Characters in Children of the Red King

The Children of the Red King is a series written by the British Author, Jenny Nimmo. See Children of the Red King for further details. The following is list of Characters who appear in the series.

Main Characters

Protaganists

• Charlie Bone: Charlie was sent to Bloor's by his horrible Yewbeam aunts and his Grandma Bone when they found that he was a picture traveler. He is related to the Red King's youngest daughter, Amoret, through his father, Lyell Bone. He is also related to a Welsh magician, Mathonwy, who was the Red King's friend, through his mother, Amy Jones/Bone. Charlie is the unappointed leader of the good children of the Red King, and defies the Bloor's in their evil plots.Charlie Bone is a boy that went through life with an odd set of aunts and an antisocial uncle until one day his three great aunts and grandmother gave him a lot of photographs to look at. That was the start of Charlie's picture traveler powers. His grandmother and aunts insisted that he go to a prestigious school where others of his kind, the Endowed. As one of the Children of the Red King, he is constantly thrust into situations caused by others of their ilk, usually headed by the Bloor family. Charlie also has a wand that was given to him by Skarpo the magician, who was an apprentice of his anscestor Mathonwy the Welsh wizard. As a picture traveler Charlie can hear people within photos and paintings and travel into them The wand was burned by Manfred Bloor and now is in the shape of a white moth with silver tipped wings. He can cast spells With It by saying things in Welsh.

• Fidelio Gunn: The good friend of Charlie's. He is an amazing violin player, though not magically endowed. He tutored Charlie in music to help him prepare for enrollment at Bloor's. Fidelio's home, Gunn House, is GeneRally filled with the clamor of the many musicians in his large family, and is one of the safest places for Charlie and his friends to hide and plot, as there is consistently enough noise to cover their conspiring. His family also owns a cat named Pudding, who is deaf due to the noise of the Gunn House.Fidelio Gunn is one of several children in the Gunn household that is musically inclined, except that he is a virtuoso, a musical genius that can pick up any instrument and play it without formal lessons. He is the first person from Bloor's Academy that he meets and is the one that first teaches Charlie to play the trumpet enough to get by in his trumpet lessons at school. (Charlie had been put into the music department by his Grandmother, since the school is really for gifted children in the academic studies as well as the liberal arts). His house is where Charlie puts all the things he doesn't want the Bloors finding. This fails only once in the fifth book of the series. Fidelio is Charlie's best friend and close confident.

• Gabriel Silk: Gabriel is a friend of Charlie. He owns many gerbils, and is descended from a long line of psychics. Like Olivia, Gabriel is descended from the Red King's daughter Guanhamara. An interesting note is that the Red King's portrait in Bloor's Academy originally belonged to the Silk family. Gabriel's family also owns the Red King's cloak. He is psychometric - he can see and feel scenes and emotions through the clothes of others, which makes it impossible (or at least painful) for him to wear second-hand clothing. This was used against him by Dorcas Loom in the fourth book, as a bewitched cape caused him to fall into a coma. This endowment has, however, proved useful in a few cases - through a tie provided to him by Charlie, he sensed in the first book that Charlie's father was not dead, but lost (ie. hypnotised). In the third book he finds out that "Mr Boldova" had been hypnotized. In the fifth book, he wears the Red King's cloak, and became invincible and therefore able to protect Tancred from a sorcerer. Gabriel lives on Hail Road in the Heights.Gabriel Silk first showed up when he was caught with Charlie's new blue cloak and had given Charlie the cloak that he had been given, which was old and tattered. Gabriel is the son of a writer and has an entire shackful of gerbils as his pets. He's obsessed with his gerbils and very proud of them. Gabriel lives in the same area as Tancred Torsson, Lysander Sage and Loom Villa. The cloak given to him was driving him insane because the previous owner had been a girl that the Bloors didn't like, so they had ordered her to be killed by their henchbeast. From her old cloak, he would feel like he was being chased and then killed. Charlie pretty well saved his sanity when he decided to let Gabriel wear his cloak indefinitely and Charlie was given a new cloak that was specially made by his aunt Venetia.

• Emma Tolly: Emma was hypnotized by Manfred Bloor for eight years and re-named Emilia Moon until Charlie rescued her with the "Tolly Twelve BElls" invention, created by her father with the purpose of re-awakening her. Emma is an exceptional artist and her endowment enables her to transform herself into different types of birds. Through a combination of her two talents, she eventually CREATES her own bird called the Tollroc. She strongly resembles her mother, and owns a duck called Nancy (named after her mother). Her greatest weaknesses are her fingers or hands, and she cannot fly when these are sore or weakened. Emma lives with her Aunt Julia Ingledew in her bookstore. Emma Tolly is the only child of a man that was targeted by the Bloors for her possible abilities. She can turn herself into any bird she can think of. When the Bloors took her, to keep them from taking her, Lyell Bone, Charlie's father, tried to stop them and became as hypnotized as Emma became by Manfred Bloor. Charlie Bone figured out who Emma was and found a strange box with a suit of armor in it that had the sound of a church organ playing and church bells tolling. The box brought Emma Tolly back from being hypnotized and went to live with her aunt, Julia Ingledew, a bookstore owner. It is greatly implied that Emma is descended from Tolemeo based on the similarities in their endowments and the derivation of their names from The Knight of Toledo

• Olivia Vertigo: A spirited, independent-minded drama student who often assists Charlie in his efforts to foil evil plans at Bloor's. Her outstanding acting skills probably keep her from being expelled, as she is constantly in trouble. In the fourth book, when she doesn't receive a hoped-for movie role, she sinks into a bout of depression. She, like Gabriel, is descended from the Red King's daughter Guanhamara, who fled the Red King's castle and married an Italian prince. Olivia is an illusionist who realized her endowment in the fourth book, and she has used her powers to create a giant alligator, a swarm of bees, a medieval knight, a Tyrannosaurus and many more apparitions. Her endowment has been kept secret from the Bloors so that they won't try to subjugate her as they attempt to do with others. However, Jenny Nimmo reveals that the Bloors will find out AbOUT Olivia's endowment in the eighth book of the series. Olivia Vertigo is the daughter of a famous actress and wants to be an actress herself. She is known for being one of the wildest of the children in the Drama department, wearing strange clothing like boas and sparkles and purple stilhetto heels as well as dying her hair different colors, though her hair is originally brown. She is the second friend Charlie makes besides Fidelio, though at times she makes even Charlie wonder what she'll do, since she is incredibly unpredictable.She is one of the children of the red king, though didn't want to admit it to herself until Miss Angel finally told her that she should accept it in herself. She is Charlie's secret weapon. She is an illusionist, able to make any life-like illusion that she can imagine. Dr. Bloor and his grandfather Ezekiel Bloor would love to get their hungry hands on her. Any child that is endowed that they don't know about or can't control for themselves is a danger to them. However, Olivia has a tendency to make illusions happen when she feels like making it happen for kicks.

• Lysander Sage: One of Charlie's friends, and best friend of Tancred. Lysander is descended from an African wise man, and is able to summon his spirit ancestors in times of need. Lysander is also noted as a remarkable sculptor. His father is a judge, and he has two sisters named Hortense and Alexandra aged ten and fourteen, as well as another, unnamed sibling. His endowment is passed down from his mother. Lysander has a grey parrot named Homer who is prone to swearing, much to everyone's annoyance. He currently dates Lauren, who attends a normal school with Benjamin Brown, Charlie's best friend. Lysander lives in the Heights, along with Tancred and Gabriel. Lysander Sage is the son of the Judge. His mother is endowed and knows/feels when Lysander is having problems. He is in the art department and a year ahead of Charlie and his friends along with his best friend Tancred Torsson. He is descended from African wisemen and can bring his anscestors' ghosts back when he's in need to stemming a tide. The spirits come with the sound of drums and carry spears and swords and axes. They have terrified many on the Bloors' side before. He has a pet parrot named Homer that he can't live without

• Tancred Torsson: Tancred is one of Charlie's friends. His Scandinavian ancestor was named after the thunder god, Thor. Like his father, Tancred is an atmokinetic; he can create rain, wind, thunder lightning, and, in the fifth book, snow. He lives in Thunder House, on Hail Road in the Heights. Also like his father, he has a short temper and is very impatient. He is descended from Petrello, like Dagbert Endless. His short temper often causes unpredictable storms, and if feeling strong emotions, he cannot control it. He possessed Dagbert's golden sea urchin, a spoil from their battle at the end of the sixth book. He then tried to trade it for Charlie's wand, but the wand was fake and Dagbert gained full power and drowned Tancred. Tancred is shown alive at the very end of the 7th book. Tancred Torsson is descended from a man named Thor after the god of thunder. He is known for having a rather stormy and unpredictable temperament, but is usually rather jovial and boisterous when he gets into it. He and Lysander Sage are best friends and, being the older of the endowed children on the good side, protect Charlie from the others trying to hurt him. Tancred's gift is the ability to summon storms and has a tendency to summon small ones when slightly miffed. His hair tends to stick straight up and crackle with electricity when this starts up.

• Benjamin Brown: Charlie's oldest and best friend. Ben does not go to Bloor's, but recently returned from a seven-month trip to Hong Kong. He owns a dog named Runner Bean and his parents are great detectives so he does not see them often. Although he is unemdowed, and does not attend Bloor's, he does indeed play a fundamental part in the prgression of the story, and is present at almost all of the meetings.

• Billy Raven: Billy is a friend of Charlie's, but for the first three books was unsure whether to aid the good or the bad characters. He is an orphan and is only 7 years old in first book. Although he acted as spy for Ezekiel Bloor, who promised that he would be adopted, he later decided to become friends with Charlie and help him. Billy can speak and understand animals like his ancestor Amadis, and inherits his "Castle of Mirrors". In the 4th book, he is adopted by the de Greys, who lock him away in Passing House, but luckily he escapes with help of the Flames. Currently, Billy lives in Bloor's Academy during the week, like the other students, and sometimes with Charlie during weekends. He is close friends with Cook, Rembrandt (a rat which used to belong to "Mr Boldova") and Ezekiel Bloor's dog Blessed (or Percy), whom he has long chats with. In the 6th book, Billy loses his endowment, but basically recovers soon after having to speak to Asa while the boy is a wolf. Billy Raven was orphaned and taken in by the Bloors when he was a baby. The only thing he has of his parents is a small photograph of them sitting under a tree right before Billy was taken away from them by the Bloors. He is Charlie's friend most of the time, though is made a spy for the Bloors to spy on Charlie's moves with hopes of extra sweets, friendship from the Bloors, and the promise of a new family. He has grown up in Bloors Academy, only briefly going into the household of the de Greys as his new "family" for giving the Bloors the location of Charlie's wand. Billy is the heir to the Bloor fortune but it is hidden from him. Paton is almost certain of it, but at the end of the 7th book Billy is trapped in Badlock. Billy has the ability to speak to animals, any animal. His pet–friend is Rembrandt the rat, former class pet of the former art teacher. The Bloors don't know about the rat.

• Asa Pike: In the first five books, Asa works for Manfred. His parents are creatures known as Meromalls, and like his ancestor Cafall, he is a changer, meaning that his moral inclinations can be shifted one way or the other. This term could also be interpreted as referring to his endowment, since Asa is endowed with a "were-beast" quality. After dusk, he gains the ability to transform into a wolf-like being. In this state, he nearly killed Charlie in "Midnight for Charlie Bone" and Olivia in "The Invisible Boy", as well as seriously wounding Runner Bean, Benjamin's dog in "Midnight for Charlie Bone". However, in the fifth book, "The Hidden King", Asa began to show signs of redemption and a willing to become good, when he saved Emma Tolly and aided Charlie in freeing the Red King, as a result of the presence of Count Harken Badlock. Due to his were-beast blood, Asa was deeply disturbed by the Count's presence, as were all animals in the city. As punishment for his disobedience, he was captured by the Bloors in the 6th book, and kept in a dark tunnel, forcing him to remain in wolf form due to the absence of light. His father is killed in this book, but Asa himself is rescued by Charlie and Billy, and escaped the city with his mother.

• Bindi Loom: A friend of Olivia Vertigo. Her magical talent has not yet been developed. She left Bloor's Academy at the end of the second book. However, it is presumed that she is one of the good children as she helped to hide Henry Yewbeam from Manfred Bloor and Asa Pike.

Antagonists

• Idith and Inez Branko: Twins who very rarely show facial expression, but when they do it is rarely pleasant. They are also telekinetic and are distantly related to Zelda Dobinski. They are described as looking like "china dolls," and are impossible to tell apart.Though Dagbert can tell them apart as noticed in book #7.

• Zelda Dobinski: A telekinetic known to have consorted with Manfred Bloor. She has now graduated from Bloor's due to being a mathematical genius.

• Belle Donner: The child-like form of Yolanda Yewbeam. Her name, as Gabriel points out, is a pun on belladonna. Belle (as Yolanda) was a powerful shape shifter and hypnotist who appeared at Bloor's Academy quite suddenly, and integrated herself with the evil characters. She had also managed to win Asa's affections due to his being a fellow shape shifter.

• Dagbert Endless: His morality changes with the moon. He is the son of Lord Grimwald, and has the power to drown people. He also depends on his Sea Gold creatures which were given to him by his mother, and without them he will gag and not be able to breath. He constantly smells of fish and the ocean, which is why he makes his home in a fake fish shop.

• Dorcas Loom: An enemy of Charlie's. At the beginning of the series, her morality was uncertain, but after the third book she became quite mean. Her magical talent is the ability to bewitch any clothing which she makes herself, a skill which only becomes apparent when a belt she makes almost kills Miss Ingledew (Emma's aunt). Dorcas is later responsible for the reconstruction of Manfred's scarred face, as well as for the creation of a "shrivelling shawl" which steals Billy Raven's power. She idolizes Venetia Yewbeam, Charlie's great-aunt. Her nemesis is Gabriel Silk, as her power affects him in particular.

• Eric Shellhorn: He has the power to animate stone. He was originally good, but the influence of Venetia Yewbeam-Shellhorn, his stepmother (also Charlie's great-aunt), turned him evil. His real mother was poisoned by Venetia, using a bewitched string of beads.

• Beth Strong: A telekinetic who comes from a line of circus performers. She leaves the Bloor's quite early, and was "friends" with Zelda Dobinski. Beth is also considered to be Bindi's opposite.

• Joshua Tilpin: A spy for the Bloors. His parents are Miss Chrystal and Mathhew Tilpin, but his father abandoned him as a baby because he feared that the boy was dangerous. His endowment is magnetism, which lures people and objects towards him. He attempts to lure Tancred away from his friends, but Charlie and the others counter his power by making him so revolting that most would be repelled by him. His ancestors are Lilith, the Red King's eldest daughter, and Count Harken Badlock, an evil sorcerer.

Adults

• Manfred Bloor: Charlie's arch-enemy, and the son of the Headmaster. He was once a hypnotist, but the peak of this power had been at age nine when he hypnotized Lyell Bone and Emma Tolly. By the age of eighteen, he has basically lost this power, but is currently becoming a pyrokinetic, like his ancestor Borlath. He previously worked with (and it has been implied that he dated) Zelda Dobinsky, but she has since graduated. Manfred was previously Head Boy, and is currently a teacher's assistant. Asa Pike previously idolized him, but their current relationship is less than warm. He is descended from Borlath, eldest son of the Red King, who was a brutal and sadistic tyrant. The Flames once turned into leopards and attacked him, but his face has magically restored, due to some orange insects given to him by Dorcas Loom.

• Paton Yewbeam: Paton is Charlie's kind great-uncle. He is the mentor of the good endowed children at Bloor's and frequently assists as a voice of reason, historian or adult supervisor. He is endowed with power-boosting, which causes electrical objects to explode; as a result, he rarely leaves the house during the day. Evidence from the books seems to suggest that this ability is closely tied to Paton's emotions. Paton discovered this power when he was seven years old: During his birthday party, he was so excited that he burst all of the light bulbs around him, and everyone had to go home. His family was so delighted that they let him eat everybody else's ice cream and he became sick. Paton is in love with Julia Ingledew. On their first date, he is so overcome by her beautiful appearance that he bursts the light-bulbs surrounding their table and runs out without paying the bill. She has since forgiven him, and even Charlie smugly suggests that the two should marry. Paton is the only protagonist of the current generation of Yewbeams, for which his sisters despise him. One of them ran over him in the second book, but he survived. Paton sometimes serves as a form of comic relief, due to his apparently insatiable hunger - for instance, he is often introduced to scenes when he comes downstairs for a snack, and stops while telling Charlie about the sudden death of a shop-owner to ask "Can I have your eggs?"

• Grizelda Bone (née Yewbeam): Charlie's paternal grandmother. Her siblings are Paton, Lucretia, Venetia and Eustacia. She is a horrible grandmother and frequently attempts to weasel the truth from Charlie and sneaks into his room. Grizelda only considers someone to be a "proper Yewbeam" if they possess a special talent, magical or otherwise (an interesting opinion, since she herself is neither endowed nor talented in any obvious way, beyond being vindictive). She seeks to emulate her three sisters and behaves subserviently toward them.

• Lucretia Yewbeam: The eldest of Charlie's great-aunts and the younger sister of Grandma Bone. She is unendowed, but still consistently nasty. When her mother died under mysterious circumstances in Yewbeam castle, Lucretia and her sisters lived with Yolanda Yewbeam. She is the matron of Bloor's Academy.

• Eustacia Yewbeam: The second of Charlie's great-aunts. Eustacia is a clairvoyant, and it is implied that she warned Grizelda to remove all the photographs of Lyell after foreseeing the emrgence of Charlie's gift. Once, she had posed as a minder in Benjamin Brown's house while his parents were away, and allowed Asa Pike into the house to attack Runner Bean. She hosts a garden with many plants. Her garden also hosts verbain the plant that recovers Paton in the 3rd book. She lives in the middle #13 Darkly Wynd.

• Venetia Shellhorn (née Yewbeam): The youngest and most deadly of Charlie's great-aunts, Venetia is a designer of magic clothes, and used to keep a man locked in the attic of her house. She was clever and witty before the arson of her home by Charlie and Paton, against whom she is currently plotting revenge against. Her house has since been rebuilt according to the 6th book.Venetia taught Dorcas Loom to bewitch clothing. She married Arthur Shellhorn to presumably influence his son, Eric, who is a stone animator. Venetia killed Shellhorn's first wife by giving her a bewitched necklace, and then gave Shellhorn a cloak to make him fall in love with her. Shellhorn and his daughter Miranda fled in fear of Venetia and Eric.

• Ezekiel Bloor: The owner of Bloor's Academy and grandfather of the current headmaster, Dr. Bloor And Great grandfather of Manfred. Over a hundred years old, Ezekiel is a talentless magician who is obsessed with reanimating the dead, particularly his ancestor Borlath. Crippled by a prior confrontation with Lyell Bone, he must use a wheelchair to get around. Ezekiel was the one who sent Henry Yewbean (his cousin) forward in time.

• Doctor Harold Bloor: The Headmaster of Bloor's Academy. He has no magical endowment, but his physical image is very intimidating to most people. He appears to be allied with the bad children.

• Miss Chrystal (Titania Tilpin): A violin teacher at Bloor's Academy. She appeared to be good, but it is revealed to be evil when she releases "the Shadow" from the Red King's portrait using the Mirror of Amoret. She was once in love with Charlie's father, Lyell Bone, but he broke her heart by marrying Amy Jones (Charlie's mother). She later married Matthew Tilpin and had a son, Joshua. She is descended from the Red King's eldest daughter Lilith and her husband, the evil Count Harken Badlock (aka "the Shadow" or "Hart Noble"). She is a dark witch.

• Skarpo: A wizard that Charlie first visits in the second book, and then throughout the series. He lashes out in anger when Charlie 'steals' his wand, but later becomes Charlie's friend and associate, and helps to hide the diaries of Bartholomew Bloor. He is contained inside a painting.

• Orvil Onimous: The owner of the Pets' Cafe and husband of Onoria Onimous. He repeatedly helps Charlie and his friends, and also cares for the Flame cats - Aries, Leo, and Sagittarius. Mr. Onimous is thought to be endowed, but his endowment is never described. A popular hypothesis is that he shares the gift of speaking animal tongues with Billy Raven. Mr. Onimous possibly has the gift of healing, as stated in the first book, when he cured Runner Bean.

• Amy Bone (née Jones): Charlie's mother. She is a kind and loving woman who works part-time at a greengrocer's to support herself and her son, as well as living off money that her in-laws provide. Count Harken Badlock once hypnotized her into engaging in a relationship with him, but was freed by the power of the Red King. Amy is currently whale-watching with her husband Lyell Bone on a second honeymoon.

• Lyell Bone: Charlie's father, who disappeared in 1994 after "breaking the rules". Lyell was unendowed, but attended Bloor's because of his talent in piano. By wearing Lyell's tie, Gabriel discovers that he is not dead, but 'lost'. In the fifth book, it is found that he was hypnotized and transformed into "Mr. Pilgrim", a very spacey, quiet teacher in Bloor's. He is reunited with his family. In the sixth book, it is suggested that he has possession of a box that contains Septimus Bloor's real will, which would reveal Billy Raven as the owner of Bloor's Academy as Maybelle Raven's last heir.

• Julia Ingledew: She is Emma Tolly's aunt and owner of Ingledew's Bookshop. She originally gave Charlie Bone the invention (Tolly Twelve Bells) that would later unhypnotize her niece, Emma, with whom she is reunited at the end of the first book. She is in love with Charlie's great uncle Paton.

• Maisie Jones: Charlie's maternal grandmother. She was jealous of the Yewbeams for their magical heritage until she discovered that she was related to a Welsh magician Mathonwy. Unlike Grandma Bone, she is a kind grandmother.

• Cook (Treasure):One of Charlie's friends and the "lodestone," who keeps the balance of endowed children at Bloor's. Her real name is Treasure and she has a sister named Pearl. Cook has many secret rooms under Bloor's Academy, and has the power of good luck and grace (tranquility). She takes care of Blessed, Ezekiel's dog, and acts as a messenger between Charlie and the outside world. As a young woman, she lived on an island with her family, but when she refused to marry a "drowner" named Lord Grimwald, he destroyed her family, her fiancé and her home. After the death of her family and fiancé, she found a job at Bloors Academy which was in need of a cook. So Treasure found a job at the academy to help endowed children and keep the balance. Treasure helps the endowed of the academy because of her past.

Supporting Characters

Bloor's Academy Staff

• Mr. Boldova (Samuel Sparks): He has the power to turn rocks into superheated sparks and sustain the heat which they produce. His brother is Ollie Sparks, once turned invisible by a blue snake. He used to be an art teacher in Bloor's, and often helped the children out of dangerous situations. At the end of the third book, Charlie Bone and the Blue Boa, he left Bloor's and went to live in Sparkling castle with his family.

• Mr. Carp: An English teacher at Bloor's.

• Tantalus Ebony: A former teacher of history, piano and drama at Bloor's. He is actually Yorath Yewbeam, a shapeshifter, Yolanda Yewbeam's father. His personality and shape are an amalgamation of a narcoleptic headmaster by the name of Tantalus Wright and Vincent Ebony, a postman.

• Mrs. Marlowe: The drama teacher.

• Mr. Paltry: Charlie's ill-tempered wind instrument teacher. He has no patience for endowed students as they are generally not musically talented.

• Mr. Pilgrim (Lyell Bone): Charlie's father, who disappeared in 1994 after "breaking the rules". Lyell was unendowed; he went to Bloor's because of his talent in piano. Gabriel says that he is not dead, but 'lost'. In the fifth book, it is found that he was hypnotized and transformed into "Mr. Pilgrim," a very spacey, quiet teacher in Bloors. Upon being freed in the fifth book, he is reunited with his family. In the sixth book, it is suggested that he has possession of a box that contains a will. Pilgrim was also very forgetful while in his stage of hypnotism.

• Mr. Pope: History teacher.

• Dr. Saltweather: The head of the music department. His endowment is the immunity to drowning in water, as illustrated when Dagbert Endless tried to drown him in a thick fog. He states that this does not count as a proper endowment.

• Miss Singerlee: Assistant drama teacher.

• Valerie: Kitchen assistant.

• Mr. Weedon: The Bloor's Academy gardener. Weedon also acts as a bodyguard and chauffeur to Ezekiel Bloor.

• Mrs. Weedon: The cook for the Green kitchen and wife of Mr. Weedon, the gardener. She is known as mean and loves to read thriller novels.

Other characters

• Alice Angel: A white witch who`s Olivia`s neighbor and also discovered her endowment. Descended from Guanhamara and was close friends with Cristopher Crowqill. She stated that she was endowed with the knowledge that she would help someone who needed to discover themselves.

• Beatrice Bloor: Great-Aunt of Ezekiel Bloor, she was a witch. Beatrice despised her sister Maybelle, the ancestor of Billy Raven. As such, when her father, Septimus Bloor left all his belongings (the castle ruin, Bloor's Academy and much money) to Maybelle, Beatrice poisoned her and created a false will leaving their father's possessions to their brother, Bertram Bloor. Bertram passed these heritages to his son Sir Gideon Bloor, and then to his grandson Ezekiel Bloor.

• Bartholomew Bloor: He is Dr. Bloor's father and Ezekiel's son. He supposedly disappeared in the Alps during a climb, but is later revealed to have survived. He is married to an Asian woman named Meng, and they have adopted Naren. Bartholomew was a close friend to Charlie's father.

• Maybelle Bloor: Maybelle's endowment is unknown. Her father, Septimus Bloor, left her everything he owned, including Bloor’s Academy and the castle ruins, but her sister Beatrice poisoned her and made a false will leaving everything to Bertram. She married into the Raven family and is an ancestor of Billy Raven.

• Norton Cross: The former doorman for the Pet's Cafe, Norton spent the bulk of the series appearing to be a friend to the protagonists, although never really taking part in any action. In the seventh book, however, he is discovered to be a follower of Titania Tilpin and tries to kill the Onimouses.

• Cristopher Crowqill: the legal guardian of Billy Raven and he appered in the 4th book. He was an unendowned printer (ironic because hs ancestor, Crowquill, was a scribe) and was framed for roddery by Weedon. He seemed to have a strong relationship with Alice Angel. He saved Paton from Yorath Yewbeam by tackling him off a cliff, but died in the process. He is mentioned in the 5th book when Billy takes out a candle from his letter in the 4th and the candle is revealed to be magic.

• Florence de Grey: The wife of Usher de Grey, Florence can control people with bewitched oaths. These oaths are coated with a poison binding the person to the oath. If a person breaks the oath, they are physically harmed by the oath.

• Usher de Grey: Usher has the power to produce force fields. Though he dislikes children, he was temporarily the adoptive parent of Billy Raven.

• Lord Grimwald: He has the ability to control the seas, and is a descendant of Petrello. Grimwald is an enemy of Cook. After she refused to marry him, he killed her fiance and parents, though he appears not to recognise her when they briefly meet in the sixth book. He is also the father of Dagbert Endless.

• Mrs. Katya Kettle: A talented blacksmith who owns a shop on Pinimy Street. Mrs. Kettle is descended from Feromel the Blacksmith, a powerful magician. She made an invincible sword for the Red Knight in the sixth book.

• Naren Bloor: Bartholomew Bloor's adopted daughter. She is descended from the Red King's grandson who was abducted by pirates and taken to China. 'Naren' is said to mean 'sunflower' in Chinese - an error by the author. Naren can shape shadows to form messages and send them like a magical form of instant messaging, umbrakinesis, but only if she has access to a possession of the recipient. In the sixth book, she sends a shadow message to Charlie saying "good-bye". Her family helped save Asa and his mother by picking them up at the river in a battered white van. It is not known where they went from there or if they will come back.

• Una Onimous: Mr. Onimous's five year old niece. She is endowed, but her talent is unknown as the Onimouses are keeping it a secret until it has been fully developed. Her endowment is assumed to be the ability to disappear, as she went invisible when holding the marshmallow globes. She is very outspoken (gets it from her mother).

• Pearl: The sister of Cook (Treasure) and endowed with the gift of tranquility. Is the housekeeper of Charlie's great grandfather, and his great-great-uncle, who should be 103 years old but was transported to the present day by his cousin Ezekiel at the age of eleven.

• Miranda Shellhorn: Eric Shellhorn's older sister and the unendowed stepdaughter of Venetia Yewbeam. She owns a dog named Chattypatra, so-called because she barks a lot. Chattypatra is later discovered to be in love with Runner Bean, Benjamin's dog (who seems to return her affections).

• Daphne Yewbeam: She was the daughter of Manley Yewbeam and Grace Bloor, as well as being the sister of James and Henry Yewbeam. She died of diphtheria when she was eight years old. Daphne is Clairvoyant.

• Yolanda Yewbeam: Charlie's great-great-great aunt; she returned to the Yewbeams to experiment on the Blue Boa, and to deal with Charlie's investigating skills. She was endowed with two abilities, which is very rare in Charlie's world: she is both a shape-shifter and a hypnotist. She is killed by her great-nephew Paton Yewbeam when he explodes the machine she is working at. Due to her appearing to bewitch clothes, it is highly debated that she has three endowments - this would make her the most powerful character in the books, along with the Shadow of Badlock.

• Yorath Yewbeam: Charlie's great-great-great-grandfather, Yolanda's father and a shape-shifter. He swore vengeance on Paton Yewbeam, his great-grandson after he killed. He fell off a cliff during a battle with Paton Yewbeam, but his death is uncertain. It is stataed in the 3rd and 4th books that he is so old that he has no form of his own and must borrow the forms of others. The people who's forms he takes become trapped in a state of semi-coniouss and suspended animation in which they cannot move or speak but don't need eat or drink.

• Ollie Sparks: A young gifted flutist,in the third book Ollie was the invisible boy. With a lot of help from Charlie's group, he was turned visible, and taken home to sparkling castle with his brother Samuel Sparks.

The Red King

• The Knight of Toledo: The unendowed father-in-law of the Red King. His daughter is Queen Berenice.

• Queen Berenice: Daughter of the Knight from Toledo, wife of the Red King. She and her husband had ten children, and the Queen had great intuition in matters concerning her offspring. She died after giving birth to her tenth daughter, Amoret. Queen Berenice is brought back to life in an experiment conducted by Ezekiel Bloor in the fourth book. Her favorite horse's bones are merged with her heart, so that she now lives in the horse's body. She resides within the forest, close to the tree that is the Red King, and looks out for the Charlie and his friends, whom she views as her children.

• The Red King. The Red King is known by this name because of his red cloak and the blazing sun on his shield. He was a magician-king from Africa, who traveled through the world, accompanied by his three loyal leopards. He built a castle on the site where city of the series now stands, and there he married Berenice and had 10 children. All of his children inherited, in part, some of his power, which resulted in each of them possessing an incredible endowment. These powers were passed down through his children's descendants, and those who inherited the endowments were known as the Endowed or the Children of the Red King.

After Queen Berenice died giving birth to Amoret, the king went to grieve for her in the forest, as was the custom. He left his children in the care of nurses and guardians in the castle. As the King was coming back to his castle, he saw that the world was a wicked place and needed his help. For many years, he fought thieves, wrongdoers and assassins.

When the Red King finally reached his castle, he saw that Count Harken Badlock had turned five of his children to wickedness, and they were wreaking havoc on the countryside, using their powers for [...] and torture. The other five children had fled their father’s castle forever. Unable to fight his own children, the King went back to the forest.

The King asked his friend Mathowny, a magician, to turn him into a tree in the forest, for he feared if he did it himself the change would not be permanent. He told his leopards and Mathowny to look after and take care of the descendants of his children, specifically the descendants of the good ones: Amadis, Guanhamara, Petrello, Tomeleo, and Amoret. He gave his leopards new coats and turned them into the three cats known as the Flames (Leo, Aries and Sagittarius). The Red King’s tree form is re-woken in the fifth book by the good endowed children at Bloor’s, as well as Asa Pike. He helps defeat the Shadow (Count Harken Badlock), and waken Charlie’s father, Lyell Bone. He has regained human form as the Red Knight, who rides the horse that is actually Queen Berenice.

Children

l

Bad: *Borlath: The Red King’s eldest child, he was described as a cruel tyrant, whose favorite sport was to torture. He was the black-browed ancestor of the Bloors. His endowment was fire-bringing. He could raise fire from his finger tips and set it apon any thing or being, he was a wicked one. He was one of the wicked children who followed Count Harken Badlock and stayed in the palace, using their endowments for evil deeds. The Bloors are descended from Borlath. The Yewbeams also are descended from Borlath because Grace Bloor had married into the family.

Good *Amadis: The Red King's second son. Amadis was a kind man, and his endowment was the ability to communicate with animals. He fled the Red King's castle along with his younger sister Amoret, married, and built a beautiful castle on the Blue Island (the castle was known as the Castle of Mirrors). He had four sons, one of which was an albino who he named Owain. Owain was the only son who inherited his father's endowment. The Crowquills and the Ravens are descended from Amadis.

Bad: *Lilith: She was the eldest daughter of the Red King. Her endowment was most likely magnetism. She was one of the wicked children who stayed behind in the Red King's castle, and she married Count Harken Badlock. It is revealed in the seventh book that she has two grandchildren, Matilda and Edgar. Lilith is the ancestor of the Tilpins, but little else is known about her. She is presumably the ancestor of most residents of Piminy Street, Norton Cross, and the Shellhorns. As they are all descendents of Count Harken Badlock.

Bad (but then good): *Cafall/Carfal: Known as Cafall the Changer. He was originally one of the wicked children, but as he was changeable, he turned good and fled his father’s castle. He came to settle in a land inhabited by creatures called Meromalls. He took a Meromall bride, and a son was born to them. Their son was a changer, too, but he was unlike his mother: he was a boy by day, beast by night. This started a long line of changers who were half-human, half-beast, who were changeable in humor and mind too, like Cafall. Eventually, Cafall’s descendant, Asa Pike, came back to the city to study at Bloor’s. Cafall is the ancestor of the Pikes.

Bad: *Olga: Nothing is known about Olga, other than her nature as one of the evil children. She may have been telekinetic, and could be the ancestor of Bindi and the Looms.

Good: *Guanhamara: A gentle girl, Guanhamara was a witch and cared for all living things. She helped the tortured Blue Boa by placing a spell on it, hoping that it would grow peaceful. The spell succeeded in part, restoring at least some of the boa's sanity, since the snake "could not forget its yearning hug", Guanhamara replaced its power to kill with the ability to turn others invisible. Guanhamara fled to Italy, taking the King's cloak with her, an object that was passed down through the generations of her family. Guanhamara married an Italian prince and had seven daughters, every single one of them a witch. These girls placed the boa in a jar along with a dead bird, hoping to one day revive it. The actions caused it to turn blue and grow feathers. Guanhamara is the ancestor to the Silks and Vertigos.

Good: *Petrello: The fifth child of the Red King. He was endowed with control of the weather, including the tides, fog and storms. He is the ancestor of the Torssons and Lord Grimwald's family. Petrello is described as 'bright' by his father. He was one of the good children, but it is unknown to where he fled - possibly the north (where Dagbert Endless, who can control tides, hails) or the Scandinavian countries (Tancred Torsson has an ancestor who was Scandinavian).

Good: *Tolemeo: Described a 'clever', Tolemeo's endowment appears to have been the ability to fly, but he was one of the good children, and fled the castle with his other four siblings. He is also possibly the ancestor of the Tollys, as their names are both based on Toledo (his grandfather), and the nature of his endowment being similar to Emma's.

Bad: *Wyborn. Also possibly telekinetic, Wyborn was one of the wicked children who fell to the shadow's power. He may be an ancestor of the Doblinski's and the Strong's.

Good: *Amoret: Youngest daughter of the Red King. She was a picture traveler (she was able to travel to places she saw in pictures, paintings, magic items, etc.) and possibly clairvoyant, as many of her descendants possess this gift. Her father made her a beautiful mirror before her birth, which she would use to travel. Once a person looks in the mirror, they see the person or place they desired most. Amoret, as a traveler, was able to travel to the place she saw in the mirror. The Red King gave the mirror to Amadis so he could pass it on to Amoret. This mirror is known as the Mirror of Amoret.

However, Queen Berenice died after giving birth to Amoret, and the Red King left to grieve for Berenice when Amoret was only a baby. Amoret fled the castle with Amadis. Uncle Paton, however, states that she was lost; she was separated from Amadis during their flight from the castle.

Amoret was said to be a girl "whom no one could protect", and the fourth book implies she was involved in the construction of the Castle of Mirrors on the Blue Island, causing the battle with Borlath. When Charlie traveled in a picture in the Castle of Mirrors, he saw Amoret, along with Amadis and his wife, singing. Amoret is the ancestor of the Yewbeams.

'''Other Historical Personages

• Mathonwy: A Welsh wizard and friend of the Red King. Ancestor of the Jones Family. Many of his descendants are also called Mathonwy.
• Skarpo: A wizard of the same generation as Red King. He was once Mathonwy's apprentice. It is unknown whether he was apprenticed to the original Mathonwy or one of his name sakes. Charlie states the time was wrong for him to learn from the original.
• Charles Penybuck: Mentioned by Paton in the second book; a picture-traveler.
• Luigi Salutati: Painter of the Red King's portrait, descendant of Guanhamara. Possibly a clothes psychic.
• Feromel: A magical blacksmith. Katya Kettles Ancestor. Killed by Melmott's statues.
• Selena Sparks: She was a sparkler and never married. The Sparks family is descended from her brother
• Melmott: a magician stonemason, possibly the ancestor of Eric Shellhorn. He used his power to make statues live to kill Feromel.