Raw's Petpage

Introduction

You fight your way through the deep undergrowth of the forest. Desperate for breath, you sigh and plant yourself down on a nearby log. Your stomach grumbles and you reach into your bag for some sandwiches you packed. Cheese. Do you like cheese? Either way, its all you have to eat, so you tuck in ravenously.

Your heart slowly returns to normal pace. Relaxed, you find time to appreciate the beauty surrounding you. More kinds of plants than you could have ever imagined exist here. Animals chirp happily from every angle and you feel rather insignificant amongst the throng of life all around you.

Taking some private time to contemplate the universe, you sit quietly. As you munch away, your brain fades away into the land of imagination and you begin to daydream.

Suddenly a noise interrupts your thoughts. Startled, you raise your eyes, searching for the source of the disruption.

Its a girl's voice. You can tell from her tone that she is calling someone, though you cannot make our her words. You frown, wondering who she could be looking for out here.

Making your way closer to the sound(after delicately re-wrapping your precious sandwiches!), you begin to make our what she is saying.

Rah? Rah, are you here? Come on Rah!

Rah? What is the girl taking about? It is only after a moment's thought that you realise 'Rah' is a name.

You emerge into a clearing and, at almost the same time, the girl bursts through the trees. She's rather short, with long blonde hair made messy from her journey through the tress.

Oh, hullo there. You recognise a Scottish accent. You haven't seen Rah have you? She asks so casually, not even bothering to explain who this 'Rah' is, that for a second you almost believe you should know.

Er...no, I can't say I've seen anyone about here. What do they look like? I might have missed them. You ask uneasily.

The girl smiles vaguely. Believe me, you would have known if you'd seen him. Great big reptile thing. Good six foot high, if not more. And wings. She flaps her arms in explanation. Yeah, you don't miss Rah.

You search your memory, but to no avail. The girl is right. You remember seeing six-foot lizards.

The silence is awkward, so you speak, eager to offer some kind of help. You say he has wings? How do you know he isn't in the sky or something?

The smile disappears from her face. He can't fly, poor thing. His wings are definitely built for flying, but for some reason, they just don't work. I think it upsets him, though he'd never admit it.

You nod, intrigued by this strange animal.

Her face perks up again. Anyway, I really must be going. If you see Rah, do tell him Amber is looking for him?

She begins to stride away, but you stop her. Hey...Amber! She turns. Do you mind if I just, you know, tag along? It's lonely in the woods, and I'd sure like to meet Rah.

She shrugs. Why not? Grinning, she indicates for you to follow her and continues her route.

Rah? Rah?

You follow behind her, struggling to keep up. Not because she is particularly fast, but because she clearly knows the forest and seems to easily miss the roots and branches that get in your way.

You attempt to resume conversation. So, erm. Is he a pet of yours?

She is uncertain. Officially, yes. Though I wouldn't know if he really fits the criteria. I wouldn't like to say I 'own' him. He's free to come and go. He just sorta clung to our family.

You nod. Somehow the idea of this winged reptile (who is getting progressively bigger in your imagination) being a household pet didn't really sit right.

So, er... Did you call him Rah?

She shook her head. No. He told us that himself. Strange, before he met us, he had always lived in the forest by himself. He has no memory of any family. No memory of any life before. Yet he is certain of his name. Clings to it, though he hasn't the foggiest who gave it to him. Isn't that odd?

You sense an answer is required, so you agree. Yep.

She seems satisfied with the vagueness of your reply and continues. By the way. It's spelt with a double-u. R-A-W. People tend to get that wrong.

Of course, you reply, too proud to admit your mistake.

You fall silent and your journey continues for a while in peace before Amber stops.

Do you hear that? You pause to listen, but she doesn't wait for an answer. Raw? Raw!

A sound from the bushes. Instinctively you take a step backwards. The noise grows louder as you sense something approach. The crash of splintering branches holds a menacing tone and you can't help but fear the creature that is coming towards you.

The sound stops suddenly and you hold your breath in anticipation. You can hear heavy breathing nearby.

Raw! Cooed Amber. I was getting worried! Come on, don't be scared. This is just...just...

It's guest, you offer.

She smiles at you. Yes, guest, they don't want to hurt you. Come on Raw.

You watch as an orange nose appears from the trees, followed by a body. Your jaw almost drops in amazement as you see Raw for the first time.

The first thing that jumps to your mind is dinosaur. The creature's sharp claws, fearsome jaw and magenta crest seem immediately prehistoric and you have difficulty believing that such an animal is still alive.

But what was even more amazing is its colouration. The thing looks like a parrot. Hues from every nook and cranny of the spectrum grace his skin in a shocking yet beautiful way. You understand what Amber meant by saying you don't forget seeing Raw.

And the wings, of course. Huge things. You had been expecting some kind of "webbed" wings, like a bat's. Instead, these were covered completely in feathers, more like a bird's than anything else.

Recovering from the shock of what you are seeing, you look over at Amber, but she pays no attention to you. Instead she is making her way over to Raw, where she begins making noises akin to those one would give a small kitten. Hello Rawie Wawie, did you have a good time out here? Yes you did, yes you did! She hugged his neck and then ran her hand over his nose. Raw did not seem to mind the patronising, instead he flapped his wings in content.

Your courage returns as you see the beast is obviously tame and you begin to stride towards him.

Careful!

Raw roars at you and snaps. Suddenly you notice just how sharp those teeth are and you retreat quickly.

Amber is quick to calm him again, stoking him gently and whispering into his ear until he stops growling. He doesn't like strangers. Definitely not. He's scared.

You're dumbfounded. That thing? Scared of me?

She laughs. Yep, he's got a kind of cute modesty about himself, don't you think? Though you can see nothing cute about it, you nod anyway. Oh. And please don't call him a 'thing,' I've already told you his name.

Oh, er sorry. I just don't see why it - I mean...Raw would be scared of me.

Amber shrugs. Well, he's not really scared. Not in the sense you think. I mean, look at him! Us little humans are hardly going to be able to hurt him! It's just...I don't know. He doesn't like people. It gets him all tense and worked up being around those he doesn't know. It's strange.

Just then Raw nudges Amber with his nose and growls playfully. She giggles and kisses him on the nose. Sorry Raw, I'll try to stop.

You look at the two questioningly.

Catching your look, Amber explains. He doesn't like me talking about him as if he's not here.

He...He just told you that?

Shrug. In a manner of speaking, yeah. He can talk. I could have sworn I mentioned that earlier.

Well, yeah, but I figured he'd talk out loud. Isn't that the norm?

She raises her eyebrows. Really? Look at him, come on now. Don't be daft. Do you reckon someone with a jaw like that can form words? She looks at you in a way that seems to suggest she considers you of below-average intelligence.

So, he's... telepathic then? You venture.

If you want to call it that, then sure. I think that's a bit of a strong word. It's just like talking, except the words tend to skip the sound-wave part and take a more direct route to your brain. We call it thought-speak.

You nod, astonished at the way Raw seems to become more and more complex with every word out the girl's mouth. Can he read my thoughts then?

She shakes her head. No. You're not even really hearing his thoughts. You only hear what he wants you to hear. Which is why it's a lot more like speaking than telepathy. Your mind is safe, don't worry. She smiles.

You aren't particularly reassured.

Amber spots your discomfort. Look, maybe he'd be able to explain it better. Raw, why don't you talk to guest, they seem all right. I'm sure you can trust them.

Frantic, you shake your head. No, really, it's all right. You don't have to -

A strange sensation. Suddenly you feel as if you are not alone in your head. Another presence. Not invasive...almost like a guest. You get the impression you could make it leave if you wanted, but a strange curiosity prevents you.

Hello. I am Raw.

Raw's Design

Colour
Raw colouration is extreme bright. Almost parrot-like, his outlandish appearance is one of much fascination to those who see him. Quite literally a gift from the faeries, his highlighted skin makes him easily recognisable.

Though a thing of beauty, Raw's bright colours cause him much distress, as his instinct to retreat from society is hindered by his bright and shocking appearance.

Wings
Raw's wings are based on a prehistoric bird called archaeopteryx; one of the earliest birds known to man.

Archaeopteryx is frequently considered the 'missing link' between birds and reptiles. Though Raw is a krawk and certainly not a bird, he does have certain bird-like qualities, thus the comparison.

^ Hehe, it's a 'Raw Jaw' - geddit? ^___^

Teeth
Raw's teeth are his main weapon. Like a shark's, they have serrated edges. Though his jaw isn't particularly powerful, these jagged teeth give his bite a deadly edge.

Raw also has sharp claws, providing him with an alternative mode of fighting.

Size
Unlike archaeopteryx, Raw is quite large. He's slightly taller than a full grown man, between two and three metres across, and very powerful.

Raw is fast and exceedingly strong, however this does mean that he has very low stealth abilities. He uses his good sense of smell to stay out of trouble's way as he cannot hide well.

Backstory

It was rainy November day when the egg was discovered.

Azura the fire faerie was hurrying through Faerieland, fighting her way through the heavy downpour. One might have thought that Faerieland was too high to be affected by such storms, but in fact this was where the blizzards were created. Sometimes the weather was worse than down on Neopia itself.

It was really freak incident. With visibility as low as it was, the egg had a thousand to one chance of being discovered. Perhaps in any other universe it would have frozen over in the night and this story would never have been told.

But as it so happened, Azura did see the egg. She approached it uneasily. What on earth it was doing here of all places was beyond her. This section of Faerieland was prohibited to neopets, she couldn't think of any circumstances under which a neopian family would abandon an egg here.

Nevertheless, she was a kind faerie, and gingerly picked up the small orb. It was still warm. Whoever had left it here had done so recently. In faint hope she looked round, but could see no one.

Using her fire magic to keep the egg toasty, she didn't know what to do. Perhaps the faerie council would know. The faerie council was a collection of the strongest faeries from each element. They made the choices on all important matters concerning Faerieland. Surely such a discovery in this area would warrant investigation. And what would become of the egg? Hopefully they would elect someone to care for it and give it the future that its parents had so cruelly denied it.

She started walking

~*~*~*~

Order! Order! The chief Earth Faerie clapped her hands together.

The faeries hadn't been talking. The call for order was more a tradition, rather than any genuine attempt to settle a crowd. Faeries were above that.

The Earth Faerie raised the egg up in the air. It was only in the light of the hall that Azura could now, for the first time, make out its features. It was a dark hue of green, covered in brown spots. It looked infected.

Perhaps the first order of business should be to establish where the egg came from. The Earth Faerie looked round, placing the egg back down.

A small dark faerie jumped up angrily. We know where it came from! Everyone knows Jhudora has been experimenting with pets! The fierceness in her face caused some faeries around her to recoil in fear.

The Earth Faerie shifted uneasily. There's really been no proof of that...we can't just accuse her of something no one has seen her do...

But surely this egg is all the proof we need! A murmur rose in agreement. The Dark Faerie looked ready to argue further, but stopped when her eye caught the egg.

The rest of the faeries turned to follow her gaze, and soon spotted what had attracted her attention.

Cracks were slowly making their way down the sides of the shell. The faeries watched with mild horror as the tip of a nose slowly stuck out. If it could be called a nose at all. When the full head had extended, complete with third eye, an air faerie could contain her disgust no more. It's a monster! Do we need any further proof that this abomination is of Jhudora's making? It must be destroyed!

Her exclamation went largely ignored, as the faeries were entranced by the freakish figure emerging from the shell. It had six limbs. On close examination it could be identified as a krawk, but a terribly, terribly mutated krawk. The faeries were horrified at Jhudora's creation. They could not believe that anyone could have made a creature so foul.

When the hatching was complete, the faeries were left standing in a stunned silence. After a few moments, the Earth Faerie began slowly. I think this changes our priorities a little...I think the infant's future should now be the first issue at hand.

The Air Faerie repeated herself. Isn't it obvious? We must get rid of it! It is against nature, it is nothing of Neopia!

The Dark Faerie spat. You would say that. Everything you say is about appearance. All you air faeries are alike.

Darkness passed across the Air Faerie's face. She opened her mouth, then clamped it shut again and stormed out the room.

The Light Faerie, silent until now, spoke up. I don't agree with her, but the child's appearance does pose a serious problem. How can such a being live a happy life? Even if we could find him a happy family, he will be forever tormented and feared by those around him. I don't see how he can have a future as he is.

Strangely the Earth Faerie's face perked up. My sister, you are right. But you have also forgotten the one gift we can give him. We are faeries, not weak humans. We can give him pity. We can put part of our own beauty into him and let him have the chance that he could never have in this form.

The Water Faerie was uneasy. But he is a creature of Jhudora. How can we possibly know that this is really the best action? What if she has planted evil thoughts in his head? What if he grows up to be evil? With our power we also have responsibility. We cannot just give out our powers like that. We are not a charity. How can we justify such an irresponsible gift? She frowned.

A glare appeared on the Dark Faerie's face. We are not cold or callus. This infant has been abandoned and we are all he has. I will not turn my back on a helpless pup. She folded her arms. I don't know what you want to do, but I shall help this youngster with all I have. I will not let Jhudora ruin a young life like this. She approached the small krawk and picked him up under one pair of arms. He raised his head and licked her under the chin with one of his tongues.

The Earth Faerie nodded. I shan't force anyone to do anything, but I agree that we should help the child and I invite anyone who feels the same to join us.

~*~*~*~

In the end, all but one of the the faeries assisted. They used their powers to remove the child's extra limbs. They transformed his skin from the murky grey to a magnificent, rainbow, explosion of colour. His eyes were no longer repulsive, but a beautiful, deep black. The Dark Faerie gave him sharp claws and teeth to defeat his enemies with, despite protests from the other faeries. They didn't really believe that was the point.

They named him "Raw" after his first word. Azura continually made teasing "rawr" sounds at the young krawk, who quickly mastered the first syllable. Once he had made this first vocalisation, he was intensely proud and wouldn't stop repeating it, much to the mixed amusement and irritation of the faeries.

There was one faerie, however, that had made no contribution. The Air Faerie watched the young neopet from afar, wondering how the others could ignore the monster's dark past. She sulked whenever his name was mentioned and refused to join the other's annoying fawning over the child.

Her attitude would change, however.

One day, while wandering in the Faerieland gardens, she stumbled across Raw. He was caught in the bushes, ferociously attacking them with his teeth. Raw! Raw! Raaaaaaawwww!

Sighing, the Air Faerie knelt down and freed him. She untangled the brambles from his tail and dabbed at the shallow cuts. There. Now shoo. She turned and walked away.

A few moments later: Raw? The Air Faerie turned in irritation to find Raw was still following her.

Go away.

The krawk tilted his head and watched her.

The Air Faerie signed and walked back. She picked him up. What do you want? Food? Do you see any on me? I have no food.

Raw merely chirped and licked her face. Despite herself, she smiled. Cheeky beggar.

Raw!

The Air Faerie started to laugh. Maybe you're not so bad. She tickled him under the chin.

The small neopet yawned and nuzzled into the Air Faerie. After a few moments, he was asleep in traditional infant style.

The Air Faerie watched him sleep for a few moments, deep in thought. Perhaps I shall give you a gift after all, little one. A better one even than those you have been given so far. I will give you the gift that only I can give. I shall give you the skies. A set of wings, brilliant in colour, beautiful as your skin is now. You will be able to fly high with the other faeries and I. You shall live a happy life with us little one. Forever.

~*~*~*~

The Air Faerie kept true to her word. She did give Raw his wings and he soon learned to fly with all the others in Faerieland.

And there the story should have ended. That should have been it. Raw should have lived happily ever after in Faerieland with those who had rescued him. But good things rarely last and that was not Raw's destiny.

In short, Jhudora happened. When she found out that her experiment had been discovered she demanded Raw back. She claimed he was her property. When she heard he had been given wings she was fascinated. Wings were something she did not have the power to create. She was determined to add this new trophy to her collection.

And so the faeries decided to hide Raw. They sent him down to Neopia in the hope that Jhudora would never find him on the vast planet. Though they left him his wings, the Air Faerie removed his power of flight in the hope that, even if he was found, this might lessen Jhudora's desire to possess him.

They thought it best to move quickly, before Raw was old enough to remember his life in Faerieland. They didn't want him trying to find them. And so young Raw was left for the second time without a home. Much of his life is a mystery. It was only many, many years later that he was discovered by a small neopian family and taken in. Up until that point it is unknown to most what happened to him.

One person did know. Lily. The Dark Faerie who fought for Raw's life had gone against the decision of the faerie council to leave Raw to his own devices. She had always checked up on him, guarding him, protecting him. She never let him see her, he didn't know who she was. But she made sure he was safe.

Wilde

Information about Wilde coming soon!

Hang in there! ;)

:3

^Oooh, does this picture make you curious? :O

Just who is this Wilde? C:

Poetry

I am not a poet. You need to know that before you read this :P

This is a "Pantoum," wherein the second and fourth lines of each stanza are the first and third of the next. ^___^

Slying through the bushes,
He slinks like a shy rabbit,
Some feathers green like rushes,
A creature rather of habit,

He slinks like a shy rabbit,
Some feathers bright cyan,
A creature rather of habit,
His journey's just began,

Some feathers bright cyan,
Crest bordering on rose,
His journey's just began,
In light his beauty grows,

Crest bordering on rose,
He raises his head to growl,
In light his beauty grows,
Even in the darkness so foul,

He raises his head to growl,
Strange creature of the sky,
Even in the darkness so foul,
His fierce rainbow shall never die,

Strange creature of the sky,
Never to fly, only dream,
His fierce rainbow shall never die,
Cursed to the ground, it would seem,

Never to fly, only dream,
A light in the black flashes,
Cursed to the ground, it would seem,
Beauty rises from the ashes,

A light in the black flashes,
Is he lizard or is he bird?
Beauty rises from the ashes,
Such a creature to have occurred,

Is he lizard or is he bird?
Surely nature could not have produced,
Such a creature to have occurred,
The colour, never to be reduced,

Surely nature could not have produced,
Such feathers green like rushes,
Such a creature to have occurred,
Slying through the bushes.