Aethelynda

Tamarack (Adoptive Daughter)

Piper (Niece)

Boone (Nephew)

Frazier and Geoffrey (Half-Brothers)

Elia and Moira (Half-Sisters)

Many Siblings (NPCs)

## Application Sheet

Aethelynda was a scruffy brown she-wolf with warm brown eyes. Born in Kausen to Chandra (NPC) and Gregor, she left her birth pack to found her own: Chandor. She was a skilled alpha and diplomat who led her pack well for several seasons. Her mate was Rowan, and they had four pups together: Nadia, Reed, Mason, and Juniper. She also was adoptive mother to Tamarack. Unfortunately, Lyn was killed in a rockfall, devastating her pack and family. She was created and RP'd by MatrixPotato.

## Personality

* ***Solitary and Withdrawn.*** Because of past events, Lyn has become quite the hermit. She tends to stick to herself- or her very few close friends –and is pretty awkward around strangers and even her own pack mates sometimes. Her charismatic skill isn't nonexistent, but she still has a way to go. Making friends isn't the easiest task for her, but she can manage as long as the potential friend in question is willing and patient with her. She hates big crowds and enjoys the quietness of being alone out in the woods.
* ***Stubborn and Hard-headed.*** Something passed down from her father, Lyn is rather stubborn. It’ll take a lot to persuade her into something (some even say it’s impossible) and she will almost always fight or argue against anything that doesn’t go along with what she believes, thinks, or feels. This can sometimes be her biggest flaw and may cause her to lose relationships.
* ***Rash and Hotheaded.*** Another trait gained from her father, Lyn has one of the shortest fuses you will ever see. If you piss her off or get on her bad side, be ready for an explosion, because it takes a great effort for her to hold back when she gets upset- even if it’s with someone who’s just as hot headed as she is.
* ***Adventurous and Curious.*** Even as an alpha now, Lyn still very much loves to explore, which is why she has voluntarily taken the position of head-scout once again. She won't run away, though now that she's able to do as she wishes, she'll venture from the border sometimes, but will always return.
* ***Loyal and Devoted.*** Although she’s adventurous, Lyn has a fierce sense of loyalty to the ones she cares about. She will never leave without notice if she fears that something may happen to them while she’s gone. She will always think of her loved ones before herself and try and make sure the decisions she makes are what's right for everyone, not just herself.
* ***Pleasant and Amusing.*** When she does have friends, Lyn is pretty amiable with them. Sometimes she can be a little awkward and get tongue tied, but otherwise she’s like her old self most of the time with the ones she cares about.
* ***Fearful and Anxious**.* Due to horrific past experiences, Lyn is terribly frightened. She hides it well, but deep down she’s a huge coward who would rather run away with her tail between her legs (although her short fuse causes her to forget about that). She’s afraid of the future, she’s afraid of her own life, and most of all she’s afraid of death.
* ***Peaceable and Gentle**.* Lyn may have moments of rashness and trouble with her anger, but overall she has learned that being gentle and seeking to understand those she cares about is wiser and more important than letting her emotions get the better of her. She still struggles but she now actively strives to become better.

## Pre-Group History

Lyn was born in Kausen in late spring, along with her three other siblings. They weren’t Chandra and Gregor’s first litter, so they were treated with a little less enthusiasm than the last bunch. Nonetheless, they were given just as much love and care, especially from Chandra. Gregor was never openly caring, although he did show his love in his own ways.

As she grew, it was obvious that Lyn would be a lively hunter one day. She was always pouncing and practicing her stalking maneuvers on her siblings or the pup-sitters. Chandra was especially pleased, because she was the head of the hunting party. She would often tell Lyn stories of her past hunts and what types of animal she’d eaten. All the while, Lyn listened carefully and was mesmerized by how skilled her mother was.

At six months, the litter was ready for their first hunt under the watchful eye of their mother and the rest of the hunting party. Lyn was especially excited and rearing to be out in the field beside Chandra. It went smoothly in the beginning; they were quick to find a herd of elk. There were many young calves and some older females for them to go after. As Lyn watched, Chandra danced around the buck to make it run with its herd, so the party would have a chance to nab a weaker victim.

The beast didn’t run as was expected, but instead turned on Chandra. Lyn’s heart sank as she watched the bucks antlers pierce into her mother’s chest. In an instant, it was over. The herd had moved away and Chandra lay motionless in the field. The hunting party gathered around her, but Lyn stood where she was, frozen and too afraid to face the reality of what she had just seen. Regardless of whether she could bare it or not, her mother was dead.

For month’s afterword, the pack mourned Chandra. Many of Lyn’s siblings had begun to disband and leave the pack, unable to cope. Lyn stayed and instead sought out her father for comfort, but Gregor was too consumed by his own grief. He distanced himself from the pack, and Lyn felt that he distanced himself from her more than anyone else. She began to resent him and with no one else to turn to, she withdrew inward. With her siblings gone, she felt she had missed her chance to go as well. She had no one to leave with and had lost her safety net. So, she stayed.

Months passed and Lyn grew from juvenile to young adult. Her relationship with her father was never mended and some say it may have even gotten worse. The fears from the day of her mother’s death keep her from fulfilling her true potential and instead, she sought out a safe task as a scout, too cautious to pursue anything else. The only thing she looks forward to now is a new beginning, somewhere else.

Many moons later, an encounter with another elk and a flashback at her past caused Lyn to rethink her choices. Had she been the cause of she and her father's broken relationship? Her desire to escape Kausen dimmed, though did not completely vanish. She spent many nights mulling over the years spent fighting and resenting her father, revisiting the day her mother died only to realize that she had thrown out blames where there was none to blame. Maturity suddenly slammed into her and she apologized to Gregor- albeit nervously and quite awkwardly. However, she still keeps her desire to leave Kausen a secret from him.

After gathering enough followers to safely leave Kausen, Lyn finally gains the courage to speak to her father about her want to start a new life elsewhere. It goes well, and she soon finds herself in her new home- but the price of being alpha might be more than she bargained for. Because she has no mate or a sibling to share the burden with, her stress level rises and she finds herself in need of someone who she can trust.

## Group History

The wolves who joined her in forming Chandor were her tentative friend Navindru, Suteki, and a loner they'd met named Delu. They traveled to a territory that Suteki had reported free of wolves, and Aethelynda named their new pack Chandor - a mix of her parents' names, Chandra and Gregor. They hadn't been in the land long when Aethelynda discovered a young pup in the middle of a terrible storm. The pup couldn't remember anything before that, so Lyn offered to be her mother, and gave her a name: Tamarack. Tam would get to meet Gregor the next time Lyn went to visit her father.

Lyn would have plenty of responsibilities as a leader, and one of the first to present itself was the matter of allies. She thought she'd secured Morrow as an ally, but hadn't heard from Crash in awhile. Crash, who’d suggested to Lyn an alliance with the pack she was creating, appeared at the borders one day with her brother, Howl. They explained how Howl was actually the alpha of their new pack. Lyn was surprised, but she didn’t renegotiate the terms of the alliance - Howl seemed equally as trustworthy as an ally. Couple that with Kausen, a natural ally, Chandor was well-prepared in case Blutwald became restless.

Chandor grew. Aethelynda was quick to welcome other wolves, like Arrow (who, admittedly, she found attractive), Hermes (a pup Suteki found), Skye (a white-and-ginger wolf with a strong personality), and Phen (who scared the heck out of Lyn when she first encountered the Chandorian alpha!). More wolves followed: on old loner named Rayven, a blind she-wolf named Jaci, and pup Kha'an. Of course, not all outsiders were friendly - Hyena threatened Aethelynda! Fortunately, he wasn't looking for a fight...for now. Lyn hadn't realized how aggressive loners could be. She'd have to be more careful at the borders.

And then, she met Rowan.

Rowan saved her life. Lyn had made a foolish decision and ended up stuck in a dam as the river was rising. She would have drowned if Rowan hadn't braved the rapids to free her - only, while saving her, he received a blow to the head. Aethelynda managed to drag him to shore, and after a moment's rest, brought him to Chandor's main den. When he awoke, Lyn was there, and she tended to him for a time before leaving him to recover.

The pack had continued to grow around her, but Lyn's focus fell upon Rowan. Would he stay? Would he leave? She didn't know, but she didn't think she wanted him to leave. She checked in on him frequently as he recovered, keeping secret her status as the alpha for the first several of these meetings. When he was fully recovered, he was going to leave, but Lyn asked him not to go. He didn't really have anywhere to go, so he tentatively agreed to remain in Chandor. Lyn was pleased with this!

A few threats haunted Chandor around this time. Gabitrix warned Aethelynda of a harrowing experience at the border; a loner named Devil's Grin Davis had threatened Chandor. Lyn acknowledged the threat, and promised to keep an eye out for the loner, while also reminding Gabi to come to her immediately if he returned.

After this, Winema of Blutwald came to the borders of Chandor. Lyn met her, immediately growing wary when Winema announced that she was the alpha female of the pack. She explained that she was here on Stallion's behalf (though she was doing this behind his back), to reach out for an alliance now that Roman, the evil tyrant, was dead. Aethelynda didn't wish to offend Winema, or Stallion, but she told the she-wolf she couldn't, in good conscience, form an alliance with a pack of such poor reputation. Winema invited her to visit Blutwald, to see the changes that had made the pack better, for herself, and Lyn agreed to do so.

She called a pack meeting, to tell her packmates that someone needed to inform Gregor of her location. In the end, Tamarack and Kha'an would do that. Aethelynda, meanwhile, brought Odysseus with *her* to Blutwald, as a second witness (and potential backup if things went south). Things went smoothly enough, though, as Winema gave them a tour, and explained their enemy: Ivan, son of Roman. Lyn was grateful for the warning of the bloodthirsty *demon* of a wolf, and left the pack.

Unfortunately, despite seeing that Blutwald was no longer a threat, the pack numbers suddenly began to dwindle. Lyn was stunned that her packmates were vanishing, practically, overnight. Some, like Phen, told her of their intentions to leave, but most vanished without saying goodbye. She took comfort in Delu's friendly optimism, but felt like she had to break his heart when he announced he was in love with her. Lyn tried to explain that he wasn't *really* in love with her, and she didn't love him in that way (she realized she might be falling for Rowan), and Delu, heartbroken, fled.

Shortly after this encounter, Delu, too, departed the pack, setting his paws on the path to Vale. Lyn felt *terrible* practically driving him from Chandor, but Rowan reminded her that it would hurt him more to stay. She blamed him, at first, for encouraging Delu to leave if he was unhappy, but she realized what he'd said made sense.

Rowan would always be there for her, though not necessarily as a comforting presence. Navindru, on the other hand, was a constant presence who offered comfort, optimism, and playful distraction when Aethelynda needed it. She was grateful for him. Especially when, *after all these losses*, Tamarack told her *she* was leaving, too.

Fortunately, new wolves would come to Chandor, despite the pain of these losses: Myna, for instance, and Fitu (who helped her catch a deer). But better than that, Rowan and Aethelynda became mates. Though they didn't always see eye to eye, they loved one another, and Rowan became Lyn's mate.

It wasn't long after that Aethelynda discovered she was pregnant. She checked in with Jaci to make sure. There would be four pups in the litter: Mason, Reed, Juniper, and Nadia. She'd given birth away from the pack (as most wolf mothers tend to do, making a birthing den where they could have privacy) and, though Jaci came to check on her, for the most part, Lyn was alone those first few days with her children.

She would then return to the pack with her little bundles of joy, and get back to leading her packmates. Rowan was surprised to meet his kids (so tiny!) and word was sent to Gregor that the pups had been born. It wasn't too long after the pups were weaned that Aethelynda went on a short trip to Kausen, in order to speak to her father about the war between Blutwald and Aryn. After some discussion, Lyn and Gregor decided to merge their packs into one - just Chandor - in Chandor's territory. That way, their greater numbers would keep them safe if Aryn or Blutwald turned their aggressions on Chandor.

Aethelynda proudly raised her children, and enjoyed life with Rowan by her side. She even became an older sister, when Gregor and his new mate, Mona, brought four new lives into the world: Frazier, Moira, Elia, and Geoffrey.

But then...Mason disappeared. Aethelynda and Rowan searched desperately for their son. They were in the Charyn Pass, in the mountains, when Rowan tried to convince her that Mason was long gone. They'd never find him, and they should give up. Lyn turned on him, and he tried to reason with her - that they would organize better search parties with Gregor - she realized that rocks were falling towards her mate. He lunged forward to push him out of the way, and saved Rowan's life...but lost her own life in the process.

As Lyn lay dying, she told him how much she loved him, and Rowan...Rowan wasn't able to bring himself to say the words back to her, before she passed. But she knew. She knew he loved her, even if he was never one to say it aloud. She was at peace when she died.

Aethelynda was grieved by her family and her pack for a long time. Neither Rowan nor Gregor wanted to take her place as permanent leader, and the mantle passed to her daughter Nadia. Nadia was grief-stricken, but agreed to become Chandor's leader. For her mother.

For Lyn.

## Quotes

* "For the safety of my pack, I can't just make an alliance with a pack with such a bad reputation on a clear conscious. I hope you can understand that. It's not meant to be an offense." (to Winema, *Lyn and Winema Meet*)
* "If you have to go, then don't let us hold you back. You have your life to live, and if it's not here, then you have to find out where. But if you ever need anything just remember that you will always be family and Chandor will always be open to you." (to Phen, *Fare Well*)

## External Links

* Official Application Sheet
* MatrixPotato's deviantART Gallery