Yarno

Yarno was a young human werewolf living in Velarswood in Harrowdale in the mid–14 century DR.

Description
In human form, Yarno had tangled and dirty black hair. He appeared to be about 12 years old. In his wolf form, he looked like a small black wolf, unlike his grandfather, a larger gray wolf.

Personality
Yarno is cunning and cautious, but a fierce combatant. His reaction to drow was to bite and run. With a wolf's habits, he used his hands to eat, barely cleaned himself, and knew no manners.

History
Yarno had a difficult life. He was born around 1360 DR to a family of werewolves dwelling in Velarswood, and was a natural lycanthrope, but his parents believed him afflicted and it to be a curse. Hence, they gave him draughts of belladonna tea to cure it, but these only made him sick. Thus, Yarno's parents went to the local drow priestesses of Eilistraee, asking them to pray over their son, hoping the priestesses could cure him. In fact, as a general rule, the followers of Eilistraee in Velarswood befriended the moon-worshiping lycanthropes of the area, and even celebrated sacred hunts in honor of Eilistraee and Selûne alongside them. However, by the time Yarno's parents received an answer, the moon was almost full, so they made their long journey back home, but turned into werewolves en route. Unfortunately, that night, a particular group of Eilistraee's priestesses whose beliefs contrasted those of the rest of their faith, and painted lycanthropes as "abominations", had set out on one of their regular sacred hunts to rid the woods of monsters. Blinded by zealous fervor, those priestesses charged in and killed the werewolves.

A few days after, Yarno's grandfather found and buried their headless bodies (the heads had been taken and mounted in a "trophy tree" marking the edge of the sacred grounds of the above-mentioned Eilistraean group). His grandfather was a slave of the drow before he'd escaped, and was also a werewolf, but of the view that lycanthropy was a blessing, not a curse. Living with the family, he had advised the parents against seeking the priestesses. He looked after Yarno.

Thereafter, they lived together in a hut in the forest, hiding from the werewolf-hating group of Eilistraeeans, who hunted them. Bitter about the events, they strongly distrusted the drow and feared the Eilistraeeans.

In the, Yarno came across the drow Ryld Argith in the forest, they fought, and Yarno bit him. However, when Ryld said he was trying to find a temple to rescue a friend from the priestess, Yarno took him to his grandfather, who had injured his leg. Ryld helped his grandfather tend to his leg and in return was given belladonna to ward off the lycanthropic infection. They thought he could be an ally. Ryld departed, and when he started to succumb, used the belladone, and passed out in the woods. There, Yarno found him once again and nursed him back to health, watching over him overnight. Yarno reminded Ryld of himself as a young child.

Some days later, however, Yarno saw Ryld in the company of the werewolf-hating group of Eilistraeeans. Instead of killing the priestesses, the drow fighter seemed to have allied with them. Yarno swore to never trust a drow again.

Home
Their cabin in the woods was small left to fall into disrepair, in the hope the priestesses would believe it abandoned.