Abby Maitland

Abby is a zookeeper/zomg awesome dino-hunter hailing from London in the year 2007. She arrived in-game on 5-12-11 and currently lives in [tba].

age: 25

origins: Primeval [canon]

app link: [x]

hmd: [x]

played by: Jess

contact: AIM: Agent Sapphire | email: raenef@woh.rr.com | plurk: whaleintraining

Setting
Primeval takes place in what is more or less modern-day Earth (specifically, London) circa 2007. Except for the shiny rips in the fabric of spacetime that are allowing creatures from both the past and future to roam the present. So, you know, just a minor detail there.

These rips, referred to as "anomalies," have been appearing for at least eight years (given that that's when Helen Cutter first disappeared into one) and possibly a lot longer. They occur along temporal fault lines and have a strong magnetic pull, causing compasses to go haywire and pulling unsecured metal objects into them often with great force. They appear to open and close spontaneously and can change locations along a fault line. An anomaly leading to a particular era may not always deposit travelers at exactly the same time (see: Forest of Dean anomaly in episode 1x06 as compared to episode 1x01 -- same location, years apart).

How does a mere assistant zookeeper get involved with this sort of wacky time travel phenomena, you ask? Simple. The zoo received a request from a family who had found an exotic lizard and wanted to be rid of it and Abby took the call. What was theorized to be a run-of-the-mill Draco volans turned out to be a Coelurosauravus from the Permian era and BOOM, she was involved. Now Abby is the resident reptile expert (and general ~animal whisperer~) for the ragtag dino-hunting team. --Oh, and that Coelurosauravus? Yeah, she named him Rex and keeps him in her apartment. He's sort of the team pet.

Personality
In terms of overall personality markers, Abby can best be described as upbeat. She definitely has moments of fear, sadness, and anger, but they pass quickly and then she's back to her usual self. Some people might be permanently messed up by finding out about portals to the past and future that have a habit of spitting out dangerous creatures, but not Abby, no. She just accepts the weirdness and tries to help as best she can.

Not particularly shy or self-conscious, Abby has been known to answer her apartment door before putting on pants on several distinct occasions -- once even standing with the door wide open for several minutes while arguing with Connor. This may be a sign of absent-mindedness as well, as she often seems not to notice her state of undress and has to be gently reminded by her friends.

Abby has a big heart, with room for people and animals alike. She is very affectionate and tends to celebrate successful missions/not getting killed by embracing her teammates. Even Connor, irritating though he may be, has managed to charm her somehow (even if it's not in the way he would like). She took pity on him when he got kicked out of his prior living situation, and a week's stay on the couch turned into a permanent roommate situation. She still finds him exasperating at times, but more in the sense of the adorable puppy who has just chewed on a favorite pair of shoes than someone whose presence is genuinely unwanted. Her crush on Stephen was pretty much killed after learning he has a girlfriend, but she still likes him a lot and, after the hurt feelings went away, she stayed pretty close to him. Abby and Cutter have a more professional relationship, with her deferring to his leadership and he in turn listening to her advice when reptiles are involved.

Love and loyalty aside, she can lie and keep secrets if she has to. Abby hid the fact that she'd kept Rex from the rest of the team for as long as possible because she didn't want him to be taken away by government scientists and treated badly. When Connor accidentally let him escape (and thus clued everyone else in), she was initially furious. However, demonstrating a great capacity for forgiveness, she allowed him to continue living with her provided he did the washing up and made her breakfast on weekends for a month.

More cautious than some of the other team members, Abby is not likely to simply run into danger. She usually stands on the sidelines when other people rush off to play hero. Now, that isn't to say that she doesn't get involved with missions, she does. She just doesn't do the stupid thing. On the rare occasion that she does get dragged into some impulsive action (see episode 1x02 when she and Connor go to scout a new anomaly without telling anyone), she tends to be the voice of reason that suggests calling for backup or turning around and going home. She often ends up in dangerous situations through no fault of her own and reacts with bravery and quick-thinking (see the kidnapped-by-parasite!Tom incident in 1x04).

Abilities & Weaknesses
Abby has extensive knowledge of reptiles, due to her old position in the reptile house at Wellington Zoo. After the program was downsized, she seems to have taken on more general zookeeper duties and gone through some training programs related to other animals. She's pretty good with animals in general, apart from spiders and prehistoric creatures with big, nasty teeth. Abby is very physically active and takes part in activities such as yoga and kickboxing, in addition to making use of the exercise equipment she keeps in her apartment. As demonstrated in episode 1x04 when attacked by the parasite-infected Tom, she is a fast runner and resourceful in a fight (using elements of the environment to hinder him, as well as to attack -- such as grabbing onto a pipe attached to the ceiling in order to deliver a swinging kick). She has some experience with a tranquilizer gun from working in the zoo, but presumably little to none with conventional firearms.

No special powers of any kind though and, although she appears to have some self-defense capabilities, no combat training.

+ reptile expert, go! + speedy and physically fit + good at thinking on her feet

- not trained in combat or how to handle most weapons - arachnophobia - squishy human

Character Relationships
[coming soon!]

Free Space
[coming soon!]