Name: Larissa Scordato
Nicknames/Aliases: Rissa,
Age: 27
Age apparent: Mid Twenties
Gender: Female
Sexual Orientation: Bi
Occupation: Business Owner
Languages English, Italian
Species:  Black Tiger
Powers:  All Standard powers, all Alpha powers, Block Master's Call, Delay Moon's Call, Partial Change, Slashing Aura, Tame the Beast, Quick Shifting.



Overall Appearance: Larissa stands at a little above average height for a woman, with a pretty face. She's never been one to worry about her make up or if her eyebrows are even. Larissa concentrates her attention on her muscle tone. And it's evident when you look at her. From head to toe she looks like the fighter she grew up being, all hard toned muscles. Though she's never taken it so far as to lose all her femininity. She keeps herself in fighting form never crossing the line into body builder.  Her skin has a sun kissed tan year round which can turn into a faint golden bronze if she spends a lot of time in the sun.  Her skin is nearly blemish free save one small scare on her left side where she was stabbed with a silver blade. She's never been sure why that one injury healed to leave a scar and no other injury ever has.

 Growing up Larissa's eyes always seemed to be a cause for discomfort. Most people could not find the beauty of her heterochromic eyes, the fact that one eye seemed to be almost orange didn't really help the situation. In truth her right eye is in fact a burnt orange that most people like to say is brown, while her left is a more reasonable shade of green hazel with a hint of gold around the pupil. When she was a teenager Larissa's adopted mother helped her to acquire hazel colored contacts to help her avoid teasing in high school. Something she continues to use on occasion. Hey eyes whether natural or hidden behind contacts always seem to be calculating and assessing the people and locations around her.  Giving her expression one that some might call intimidating, or battle wore. Either way there is an air of no nonsense that seems to radiate from her appearance.



  Her dark hair is a rich black with undertones of a warm brown. Larissa likes to keep it short a habit that started while she was on the streets, though she has since updated her style. Most recently Larissa has cut her hair in an asymmetrical style that tapers down to end just below her chin. When training or fighting Larissa has her hair kept back in many small tight reverse french braids, more commonly called cornrows. It keeps it from getting into her eyes, and she thinks it just looks cool.
Height: 5'8"
Weight: 145lb
Eye color: Right eye orange  left eye a green hazel.  Wears dark hazel contacts to appear more human
Hair color: Blackwith brown undertones.
Hair style: Cut in a asymmetrical style  ending just below her chin.
Completion: Sun kissed tan
Body shape:  Heavily athletic
Clothing: Comfort and mobility are key influences in Larissa's everyday wardrobe. Whether in the gym or just relaxing at home she prefers workout shorts or a comfortable pair of jeans paired with a tank top or tee. When she has to look more professional Larissa doesn't pull her punches. She can easily pull off a nice pant suit or even a dress if the occasion calls for it, though she hates every moment of it and can't wait to shed the restrictive clothing.
Character Model: Gina Carano



Basic Personality: Larissa, is a fierce passionate person  with a stubborn strike and a bit of a temper, which she uses to mask and hide some of her childhood issues. In her youth anger was always the emotion that ran highest. Anger at her birth family for leaving her, anger at all the foster families who kept sending her away, anger at those who used her while she lived on the streets. Over the years she's learned that while her anger has its place there are so many other emotions that can give her the same warmth. Though anyone who is a close friend knows that she still has a lot of unresolved issues, the outside world sees a woman who is confident and proud, sure of herself and eager to help change the world around her. And that's what she tells herself everyday in the mirror.

The energy she once put into her anger now fuels her passion for fighting and teaching  others to fight and control the beast within them. She has embraced who and what she is and hopes to help the world embrace all those who are a carrier of a lycanthropic strain.

History: Abandoned as an infant, Larissa was raised in an orphanage until the age of 4, when the system began to place her in foster homes. Something about her unusual eyes seemed to unsettle any prospective parents she'd had as a toddler leaving her to age out of the age bracket that most adoptions occur in.  Once she reached an age where she would begin school  she was placed with a foster family to help provide a stable environment  to assist in her learning. But it didn't last, after only several months the family reported to her case worker that there was just something unsettling about the child and they wished to have her removed from their care. So she was removed and placed in another foster home.  This was the cycle of her life, she'd be placed with a family for a while, before being removed to another or a group home. The system tried to keep her within the same school districts but she was lucky to be in the same school for a whole year.

  School itself was a hard place for her from the very start. Children are some of the cruelest creatures on the earth and there was no exceptions in Larissa's case. It was hard for her to adjust to the group dynamics of an classroom. the constant teasing because her eyes were weird, that no one loved her became a part of her daily life at school. Teachers would try to hush the other children but Larissa could hear them talking among themselves about how she was an odd child. Her mind just didn't seem to be able to grasp some of concepts that other children her age should, or in other cases her mind wrapped around a concept that a child necessarily shouldn't.  When she was 6  she calmly explained to her teacher that it was perfectly natural for her to smell like more than one man because it was the best way for her to find one that would please her and work as her husband but she shouldn't sleep with other peoples husbands.  The teacher and  her assistant were shocked and a little mortified by her words. When they called her foster parents it was discovered that she'd said something similar about such smells on her foster father and that  her social worker was coming to pick her up from the school.  It came out several months later that the man had been having several affairs on his wife one of which had been with Larissa's teacher.

  Larissa grew to think of herself as odd and a freak, not being normal, and no matter how hard she tried she just never seemed to find the place where she could fit into the world around her. By 8 she'd withdrawn into herself trying to be normal by not bothering to make friends, talking really only when she was spoken to.  While it bothered her case worker to see the child close in on herself it was a small relief because it meant having to move her from home to home less often. It was just before her 9th birthday that she was placed in the care of the Jones family, a seemingly normal family who felt it was their moral duty to help care for the unwanted children. Jim Jones however was a overbearing religious man who took a long look at Larissa and decided there was a devil in her and it was his duty to see it removed. She was forced to go to daily mass, read from the Bible  nightly and if he felt she had not taken away from all this the true meaning of the Lords word she was sent to bed without food. At first Larissa did as she was told but as time passed something in her snapped, she started to act defiant, little things at first, like turning the T.V. to channels she knew she was not allowed to watch because they only would increase the demons hold on her, or not cleaning her room. This only increased Jim's determination to rid her of the demon within and  so his methods grow more harsh. Being  locked in her room without food or water became pleasant compared to the beatings and being held under water in tubs filled with holy water. After about 6 months of this Larissa couldn't take it anymore one night she slipped out her bedroom window  and ran the 4 miles to the tracks where she jumped a train to take her  as far away as she could get.

  As far as she could get turned out to be Chicago, which if you are gonna be a homeless street kid isn't a bad place to be, or at least that what she told herself. She spent some time scrapping out a meager existence on her own, begging for change, looking for food in allies and dumpsters behind restaurants, since it was summer she didn't have to worry so much about staying warm as she did staying dry. It wasn't long however before she got herself into trouble for honing in on someone's turf.  The beating she experienced was unlike anything she'd endured before and a small part of her regretted running but not enough to go back. The physical pain might be worse but she didn't have to hear the whispers or smell the fear from those who were supposed to be the ones protecting her. She healed up quick enough, learning as time passed to maneuver the streets and those who made them their home. Begging to spare change never got her much and so she decided to start trying her hand at pick pocketing. She'd watched it done both in shows and out in the real world, worst that would happen is she get caught and put into police custody with some food and a bed while they looked her up in the system, or at least that's what she figured. The first few times she tried it was down by the Pier, tourists who left their bags sitting to the side while they took group pictures. It was easy to just sit down and slowly move closer till she could reach in and snag a few dollars. Larissa figured bolting right after the theft would draw attention so she always lingered not to close but so it seemed like she was just some poor kid whose parents didn't pay them as much attention as they should. The Pier was also a great place to trash dive, people were always tossing half eaten pretzels or corndogs away. It wasn't long before she started trying to snatch wallets from moving target, she got herself caught a few times but  the person was generally thrown off by her eyes for just a few seconds that she managed to slip out of their grip and disappear down an alleyway.

  Come mid fall the weather was getting colder and the clothes she'd found and stolen where not doing as much to keep her warm as they had in the summer months. She needed to make a bigger score to get herself something warm to wear during the coming winter. Larissa set herself up on a corner near Michigan Avenue and waited, watching for the right target. The right target turned out to be the wrong one, which was both good and bad for her in the long run. The mark she'd picked turned out to be the leader of a group of street kids in the area who hustled both locals and tourists for money. He was impressed with Larissa's skill and took her back to the abandoned building where they made their home and hangout. There was a hazing of sorts that took place over the next several weeks, her getting the worst places to sleep, the last serving of any food that came in and she was always getting bullied by the older members of the ragtag family unit. Larissa wouldn't stand for the bullying, she didn't mind the rest she had to prove she could earn her keep she understood that but, the bullying wasn't something she could tolerate. Anytime someone got into her face over anything she got right back up into theirs, never backing down no matter the beating that came of it.

  By the time her 10th birthday rolled around Larissa had  proven that she could hustle and pickpocket  with the rest of the crew even if she was a little younger than they were. Most of the group were in their mid to late teens and  a few had run when they were her age some a little older.  All of them had a story, abuse, neglect,, rape; Larissa shared pieces of her life with the Jones's and bouncing from home to home but she never opened up completely. " Too much trust is bad from your survival even with the family."  was what their leader, Jax, would tell her, tell them all. The kids looked out for each other but if it came down to it each of them was really still on their own.  As the winter snows set upon the city in earnest Larissa was glad to have found a place within the group. The frozen bodies of those who hadn't found  a place to stay warm night after night stayed with her.  Over the months that passed Larissa learned to be a distraction for the others, getting herself caught so they could make the bigger haul and then finding a way to slip away before the cops arrived.  Sometimes her small size served as a way to get whatever they'd lifted away from the scene faster, her small frame fitting thought tight alleyways  with more ease.  And so her life went from the next 2 years, moving from abandoned building to abandoned building,   pulling the next job watching out for the cops, always on edge, always hungry, always a bit lonely. She watched people she called friends  disappear, some moved on to a different city, some got caught and take back home, others died. In fights, from some sickness or another.  If you couldn't work you got less food and that meant longer or no recovery at all. Larissa was always privately glad she never seemed to get sick even if she wondered why.  At times her seemingly inability to get sick meant she stayed behind to look after those who couldn't leave their home.  During these times she got less than those who brought in money but more than those who were sick though she often shared her food with them hoping to speed their recovery. Those days were her early lessons in first aid.

  It was during the winter after she had turned 12 that her body started to begin changing and making her into a woman instead of a child. And with those changes came an odd feeling that she couldn't really describe. One brisk evening she was just feeling off, something just wasn't right so she slipped away from the others while they were in line as a local soup kitchen cashing in on one of the free meals offered, to wander down toward the docks. She'd had the feeling for the last several days but something about that night made her feel as if her skin was itchy all over. She thought the air might clear her mind, but as the winter night grew darker and the moon began to rise and shine down on Lake Michigan the feeling that something was wrong turned into pain. Larissa remembers very little of that first shift, crippling over in pain and then waking up naked and cold in a alley feeling for the first time in a long time like she was truly full.  As she'd  blacked out from the pain her body had given over to the tiger that had been within her her whole life. The sleek black feline had stacked the docks looking for food and found it in several homeless bums who'd been drinking around a barrel fire. Larissa found something to wrap around herself till she found a rundown thrift shop that she was able to break into and grab clothes more suited to her frame, as well as the cash in the drawer and some ratty blankets. Might as well make the most of the break in.

  No one asked where she'd been the night before  or where she'd gotten the cash or blankets she came back with. Questions like that were just not asked; everyone knew the rules, it was assumed that she'd made a score on her own and hadn't come home that night encase she'd been spotted and followed by cops. The murders were all over the news that day as well as all over the streets. Most were blaming a shifter for the attacks paw prints had been discovered in the blood and snow but the trail had been lost. Some said it was someone's escaped pet, it wasn't unheard of for people to keep exotic and dangerous animals as pets. Larissa  remained quiet on the issue and kept herself apart from the others all that day, She'd passed out and woken up in the area around the docks what if .. She wouldn't let herself think that far; her mind just couldn't wrap around the possibility. Larissa once more began to feel odd as evening approached and slipped away yet again. This time however; it didn't go unnoticed, Jax decided to see what was up. If she had found herself a little lover that meant she was old enough and mature enough to start bringing in another sort of income.  She didn't make it far before Jax decided to stop following and just confront her. He cornered Larissa in a back alley pushing her against a wall and demanded  that if someone was getting a taste of her that he not only get a taste as well, but something from whoever was doing the tasting. Fear welled up inside Larissa she knew where this was going she'd seen and heard it enough. His hands started to moved down her body to her pants his face coming closer to hers. But then Jax froze, a look of horror on his face, seconds before the pain hit and she blacked out again. It seemed the fear that the intended rape had caused her was enough to make Larissa's already inhuman eyes start to change just a little more to reveal the beast within her before the change began.

 Leonzio Scordato, a high ranked alpha of the local lion pride had been out along with several others trying to locate the scent of the shifter who had killed the bums the night before when he caught a scent of blood on the wind and with it a flavor of power he had not encountered before. Placing a quick call to alert the other searchers of his find, Leo then made his way toward the alleyway where the smell was coming from slowly letting his power begin to rise up from within as he moved. What he found  both saddened and shocked him. Crouched of a motionless body was what appeared to be a young female tiger. He couldn't tell if the man below her was alive or not. It seemed that the tigress had noticed him for she moved as if to keep him from what she considered hers. The roar and the power behind it was strong but with no focus or control. If he had to guess this moon had been her first. He sent a wave of his own power back at her hoping to distract her from the body encase the poor soul was still alive. He didn't fear for himself, he might seem average on the outside but he was one of the most powerful males in the pride a new shifter no matter what amount of raw power wasn't really a match for him. The tigress seems unsure when his power washed over her.  It had felt intimidating and powerful  yet at the same time calming as if saying relax be at ease. At first it seemed to work the feline stayed crouched down but made no move toward either the body or Leo himself. But that changed in an instant, whether  it had been her shaking off his power or the sound of a car misfiring in the distance Leo had mere seconds to prepare before the tigress leaped to pounce him.  He easily managed to keep the jaws away from his body as he maneuvered himself and the large cat so the it was she pinned against the wall. And that's when the second shock hit him; those who were coming to help contain the situation were armed with tranq guns, the dosage set for a standard adult lycanthrope. There was no way given the size of the feline who was desperately fighting against his grip was more than a teenager at best.  He pushed his power toward her again hoping to steady the feline before the other arrived and they used the wrong dosage. He felt the other members of the pride arrive and in a moment of arrogance turned to warn, them that the dosage was wrong. Larissa's beast took full advantage of that moment making a swipe across his face causing him to loosen his grip and drop her. As she began to sprint away the shot was taken and the feline dropped to the ground, the dosage affecting her much quicker then anticipated due to her size.

  Leonzio swore and quickly moved toward the body removing the dart as the change back to human began to happen. The process would be slow due to the drugs  and the fact that she shouldn't have shifted back so soon.  As he moved toward the large van the others had arrived in carrying the still body in his arms he heard someone swear. It seemed the boy she'd been mauling was still breathing, just barely. Leo was tempted to just leave him, if he had to guess the man had scared the girl in his arms into shifting which meant mugging or rape. But they couldn't have more bad press so both were loaded into the van and taken to the medical facility the lions used.  Leonzio sat in the back and laid the head of the young girl  whose body replaced the tigress's in his lap.

  When Larissa awoke she found herself laying in a bed, in a room with some medical  equipment and a woman who looked to be in her late 20s or early thirties sitting in a chair watching her. The lady had dark brown hair pulled back into a ponytail and the skin tone that Larissa had learned was common among those with strong Italian background. She offered Larissa a kind smile before speaking. "Good morning little one you gave us a bit of a scare." As she spoke a man entered the room  and moved to stand against the door, a feeling of power and comfort seemed to radiate from him. The woman went on to introduce herself and the man as Carmina and Leonzio. He was a lion and member of the local pride and she was a doctor that helped to treat any who were injured or hurt beyond what their normal healing powers could handle. And without skipping a beat she went on to tell Larissa that she was a shifter too, a tiger. And that meant she could no longer live alone on the streets she needed to learn to control herself and her beast within. And before larissa could begin to protest there was a knock on the door which was quickly opened and closed, When Leonzio turned toward her again he had a plate of food on a tray with some milk. "You need to eat while you listen." He set the food down on her lap and moved back to the door. It was more food then she'd seen in years,  steak, potatoes, and green beans. Her stomach  rumbled and she set aside any mistrust and began to eat. As she did so, Carmina went on to tell her that when they'd found her they had to knock her out with a tranq dart and the dosage had been wrong for her size, for several hours they'd feared it had been too high and had  done her permeate harm. Luckily that didn't seem to be the case. Larissa wasn't sure she believed them but she had no memory after Jax had cornered her in the alley. She was left to eat in peace after being told there was a bathroom through the other door in the room and there were towels for a shower as well as fresh clothes for her to put on.

 She gave herself 2 days of eating good meals before she decided these people were crazy and made a run for it.  It took her a little time to make it back to the side of the city were her crew made its home only to find the place cleared out. SO she took off again  she felt like she'd never been able to run that fast before in her life.  It was just the full belly and sleeping in a real bed, she told herself as she arrived at another of the groups hideouts only to again find it empty. Where were they all?  No way the cops had found and picked up all of them.  By the time she made it to the third place it was dark and snowing and so cold that all Larissa wanted to do was curl up in a corner with some blankets and try to sleep. She tugged at a door roughly in her frustration only to have the handle break and the door jam buckle a little. She just stood there  staring  at the handle in her hand when she felt a hand on her shoulder that made her jump. "We told you you'd be stronger don't be so surprised."  Leo was standing behind her a small smile on his face,  though there was a bit of sadness in his eyes. He didn't explain how he'd found her as he lead her out of the building and to the car that was idling  at the curb.  Once they were  back at the building she'd ran from hours earlier she was lead inside and back to her room.  Dinner was waiting on the bed and there was a bag sitting on the floor. As the door closed behind her Larissa moved to look into the bag. Laying on the top was a note from Carmina, inside was some jeans, a heavy sweater, a pair of flannel pjs, and at the bottom a prepaid phone. which explained the context of the note. When she turned it on one number was programmed in, Carmina's.  Larissa ate and showered and slipped the new pajamas on. Sitting curled up on the bed she looked at the phone for a while before placing it in a drawer and going to bed. She didn't understand these people what was their angle why were they so nice. there had to be something they wanted from her. Each day Leo or Mina would come visit her, Leo would talk about what she could expect as she grew, the increased speed and strength she'd seen already the changes in her senses of smell and sight. Mina would simply sit and talk to her, slowly learning about her past. Larissa was guarded about what details she shared at first but as the weeks passed she began to trust the woman and opened up more.

 Then the night of the full moon came, Leo and several others who she'd seen around the building  told her it was time to go they lead her out of the building to a SUV which they all piled into and headed out of the city. Larissa still wasn't sure that she believed them but they were not giving her any options. They arrived in a forested area outside the city and  got out. the area was full of cars and there was a packed down trail in the snow leading into the woods. They followed it and she found herself among more people who smelled and felt like Leo and the others then she thought possible.  She watched as they moved among one another talking and laughing. Some watched her  the looks on their faces differed, some were curious some welcoming and some with disdain. Quiet fell as a man and a woman entered, Leo leaned down and whispered to her that these two were the leaders the Rex and Regina of the pride.  They formally welcomed her into their space and the pride. Larissa wasn't sure what to make of it all. And then she began to feel something like a great big something was trying to push its way out of her. The Regina moved toward her and took her hand guiding her away from the crowd to behind a grove of trees where she was told to strip down so as not to ruin her nice sweater and to just let the change happen to not fight it. Larissa did as she was told, fear raising to the surface she remembered a warm liquid feeling before blacking out. When she woke it was  to being surrounded by a group of naked women curled together  around her. As she poked her head up above the bodies she noticed the bodies of men  ringing the circle of women. Then she remember little flashes of running though the woods on all fours, tasting the air in her mouth chasing down a deer. The blood running down her throat. It's was real she really was a shifter, they hadn't been lying to her.

  After that first moon Leo and several others began working with her far more on learning to control who she was now. She was expected to learn fast and quick to always get up and keep going when she was knocked down. She viewed it like she had her first few months living with the street gang, she had to prove what she could do. Prove that she was worth their time. A part of her kept waiting for the other shoe to drop, to see what they really wanted from her. It took 2 months for it to happen. She was working on visualizing the tiger within her when a vampire walked into the room accompanied by the Rex. She'd learned that the MotC could call lions she wasn't sure exactly what that meant but it seemed to be a big deal. The vampire smiled and spoke kindly to her though there was something about him that made her uneasy. The next thing she knew she was in a car headed who knew where she was scared not sure what was happening. Had the Rex given her to the vampire, but why what had she done wrong?  The car stopped at a red light and Larissa bolted out the door. In the back of her mind she knew that a vampire could catch her but her years on the street kicked in she knew she was no match for a vampire so the best idea was to run.  She used all the speed she could to put distance between her and that car. she tried to sense if anyone was following her but  she just couldn't tell over the sound of her own heart. Finally she stopped running and hid in a small dark alley. Hugging her self tight she felt something in her pocket. It was the phone Carmina had given her the first week she'd been with the lions. Pulling it out she stared at a few moments then opened it and called the one person she thought she could trust.

  Carmina pulled up beside the alley and opened the passenger door within an hour. She took Larissa back to her house and put the scared child in a warm bath and then tucked her into bed with the promise that no one would hurt her while she was there. When she came down stairs for breakfast in the morning she froze as she saw the Rex and Leonzio sitting with Carmina at the table. She wasn't in trouble, the vampire had been taking her to meet Augustine, the MotC. He had been interested in seeing if he had gained the power to call more felines then just his lions and Larissa since she was under the prides protection was a prime candidate to see if he could.  As a member of the pride she was expected to comply though she would have a few days before they took her to see him. The Rex left and Leornzio stayed only long enough to give her hair a friendly tussle and say good job before following his Rex out.  Larissa sat at the table trying to take it all in as Mina made her something to eat. Mina then had her get dressed and the two went shopping to get her something more formal to wear to meet Augustine in. Larissa felt comfortable around Carmina  which was when she realized that while the woman smelled of lions she didn't smell like a lion. When she asked the other woman merely laughed and explained that she was indeed still human, Her family had been a part of the "family" for several generations she simply had no desire to  turn furry once a month, instead she'd gone to med school and  worked as a private physician for the pride. Leo was the one to take to the furry side of the family.

  Three days later she was presented to Augustine, who welcomed her to his family who told her that while she was in his city he would do his best to be sure she stayed safe. Something about his words made her uneasy. He asked about her family and she could feel his vampiric powers urging her to speak the truth, and she did. All of it from her few memories in an orphanage to the different foster homes and then her life on the street. He simply nodded his head she remembered hearing a low growl as she talked about the Jones's  and their need to drive out the devil in her. When they left Leornzio took her back to his sister's house where she was sent upstairs  and the two siblings had hushed whispers on the stoop. The next few weeks were as the last few before had been her  training to learn to accept and control what she was.   With each full moon she ran with the lions embracing the tigress loving every moment of freedom she felt as she remembered more and more of what she did during her time in that other form.  One morning after the full moon several of those who had grown fond of her accompanied her back to Mina's house where a cake was waiting . The words welcome to the family were written on it.  Larissa learned that with a bit of help from both the pride and the vampires,  Carmina had been able to find Larissa's file in the foster system and a judge had granted her full custody of Larissa.  Carmina was now legally her mother which made Leornzio  her uncle.  She was shocked and happy tears rolled down her face as she hugged her new mother tightly she finally had a home and a family who loved her. Now not only did she have lessons from Leo and other lions on controlling herself she also began being homeschooled. being able to set the pace and not having anyone teasing her made learning easier for Larissa and  in less than a year she'd managed to catch up to her age group.  When it was suggested she attend high school Larissa was unsure but tried it. Carmina had taken her to get colored contacts to help overcome the fear that the teasing she'd gotten for her eyes as a child would not be an issue. She found that she didn't mind high school so much, her initial friends were teenaged members of the pride and children of pride members, though she slowly began to make friends of her own. She never shared what she was though that was something she didn't want to risk.

  As she grew older and her powers as a lycanthrope grew with her she began to receive challenges from other pride members. She won and lost as was expected of someone her age. She wanted to learn more than just the brawler type of fighting she'd been learning and so  after school she started taking lessons at a local YMCA in Krav Maga, Carmina had taken less convincing to let her join the class then the instructor had. She loved every moment of it. However after only a few months the fact that she was a shifter came out due to her fast healing from injuries sustained in class. And so she was asked to not return.  During that same time someone leaked the fact at her high school as well it was never learned who had done so.  At first the rumors didn't bother her but as friends pulled away either on their own for at the insistence of their parents she once more began to feel the same isolation she had as a young child.  The rumors all assumed she was a lion and Leo advised she not correct them so she didn't. Carmina ended up pulling her from school and Larissa went back to being home schooled.  Part of her was angry at her former so called friends and teachers for fearing her, she channeled that anger into finding a gym that taught Muay Thai and throwing herself into learning it. Since she didn't have to work around school hours she took as many classes a day as she could without it affecting her homeschooling. Once again after a few months she was asked to leave because of what she was.  This time it was Carmina who threw the fit, calling the gym out for discrimination but to no end. Larissa continued to train in both martial arts on her own sparing with members of the pride.

  By the time she was 16 Larissa was showing displays of Alpha level abilities. That was when Leornzio sat her down and told her why it was important that she never tell anyone outside the pride exactly what sort of shifter she was. The thought that some group of strangers might try to kidnap her, forced to be one of them, to marry someone  disturbed her. Leo explained that the tigers tended to keep to themselves. But one thing he knew for certain was that she had been born being a tiger, the fact that she turned into the sleek black tigress proved that. If she had been infected somehow no matter what color clan had done so she would be orange. She had so many questions but because of how tightly tigers guarded their secrets he had few answers for her. Also that year she began a whole new type of training, to control herself in the height of passion. It took time to learn to keep herself from shifting as she reached her climax but she learned  Her partners included members of the pride as well as an occasional vampire. She still visited Augustine every few months  so that he could test his power and see if he had yet gained the ability to call her to him. This seemed favoritism and her slow but steady advance among the ranks with in the pride meant she faced more challenges form some of the younger members of the group.  The fact that she seemed to match some of the males in size alone while in feline form bothered them.

  The spring after she turned 18 Larissa received her GED and she and Carmina discussed her options. They decided she would attend a two year business school. The thought was that she would then be able to open a business of her choosing. She was already talking about the idea of opening a gym that would let anyone train at it.  It also meant that if she chose to be more involved with the mob side of the prides affairs she would be able to help in some regard. She started classes that fall, She also began taking lessons in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. This time she was upfront with her condition. The first two gyms she went to refused to allow her to join their classes. At the third she was once more refused, however one of the instructors approached her and offered to train her  himself. She jumped at the chance and so began training with him twice a week at his home. It was during her time training under Master Souza that Larissa became interested in mixed martial arts. Because of her own divers training experience he encouraged her to look into the growing sport. When she had time between classes and her continued training with the pride the pair would  attend local MMA matches. With his help she found instructors who were willing to continue teaching her Krav Maga and Muay Thai. She even learned some kickboxing.  By the time she finished her degree Larissa knew what she wanted to open up a gym that would teach several forms of martial arts so that members could create their own mma style, her trainers encouraged this and her desire to be sure anyone who wanted to train and could afford the fees she set would be welcome.

  She spent a year working at a gym owned by her kickboxing instructor helping her to run the place so that she could get a feel for exactly what she was in for. She found that while it could be more paperwork then time in the ring or on the mats she still enjoyed herself. All the extra training had helped her to continue to win the challenges she was given among the pride. It seemed that a growing majority of those around her own age had begun to resent her for her skills and abilities. The Rex's two sons among them. She'd heard that a vampire in Michigan could call all felines much as Augustine wished he could. His animal servant was said to be a true leopard king and any feline was welcomed into his clowder. But the thought of leaving the family that had wanted her was something she just wasn't willing to do. So she began looking for a site to open her first gym in Chicago itself. MMA was all over the new at the time, several fighters were being kicked from the league after testing positive for lycanthrope. One had been infected in the ring when some of his opponent's blood entered a cut on his own body, another had been infected with a bad batch of the vaccine. Two had apparently intentionally  become infected in an attempt to one up their competition. While the latter two deserved to be kicked out she felt the former two should not have to give up what they love simply because of what they had become. It seemed her feelings were shared by several members of the sport as well as fans, a small movement began to get a league started for lycanthrope MMA.

 Larissa had found a suitable place to open her gym and  had discussed the business's use as a way to help launder money with the Rex who would take her suggestion to Augustine. A trust fund of sorts was set up so that banks and anyone else looking into her financials wouldn't be able to trace her start up money back to the mob. Before she was able to take the next step she was challenged yet again, this time by the elder of the Rex's sons. They were fairly matched in strength and abilities. The two had shifted into hybrid forms during their fight, Reno possessed a size advantage but Larissa's MMA training was proving to be more than enough to help her overcome that. When it looked as though she were about to win Donny, the younger son of the Rex darted in and stabbed Larissa in the side with a silver blade. The pain was a shock to her system and she felt herself lash out as Reno began to gain the upper hand. She pushed him away and removed the blade from her side letting it drop to the ground. That was when the silence became noticeable to her. Reno had several gashes across his chest that she didn't remember putting there during their fight but what held most everyone who had been watching's attention was the cut across Donny's back. The young male was laying face down in the grass moaning in pain. The attack had awoke one of the rare abilities known as  a slashing aura within her.  The Rex's sons were looked at with a measure of disdain  because of their attempts to cheat to win the challenge. However at the same time Larissa knew it wouldn't be long before more challenges came her way from the boys friends and supporters in the pride as well as from those who simply wished to test her skills.

  She, Carmina, and Leornzio sat down together to discuss her options  after  much debate and some tears it was decided that she should leave the pride and the city. Her best option was to move to Marquette Michigan  the home of the vampire who offered an open invite to all feline. She would be able to run a gym there just as she had planned to do In Chicago. Finding a building and trainers might be a little harder but she'd manage. She sent a request asking permission to move to the city and was given it almost immediately. Looking back she wonders if Augustine hadn't helped smooth her transition, the man had always seemed to like her and she still receives a birthday card from him every year. No questions were asked about why she was leaving her clan to live on her own or if she'd even had a clan. She received help in finding a small apartment and locating a building to lease to start her gym at.  Within 6 months she had managed to open her gym. She didn't turn away those who wanted to train because they were shifters or vampires she merely placed them in classes separate from her normal human patrons.  Her gym began to build a reputation for accepting preternaturals and in helping them to learn control through the discipline of  martial arts. As that reputation grew she lost some human customers but not enough to affect her profits. She also began promoting and calling for a legitimate Lycanthrope MMA league, going so far so to sponsor and participate in events.

 When Larissa first arrived in Marquette she found herself to rather lonely  and missing the company of another soul in her apartment. In one of her weekly phone calls with Mina, her mother suggested she get herself a pet. Larissa found herself at one of the local shelters looking at cats before the week was over. During her conversation with one of the volunteers she learned that because they didn't have enough people to foster the animals the shelter had to turn away many of the stray or more feral rescues. Looking at the sad scared little feline faces Larissa decided she'd help. Adopting an older tabby who looked to have had been a real scrapper in his youth Larissa also offered to foster any of the more feral cats that the shelter took in. She generally had anywhere from 2 to 5 cats that she worked on socializing at a time. Often bringing them with her to the gym to help get them used to people. One of trainers started to refer to them as the gym cats, a sort of mascot, a name that Larissa would later use for her own rescue.

  In the past 5 years, Larissa has continued to show herself to be a powerful alpha though she made no move to take a high rank with in the clowder of felines. She was content to be left mostly to herself welcoming all species of shifters as well as vampires to her gym. Making her establishment a sort of unofficial neutral ground. Last year Larissa decided to stop leasing and to purchase a building all her own. Between the trust fund the Chicago pride had kept in place for her as well as support from her current clowder Larissa was able to by a large old furniture factory and warehouse.  She had the building completely remodeled on the inside including the addition of a basement level which was to be used as an infirmary for the preternatural community who didn't trust the hospital. The main two floors were for her gym the first having mats and a ring and the second being for the majority of the workout equipment. Once those 2 floors were completed she reopened the gym after having it heavily warded. The third, fourth and fifth floors have only recently been finished. In an attempt to be sure that she will always be financially stable the third floor was created into 6 spacious one bedroom apartments.  Each apartment was given a unique  look to its interior though the floor plans are all the same. The fourth floor, for now, is reserved only for those she hires on as trainers. The spacious 2 bedroom apartments with a loft  are an incentive for those trainers who are willing to teach the night classes and thus vampires, as well as look after any new shifters from out of town who are sent to the gym to train and learn control. The top floor she had made into her own private penthouse apartment.

 In addition to the gym Larissa has also started her own rescue for stray and feral cats, Gym Cats. She generally takes in those that the other shelters and rescues in the area consider too feral, but any stray is welcome. While she cannot summon or call the cats, being they are by no means tigers, even if a few have the illusion that they are, Larissa seems to have a special bond with the creatures. She feels that it's because she can relate to the abandonment they feel and that, as intelligent little beings, the cats recognize that kindred spirit within her. Once she is sure the feline is healthy the cats are allowed to wander the building. Something she warns potential tenants and gym members about. The cats once comfortable around people seem to enjoy being on the first floor where trainers and patrons can give them attention when on down time. Once a month on Saturdays Larissa has an adoption day at the gym.

The events of the recent month has left Larissa privately shaken and upset. Though she was not close to either man she knows the peace and protection that everyone enjoyed while they held the power would be a long time in returning if it ever did. She has no plans however of giving up her business and returning to Chicago, she feels she's put too much work into her life to uproot it again. So she keeps a level head and continues to operate as she always had, with her facility open to all lycanthropes and vampires.

Larissa has done her best in keeping exactly what flavor feline she is out of the media but she's not sure how long it will last, and if a clan of tigers discovers her and makes attempts to bring her into the fold she's not sure that she will be able to stop them.  But she knows that she will put up one hell of a fight.  While a part of her wonders what it would be like to be among her own kind there is far too much anger and resentment  towards clan tigers for abandoning her to the hell that was her early life for her to want any part of them.

Living or dead Family: Carmina "Mina" Scordato adopted mother, Leonzio "Leo" Scordato adopted uncle.  Birth family unknown.