Lazuli Wolf Pack

[Tala]

Just thought I would put a little bit up about the Lazuli pack. This was the first pack to really stick around on meadows an I'm thrilled at how well its grown over the year!

Bit about the pack:

Storm formed the pack afting running into so many young wolves feeling the need to give them some type of support an family they could call there own. She always wanted to prove to herself that she could be a alpha. The pack that she has created is more of a neutral pack, as such, they are non-traditionalists and do not hold to some of the more abhorant ways of wolf life. The group looks to the Alphas, but the Alphas also look to the group for input and collaboration. No one rules with an iron paw.

The Lazuli hold onto an intense distaste and distrust for humans and their dogs. Any wolf, should they prove themselves a benefit to the community are allowed to stay. Other animals, besides domestic dogs, are tolerated in the territory and may even find themselves benefitting from a relationship with the pack.

Bit of IC stuff that has happened:

After a rampaging bear tore through the territory, leaving Felstride with a gaping wound in his side and Storm with a few broken ribs, the Lazuli have moved into their winter den in the eastern forest. Storm will be expecting a litter of pups in the early spring. The love triangle between Felstride, Storm, and Miakoda has settled after the bear attack, and Thorne has won his way into the Beta female's heart. Now, the Lazuli are concerned about keeping up their moral as well as keeping their stomachs full. With the two Alphas out of commission for a while, it will be up to the pack as a whole to work together and prove that their bonds are strong.

And now for something completely different!.. I mean a little OOC infor. XD

While were not deathly strict we still do try an play wolves as close to the real thing as we can but at the same time have fun! (Because lets face it, this is a game an were here to have fun! XD) Yes the alphas are in charge an so forth down the line. We arn't crazy with stritct behavior either, but at the same time I do know a good amount about it. No I don't know it all, I'm not saying I'm a behaviorest (sp) or anything but I've read plenty of books, seen all the shows that I can get a hold of on wolves, and I have worked with dogs for more years then I can count. An while a dog isn't a wolf they happen to behave the same way rather closely.

SO! if your interested in a wolf, or perhaps your thinking about it but have never played one before drop me or Felstride a page an I'm sure we can work something out!

[Cael]

I'd also like to add a little bit to Storm's post about the Lazuli, and what kind of wolves have found refuge in their lands:

Felstride: This wolf's past is shrouded in a lot of mystery, as he's never really indulged anyone with stories of his past. He came to the forest from the north. He met Storm, and his grace and charm combined with his intense respect for female wolves had them as fast friends. After meeting Miakoda, realizing that she was a friend of Storm's, he soon became companions with her. Time passed, and soon Storm told him that she would like to form their little family into a pack and asked him to be at her side to help. He gladly accepted, for he realized that nothing made him happier than helping Storm and seeing her content. Felstride has kept his calm demeanor throughout the season, his concern for his family paramount over his own safety. His compassion got the better of him at one point, when he realized he had also fallen in love with Miakoda, but the two have simmered their compassion back down to friendship. Little does he know, but the Alpha male will soon be a father and have another new experience to contend with. At times, his distaste for aggression and force has caused him some headaches, but Felstride has begun to realize that his family means more than rank and order. He backs Storm in all her decisions, intent on keeping her dream of a wolf pack for outcasts (as they once were) and rogues alive.

Storm: The Alpha female, before her struggle to create a cohesive pack, was once part of the Tremayne wolf pack. Her parents had been slain by a hunter and his dogs, and the Tremayne raised Storm and her sister for want of bolstering pack numbers. When her sister was killed on an elk hunt, Storm was told to leave the Tremayne. Traveling north down the mountains she found her way into the deep forest and met Miakoda and Felstride, eventually creating a cohesive family, albeit a small one. Her trust in Felstride is strong, and her hopes lie in keeping his strength at her side. She will greet newcomers with an air of caution and friendliness, but will fight to defend her family and her loved ones to the death.

Miakoda: Little is known about Miakoda's past, but much is known about her present. She's a vibrant wolf with a finesse for playing practical jokes on her pack mates, and a master at kicking up snow in one's face. One of the three original members of the Lazuli when it formed, her position in the pack is cemented in her relationship with both Storm and Felstride. The Alpha female she considers like a sister, and Felstride.. well. The Alpha male inadvertently won her heart at one point, but the two have settled their love interest with one another in favor of keeping their stable family life. Her bright personality and charm seems to have won over the enigmatic Thorne, a once lone wolf that stayed around the Lazuli long enough to win the Beta female's interest.

Thorne: Where Thorne hails from is anyones guess; he won't say. He is widely traveled and claims to have seen more than most wolves ever will. He's a spinner of stories, a storyteller, and a good one at that. An enigma; a wolf pack of one. For most of his time in the Lazuli territory, Thorne would come and go as he pleased, interacting with the members like the wind in their fur, before venturing off into the woods to disappear for a short while. Really, this white wolf was very like the ghost his pelt made him out to look like. Little is known of him aside from his name and his nature, but he has stuck around long enough to be accepted by the Lazuli. After Miakoda's and Felstride's little romantic stint, Miakoda seems to have conceded the Alpha to Storm and has turned to the roguish Thorne with interest. What he makes of her, well, that's anyone's guess.

[Ahiga]

K, I'm jumping on the mega-cool bandwagon and apologizing for not being around as much as I usually am as of late! Lots of IRL things popping up at once, but it should be cooling down here in a few days and I'll be out and about .. *cough*everyday*cough* as usual.

As for RP ideas, lesse...

I like Ahote's. Fel, Storm, Thorne, Bodhi, etc, I miss rping with y'all as much as we used to! I think a hunt scene is really overdue, and I'm all for another group (cougars or whatnot) trying to steal our kill! As for the babies (who are growing up so fast!) getting a mini learning hunt in too, I think that'd be fun ... and a hoot to watch.

As for my own ideas? Mmmmrmmm...

I think there was a floating idea come up by someone else that the pack could wander to the old abandoned farm place. Maybe have a mini adventure with the man things there.

Maybe one of the pups can find some trouble, dire or otherwise. Perhaps the mischievous pup can wander too far off, run into a not so nice bobcat/cougar/bird of prey/dog/fox/kitsune/ninja of death and the pack comes to his/her rescue?

Territory marking party. Wooo, the power of urine!

We run into the (maybe possibly forming) dog pack and have a little confrontation? Dogs *Booo! Hisss!*

Go to the river and go swimming. Hey, it's summertime. It's Hot!

Some kind of conflict arises and a fight/argument within the pack breaks out. ... And Miakoda emerges as supreme overlord of the world .. I mean...

Hey! I dunno if Rook and Silentpaws' players are still around (well .. ok I take that back. I know one of the two are) but maybe we could have a spirit visit from one or both of them! Dunno if that's feasible, but just throwing it out there.

I dunno. A lot of these aren't really big things, just rp ideas in general, I guess. I know, they're not the /most/ creative, but there they are!

[Curiosity]

Didn't want to lose the long history that's been written up in Lazuli's @group information when the new pack is added, so I'm copy/pasting it here (with my own additions at the end to wrap up their history) for archiving purposes:

The Lazuli pack was founded by Storm not long after she fled from her home pack, the Tremayne. She met Miakoda, a young wolf of the same age, and the two became very fast friends. Weeks after, an older male approached from the north, though he would not say much of where he came from. His name was Felstride, and he enchanted both Storm and Miakoda with his soft spoken manner and charm. The three became fast friends, and life became easier with three wolves hunting together as a small pack. Others, SilentPaws, Rook, and Pinta, found refuge in the same woods, and though at times tenuous, joined the small band of wolves. Another male, Thorne, tended to ghost in an out of the pack; an enigma. The Tremayne's old alpha male, Midnight, found his way into the forest, too, and despite her misgivings Storm let him into her pack as the omega. During these troubled times, Felstride remained steadily by Storm's side, defending her descisions as alpha female.

This charmed Storm further, and she asked if he would join her as alpha. This appointment did not change the structure of the pack that much, but it planted a seed of resentment in Miakoda's heart, knowing now she could not have Felstride to herself. The male saw through this, eventually, and confessed that a part of him loved Miakoda as much as he loved Storm; but this is the way it was to be. Soon, Thorne drifted back into their lives, and Miakoda found some solace in the white wolf. The Lazuli, small as they were, faced the terrible trials of a bear attack, leaving Felstride with a gaping wound in his side, but they also celebrated the birth of their first litter of Larkspur, Toban, and Halidari. This was short lived, though, as a roaming pack, the Sangre, threatened to destroy them. Storm, Felstride, Miakoda, and Thorne managed to drive away these wolves, but not without losing SilentPaws and Rook in the process.

Peace settled for a short time in the Lazuli's woods, but was shattered again when Larkspur was swept downriver, and thought to be drowned. This grieved her parents greatly, though after they called off the search, there was nothing for them to do but move on. Eventually it became known that Larkspur was in Viridian territory, the wolves in the mountains to the south, and Felstride set off to find her. The meeting was not amicable. Felstride did not appreciate the Viridian boy, Haze, hanging around his borders or his daughter and sent him away. He took Larkspur back to the woods, and though he was relieved at having her back, he did not appreciate the entourage coming to drop her off. Relationships were mended, and for a while the Lazuli knew no worry.

A second litter was born to Storm and Felstride, five pups, and to the new betas Miakoda and Thorne, their first litter of two. Of concern was Riko, seeming to be blinded by the barest traces of light, and Echo, mute since birth. Despite this, little disturbed the Lazuli for quite sometime, and the newest litters grew into their adolescence. A trio of two dogs and one wolf, Skelegh, Sketch, and Vincent, had come to the Lazuli's territory, fleeing to the south toward the mountains, from a duo of cougar brothers, Revan and Malak. Storm and Miakoda barred their passage south and demanded they return where they came, but Felstride, ever kind, allowed the group to skirt the Lazuli's western border and cut south-south west toward the mountain. Despite this precaution, the cougar brothers followed.

One day, out on a continued and tiring patrol, the aged and nearly crippled Felstride came across Revan and Malak and demanded their retreat from the Lazuli's territory. They refused, and in a brazen move right in front of the old wolf, Revan marked the land as his own. Infuriated, and fearful for his family, Felstride launched a doomed attack against the cougars. Ultimately, he was slain by Malak, and his body was left as a warning to the remaining Lazuli that the cougars were coming and were not to be trifled with. Young Haze, having heard Felstride's last, desperate howl, came to investigate, followed closely by Storm, Helios, Cyrus, Shikoba, and Miakoda. Beside herself with grief, Storm remained by Felstride's side and was unable to lead the pack to any decision on what to do. The loss of the old alpha male burned deeply.

A rumbling in the mountains to the south followed soon after, and with a great crash the rivers, ponds, and streams became swollen with water, encroaching into the forest where the Lazuli made their refuge. With the cougar threat high, Storm managed to lead her family south, at the behest of Felstride's ghost, and the pack fled, the flood soon cutting off their route back to the north. A heavily pregnant Larkspur was accompanied by her mate, Haze, and Storm and Miakoda managed to rally the pack together to seek refuge in the southern lowlands.

The Lazuli's next generation was born to Felstride and Storm's daughter, Larkspur, having four pups with her mate. The aging alpha female Storm handed the reigns to the new parents, Haze and Larkspur, presenting them with her title of alpha, on the condition that Larkspur's younger brother Cyrus, and his wolf-dog mate, Eclipse, remained as beta per their father's wish - who soon also gave birth to their own pair of pups, Motega and Twilight. However, the heavy hand Lazuli had been dealt had not finished yet, and the alpha pair's pups were all lost before they reached adolescence. Larkspur isolated herself in the pack den to cope with her loss, and Haze found himself questioning if he had failed not only his family, but his pack. Much time spent thinking alone drove him to seek out his birth pack, and as he had no wish to continue leading as alpha himself, and had no pups of his own to take his place, when he found was was left of the Viridian wolves, he proposed that the two remaining halves of his family merge into a single pack -- Cerulean.