I am looking to adopt... Picture:
Kennel number: 105
Name: Wolf name- Kodiak, nicknames Kodi or Koda. Indian name- Swift Paws, usually referred to as Swift.
Breed: American Red Wolf.
Why do you want this animal and what will you do for it?: As many people know I’m a huge fan of natural designs and for a while now I have been keeping my eyes open for a canine who’s design fits well for a story idea I’ve had in mind. This is the guy who I think is perfect for it.
As such I would love to use him not only for art but also for my writing, he’d have a story series in which he would be the main character and also possible included in other characters stories.
Of course he will also be bought art by others and drawn by me, on his own and with his pack mates, he’d have his own post in my (newly being done) character thread.
I just love the design here, the shade of the coat is just beautiful and the way the brown and white markings flow together is lovely and very pleasing to the eye. The black markings are beautiful and actually inspired his back story. I’ve also always loved the colour green, and his eyes are such a nice shade of green.
I also like the fact that his design is somewhat challenging for me to draw, he pushes my artistic skills and I feel he would help me become better at art, shading and texture in particular, I hope I get the chance to practise with such a gorgeous boy.
Personality: Loyal: Always devoted to his family or friends it would be hard to find someone who would be more loyal to you . He always stands by those he cares about and would lay down his life for someone if he felt they deserved it.
Playful: Kodi is a hyperactive young wolf and loves to spend his days playing, be it with other wolves and animals or just imaginary games. He has keen instincts and loves to play hide and seek or chasing games where he needs to track someone. He’ll never turn down an invitation to a game which makes him popular with more or less everyone.
Brave: This is one wolf who will never shy away from a fight and will always defend anything that needs it. Always willing to lend a helping paw to someone he’ll walk through fire if he needs too. Not much really scares him either.
Gentle: Kodiak is a gentle soul and generally tends to avoid fights or conflict unless he absolutely must face it. Its not that he’s scared or weak, he just doesn’t like the thought of hurting another living creature. He likes nothing more than snuggling up to a good friend under the stars to wait for the sunrise.
Curious: the definition of Kodi, he always wants to explore and find out what things are. Be it a different coloured rock or a bright butterfly, or even something scary from a far away land, he has to know what it is.
Strong - he's always pushing himself to his physical and mental limits, training himself in speed endurance and brute strength. He wants to be able to take on any opponent and win and makes sure that he is ready. He's all muscle and works hard to stay that way knowing he needs to be in top form to protect the pack. Though he hopes this is something he won’t need to put into practise often.
Thoughtful - He often takes time to sit up on the highest hills and gaze across the lands, just thinking to himself, about anything and everything. He likes this quiet peaceful time alone to reflect on his life and to ponder many things. Sunset or sunrise are popular times for him to do this.
Likes: Water: Born in the spring and raised through one of the hottest summers his packs had seen Kodiak and his siblings naturally took a liking to water. He loves the feel of the currents through his heavy coat and likes to lay in the sun after a swim. He also loves to chase the rain across the grasses.
Darkness: Kodi loves the night time and the peaceful cover the night seems to draw over the world, he loves to run through the forest when its dark and his keen senses mean he moves like a ghost. He likes the sense of freedom too, being unseen and running by moonlight.
Basking in the sun- what’s better than an afternoon nap? Laying in the sun after a morning of hunting and playing with the pack is an amazing way to spend an afternoon and Kodiak loves to relax like this. Either alone or with the rest of the pack he loves to lay on his back in the soft grass and feel the sun warming him through his coat.
Dislikes: Too much heat: Kodi likes to be warm but not overly hot, heat waves seem to steal his energy and leaving him feeling too sleepy to do anything, and being a fairly active wolf he gets bored of lazing around too long.
Being alone: Kodi is a pack wolf and loves having others around him, though he likes his moments of quiet by himself its nice to know others are not far away. If he gets left alone too long he starts to feel uncomfortable and will hurry to wherever he knows his family might be.
Fighting: This wolf would prefer not to fight and though he makes sure he’s always ready to defend his pack he always hopes for a peaceful outcome to any drama that might arise. He doesn’t like hurting others and tries to avoid it at all costs.
History/Background: History: Kodiak was born into one of the most loving little family units seen, and being an only pup he was very loved and cherished by his parents. The two wolves were elders of the pack and their time for a pup had been running out, luckily nature had smiled on them and brought them Kodi in the early spring of the hottest summer they would ever know.
Now being an only pup it could have easily turned out that Kodi was spoilt and selfish, but his easy going nature made him a bouncy bright and curious little puppy who always wanted to help with everything and follow anyone around. He grew quickly and into a bright young wolf, his coat shimmering and his personality well formed.
Kodiaks father--
The place I live is beautiful, I am told it’s called the outback or the “wild west” but we just call it home. I’ve lived here my whole life and I love every part of it, from the dry sandy stretches full of prickly plants and funny little lizard creatures to the lush green forests with their big soft grasses and trickling streams. You have to be careful here though, because there is a lot of danger about, I was warned as a small pup that humans are the worst of these, next to rattlesnakes, because they don’t just shoot you, they put you in cages and take you away! Well, as I discovered not everything is as simple as that and sometimes you have to open your mind and trust something deeper than knowledge, even after all my years on this planet it was a wise young wolf that taught me this, and this is his story, meet Kodiak.
Kodiak --
The wolf yawned as the first tips of weak light crept across the dry cracked earth and touched his damp smooth black nose, his eyes flickered open slowly and he yawned wider again, stretching out his front paws and getting to his feet with an unsteady shake. Blinking drowsily he flicked his tail and padded across the dew beaded grass to the river, lowering his muzzle and lapping at the cool water that flowed lazing through the land. He crouched and dipped his muzzle into the water, smiling and shaking his head playfully as he watched the blue liquid swirl sending reflections shimmering in odd patterns across the water.
With a little laugh he got to his paws and bounded round to run across the grass to the far end of the den site, a ridge that looked out over the lush grasslands of his home, yet kept them hidden from the world in a grove of trees dispersing into thick thorny bushes. Pushing his way through a wide leafed deep green bush Kodi padded out onto the couple of feet of rock that made the ridge, dropping to his haunches and panting lightly in a wolfy grin he looked out across the shimmering grass of the plains, small trees looking like little green puffs of cloud speckled the soft landscape and small brown dots made up buffalo herds. The wind swept softly across the land making the long grass shimmer and dance before him and Kodi watched it with amusement. Hearing a soft bark behind him he span round leaping to his paws and racing from his spot and skidding to a halt in front of his Alpha.
‘Kodiak, I have an important task for you today’ the old wolf said in his strong deep voice, his eyes serious making Kodi realise this was serious.
‘Yes Alpha, you know anything you need I’ll do it’ curiosity pricked at the wolfs mind and he waited patiently but with an edge of eagerness.
‘There’s been smoke over the horizon past the buffalo rock, you’re the fastest of our pack now and it falls to you to go and see why its there, if I could go I would’ the elders eyes gazed down at Kodi with regret ‘go now, do not waste time, but do not be seen!’
Kodi nodded seriously ‘I’ll do my best, don’t worry about me’ with that he turned and loped from the den site, his paws moving easily over the grass and down the slope to the planes, the pleasant feel of his muscles all working together helped him to relax into an easy rhythm and he moved quickly and easily through the tall grasses around his home. As he ran his mind drifted wondering what task he could have been given that was so serious, and what was the smoke? He’d been told stories of smoke and strange two legged peoples before, could this be them? The sun was rising faster now and he guessed it was mid morning by the time he covered the ground to the buffalo rock, the huge old stone had weathered over the years and had the odd shape of a buffalo about to charge, pausing to look at the old stone Kodi stood panting lightly, his tail waving behind him.
With a sigh he tore himself from the rock and trotted forwards, his ears pricked forwards waiting for any clue as to where his potential enemy would lie, he could see the canyons now and they rose up like red giants. Descending the long slope he saw something that made his heart slam in his chest….
Humans.
Raine--
The girl sat swinging her feet in the river, watching fish dart around under the trembling surface, the sun glinting off in a thousand tiny rainbows as tiny droplets escaped from the whole, only to be swallowed again as gravity pulled them back. The silver fishes darted silently like bullets through the water, getting brave enough to come close to her feet only to shy away again as she moved them in the water.
Raine sat just far away from the natives camp that no one could easily spot her and call her back, she was to busy in thought to go back now and concentrate on anything anyone would say to her anyway. The pale fabric of the tepees seemed to waver in the early morning heat and Raine scowled over their way with a wrinkle of her nose. She could just make out the dim shapes of her tribe milling about the camp going about their daily business.
Still sulking Raine idly fiddled with a charred piece of wood round her neck fastened by a new strand of leather, the shape was blackened round the edges but she knew that would flake away to leave the original dark colour of the wise old tree. Her fingers lightly traced the shape as she thought to herself, stroking the muzzle first and tracing over the pricked ears and down the roughly fluffed neck to a smooth back and long tail, the wolf at her throat stood mid call to the moon, sitting with his head thrown back and his tail curled at his feet to sing the song of his kind. Raine had just turned 16 and finally been allowed to discover her totem animal, the ceremony of burning the wood to find the shape had taken place a few days ago and she was still unsure how she felt about being a wolf. She supposed it was better than a bug of some kind but she had secretly hoped for a big cat like her brother, not many wolf children were born to her tribe.
As she played gently with the hanging wolf something flicked in her peripheral vision, just a brief flicker of something a light gold colour. Startled Raine got quickly and silently to her feet, backing away from the long grasses to her right and moving slowly backwards to the camp, her unusual grey eyes trained on the swaying green stalks as she moved.
Just as she reached the outer limits of the tribe lands the wolf’s head appeared over the top of the grass, his green eyes staring at her without flinching for just a moment before he turned and vanished swiftly into the bushes. Raine stood trembling and staring for a few moments before she could unfreeze her muscles and turn to flee to the safety of her camp.
Kodiak--
The wolf ran swiftly, his heart pounding in his chest and his breaths coming in quick shallow pants, half through the exertion of the speed he ran and half out of panic, the wolf elders had not been impressed that he ran away from the girl and had looked at him with an expression he hadn’t seen before. Kodiak was confused as the other wolves joined together to discuss things, he had never been in trouble before and certainly not enough to warrant a meeting on his behalf, he wondered at why things were such a big deal now. Maybe it was because of the humans, things were going to be a lot more dangerous with them around that was for sure, and hunting was going to be tricky with them sharing the herds.
Anyway, he was being sent back, it had taken a few days and a few arguments between his mother and the rest of the wolves but in the end the Alpha made the final decision, and here he was. Paws flying over the hot grass as the day started to fade Kodi was going to watch the humans at night this time, he wasn’t to come back until the morning and when he did he was sure they would only send him back again. Information was the key to survival here and Kodi knew he had to make sure the pack was safe.
Feeling less than playful he stopped to drink at the river running through the camp, the humans were the first Kodi had seen and after slaking his thirst he laid in the shade of an old spikey tree and watched them with burning curiosity.
This continued for a few weeks, the wolf would run to the camp at sundown and lay watching them until sunrise when he would vanish as quietly as a spectre, he saw the girl who had startled him on that first visit only once or twice but each time she made him curious, so he started to creep closer to the camp, warily keeping his distance but edging ever closer. Curiosity was like a puppet master moving his legs forward and he was powerless to stop it.
Some of the tings Kodi saw made him laugh in a coughing bark, the smaller humans when they fell over and looked so surprised, it reminded him of his puppy hood and when they played he had to stop himself from joining them.
He watched with fascination as they turned the caught buffalo into food and clothing, making the hide into leather using the sun and wrapping themselves in the thick fur on cold nights to keep the chill away. Their hands looked so useless to Kodi, strange and alien, but how could they use them in such a way?
Kodi was startled and happy at the same time when he found out where the smoke had come from, fire was something he had never seen before and the dancing red flames seemed to dance with the wind and tease the stars, he watched it for hours with his jaw hanging open in wonder.
The closer he got the more he saw the girl, she make him curious and she never seemed to listen to anyone but herself, wondering to and fro as she pleased and spending hours alone in the grasses and by the river, often singing lightly to herself. Kodi liked the music she made and occasionally hid in the grass to listen to her songs.
Yawning one morning and standing to shake out the dust from his fur he noticed her standing at the edge of the camp, it wasn’t the first time one of the tribe had seen him and he was sure it wouldn’t be one of the last, but this was odd, she stood as still as a statue and stared into his eyes, her mouth set stubbornly and her chin tilted upwards, as if in defiance. Kodi dipped his nose and moved back a step, keeping his eyes on her and his tail low, he didn’t want her to think he was attacking.
The shadow of a smile broke across her face and it seemed to break the spell that had cast him frozen once more, his tongue lolled out in a doggy grin and his tail wagged itself before he could stop it, the girl laughed and he turned to run home, this was definitely something to tell the pack.
Raine ---
‘The wolf looked at me today’ the girl said in a low flat voice, sitting high on a rock while her father gathered water for the cooking that night ‘I wonder when he will come back’
‘You mean the one you ran from?’ her father teased standing and looking at her with an amused smile ‘I am surprised you stayed put this time’
‘Father’ she complained tying her hair back with a leather strand and leaping down to help carry the water ‘why is the wolf here so much?’ she asked peaking up at him with curious eyes.
‘He could be hungry, or perhaps there is something here other than food that draws him’ his eyes flicked to his daughters totem pendant as he spoke ‘we will have to wait and see, but I will advise you one thing. If the wolf comes to you, be respectful’
Confused the girl nodded ‘yes father’ she knew better than to ask questions, she would not get an answer just told to be patient. Being the daughter of the chief could be annoying and she often found herself frustrated at his mystical answers to everything, she was a very straightforward girl.
She waited that night, hoping as the wind ruffled her hair to tickle her skin and the sinking sun made patterns with the grass that the wolf would come again.
The sun was hiding behind the trees and her skin was prickled with goose bumps by the time she saw the faint shimmer in the grass that indicated the wolf was there, she smiled and felt a quiver of excitement in her stomach as she watched his approach, wondering how close he would come tonight.
His head emerged through the fronds of grass and surveyed her for a second, seeming to contemplate the dusty bare ground between himself and where she perched on a flat rock. Steadily he began to move forward, his eyes flicking from side to side and his body crouched low to the floor, not nervous, just ready to run if he needed too.
Raines breath caught in her throat and she sat very still, hoping that no one would disturb her now and send the wolf running from her. Her luck held and slowly, step by step and inch by inch the wolf came across to her, his strange eyes never leaving her as he drew closer until he stood not a foot from her.
Not daring to breath Raine reached her hand out to the wolf, palm up and steady, not allowing herself to tremble. Cautiously he sniffed her and she extended her arm to run her fingers over the smooth fur on the top of his head, letting her breath out slowly and smiling as he sat down and allowed himself to be stroked.
Kodiak--
After the first touch from the girl Kodi knew he would never be able to keep away from the native camp, he spent more and more time there each day and she introduced him to her life, the humans in it and how they went about daily life. How they made the robes and the hard work the women did with the pelts to make them into clothes. He loved to sit and watch it all, but the other thing that held his attention was the pack of dogs that lived among the humans as if they belonged there. His favourite of these dogs was a beautiful cream and white curly tailed dog who went by Miakoda, called Mia by everyone she was a shy dog who worked hard and seemed to stay with one of the old humans more often than not. Kodiak would have guessed she was three or four, so around his age, and he had once heard someone call her a husky, apparently a type of dog.
Kodi didn’t speak to the other dogs much, and they didn’t pay him much attention because they were to busy usually, following humans or playing, he wanted to join in with the playing. But he followed the girl they called Raine, he felt safe with her and as the days flew by they became some kind of friends, Kodi knew he would protect her now like she was a part of his pack.
One day in the summer her father called them into his tee pee and sat her down on the floor, Kodi was surprised to learn he could understand every word they said rather than just the odd thing, they spoke for a long time and he listened with his ears lightly tipped forwards, sat next to the girl.
‘Raine my daughter, you have been granted something special by the spirits and this wolf has been sent to you, he will help you throughout your life and you will never know another like him. The two of you will be able to communicate as only animal guides and their humans can, do not take this lightly, you must learn from this and as you grow older you will have much to teach each other, and others in turn’ Raine nodded at her father and held back a small smile, the older man paused and turned to the wolf ‘our people have long respected the creatures of this world and have taken many lessons from you, I am glad that we can continue to live side by side. Now from this day forwards you are one of us and so now I shall name you, your quick and strong and as silent as any spirit that walks the lands with whispered footsteps. You shall be known to us as Swift Paws, the one who is carried by the winds’
Kodi dipped his muzzle in a sign of respect, he knew his life was changing now and instead of being sad he found he felt a new feeling welling in his stomach, a sense of purpose and rightness. He knew he’d found his place in the world now.
Art: http://i853.photobucket.com/albums/ab93 ... /Swift.pnghttp://i853.photobucket.com/albums/ab93 ... z/Kodi.jpgOther: I was originally intending to write about how Kodi got his markings, but as I wasn’t sure if that was allowed or if they were markings, or painted on I thought I would play safe and end the story here without mentioning them. I would have continued but sadly I do not have time, I am away for my birthday from today onwards.
thanks siliandra!!
