Professor Valeris

Backstory

Full Name: Stellan Aurelios Valeris

Pronunciation: STE-lan aw-RAY-lee-oss vuh-LEH-rees

Birthday: July 28th, 1997

Birthplace: Hayman Island, Australia

Star Sign: Leo

Wand: Vine wood with a thunderbird tail feather core, 14 ½ inches, and brittle flexibility.

Patronus: Golden Eagle

Hobbies: Visiting Honeydukes, going for a run around the Black Lake, listening to the latest record by The Hobgoblins.

Socials: Feel free to "friend me" on the Muggle Book of Faces.

Biography: Stellan Valeris was born in a small cottage in Hayman Island, Australia, to Elowen Valeris and Orien Valeris on the 28th of July, 1997. The youngest of 4 brothers, he had a more outgoing and extroverted personality, which contrasted with the rest of his family, who preferred the quiet and conventional life that Hayman could offer. Elowen and Orien Valeris owned a small fwooper farm from which they sold their feathers to travelling vendors. Growing up, Stellan and his brothers all helped out at the farm, which encouraged a love for nature and magical creatures that is still present in Stellan’s heart. However, deep down, Stellan knew that his passion came in the form of learning. Every time his parents cast spells, Stellan was left fascinated by just how powerful and diverse these were, and wanted to learn exactly how they were possible. He always begged his parents to let him try out their wands and teach him spells, but they, of course, refused. Stellan was the only one of his brothers who shared this passion, as they all opted for more hands-on hobbies like farming, gardening, and especially tending to the magical creatures in the area. Thankfully, he was homeschooled the first few years of his life, which allowed him to delve deeper and deeper into the theory of many courses using his brothers’ textbooks. One textbook in particular stuck out to him: A History of Magic, written by Bathilda Bagshot. He would spend hours poring over the pages, captivated by the tales of ancient wizards, great wars, and the fascinating development of magical society across the centuries.

After Stellan’s brothers graduated from Danunda Magical Academy (the main magical school for wizarding folk living in Australia), they decided to stay and help out on the farm, building their homes close to the Valeris’ cottage. Stellan, however, longed for something else. Throughout his childhood, he had talked about his dreams of visiting other places, as he was growing tired of not leaving Hayman Island. Finally, when Stellan turned eleven, his parents gave him the biggest gift he could have imagined: a yellowish letter with a purple wax seal bearing a crest showing four creatures surrounding the letter “H”: a lion, an eagle, a snake, and a badger. He was ecstatic to be attending Hogwarts, as this would mean that he would be exploring new places and growing out of the old. His parents had realized that it would be good for Stellan to see the world and experience different cultures. Even though he was excited, Stellan felt somewhat saddened by the fact that he would be away from his family for an entire year, as he hadn’t spent more than a day without seeing them. Nevertheless, he travelled to Scotland at the beginning of the school semester and was quickly sorted into Hufflepuff, which surprised him as he assumed his love for learning would lead him to Ravenclaw. However, after a few months, Stellan quickly realized that what he valued most was hard work and dedication, especially in relation to his studies. At Hogwarts, he took advantage of the opportunity his parents had given him and put in a great deal of effort to excel in his classes, being named firstly Prefect in 2012 and then Head Boy in 2014. 

After graduating, he applied for a job in the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes as part of the Accidental Magic Reversal Squad, where he worked for 3 years until he moved to the Department of Magical Education due to an injury on his right knee caused by a faulty leg-locker curse. There, he not only got a feel of how the magical educational system worked, but also made some connections with international magical education workers. One of these connections, Quintus Edevane of the Outlying Offices of Magical Australia (OOMA), reached out to Stellan in 2021 for a position as head of the Charms department in Danunda Academy. Stellan jumped at the opportunity, since he had spent the last few years travelling around the world fulfilling his childhood dream and now wished to be closer to his family. While at Danunda Academy, Stellan discovered his love for teaching, quickly improving the curriculum to become more structured and less outdated. Then, in July of 2025, Stellan was approached by his old friend Lavinia Laurel, whom he had met when they were both working in the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes. She mentioned an upcoming planned research sabbatical for the Year 7 Charms curriculum, and invited Stellan to teach Charms for a few months while she was away. Stellan was thrilled to be given the opportunity to come back to his alma mater and share his passion for Charms. He was excited to return to his favorite place in the world and see a few of his old professor friends, even if it was just for a few short months. But as always, Stellan’s life was full of surprises…

During his time teaching Charms at Hogwarts, Stellan found himself often lingering in the library late at night, rereading the histories that had captivated him since childhood. He realized that while Charms was enjoyable to teach, it was history that he truly loved.. He enjoyed demonstrating the wide varieties of charms, but he loved even more explaining where the charm came from, why it mattered, and how it had helped shape wizarding society. When the position of History of Magic professor unexpectedly opened, several of his colleagues encouraged Stellan to apply. Though nervous, he recognized this as the chance to finally devote himself to the subject that had defined his love of learning since childhood. He accepted, confident that his enthusiasm and deep respect for history would allow him to breathe new life into the course.