confess to feeling a bit out of sorts if she doesn't get a chance to do some quiet self-aligning during her daily jog, and has even willingly cleared off spots in the snow to have her meditation moments. Additionally, she'll often pause after her self-defense class to pop into the yoga class hosted in the same facility. Great way to wind down after a good workout.
____Gaelic Mythology
xxxxxWalk into her house and you'll see it covered in homage to her heritage. With her mother's Irish family, and her father's Scottish, Fiona was raised on the warnings and lore of both countries. And oh boy does she love it. From the Tuatha de Danann to the lineages of the gods said to have walked the shores of Ireland and Scotland--chances are, Fiona's got a story or a nugget of knowledge on the topic tucked somewhere in her skull. If not somewhere in her house. No section of her home is untouched by Celtic knots, photographs she took while visiting family in Scotland and Ireland, and even some family heirlooms. Her most coveted are, without a doubt, the various swords and daggers she's got on display. Locked under Plexiglas, thank you. But they bare the Brodie crest, and she is never against taking them out to clean them. Never use them--though her granda's tried to teach her when she was younger--but Fiona surrounds herself with echos of her family and the lore they passed on to her. Her bookshelves are stuffed full of books on Gaelic mythology, right alongside health books. From academic debates on the lore and translations, to even a few older books--far newer reprints, she assures you--in old Gaelic that first told the old tales in script. Her Nook is chocked full of... well, her steamier collections.
xxxxxAlong with the "generic" Gaelic feel of her home and interests, if one looks close enough they'll notice another tidbit. Fiona's got a thing for collecting fae things--she's got shirts, necklaces, statues, prints, carved gems, knickknacks galore. She just keeps those more or less tucked away.
Virtues:
____Patient
xxxxxShe works with high school students. She also coaches these kids. The woman is a near saint with her patience when it comes to her students. She'll answer questions as many times as it takes, go through plans over and over until the player gets the play. Traffic jams are just more time for her to blast music in the car. Waits in line are time for her to read a magazine, send out texts, or go over plans for team practice. Rowdy class? She'll just foucs on the students who actually want to learn. And then smile when the rowdy students complain about her including information they "never learned about" on tests. Now, her patience does begin to dwindle when it comes to sports. Her competitive nature sort of kicks things out the window... towards the other team, anyways, and often a call from the ref she does not agree with. Her temper kicks in when her competitive nature takes the reins, making it difficult to keep all her thoughts just to herself. Do note however, as loud as she'll roar--which really is great for trying to call things to her players--she'll always have the patience to stand there, scowl on her face, while you finish your long-winded rant. However long it takes to hear you out, in your point's entirety. The moment you've finished however, Fiona will raise her voice without qualm and go into a tizzy about how your logic is wrong. Can't say she's not patient about ripping you a new one, at least.
____All on Schedule
xxxxxFiona plans everything in advanced. She needs to, to keep all her school activities in order. Never mind make time for her own personal endeavors. She keeps her digital calender and daily planner synced between her phone, Nook, office computer, and home desktop. The moment she's aware of a new appointment, meeting, practice session--you name it!--everything else is synced and all alarms are set. She's got her game plan, and she's got the energy to meet it. Fiona as reliable as the sun rising. If she tells you she will be there at 4pm sharp, she will be there at least ten or fifteen minutes early. Preferably, she gives herself between thirty to sixty minutes of travel time before she even really needs to be on the road. Other responsibilities allowing, that is. If Fiona is late for something, it's not unreasonable to call the cops. Especially since if she's forced to be late, or reschedule, about everyone else set on her planner for the day will know about it. In spades. With a probability of various Gaelic cussing being thrown about.
____Ambitious at Minimum
xxxxxThere is no such thing as less than 110% for Fiona. Personally speaking, anyways. Though she certainly expects at least 90% from her team on the field, Fiona's far more lenient to everyone else in the world when it comes to her expectations. Except herself. No, as far as she's concerned, she's putting in at least 110% into every day, every moment, and she'll go through hell and high water for whatever it takes. All of her scheduling, all of her activities, she's not doing it because she has no other choice. It's not about the money, not about necessity. Fiona packs so much into her life because she feels she has to. Pushing herself to her limits is a requirement, proving she can tackle what she sets for herself. Sure she'll stumble and fall, but she's got the guts and drive to push herself back up. Reassess, refigure her schedule. Goal wise, she does keep herself rather tame. Happy, "Hey we can beat them next season!" teams are preferred over dog-tired, washed-out, "Yeah but hey we won!" teams. No grandeur dreams of national champs--for herself, or her teams--no high-rise apartment. Just let her stay content filling her life with as much hustle and bustle as possible, and you'll forever have a very, very happy Fiona.
Flaws:
____Big Bark, No Leash
xxxxxBlame it on the Scot's blood? Or the fact no one in her family has much of a filter when it comes to their volume control. Regardless of the source, Fiona's temper is as fiery as her eyes are green. It doesn't take much for her voice to start rising--rowdy class getting a little loud themselves, cheap call by a ref, car cutting it a little close to where she's jogging on a sidewalk--but that's the worst she'll typically get. Loud, brash, in-your-face, Fiona isn't one for taking prisoners. She'll hear you out for why you're acting the way you are, but expect her to bite back on anything you say... and with the potential for a hell of a lot more lung capacity and jaw strength. Once she gets going, it takes a bit of going before she'll be able to huff and puff and reign herself back in. While she is not the type to bring out her fists unless truly pressed, jumping down someone's throat in what should otherwise be a civil disagreement is quite common. Fiona just has very little control over how quickly her temper can spring up, and her only real way to express her discomforts is through loud growling and shouting. And this is with all her very active activities and lifestyle. One could only imagine what she'd be like without them....
____On Time or Bust
xxxxxWhatever you do, for god's sake, do not interfere with Fiona Brodie's carefully planned schedule. Do not touch Fiona Brodie's planners. Do not alter Fiona Brodie's plans without, at minimum, a day or two's notice. Should her preferred warning time be adhered to, she will not hide an inch of her grumpy temper about it all. She will growl, she will likely raise her voice a good bit, make an over-dramatic show of rearranging her schedule, and then likely whine about the other appointments she'd then have to reschedule and adjust. She'll make the change, of course. Her students would get slightly more leeway, and likely won't get much of a raised voice at all. But Fiona will still grump about. She will continue that grumpy mood into the newly arranged appointment time. Don't think she's just doing this to humans though! If weather cancels her teams' games, she'll be cursing the sky--well out of ears of her students and their parents, but cursing nonetheless. This scheduling requirement of hers does often lead to her keeping a hawk's eye on the reservation list for the school's auditorium, just in case practices need them. Actual games, however, she keeps a backup reservation in any local auditorium far in advanced. It's not too often challenging teams get to deal with rain dates when going up against teams Fiona coaches.
____Running on Fumes
xxxxxSports, coaching, teaching, lore, self-defense classes, running, family visits--there's a long standing joke Fiona will say: "Fall's for Soccer, Winter's for Hockey, Spring's for Track, and Summer's for sleep!" This 'joke' is more like a lifestyle at this point. Fiona packs a lot into her daily routine--part of the reason why she relies on her scheduling so much. She's good about setting her priorities, getting her teaching and coaching responsibilities far ahead of everything else she needs or likes to do. But the fact of the matter is that no matter how hard she tries, she cannot make the day have more than 24 hours. The week cannot have more than seven days. Fiona's eating and sleeping habits are often the first to suffer when she starts seeing a time crunch. Meals are reduced to content she can eat on the run, sleep is dwindled down to just a few hours instead of the eight she should at least be grabbing. It's not uncommon for her to forget to eat some days, especially when she's dealing with overlapping team seasons. Sleep, well. It's also not uncommon for students or other teachers to find Ms. Brodie passed out on a cot she keeps in the back of her office after class hours before practices start. She's got a rather loud alarm on her phone. Such naps are a necessity for Fiona, though afterwards she tends to feel less than spunky as she views them as a waste of time... and a very necessary evil. Fiona overworks herself constantly, and unfortunately, she does have her days where she just crashes and burns. Her energy is non-existent, she is really only physically present for her classes and team practices, and on those days, she'll head straight home the moment she can. And sleep. A lot. Which will allow her to bounce back, and restart her hectic schedule. She just keeps waiting for those long summer days where she can sleep all the easier.
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION
Eyes:
Hair:
Face:
[See above left!]
Clothes: The summary of Fiona's closet: Earthy comfort. In layers. Vests, plaid shirts, sweaters, light jackets, cardigans. They help her pile on the layers in a large variety of ways. Prone to wearing loose jeans--bootcut and flare leg are her favorites--and rugged boots with little to no heel, she races around the city on a whim. Skirts are rarely used, but if so are added into her layers without pause. Dresses--on the occasion she is forced to wear one--are also subjected to her requirements for layers. When not wearing the sporty, school colored attire of a P.E. teacher and coach, Fiona can be found in Medowview High in appropriate slacks, low top boots, and plenty of billowy tops covered in cardigans. Any of her outfits have a tendency to include Irish or Scottish influences, but now and then a fae might show up in one form or another.
