I would like to adopt!
Number: 6
Picture:
Name: Cathal (nickname Kat)
Species: Smili
Personality: Cathal rarely shows when he is angered; he knows how to stay calm even in the face of danger. He is always quite smart and is usually a few steps ahead of his prey. Cathal hates to back down and will not do so unless it is necessary to do so. Cathal is soft hearted; he won't eat an injured animal. Even though to cover up his soft heart he always says "What is the point of hunting an animal if it is hurt before you hunt. I will not take the easy way out. I will hunt only animals’ capital of putting up a fight." Cathal is quite merciful, even though it may cause him to lose a meal. He doesn't mind being in a group and it is believed that he enjoys company of others. Cathal will protect those he cares about and will never leave them if he has a choice. Many of the other Smilis in the group he lives him think highly of him because he is quite strong. Cathal earns the respect of the other Simlis, but he didn't earn it by hurting them. One time he came across a baby animal, it was injured and helpless. Cathal couldn't bring himself to kill it and brought it back to his home. Cathal keeps it now as a pet (but it is more of a friend to him). Cathal will attack anyone who even thinks about hurting it. Cathal has a playful side but usually acts serious when he is around anyone that isn’t close to him. He only shows his playful side when he is around someone he likes or his little buddy. Cathal is very smart and is quite good at problem solving. Since his species have short legs which make it harder for them to catch prey, he finds other ways to catch them. Some examples are Cathal gets another Smili to follow him then the two breaks off. Cathal chases the prey and the other Smili waits for a chance to jump in at a later time, so when Engel get tired there is less of a chance of him losing the prey. Cathal doesn’t always think before leaping, so he does make a couple of mistakes. It doesn’t happen too much, due to the fact he is very good at problem solving. He is a quick learner too. It only takes Cathal one or two tries to get something right most of the time; it is believed that he learns quick because of his dislike of making mistakes. He though is far from perfect, but it is his determination that contributes to his way of quick learning.
Likes: Cathal loves to create things, mainly because he enjoys making art. Even though he is suppose to be a hunter of the group he lives him, he would rather just make things with his paws. He enjoys watching the night sky; it has a soothing effect on him. It is also a time where he can collect memories or just think about what happens during the day. Cathal has a connection to an ermine, which he raised when it was a baby. Cathal rarely goes anywhere in the camp where he lives without his buddy. The ermine's name is Else, which is the name he gave her. It means "God is my oath". It is unknown what her real name is. Cathal enjoys making other people happy, even when it doesn't help him in anyway. He doesn’t mind the darkness; due to where he lives it can be dark for weeks on end. Cathal lives in arctic tundra in the Northern hemisphere. Cathal loves to play in the fallen snow and really loves cold weather. Summer temperatures for arctic tundra in the summer are three degrees Celsius to twelve degrees Celsius. In the winter it is an average of negative twenty-eight degrees Celsius and at extremes it can go down to negative seventy degrees Celsius. Cathal loves to listen to stories. Some of the Smilis weren’t from the area, so some of the stories he would hear where from
Dislikes: Cathal dislikes hunting a hurt animal, and will sometimes go as far as refusing to kill it. He also doesn't like being a hunter either. Cathal also doesn't like others to know he has a hearing disability. He had it when he was born but hardly anyone knows about it. Engel doesn’t see hunting as a spot but as something that helps him keep living. Cathal hates mistakes, it makes him feel like totally idiot and he thinks it would make his father disappointed in him. Cathal doesn’t care much for water, which isn’t much of a problem for where he lives. His fur is dense and tends to get heavier when wet so it tends to drag him down when wet. In the arctic tundra precipitation levels are six to ten inches a year, but most of that is snow. Although when the upper layer of snow melts in the summer it melts enough to create become small bogs and pools. Water doesn’t soak into the ground because of the permafrost blocks it, so it tends to stay on the surface. Strange though he dislikes water but loves snow, it is because snow is a solid while water is more liquefied. Cathal doesn’t like the feeling of getting wet and even sometimes when he is done playing in the snow, it melts into water. He dislikes it when the snow melts into water, mainly though it happens during the summer. Arctic tundra only really has two seasons, winter and summer. Summer is mainly when the sun is seen the most while winter is when the sun is seen less.
Background: Even the strongest fall sometimes. Everyone feels worthless at some point, everyone gets hurt. Pain is everywhere, dream are crushed. Cathal felt like a fallen angel that lost his way. He saw a human talking about angels one day, even though he didn’t know what they were at the time. The humans were hiking, so most likely they didn’t live there. It was pretty uncommon to see humans around, but it wasn’t a rare thing. The hikers were talking about angels among themselves, but the way they were describing angels Cathal wanted to find out more. Cathal heard stories about angels from a Smili that lived in the camp that, this happened a couple of days after hearing it from a couple of humans. Most were myths and legends that the Smili had gathered from human stories, most of which were passed from ear. Cathal didn’t want to be a predator, a killer but it was who he was. There was no way of changing it. He was born a Smili and thus will never change. Cathal wanted to do something other than being a hunter, he wanted to create art. He loved to create art; it was his passion in life. His favourite way to do art is to make various jewlery. Born with a hearing defect, his father was somewhat ashamed of him. It wasn’t that he didn’t love his son, but he wanted Cathal to be a great hunter, one of the best. When Cathal shows his parents his first piece of jewlery, his father lost it. He had trouble coping with Cathal’s hearing defect but he could not stand the very thought of his son making jewlery. Cathal’s mother though didn’t see as a bad thing, all she wanted was her only cub to be happy. She would do anything in her power to make sure he lives a long happy life. Cathal soon meets an ermine one day while on a hunting trip, it was young and unable to defend for itself. It also didn’t know where its parents where or even its name. He couldn’t leave it and decided to ask if the ermine would want to come back to his camp to become like a pet. At first the ermine refuses but caves in and accepts Cathal’s offer. He finds out that the ermine is a female and decides on the name Else. The two grow a friendship and Cathal doesn’t see Else as a pet, she is more of a friend to him. In arctic tundra in lived a group of Smilis. The group was fairly descent sized and they had a fairly large territory. Among the group lived a pair of Smilis that where mates for life. They went by the name of Iris and Armin. Iris was the most sweetest and artistic Smili in the group and was pretty smart as well. Armin lacked a creative side but was a well known hunter in the group and was highly respected among the group. Iris and Armin though wanted to have a cub of their own, but they were having trouble. For some odd reason Iris was having problems getting pregnant. The two tried and tried over again to have a cub of their own. One day the pair’s prayers were answered, Iris had become pregnant. Cathal was born a few months later to the two happy parents. Iris was beyond happiness to see her new born cub and Armin was very proud as well. Cathal’s name came from Celtic Mythology, meaning strong in battle. Armin’s family used to live in an area where that type of mythology was present, before they made their way to the arctic tundra. Armin wanted his son to be the strong one in battle, the top hunter. He had so many things in mind for Cathal. Armin could see it now, bragging to his friends that his son is the best hunter.
Iris fell in love with her single cub. It was though found out later on that Engel had a hearing problem, he wasn't responding like the other cubs. Iris loved him still, even though Cathal wasn't like the other cubs in their small group. No one ever did find out that Cathal had a hard time hearing because Armin told him to work harder. He didn't want a son who was weak; it was hard for him to accept Cathal's disability. Armin wanted Cathal to become the head hunter, like he was, but no one would want Engel hunting if they found out about his problem. Cathalhid the fact he had issues with hearing because he wanted to please his father.
Armin took Cathal on hunting trip when he was a couple of months old. Armin would say "It is better to learn from hands on experience. You will never learn from just listening". Cathal watched his father kill an old arctic hare. It was the first time he saw death, he didn't like it. When the two were returning home, Armin asked Cathal what he thought of the hunting trip.
"Why did you kill that hare, papa"
"If I didn't someone else would have? There is a rule out there Cathal, do you know it"
Engel shook his head; he had no clue that there was even a rule out there.
"It’s eat or be eaten, you will not get anywhere or even survive for that matter of fact if you are too soft"
"But why go after a slow moving hare"
" Cathal, it is smart to go after the weak and sick. They are easier to kill and you also have a better chance of catching your prey that way too."
Even though Armin said it wasn't smart not to go after the sick and weak, Cathal refused that fact. He thought to himself ‘why go after something that isn't able to put up a fight’. Cathal though hated the fact he had to kill to survive, but he couldn't deny that fact though. It was who he was, an eater of animals. The others that lived in the camp weren't as bad as his dad; some of them had small animals as pets. Cathal soon started to be one of the hunters, his dad was so proud of how well Engel was at hunting.
One day a few months later he was wondering around camp he came across and old friend of his mom's. He saw some lovely pieces of jewelry, he was amazed by it.
"Did you make those" asked Cathal with wonder
"Yes, do you like them" she said quite proudly
"They are so pretty" said Cathal looking at the pieces of jewelry
"Thank you Cathal. I loved showing off my art skills by making these “His mom's friend saw that Cathal seemed to love the pieces dearly, and saw that he seems quite interested. She smiled. "Hey Cathal if you want I can show you how to make some"
"Really" said Cathal, his eyes seemed to sparkle in the morning sun.
She nodded "Yes, of course I will love to show you how to make them"
Cathal would visit her after a hunting trip to learn how to make jewelry. And after a week or two he learned how to do it, he was a fairly quick learner. Cathal was so happy with making the jewelry that without thinking he brought home the piece that he made, it was a beautifully crafted necklace. Iris and Armin were confused about the piece. Cathal explained that he made it and had so much fun doing it. He then said he thought he found his calling, Cathal wanted to be a jewelry maker. Armin was fiercely angered by this. He took the necklace with his huge paw and just smashed with brute strength. Cathal was deeply saddened, but tried not to show it.
"No son of mine will ever be a jewelry maker. What, do you want my friends making fun of me? It was hard enough that you have a hearing problem. Now you want to make jewelry. You are a great hunter, stay with that. You will get great honor from being a hunter." snapped his dad
"But I don't really like being a hunter, and I don't care about honor. I found something that I enjoy doing, aren’t you proud of me" said Cathal almost crying, his first piece of jewelry was smashed into hundreds of pieces.
"No if you continue with that JUNK, I will be ashamed of you. Do you understand Cathal, you are a hunter. You will be a hunter just like me and like the rest of your ancestors. I will no longer talk about this"
Cathal was hurt by this, but he accepted. He always wanted to please his father. Cathal gave up the thought of making jewelry. He though still loved looking at them but soon that started to stop as well. He continued to go on hunting trips but he would not look Armin in the eyes or even in his general direction for the matter. Everyone started to see that the two were starting to have a rift between them.
While on a hunting trip, Cathal wondered off away from the hunting group. He enjoyed to quietness and the different sounds that he heard. Even though he did have hearing problems, he would listen carefully so he could hear the sounds. By mistake Cathal came across a small bundle of fur on the group. He walked carefully over to it and stood near it. He then tried to poke the ball of fur with his big paws; being extra careful that he wouldn't crush it. When he first touched it, the ball of fur moved. It spooked him so much that he jumped backwards and accidently hit himself against a tree. The ball of fur weakly sat up and blinked its tiny eyes at the big cat. It cocked its head trying to figure out what it was looking at. Cathal was wondering the same thing. He could see it was a baby animal and saw that it was hurt.
"What are you” the little of fur asked. Her voice sounded weak but she showed no fear in her voice.
"A Smili" he replied
"A Smili “she said, it sounded more like a question.
"No an S.M.I.L.I, Smili “Cathal repeated
"Oh, so I guess you're going to eat me then “she said
Cathal shook his head, he never would attack a hurt animal. Though for some odd reason this ball of fur seemed different, but he couldn't quite put his paw on it.
"You're weird, I heard Smilis are predators. I'm prey. What am I not good enough for you."
"Umm"
"What too good to eat an ermine"
"Umm I...I" he never had a prey talk back to him. Cathal was too taken back for words "Ermine?" he said changing the subject; he also wanted to make sure he heard it right.
"Yes"
"Alright so anyways I prefer to only attack prey that is able to put up a fight. But it kind of seems you are about to put up a fight after all" said Cathal
"Oh okay still confused but I'll take it"
"So where is your family. You kind of seem too young to be on your own"
"I don't know"
"How about your name"
"I forgot it"
Cathal sighed, he glanced at the ermine. He couldn't leave such a young animal alone just to die. Engel remembered seeing the others in his group having pets, so he figured it must be okay. He then asked the sugar glider if she wanted to go back to camp with him. At first she protested, but after some talking she agreed. Cathal had promised to protect her from those who wanted to cause her harm. So he picked the little ball of fur up and put her on his back and walked back to the group of hunters. They saw the ermine on his back, but seeing that it was a bit too small for food they left it alone. Cathal asked Armin if he could keep it. Armin sighed but said yes. Even though Cathal kind of still had a dislike for his father, he said a thank you to Armin.
Iris didn't mind the ermine but she still asked him why he wanted it. Engel explained what had happened earlier, she smiled and said "Cathal, You are truly an angel, even if you feel like you lost your way." After Cathal got the ermine back to health, since she couldn't remember her name he felt like he should name her. After a few minutes of think he said "How do you like the name Else"
The ermine didn’t to care what he named her. But she didn't hate the name, she actually loved it. The two started to form a friendship. She would follow him around the camp and would stay back at the house when he left with Armin to go hunting.
This was a start on a new way of looking at things for Cathal. He didn't fell as alone when he was with Else, even though he didn't love her as much as a mate he would admit that Else was more than a pet. Else was a friend, probably one of his best. Even though the rift between him and his still existed it was starting to close. Soon there was a deal that was made between Armin and Cathal. If he still went on hunting trips, he could still do some jewelry pieces for fun without having Armin getting mad. Cathal agreed to that, even though he enjoyed making jewelry he could still make his father proud of him by still going on hunting trips.
Cathal would make the most beautiful pieces of jewelry that where just simply stunning. Even though when it came to selling them he let Iris sell them for him. He did that so it would be less of a chance of anyone finding that he was making the pieces. The jewlery was actually selling pretty well, and they were also very popular. Cathal was still a hunter though, so he wasn’t able to make enough to match the demands of the group. He though couldn’t meet the demands because he was limited on how long he can spend on making the jewlery.
Cathal was becoming a very excellent hunter and was quite skilled at it. He would use his problem solving skills to help catch more prey. He was not very happy when he was hunting, but it was making his father proud of him. Cathal soon became the best hunter in the group. It was said that he could catch any type of prey. They though did see that he did go after any injured, sick, or young animals. Cathal keeps replying that he doesn’t see prey that can’t defend themselves worthy of hunting, when the others ask. No one really questioned him after that, Armin though knew why. He though kept it to himself.
What I intend to use Cathal for: I always wanted a big cat like animal most of the cat characters I have are domestic cats pretty much. I also don’t really have any good predator animals although Cathal will have the twist of not really liking the fact he is a predator. He isn’t the one you will see killing just for the fun of it. Cathal won’t be completely soft; he will hunt to get food it’ll just so he will keep on living. I also thought it would be another nice touch to have him have a pet, which an ermine is named Else. Although she is probably going to be more of a best friend then a pet but Else probably won’t end up in a romantic relationship with Engel. I thought it would be fun to have a character with that kind of relationship with an animal. It’s cute; I read on Spotty’s thread that Smilis sometimes keep smaller animals as pets. So that’s what the relationship between Else and Cathal came from. I also have plans that I could use Cathal, such as stories and even maybe in a few of my skits which I post on CS. I really could use a character like him in my little skits; it would be fun to have him on there. I adore the design; the white with a few touches of dark blue on it is a wonderful touch. It is also fairly simple design as well. In my option it being Spotty’s art doesn’t have much effect on how much I adore that design, it’s just great hands down. Although I have to admit I do like a lot of Spotty’s designs, she is a great artist. I also like that the strips and face markings look painted on even though they are natural, I think that is one of my favourite things that I like about this design. Cathal would also be my first animal that comes from an arctic climate, I always had an urge to have a character come from there, and Cathal would give me my chance to.
I'll be editing soon ^-^
