Champions.

I first started to read Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix at the age of 7, having been given the audio books of the first four in the series for my 5th birthday. Feeling older then, I decided I would finally attempt to work my way through a hard copy of the book when it was released. Inevitably, I found it awkward, and gave up on it soon.

When I went back to it a few years later, I soon fell in love with one of the new female characters introduced: Nymphadora Tonks. I was immediately drawn to her for unknown reasons, but as the books went on, and her story developed, I found her inspiring.

I wanted her to be my mother, my sister, my best friend and my lover, all at the same time. Yes, I had officially fallen in love with a fictional character.

Why did, and why does she still, inspire me? I would find it difficult to list every reason, for there are some that I would find difficult to translate into words. However, I can list some of the reasons, and I think what I love about her most is that she’s not afraid to have fun. She wants to enjoy herself, to make the most of life and its opportunities. She takes everything in her stride and every experience makes her stronger.

Secondly, she’s strong and brave and willing to fight for what she believes is right. She defied her blood family, like her mother, in her choice of husband, to whom she is unfailingly loyal and committed, accepting him for who he is and not caring about the opinions of society and the inevitable prejudice. She puts herself in danger frequently, in both her career and work for the Order, but all in an effort to try and make the world better. She has the guts to fight, against her own family if needed.

Everything about her inspires me.