As Is Tradition

Jessera was busy looking at the fish, may or may not have heard the soft footfalls and quiet claw-clicking of the canine catching up with her from underneath the bleachers. He was black, tipped in crimson, with brilliant purple eyes.

I don't know if you know how things usually go around this Shrine, but I think I'm supposed to go home with you. And...you're supposed to give me a name.











I Reject Your Reality and Substitute My Own Canine Hybrid Male
Hellhound + Kitsune

Speech: Italic#a70700

Reality would have us believe that this handsome young pup is the offspring of a Warrior Hellhound and a Void Kitsune. Indeed, the black coloration of his pelt, the crimson tipping of his fluffy fox-like tail, the equally crimson kanji for 'Void' scrawled on his forehead right above his unnerving amethyst eyes would suggest that one of his parents was indeed a Void Kitsune, and his ability to breathe fire when backed into a corner would also suggest Hellhound ancestry. Okay, he'll own up to the Hellhound part. This mutt actually isn't as ashamed of his mother, although he's certainly not a fan of Hellhounds as a species. Violent beasts, Hellhounds. Draw blood or bleed. But he can live with that. Hellhounds are at least predictable in their way, and they have their own strange code of honor. But call him on being half-Kitsune, expect denial. Call him especially on being half-Void, expect to get toasted like a campfire marshmallow. He absolutely refuses to accept or acknowledge anything of the sort. It may look like willful ignorance on the outside, but truly, it's shame. He's so ashamed of his father that he denies that half of himself even exists, despite the painfully obvious evidence written into every line of his body. He is a Kitsune's skin pulled over a Hellhound's body, and everything about his appearance screams VOID at the top of its voice.

In this young gentleman's asserted reality, he is half Hellhound and half Illaro. His father was an Ilythiir. That's his story and he's sticking to it. They don't have the best reputation either, but an Ilythiir at his worst behavior is still not a Void Kitsune on his best, and it's much easier to handle day-to-day existence if he just says he's half-Illaro until he almost believes himself.

Why, you ask? Why would such a creature go through so much effort to cling to such an obviously unreal fantasy? It's quite simple, really. Our dear pup was blessed, or perhaps cursed, with a conscience. A Hellhound with a conscience, a Void with a soul. In short, he's a good boy, and so it is that his father's entire Clan doesn't sit right with him. Not a bit. Being a Trickster is one thing, but Voids go out of their way to cause suffering and anarchic chaos, and this poor pup finds that absolutely vile. Much the rebellious teenager running counter to everything his parents represent, he likes helping people. He wants to leave places better than he found them, change the world for the better a little at a time. He's charitable, kind, made of empathy for everyone but himself. As for himself, he can't stand looking into mirrors. Mirrors have a tendency to put cracks into his carefully crafted delusions.

He has the broad-shouldered grace of his mother, the build of a Warrior-worthy Hellhound. Most of his pelt is matte black that seems to drink light without ever reflecting any back, though all four of his paws are dipped in the same crimson that tips his tail and colors the kanji on his forehead, as well as tipping his long, foxy ears. For the moment, he has only one long, fluffy Kitsune tail, but he'll grow one more with age. However, he is only half Kitsune, and he will never grow more than two tails. His grasp of Kitsune magic is shaky, but he tries not to use it anyway, for fear of becoming more like his father. He tends to fall back on his mother's breath weapon when he's in dire trouble.