Getting to the bottom of whatever was happening in Beacon Hills seemed like an impossible task for just one man, which is why Kaleb didn’t plan on doing it alone. However, there was some prep work he needed to do before he tried to speak with the McCall pack, which meant the library first and then a club or bar where he could meet people who actually had personal experience with Beacon Hills and it’s residence.
Once the library was checked off his to-do list, he headed to the bar where he’d interviewed the week before to start casual conversation and make connections. Social graces didn’t come naturally to him - living isolated in the woods as a pack of feral werewolves didn’t leave much time for pleasantries - but he’d had plenty of practice and he’d always been quick on the uptake.
Undoing the first few buttons of his shirt when he walked in, he was hit in the face with the cacophony of scent that accompanied venues with so many people. It was hard to tell who was and wasn’t supernatural without getting closer and, in the end, he wasn’t sure it mattered (he’d heard rumors of human pack members); so he plastered a genuine smile on his face and sat down at the bar, unphased by the slightly sticky counter.
“Is it normally this busy?” He asked the person next to him, leaning forward, his elbows resting against the counter.
“You mind if I sit?” Kaleb asked politely, pointing to the empty space beside them at the table. The library was one of his favorite places in the world. It didn’t matter where he was, he always managed to feel at home surrounded by hundreds of years of knowledge and storytelling. Especially now, when Beacon Hills was essentially imploding around him, it was nice to take a step back and look at the facts.
He was impressed by how much such a small town had on mythology from around the world.
✹☾✮ (gregg sulkin. cismale. he/him ) It seems that KALEB RAYNE has been drawn to Beacon Hills. That’s probably because they are a 23/23 year old ALPHA WEREWOLF. When they arrived here a year ago, they were very ENTHUSIASTIC + DRIVEN, but since then, they’ve been known to be more STUBBORN + CYNICAL. They kinda remind me of making up for your father’s sins, fighting instinct for control, warm smiles, and a nostalgic longing for blurry memories. (ra. 20. est. they/them )
History
- The middle child born to the Alpha of the Rayne pack - a family feared and admired for their commitment to their animal side - Kaleb grew up living mostly off the grid with his family. He went to school to avoid suspicion, but they avoided going to town if possible outside of that. The pack hunted humans unashamedly; they were the enemy - inferior in the eyes of their alpha. As a consequence, almost every wolf over the age of 10 had blue eyes, Kaleb included. He was taught by his father to enjoy killing, to enjoy the thrill of the hunt and the way it felt to take a life, but secretly the whole thing made him feel ill. There was nothing enjoyable about watching the life leave the eyes of a creature so similar to him, he didn’t want to kill humans.
- When he was 12, a group of hunters attacked their pack during dinner - blowing wolfsbane in through a cracked window and killing everyone inside. Well...almost. Kaleb waited until the hunters were convinced they’d finished the job before dragging himself from the house barely alive and taking off in one direction, never looking back. He ran for a few hours at which time everything really sunk in as the adrenaline wore off. His pack was dead, his family was dead, he was the alpha now, and he refused to make the same mistakes his father had. He would build a new reputation to go along with his last name, one he could be proud of.
- Alone and devastated by the loss of well...everything, he entered the foster care system and was taken in by an aging couple who’d never been able to have children of their own. They were drawn to his determination and eagerness to succeed wherever possible - especially in school which he harbored a passion for as soon as he was able to really give it the time he wanted to. Knowledge was power, he and his family had chosen to live in ignorance for too long and he wanted to know everything he could about humanity - about the side of himself he’d never had the chance to harness.
- It was hard, but eventually he was able to get a firm handle on staying human and not giving in to the instincts that had driven his life for the first 12 years. He threw himself into his studies and took to the couple as if they were pack, building his life from the ground up all over again. By the time he’d finished his higher education, they’d both died leaving him alone once more. Having been left most everything in their will, he decided to stick a pin in a map and go wherever it landed, which just so happened to be Beacon Hills.
Present Day
- Fresh out of College and in a town where he knew nothing and no one, Kaleb got a job at a local bar - The Water Hole and used some of the money he’d inherited from the passing of Crystal and Robert Brown to rent a decent apartment a few blocks away.
- There’s something weird about Beacon Hills, he knows it. The last time he tried to leave city limits to visit with the alpha of a pack his father had broken ties with, every one of his instincts had told him to turn right back around so he had. There was something disorienting about it and he has a feeling it’s got a supernatural element to it.
- He plans to talk to the local pack - the McCall pack, he’s been told - about sticking around for a while since he’s on their terf.
- For the first time in a while, he’s been having nightmares about the day his pack was murdered. He relieves the event in snippets of disorienting color and wakes up gasping for breath like wolfsbane is destroying his lungs all over again. It’s unsettling to say the least and he hopes to get to the bottom of it before he can’t stand it anymore.
Personality
Kaleb is an outgoing and generally polite person with the drive and determination to get whatever task he sets his mind to done and done well. He’s quick-thinking and eager to learn both from his own mistakes and other’s, well aware that he doesn’t know a lot about the world all things considered.
However, he can be cynical and stubborn, automatically thinking that the people around him have only the worst intentions - a habit he’s trying to break himself of.
While not necessarily nice, he’s not rude or blunt. His curiosity can also get him into trouble at times, especially when he decides to stick his nose into other people’s business.
Headcanons
- Kaleb still has a tendency to overdo it with food considering he was often hunting for it when he and his family were living off the grid. Really, he always feels hungry and he has to limit the amount of food he keeps around the house.
- He loves learning, both in school and outside of it. Kaleb’s eager to absorb whatever information he can in order to better himself as both a person and an Alpha.
- He resents his father for the way he was brought up and for the ruthless and negative connotations he brought to his last name. The death of the human he killed on his tenth birthday still weighs on him along with the deaths of his family members.
- Being an alpha without a pack was almost unbearable at first, especially alongside being a kid without his family. The weight of his loneliness and failure were almost unbearable and while they still persist to this day, it’s to a lesser degree. Or at the very least, he’s desensitized to it.
- He’s very tactile. He doesn’t even realize it most of the time, but he is. Physical affection momentarily fills the void his pack left.
- He’s had friends, exclusively human friends for the past eleven years, but they’ve never been close enough to feel like pack. His foster parents were the closest thing he’s gotten since the day the Raynes were murdered.
- Since he joined the human world, so to speak, he’s kept his wolf under lock and key. He went from one extreme to another and has yet to find a healthy equilibrium.
✏️ - what school subject were you/are you the best at?
“I suppose I was best in biology and english, though I worked hard to ensure my grades across the board were as good as they could be. The reason those two stick out to me is because I’m most passionate about them, and - from experience - passion is a huge part of success.”
“No, I’ve yet to find the time or the person to pursue anything romantic. I don’t think now’s the right time, anyway, especially with all that is happening in Beacon Hills.”
❛ i love to see a man drown his sorrows. it’s so sexy. ❜ (From Nicola)
“Then I must be the sexist man in Beacon Hills after last night,” he laughed, stifling a yawn into the crook of his elbow. Kaleb was no stranger to hookups, he loved watching beautiful people give in to their pleasure, but hookups with the added weight of their talk the night before were new ground. “Unfortunately, drowning one’s sorrows comes with the added consequence of a persistent headache. I’m going to grab a glass of water, do you need anything while I’m up?” @sunnysxrcasm
“I don’t eat a whole lot of ice cream, but my favorite is mint chocolate chip solely for the color. It’s a lovely one, I think I’d categorize it as one of my favorites - mint chocolate chip green.”
“I’m not going...not today,” Kaleb objected, refusing to pull the covers away from his face to meet the eyes of the woman who had given him everything. It’d been three years since the incident, since the hunters had taken everything from him and left him with a pair of red eyes and a broken heart, but it never ceased to hurt - especially not near the anniversary of their death.
Navami gave a long-suffering sigh and sat down on the bed next to her son, for that was what he was - her smart, brave boy. “I know it hurts, my love, I know - but you cannot let it get in the way of your education. You’ve been cooped up at home for a week now, a change of scenery will do you good. Now up, I’ll make you a nice breakfast and drive you myself since you’ve already missed first period.”
&& Questionnaire
Where are you from? Did you ever want to leave? Why?
“I’m from Illinois. I was born in Shawnee National Park along with my brother and sisters and we were as off-the-grid as one can possibly be in the 21st century. I never wanted to leave, not as a child at least, but I did want to see the world. I’ve always had in interest in Human Geography and the variability of societal norms, it was only fitting I wanted a change of scenery every now and again.”
Who was your family there? Did you have a close relationship with them?
“Up until the age of twelve, my family consisted of my father, my mother, my sisters Kitty, Fawn and Raven, and my brother Wren. We were a pack and we spent most of our time together isolated from the rest of the world, so I like to think we were close, though I’d say I was closest to my sisters Kitty and Fawn. Wren and I butted heads often, most frequently over my father’s comments and a fear that he was the favorite - which he undoubtedly was.”
What was your favorite activity when you were a child? Why did you like it so much?
“As a child, my favorite activity was going to school. Most of my siblings didn’t like it much because it involved socializing with humans, but I always looked forward to it. I love learning, I still do, and there’s so much that the human race has compiled - so much that we now can build off of - I couldn’t wait to sink my teeth into it all. Unfortunately, I had a really hard time learning to read so it was a much slower process than I wanted it to be until I was placed with my foster parents.”
Who did you play with the most as a child? Or were you alone?
“I played most with Kitty and Fawn, mostly because I was tasked with keeping them out of trouble, but I did enjoy it. They’re some of the best memories I have of my life with the pack.”
Who was the most influential person in your life? Did you love them?
“The most influential person in my life was my mother - my foster mother, Navami. She was so patient with me and she never allowed me to feel sorry for myself or to slip behind in anything, even when the tragedy of losing my family was still fresh. I loved her very much.”
What was the most valuable lesson they ever taught you?
“The most valuable lesson she ever taught me was the power of knowledge.”
Are they still alive? Do you keep in contact with them? If they’re not alive, what has their death taught you?
“Unfortunately, she and her husband passed. Their death...I don’t think of it as a lesson, I don’t think death should ever be used as such.”
How often were you told “no” as a child? Did you ever listen?
“As a child, I was fairly well behaved and a quick learner so I didn’t hear the word no often. When I did, though, I didn’t heed it. I liked to think that when I stepped out of line it was for good reason, alas it most often wasn’t, for I was still a child.”
What’s your biggest regret from your childhood?
“My biggest regret is leaving my family behind while they died. I should’ve stayed, I should’ve tried to take them with me, but I didn’t. I didn’t even go back to see if the bodies were still there or to make sure the hunters didn’t take them away as trophies, but I wish I had. I wish I’d thought of them instead of my own survival.”
What are you the most proud of from your childhood?
“I’m most proud of my academic and extracurricular achievements.”
