Dorothea Brooke (DOHR-uh-thee-uh BROOK)

A Scholar of Reform

Dorothea Brooke (a.k.a. Thea)

Born into English gentility in Tipton in 1832, Dorothea Brooke was raised in a world of social duty, religious overtones, and gendered limitations. Yet even as a girl, she stood apart—devouring theological texts, Plato, and architecture treatises while her peers obsessed over fashion and propriety. Her first marriage, a tragic mismatch to the dry scholar Casaubon, catalyzed her transformation from idealistic dreamer to active reformist. After her husband’s death, Dorothea inherited financial independence and moral clarity. She used her position to advocate for education reform, tenant rights, and intellectual liberty, especially for women. She published anonymously in several progressive periodicals and held quiet influence in English academic and ecclesial circles. Her intellect and social reach made her an invaluable ally to thinkers and activists, including those operating just outside the law. By 1869, Dorothea had become known among certain covert reform networks as a “quiet engine of change.” It was through these networks she encountered whispers of the League, and in 1870, she joined not as a fighter, but as a strategist—ready to challenge power where diplomacy, reason, and morality could be wielded like swords.

League Member Note
Dates Active in League: 1869-1882
Dorothea’s role in the League was subtle but foundational. She rarely ventured into direct conflict, but few missions involving governance, diplomacy, or philosophical threat were greenlit without her counsel. She served as an internal compass, asking questions others were afraid to: What do we owe the people we serve? What does it mean to intervene? Her partnership with Jo March became one of the League’s most powerful intellectual duos. Where Jo lit fires, Dorothea built frameworks. Their missions often involved persuading shadow governments, unbinding cursed treaties, and navigating the League’s own ethical boundaries. Dorothea was as likely to win a battle in a library as Jo was to win it with a speech. Dorothea stepped back from League operations in 1882, citing both age and an increasing need to write. She continued as a senior consultant and later founded a protected archive for suppressed knowledge and dangerous ideas, accessible only to those the League deemed ready. Her final years were spent with Jo in quiet defiance of every rule Victorian society tried to write for women like them.
****END NOTE****

Physical Description

General Physical Condition

Never athletic, but healthful in the way of someone who walked daily, gardened often, and abstained from excess. Her mind remained sharp until the very end.

Facial Features

Graceful and serious, with wide, contemplative eyes and high cheekbones. Her face aged into what could only be called dignified, though never distant.

Special abilities

Razor intellect. Master of persuasive philosophy, theological disarmament, and moral logic. Could unravel someone’s entire belief system over tea—politely.

Mental characteristics

Personal history

Born into English gentry, Dorothea spent her early years being “a disappointment to expectations”—too intelligent, too earnest, and too serious. Her early heartbreaks only refined her resolve to live on her terms.

Sexuality

Long-term romantic partnership with Jo March. Their relationship was respected, though rarely spoken of aloud.

Personality Characteristics

Motivation

Guided by conscience and clarity. She believed power should be accountable to wisdom—and that wisdom was incomplete without compassion.

Likes & Dislikes

Loved: Classical architecture, Socratic dialogue, evening walks.
Disliked: Vanity, coercion, and men who quoted scripture without living it.

Virtues & Personality perks

Incredibly thoughtful, patient, generous with time and knowledge. She gave others the benefit of the doubt—until they proved they didn’t deserve it.

Vices & Personality flaws

Could be overly idealistic, even to the point of martyrdom. Sometimes struggled to forgive those who fell short of her ethical standards.

Representation & Legacy

Dorothea is remembered in the League as *the quiet storm*. She helped define their code of engagement and left behind not legends, but principles. Her name appears in the League's founding charter revision.

Social

Social Aptitude

Skilled in formal settings, especially among diplomats, theologians, and scholars. She could appear aloof to those who didn’t realize she was simply assessing everything you said.

Speech

Measured, deliberate, and classical. Spoke rarely, but with clarity that often silenced rooms.

Relationships

Dorothea Brooke

Partner

Towards Jo March

Jo March

Partner

Towards Dorothea Brooke

Species

Duine

Date of Birth

March 2, 1832

Date of Death

January 7, 1916

Life

1832 CE 1916 CE 84 years old

Circumstances of Death

Natural causes. Acted as both diplomat and philosopher within the League. Retired with Jo March to pursue reformist writing and education.

Birthplace

Tipton, Midlands, England

Place of Death

Oxford, England

Spouses

Jo March (Partner)

Siblings

Children

Sex

Female

Sexuality

LGBT

Eyes

Deep gray

Hair

Ash brown or blond, later silvered

Skin Tone/Pigmentation

Pale with a soft rose undertone

Height

5'9"

Weight

145 lbs

Quotes & Catchphrases

What do we live for, if it is not to make life less difficult to each other?

Aligned Organization

The League

Character Prototype

Sagittarius
Philosophical, idealistic, daring.