In this world, there are many tools one may use to direct magic. One of the most well known of these is the wand. Of course it is a common saying that "The wand chooses the wizard", with all wands having a degree of awareness with which they select...
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Crataegus, commonly called hawthorn, quickthorn, thornapple, May-tree, whitethorn, or hawberry, is a genus of several hundred species of shrubs and trees in the family Rosaceae, native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere in Europe, Asia, and North America. The name "hawthorn" was originally applied to the species native to northern Europe, especially the common hawthorn C. monogyna, and the unmodified name is often so used in Britain and Ireland. The name is now also applied to the entire genus and the related Asian genus Rhaphiolepis.
The wandmaker Gregorovitch wrote that hawthorn 'makes a strange, contradictory wand, as full of paradoxes as the tree that gave it birth, whose leaves and blossoms heal, and yet whose cut branches smell of death.' While I disagree with many of Gregorovitch's conclusions, we concur about hawthorn wands, which are complex and intriguing in their natures, just like the owners who best suit them. Hawthorn wands may be particularly suited to healing magic, but they are also adept at curses, and I have generally observed that the hawthorn wand seems most at home with a conflicted nature, or with a witch or wizard passing through a period of turmoil. Hawthorn is not easy to master, however, and I would only ever consider placing a hawthorn wand in the hands of a witch or wizard of proven talent, or the consequences might be dangerous. Hawthorn wands have a notable peculiarity: their spells can, when badly handled, backfire. - Garrick Ollivander
Popular in Scotland, Serbia, and Croatia, hawthorn wands have intrigued people for thousands of years. The source of this intrigue is its contradictory nature– it desires to heal as much as it does to harm. The same can be said with its owner, who is torn between helping and hurting others.
Their emotions flip easily and swirl together indiscriminately. The owner may have gone through great hardships early in their lives, and though they feel intense emotions they have problems processing them in healthy ways. It takes much time and struggles for them to master their emotions. What drives these witches and wizards to their best is hope. When they lose sight of hope or feel no options are left, they become overly negative and dangerous. Even if other options do open up, they cannot see them and are often stuck in that pessimistic mindset.
When they believe they have hope, this owner and its wand are capable of extensive healing magics, and their general magic is strengthened tenfold. Their belief is unshakable, either way, and what, they think impacts their capabilities and decisions tremendously. They need to learn to recognize and accept their own faults. However, hawthorn is not easy to master; if the owner underestimates their wand it can be dangerous. This wand may backfire on its owner on purpose if it is angry or conflicted with its owner. As the owner, this wand may not always know why it feels a certain way.
There is a trend of hawthorn owners protecting those smaller or weaker than themselves. This may vary depending on the core as well as on the owner's moral development. This wand specializes in magics to do with healing, hexes, fairy magic, and magic based on emotional state. Magic to do with gateways and portals is a rare but possible specialty of this wand– given the right core.
Fuschia, black, and indigo rays of light beam from this wand when performing spellwork. Its magic smells of strawberries, molasses, and damp clay. This wand emits a smell similar to the first signs of decay in animals when displeased. Hawthorn wands are strongest during springtime and are weakened during the weeks around the winter solstice. Fairies have long been connected to hawthorn wands and may treat their owners more genially than other witches and wizards. Hawthorn wand owners are often in the company of yew and/or apple wand owners. Vampires are naturally repelled by hawthorn wands.
