Lahzuli and Julianne: Together By Fate
Posted: Wed Feb 02, 2011 4:10 am
Savagekin. That's what the night elves called her. Lazuli wasn't really sure what that meant; she was confused by everything happening around her.
Lahzuli knew almost nothing of her past anymore. All she could remember was that she was once human, affiliated with the old ways (what they now called druidism), and that she had been afflicted with the worgen curse. She had already been on the brink of giving into the beast, and becoming a worgen sent her over the edge. Cat form became her sanctuary, the wilds of Gilneas her home, other druids like her, her family.
She and the other savagekin formed a small pack, roaming the wilds, but without the rampant destruction the worgen were causing. One day, the pack came under attack from Gilnean hunters. Only a couple of the druids were killed, the others, including Lahzuli, were captured. Scared, she cowered in the back of the cage they had put her in, hissing worriedly as they approached the city.
Knowing how well druids could aid the Gilnean cause against the Forsaken, the Gilneas were seeking druids of all kinds, including the savagekins. Lahzuli was cornered in her cage and force fed a potion that was intended to free her human mind from her inner beast. The potion had little to no effect on Lahzuli as the druid had long since given into her feral nature. Unable to run away due to the amount of humans and 'tame' worgen around, she did what they told her to do in the hopes of being able to get away and live on her own once more.
Eventually after doing what was requested of her, Lahzuli was taken on the ship with the others to the night elf lands. Confused, she followed the other Gilneans through the pink portal to Darnassus. The night elven city completely overwhelmed Lahzuli. The druid had been pulled away from everything she knew and called things she didn't understand. She cowered into a corner of the city and whined to herself.
During their two years of travel, Julianne and Swiftpaw became an inseparable team; they did everything together. Julianne was so attached to Swiftpaw that she never adopted any other pet. One day when they were out in Northrend exploring, a deadly Scourge zombie snuck up on the huntress. As Julianne was knocked aside, Swiftpaw ran, snarling, to face her challenger. Julianne's bow and quiver had been sent flying when she got knocked aside. she chanted the small heal that all hunters knew for Swiftpaw while she scrambled around for her bow and arrows.
Her left leg was broken, that much she knew. Grimacing through the pain, she finally got an arrow notched in her bow. She spun around where she sat, firing the explosive arrow at the undead. As the shot exploded in the zombie's face, Julianne saw, to her horror, the motionless body of Swiftpaw on the ground. Feeling anger sweeping through her, she blasted arrow after arrow at the zombie, tears beginning to run down her face. Once the zombie was dead, Julianne crawled over to her wolf. She pulled his head into her lap, crying and stroking his blood matted fur, knowing in her heart that her brave Swiftpaw was dead. Devastated, Julianne bandaged and splinted her leg, taking Swiftpaw's dead body to Teldrassil, the wolf's favorite location, and buried him there.
A year had passed since then, and Julianne was once more in Teldrassil to honor her beloved wolf's grave. She had yet to find another companion to replace Swiftpaw, and, instead, found herself travelling alone. Wiping the tears from her face, she rose from the grave, walking slowly back to Darnassus. As she walked through the night elven capital, she saw a gray, wolfish looking bulk out of the corner of her eye. Gasping in surprise, she ran over to the animal calling out, "Swiftpaw!"
The animal lifted its head and turned to look at Julianne over its shoulder. Julianne stopped short as she realized that the creature in front of her was some kind of feline. She struggled to fight back more tears. The maned cat flicked its tail in indifference and lay its head back on its paws with a soft whine.
A night elf druid happened to be passing by the pair. He stopped next to Julianne and muttered, "They say that's one of the Gilneans. She's a type of druid we call a savagekin."
Julianne turned to him, curiosity in her eyes. "Gilneas had druids? What is a savagekin?"
The night elf nodded. "From what I gathered from Celestine, their druids were mostly harvest witches, but some had learned to assume animal forms, especially those bitten by, and turned into, worgen." He rolled his shoulders. "A savagekin is a druid that has surrendered to its animalistic ways and by doing so, begins to lose touch with their humanity and typically cannot revert to their natural forms."
Julianne looked thoughtful. "Thank you for the information, sir."
The night elf bowed. "I must be returning to the Cenarion Enclave. Forgive me."
After watching the other druid walk away, Julianne returned her attention to the Gilnean in front of her. She approached the cat slowly, kneeling down beside it and cautiously putting a hand in the ruff around its neck. The cat whipped its head around, looking at Julianne with wide, mournful eyes. A slow smile spread across Julianne's face.
"Savagekin," she said softly, thinking about what the male druid had told her, studying the feline, "you probably don't even know what that means." The cat whined softly. "My name is Julianne."
The druid struggled getting her feline jaws to form human words. Her attempt at speech resulted in an angry hiss and the flattening of her ears.
Julianne frowned. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize you couldn't speak." She looked thoughtful. "Well...if you can't speak, I doubt you can write..." As he hand brushed through the druid's ruff, she bumped into a leather collar. Feeling hopeful, she spun the collar, trying to see if it had a name on it.
Sure enough, she came across an inscription on the collar that read "Lahzuli." She briefly wondered if the druids had these made for themselves to remind them of their identity and (former) humanity. "Your name is Lahzuli," Julianne said with a smile.
Lahzuli perked up and started purring. Julianne chuckled, feeling better than she had since Swiftpaw had died. "Tell you what, Lahzuli, how about you and I travel together? I'm sure things are confusing for you after being torn away from you homeland and friends, and I could really use a partner." Ecstatic, Lahzuli jumped to her feet, put her front paws on Julianne's shoulders, and licked the human's face. Julianne went into fits of giggles.
From then on Lahzuli and Julianne became inseparable. The bond between hunter and beast ran so deep that the two learned to communicate telepathically, as many hunters do with their pets. Befriending Julianne and becoming her guardian allowed Lahzuli to retain enough of her sentience to not lose herself entirely to the beast that raged within her. Julianne's heart healed from the loss of Swiftpaw as she spent time with Lahzuli. The two complemented each other.
Lahzuli knew almost nothing of her past anymore. All she could remember was that she was once human, affiliated with the old ways (what they now called druidism), and that she had been afflicted with the worgen curse. She had already been on the brink of giving into the beast, and becoming a worgen sent her over the edge. Cat form became her sanctuary, the wilds of Gilneas her home, other druids like her, her family.
She and the other savagekin formed a small pack, roaming the wilds, but without the rampant destruction the worgen were causing. One day, the pack came under attack from Gilnean hunters. Only a couple of the druids were killed, the others, including Lahzuli, were captured. Scared, she cowered in the back of the cage they had put her in, hissing worriedly as they approached the city.
Knowing how well druids could aid the Gilnean cause against the Forsaken, the Gilneas were seeking druids of all kinds, including the savagekins. Lahzuli was cornered in her cage and force fed a potion that was intended to free her human mind from her inner beast. The potion had little to no effect on Lahzuli as the druid had long since given into her feral nature. Unable to run away due to the amount of humans and 'tame' worgen around, she did what they told her to do in the hopes of being able to get away and live on her own once more.
Eventually after doing what was requested of her, Lahzuli was taken on the ship with the others to the night elf lands. Confused, she followed the other Gilneans through the pink portal to Darnassus. The night elven city completely overwhelmed Lahzuli. The druid had been pulled away from everything she knew and called things she didn't understand. She cowered into a corner of the city and whined to herself.
~*~*~
Julianne had been born and raised in Elwynn Forest. She trained as a ranger in the Stormwind army for two years before realizing that the military wasn't for her. She quit and began travelling around the world, becoming acquainted with the forest and wildlife around her. As she lived and traveled through the wilds, Julianne gained a deep respect for them. Julianne formed a deep bond with a wolf she met whom she named Swiftpaw.During their two years of travel, Julianne and Swiftpaw became an inseparable team; they did everything together. Julianne was so attached to Swiftpaw that she never adopted any other pet. One day when they were out in Northrend exploring, a deadly Scourge zombie snuck up on the huntress. As Julianne was knocked aside, Swiftpaw ran, snarling, to face her challenger. Julianne's bow and quiver had been sent flying when she got knocked aside. she chanted the small heal that all hunters knew for Swiftpaw while she scrambled around for her bow and arrows.
Her left leg was broken, that much she knew. Grimacing through the pain, she finally got an arrow notched in her bow. She spun around where she sat, firing the explosive arrow at the undead. As the shot exploded in the zombie's face, Julianne saw, to her horror, the motionless body of Swiftpaw on the ground. Feeling anger sweeping through her, she blasted arrow after arrow at the zombie, tears beginning to run down her face. Once the zombie was dead, Julianne crawled over to her wolf. She pulled his head into her lap, crying and stroking his blood matted fur, knowing in her heart that her brave Swiftpaw was dead. Devastated, Julianne bandaged and splinted her leg, taking Swiftpaw's dead body to Teldrassil, the wolf's favorite location, and buried him there.
A year had passed since then, and Julianne was once more in Teldrassil to honor her beloved wolf's grave. She had yet to find another companion to replace Swiftpaw, and, instead, found herself travelling alone. Wiping the tears from her face, she rose from the grave, walking slowly back to Darnassus. As she walked through the night elven capital, she saw a gray, wolfish looking bulk out of the corner of her eye. Gasping in surprise, she ran over to the animal calling out, "Swiftpaw!"
The animal lifted its head and turned to look at Julianne over its shoulder. Julianne stopped short as she realized that the creature in front of her was some kind of feline. She struggled to fight back more tears. The maned cat flicked its tail in indifference and lay its head back on its paws with a soft whine.
A night elf druid happened to be passing by the pair. He stopped next to Julianne and muttered, "They say that's one of the Gilneans. She's a type of druid we call a savagekin."
Julianne turned to him, curiosity in her eyes. "Gilneas had druids? What is a savagekin?"
The night elf nodded. "From what I gathered from Celestine, their druids were mostly harvest witches, but some had learned to assume animal forms, especially those bitten by, and turned into, worgen." He rolled his shoulders. "A savagekin is a druid that has surrendered to its animalistic ways and by doing so, begins to lose touch with their humanity and typically cannot revert to their natural forms."
Julianne looked thoughtful. "Thank you for the information, sir."
The night elf bowed. "I must be returning to the Cenarion Enclave. Forgive me."
After watching the other druid walk away, Julianne returned her attention to the Gilnean in front of her. She approached the cat slowly, kneeling down beside it and cautiously putting a hand in the ruff around its neck. The cat whipped its head around, looking at Julianne with wide, mournful eyes. A slow smile spread across Julianne's face.
"Savagekin," she said softly, thinking about what the male druid had told her, studying the feline, "you probably don't even know what that means." The cat whined softly. "My name is Julianne."
The druid struggled getting her feline jaws to form human words. Her attempt at speech resulted in an angry hiss and the flattening of her ears.
Julianne frowned. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize you couldn't speak." She looked thoughtful. "Well...if you can't speak, I doubt you can write..." As he hand brushed through the druid's ruff, she bumped into a leather collar. Feeling hopeful, she spun the collar, trying to see if it had a name on it.
Sure enough, she came across an inscription on the collar that read "Lahzuli." She briefly wondered if the druids had these made for themselves to remind them of their identity and (former) humanity. "Your name is Lahzuli," Julianne said with a smile.
Lahzuli perked up and started purring. Julianne chuckled, feeling better than she had since Swiftpaw had died. "Tell you what, Lahzuli, how about you and I travel together? I'm sure things are confusing for you after being torn away from you homeland and friends, and I could really use a partner." Ecstatic, Lahzuli jumped to her feet, put her front paws on Julianne's shoulders, and licked the human's face. Julianne went into fits of giggles.
From then on Lahzuli and Julianne became inseparable. The bond between hunter and beast ran so deep that the two learned to communicate telepathically, as many hunters do with their pets. Befriending Julianne and becoming her guardian allowed Lahzuli to retain enough of her sentience to not lose herself entirely to the beast that raged within her. Julianne's heart healed from the loss of Swiftpaw as she spent time with Lahzuli. The two complemented each other.
Thanks guys.
), I sat down, did some research about savagekin and worgen druids, and started trying to pump this out so I could get back to posting in TotH. XD