Emma Montgomery
Name: Emma Leigh Montgomery
Gender: female
Date of birth: January 1, 1981
House/Year: Slytherin, 1992-1999
Blood status: Pureblood - but only about 3 generations
Sexuality: hetero
Residence: Flat 8C, Euterpe's Corner, London
Suggested livejournal username: leighemma
PB/Avatar: Arielle Kebbel with short blonde hair
Physical characteristics: Emma is slightly taller than average for a girl, clocking in at about 5'8" and errs on the slender side. Her natural blonde hair has been worn short since she was fifteen (explained more fully in the history section) and her eyes are brown. Aside from the way she chooses to wear her hair, Emma is virtually identical to her sister, with nothing save a few scars (Emma has one on her knee from a nasty scrape as a child) to distinguish them. It's very important to Emma to look very well put together, and you'd never see her in public in sweats or anything so crass. She likes robes, skirts, and feminine. She's much too professional for frilly and ruffles, but she's much more likely to be found in a skirt and heels than jeans and sandals.
Distant History: Once upon a time Edward Montgomery a former Ravenclaw and 2nd generation Pureblood met and married Caroline Ollivander, a former Gryffindor, 5th generation Pureblood, and niece to, yes, that Ollivander. Edward had a job as a lawyer in the International Office of Law and Caroline was the Deputy Head of the Muggle relations Office of the Ministry of Magic (having found Muggles and Muggle Studies absolutely fascinating in her Hogwarts days). They met each other while working on a case that required both their departments, and as they got to know each other better, they certainly got to like each other better. They got married in 1978 and were very happy. Anyway, moving on.
In 1980, Caroline found herself pregnant with twins. Both Edward and Caroline were pleased at the additions to their family, and the younger of the twins, Emma, came into the world on January 1, 1981. Now normally, this would not be a problem, except she was born exactly seventeen minutes after her twin, Ella Lynn, and Ella so happened to be born in the last few minutes of 1980. And the fact that she was a 'year' older and therefore 'wiser' is a fact that Ella never let her sister forget. Emma figures the only worse way to be born would have been if they'd managed the August 31st and September 1st gap and had to be in different years at Hogwarts despite being twins.
At any rate, the twins lived a pretty happy childhood. They were very close, but not so close that they weren't more than willing to blame the other when mischief was caused, and they had their fair share of sniping. Truth be told, Emma could be quite the brat at times - from fussing if they tried to hold the twins' birthdays on the same day (Edward and Caroline ended up switching off every other year), to tattling if Ella was trying to pull the age card on her. Because both parents worked, and Ministry Daycare was too lowly in their parents' mind, the girls had a nanny for much of their childhood. Still, they were never lonely. Their nanny was lovely (and as they both quite adored Amy, neither of them threw fits and went through nanny after nanny unlike some other Pureblooded children), and even though their parents were both very busy in their important jobs, they always impressed on their daughters how much they loved them. Ella was older and responsible (in theory), and Emma was their little princess. They had toys, nice clothes, sweets aplenty, and most of all, each other.
Edward Montgomery, Jr, or more affectionately Eddie, was a surprise to the whole family, but there he came in March of 1992 when the twins were eleven and preparing to head off to Hogwarts the next year. At first Emma didn't know what to make of Eddie - he was small and brand new, and a boy to boot and she wasn't sure she wanted to give up her place as the baby of the family, but it wasn't long before the girls fell completely in love with their baby brother, so much so that Emma didn't really want to leave him when she went to Hogwarts.
Recent History: Emma was second sorted of the twins, and when she saw her sister get chosen for Slytherin, she was quite pleased to be sorted there as well. It was a bit of a surprise to their former Ravenclaw and Gryffindor parents, who couldn't quite make out how they's managed two Snakes, but there really was no other place for them to be. Emma, in particular, could be quite cunning - she knew how to use her brattiness to emotionally manipulate her parents (and Amy) to do what she wanted. And while at age eleven, she didn't have specific ambitions like Ella always seemed to, she knew she wanted to make a name for herself in the world. So, the girls settled into their dorm, and life went on, mostly pleasantly (They had been a bit spoiled by Amy's uncanny ability to tell them apart, and for the first time they were being mixed up, or worse, called 'twin 1' or 'twin 2'). Emma certainly wasn't a bully, like some of her housemates in the year above were known to be, so she sometimes got caught in Slytherin hate, and felt less than impressed with Harry Potter.
Troubles seemed to happen when he was around, after all. The Chamber of Secrets was opened in her first year, and while Emma felt safe, she didn't really appreciate the mass hysteria. Then in her second year, Sirius Black broke into the school, going after (again) Harry Potter. And then he'd somehow joined the Triwizard Tournament her third year, and in the end, a nice and cute Prefect ended up dead. Fourth year he kept messing with Umbridge and bringing in more Educational Decrees, but Emma actually had other things to worry about that year.
The day they came home for Easter break in their fourth year was an important one in Emma's mind. Eddie had been telling them all about his birthday party, and in his excitement, he kept mixing up the twins' names. This was horrific to Emma - it was bad enough Umbridge confused them enough, and their dormmates couldn't tell them apart at times, but this was too much. So the next day, she went off and had her long blonde locks chopped off into a short bob. She hadn't told Ella - she'd never heard her twin complain about it and Merlin knew those silly Weasley twins liked being mixed up with each other, but Emma wanted none of it and could only hope that Ella wouldn't cut her own hair when she saw Emma's. However, she got quite a surprise upon returning home - Ella had dyed her own long hair a dark brown as a way to differentiate herself from Emma! The twins laughed at their obvious brainwaves, and each deciding their new hairdos suited them, have kept them the same since so they can't be confused for each other.
Emma was never quite so pro-Muggle as her mother (she'd have probably joined the IS fourth year if she'd been old enough, especially if it would have helped Umbridge figure out which Montgomery she was), but her feelings were cemented in her fifth year. In the spring, her mother was approached by a Death Eater by the name of Yaxley to use her power in her department to help veto a pro-Muggle bill. Caroline refused. She didn't agree, of course, but mostly she worried that saying yes would open the door to more yeses and perhaps even put her family in situations such as that. Unfortunately, saying no wasn't the right decision, either. The bill passed, and Voldemort sicced Fenrir Greyback on the Montgomery family. The girls were at school, and both parents were working, which left Eddie and Amy in the house. Amy was killed near instantly, and Eddie was wounded severely. As the Dark Mark was cast, neighbours notified the Ministry straight away, and Eddie was rushed to Mungo's where he kept asking for his sisters.
Emma is pretty sure she'll never forget that day - when Dumbledore summoned she and her sister to his office, thinking of all the bad things happening she'd seen in the newspaper, but also trying to reason that as a Pureblood, her family ought to be safe. When the word 'brother' came out of Dumbledore's mouth, the rest of that day went by in a blur. The girls Flooed to Mungo's and stayed by Eddie's side as much as they could, while the Healers tried everything they could. In the end, it wasn't enough for Eddie's small, fragile body and both she and her sister were in the room when he died. She's unhappily seen thestrals since, always being reminded of Eddie's punishment for her mother's sins.
Eddie's death was the more publicised of the two, of course, given that he was but a child, and Pureblooded to boot, but Amy's death hit Emma nearly as hard. She'd known her former nanny as long as she could remember, and in some ways thought Eddie's birth had been a blessing to keep Amy around as the girls were starting to get too old for her when he was born. And now, two important people in Emma's life were gone, and she was crushed. And while she'd been scared when she'd found out Lupin was a werewolf her second year, it was nothing compared to the hatred of the creatures that lodged itself into Emma's mind. Angry and depressed, Emma snapped at anyone non-Slytherin who suddenly decided they were on the 'right' side and deigned to talk to them. They had been too blinded by House prejudice before, and at that point, Emma wanted none of it.
Seeing the drastic change in their daughter, Edward and Caroline signed Emma up for counselling over the summer and between that and anti-depressant potions, she started to feel more like herself, although she could not shake her prejudices - the ones Slytherin had been giving her for five years and were cemented when being on the 'right' side got your baby brother killed.
If Emma thought things couldn't get any worse, they did her next year. She was always on edge and walking a fine line with the Carrows. She was Pureblooded, and of course, that offered her some protection, but the Carrows also knew through the Death Eater grapevine, about what had happened with her mother, and both twins were watched closely on the thought of being potential blood-traitors. Then, partway through the year, Emma and Ella received the news that their mother had been thrown in Azkaban. All the true details behind the arrest (which were, basically, Voldemort getting frustrated with Ollivander's refusal to talk about the Elder Wand and hoping taking control of his few remaining family members might loosen his tongue - since Caroline was found to know nothing) were unknown to the girls, but it was a terrible thing to hear, nonetheless, and Emma spent countless days worried about her mother's health, and feeling guilty for so easily placing blame on Caroline after Eddie's death.
When Slughorn had the students leave, the decision was a no-brainer to Emma. Yes, she was old enough to fight, but her DADA was such she'd likely get killed, and the last thing she wanted to do was make her dad or twin lose another family member. So she walked out and never came back in when some Slytherins returned, with no regrets to this day.
When a much weaker and frailer Caroline was released from Azkaban, she was offered Charity Burbage's spot as Muggle Studies teacher. It was a smart move by McGonagall no doubt - by hiring a Pureblood from a known name for the Muggle Studies position, it might ease some potential backlash against Purebloods, but it could never make up for all she'd been through.
The next few years went by without huge drama (a relief) and the twins stayed at home with their dad as their mother worked the long years at Hogwarts, only coming home on weekends. Finally figuring out a passion and ambition (to get rich again, mostly), Emma started out as a grunt at Gringotts during the rebuild and has worked her way up since. Most recently, Ella and Emma have decided that living at home was not working out for them anymore, and so decided to move into the new addition of Euterpe's Corner together. It was all about adulthood and personal freedom, of course. Oh, okay, and the pool.
Current employment status: Emma is a financial planner at Gringotts Bank, level 1 Clearance, which is quite a step up from where she was when she started! While she does not have access to vaults, she keeps records of what's in them (the keyed ones, at least), and works in an office helping people and families make budgets and decide what amounts of their paychecks ought to be put away for the future, as well as which investments might be sound. Ideally, she thinks she'd like to own the bank one day, but barring that (since she's practical enough to know it's unlikely), she's content with eventually being trusted with more influential clients and information about the more secure vaults that lay deep underground.
*Note: For my purposes, I have determined there are three clearance levels in the Gringotts heirarchy. Level 1 is the vaults that are the ones that use keys (eg Harry's, the Weasleys, etc). Level 2 are the vaults that require a goblin's touch to open them (eg, the vault that held the sorcerer's stone) and Level 3 are those that require the goblin's whole hand to open them (eg, the Lestrange vault).
Personality: While Ella and Emma are virtually identical, they are most certainly not the same person by a long shot! They have their similarities, of course, Emma shares her sister's belief that you catch more flies with honey than vinegar, and can be unfailingly polite, especially where it counts (like at work! Who would want to promote someone who's rude?), but she's also the quicker to anger and speak out, as she never had that 'older and more responsible' stigma that Ella did. In fact, for the longest time, she was the baby of the family, and she could get her parents or Amy wrapped around her little finger when she really wanted something (like a second serving of ice cream at dinner). She was quite adept at throwing fits when necessary (especially when helping Ella cover up some crime with a distraction).
Emma can be remarkably prejudiced at times (especially against werewolves), but will generally keep her feelings to herself in above necessary situations (eg, job). Like any good Slytherin, she is cunning and ambitious, and this is why she's moved up from fetching coffee to having her own office at Gringotts in just a manner of a few years. She knows how to work people, tell them what they want to hear, and convince them she's trustworthy. She left school without the labels of either 'bully' or 'Death Eater in Training' like some of the more outspoken Slytherins in the year above her earned. (And really, she wonders what sort of example of subtlety people like Draco Malfoy or his minions had that made them Slytherin in the first place).
Emma can be very, very proud. She's been known to tell people that she obviously has the better name of the twins since their parents really liked the name Emily until they found out there were two babies and decided to match instead. She loves getting credit for things she does, and would never be the type to step back and let somebody else get the credit. She can be fiercely protective of her family and close friends - and why that loyalty wasn't something the Hat necessarily picked up when she was 11, it was something that was there and strengthened two hundredfold after Eddie's death. Her greatest fear at this point would be to lose Emma or one of her parents. She's pretty sure she wouldn't be able to handle it, and the carefully crafted stability she regained after months of therapy and anti-depressent postions after Eddie's death would come crashing down.
Emma is the perfect roommate. Okay, to Ella, at least. And that is less because she lacks faults as to the fact that the sisters have lived together their whole lives and their little quirks (Emma being a bit messier than Ella, for example) are something they don't really notice about each other anymore. Emma's not likely to get annoyed with much that Ella does, and vice-versa. If/when they get another roommate, the situation certainly may change, as a new person may find Emma's insistence on siding with Ella even if they're wrong, tendency to not always get her laundry in the basket or borrowing clothes without permission exceedingly frustrating. Emma's biggest asset as a roommate is her talent for budgeting. She can break down the cost of a month's needs, factor in how much people are earning and come up with a clear and fair list of what different people should buy and how much they should spend. She's great at recommending investments and finding sales, as well. Also, she's a decent cook and makes rather good brownies.
Gender: female
Date of birth: January 1, 1981
House/Year: Slytherin, 1992-1999
Blood status: Pureblood - but only about 3 generations
Sexuality: hetero
Residence: Flat 8C, Euterpe's Corner, London
Suggested livejournal username: leighemma
PB/Avatar: Arielle Kebbel with short blonde hair
Physical characteristics: Emma is slightly taller than average for a girl, clocking in at about 5'8" and errs on the slender side. Her natural blonde hair has been worn short since she was fifteen (explained more fully in the history section) and her eyes are brown. Aside from the way she chooses to wear her hair, Emma is virtually identical to her sister, with nothing save a few scars (Emma has one on her knee from a nasty scrape as a child) to distinguish them. It's very important to Emma to look very well put together, and you'd never see her in public in sweats or anything so crass. She likes robes, skirts, and feminine. She's much too professional for frilly and ruffles, but she's much more likely to be found in a skirt and heels than jeans and sandals.
Distant History: Once upon a time Edward Montgomery a former Ravenclaw and 2nd generation Pureblood met and married Caroline Ollivander, a former Gryffindor, 5th generation Pureblood, and niece to, yes, that Ollivander. Edward had a job as a lawyer in the International Office of Law and Caroline was the Deputy Head of the Muggle relations Office of the Ministry of Magic (having found Muggles and Muggle Studies absolutely fascinating in her Hogwarts days). They met each other while working on a case that required both their departments, and as they got to know each other better, they certainly got to like each other better. They got married in 1978 and were very happy. Anyway, moving on.
In 1980, Caroline found herself pregnant with twins. Both Edward and Caroline were pleased at the additions to their family, and the younger of the twins, Emma, came into the world on January 1, 1981. Now normally, this would not be a problem, except she was born exactly seventeen minutes after her twin, Ella Lynn, and Ella so happened to be born in the last few minutes of 1980. And the fact that she was a 'year' older and therefore 'wiser' is a fact that Ella never let her sister forget. Emma figures the only worse way to be born would have been if they'd managed the August 31st and September 1st gap and had to be in different years at Hogwarts despite being twins.
At any rate, the twins lived a pretty happy childhood. They were very close, but not so close that they weren't more than willing to blame the other when mischief was caused, and they had their fair share of sniping. Truth be told, Emma could be quite the brat at times - from fussing if they tried to hold the twins' birthdays on the same day (Edward and Caroline ended up switching off every other year), to tattling if Ella was trying to pull the age card on her. Because both parents worked, and Ministry Daycare was too lowly in their parents' mind, the girls had a nanny for much of their childhood. Still, they were never lonely. Their nanny was lovely (and as they both quite adored Amy, neither of them threw fits and went through nanny after nanny unlike some other Pureblooded children), and even though their parents were both very busy in their important jobs, they always impressed on their daughters how much they loved them. Ella was older and responsible (in theory), and Emma was their little princess. They had toys, nice clothes, sweets aplenty, and most of all, each other.
Edward Montgomery, Jr, or more affectionately Eddie, was a surprise to the whole family, but there he came in March of 1992 when the twins were eleven and preparing to head off to Hogwarts the next year. At first Emma didn't know what to make of Eddie - he was small and brand new, and a boy to boot and she wasn't sure she wanted to give up her place as the baby of the family, but it wasn't long before the girls fell completely in love with their baby brother, so much so that Emma didn't really want to leave him when she went to Hogwarts.
Recent History: Emma was second sorted of the twins, and when she saw her sister get chosen for Slytherin, she was quite pleased to be sorted there as well. It was a bit of a surprise to their former Ravenclaw and Gryffindor parents, who couldn't quite make out how they's managed two Snakes, but there really was no other place for them to be. Emma, in particular, could be quite cunning - she knew how to use her brattiness to emotionally manipulate her parents (and Amy) to do what she wanted. And while at age eleven, she didn't have specific ambitions like Ella always seemed to, she knew she wanted to make a name for herself in the world. So, the girls settled into their dorm, and life went on, mostly pleasantly (They had been a bit spoiled by Amy's uncanny ability to tell them apart, and for the first time they were being mixed up, or worse, called 'twin 1' or 'twin 2'). Emma certainly wasn't a bully, like some of her housemates in the year above were known to be, so she sometimes got caught in Slytherin hate, and felt less than impressed with Harry Potter.
Troubles seemed to happen when he was around, after all. The Chamber of Secrets was opened in her first year, and while Emma felt safe, she didn't really appreciate the mass hysteria. Then in her second year, Sirius Black broke into the school, going after (again) Harry Potter. And then he'd somehow joined the Triwizard Tournament her third year, and in the end, a nice and cute Prefect ended up dead. Fourth year he kept messing with Umbridge and bringing in more Educational Decrees, but Emma actually had other things to worry about that year.
The day they came home for Easter break in their fourth year was an important one in Emma's mind. Eddie had been telling them all about his birthday party, and in his excitement, he kept mixing up the twins' names. This was horrific to Emma - it was bad enough Umbridge confused them enough, and their dormmates couldn't tell them apart at times, but this was too much. So the next day, she went off and had her long blonde locks chopped off into a short bob. She hadn't told Ella - she'd never heard her twin complain about it and Merlin knew those silly Weasley twins liked being mixed up with each other, but Emma wanted none of it and could only hope that Ella wouldn't cut her own hair when she saw Emma's. However, she got quite a surprise upon returning home - Ella had dyed her own long hair a dark brown as a way to differentiate herself from Emma! The twins laughed at their obvious brainwaves, and each deciding their new hairdos suited them, have kept them the same since so they can't be confused for each other.
Emma was never quite so pro-Muggle as her mother (she'd have probably joined the IS fourth year if she'd been old enough, especially if it would have helped Umbridge figure out which Montgomery she was), but her feelings were cemented in her fifth year. In the spring, her mother was approached by a Death Eater by the name of Yaxley to use her power in her department to help veto a pro-Muggle bill. Caroline refused. She didn't agree, of course, but mostly she worried that saying yes would open the door to more yeses and perhaps even put her family in situations such as that. Unfortunately, saying no wasn't the right decision, either. The bill passed, and Voldemort sicced Fenrir Greyback on the Montgomery family. The girls were at school, and both parents were working, which left Eddie and Amy in the house. Amy was killed near instantly, and Eddie was wounded severely. As the Dark Mark was cast, neighbours notified the Ministry straight away, and Eddie was rushed to Mungo's where he kept asking for his sisters.
Emma is pretty sure she'll never forget that day - when Dumbledore summoned she and her sister to his office, thinking of all the bad things happening she'd seen in the newspaper, but also trying to reason that as a Pureblood, her family ought to be safe. When the word 'brother' came out of Dumbledore's mouth, the rest of that day went by in a blur. The girls Flooed to Mungo's and stayed by Eddie's side as much as they could, while the Healers tried everything they could. In the end, it wasn't enough for Eddie's small, fragile body and both she and her sister were in the room when he died. She's unhappily seen thestrals since, always being reminded of Eddie's punishment for her mother's sins.
Eddie's death was the more publicised of the two, of course, given that he was but a child, and Pureblooded to boot, but Amy's death hit Emma nearly as hard. She'd known her former nanny as long as she could remember, and in some ways thought Eddie's birth had been a blessing to keep Amy around as the girls were starting to get too old for her when he was born. And now, two important people in Emma's life were gone, and she was crushed. And while she'd been scared when she'd found out Lupin was a werewolf her second year, it was nothing compared to the hatred of the creatures that lodged itself into Emma's mind. Angry and depressed, Emma snapped at anyone non-Slytherin who suddenly decided they were on the 'right' side and deigned to talk to them. They had been too blinded by House prejudice before, and at that point, Emma wanted none of it.
Seeing the drastic change in their daughter, Edward and Caroline signed Emma up for counselling over the summer and between that and anti-depressant potions, she started to feel more like herself, although she could not shake her prejudices - the ones Slytherin had been giving her for five years and were cemented when being on the 'right' side got your baby brother killed.
If Emma thought things couldn't get any worse, they did her next year. She was always on edge and walking a fine line with the Carrows. She was Pureblooded, and of course, that offered her some protection, but the Carrows also knew through the Death Eater grapevine, about what had happened with her mother, and both twins were watched closely on the thought of being potential blood-traitors. Then, partway through the year, Emma and Ella received the news that their mother had been thrown in Azkaban. All the true details behind the arrest (which were, basically, Voldemort getting frustrated with Ollivander's refusal to talk about the Elder Wand and hoping taking control of his few remaining family members might loosen his tongue - since Caroline was found to know nothing) were unknown to the girls, but it was a terrible thing to hear, nonetheless, and Emma spent countless days worried about her mother's health, and feeling guilty for so easily placing blame on Caroline after Eddie's death.
When Slughorn had the students leave, the decision was a no-brainer to Emma. Yes, she was old enough to fight, but her DADA was such she'd likely get killed, and the last thing she wanted to do was make her dad or twin lose another family member. So she walked out and never came back in when some Slytherins returned, with no regrets to this day.
When a much weaker and frailer Caroline was released from Azkaban, she was offered Charity Burbage's spot as Muggle Studies teacher. It was a smart move by McGonagall no doubt - by hiring a Pureblood from a known name for the Muggle Studies position, it might ease some potential backlash against Purebloods, but it could never make up for all she'd been through.
The next few years went by without huge drama (a relief) and the twins stayed at home with their dad as their mother worked the long years at Hogwarts, only coming home on weekends. Finally figuring out a passion and ambition (to get rich again, mostly), Emma started out as a grunt at Gringotts during the rebuild and has worked her way up since. Most recently, Ella and Emma have decided that living at home was not working out for them anymore, and so decided to move into the new addition of Euterpe's Corner together. It was all about adulthood and personal freedom, of course. Oh, okay, and the pool.
Current employment status: Emma is a financial planner at Gringotts Bank, level 1 Clearance, which is quite a step up from where she was when she started! While she does not have access to vaults, she keeps records of what's in them (the keyed ones, at least), and works in an office helping people and families make budgets and decide what amounts of their paychecks ought to be put away for the future, as well as which investments might be sound. Ideally, she thinks she'd like to own the bank one day, but barring that (since she's practical enough to know it's unlikely), she's content with eventually being trusted with more influential clients and information about the more secure vaults that lay deep underground.
*Note: For my purposes, I have determined there are three clearance levels in the Gringotts heirarchy. Level 1 is the vaults that are the ones that use keys (eg Harry's, the Weasleys, etc). Level 2 are the vaults that require a goblin's touch to open them (eg, the vault that held the sorcerer's stone) and Level 3 are those that require the goblin's whole hand to open them (eg, the Lestrange vault).
Personality: While Ella and Emma are virtually identical, they are most certainly not the same person by a long shot! They have their similarities, of course, Emma shares her sister's belief that you catch more flies with honey than vinegar, and can be unfailingly polite, especially where it counts (like at work! Who would want to promote someone who's rude?), but she's also the quicker to anger and speak out, as she never had that 'older and more responsible' stigma that Ella did. In fact, for the longest time, she was the baby of the family, and she could get her parents or Amy wrapped around her little finger when she really wanted something (like a second serving of ice cream at dinner). She was quite adept at throwing fits when necessary (especially when helping Ella cover up some crime with a distraction).
Emma can be remarkably prejudiced at times (especially against werewolves), but will generally keep her feelings to herself in above necessary situations (eg, job). Like any good Slytherin, she is cunning and ambitious, and this is why she's moved up from fetching coffee to having her own office at Gringotts in just a manner of a few years. She knows how to work people, tell them what they want to hear, and convince them she's trustworthy. She left school without the labels of either 'bully' or 'Death Eater in Training' like some of the more outspoken Slytherins in the year above her earned. (And really, she wonders what sort of example of subtlety people like Draco Malfoy or his minions had that made them Slytherin in the first place).
Emma can be very, very proud. She's been known to tell people that she obviously has the better name of the twins since their parents really liked the name Emily until they found out there were two babies and decided to match instead. She loves getting credit for things she does, and would never be the type to step back and let somebody else get the credit. She can be fiercely protective of her family and close friends - and why that loyalty wasn't something the Hat necessarily picked up when she was 11, it was something that was there and strengthened two hundredfold after Eddie's death. Her greatest fear at this point would be to lose Emma or one of her parents. She's pretty sure she wouldn't be able to handle it, and the carefully crafted stability she regained after months of therapy and anti-depressent postions after Eddie's death would come crashing down.
Emma is the perfect roommate. Okay, to Ella, at least. And that is less because she lacks faults as to the fact that the sisters have lived together their whole lives and their little quirks (Emma being a bit messier than Ella, for example) are something they don't really notice about each other anymore. Emma's not likely to get annoyed with much that Ella does, and vice-versa. If/when they get another roommate, the situation certainly may change, as a new person may find Emma's insistence on siding with Ella even if they're wrong, tendency to not always get her laundry in the basket or borrowing clothes without permission exceedingly frustrating. Emma's biggest asset as a roommate is her talent for budgeting. She can break down the cost of a month's needs, factor in how much people are earning and come up with a clear and fair list of what different people should buy and how much they should spend. She's great at recommending investments and finding sales, as well. Also, she's a decent cook and makes rather good brownies.