That's a good catch, I wanted to talk about that anyway. So I assume you're referring to the names I tag them with sometimes, Zacharias von Wolfenstedt and Matthis von Halberg. Matthis and Zacharias are probably as close to birth names as you'll get considering phonetic shifts. They're the names they used the longest, primarily during the time in the Army, and still use in more serious or intimate settings. (Sasha still calls Milo "Matti" sometimes, which nobody else is allowed to do, even Attila.)

If you know how last names worked back then, you also know they weren't really fixed, just an easy identifier and could change if the community thought it necessary.

Both their last names are place monikers, pointing to a place of origin and on the surface it does not make sense why that would be different if they're brothers. The thing is, they're not blood-related and even if they were they look so different people wouldn't have believed it.

Both of them used the moniker von Halberg when they joined their first crusade and after they'd been turned. Halberg is a peak in the Saar region of Germany, which is the place Milo usually claimed he comes from (he really doesn't know for sure). Sasha was actually given the name von Wolfenstedt by others. Wolfenstedt translates to "wolf's place" or "lair". After being turned, Sasha very quickly made a name for himself by being a ruthless and effective strategist as well as being a skilled fighter.

People said he was so good at being a werewolf because he was in fact raised by wolves. Which was absolutely a racist jab, but Sasha's approach was always that no tool is too low as long as it was effective. And also that people leave you alone if they're sufficiently scared of you. By the time the army splintered, Zacharias von Wolfenstedt was more of a bogeyman than a real person. In modern day, Sasha and Milo mostly use the same last name, because it makes paperwork easier.

Which also means Milo has tried out for every job under the sun just for funsies. He even worked on an oil rig for half a year after becoming obsessed with the topic. He was hired based on forged papers of course but his knowledge was real. The company even wanted to rehire him after the contract expired, but Attila pulled the plug on that.

Why?

9. Are there cultural or lore specific aspects to their identity? If applicable, does their species affect it?

Oh absolutely! Being born and raised in the Middle Ages, the guys grew up with a very specific type of identity, primarily centered on class rather than gender. After being turned, the Army used a specific rhetoric to keep the wolves in line, specifically that they're cursed and need to atone for the sin of .. existing? There was also a fairly strict adherence to not allowing women around unless it was for strategic political marriages, mostly because [gestures at the concept of pregnancy]. While werewolves in general are more resistant to disease, Milo was always lucky and came out "the pretty one", which he banked on in many situations. It unfortunately also made people jealous and he became a scapegoat on many occasions. Overall, there was a fairly strict adherence to the structure of the army, including gender/sexuality norms, not because it was universally regarded as bad, but because the superiors wanted control over their supernatural weapons.

Milo is still somewhat part of that system mentally. He's generally someone who is best off with some oversight - it's less stressful to have someone to defer to. Aside from that he puts a lot of effort into his presentation because being the pretty one helps him feel on top of things. In modern terms, he'd probably be pansexual and agender, because he's generally fairly "meh" about whatever doesn't interest him, but he considers himself a man because he's not really gotten the idea there's any other option. He also doesn't really see his presentation as fem, although from a modern perspective it is. He's just really big, so people usually don't start shit.

20. Did your OCs help you with your own identity?