Makea Hart was born in Athens, Georgia to a doctor and a seamstress. Petiri, her father, was an immigrant from South Africa. He was fleeing to America in order to escape apartheid. He was also a witch. Wanting to hone his skill for medicine, he refused to allow the rising racial tension in the U.S stop him, as it still held better opportunities than his homeland. After struggling financially and graduating from one of the few colleges that would allow him to, he moved to Georgia. He was only authorized to treat other colored people, and his patients often couldn't pay him the full amount, but it was worth it in his eyes. Makea's mother, Emma Hart, was a seamstress at the time and the two often ran into each other on their commutes to work. She knew him as Peter, his name changed to better suit his new home. Emma was a witch as well. After months of courting, they were married. Peter took on Emma's surname rather than keep his own.
Makea was an only child, and reaped the benefits of having two loving, supportive parents all to herself. They made sure that she avoided turning into a brat, but that didn't mean she wasn't spoiled absolutely rotten. While they may have struggled financially, their hardships were shared with many other families in the lower class neighborhood. Her father would leave for work, and Makea went with her mother to the homes of clients who sought after Emma's fine craftsmanship. Most of them were people who lived only slightly better than they did, though there were the rare times when her mother would be summoned to one of the big, beautiful houses that white folks lived in. It was only a matter of time before she picked up a needle and thread, only after she was old enough to help her mother. She wasn't as skilled, but Makea took on the responsibility of mending their family's clothing, allowing Emma to focus more on her customers.
A little girl who was fairly well behaved, there was one rule she just couldn't help but break. She saw her curfew as a guideline rather than a rule, usually returning home muddied after the sun had set. Makea rarely came home alone, dragging anything that creeped, crawled, or hopped back with her, much to her mother's horror. Rather than squash her child's… individuality, Emma stressed how important it was to be a proper lady when others were around. As long as her daughter behaved in town and in front of company, she was allowed to be as wild as she wanted outdoors.
Peter was to blame for Makea's rambunctious side, filling her head with folk tales and stories of adventure. He was the one who planted the seed of the supernatural in her head, and nurtured it. The girl grew up believing in the Leopard Men of West Africa, and the ghastly Obambo who demand their relatives to build them homes nearby. Long before she found out her own parents were Witches, Makea was fascinated by the occult. Once she started attending school, she often looked for any scrap of mythological information within the library. Soon, she had just as many stories to share with her father, if not more.
School was an interesting experience. Confrontations due to the color of her skin were few and far between, but they did happen. Still in the process of desegregation, incidents flared up from time to time. The friends she did have were from her own neighborhood, though even they had a hard time coping with her mild addiction. Comic books. Oh sure, there were the funny ones in the newspapers, and her peers enjoyed those. But the comics Makea often sought after were underground comics that had to do with horror and monsters. As long as she kept her grades up, her parents allowed the (somewhat disturbing) collection to grow. Was it appropriate for a young lady to be so fascinated with the supernatural? Most likely not, but her parents felt that it'd simply make things easier down the line.
Near the end of High school, Makea had turned into quite the social butterfly. She wasn't popular in the sense that everyone wanted to either be her or court her. No, instead she was simply a friend to those who needed it. Zachary Turner was the only one she'd call her best friend, however. They shared an interest in comic books, as well as art. Zach often sketched his own concepts, and Makea was fond of taking his sketches and bringing them to life with clay. Even after all those years, she was still playing with mud. Everyone assumed that they were sweethearts, and while she would've very much liked that, her best friend seemed oblivious. The only thing Zachary was interested in was art and getting into fights that Makea would quickly have to smooth over. He had such a horrible temper, and she found herself constantly warning him that it'd get him into trouble.
Finally, Peter and Emma decided to let their daughter in on the family secret. They were Witches, which meant her own abilities would be manifesting soon. While they stressed that only certain supernatural creatures existed, Makea denied this and claimed that all of them were real. This was the same day that her predictions came true. As she celebrated in her newly revealed birthright, Zachary Turner was found by a passing stranger. He was bloody, beaten, and tucked away between two buildings. He had been on his way home at the time, and though he was alive when found, he passed away en route to the nearest hospital. The news hit Makea hard. The first true tragedy in her life happened on what she thought was one of the happiest days of her life. She couldn't cope with it. It made her physically ill, and she kept to her room for several days. It was no secret that she blamed herself, swearing up and down that if she had been with Zach, she'd have been able to talk his attackers down. That he wouldn't have had to die. She would've been able to save him, like she always had.
It took Makea a long time to recover from the death of her best friend. She could let go of her sadness, but not her anger. There was genuine hatred in her heart for those responsible, and it frightened her parents that she often questioned when her powers would come in. What could she do? Could she hurt someone with them? Could she hold a seance and talk to Zachary? The fine line between fictional powers and a Witch's true abilities were blurring for the distraught young woman. It was her father that sat her down and sternly explained what it meant to be blessed with such abilities. Just like he had done for her love of the occult, he was the firm hand that guided her to Protection magics. Genuinely interested by the time her powers began to form, it was easy to focus on that ability. Her mother called her a late bloomer of sorts.
The knowledge that she'd be able to protect those she cared about, even while apart, helped heal her. Makea's talent with clay was beneficial, and it only strengthened the protection spells due to the charms being made by her own two hands. Despite the fact that her father had been casting his own protection over their family for years, she demanded that her parents wear the talismans she had crafted for them. It was the last step in her recovery, and she felt that she could return to how she used to be… but all the more wiser, and certainly prepared to defend the people closest to her. As fulfilling as they were, her powers weren't going to nab her a career. Makea left her home for college in order to further her artistic talent. Once she realized that she was only as good as the average student, she set her sights on teaching the future artistic stars, rather than compete with them.
As much as Makea loved her hometown and her parents, she realized that after graduating from college, she needed to find her own niche in the world. Dallas was just southern enough for her to feel at home, but it was so much more alive than her quaint, quiet Athens. After landing a full time job at Southern Methodist University 15 or so years ago, a cozy little apartment was soon to follow. When the vampires decided to come out of the coffin, she was one of the early supporters. Granted, their existence wasn't much of a surprise…
Now if only the Leprechauns would follow their example. Then the supernatural melting pot can truly begin.