Ivan. Cougar.

[Bhu ♥ Irwin]

IVAN
Sometimes when I close my eyes I pretend I'm alright.

Gender: male
Age: 6 months
Birth-country: United States
Species: cougar
*Pride: Esson
*Rank: cub

Eye color: One green and one pale yellow-gold.
Body Build: strong build, average height and length
Fur Length: average

Mother: Ami. Kite.
Father: Skiru. Sam.
Siblings: Tanto. Hala.
Friends: none
Mate: none
Children: none

Do they favor their birth-country, or the USA grounds?: USA born
Personality:

Ivan is somewhat feminine, understandably so. He is calm in most situations, having a maturity about him that goes beyond his age. This laidback view allows him to gather information and store it for later use, letting him have an IQ above that of his pairs. The boy is considerate of others, an aggressive gentleman—meaning he is willing to fight down rambunctious males that threaten the dignity of his lady friends. Ivan is terribly hesitant about males, but quite at ease with females. He is open to the beliefs of everyone, having been taught tolerance from a young age. A truly well-rounded young boy, Ivan can fit in among any crowd open to his presence.

This is not to say Ivan is not also a little boy. He is mischievous and overly-courageous. The boy can cause his parents a good deal of panic if left alone too long to saunter in boredom. When he or his parents are threatened—whether it be their dignity or their lives—Ivan can become savagely defensive. All logic and morals can be forgotten in combat, ethics thrown by the wayside. The boy is a brutal fighter, having seen the lack of justice in the world, and thus not being willing to be the weak one in an evil world. He has little respect for rules that are not set down by his parents, sometimes even allowing his pride to push him over the lines set down by others, simply for the reason that they are not his parent’s rules. A rebel of sorts, the little gentleman has a wild streak and a severe need to be the center of his parent’s attention.

Despite this, Ivan is rather shy. He will talk big but when it comes down to it, he will inch away from those he is not familiar with. One might blame it on his breed, for cougars rarely pair with others outside of mateship, but it might be a deeper reasoning. After having to kill his own sister out of complete mercy, Ivan has withdrawn emotionally. He fears that if he branches out, he may have to do a mercy kill again and it will hurt. That is not to say Ivan won’t be bothered by killing someone he is not emotionally attached to—even enemies kill by his paw will be mourned—but the sting won’t be as deeply set into his heart, and he realizes this. Perhaps pride life revolves around trust and friendship, but Ivan will not allow any more than acquaintanceship.

Ivan is cynical. He believes everyone has an anterior motive for everything they do. Besides his parents, Ivan will question the moves of those around him. It is a firm belief of his that the world is only looking out for themselves, no matter who they have to squash. This said, Ivan has only allowed himself to come to trust his parents. He believes the two are the only ones who look beyond their own noses. This can make him clingy to them, at times, and harsh to those outside the threesome. Even if Ivan is a relatively friendly cat, this does not stop him from mumbling insults beneath his breath, and sometimes raising the tone to even be heard. He will usually apologize immediately after, but even that is often for selfish reasons; no trust means that an insult could lead to the other harming him or his family.

More often than not, Ivan is recalling his past. The image of his sister’s blood pouring from the wound he inflicted, right before she finally fades to death, is a constant reminder that he is a killer. The boy will fall into frequent bouts of depression, sulking around and making no effort to hide the fact that he is burdened with sorrow. Even though he lets himself be physically clear that he is upset, when approached, he will speak with a much different tone. In these sorry states, Ivan becomes a chronic liar, saying that the world is butterflies and rainbows, even as his lips are in a heavy frown.

History:

Ivan was born to the everyday home. A loving mother, and protective father, a cruel big brother that’d secretly would give him the world, and an annoying little sister that would ask him to go all sorts of girly things with her daily. His brother was a year old, while his sister was only a couple days younger. He had a typical early childhood, two months of average home-life with little to mention.

At two months everything changed, though. A band of Folami from the original pack raided their humble home. His mother was killed within seconds, followed quickly by his older brother. His sister hid in the surrounding trees while his father fought to keep them distracted so Ivan could hide, too. For a whole day Ivan cowered in the underbrush a quarter mile away. When he returned to his home, he found his father had joined the ranks of Heaven, and his sister seemed to be close behind. She had been viciously mauled, but her life was still squirming through her limbs. He had approached her, called by her moans of agony. She had begged for him to kill her, and with much hesitance, he slit her throat for a quick, merciless death. It was then he turned and ran for a few days, not stopping (besides for short bouts of sleep) until he heard the snapping of twigs beneath larger paws. Before he knew it, a plump cheetah had found him and brought him to her snow leopard partner. Ivan adopted them as his parents. He lived with only them until Kite convinced Sam to join Esson. Now Ivan tries to pretend it is only them two, despite there being more around him. He hesitates sharing his desire for it to be just them because he knows Esson makes Kite, and maybe even Sam, happy.