Riley

[kass2]

g e n e r a l;;

name. Riley
pronunciation. rye-lee
meaning. small stream
origin. Celtic
short names. Riles
pronunciation. rye-ules
age. one and one half years
date of birth. January twenty-seventh
chromosomes. xy
species. ^{vulpes lagopus.} arctic fox


a p p e a r a n c e;;

height/length.

shoulder height. twelve inches
tail length. twelve inches
head-body length. twenty inches

weight. seven pounds
facial markings. Riley is a special kind of arctic fox. He is what a breeder would call a marble. Even in the winter, he doesn't fully lose his brownish gray fur. It lingers all year round on his entire face, save for a white blaze that trails up between his eyes, and wraps around the sides of his snout. This gives him a rather raccoon-like appearance. This color varies, and can be a very dark gray in the first half of winter, to a brownish color in spring, just before his entire coat changes to match the landscape.
coat. Riley's coat is thick and soft, due to living in the arctic and being exposed to harsh, freezing winds. In the winter and fall, it is a pure snowy white in most places, but some spots on his back and tail can contain small traces of gray. In the springtime and summer, his coat sheds and becomes a bit thinner, and it's color changes to a dull dun color, to match the brown fronds of the tundra. His paws are often brown, due to his trekkings through muddy areas. He likes to explore.
eyes. His eyes are a very gentle brown, sometimes appearing golden in the light. They are round like little berries when unstressed, but most of the time they are curved into almond shapes because he is smiling or laughing.
tail. His tail is the average size for a fox. Most of his species consider a long tail to be a sign of beauty and grace, but he loves his tail all the same. It bottlenecks out into a giant brush shape, which sometimes hones to a point when he's running or swimming. It is warm and dry oftentimes, because he can hold it above running water or tuck it under him to hide it from rain. It makes for a good nose warmer on nippy days.
feet. Riley's feet are average sized, but in the winter the fur on them sometimes grows so long that it looks like he's wearing clown shoes. His, and other arctic fox feet look a lot bigger in the winter and fall because they grow an awful low of protective fur to keep them warm.
body build. Riley is very slender for such a young tom. While most foxes his age are still plump with the leftovers of childhood, but Riley loves to run and explore and be active, so his muscles and build are very lean. However, his wiry form is stronger than it looks. When fired up enough, the quick, slender body can tackle with the force of a buck deer. Or so he likes to think.


t r a i t s;;

overall personality. You see, Riley is somewhat of a philosopher. He's always thinking about deeper meanings in life, and interested in finding out who he his, and what place he holds in the world. His curiosity is boundless, and he always has to ask questions, and find out ways to better go about things that were fine to begin with. In this way, he tends to make some things harder on himself.

Although he always thinks about things before he does them, his curiosity can get him in a lot of trouble. He is very playful, and loves to find new adventures and exciting things to do, but he seems to have this shadow over him that lingers from a past experience, which causes him to look over his shoulder with a paranoid expression sometimes. He loves a good prank, and loves even more a good laugh. But he knows when to be serious, and he will fight to the death anything that threatens him or one he loves. When this change shows in him, he can go from happy-go-lucky to downright scary in about five seconds.

Riley can act a little odd sometimes, and is over obsessive about being courageous in strange situations. However, every time he tries to act brave and lead the way, a strange apprehensiveness comes over him, and you can just tell that his pretending to be brave is just a mask for a slithering fear just below the surface of his skin. No matter how hard he tries to have fun like he wants to, Riley is always hesitant, and considers the situation before taking action. He is hoping to teach himself to be more spontaneous when he settles down in a good place.

While Riley is jumpy at times, he's usually friendly, and is always loyal to his true friends. He bonds easily with other creatures, being a nice fellow, but once his trust is lost it is hard to earn back. Riley is known to hold a grudge, not only with animals, but with things in nature that are oftentimes unchangeable.

This young fox is looking for a friend, or somebody that can love him for who he is, and teach him to be a better fox. He loves to learn, and when he has things to teach occasionally, he loves to share them. He is very generous, and kind, although most of the time he can seem a little quiet and reserved. Don't let that fool you though; Riley is longing for some company in the big, harsh world.
likes.
- bravery
- honesty
- sassy animals
- having his wit challenged, but not overlooked
- individuality
dislikes.
- mean or nasty animals
- careless creatures
- selfishness
- being ignored
- being threatened
fears.
- bears/ big animals
- loss of those he loves
- being alone forever
- thinking about things too much and never getting to enjoy them
- that he is incompetent
wants.
- a home
- a mate
- to have some fun and adventures
- to make new friends
- to learn his place in the world

h i s t o r y;;

family members.

parents. Russel ^{his father}
Rhonda ^{his mother}
siblings. Rachael ^{younger sister- same litter}
Randy ^{older brother- same litter}
Raven ^{older sister- same litter}
children. none

relationship. none
past. Riley was the third pup born in a litter of four. His parents, both born into traditions of naming their children with R's, named all four children with names beginning with that letter. Riley never was fond of that. He complained to his mother that it stole his individuality, and made him feel like he wasn't special. He was always thinking up ways to 'fix' other problems too.

"Why dun't we gotta big den like badger mama? Ya know, if'n we all pitched in, I bet we could have enough space to run 'roun in the winter. And the food cache could be bigga too. Why, we'd feast all winter!" His mother could lick his fur and nudge him against her belly with the others. How had he learned to talk so much? It seemed like he never stopped thinking. "Well dear, it's too cold to run around in winter. The tight space keeps us warm. And what's the use of extra space if we can't catch enough prey to fill it?"

"Oh, but mamaa!!" he would drawl, and she always replied to any of the kit's complaints with a cuff around the ears, and a soft murmur of "Drink your milk, Riley," or "Oh Riley, stop whining and go play with your brother and sisters," or "Riley, stop pestering me. Aren't there more exciting things to do than think up answers to nonexistent problems all day?"

Riley was never satisfied with these retorts, and he would slink off to another part of the den and sulk.

One day, the curious pup heard a dripping noise up the tunnel of the den. On stubby little legs, he bundled up the narrow walk and stood near the entrance, looking out. "Wow! Guys, guys!! Come lookit!" His siblings came cantering up out of the darkness and skidded to a halt beside him, their jaws hanging open. Before them, the arctic tundra spread out in crisp clear colors that they'd never even seen before. Green grass, purple wildflowers, and a huge blue expanse above. This was their first time seeing anything outside of the den. As they scampered out, a terse command rang through the air. "Now you better be careful ya silly li'l pups. Remember what I warned you about. There's danger everywhere. Don't go far!"

And every day, they would tussle and tumble about outside the den, with their mother keeping strict watch over them in the chilly air. For the most part, they were not bold in any explorations. Nobody wanted a tail full of bear teeth.

But Randy, the oldest sibling, couldn't bear it any longer. As soon as mama's back was turned one day, he whispered. "Hey. Ima go lookit wa's over that thur rise. If ya wanna come, come quick, 'fore mama sees and gives us all a beatin'."

Riley, whimpering protests, followed his siblings as they slunk out of view. Randy turned and snapped after they were hidden in the tall grass, "Riles, I dunno why you always gotta think so hard 'bout everthin'. Can't you just be brave and have a little adventure ever' once in a while?" Riley, not wanting to look like a coward or a killjoy, snapped his jaws tightly shut and followed the other three on stiff legs.

Randy and his sisters should have listened to Riley. Instead, they went off giggling into the brush, the youngest brother dragging his tail behind him. Without warning, a huge maw of glistening white teeth snapped out of the brush, and in a few swift chomps, Rachael was dead and lying limply on the ground, and Randy had lost a leg. Yelping in fear, the three scrambled off as the white body emerged from it's hiding place. Randy stumbled, the stump of where a hindleg used to be hindering him as it dripped blood. The bear caught up and snatched him up, flinging him like a fish towards the sky. Randy arced up into the air flailing his legs in horror, and came down into the bear's mouth. Crunch!

Raven and Riley sprinted back to the den, and managed to bolt back inside before the bear caught up. Their mother stood at the den entrance, her hackles bristling defensively as the bear approached. After they told what had happened, Rhonda's eyes glistened with sadness, and she forbade them to ever leave her sight again.

The remaining two puppies grew up strictly guarded after that day, and only once they had been fully taught in the ways of surviving on their own, did Rhonda let them out into the world to find their own lives. Riley, wanting to escape the sad memories his home held, struck off on his own. Through word of the grape vine, he heard that his father had drowned in a flood during the fall, and Raven had gotten a mate.

Off now on his own, he seeks to create a future of his own, and have many more adventures. He has learned the sly ways of the fox, and is determined to use them to have fun, and keep enemy fangs out of his hide.