Tough as Nails Adoption (Closed for renovations!)

[kitten5862]

I'd try out for him/her. :3

I'll probably post a form for #10 as well, can we still do two?

I am pretty sure you can still do 2.

[TheCalicoTabby]

DONATION!
Picture:
Name: (Not required)
Species: Cat
Link to lineart: My own art.
Any extra conditions?: Please send me (Hawkwing) any art you get of him/her, or just a link to an art thread. =3

[AnbuBlackShinobi]

[ Still Editing! :3 ]

I would like to adopt!
Number: 10
Picture:

Name: Oriole "Orion" Kazelio
Species: Spotted Hyena + Striped Hyena Mutt [ Hybrid ]
Personality: Very young, very cocky and very strong. He has power but has no formal training in how to use it and so thinks he has no limits and would make the perfect fighter. Of course, he's also a teen in love and is very romantic, always looking out for his own kind and the ones he holds dear to his heart.
Likes: Fighting, Belt [ See Background ], Running, Meeting new People, Sleeping Under the Stars etc...
Dislikes: Most nothing except guns...
Background: Oriole was laying under the shade of a tree on the top of a green hill. He was looking as if he were in deep thought. Then, he heard and smelled one of his closest friends, or more to be considered his mate, approaching. “Hello, Belt.” He said without turning to her. Belt was a beautiful striped hyena, with the most beautiful eyes and the softest fur. She nodded to him and stopped beside him. “What’s on your mind?” She asked when seeing his expression.

He looked determinedly to the mountains and the human villages to the north. “I want to live with humans. To study them, and to fight for them. Then, when I’m done fighting, I want to go and join in a Pack to spend the rest of my days with you.” He said. He glanced to his side to look at Belt. She was standing, pondering what he had said, and then flopped down so she was laying next to him, their pelts brushing.

After thinking it over, she cracked a smile. “That’s such a cliché life!” She couldn’t help but laugh. She rolled over to her back, paws in the air and eyes gazing to the sky. Oriole looked at her tenderly through narrowed eyes. Oh, how much he loved her. She turned slightly and fell to her side, staring at his face. His ears flushed hot and he coughed and looked away, resting his muzzle on his front paws. He could hear her chuckling as he did this, as if she could sense what he was feeling. If this were any other she-hyena, he might have been mad, but he could never be mad at her.

He heard her let out a sigh and shift so she was leaning against him. He picked his head up. “But…I don’t see how it’s cliché.” He said finally. Belt snorted and flicked one of her ears. This is what she did whenever she was irritated. Instinctively, Oriole flinched. “Orion,” she started with his nickname, “every Hyena dreams of fighting and moving to the human villages. All of them want to be by those creatures’ sides, and, well, I just don’t want you to go away like all of them…” She trailed off and he felt her pelt bristle. “My dad wanted to go and fight, so he went and fought. He was good. He won many battles against other hyenas, but…someone stronger always comes along, and soon he was killed.”

Belt shuddered at this memory that she had tried to forget. Slightly shocked by this information, Oriole licked her muzzle. She made a rumbling sound and then closed her eyes, laying her head down. He put his head on hers, and together they stayed like that. For the whole night they felt each other’s warmth, and eventually fell asleep under the stars. This is the way I always want it. He thought before he drifted away to dream. But I know nothing good lasts forever, and I need to set out on my own path sooner or later…

Oriole jolted awake the next morning and found himself a few feet away from Belt. He rolled to his feet and got up slowly, feeling the slow breeze of dawn and the approaching sunlight. Belt didn’t wake up. Getting his thoughts together, he stretched and licked his chest, head bobbing with the rhythm. Half of him wanted to stay and wait for her to wake up, and then head back to the den. The other half wanted to run free now, as he knew it would hurt her, but he was also confident this was his only chance. He huffed and stopped his grooming session and once again peered to the rolling peaks and valleys of the distance. He bit his lip and quickly went to Belt’s side and licked her forehead, whispered a note of his passion to her, then he turned, racing down the hill.

--

He was in the village in less than a day. He had ran for a few hours, and eventually the bush thinned out to concrete and tall buildings that were painted mostly in whites, browns and reds. He sniffed around the edge of the strange place, not remembering any of this stuff in the Elder’s tales. They had said it was a low place with dirt and straw huts…and these defiantly were made out of some sort of rock and wood.

Suddenly a cackle broke through the air. Fur bolting straight up, Oriole jumped around with a vicious snarl, ears pressed back and eyes glinting a furious blue. Standing there was a she-dog. Her ears were flopped over and her body had very, very short tan fur. A long tail stretched bolt up and she looked confident with her bold eyes and small, lean structure. But what terrified him most was how she was not the least bit scared of a wild hyena. “You’re in my territory.” She said, winking with a sly grin.

Oriole opened his mouth to reply, but could say nothing to her except empty stammers. He had never met what was called a ‘dog’ before, and even the stories couldn’t have prepared him for their elegance and cockiness. She was smirking and padded up to him. He took a step back, but then remembered that fear would do no good in a situation like this. He brought back his snarl and crouched down in an offensive position. The dog put on a fake scariness and gasped. “Oh! No! The flimsy little hyena is going to hurt me! An Africanis!” She said, but then frowned. “Really, pup, you’re in my space. Get out. Go back to your pack, to the wild, to whoever that she-hyena I smell on you is. Trust me, you don’t want to go any further into this city. It’s changed. Your kind is no longer needed here.” She barked threateningly.

“…What?” Oriole managed to sputter, utterly confused. The dog sighed deeply and went into a long explanation on how the Africans no longer needed the hyenas. The hyenas used to be the protection of the village and acted as soldiers in past times and were respected as gods, but recent technology allowed them to no longer need their teeth or claws. They had dogs and machines and, most of all, they had guns. She told him about how they caught hyenas now and sold them. How they were cruel to the wild. How they had lost their former intelligence and third sight and respect.

All through this, Oriole couldn’t believe what he was hearing. It fit what he was seeing around him, but not of the stories he had been told. His kind of rare breed of hyena had been sought out because they were better. His kind has a special gene that gave them their odd coloring and muscular look which contributed to their strength. They were defiantly stronger than the average hyena, but not insanely powerful. He had no clue that he was feared now, as something inhuman. That the humans the dog called monsters wanted to hunt him out, to destroy him in any way possible.

Finally, the dog finished her explanation and licked a paw, running it over her lean face. “So you see, you shouldn’t be here. I’ve been sending your kind home, to safety, for most of my life. I’ve seen what they do to you. It’s not pretty.” She put her foot down and looked at his broad face. “I don’t want it to happen to another canine ever again. So…just…please. Go. Leave. Never come back. Spread the word…just go home, pup.” She said sadly and started to turn, when he stopped her.

“Wait! I can’t just…go back home a failure. I left everything for a life; the life I thought was supposed to be a dream. Is there no way for me to succeed here?” He asked. The Africanis growled deep in her throat and it looked like a painful image was flashing through her brain. She continued to walk away, looking angry. But, she paused and spoke over her shoulder. “You can still fight, but it will be for nothing but survival. You won’t like it, and if you enter the ring, you’ll never, ever leave.” She said sternly, and then sprung forward, bolting away from the scene.

Left to look blankly in front of him and night quickly approaching, the hyena sat down and went over things. He went over what he should do, and wondered how Belt was getting along without him. She was probably mad…or sad. Or both. Finally, with a grunt, he decided fighting was better than no fighting, and he might just get lucky and end up like that dog, with his own territory. Though he had not taken any interest to the scars of whips that covered her body under the thin fur line.

He got up and ran into the city, feeling slightly scared, but telling himself to stay strong. He passed through a few yards, and eventually the houses started to close in and he was sliding from one to another. Litter was everywhere, and every time he saw a human, he shrunk back, trying to decided whether he should try and speak to them or not. By nightfall, his pads felt worn and were bleeding slightly and he was weary from not enough sleep. Human after human wandered past without another glance to the dark alley. He hadn’t seen another dog or another animal for that fact, except for a beetle who could only say the word “Run!” and he screamed it before buzzing away.

Sleepy and thirsty and tired, Oriole forgot about scenting and stumbled onto a sidewalk. No one was around, but next to him a door opened up and a small child skipped down the front steps. She looked over in his direction. He smiled, showing his teeth and opened his mouth. “May…may I come into your den for some sleep and food?” He asked. But in response, the child screamed. He growled as the high-pitched call hit his ears and he crouched low to the ground in a submissive fashion as she ran inside and was yelling some indistinguishable language. A moment later, an older version of her glanced outside, also screamed, and then everything fell very quiet. He got up and wearily moved. They had closed their door and he whimpered.

Suddenly there were shouts in the distance. He jumped in hope and turned around. There were humans running at him. They had something long and made out of metal in their hands. It smelled foul and he could see right up it. It had a wooden handle and something like…a trigger? Was this a gun? Why were they pointing it at him? From the dog a bit ago, he had heard that they were bad and were also loud. He shriveled to the side of the sidewalk as they came around. A human came with a different kind of gun and aimed at Oriole, and fired a shot. It hit him in the side and the hyena yelped in pain that shot through him.

Defensively, he barked wildly and ran at them, but as the guns were pointed to him again, he put his ears back. But it was not just those, it was also the fact he felt drowsy. Stumbling, he crouched and attempted to stay awake, but soon his eyes fluttered closed and he collapsed to the ground. The humans swarmed him and dragged him into a cage, locking him inside. They then put him into the back of a van and then carried him off.

[ I'm sill working on this! X3 I wrote more, and it explains how he woke up in a room of fighting dogs with a band attached to his foot as an ID, and how the tight ring around his tail was so they would know how to dock it later. He was then thrown into the ring to test his strength and then pitted against a lion. :3 Haha, he survives, don't worry. XDDDD I figured you didn't want me spamming the page with my long posts, though. ]

[Toadfoal]

Aaaa! My whole thing got deleted and I have to write it ALL again!!! *huddles in a corner* So. Many. Paragraphs.

I would like to adopt!
Number: 7
Picture:
Name: Shou ( For some reason I love that name 8D )
Species: cattle dog/german shepherd/ something unknown
Personality: Shou is very much independent. He's got an extreme amount of energy, but he can also be very calm and majestic like. He could easily be compaired to a buffalo (except not in a herd). One minute he's something beautiful and awe striking, slow and confident. Then in less than a moment he's gone in a burst of speed, and you might find yourself being trampled, outwitted.

He's the type of dog who's not ordinary, but not too extrordinary. He can weather anything, both in mind and body. When it's sweltering hot, he sheds and makes use of it to catch pray that might be sunning or hiding under rocks. When it's freezing cold his coat grows long, and he's been known to dig ice caves, masterfully built ice caves. He might spend a whole winter in them, or simply make them for lack of anything else to do. When there's a raging storm he goes out and howls with the wind, sitting calmly, unwilling to give in to mother nature easily.

He's easy to admire, being a loner most of the time. But he gets along with almost everyone he meets. Often going by the motto, "Keep your friends close, and your enemys closer." While energetic and sometimes ruthless, he's also very smart. He'll find a way to create almost anything he needs, and can be dangerous with the knowledge he aquires. Perhaps the only quirk to being smart is the fact that much of his natural instincts have died off. He doesn't tend to run when there's danger, in fact, he flirts with it.

Even when he speaks, you can tell how intelligent he is, often using large words that nobody understands. He has a hard time disguising his accent, which is western, though he's not from Texas. His best accent immitation is Austrailian, and he isn't half bad at a Swedish accent either. (he doesn't speak Swedish) His belief is that the world should be left alone, allowed to grow, and he spends lots of time in open grasslands when he can.

One of the main reasons why he's able to get along with everyone so well is his unique ability to lie. He's not at all "bad", but he can give that impression if he needs to. And while he may pose as a loyal servant or companian, there's usually a good reason to it that has nothing to do with loyalty. Thus, he often hangs around those with power, as he can usually outsmart them, no matter what kind of creature. He's cunning, and sly as a fox. And he's accomplished a lot this way. Shou has a wonderful reputation, for those he needs to trick rarely find out that they've even been tricked, or if they do, he's never a suspect. And to boot, he's still just a young adult.

Likes: Shou loves to challenge himself, he'll find a way to throw rocks with is mouth so that the skip across the water, he has patience with that sort of thing. He also loves cool (around 70-75 degrees F) quiet days, which he spends laying around and eating as much as he can.

While he loves the quiet, he also enjoys a good thunder storm, he'll sit under a rock, almost invisable, and whatch tornados from a safe distance. Storms like these have always sparked his interest, from the time when he was a tiny puppy. Though something mysterious happened to him that made him loose the memory of his parents, if he had any. (he doesn't remember much from when he was little, there's a big black hole in his memory)

He mostly loves food, glorious food. He'll eat almost anything, as long as it's edible (usually). He's had a few run-ins with rotten meat and predator poison, but always comes out alright. He has to be careful though, that nobody decides to feed him something he shouldn't eat.

Dislikes: Shou hates birds, he's not quite sure why, but for some reason every time he sees a vulture or a hawk he has a strong impulse to tear it apart. He rarely catches any though, and they taunt him about his fears when he fails to do so.

He's afraid of fire. While he doesn't see it often, when he does Shou doesn't hesitate to take to the hills, running as fast as he can in a blur or black, white and brown. Which goes along with his odd fear of mind control, and guns. (he's only come in contact with humans once, and the one he was unfortunate enough to meet though he was a wolf and tried to shoot him) He has a hard time overcoming his fears, but manages quite well wherever he is or whoever he's with.

Background: As I mentioned earlier, Shou's background isn't really known. He seems to have cattle dog and german shepherd blood, but there's something else that he nobody can seem to quite put a name to. He's never been owned by anyone, he knows that for sure, but where he was born or who his parents are/were is still unknown. The huge blank spot in his memory seems to go from his time of birth to the moment he reached young adulthood. (which is now, he's just fully grown) There does seem to be a few slivers that managed to wedge their way into his mind though, he seems to remember seeing lots of blood, dark objects moving about the sky and on the ground, and convulsing in a series of seizure like spasms. After and before that, nothing. He's not even sure how old he was when these memories occured, or if they're even real. (Which might explain his fear of mind control, he has nightmares that his mind was warped somehow) He never wakes up screaming/howling from these nightmares, because he's far too confident. Shou is an overall very good dog/whatever the unknown part is, and whatever might have happened in the past has been put behind. He's quite content looking forward to a bright and adventure filled future.

(I didn't want to write an adventure/role play explanation, I don't know if that hurts my chances of getting him (I hope it doesn't!) but if it does I can always write in what's about to happen to him)

Edit:
Out of it's fence, away from the comfort and protection of a farmer and flock, a lone sheep wondered. To be truthful, it was a lamb, and having slipped through a hole in the fence (where she and the other sheep were usually kept in when they weren't grazing) was enjoying the sudden freedom. Carefree, the lamb bounded along the wide open spaces, bleating and grazing every few minutes. Her stubbly little tail wiggled nervously as she stopped suddenly, sensing danger.

"Such a beauty, what to do?" Shou sat out of sight, hidden in the brush while he watched the lamb. "It will die without it's mother, I can tell it's not even fully weaned by the way it only eats a little grass at a time. The farmer will never find it. Some scavenger will eat it when it starves to death if I don't get it now..." He continued to watch thoughtfully as the lamb wondered nearer. He was so hungry, hadn't eaten in days. Besides, there would be no way for him to bring it back to it's home. Lambs were not like their adult counterparts, they were carefree, and too dumb to even run the right way. Killing it now, before it starved to death, was doing the poor thing a favor.

When the lamb got close enough he dove out of cover, racing towards it. The lamb spooked, bleating and cried in panic, as it tried to decide which way to run. It chose wrong, as Shou got closer, it bounced up, landing right in front of him so that he crashed right into it. He grunted as they both tumbled over into the grass. "You've got spirit, I'll give you that." He said at the no burr covered lamb as it tied to stand up and run again. He knocked it back over quickly with one paw, whacking it in the jaw. The fell, and rolled over, sitting up, there it sat, panting. Finally it fell onto it's side, too exhausted to get up. "Okay, you win." It seemed to say, looking up at Shou with big frightened eyes that were also submissive seaming. He stared into the creature's eyes, feeling trapped suddenly. Shou had to admit, he loved baby animals of all sorts (except humans, but he didn't ever come in contact with them, so they weren't something to worry about) and felt no different with this one. "I wish I could raise you... I'm so sorry." He whispered to the lamb, and bent down, quickly snapping it's neck with one bite. It was fast enough that the lamb felt no pain as it crossed worlds, she felt light, happy, even freer than before. Shou stared at it's body for a moment, a single tear dropping of the end of his nose onto the soft white lamb, who's coat was now turning a crimson red as it's blood seeped out the wound in it's neck.

He recovered, and began to drag it into a small area of trees that grew next to a dip in the land, the dip was usually filled with water, but now it was dry. He dropped the lamb, and lay down next to it, digging in while the meat was still fresh and warm. He silently thanked the spirit of the lamb for providing him with food, when a sound caught his attention. Cautiously, a skinny young coyote revealed itself. The little female must be feeling the effects of drought and famine as well. Shou felt bad for taking the whole lamb for himself, it was plenty big enough to share. "Would you like some?" He offered her, and she slowly stepped forward, nodding her head. They ate together, side by side. She wasn't much younger than Shou, and as they ate he couldn't help but glance, and even stare at her. Despite the fact that she was emaciated, the she-coyote was strikingly beautiful, with short silky golden fur dappled in shades of brown.

He learned that her name was Peta (a female native American name meaning "Golden Eagle" Not the kid from "The Hunger Games") and he began to fall in love. Peta had a smile that could calm the tides of war. As she grew healthy again they talked more. She told Shou of her life, how she had been named only when she earned it. And though they were of different worlds, they didn't seem to notice. They traveled great distances, young and in love. Out in the wild, they would sit together, side by side and watch the rain fall, or leap and play in the glowing pool fueled by the Great Waterfall of The Spirits.

When Shou learned that she was bearing his pups he was shocked, overjoyed. "I will finally have my own pups to love and care for!" He exclaimed, licking her face happily. But they were still so young, both having just reached sexual maturity. When it came time for Peta to have the puppies, there was difficulty. She was so small and petite, so easily broken. The young coyote only had one, and Shou saw it only for a moment. He was surprised to see a large, young white coyote. But as the blood cleared he realized in horror that it was not at all a coyote, it wasn't even canine. There before him blinked the eyes of the lamb, and it was the lamb, and not the daughter he had hoped for. "Impossible!" He yelled, stumbling back in shock. The lamb began to glow, for it was really a spirit. "Shou, I am sorry as you were sorry. Peta will live, but she has bore no pups. Nor will she ever. I needed to show you, to teach you. You have been kind to all in your path, but she and you cannot be together. Go Shou, when she awakes, you must be gone, and all that has happened will be forgotten to her. There is a reason, but you will not learn that now. Just remember this, my name is Oya, remember my name." The lamb faded, and Shou was once again faced with reality. He had never felt so sad, the one he loved, Peta. "I must go my love." He whispered in her ear, licking her face gently. He turned, and began to walk away slowly. *I must not look back.* He thought, for if he did he would surely run back to her. He broke into a run, heading off again. As he ran a sound was heard behind him, the screech of a Golden Eagle.

As Shou continued in his life of solitude, he too forgot about Peta. He learned to be happy, and to those he met he was a passerby. Forever young, forever smiling. He had been allowed to experience love once, and he was glad. But still the name Oya was engraved in his mind. How the simple lamb that had caused him to meet Peta could possibly be of any other significance he did not know. The cattle dog part of him was more curious, the German shepherd part unconcerned, and the unknown, well, sometimes he didn't feel anything from that part of his being. He would go on to have many adventures, learning as much as he could, and mingling with all those in his path. That is, until the day when he would know the true identity of the lamb, for it was not at all that.

[AnbuBlackShinobi]

[ Oh! I noticed that when typing on Microsoft Word, that 'Oriole' was considered a word, so I went ahead and looked it up...

1. Any of various colourful passerine birds, the New World orioles from the family Icteridae and the Old World orioles from the family Oriolidae. [http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/oriole]
2. A player on the team Baltimore Orioles. [http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Oriole] ]

[AnbuBlackShinobi]

[ Awesome application, Todie! :3
Oh - he hates birds. XD I wonder if he would hate Oriole, then? X3
* gestures to post above * ]

[Toadfoal]

[ Awesome application, Todie! :3
Oh - he hates birds. XD I wonder if he would hate Oriole, then? X3
* gestures to post above * ]

(yours is awesome too!

Nah, I'm sure he'd get along great with Oriole! He usually just hates birds of prey, and what's more, I don't think he knows what an Oriole is. XD I bet it would be pretty interesting if they met though! By the looks of it Shou could learn a lot from Oriole... ya know what I just noticed? They both hate guns and we both posted our forms at 11:57 8D)

[Atwood]

The project the wolves are from was making wolves from colours and designs based on completely different species, so Oriole is loosely based on the patterns and colours of an oriole (actually much toned down in colour, since those birds are blindingly orange), Kingfisher has the colours of a kingfisher, and Polly is a Polyphemus Moth.

A rather battered example, but you can get the idea. That's an adult's hand it's sitting on, by the way - those things are huge, and you can actually feel their weight when they land on you. O.O I got one in my house a few years back, and it definitely isn't a thing you soon forget! ^^

[Smithereens]

*pops in*
Oh geez, Atwood, that image freaks me out DDD8 I almost got a heart attack. :,D

I see some great designs here C: I'm just tired of all those Sparkly-Neon-Scene-Gloom-Whatever-Things. :,D
And I've always been a fan of natural colored characters C:

I might donate some designs soon 8D

[AnbuBlackShinobi]

Ooh! I love moths! Though I don't understand why others don't. XD
Them being based off of those animals just makes them all the cooler! :3