Cait Crest

The Cait Crest is the dominant species of Velost Helshire, the Cait Crest is born with two forms and they can freely shapeshift between the two. Each Cait Crest is gifted with magic and magical abilities that would be impossible to perform in either human or wolf form otherwise. Their Wolf forms are symbols of their country and the power they posses in their homeland.

Introduction
The Cait Crest is a powerful and dominant species in the world of Whitefall. They have very few natural enemies, but they are often victims of enemies of their own kind and defects that follow their species. The Cait Crest is most known for their massive tails that can grow up to twice their body lenght. A Cait Crest can live up to 100 years old, however not many reach this age. They are spread across the country, living in cities and villages ruled by an dynasty system where they follow the law set by the Royal family. The Cait Crest has evolved to survive harsh and cold enviroments, they're gifted with short and thick undercoats that protect them against frost and their longer furs protect them from getting their pelts soaked. An active shape-shifting Cait Crest has proved to live longer naturally than a single based Cait Crest.

Young Age
When a Cait Crest is born they're completly covered in short, soft and silky fur that is their underfur. This protects them somewhat against the cold, but they still are in great need of their parents. They have dark pelts with short ears, nose and tails. They're born blind and deaf and don't develop hearing or sight before at least two weeks has passed, and they open their eyes around the 14 to 20 day mark, and their eyes are nearly always pale blue in color, however between 4 to 6 weeks their eyes fade to their true color. When they're newly born they are completly dependable on their parents, especially their mother's first milk as it's necessary to ensure their base of survival and they suckle for the first two to three months of their lives before their teeth develop and they can eat meat. Their fur stays dark the first year of their lives but then it changes and their real colors start to show.

Already from the birth they will recognize their parents voice and howls and can make it out from several voices and howls. At the age of three months they begin to develop strenght in their legs and spine and can begin to move more and sit up on their own, and they will also take their first steps, or in human form crawl. They wobble a lot during this age, but around 6 to 8 months of age they can stand up on their feet and walk more steadily. Their tails grow slowly during this time. Their ears starts to rise and they can start moving them and flicker, but it all variates from pup to pup. Siblings during this time will play fight a lot to establish dominance.

They keep growing in size and forms until around 5 years of age and their spines and hips starts strengthening. They may have attempted transformation at this time as well, and pups will usually bring wolf - and human traits to their other forms but this is normal and will improve over time and it's painless to transform despite the destruction and rebuilding of their bodies between wolf and human.

At the age of 12 their bodies will go through a lot of changes and their tails will suddenly start growing a lot as their spines are almost fully developed. They start to question things and learn more about their world during this age, and will often attend classes where parents or adults organize groups of pups close in age to teach them the ways of their world and species. They're considered young adult at the age of 20, but not full grown before the age of 24 and between this age they will start to try and find their place. They usually stay with their families and cities, but some leave to seek fortune in other cities.

Body and fur
Their wolf forms are very similar to the gray wolf, expect they are incredible large and massive. They have deep chests and often appear more bulky in size. They have powerful jaws with a set in the upper and lower jaw with sharp teeth that can rip through flesh. Their skeletons are similar to a wolfs- expect their spine. They have a lot stronger and thicker spines to support the weight of their tails, and because of this they can move it in many more ways and flexible ways a normal wolf can't, similar to how large cats can. Their fur has several layers, undercoat, inner fur, pelt, and hair. The undercoat keeps the wolf warm with short, soft and thick fur and their pelts are the fur covering most of their bodies, while the hair is a more lighter layer of thin fur that protects them against snow and rain. Their fur colors and pattern comes in several different colors and Traits, and they have classified all the different traits and color defects.

Variations
While there are no sub-species of Cait Crests, there are several different Variantions that can be considered "sub species" despite being Cait Crest by the core. Each Variation has a standard tail form and color or marking trait that falls into one of the Trait Classes and often can be pinpointed to where the parents and the Cait Crest came from. While the variations can mix and change, they tend to be close to the district's standard. Each Cait is able to carry more traits in their genes, but they usually fade out after two-three bloodlines. Outside of the Trait, the Cait Crest can also get the term Aggressive or Passive trait to a regular base.

Highmere
The Highmere Variation is gray, silver, pale-greenish and dull-blue ish. It is very, very rare that they are pure white and often have some different hue of colors and different shades of silver or gray mixed into the markings. Their trait is called Argent.

Bree
Bree's Variation is white, black and beige. Their standard trait is '''Carcoal. '''White wolves are possible and not unheard of, but it's not something that's very common. The Carcoal trait gives them the familiar standard marking of small amounts of black markings.

Deine
Deine's Variation is gray, beige and cream. Their standard trait is '''Geyser. '''It's unheard of that these wolves are completely gray or beige, and their markings can come in several lighter or darker - stronger or duller - shades of their main colors. They are also famous for the 'dots' markings.

Qyethe
Qyethe's Variation is different shades of brown colors. Their standard trait is '''Mire. '''Their colors comes in various types and shades of brown, and the markings are between white, beige, darker, sometimes greenish, markings.

Aaerier
Aaerier's Variation is red and black colors. Their standard trait is '''Couloir. '''Most famous for their strong red colors, black wolves are common too, or strong red colors mixed with black. The markings can come in various colors, but often is colors that compliments the main markings and make them stand out more that splits their pelt with a different color. (Dark color has one or two lighter markings in a different shade, making them stand out a lot more )

Llortach
Llortach's Variation is faded purple, gray-violet, and matt red colors. Their standard trait is Royal . Their colors variates and is the most oddly colored. Commonly variates with dull colors mixed with strong markings and colors to make them stand out.

Ceris
Ceri's Variation is soft and pale brown and pale white/cream colors. Their variation is '''Tan. '''This variation has most variables in color and markings with various shades of brown. They often are labelled as "Qyethe wolves who have been in the sun too much".

Myenal
Myenal's Variation is dark brown colors. Their standard trait is '''Soot. '''They often come in various shades of dark brown colors, leaning towards more gray, cream and red in shades, but they often remain very dark.

Kelk
Kelk's Variation is strong gold/orange, tan and copper. Their standard trait is '''Copper. '''They come in mostly those colors, mixed in with both main coloring and markings which sometimes can make the main body color difficult to classify. The Passive and Aggresive additional trait is where the original Trait is greatly decreased/dulled or extremly highlighted and clear. An Argent with the Aggressive trait would almost appear green. This is a defect in the genes that causes this, but no negative or positive side-effects follow other than looking very different and eye catching.

Defects and mutations
To be added