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// music playlist:
x +
x +
x +
x +
x +
x +
x //
// theme song - lord huron, meet me inside (not linked) //
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Username: Kaitlynizer
Kalon name: Carter Motley
Kalon gender: Male
Reasons for the name: Went with the name "Carter" to play off of the word "cartography", which
is the study/practice of making maps. Found the last name "Motley" while
looking up words, and thought it fit.
Personality:kind - spaced out - easily distracted - very quiet when not doing tours
thoughtful - observant - dreamy - sweet - forgetful - easy-going - sad
comforting - forgiving - anchored - a bit introverted - loving - clingy
insecure - discontent - reliable (as long as you remind him a few times)
self-critical - inquisitive - creative
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Biggest dream:
Explanation of their biggest dream:Carter's biggest dream revolves around the art of map making, which is also known as
cartography. He dreams of making the perfect map of the wildlife reserve where he works,
one that includes every single little detail. He first encountered the reserve as a teen, and
eventually fell in love with its strange landscape when he got a job as a secretary there.
Slowly, he worked up the ranks and discovered his talent for explaining information about
the wildlife there when his boss took note of his commentary to the campers staying there.
Carter had mentioned something about a gaze of raccoons living near the lake and had gone
on to explain about the animal. After seeing how knowledgeable he was, his boss gave
him a shot working as a tour/nature guide, and suddenly everything had clicked for Carter.
Through his work, Carter gradually learned where everything 'was' in the reserve, from the
places where the birds tended to stay, to where the buffalo grazed, to where everyone had
it's place - and that's when he had his grand idea. Carter had made maps before, yes, but
what if he could make a entire map dedicated to the entire reserve? With every single little
observation? With the spots where each animal was most likely to be seen? Where every little
stream could be drawn until they intertwined with the four lakes of the reserve? It would be
hard, yes. But it would be worth it. Thus, his biggest dream is to make a perfect map of the
reserve, which stretches over 12,000 kilometers! It was practically impossible, but he
wanted to try - and that alone made it worthwhile to him. The above image is the map so far.
The Maps:- started making them so he wouldn't get lost
- takes a lot of notes, especially for his wildlife reserve project
- often has notes like this: "squirrels really like these trees", "fox den somewhere around
here??", "baby bird season, watch out for nests", "stream here", "strange creature
spotted here?? unsure of what they are? tread carefully", "avoid this path, road blocked
by a lot of fallen trees"
- writes notes for himself on the maps too, like "don't forget to go to reserve meeting at
9 am tomorrow" or "remember water!!" as there's no water fountain/water jug at the office
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Biggest fear:Carter has claustrophobia, meaning a fear of enclosed/small spaces. And by fear, I mean
terrified. It all began on a long hike with his dad, and ever since then Carter can't help
but freak out when he's in a small space, especially if it's enclosed on all sides.
How the fear began:As a child, Carter had little
sense of direction. When given instructions on how to reach a certain place,
he'd always mistake left for right and even when told which was which after
a few minutes he'd simply forget! Only after weeks of writing "left" and "right"
on both paws, was he able to remember. But even then, he'd still get lost
somewhere along the way. Despite this, he never lost his sense for adventure
and love for nature. Perhaps only 8 years old, he went on a camping trip
with his parents..
"I'll be right back Dad! I'm going down this trail. I'll meet you later, okay?"
cried the small batty kalon as they started to stroll down a tributary of the
main trail. "Alright, but don't get lost! Meet me by the trail head by 6! If
you're five minutes late I'll go find you"
"Fine!" was the reply, albeit slightly harder to hear for the adult kalon.
With that, Carter started down the trail, contentedly kicking his feet up
in order to immediately look behind him and see little waves of dust coming
up from the ground. This process repeated as he walked, slowly but surely
continuing down the trail. Purple twilight began to leak into the orange sky,
gradually dimming the available light. By now, Carter barely could see the
neon pink strands of tape that had been wrapped around every 10th tree
that were used to guide travelers. "Okay, I take a right now.."
"Oh.."
"Uh.."
"Mmm"
Carter started nibbling on his claws, twinging with nervousness as he
tried to remember which way... which way to go.

"Aaaa" he muttered under his breath, shifting his gaze every which way.
The path seemed to have been sucked up into the twilight, somehow hidden
by the dark trees, but he knew he was supposed to make a right..
Unwilling to sit there and do nothing, he determined to take the right anyway,
and just cut through the trees. "I just want to be back with Dad" he whispered
quietly, squirming over a threshold of vines he had accidentally caught his fur on,
to walk on already crumpled leaves.
"Ooo, I bet a deer went this way! I read about it in that book.. the leaves are kinda
squished. I'll just follow the leaves! I saw a deer near the campsite, I think" Carter
said absentmindedly to himself, reaching out tentatively with each paw so he knew he
was following the crumpled leaves by the feeling. "Dad will be so proud of me.. I'll
have gotten back to the campsite all by myself"
Carter continued along the path of the crumpled leaves, following it as night slowly
enveloped everything from sight, so that not even a shadow was seen. The only light
now was the soft shining of his eyes, blinking in the darkness. There wasn't grey. Or
the slight tint of green. Only black. Eventually, Carter felt his feet touch something
strange.. Quite cold, in fact. Uncertain, the small kalon cautiously stepped forward,
feeling tiny crumbles of rocks between his feet on the bumpy surface - and then
what he assumed to be stone on either side of his fur, almost like he was in a narrow
passageway. "Uhh.."
What do I do?? This doesn't feel like the woods anymore.. I don't know!It was then, that he realized he was trembling. No.. he wasn't trembling.. the.
the.. the ground was. Then there was a crumbling sound.. Carter jolted forward,
trying to keep his balance, trying to get away from the sudden noise.
...
Puffs of dust, dirt and rocks were settled on the stony floor. From one side
there was a clutter of jagged stones blocking the way he had come. From
the other was a small kalon, only a few feet away, who was lying on the ground.
Gradually he woke up, head hurting, mind boggled, and scared. "Owwwwww"
He opened his eyes every so slightly, trying to see where he was. A small crack
of light, from between the stone, shone dimly into the space. Now that he could
look around and get a sense for where he was, he quickly realized just how
cramped it was inside this place.. wherever 'this' was.
I want home. I want.. I want home.
I want to go home.
Someone guide me home.. A few tears streamed down his face, which was now covered with dust and grime.
It's scary here. I want to go home!! "Dad.. Dad!!" he cried, hoping that somehow they would hear. "DAD!!" came the scream,
muffled slightly by the now desperate, heaving, rasping breaths.
"Carter?! Was that you?! Where are you? TALK TO ME! IT'S GOING TO BE OKAY"
"Dad?"
"I'm coming Carter!"
-- Years later --
"Alright Carter, could you please explain what happened today?"
I looked away, directing my attention out to the window, a gust of wind
shuddering the blinds slightly. Dark clouds lingered in the sky, raindrops
littering the ground, a stormy sight to match my mood... "I was going out"
"And?" they prompted.
"I went over to the lockers, the ones that they give out to all the employees
at work, and someone was moving past me"
I paused for a minute.. and then another minute... Trying to stay composed.
I don't want to cry again.. c'mon, just say it. You can say it "I had opened my locker already.. And.. They bumped into me, my head got
kind-of shoved inside the locker"
I paused again.
"I freaked out. I just - I can't.. It makes me feel trapped..
Scared"
It was quiet for a moment.
"I understand. New job?"
"Y-yes. I got it yesterday, I was lucky to get it. I like being around the forest,
even if I'm stuck in an office doing filing work.. It's an open space.. for the
most part - aside from the lockers" I said, managing to muster up a weak laugh
at the mention of the lockers.
"I want you to take a deep breath"
"Okay"
"You are okay"
"Okay"
"Better?"
"A little" I replied, my voice a whisper.
"What should you do next time?"
"Breathe.. Just breathe. Right?" I asked, unable to stop doubting myself.
"Yes"
The Effect of Fear:Fear can stop you, can prevent you from doing so many things, but only if you let it.
They say it's only when you face your fears and find a solution that you grow.
And that's what Carter set out to do, a while after the incident he decided to
try to figure out why he had gotten trapped.. there. So, he followed all the
steps he took, and traced the original problem back to his tendency to get lost.
To fix it, he decided to make maps. He dashed over to the table, grabbed a
piece of paper (the kind that they give out to little kids at restaurants, with the
coloring spaces and games), flipped it over, and drew his first map on the back.
From there, the maps grew into a hobby and a way for him to remember where
he was.
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How he sees himself:"I see myself as someone with a heavy heart, the kind of person who understands what
it is to feel sad and to feel scared. An empathetic, introverted, nature-loving kalon with
a love for watching all different kinds of animals in their natural setting. I'm reliable and
trustworthy. A bit spaced out though? I tend to forget things a lot. But anything that
someone says to me in confidence stays that way. I hope they do the same for me...
Anyway, I try to follow the "treat others like you'd want to be treated" philosophy. I'd
describe myself as a rule-follower too. If that makes any sense"
How others see him:- kindhearted
- shy
- secretive
- weird
- a bit jumpy
- trustworthy
One thing they like about themself:"I think that out of everything I like my eyes. Not just appearence-wise, but just in the
sense that it lets me look at everything the world has to offer.. every branch, every tree,
every kalon.. it lets you see a story"
One thing they dislike about themself:"I don't really like how spaced out I can get sometimes. I'll just zone out in the middle of
the conversation, no matter how hard I try. It get's really annoying, especially when I
genuinely want to listen to someone. I started writing notes to myself about the conversation,
but in the end I forget where I put them, haha. Sometimes it's nice, just to daydream and
imagine, but I'd rather go outside and make new
experiences"
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Relationships:-
Sebastian, owned by me
"Ah, I'm not sure what to think of him so far. I met him on the reserve, near the plateau,
while I was doing a wildlife tour. Somehow he had stumbled in, looking for water, and had
gotten lost on the way to the reserve center? I think he might have been trespassing? It was
a bit suspicious.. but I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt for now. He looked a bit on the
rough side, kind of woodsy. Although I was cautious at first, I warmed up to him once he
spoke to me on the way back to the center. I definitely think he's kind, but I'm not sure exactly
what his morals are yet. He seems to have a good head on his shoulders, although he's made
some snarky remarks. In short, I can definitely see myself as a friend of his in the future,
once I get to know him more. He mentioned something about mountain-climbing earlier, so
maybe I can show him the more rocky terrain of the reserve later"
-
Sara, owned by me
" At first I didn't know what to think of her, but after a while we became friends. She's quite
talkative, and we get along for the most part. It's a little annoying to listen to her when she's
worried about something, but that's what friends are for, right? She's kind and really brave,
which are traits I tend to admire. Even if things don't go her way, she still tries to push
through. If she wants something, she goes and gets it, and she'll do really nice things out of
the blue for just about anyone. I feel like she internalizes her feelings a lot, just keeps them up
in a bottle - I relate to that. Whenever I need someone she's there. Overall she's pretty funny,
hard-working, and incredibly caring"
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Occupation: Nature/Tour Guide
Habits:- writing notes all over his maps
- forgetting where he is and having to look back at the map, or ask what he was doing before he forgot
- sketching/doodling the animals he sees on the reserve
- sometimes paints pine-cones with a really light coat of peanut butter (as peanut butter has sugar,
and sugar is bad for squirrels) and sticks nuts and seeds all over it, in order to hang them (the
pine-cones) from the trees for the squirrels
- sleeps with a night-light on as he sleeps
Likes:- making "custom" maps
- diverse wildlife
- caring for injured animals (only does this when it's absolutely necessery)
- nature, landscapes
- art (likes watching people paint)
- trees
- squirrels (tries to just see, not touch)
- peanut butter
- books
- some kinds of music, usually along the lines of Lord Huron songs
- open spaces
- the forest in particular
- night-light's (doesn't like being in the dark)
Dislikes:- when funding for the reserve is cut (relies on funds from the government)
- seeing kalons treated poorly
- being treated poorly
- having/seeing others look at his maps (he likes to keep them to himself)
- enclosed spaces
- caves
- the dark
Favorites:animal - deer or squirrel
song - lord huron, "fool for love"
flower - lily
place - outside by one of the reserve lakes
color - purple, then green, then blue
snack - a simple spoonful of peanut-butter
activity - working on a map or watching wildlife
weather - breezy but sunny
Quirks:- can't sing well but still sings anyway
- never eats food quickly, tries to savor every last bite
- has a strange fondness for peanut butter over all other foods
- very forgetful
- enjoys listening to music in foreign languages, especially songs by wjsn
- prefers water over soda
- generally a sentimental person
- loves the word "florid" and tries to use it constantly because he likes how it sounds
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Art Gallery:smile by
viixensomeone will guide me home by
champion.banner by
champion.the reserve map by me
staring out the window by me
likes/dislikes reactions by me
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Good luck to everyone! and special thanks to champion.
(you're amazing + ily)