Ari

Ari exhaustedly laying on top of the shadowed cougar's carcass, unaware of what's about to happen.

### Relatives

Violet (mother)
Genesis (father)
Arrow (adoptive father)
Briar (sister)
Midnight (sister)
Feather (brother)
Zane (brother)
Crow (brother)
Pluto (brother)
Hummingbird (daughter)
Sparrow (son)
Peppermint (daughter)
River (daughter)
Hawk (son)
Flare (daughter)
Toxic (daughter)

### Affiliation

Meadow Pack (formerly)Wanderer Pack (formerly)
Pack of the Starlit

## Biographical information

### Mate

Mates with Aspen (before his death, and as spirits)

## About Ari

### Biography

Ari was born to Violet and Genesis as the youngest daughter, alongside her littermates Briar, Midnight, Feather, Zane, Crow and Pluto, all of whom formed small friend groups. However, Ari was always lingering somewhere in the middle - she wasn't reckless enough to be specially close to Briar and Feather, and she just couldn't see herself properly getting along with her other brothers. Their birthplace was none other than the McBride Cliffside, as their mother prefered dens from which she could always see potential threats. Ari grew to be a lot like her mother in that regard, especially since all she really knew how to do was follow her around. They were similar to Night Sky and Snowy in a way. However, Ari didn't actually yearn to be physically stronger, or prove to be particularly good at anything. The only reason she followed Violet around was because she wanted to be friends with her, and a way of accomplishing that was accepting battle training at an early age. Of course, Ari didn't know what she was doing. She and her littermates never really had a clue about what was going on with the other packs either, only recognizing the Crevice Lake and Junction Butte wolves as intruders who should be laughed at. Slowly, large groups of shadowed figures started appearing to try and kill the Meadow Pack wolves, all because of the hex Everest had cast. One day, while Violet was out patrolling, the den was raided by rogue Crevice Lake males. At first, Genesis had the upper hand, snarling, growling and biting them, but he was ultimately bested due to their sheer numbers. He limped to the den entrance and blocked it with his body, slowly bleeding out as he waited for his mate's return. When she did, she swiftly chased the rogues away, but Genesis was dying. His throat had been ripped open the same way Everest's was, but Violet had no way of knowing that, and so she assumed they did this out of sheer will. As he passed on, Violet could only wail. She told herself she would protect her pack with her life, so *why didn't she*? It was the first time Ari saw her mother so defeated, and slowly, the realization of her father being gone seeped in aswell. Her mother pulled out all the stops - she forgot about her wish of maintaining the best possible reputation, and began slaughtering Crevice Lake wolves - both those who did this because of Everest's curse, and those who were uninvolved. The territory was expanded to be larger than it had ever been before, just so Ari and her littermates would be kept safe. And Ari knew that something had changed deep within her mother's core. The obliviously carefree days of innocence were over, and Ari's littermates quickly began training aswell. Training that would, in their mother's eyes, help them survive and face the world's tests. They moved to the Grassy Bank a small distance away from their original home, and sharpened their hunting skills on mice, birds and bugs - although the others would still mess around. Then, they traveled a much further distance to the summer hunting grounds - the Wilted Petals of Violet, right beneath Skyview. Having spent more time with Violet than anyone else prior to the incident of Genesis' death, Ari felt that she understood why everything had changed. Additionally, the disfigured remnants of other wolves didn't stop appearing, only fueling her mother's anger further. However, one day, Violet returned accompanied by an unfamiliar wolf with a golden, tawny coat. Apparently, she saved his life when he had been attacked by Junction Butte wolves, so he backed her up in her most recent battle. *She sensed that something was off about her behavior a long time ago, but this completely caught her off guard.* His name was Arrow, and he became the litter's adoptive father, and although nobody was particularly fond of him first - even Violet included - they eventually warmed up to him. Ari was able to tell that *her mother only took a new mate because she wished to fill in the hole that Genesis left*. The others didn't really mind, as Arrow would let everyone skip out on training, and Ari would be the only one getting any work done yet again.

Time passed in a blur, so when it was time for the heir-picking ceremony, Ari was trembling and couldn't stay still - it had come to her that she was likely the primary candidate due to all her unintentional efforts. It had dawned upon her that, if she truly was chosen, she would have to bare the weight of everything that Violet had done behind the scenes. All of the killings, and all of the disputes. All of the physical violence, and all of the hatred. She should have thought about everything more before blindly choosing to use battle training as a way of getting closer to her mother, and soon enough, she was indeed chosen as the Meadow Pack's heiress. And now, it was too late to decline - *she had grown fearful of rejection*.

Ari was very close behind Briar during the entire journey towards the mountain range, yet wasn't saying anything whatsoever - she looked lost in thought, as if she regretted her decision to become the heiress to the Meadow Pack. Concerned, Briar took her journey to a halt and laid down, and to no suprise, so did her sister. After thinking about what could be the matter for some time, she decided to ask her if she was alright. There was a long moment of silence as the two stared into each other's eyes, both hesitating to say anything more. Eventually, Ari spoke up and blurted everything out in an unusually fast manner, partially suprising her listener. *She didn't want to be the heiress and was terrified of carrying the legacy of such a widely known figure, and the only reason she acted tough and knowledgable around their mother was because she saw it as a nice way of getting close and bonding with her.* Briar figured just as much, and shrugged once more, taking some more time to collect her thoughts - which she rarely did anyway. Sighing, she let Ari know she would take her place as Violet's successor if *she* was willing to give the role up... and she accepted immediately. ... Ari thanked her sister with every single fiber of her being, but it soon hit them both that Briar was likely no more fit to lead the Meadow Pack than she was. Nevertheless, the older she-wolf insisted that she had what it took, and that there truly weren't any better alternatives. She cared about Ari's emotional health and wellbeing, so she would take over her sudden burden even if it meant disappointing Violet. With a boop to the nose, Briar said goodbye and set out to find Feather who had lagged behind. She knew he would love to help out, and impulsive decisions such as this were right up his alley anyway.

Despite being relieved that she was now free to do whatever, Ari decided to continue her journey to Amethyst Mountain anyway, wandering around with no real goal until she managed to think of what to do from this point onward. This level of freedom was unfamiliar to her, as she would always have to stay close to Violet when she was small, and when she grew into her juvenile years, all she would do was train. It was odd not having anything to look forward to, positive or negative - as sudden as it was, she was now a wanderer.

## Personality

Ari was always one of the most determined pups, proudly pouncing on prey twice her size. She was very, very playful, but not in the way that Briar and Feather were - yes, she enjoyed exploring, and would often get lost in the patches of tall grass around her den, but they were rather different. Although she wasn't a loner, she definitely wasn't social either, and she talked much less. Also, unlike Briar, she wasn't as honest with deeper topics, and she tended to try and sway from answering them by talking about something else. She was very commited to the things she liked or wanted, and was able to form deeper relationships than most others. Ari was truly caring, often forming attachments she would never let go of rather easily - especially her attachment to her mother Violet, using battle-training as a way of getting closer to her, even if she didn't like fighting at all when she first started.

## Litters

### First and only litter - Aspen - Age 3

Hummingbird was a warm, medium-light brown female, and she was scarily speedy in everything - whether it was in disputes, traveling, or just thinking. She was very analytical and knowledgable, primarily relying on her intelligence to take others down in battle. Her sly and clever nature allowed her to outwit literally everyone she possibly could, but also to spew out random knowledge to her packmates, making her look even wiser and more experienced than she already was. She tended to be the voice of reason, convincing others not to cause problems for either themselves or for others, and everyone would come to her when they needed help with anything.

Sparrow was a scrappy, raspy-voiced black male with light brown spots peppered all over him.

Peppermint was a cream-tinted, rough-furred white she-wolf.

River was a stunning she-wolf with a soft russet and white coat.

Hawk was a brownish gray wolf with orange and white swirls all over, making him very tawny and multi-colored.

Flare was similar to Hawk in many ways, with a black pelt that had flame-like orange stripes and tints which she got her name from.

Toxic was a murky brownish gray female, and her coat was very rough and thick.

## Trivia

* Ari is named after Jaiden Animations' bird, and I ended up using the name Ari as my internet alias aswell. *Everyone and everything must be named Ari*.