Isaac

## Application Sheet

Isaac was a pale silver wolf with silver eyes. They arrived in Xassa in the midst of the Hive Wars, where they remained until the final battle, during which they departed, to return to their family. They haven't been seen since. Isaac was created and RP'd by speckledplanet.

## Personality

* ***Athletic***. If there was anything that the willowy wolf was proud of most, it would be their ability to climb and climb well. They were born to explore, to venture and get a taste for foreign air and feed on all the lakes and rivers possible, to catalog every new experience so that they may never forget it. Their body (less so their fur) is their vessel for freedom, and they take utmost care in maintaining their shape in order to make the most of this life so that they may pass down their experiences one day to someone else, just as their Aunt had done for them.
* ***Charismatic***. Isaac loves to bounce off of other wolves and their personalities. They soak up others like a sponge and can reciprocate the excitement or mood of their chosen company, and they often find those who share their values fascinating to talk to. Even wolves who are polar opposites still entice them, but their curiosity verges on obsession because they feel the need to understand exactly why someone thinks the way they do. They aren’t always vocal or pushy about being included, but they get visibly excited when someone wants to invite them in on a conversation or outing.
* ***Playful***. Having essentially been raised alongside two very tiny pups when they were but a year old, Isaac knows how to play and they do it well. They love pup sitting and being trusted to be responsible for someone’s next of kin, and they find that their imagination and way with unpolished but colorful words can make mundane tasks absolutely thrilling. They have a soft spot for things that allow them the opportunity to unwind like that mentally, and they’re often the first to suggest a game or something fun to thrill or excite them.
* ***Breezy***. Isaac takes pride in their ability to work and maintain good ethics while performing their tasks, but they grew up isolated from new experiences and often struggle with learning the culture of others, especially on anything deeper than a surface level explanation. They love to digest history and listen to the words of other wolves but don’t always understand it, and it’s guaranteed they will ask questions in order to get to the bottom of things. It just might not always be right away. Sometimes it’s a week later. Other times, it’s late into the night when they can’t sleep and couldn’t quiet their mind.
* ***Outspoken***. Be it ignorance or confidence, Isaac talks about anything and everything. Mostly it’s off the cuff facts or tidbits of information they learned from someone else, sometimes it’s about their feelings on a particular topic or wolf, and rarely is it to show their anger or defiance for a decision made. They have spent a long, long time remaining quiet that now it seems that initial fear of speaking their mind is gone, but it does always come to haunt them at a later date. For now, they can be brazen and loud in a quiet room, and a little unpredictable at that.
* ***Self-conscious.*** Isaac isn’t as smooth a talker as they wish they were, and they often fumble foot-in-mouth over their words when it isn’t something they’ve rehearsed over and over. They love to talk and socialize, and they can ramble quite easily when given the opportunity, but they struggle to keep themselves going if they feel like they might’ve said the wrong thing. Isaac isn’t shy about asking though which might rub some wolves the wrong way given how open they can be about what ails them.
* ***Anxious***. On the surface, Isaac seems confident and sure of themself, but they have carefully crafted and maintained this picture-perfect image of themselves to keep their own mind in check. Their anxieties come out in the form of nervous habits, from pacing to relentless tail twitching to the subtle flex and pull of muscles in their shoulders to stave off that bug-under-the-fur feeling. They have a tendency to laugh when they’re particularly wired or uncomfortable, which usually makes the situation worse.
* ***Faithless***. Growing up on the outskirts of their pack’s society has left them a little lost when it comes to what to believe. The stories they were told of all these grand things their patron had done for wolvenkind had been something Isaac clung to with tooth and nail, but very recently their faith had been all but shattered from their experiences and lack thereof. They want to believe in something, to have hope that there is a place for them in the world after all, but currently these feelings are cast aside and replaced with a dreadful discomfort and uneasiness.
* ***Forgetful**.* All that time spent worrying over what could have been and what they could do differently has taken its toll on Isaac’s ability to focus for long periods of time. They get distracted easily and often trail off mid-sentence, or sometimes stop speaking entirely to process and gather their thoughts. Setting up times or dates that they are due to arrive for can be messy at best, and it’s safe to assume that Isaac will always be late by an hour or three. While this mostly only occurs for physical plans, they never forget the name or face of someone they’ve spoken to. It’s one of the few things their long term memory stores properly, but that doesn’t mean they’ll be any more diligent on getting things done on time.

## Pre-Group History

Isaac, born to two wolves they simply refer to as “Mother” and “Sire”, was the sibling of three others who Isaac has little to no attachment to. They were an unplanned, wholly impulsive result of an uncouth romance between two hot-headed members of their birth pack. While there were no repercussions within the pack over such manners of the heart, what did come to haunt them was the time of year when the children were born: the heart of winter, when supplies were at their lowest. The result of this was the loss of one right from the start, and the youngest— Isaac— becoming deathly ill from the cold to the point their Sire doubted that the child would survive past their first moon. The two others, relatively healthy despite the circumstances, were treated with feverish and frantic tenacity by the healers despite their chances of survival.

The pale one was an afterthought, and one wolf took mercy on them when all hope was abandoned. Their aunt. Their savior.

When their first moon passed by and they successfully began to see and hear is when their Mother finally took notice and began to reintegrate them with their two other siblings, but their Sire wasn’t in the picture all that much. Their parent’s love had withered when the children were born, and he had resumed his duties in the heart of the mountains far from the prying eyes and tiny yelps of his offspring. Mother was not someone who cared passionately or deeply, but she raised them well and with all the best qualities their pack could ask for. That was until they reached four or five moons old, and when Isaac’s grandmother had a nightmare that would send Isaac’s future into a downward spiral.

It was, she claimed, a prophecy. One that detailed how Isaac would be responsible for great and terrible things, something that made no sense to the child who was only just beginning to learn the lessons of their pack’s history. Their grandmother was mostly blind, with hearing that faded in and out, and to most she was seen as a tried and true soothsayer, an echo of lives long since forgotten. To hear her of all wolves speak of such ill omens was… disruptive, and when paired with his peculiar birth and surprising survival, those who viewed her as their living history were not keen on ignoring such possibilities. Awful, unthinkable things had happened in the past, things that she had witnessed first hand. But what could Isaac possibly pose a threat to?

They did not have the answers to this, and their early adolescence was one of shame and fear as they were all but ostracized from the confines of their home. Of course not all wolves shared the madwoman’s views, and those that took pity on the pup cared for him no differently than any other child in their valley, but that did not replace the abandonment they faced from their own kin. It was a cruel lesson, one that cultured a deep self-loathing that was only remedied with exploration and time away from the safety of the cliffs. Their Aunt often supplied them with this outlet, and she became one of the main wolves who helped replace soured memories and feelings with ones that ignited a different type of spark within the young explorer. One of defiance and passion, of hope despite uncertainty.

When wolves of their culture hit six moons, they would be taught the finer details of their way of life by those who spoke the echoes of memories past. Isaac, while able to listen in on these lessons, learned most everything they would come to know from his Aunt’s own lips. She was a fantastical storyteller who spoke in lyrics and painted vivid details in the growing whelp’s mind. She told stories of places far, far away, of a time long before and long after, of the sky and places beyond the reach of any wolf that Isaac would ever know in this life. She reminded him to always seek answers, to never stop searching, and that one day they would come to realize wolves like his Grandmother were simply scared of miracles like them.

Back then, that sort of praise didn’t always land, but it is a memory that Isaac is terribly fond of and often recalls her words and implements her mannerisms into his own dialect.

When they became a yearling is when their Aunt had her first litter in the thaw of spring and introduced her soul’s shadow to the family. Two children, Moses and Raina, who would become some of the closest friends and allies Isaac would have back then. By this point, their grandmother had passed, and with their passing some of the tension surrounding Isaac’s existence was eased, but they did not miss the way those within the leader’s circle passed judgment on them. Isaac disregarded their malice for the most part and instead spent much of their time as a newly fledged ember among the pack teaching their Aunt’s blood their most favorite of stories. When they began to walk and chase one another, Isaac became their mountain to conquer, the battlefield for their wars and the valley they rested in when their mother was busy. They cherished these moments, and it made them realize that they did not need their siblings or mother’s approval in order to be happy.

With Isaac’s babysitting era coming to an end when the children hit their sixth moon, Isaac dove head first into their training under his Uncle’s guidance to become one of the hunters who scaled the mountains and cliffsides on nimble feet. He was one of the few wolves Isaac looked up to and idolized, but at the same time absolutely *terrified* them. After never really having a father figure, being in their presence for extended periods of time felt… strange. Welcome, most days, but unfamiliar and awkward. It was reciprocated; he was still the parent of two relatively small pups, and dealing with a nearly young adult was several leaps and bounds ahead of what he had prepared for. But Isaac was nothing if not dedicated to prove themself, so the two got along amicably whenever they ventured into the forests and fields to hone their skills.

At two, Isaac was introduced to their life as a hunter-gatherer, and by this point most memories of their rocky start were painted over with new colors.

But with that came new challenges, ones that involved their siblings who grew up with… far different values than Isaac. Their brother turned out to be a skilled fighter while their sister, a speaker of old truths— just like their grandmother was. Isaac was not blind to the possibility of their siblings' vitriol towards them, and day by day it became more and more like a guarantee until something made that tension snap.

And it was Isaac’s doing that caused their blood to flow.

They had… spoken to their cousin, away from their Aunt’s ears and the eyes of her shadow, and it left them fearful of Isaac. *Fearful* of the wolf who had done nothing but care for them. Rage had never been something Isaac tasted, but rage was all they had and it was delivered in righteous vengeance. It started with words, pleading and guilt-ridden, but evolved into spit and venom when their brother struck first. A children’s spat, but they were not children. They were barely even siblings. And that blood that crested the earth and tainted the snow with iron was a sin.

The damage that had been done was done in a haze of years of resentment that Isaac had hidden so, so well. Isaac had drawn blood, and in return their coat was mangled by two wolves who should have protected them.

Isaac spent the next several moons in the care of their Aunt, and their Aunt alone. Her children did not approach, their packmates stayed their distance and oh, their Mother… she seemed to finally understand why *her* mother believed them to be a catalyst. Isaac did too, after all that time. They did too.

By three full years, Isaac had fled the pack. It had been decided they would be exiled for their impulsive, reckless, law-breaking actions regardless of their choice, but it was their choice. They spoke to their Aunt in private, watched her shadow twitch his ears, watched him vouch to protect Isaac who had protected their cousins so well, but Isaac refused. They could not take anyone on this journey. It was one they had to do alone.

For five moons following that decision, Isaac roamed, crossing valleys lush with greenery and forests that rivaled some of the mountain peaks they’d come to know by heart. Even the sky seemed different, but they knew the stars that pointed them towards home. *Home.*

It was such a funny, bitter word, and Isaac wasn't quite sure they'd ever find a place like that again.

But when their journey led them further north, that's where they met the coast. The tang of salt and stone, of blue that rivaled the sky. *There* is where they saw things they'd only heard stories about, and that is where *their* story begins.

## Group History

The young wolf had reached Xassa, but the Xassans were not there. Instead, their travels took them further north, where they crossed paths with another lone wolf named Galadhon. They were saved by the dark-furred she-wolf from the Hive, guided on more than one occasion, until finally delivered to Misthelm - to where Xassa and Riverfell had rescued Fellfang. They were frazzled from their journey, from the fight against the Hive, but were ready to lend basic healing skills to any wolf who needed it.

All the while, they missed their family.

After joining Xassa as the pack returned to its homeland, Isaac reflected. Galadhon had become a part of the pack as well. They didn't form any strong connections to any of the wolves around them, though they considered Fausta something of a friend - and a loner they'd met during the battle, Leone, was a friend, they supposed, too.

But as the final battle against the Hive approached, Isaac fell to reflection. Despite Xassa's welcome, they regretted staying with the pack after the battle to save Fellfang, knowing that their remaining family were in danger from the Hive, too. They needed to return to their family, to make sure they were safe and sound and remained so. And so, during the battle, Isaac fled Xassa in order to reach their family - before the scattered remains of the Hive, if the Domain won, made their way towards Isaac's family.

Though riddled with guilt, they departed the Domain during the final battle, never to be seen again.

## Trivia

* Isa often suffers from seasonal allergies and has respiratory issues in the spring and summer. This causes them to have frequent nosebleeds when they stress their body out too much, or do too many labor intensive activities during the middle of the day.
* They are a nihilistic optimist but often choose to speak with full optimism, and seldom let their pessimism bleed out into day to day conversations.
* While not a picky eater by any means, Isaac will refuse to eat any sort of rabbit or hare. They are also particularly fond of wild berries and fresh fish.

## Quotes

* “Will you at least get your wound looked at before you go charging off to rescue some other scrappy-legged, wide-eyed wolfkin?” (to Galadhon, *Inorganic Lifeforms Part III*)

## External Links

* Official Application Sheet
* speckledplanet's deviantART Gallery