Deborah

Bauwen (Daughter)

## Application Sheet

Deborah was a brown-furred she-wolf with bright orange eyes. She was the Beta Cleric in Mhor, a member of the Assembly, one of the original settlers in the new territory under Rowena's rule. She survived the Hive Wars and found love with her mate, Babylon, and they adopted a child: Foxwood. Shortly thereafter, she had three pups with Babylon: Caleb, Laelan, and Bauwen. Her story is ongoing. Deborah was created and RP'd by Jackalloops.

## Personality

* ***Cheerful, if Plainspoken, Introvert.*** Despite a stern default expression from her bone structure, Deborah is a cheerful old wolf happy to share stories of her travels and even happier when she hears others' tales. She is not an optimist, but rather has made a concerted effort to choose happiness when it is an option, and looks to find joy in small things. Her speech is generally marked by plain words and a brisk manner of speaking. She does not mince words, and uses a 'ripping the bandage off' approach to most things. Deborah is capable of discretion, but generally doesn't hide her intentions. In her advanced age she rarely finds herself truly angry, but should it happen, the cause of her ire will be plain to see. It would come as no surprise to any that Deborah is not a social butterfly. She prefers smaller groups of companions, and finds large gatherings overwhelming. She can become irritable if there is no escape. With little regard for social convention, she doesn't seem to mind coming across as rude if she dismisses herself quickly.
* ***Unempathetic, but Loyal.*** As a young adult Deborah left her parents' den and met a wide array of wolves. None but Mel had stayed in her life long, so it is only now in her golden years she has discovered a fierce loyalty to those around her. It could be said she was loyal to wolves before-- she has been a medic her whole life and seen others at their weakest. But it has taken joining a pack and living among them to realize this is an *interpersonal trait* that goes beyond serving her lifelong oath. Deborah cares about others and is naturally inclined to assist with their needs, but is not a particularly emotionally intelligent wolf. She treats patients and troubled packmates from a sympathetic viewpoint, and generally lacks true empathy unless their situation is one she is personally familiar with. To this end, she is loyal to their wellbeing, even if she can't put herself in their shoes. She has proven to be protective and openly trusting of packmates who have given her no reason not to be. This is simply because their goals and ultimate desire for a peaceful life in Mhor overlap.
* ***Centered and Pragmatic.*** An approach to life she has taken from her father, and she believes necessary for her field of study. She will deliver bad news somberly, and with the appropriate bedside manner a situation may calls for, but doesn't endorse holding out hope for deformed pups and growing masses. She will trust another creature easily, but takes her time before confiding in them. Even in times of turmoil Deborah remains calm and is able to think before she acts. This is very much a trait developed over her years, and may not be perfectly reflected in the stories she shares from her youth. She is usually not quick to cast judgement, and will approach a situation from multiple angles to asset it before acting.
* ***Adventurous and Crafty.*** A life spent alone required solving problems by herself, and Deborah is certainly the crafty old wolf. She is adaptable, spontaneous and most importantly quick-thinking after a lifetime of trial and error. Even at her age she craves an adventure, and has a constant yearning for new experiences and to hear others' stories from where they've been. As she ages, and now that she is settled in one territory presumably until her last days, she has developed a taste for folklore and history as well. While Deborah is an old wolf with a taste for midday naps, she still find the energy to go spelunking about - especially finding herself inspired by others adventures near and far.

## Pre-Group History

A lone child of famine, born to bare trees and small prey at the onset of the fire seasons. Smoke in the air was as much a parent to her as her mother and father, teaching Deborah to stay low, stay near the water and stay prepared to act at a moment's notice. She remembers the awe of seeing a blue sky for the first time, of clouds that were white and so much further away than the blanket of grey that smothered her first months of life. It had been so foreign, seemed so much further away than the orange haze of her early childhood, that it would sometimes overwhelm her.

As the forest began to recover foliage she had heard of (her father was a renowned herbalist, after all) returned first as small buds, then as stems and leaves, sometimes with more petals than she could count. Her time as a juvenile was spent learning to hunt them, along with elk, and by the time she reached adulthood she knew the paths through the dense underbrush, what grew along each, and how much should be taken to sustain established populations her father had cultivated, and his mother before him.

These early years were uneventful, and while she stayed to babysit younger siblings for a while, she yearned to see what lay beyond the horizon. She spent this time as a loner, a sightseer more than anything. She has seen the edge of the sea, the ground break open into great chasms, the sky go black as the moon passes between her and the sun. Alone, for so long, that she nearly forgot the words to the song of her people when she heard it on the wind. But she knew to follow it, to call back into the sky, to devour the ground between them until she found her duet partner in the woods. Older than her by a few years (though still younger than Deborah is now), but a handsome wolf who shared with Deborah the still-warm flesh of an old sow. This was Mel.

Together they hunted. They played. They spoke of their time traveled alone. They parted ways but kept finding each other after days or weeks separate. Grew closer, until suddenly they weren't quite loners anymore. Somewhere between friends and lovers, sometimes sharing dens and whispering old secrets to each other late into the night, giggling over their childhood dreams and earthly ambitions. She can't pinpoint when she started seeking Mel out, when exactly it was she developed feelings for them. Mel's pack had suffered something Deborah never learned of, and they were leery of a permanent companion, so they took it slow. Took it easy. Left side by side tracks in the journey of growing old together.

Over time Mel shared legends of their parents' pack, old stewards of even older woods who great boughs and copses contained knowledge just one wolf could never know. They had wanted to find those lands, the fulfillment of an ancestral home, had been following a lead when they'd first met. But Mel grew ill before they could return, before Deborah could ask enough questions. Between rattled breaths they had told her in their final days, to not be sad, that the Summerlands awaited them and they were not afraid. That she would see Mel again, run with them again, though maybe not in this life. Maybe not the next. But again, someday, sometime, they would live below the same sky, sing the same song, but share new dreams. She laid them to rest under autumn leaves, a stand of old aspen trees who eyes seemed to watch her, waiting for funeral rites she didn't know.

She has sought Mhor for herself, for Mel, for a life together cut short. She has sought Mhor for answers, for purpose, for a connection she'll never forget. To them, to the world into which they were born but couldn't fully share.

## Trivia

* Her favorite snack is robin eggs.
* She has fairly minimal experience with young pups. She helped with a the litter her parents had the year after she was born, and past that it's only been suspicious loners who tuck their children under their legs when seeing strangers.
* While they were romantically involved, Deborah and Mel never considered one another mates. If asked about them, she refers to them as her life's companion.
* Deborah has a skunk skin she carries assorted items in. Usually herbs. Sometimes eggs from a nest she's lucky enough to raid. Or the odd mushroom or two because they delight her.

## External Links

* Official Application Sheet
* Jackalloops's deviantART Gallery