Lanius

## Application Sheet

Lanius was a tiny, but fierce, loggerhead shrike who lived in the Domain. He quarreled with wolves and other birds alike, before he eventually left the Domain. He was created and RP'd by mongoosefangs.

## Personality

* ***Independent, Straightforward, Proud, Competitive, and Short-Tempered.*** Lanius isn't the most approachable fellow in the world. He prefers to keep to himself most of the time, becoming easily overwhelmed or irritated in social situations- when he does socialize, his manner is blunt and brusque, often to the point of sounding rude. He's not one to waste breath on pleasantries and will say exactly what's on his mind whether or not it's considerate. Lanius is also a proud creature, competitive, quick to take offense, and tends to be on high alert for any perceived insult or slight.
* ***Untrusting and Self-Sufficient.*** For all that he's slow to trust others he's also highly inquisitive, and has no compunctions about eavesdropping from a safe perch or otherwise sticking his sharp little beak where it doesn't belong. As a creature of the air he has the potential to see much. Good luck getting any information out of him though- he's uncooperative at best. Lanius prides himself on being self-sufficient, neither asking for favors nor offering them to lowly ground animals. In fact, he refuses to eat any meat he has not caught and prepared himself, and although he can be a smug little jerk he does have his own moral code. If there's one thing he can't abide it's beggars and thieves.
* ***Meticulous and Hardworking.*** He's extremely meticulous in everything he does, from dismantling his prey to preening his feathers constantly and staying ever vigilant for potential threats. Perhaps Lanius's most positive feature is that he doesn't half-ass anything: he adheres to the mantra that if something's going to be done, it deserves to be done right.

## Pre-Group History

Uneventful by lupine standards, Lanius's experiences as both a predator and a prey species have shaped his rough and wary nature. He was born around former Blutwald territory, when the area was already deserted by the once-mighty pack. Lanius did not have a tender or sentimental chickhood. He was taught to fly and hunt, left his parents' nest shortly thereafter, and that was it- all the nestmates went their separate ways, and Lanius spent most of his time alone tending to his own little patch of territory. Although the area was devoid of wolves at that point, a narrow escape from a bobcat in his first year left him with a mangled foot and a healthy mistrust of his fellow carnivores. To this day he especially fears and hates felines. Don't even try talking to him if you're a cat.

He was there to witness Fellfang's volcano erupting on the horizon, and it shook him deeply. Since then Lanius has become more of a wanderer, moving around the Domain whenever he gets restless, lest he find the sky consumed with ash and fire on his doorstep again. It's easy to determine where he's been nesting: just look for the thorns, and all the little bodies.

## Group History

Lanius was a bold and rather rude little creature who yelled at wolves and yelled at other birds. In one case, he ran into a crow, Kavre, and the two fought. They nearly got caught by a hungry wolf, but they managed to escape, and continue fighting, two foul-mouthed, short-tempered birds.

He met a wolf of Heyl one day, named Ružan, and she actually showed him a bit of respect, in spite of his rudeness. He asked what was wrong with her, and why she didn't look like a real wolf, but she still showed him some respect, admiring his bravery.

As the summer heat bore down on the Domain, Lanius enjoyed a surplus of small game.

However, after the summer, it is unknown what became of Lanius. He probably left the Domain in order to find better hunting grounds - with much fewer wolves!

## Trivia

* His opinion of wolves- and most other animals- is low by default. One of his most noteworthy quirks is that he rarely refers to others by name, preferring to assign them (usually unflattering) nicknames instead. For Lanius to call you by name is a sign that you've truly earned his respect- a difficult thing to do, when his natural instinct is to be wary and suspicious of all large predators. Once bitten, twice shy. Even those he holds in high esteem are not immune to his rudeness; it can be difficult to tell the difference between 'affectionate' teasing and Lanius just being Lanius.
* Lanius's speech sounds heavily accented and clipped to wolven ears.
* He likes to yell.
* His name means 'butcher' in Latin and is literally just the shrike family genus name. His parents were not creative. (i'm his parents, oops)

## Quotes

* “Dun matta’ if you small. Small ain’ no excuse. Ya either fight or you don’t.” (to Ružan, *Bighead and the Bird*)

## External Links

* Official Application Sheet
* mongoosefangs's deviantART Gallery