Character History and Background

Mercedes 'Mercy' Thompson is the daughter of an unwed teenage mother and a Blackfoot indian who used to do the rodeo circuit. Her father was killed in a car accident before he ever knew Mercy's mom was pregnant. He was also what is known as a walker - a person who can shift shape in a way not tied to the phase of the moon - into a coyote in this case. Mercy's mother knew nothing about this until as a baby Mercy began shifting into a coyote pup in her crib. Her very young mother wasn't prepared to handle this and after consulting with an uncle who was a werewolf, sent Mercy off to live in Montana uner the protection of Bran, the Marrock or the leader of all the werewolves in the country, and his pack (also called the Marrock after their leader). Her foster parents died when she was fourteen, and she lived on her own from that time on, though she remained in Troy, Montana with the pack until she was 16 - not particularly well-liked by a number of the pack due to her different nature and her knack for getting into and causing trouble. She fell in love with an older were named Samuel - the Marrock's son - and when the Marrock caught them kissing in the woods he told Mercy to pack her things and that she needed to leave and return to her mother's. She and Samuel planned to run off together and get married until the Marrock told her Samuel only wanted her because she would be able to bear him children.

At that point she ran off alone, but ended up on her mother's doorstep after all - discovering a stepfather and some half-siblings, none of whom had any idea she even existed. She stayed there until college where she received a degree in history and promptly went off and became an auto mechanic working with a member of the fae named Zee and nominally at least under the protection of Adam, the alpha of the local werewolf pack in the Tri-City area. At that time the fae had still not come out to the public. When they were forced to, Zee had to give up his business due to huge anti-fae sentiment and he sold it to Mercy. She lives in an old single-wide trailer which is basically in back of the alpha's house - though she's quick to point out that she was there first and he could have chosen to build his house elsewhere. She enjoys antagonizing him by leaving an old 'parts car' in the back yard, knowing it offends his sense of order.

She lives in a slightly uneasy accord with the members of the local werewolf pack - who aren't terribly thrilled with having a coyote associated with them - until the circumstances of the first book have an unknown werewolf turning up at her garage and pulling her into a series of events that had her saving the life of Adam, the alpha of the Tri-City area, reconnecting with Bran and Samuel when she brings Adam for them to be healed, getting involved with the local vampire seethe (where she discovers that her lamb necklace - chosen because she can't stand crosses and Jesus was the Lamb of God - does actually work effectively as a faith symbol), and ends with Samuel moving into her trailer in a quiet effort to win her back, and her beginning to date Adam - who, as it turns out, has declared her his mate to assure that the pack will protect her. She believes that is a political move, but it turns out to be much more.

There is a great deal more information here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moon_Called and here http://hurog.com/forum/index.php?PHPSESSID=a10c05eebd7f0cb611f1d4af415d1bad&topic=34.0

Character Abilities and Personality

[character abilities]:
Mercy is able to shift into a coyote at will. Because she's only about 32 pounds in her coyote form she's able to shift while still clothed, though she then needs to struggle free of her clothes. She's not tied to the phase of the moon and doesn't need to change, though she doesn't feel quite herself if she goes too long without it. In her coyote shape she's faster than a werewolf and has enhanced smell and hearing that carries over somewhat into her human shape. She can tell someone's emotions from their scent and can also tell whether they're lying from their scent. She is stronger than the average human, though not as strong as a were. Silver doesn't harm her, but she also doesn't have the accelerated healing that werewolves have.

She has some immunity to vampire magic and it's hinted at that 'walkers' were somehow dangerous to vampires, which is why the vamps worked hard to eliminate all of them. As far as Mercy knows she's the only one.

She is also able to see and talk to ghosts and has some limited ability to influence them.

In terms of more mundane abilities, she's a great mechanic, specializing in Volkswagens and other German made cars. She's studied martial arts for the past five years, specifically Shi Kei Kai Kan - designed for soliders dealing with multiple opponents - and has earned a purple belt in it. She's a good shot and knows how to make her own bullets. She also knows how to pick locks.

[character personality]:
Mercy is a very strong-willed and independent woman, about 31 years of age currently. She's always felt like an outsider - both as a coyote growing up with werewolves as well as someone who needs to hide what she is from the world at large. However, that perspective has served her well and allowed her to observe, learn about, and make friends with other supernatural beings such as vampires, witches, and the fae as well as get along well with normal humans.

She's been independent from a young age - living on her own from age 14 to 16 - and known for either finding trouble or having it find her. Living within a werewolf pack taught her to know when to be submissive - or at least appear that way - and when to assert herself. She also has learned how to play the game of appearing to be submissive while actually doing as she chooses - a very fine line to walk. She also knows that sometimes backing down from a dominant being is too dangerous to do and has stood up to some amazingly scary characters no matter how frightened she might be inside.

She's smart, well-educated and curious, with a dry sense of humor. She finds life in a werewolf pack to be claustrophobic and violent and is very glad to only be on the outskirts of the local pack. She's scrupulously neat in her garage and every area of her house except her bedroom, which often results in a struggle to find clean clothes to wear. She attends church each Sunday and always wears a necklace with a lamb on it - her version of a religious symbol. She had a bad experience with a cross when she was first attending church and finds them very off-putting, thus the use of the lamb (Christ being the lamb of God).

She can also be very gentle and kind-hearted; taking in a stray werewolf, watching out for the Alpha's teen daughter; helping a battered woman. Not surprisingly this sort of thing also gets her into a great deal of trouble from time to time.

[point in timeline you're picking your character from]: Just after the first book Moon Called.

Mercy Log 1 from application

Mercy cursed as the screw slipped out of her greasy hands and went skittering across the floor. "Wouldn't you know," she said, propping the part in place with one knee as she wriggled out from under the car enough to reach the wayward part. "It's always the most inconvenient one." She quickly put it back into place and finished up the task before sliding the rest of the way out from under the car and pulling the cloth out of her back pocket to wipe her hands on.

Her head came up as she caught a whiff of something. Adam. She sighed and stood up before slowly turning around. "Tell me you bought a Volkswagen and you've brought it in for me to give it a once-over," she said hopefully, knowing that wasn't the case. She met his eyes boldly. He might be the Alpha, but she wasn't pack, as so many of the werewolves had been quick to point out.

He leaned against the wall of the garage, watching her idly.

One of those conversations. Great. "Whatever it was, I didn't do it," she said, hands on hips. "You told me not to leave the garage today until you got things straightened out and I didn't. I was right here all day."

"Funny how you always seem to manage to follow the letter of the law while gleefully ignoring the spirit of it," Adam said dryly.

Well, he had a point there. She might have to toe the line when he pushed, but it didn't mean she couldn't find ways to get around his orders. Or ways to make sure she made his over developed sense of order crazy. Like taking off one of the tires on the parts car in the backyard so every time he looked out his bedroom window it would annoy him.

"I would have assumed you knew I included Gabriel in that direction."

She gave him her best innocent look. "You never said anything about Gabriel."

It wasn't a lie. Barely. One of those grey areas that a lowly coyote learned to manipulate if she didn't want to get steamrollered. Adam could easily have pushed the issue, but today he seemed more amused than annoyed by her maneuverings.

"Be careful, Mercy," he said with more tolerance than she probably deserved just now. "One of these days it will all catch up with you. Here."

He tossed something glittery at her and she picked it out of the air, her hand going to her throat as she realized what it was. "My lamb necklace. You found it."

She'd felt less safe without it, especially knowing now that it could protect her from a vampire as well as a cross would, and she quickly slipped it back around her neck.

"Where'd you find it?"

He simply arched a brow at her and headed out of the garage. "No one leaves the garage till I tell you it's all clear, Mercy. No one."

Didn't even hang around for her response, that arrogant so-and-so. Still... she couldn't quite help watching him go. He was a handsome devil and that kiss the other night... She let her mind go to that happy place - just for a minute before she let herself be annoyed with him again.

Which, of course, would be the exact moment he chose to turn around and arch another amused brow, leaving her blushing and hurrying to busy herself with something else

Werewolves. Bah.

Mercy Log post from Application

I know I said I wanted to get away for a while - out of all the messed up politics of the pack, to get some space from Samuel and Adam to see what it was I wanted, but this is ridiculous.

Deities who control the entire City at their whim. Curses that can turn people into odd versions of themselves or dolls or animals. Turning into a coyote is more than enough for me, thank you very much.

I miss my garage. I want to get my hands deep into the innards of a transmission, lose myself and my problems tracking down an impossible fault, swear when I drop a screw and it bounces totally out of reach.

I miss my trailer and thinking up new things to do to the parts car out back to aggravate Adam, all the while I'm pretending to be the good little obedient coyote.

And I miss my cat, damnit. Why couldn't at least Medea have come with me?

At this point I'd even be glad to have Ben show up, arrogant misogynist that he is.

To hell with it. I'm going off to the woods for a good run.

If anyone's looking for me I'll be the coyote wearing the bright purple collar with pink flowers on it.

Mercy 2nd Journal for Application

So once again she found herself caught in a very awkward, yet familiar, position. Mercy crept forward, lowering her belly to the ground, getting as low as she possibly could to approach Adam, making sure the level of her head was below his. The dominance games in coyote form always felt far more dangerous than they did in human form. Her 32 pounds could never take on one of the huge wolves and while she could run faster than them... where would she go afterwards?

She'd had to learn to play the game better than anyone else - be submissive, yet still find ways to be herself - or she never would have survived growing up. Not with her sense of self intact. She wasn't pack and as much as a part of her was grateful for that - for being able to get out of the violence and claustrophobia that pack entailed for her - another part had always yearned to belong. And she never would.

Adam's powerful jaws clamped lightly over her muzzle and it took everything she had not to whimper or worse, to look up at him with the defiance she felt clear in her eyes. In his wolf form especially he'd never let that sort of insolence go unanswered.

She hated this. Hated it, hated it, hated it. Why did they think she fought so hard to keep at least a nominal distance from pack business?

Finally he let her go and she backed away, shivering despite the warmth her fur provided. She watched as he signaled to the others, collecting them to head back home. She hesitated until he growled softly then followed, careful to stay off to the side of the pack.

She wanted to go home. To her home, not Adam's. She wanted to make herself a cup of hot chocolate, the good kind, not the instant, curl up in bed with her cat, and lick her metaphorical wounds. She might be alone there, but at least no one hated her.