Alcyone.

Personality: Alcyone could be described as a very charismatic cat. He has a knack for knowing what a particular cat wants to hear and adapt his attitude to that effect. He has a way with words, making it easy to believe what he says in an argument, as he always presents his point with a cool logic that can easily lead others to accept what he says. He is an excellent talker, and can be quite the manipulative one when it is to get something he wants. Sometimes, this makes him mislead others to his advantage, which, if found out about, often does not make the joy of the creature. The calm he portrays is that of unshakeable self-confidence, which was earned through not-so-many years of talking and fighting his way out of sticky situations with dogs. Which, now the point being raised, he often deliberately searches confrontation with, if it is in the measure where he can win. He is no lion, and he knows it, and therefore the planning and caution he organises those encounters almost always insure him with a way out. Alcyone, as meticulous as he is always, cannot stand not planning ahead anything in his life. He likes order, cleanliness and having a plan. Not having one often makes him very insecure and he quickly improvises to find another scheme. This is why unexpected situations always make him slightly nervous, but he tries his best to hide that from the rest of the world. He is known to have a good imagination and is rather good at quickly finding another plan, which is why this fact often goes unnoticed. With his cool logic and good intellect, an apt word to describe him would be smart. Unfortunately for him, it can lead him to appear very smart-mouthed when he corrects what another cat or (especially) what a dog says. Most of the time though, his remarks are witty, as he plays with the meaning of words and uses of sarcasm and irony liberally. He is a determined cat, and will stop at nothing for something important, to the point of it being not very good for his own sake, and someday, it will probably get him killed. He has difficulty dealing with his emotions, especially violent ones like anger, envy and fear, which often makes him look very impassive, but whilst inside he is a boiling volcano which is bound to erupt one day or another.


Appearance: Alcyone has a good, powerful build. His frame is covered by strong muscles, which allow him to jump impressive heights and climb extremely well. His hindquarters hold immense power he uses to propulse himself up walls and whatnot, as well as strong front limbs. Not the fastest in a straight out run over long distances, he has quite the propulsion over a short sprint and can hit very high speeds, though not for very long. One of his most precious abilities is his agility, which is imperative as he climbs a lot and allows him to outmaneuver most dogs. He has very good flexibility of his joints, due to his breed. Well-balanced in terms of limb to body size ratio, he does not not have any particular advantage on that side. His tail is very long, allowing him to balance well. Broad, clawed paws with dark cushions finish his short legs. On top of all of that, he has greyish skin, covered with short golden-brown fur. Of his markings, he could say they have the distinctive clouded leopard pattern, large, elongated spots which has darker golden-brown fur on the inside. Solid black stripes run on his cheeks, neck and back all the way down to his tail. His short, round ears are black on the outside. His eyes are green, flecked with amber, and his pupils are vertical slits. A particularity of his species are the extremely long canine teeth, and Alcyone is no exception. Finally, his nose is of a delicate salmon colour; not entirely pink nor entirely orange.



History: Alcyone's parents were zoo animals. Kept in a cage for their entire lives, they knew nothing else, and yearned for nothing else. One could say that they weren't caught up in the raging war between canidae and felidae before the great plague that killed their keepers. Having nothing to eat and having had all those years to think about how they could escape if they wanted to, they managed to unscrew the covering of a drain pipe that evacuated excess water from their enclosure and escape into a ditch along the side of the human pathways. They were quickly swept up in the war that raged beyond their walls, asked to takes a side, which naturally, as they were both not daft, was that of protection in the feline territory. Yet, they did not join the pride. And that would be their downfall.

Alcyone was born in spring, along with two other siblings. Their childhood was normal and happy. They were encouraged to learn as much as they could, to observe and to be cautious of everything they did. After all, a war was going on, and they wanted him and his sisters to be ready. They taught them many things, ranging from things they had learnt with humans, to how to fight and escape. They lived on high moral standards and were a rather united family. Of course, they were the occasional tantrums and arguments, but what family doesn't have any? The cubs were close, and often had close shaves with dogs when a dare was proffered.

One could say his cubhood was. . . totally uneventful. Until that terrible day. Alcyone and his siblings had been out hunting for the first time on their own. They were barely nine months old. Unfortunately, their little gang was sighted by a small group of dogs, whom immediately gave them chase. Smarter Alcyone jumped for the rooftops, knowing instinctively that no dog could reach him there, and yowled to his siblings to do the same. They both managed to climb to safety, and the cubs were weak with relief. They slowly made their way home, dropping their guard way too quickly. What they didn't know was that the dogs were following the sound of their voices towards their home. As they came into the run down house, having no prey but victorious all the same, the dogs attacked. Both parents, yelling to their kits to run, leapt onto the dogs and battled furiously. Alcyone and the others, petrified, couldn't move. They watched helplessly as their parents were overwhelmed by the dogs and killed. When the dogs turned to the kits, Alcyone jumped into action and jumped for the windows, yelling to his sisters to follow him. But they were too scared to move.

Fear clutching his heart, he heard them scream for help. But he was too scared, and he turned tail and fled, sobbing as he went, guilt clawing his belly. He couldn't help them. It would have been suicide. For years thereafter, he would continue telling himself that, to the point where he almost believed it. But nothing could ever shake the guilt that holds him now.

After the terrible day, he lived life as a loner, a brand new hatred for dogs in his heart and the mind set for revenge. And now, with the war raging more furiously than ever, he has made a choice: help the Iris pride destroy the canine race. He just has to make it happen.

Season born: Spring


RP Sample: 200 words at least
Link to image of character: Here!