Samhradh

Jax (Brother, NPC)

Nimh and Kleio (Sisters)

Qassiel, Astraea, and Nephele (Grandchildren)

Ivar, Ophion, and Amon (Nephews)

Eris, Theodosia, and Judith (Nieces)

## Application Sheet

Samhradh was a russet-and-gold-furred she-wolf with golden eyes. Although originally part of Dawnguard, she became part of Heylguard when her pack merged with another after a massive earthquake. She fell in love with Asterion after the two played a key role in trying to find a cure for the Curse of Pajackok, and after, they had four pups: Sagitta, Sarin, Leo, and Orion. She remained loyal to her pack even when it shunned its half-Dawnguard identity and became Heyl, serving as the Beta Medicine Keeper for the alpha, Fitu. She lost her life in the Royal Coup, desperately trying to save Asterion before they both perished. She was created and RP'd by KingWolfInk.

## Personality

* ***Spirited*.** Sam is easily excited about new things and things she’s personally invested in, and her open joy and enthusiasm tends to spill over into everything she does. Whether she is learning something new or taking part in something she is already well-versed in she gives her all, and has fully dedicated herself to Dawnguard’s deities and culture.
* ***Optimistic*.** Despite hardships she faced before joining Dawnguard, Sam has kept her sunny disposition and hopeful outlook on life. She’s well aware that things can be tough, but she’s a firm believer that there is always a rainbow after a storm and things will always pick up again no matter how hard life gets. Her cheerful optimism can be irritating to any not in the mood for it, but she manages to find a bright side to that too, claiming that even if they end up irritated with her they’re no longer thinking about whatever was upsetting them.
* ***Determined*.** When Sam sets her mind to something, she almost always sees it through. Unwilling to give up on anything even when it seems impossible, she will exhaust every option she can possibly think of to achieve her goal. Although her determination is usually all on her, she’s not above asking for help from anyone she feels is able.
* ***Friendly*.** Sam loves nothing more than being with others. Her time spent alone was miserable and she doesn’t do well on her own, she loves to make friends and talk to others and finds her strength in those that surround her. A firm believer that everyone deserves to have a friend, she will be first in line to greet new faces and old alike with a smile.
* ***Fearful*.** The memory of those she met while she was alone who were less than friendly has remained with her, so unless she’s with a packmate her fears tend to get the better of her. Her fear of being left alone again has also remained strong, her greatest fear would be to lose her new family that she’s found with her pack and she prefers to never get so far away she cannot see, hear or smell her packmates.
* ***Emotional*.** She tends to become over-invested in things she’s doing and can take things that don’t go well personally, or become upset by things others view as unimportant which in turn tends to upset her more. Sam tries to hold her emotions back but that doesn’t often end well.
* ***Indecisive*.** Making tough decisions has never been one of Sam’s strong suits, and her fears and worries tend to override her logical thinking, which leads to her avoiding making choices wherever possible. Even decisions that seem mundane can be confusing to Sam and she will often change her mind several times, going back and forth between things until the situation rights itself or someone else steps in.
* ***Stubborn*.** Sam’s determined nature can also work against her when she ends up disagreeing with others, or when others try to change her mind about something she has set her mind on. Her tendency to ignore things that don’t match up with what she believes or thinks often makes others become annoyed with her.

## Pre-Group History

Samhradh was born to two loners, in a small litter of which she was the runt. Being small never held her back and she enjoyed exploring and play wrestling with her siblings, she was always faster than they were and could easily beat them in games of tag. Her parents kept themselves and their small family away from other wolves and lived a very quiet life, they always avoided questions from their pups about where they came from or why there was no more wolves in the pack, although that never stopped Sam asking persistently.

Her days were spent exploring the land around their den, usually over stepping her bounds and venturing a lot further than her parents would like. It seemed peaceful enough but her parents insisted it was too dangerous to go too far, and warned often of other wolves and predators who would harm them or worse.

The pups never got more than the odd whiff of others carried on the wind, her siblings were more than happy to ignore the idea of any other wolves but Sam daydreamed about going out and meeting others, sure she would be safe if she simply introduced herself as a friend.

As she grew Sam developed a keen interest in learning as much as possible about the world around her, her siblings were content to learn how to hunt and fight, but Sam wanted to know more than the basics of staying alive. Her parents were happy to teach her what they knew, her mother teaching her about navigating using the stars and reading the weather using the clouds, telling her how she could learn about things happening miles away by watching the birds and herds of prey and how they acted, whilst her father taught her everything he knew about the plants and trees, which were dangerous or poisonous and which could help tend wounds, how to tell who had been where by reading the tracks and breaks in the foliage. Sam happily absorbed everything she was taught and became proficient in the things she was told, although her questions about the world beyond the borders her parents set only intensified as she grew up.

Sam’s desire to meet more wolves and be part of a larger pack was strong, and she frequently stole away further than she should have to see if there were any others close by she could befriend. None ever came close enough for her to attempt contact, much to her dismay, and her siblings thought she was being foolish. Her wish for more to talk to lead her to trying to befriend other animals, scaring the life out of several rabbits, squirrels and deer and earning her a scratched nose from an unsuspecting bobcat. Her parents warnings grew more serious and she got told off by them often for arguing with them about the finer points of interacting with other wolves.

Not long after she and her siblings grew into young adults their parents left, supposedly to go hunting, but they never returned. Sam and her siblings waited for days which turned into weeks for them to come back, taking it in turns to go hunt smaller prey while at least one of them remained at the den just in case, but they did not come home. After a few weeks they began arguing with each other over whether they should go looking for them or not, ending with the pups also taking that task in turns to go and search while the others stayed behind, but none of them ever found their parents or caught their tracks anywhere. Sam felt sure she should have been able to track them after all her lessons, but any trace of them had long been wiped out by the elements and other animals coming and going.

The arguing among her siblings got worse until they began drifting apart and eventually agreeing to go their own ways, Sam didn’t want to leave her family but waiting around was becoming unbearable, and she held some hope she might pick up a sign of her parents on her travels. She didn’t find any sign of her parents but she did find other wolves, her first instinct was to go and meet them but something about them made her feel uneasy, it was only when she moved downwind close enough to pick up the scent of wolf blood coming from the small group that she truly began to panic, all her parents’ old warnings coming back to her at once. After that encounter she became more wary of any strangers she smelt or heard, and the long time spent on her own was beginning to wear on her. She had never felt so alone and longed for a friendly face.

As Sam was resting in a small hollow a great rumbling shook the land beneath her, a massive crash like thunder accompanying it. She'd never been so scared in her life, the sudden noise and rumbling sending her into a panic. No matter where she ran she couldn't escape the rumbling ground, giving no thought to her direction or distance she was hopelessly lost by the time the rumbling stopped.

If she'd been able to gather her thoughts she could have retraced her steps, followed her own scent back to where she started, but the fear that gripped her robbed her of all common sense.

It took a few hours of wandering for her panic to really wane, and by the time it had she found herself coming up to a river flowing through a forest. Her running had made her incredibly thirsty, and as she drank she noticed another wolf further along the bank. If she was thinking straight she would have probably turned tail and ran, but she was tired from her earlier panic and desperately needed the comfort provided by a companion, so with her loneliness and fear pushing her on she approached the wolf and introduced herself. The stranger greeted her with friendliness and when they informed her she would have to be taken into the heart of their pack’s territory she went along willingly. She began to feel a bit more worried when she realized there were in fact a lot of wolves in this pack, but none of them seemed particularly hostile.

Sam met the leaders of the pack, which she learned was named Dawnguard, and after she explained where she’d come from the leaders agreed she would be allowed to stay in the territory for 3 days. She was terrified when they nicked her ear, but the friendly stranger she first met reassured her.

Sam's first night spent surrounded by other wolves who had greeted her with friendliness and accepted her into their territory was the happiest she'd felt in a long time. She spent some time with her newest friend, the wolf who she first encountered, asking about the different tasks of Dawnguard and talking quietly about pack life. As she drifted into the first real deep sleep she'd been able to have since her parents had left, her mind raced with the possibilities afforded to her in her new home.

She hopes to be able to train with the Dawnguard wolves and become a Soothsayer and serve her new pack to the fullest extent of her abilities.

## Group History

Her first day in Dawnguard was exciting for Samhradh! She met a young she-wolf named Shoshana, and the pair bonded while playing a game. She also became very close to a she-wolf named Hedda, who was about her age and equally bubbly! She considered her to be like a sister thenceforth, she was so relieved to have someone she could think of as 'family' again (and was excited to have someone who could keep up with her playfulness!).

She also met a wolf named Asterion, who was rather grumpy and irritated by her bubbliness...but at the same time, he was astonished to see how focused she could be when applying her healing knowledge. Gradually, he allowed himself to open up to her - and she was excited to see the softer side of him offering a sense of friendship. They enjoyed trips to the beach after this, to play in the surf.

At the borders, one day, Sam met a miserable wolf named Oenasar, who begged her to kill him. As a healer (and a decent wolf) she refused, and instead offered to take him back to the den to speak with Nahimana, the alpha.

She was warned of the foolishness of her optimism, and of traveling alone to search for herbs, by Felgar, a recent addition to the pack. He offered to escort her whenever needed, to keep her safe, and she thanked him for that (even though he was a bit rude in showing her how unsafe she was being). She met other wolves, though, who were friendlier, like Ivichi.

After the earthquake, the packs of Dawnguard and Heyl offered aid to one another. But then, after that, Heyl and Dawnguard decided to merge into a single pack, and that left Samhradh feeling a bit overwhelmed and confused. Who were these new wolves, these new packmates she had to get to know? It scared her. They were moving to a new territory, too, which was equally frightening. Plus, elk were found dead en masse...what could it mean? She sought out Asterion and shared her concerns with him, and he offered some attempts at comfort.

Still, bright, bubbly Sam tried to make the most of things. She and Hedda remained close, chasing butterflies and playing games. It wasn't easy to be bubbly all the time, though, with prickly packmates around every corner, like Eryk. There was sickness spreading around the territory, and rumors of it being a curse from one of the Dawnguardian deities. Wolves were growing desperate.

One day, Asterion approached her, and asked if she could go with him to search for a cure. He had asked Fitu for suggestions on how to help, and the alpha had told him to check with the other packs to see if they could help, and he asked if Samhradh and Saphira could come along - a healer and a lower-ranking Sage, both important to have. Fitu agreed, and Sam agreed to go along with him.

Samhradh, Asterion, and Saphira spent many days traveling. They went to Aryn first to speak to Athena and Alcatraz, but to no avail. They were shown the way to Chandor next, but alas, nobody there could help, either. As a last-ditch effort, they went to Fellfang, and the alpha, Fable, was willing to send two of his Witch-Doctors to try and solve the problem: Winema and Grendel. Filled with hope, Sam, Aster, and Saphira hurried back to Heylguard. The situation was terrible, there, but at least, the Witch-Doctors were able to help the pack to get better (the Curse abated on its own, but the wolves needed help to feel better enough to tolerate food again, build up their strength and whatnot).

Samhradh, Aster, and Saphira were happy to be back, to have helped their packmates. Still, Samhradh and Asterion felt conflicted about their gods' role in this whole thing. Surely Pajackok wasn't responsible? He cared for his followers! Samhradh and Asterion, along with the last two upholders of the Dawnguardian faith, Felgar and Hedda, climbed up a mountain to pray to Pajackok.

With horror, the very stars above them seemed to shift, to battle over their heads. In horror, the four wolves tried to flee as an avalanche came tumbling down. Samhradh was buried in the snow, stuck, but Asterion dug her out, and they tried to take comfort in one another. Their god was banished from the sky - had tried to kill them, it seemed, in a last desperate act. They'd lost their *faith.*

Time passed, and Fitu decided to move Heylguard - now Heyl, with the worshippers of Pajackok thoroughly disillusioned - back to their home territory. Well, *Heyl's* home territory. Samhradh was ready to go back, but Hedda, her dear friend, was going to stay behind, and live as a loner, with Eryk and Felgar. They shared a tearful goodbye, promising that they would still be sisters, no matter the distance between them.

Back home, on a walk along the beach, Asterion told Samhradh he loved her, and she felt the same. They would become mates shortly thereafter, and despite the shadows and horrors of the Curse of Pajackok that hung in their minds, they began the healing process, together. A few weeks after that, they got shocking news - Samhradh was pregnant!

They had four puppies - three males and a female, who they named Leo, Orion, Sarin, and Sagitta. They called the pups their little stars - after all, they called one another the sun and moon! Samhradh was a fantastic mother, adored by her children. She and Aster told their children stories about Icadorityl and the Heylian pantheon, and showed them the constellations at night. She was very close to her two youngest sons, Leo and Orion, and needed to keep a *constant* eye on Leo, who was very good at getting into trouble!

Samhradh was asked many questions about Heyl by her son, Sarin, as he aged. Sarin was developing an opinion about Heyl, and its *weakness*, and he told his mother that he would leave someday, though he didn't know when. One day, he approached her, and told Sam it was time for him to go. Samhradh wasn't going to stop him, but she grieved, nonetheless, to lose her son.

Still, children grow up, and at least she still had Sagitta, Leo, and Orion. In addition, Fitu and Kestrel's daughter, Andi, was spending more time with them, learning about their journeys and how they traveled and navigated by the stars.

Samhradh was a Beta Medicine Keeper, and occasionally showed newcomers around the territory, like Bellamy. Overall, she was well-respected (and well-liked) by practically all of her packmates. Life was good, even though Sarin had gone.

But then, Orion told her he was leaving, too. Asterion and Samhradh were stunned - their timid son, leaving the pack? Orion explained that his best friend Barbosa was going to travel, and he *had* to go with her. Ica said so. More tearful goodbyes. Sagitta would vanish shortly thereafter.

Still, Samhradh did not let it make her unhappy. She tried to remain positive and bubbly. She spent a lot of time with her mate, and training wolves like Laur to be Medicine Keepers, and envisioned her children living their best lives.

Some moons later, Samhradh's son Orion returned. He had been attacked by a bear, and was barely conscious, but he managed to convey that Barbosa was still out there and needed help. Asterion and several Heylians went to search for her, but she was never found. Samhradh treated her son's injuries, but the wound was infected, and he was unconscious in a fever-haze for several days.

In those several days, the world fell apart.

Fitu decided he didn't want to be an alpha anymore. He wanted his younger sister, Poppy, to be the alpha. This enraged his eldest son, Eir, who expected to be the leader after his father. Fitu arranged to attempt the assassination of his aunt, but it failed, and he believed that he killed his brother Hannibal instead.

Asterion and Samhradh were on the mountain trails, looking for the troubled young prince, when they found him. They tried to speak to him, to understand what had happened to Hannibal, when Eir lashed out.

It all happened so fast. Eir harmed Samhradh, Asterion lashed out to protect her, and Eir shoved him aside to flee. Asterion fell over the edge of the cliff, and despite his best efforts, he couldn't scrabble back up. Samhradh refused to give up on him, and desperately tried to pull him up onto solid ground, but the wound she'd received from Eir - on her foreleg - made her unable to hold on.

Asterion begged her to let him go, to save herself, but she refused to be separated. What was the sun without the moon? As the rock crumbled away below them, Samhradh and Asterion tumbled from the cliff. Samhradh was wrapped in Aster's arms, full of love for one another, as they fell to their death.

After the abdication of Fitu, the assassination attempt by Eir, and the death of the pack's two highest-ranking members after the alphas, Heyl fell apart. Everyone grieved for Samhradh and Asterion...none so much as their sons. But the sun and moon are happy as ever in the afterlife, keeping an eye on their children as they go about their lives.

## Trivia

* Her name is Gaelic, pronounced "sow-ruh."
* She likes flowers, springtime, sunshine, and blue skies, and hates storms.
* She had no idea that her sisters were in the Domain, Kleio in Tentaka and Aislin (now Nimh) in Vektren, and never met any of her nephews or nieces...or her grandchildren by Orion and Barbosa: Qassiel, Nephele, and Astraea.
* Sam tends to wag her tail a lot when speaking to other wolves, usually held low and wagged softly, but the movement is there all the same.
* When she's impatient or irritated, she will flick her ears a lot. Usually her left ear, but she's been known to flick her right ear also, but never at the same time, always one ear or the other.
* When greeting other wolves she will bounce slightly with her front legs and often play-bow.
* If she's alone she finds it difficult to get to sleep and will talk to herself.
* One of the two monoliths erected in the Great Lake of Heyl is dedicated to Samhradh's memory.

## External Links

* Official Application Sheet
* KingWolfInk's deviantART Gallery