The edge of the woods.... [Final Results Up!]

[orbiting]

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Username: softsun.
Link to roll call post: bada bing, bada boom
Prompt response: I’ve been thinking alot to myself lately, and I’m finding it backfiring on me.
I’m writing this quietly and quickly to myself because there’s so much words in my head I just need to get out, and with a pen and pencil, I can.
I think I am definitely making this seem too dramatic. Here’s the short version: My name is Aurelia. I scare myself way too much.
It’s an endless cycle: I watch something that scares me. I get freaked out and can’t sleep at night. Due to not being able to sleep I get insanely tired and begin to see things. I’m so scared at this point I think I need something scary to wake me
up. I watch something that scares me. And the cycle starts up again.
But hey, you know what? I am so tired of being called a baby! Also a scaredy cat! And I’m sure there’s... lots of other things that I am. One of them is an insomniac who jumps when she drops a cereal box out of her own hands.
But my girlfriend told me to come for a reason. She said she wanted me to have fun, explore, and grow as a being. And that’s what I’ll do. I will step out of my comfort zone and play in the mud! Climb a mountain! Eat... mess hall food!
Hike at night in The Forbidden Forest?
I’ll tell you I stared at that sign up board forever. And yeah partly because I was trying to figure out which pen color to use (I love those things) but also because I was thinking so much about it. And in the end I signed my name, Aurelia, in purple. And in the end, whether I live, die, or never sleep again, I’ll have done it. I’ll have stepped out of my comfort zone and grew as a person. Now if only I could grow in height...

[Kiaa]

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Username: Kiaa
Link to roll call post:Roll Call
Prompt response:

Beni's excitement was infectious. Pip was excited to see what the “Test of Courage” hike would entail. It was bound to be fun… plus, all the stories circling around about the Forbidden Forest made the thought of signing up for the hike all the more exciting!
Pip grabbed the pink pen attached to the clipboard and scribbled his name in a dark purple ink.
Even though Pip wasn't a huge fan of the dark... or more accurately what could hide in the dark… they did their best to cover up their nervousness with bravado and reasoning. After all, this was a camp activity! Surely, they wouldn’t allow us to be doing it if it was dangerous… Plus, we would have two camp counselors coming with us! Pip did their best to keep their cool. However, Beni’s words continued to echo in the back of his hear… It's gonna be spoooooooky.

[Kim Jongdae]

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Username: Kim Jongdae
Link to roll call post: x
Prompt response: There is a spring in Kassidy's step as she signs up for the Test of courage, a sense of adventure and courage coursing through her veins. Nothing scares her! (Or at least, that's what she'd believed) and she was sure that the test of courage would only support her claim. She was a brave soul! Nothing bad would happen... right? Although, Kassidy wasn't exactly sure where she'd want to go- maybe to the lakeside? Or perhaps somewhere dark and creepy with the camp counselors- there would be lots to explore, right? Nevermind that, Kassidy was ready to explore, go anywhere, see anything. As long as her life wasn't in danger (because no one would be excited about that, right?), Kassidy was ready for anything that couselors were going to throw at her! "I'm not scared of anything!" she murmurs, mostly to herself, as she sees her name scribbled on the sheet of paper. If anything, this was going to be fun.

[ThatPinkThing]

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Username: ThatPinkThing
Link to roll call post: oOo
Prompt response: 234 words

If nothing else indeed. Penny’s stomach churned at the idea of venturing into the woods at night. But the kinder counselor had looked so excited... her inability to say no was too strong.

Standing on her toes to reach the pen and next line on the sheet, Penny carefully wrote her name. She was aware of at least one gaze, but she didn’t even want to think about what it would be if not a kalon, so she didn’t look. Instead, she selected the pale blue ink in the multi-pen - similar to her odd-colored eye - and wrote in her usual, practiced cursive. Her paw shook a little as she wrote, meaning the ‘y’ in her name looked more like a ‘g’, but she didn’t have the energy to worry about that now.

She worried about what to do; that she had the energy for. As she left her name behind, she listed on her fingers what she would need to pack in her bag to take on a night hike. Flashlight, extra flashlight, spare flashlight batteries, an emergency blanket, water, her compass, a spare pair of socks, her beanie, and a whistle, surely...

She was back to her cabin before she knew it. She tucked herself inside and in bed quickly, trying not to think about the Forbidden Forest as she drifted into uneasy sleep...

[~Soul~]

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Username: ~Soul~
Link to roll call post: Boop
Prompt response:

Sunni feeling a little overwhelmed about the whole chaos that was going on through out the camp Sunni franticly made her way to her cabin with her bag threatening to fall off her shoulder. She kept tugging at the strap repeatedly and grumbled though something caught her eye as she stomped. Letting her head turn in the ability to keep her eyes on the paper hanging she. Once her feet ran out of places for her to go before falling back on her rear. Making a sharp turn she walked over to the paper and looked it over. Her ear twitched and she wiggled her nose as she thought...She wasn't a half bad hiker and she was use to having to hike all over the place for the perfect angel for her photography so how bad could this really be? With a shrug more in answering her own rhetorical question she picked up the pen....

She sat there clicking the pen for quite a time...The choice of what color to represent her, to make her mare on this little paper. She continued to click through the many colors and at one point she tried to get two colors to pop out at once, but sadly failed to do so. After a good minute or two of looking at the paper then back to the pen she took in a deep breath and Finally picked the Dark Purple and jotted down her name....She looked at her name for a minute and then added little lines to the dot above her eye. There now she had a little sun to her name to give it some flare. Rather proud of her self she shook her head and put the pen down. Hiking was something she enjoyed and at less it would get her away from this cluttered camp and out into the woods where she felt kind of at home...though with a name like "Test of Courage" how at home would she really be?

[ᴇʟʟɪᴏᴛ]

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Username: OOFER
Link to roll call post:Here
Prompt response: "S-Spooky.." Pip said, her voice cracking a bit. Pip's whole body shook as she thought of all the things that could possibly happen to her or the other kalons. 'What if there's a crazy kalon! Poisonous mushrooms! What if we get lost, or someone eats us! Oh geez...' her mind raced of all the bad outcomes. She looked at all the other Kalons signing the paper, scribbled with multiple colors. Everyone seemed so eager to see what lie in the depths of the forest. She wished she was that eager to go. 'Maybe...it's not that bad...' she thought, trying to convince herself to sign up. Her paws were sweaty, knees weak, arms were heavy. 'What will the others think if I don't go?!' The thought was stuck in her head. She let out a shaky sigh. She carefully picked up the pen. She switched it to purple, to represent her team. She pressed the pen lightly on the paper. Her stomach churned as she wrote her name shakily. 'Welp... whats done is done' she said to herself.

177 words

[HoneyLavender࿐]

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Username: Ana the Derp
Link to roll call post: Mickey Mouse Roll Call
Prompt response: "Test? Ha! This is nothing! My middle name's courage!" Laiste was a bit over enthusiastic (RIP my spelling) as she bounced around on the tips of her paws. But it is true, Laiste's middle name is Courage. Laiste Courage Kalón. I will tell you more about Laiste as she fills out boring papers. Laiste loves all sorts of danger and thrill (especially guys ) and she excites at the idea of danger. All Laiste hopes is she doesn't embarrass herself in front of the handsome counselor. 'His hair looks so soft...' she thought as she fell right into the wall "Shoot!" Laiste exclaimed and held her muzzle tenderly. She quickly looked around and breathed a sigh of relief when she didn't see anyone. "I hope I don't become courage the cowardly dog - more like kalon - when the test starts." Laiste the dotted her i's and crossed her t's and left.

[f1owercrown]

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Username: f1owercrown
Link to roll call post: <3
Prompt response:

Tch. Test of courage? It seemed like such a huge deal for something that felt child-like to Dale. He had feared nothing else but failing his course (a story Dale's sure to tell the other campers in due time, if they asked), so he was confident this hike was nothing short of a simple stroll in the park. What threat was there to throw at him...

...Death? It was a camp, of course the guide masters wouldn't let any casualty fall upon them, lest they wanted to be reprimanded.

...Ghosts? He believed in ghosts and other supernatural things as a child. So long as he acknowledged them and respected them, he wouldn't be harmed.

...Bears? He's read countless survival books about the wilderness and beyond. He knew what to prepare and how to act in worst-case scenarios (of course, experience would've been helpful, but at this point the least he could offer was being knowledgeable, right?)

...Darkness? His mind was sometimes plagued with thoughts darker than the darkest nights. He's felt worse, definitely.

In hindsight, the intimidation Dale gives off might instill fear to other Kalons more than whatever was lurking deep in the forest.

Dale knew in his mind that he was ready for it. Of course, he wasn't the type to leave anyone behind, so in the event that something might go wrong, he would be ready to help the best way he can. Besides, he was curious how much courage he needed to pass this "test of courage". He had to remind himself that this test wasn't just for a "passing grade", but rather a showcase of the skills and knowledge he's been keeping hidden at the back of his mind for all this time. It was his pride and ego being fed if he'd finish this, after all, and what a story this would be at future university parties to say he braved the terrifying night hike! He'd never been this pumped with adrenaline before, knowing there was no holding back. Without hesitation, Dale picked up the pen, pressed down the color black, and wrote "Dale Evans" in his signature-style handwriting.

[Starberry_milk]

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Username: StarWerewolf
Link to roll call post: Here!
Prompt response:

[Meduz]

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Username - jellyfish.lucy
Link to roll call post - here
Prompt response -
Dexter look down at the pen in his hand and gulped. Images swam out of the fog in his mind, eyes watching from the treeline, cracking branches, 6ft spiders and wolves flashing teeth. The images became more absurd as time went on vampires, aliens, a host of terrifying things plagued Dexter's imagination. Colour drained from his face and he rushed back to his cabin with his tail between his legs.

Dexter had refused to do canoeing, rock climbing and bug catching because he was scared of heights, water and bugs. Or as he would say "I suffer from accute thalassophobia, acrophobia and entomophobia, as well as xenophobia*, nyctophobia, agoraphobia, claustrophobia and others". Dexter has a reputation for being something of a scaredy cat, a "wimp" as his bullies say. It was in fact his psychologist who suggested that Kamp would be good for Dexter and help him to maybe face one or two of his fears.

As Dexter lay in bed playing with the multicoloured pen he was still holding he recalled the conversation with his psychologist. "Just try one thing," she'd said. Dexter had already skipped most of the Kamp's activities. Despite all his fears his greatest fear was being a disappointment and letting people down, he did not want his parents to be ashamed of him. Dexter knew he had to go then, he had to sign up for the night hike before he changed his mind. He ran out of his cabin, scarcely noticing the dark around him and headed straight towards the slightly odd sign up sheet. He wrote his name at the bottom of the, now very full, list and stepped back to look. He realised there'd be many campers on the walk and some of them were probably scared too. A sense of pride filled him and he returned the pen and headed home to get some sleep. For the first time in a while he was not plauged with nightmares, but comforted by thoughts of making a friend. (361 words)

*This means fear of the unknown not of foreigners (although foreigners are sometimes unknown so I presume that's where that usage comes from ?? )