Orange-Earth Sylvani

A P P E A R A N C E

{ B U I L D }

Body Build ||

Sylvani is very, very small, having been firstborn and yet the runt. She has always been behind her siblings in everything, though her paws are rather large in proportion to the rest of her. Beneath her pelt she once had a broader build thanks to her Maine Coon genes, yet despite this- and due to recent weight loss- she is admittedly tiny compared to her family. It is unknown what caused her to be born and to grow so small.

Height || 8”

Weight || 7.4 lbs.

{ C O L O R A T I O N }

Fur ||

Sylvani’s pelt is a soft dove-gray with a darker tabby section along her back and the top of her tail. This shade also colors her ears and scoops across her forehead in a V-like marking. Her fur is curly and soft as a rabbit’s pelt, and surprisingly long- though its curly aspect keeps this from being very noticeable. Her paws are a dark soot color that fades back to her normal soft gray at her elbows, though her paw pads are a creamy white, as is her underbelly and maw.

Eyes ||

In a hawk attack seasons ago, Sylvani lost her right eye; however, the remaining is a clear and pretty cerulean blue with a tinge of sea-green in its depths.

Skin ||

Sylvani’s skin is a grayish-pink and tends to scar in knots; however, it is harder to see her scars due to her thicker fur. It takes a deep wound to leave a permanent mark.

{ A D D I T I O N A L }

Items ||

{ Beaded Necklace | Hanging from a black cord and Sylvani’s neck are several colored beads, four symmetrical royal-blue ones on either side of four dangling green charms. Between the matching collections is the chest piece, a beautiful cerulean jewel enclosed by a golden ring and dangling a small bit of intricate beadwork. The jewel once hosted a powerful healing energy, blessed by the former Yellow-Light Zarya, but is now vacant of power. | Received at age: 1.25 years from: Taren | Worn }

{ Gem Bracelet | The first accessory Sylvani ever received, this bracelet was given to her by her father, after her great admiration of his necklace. The cerulean, rounded jewels on it both match his collar’s and her eye color, and it is her prized possession. | Received at age: 3 months from: Farox | Worn }

{ Ear Brace | Crafted with Palette's help, Sylvani hung a lapis lazuli from her first apprentice Dexter and melded it to her Acuity starstone on a corded silver brace. | Received at age: 3 years from: Dexter and Palette | Worn }

{ Barn Owl Feather | Given as a sign of comfort from Kintsu when they parted ways in Light Tribe; she no longer remembers where she got it or why she keeps it in her nest. | Received at age: 1.75 years from: Kintsu | Not Worn }

Scars||

{ Missing Eye/Face Scars | Before she turned adolescent, Sylvani was brutally attacked and savaged by a hawk. Her face will always bear the marks of this attack, starting with her right eye, which had to be removed by healers in order to help heal the horrible gashes running over it. These thick, bunched marks continue from her brow to her chin. Two undercuts slice beneath her left eye, though thankfully its vision is in no way impaired. | Received at age: 11 months from: a hawk }

{ Back | In the same hawk attack, Sylvani was repeatedly clawed along her spine in an effort to be lifted into the air; her scruff bears the most damage, and the deepest cuts continue down to her shoulders, neck, and flanks. | Received at age: 11 months from: a hawk }

{ Right Ear | During a border skirmish, Sylvani was knocked to the ground and tore the delicate cartilage in her ear; the top portion is limp and hangs loosely. Not only this, but the hawk added its own marks at its base when skimming overhead and reaching for her face. | Received at age: 7 months from: Sojir }

{ Chest | When fighting with Aeverie, Sylvani was shocked to the severity that Aeverie's conducting paw burned its print into her fur. It has not grown back and most likely never will. | Received at age: 1.5 years from: Aeverie }

{ Cheek Bite | During a grapple with Samael, Sylvani's cheek was torn; because her cheek fur usally overlaps the haphazard bitemarks, it looks rather strange and misshapen. | Received at age: 2 years from: Samael }

{ Throat | Multiple times since the raid, Sylvani's throat has been torn at and bitten into. For a month straight she could not speak right, and though sometimes she still has trouble her vocal cords seemed to have healed any damage they sustained. Three different individuals have contributed to the thick knot of scars that overlap her throat. | Received at age: 2 years from: Aeverie, John, and Samael }

{ Flank Bite | Received during the raid by an unknown cat, presumably an anarchist, on her right flank. | Received at age: 2.25 years from: Unknown }

Notable Features ||

Sylvani’s most notable features are definitely her scars. Yet despite this, she still has a warm and friendly face. She mostly uses her mass of curly head fur to try and hide her missing eye. The other feature that draws attention is her tail. Though Sylvani is small, it seems her tail forgot this important fact. It is extremely large and very fluffy- and popular with kits as well.

E N V I R O N M E N T

Tribe || Earth

Profession || Head Miner

Mentor ||

{ Weiland | Green-Earth | waxwiing | Former }

Apprentice ||

{ Dexter | Orange-Earth | elixodus | Graduated }
{ Mikaela | Black-Earth | PenumbralWolf | On the Quest }

{ S K I L L S }

Rank || Miner

Power / Ability || Primary

Skill Tree ||

{ Up to Primary SKILL 13 }

{ B E L I E F S Y S T E M }

Faith in the Spirits (general) || 85 %

Loyal towards most of the Spirits, especially the Earth Spirit.

Personal Thoughts ||

Sylvani considers herself quite blessed, overall, throughout her life. Though technically her first life was cut short, she now sees her second chance as the true gift it is. She thanks the Spirits for keeping her and her family safe; even after losing Kite, she feels as if they have been particularly lucky. One of her methods for battling her anxiety is to simply trust- as such, her faith is extremely strong. In the face of the Followers, she clung to the Spirits, chanting every night of her disbelief in Alriyel and asking them to give her their strength. The horrible ordeal only made her faith stronger. She holds form in her loyalty to all the Spirits, but would especially do anything for her Tribe and the Earth Spirit.

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P E R S O N A L

{ Defining the character’s emotional and mental attributes which characterize their personality, general attitude and chosen courses of action }

{ P E R S O N A L I T Y }

Summary ||

Sylvani’s heart is so pure that it shines in almost everything she does. After her accident she learned to become stronger and be able to take care of herself- however, she is still dependent on others as she believes life ought to be, willing to do anything for her Tribe and friends. Even though she still trusts those she loves with a full heart, she has become more wary over the past few seasons; her troubles have brought her a bit more caution, and certainly have not helped her anxiety. Even if she has managed to force herself to come over her timid nature, she still struggles with coping with her fears, and most likely will for the rest of her life. The one benefit that came from the Followers was learning how to cope with these fears and overcome them. Her time as a spy has also helped carve out her passion for her Tribe, Alcina, and the innocent, something she mightn't have discovered fully otherwise. Earth Tribe is her everything.

Loyal/Attached ||

Sylvani would never dare abandon a friend or hurt their feelings- which is quite the feat, considering Sylvani attaches herself to almost every kind cat she talks to. One almost has to do nothing but smile at this sweet cat to gain her affections. She would most likely have many more friends than she does now if not for her own self-perceived reputation after the Followers; in truth, she has brought her new quietness to herself. If Sylvani calls one a friend, they would hardly have to do more than frown and she would come rushing to their aid offering a tiny, sweet smile and softly asking what’s the matter. It doesn’t matter what- if one Sylvani cared for sought to ask for something, she would leap to give or get it in a heartbeat.

Compassionate/Helpful ||

A trait that some say could make Sylvani a wonderful healer, her compassion and pure love of helping shines in every small smile she gives. It’s hard to stay upset around Sylvani- she does whatever she can to see that smile returned, and would like to believe that if she tries hard enough, life could be nothing but smiling and joy. It’s almost her goal in life to make others grin or laugh, and the kindness that this tiny miner possesses is quite astounding. She has no trouble with forgiveness and will even love those she cares for through their mistakes without skipping a beat.

Peaceful ||

This little cat would never dare to hurt another, whether in words or by way of claws. In turn she expects others to give her the same respect, though here her naïve tendencies show- Sylvani likes to believe that if everyone tried, the world could be bloodless and satisfactory. She despises any kind of fighting, even kit play, and would not join in with her littermates or the other kits when they tumbled around together. She thinks that words would deal as just a fine solution as war and would love to see the day when nobody was hurt, and nobody frowned.

Anxious ||

Though Sylvani is usually able to hide it, she struggles with a vast amount of anxiety that sometimes goes beyond a simple personality trait. After the hawk attack she has suffered from bouts of panic and fought to control them. She often manages to act as if nothing is wrong, but if an emotional situation gets too far out of hand she is forced to flee or will break down. Many of her fears have been heightened by her increased anxiety into phobias that can also trigger problems, but she is constantly working to improve. The Followers trained her in ways of disguising and working past her fears to the point that only Alcina and Dexter realize her anxiety still exists.

Trusting ||

Sylvani used to think that everyone has pure intentions, and is sometimes so focused on simply believing in another that she is blind to their mistakes. Even after they have hurt her repeatedly, Sylvani cannot let go, continuing to hope for the better them to return. She trusts extremely easily, sometimes attaching herself to a cat she’s only met once- yet when she is disappointed, she cannot let go of the natural inclination to believe in them. This tends to only hurt her, though she can’t seem to stop from developing a strong faith in the cats she loves and lives with anyway.

Servient ||

Sylvani would do everything possible not to break a rule or hurt another’s feelings. She would, however, do anything for a friend- and anything at all. This is admittedly a trait that falls in with her trust issues, for Sylvani wants to think that anything requested of her couldn’t possibly be bad. She could never tell a friend “no” if they asked her to do something, and lives to please others. Though this is a positive trait for her friends, Sylvani tends to take the shorter end of the stick in any relationship, thus hurting herself.

{ Q U I R K S }

Habits ||

{ Late Riser | For whatever the reason, Sylvani sleeps most soundly in the morning hours. If she knows she has to get up early, she will go to sleep sometimes before the sun even sets, to seemingly make up for the lack of steady sleep. }

{ Flowers | Sylvani has a great love for flowers and cultivates the fields even during winter so that she can always have blossoms to sniff. She pours a great deal of energy into growing them, and as such is quite good at it. If she is close to someone, she may gift them with a personally-grown bloom. }

Fears ||

{ Loneliness | Sylvani cannot be alone. Though during the day she can occasionally go an hour or two by herself outside of camp, eventually she must return before she gets too anxious. At night, especially, she needs to be close to others to feel safe. }

{ Thunderstorms | Though Sylvani does not fear water itself, she is scared of thunderstorms. Lightning especially freaks her out, and she prefers to remain in a den if at all possible. }

{ Blood | Sylvani cannot stand the sight of blood. Not only does it make her queasy, but she will start to tremble and break into a cold sweat while her stomach turns in knots. It is impossible to tell if this is true fear or simply severe nausea. }

{ Heights | Being up high makes Sylvani feel faint and quiver. She can’t climb trees because she’s refused to ever try, though she will climb rocks if she must, as they feel more solid to her. Any sort of heights where she is not fully supported terrifies her. }

{ Darkness | If she is in the dark, Sylvani finds it hard to breathe. Though her fear mirrors claustrophobia- as she feels closed in and watched in darkness- she actually has no fear of closed spaces during the daylight. If she were shut into a cave, she would only freak out because it was entirely dark. }

Ambitions ||

{ A Long-Lasting Relationship | Though Sylvani would never want to say so, she has always had the fairy-tale dream of her perfect knight. Though this dream died long ago, Rowan may be rekindling it. }

{ To Make Her Tribe Proud | After being appointed head miner and losing almost all the cats she'd cared for in her life, Sylvani only wants to be the best she can be for Earth Tribe. She currently devotes herself to her job over anything else, except perhaps Rowan and Dexter. }

{ T R I V I A L }

Favorites ||

Place || A small cave she and Taren discovered- now his burial site

Activity || Growing flowers

Scent || Water lilies

Food || Squirrel

Sound || Crickets at night

Weather || Surprisingly, very cold and snowy

Season || Autumn

Time of Day || Afternoon

Animal || Honeybee

Fun Facts ||

| Sylvani collects pretty things and keeps them tucked away in a little personal cave in the mines.

| Giving her a flower would absolutely make her day. (Maybe even her week.)

| She does not like Void Tribe.

{ S E X U A L I T Y }

Orientation || Heterosexual

Status || Single, not looking

Current Interests || Taren, Kintsu, Rowan

{ R E L A T I O N S H I P S }

Coming soon!

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H I S T O R Y

{ Defining the character’s past and the characters involved in it which have shaped their current opinions, characteristics and/or behavior }

{ K I N }

Mother ||

{ Biological | Orange-Earth | Shasta | Female | Deceased | HauntedMuck }

Father ||

{ Biological | Green-Air | Farox | Male | Alive | Acerbiic }

Siblings ||

{ Biological | Littermate | Black-Water | Cadia | Female | Deceased | Toadfoal }

{ Half-Brother | Littermate | Gray-Shadow | Idek | Male | Unknown | HauntedMuck }

{ Biological | Littermate | Orange-Light | Jace | Male | Alive | Acerbiic }

{ Biological | Second litter | Orange-Light | Anastasia | Female | Alive | skitty22 }

{ Biological | Second litter | Gray-Void | Merlin | Male | Deceased | Acerbiic }

{ Biological | Second litter | Black-Water | Naeli | Female | Unknown | Treaimas }

{ Biological | Second litter | Kitten | Kite | Male | Deceased | Emrenn }

Aunts ||

{ Father’s Sister | Orange-Light | Zarya | Female | Deceased | Vinscribbles }

{ Father’s Sister | Unknown | Hunter | Female | Unknown | NPC }

Uncles ||

{ Mother’s Brother | Kitten | Loti | Male | Deceased | NPC }

{ Mother’s Soulbond/Adopted | Green-Earth | Conan | Male | Deceased | petit--loup }

{ Father’s Soulbond/Adopted | Black-Air | John | Male | Unknown | eliza1star }

Cousins ||

{ Father’s Soulbond’s Son | Blue-Void | Nevaeh | Male | Alive | Anoshinie }

{ Father’s Soulbond’s Son | Green-Void | Zachary | Male | Alive | eliza1star }

{ Father’s Soulbond’s Son | Blue-Fire | Janek | Male | Alive | TheRushingWolf }

{ Father’s Soulbond’s Son | Blue-Fire | Egil | Male | Alive | otsukimirecital }

{ Father’s Soulbond’s Son | Blue-Earth | Atsasda | Male | Alive | ShadowclawFC }

{ Father’s Soulbond’s Daughter | Unknown | Tris | Female | Unknown | ipann }

Nieces ||

{ Half-Brother's Daughter | Unknown | Kestrel | Female | Alive | ddorky }

{ Half-Brother's Daughter | Black-Water | Catalina | Female | Unknown | Bayflight }

Nephews ||

{ Half-Brother's Son | Black-Fire | Miles | Male | Unknown | petit--loup }

{ Half-Brother's Son | Unknown | Osprey | Male | Alive | quaill }

{ Half-Brother's Son | Unknown | Fisher | Male | Alive | HauntedMuck }

{ Half-Brother's Son | Unknown | Wolverine | Male | Alive | Baerrito }

Offspring ||

{ None yet }

{ E X T E N D E D }

Close Friends ||

{ Gray-Earth | Alcina | Female | Unknown | Acerbiic }

{ Gold-Earth | Rowan | Male | Alive | NinjaCheetah }

{ Pink-Light | Anastasia | Female | Alive | skitty22

{ Orange-Earth | Dexter | Male | Alive | elixodus }

{ Green-Earth | Taren | Male | Deceased | Hollyseven }

{ Orange-Earth | Iris | Female | Deceased | Silvadil }

Soulbond || { Gray-Earth | Alcina | Female | Unknown | Acerbiic }

Romantic Partner || None

{ B A C K S T O R Y }

Summary | Blossoms Blooming | Lifelong ||

Sylvani’s parents didn’t always have the perfect relationship that she grew up surrounded by, but as fate would have it the Green-Air and Orange-Earth managed to see eye to eye in the end. It was not long after they received blessing to be mates that Shasta realized she was expecting. In the middle of autumn, she gave birth to their first litter of four.

Caspia was the firstborn- and shockingly small. Though Shasta was reassured that her other kittens would be larger, in the beginning Caspia was rather sickly and weak. However, once she did catch up to her siblings, she grew happily. She was closest to her brother Campion, though Camellia and Cress seemed to be slightly disdainful of her. She never joined in play fights and much preferred to look at the flowers than go cause trouble.

She gained friends quickly and simply loved life, despite the threat of the caimans looming over the Tribes’ head. The Council of Spirits was home to her more than Earth Tribe camp was. It was there that she met two of the friends that would impact her most- an adolescent named Iris and another named Taren.

Through many moons and many more litters Caspia grew (though not by much) and when her ceremony came, she secretly hoped to be named an Air Triber, to be by her father. Yet the Silver-Air did not move to her- Rey did. In shock she was named Sylvani, Pink-Earth- not Sylvani, Pink-Air. But when she learned she was staying with those she loved, she was filled with joy and nervousness. Taren assured her she would be fine, and filled with his praise, she threw herself headlong into training.

It was around this time that the final caiman battle approached, and Sylvani nervously joined the teams to prepare for it, digging trenches. She worked alongside Iris and a newer friend of hers, Alcina, trying to make fun out of the grim ordeal. Yet only a couple of weeks before the battle- and just recently after an Orange-Fire’s death in the Shadow Tribe camp- Taren and Sylvani were stopped by a larger border patrol led by the Yellow-Shadow. She accused them of being too close, and when Taren got defensive, a Green-Shadow attempted to push Sylvani out of the way. Misunderstanding, Taren lashed out at him, and the Yellow-Shadow attacked. Sylvani panicked and threw herself between the two to take the blunt of it, knocked away and crumpling her ear. Yet at the Pink-Earth’s tearful pleadings the Yellow-Shadow let Taren go with only scratches.

The battle came, and many of her friends left. Sylvani was a nervous wreck the entire time, praying for everyone to be alright; when dawn rose, they all returned. Earth Tribe could go home.

Sylvani was surprised, as that had never been “home” to her. She didn’t even know what any of the territory looked like. It wasn’t very long after they had settled back in that their Silver-Earth, Rey, drowned in the Sinkhole trying to rescue his son. Everyone around camp was stunned…especially Alcina, who was now Yellow-Earth. Suddenly left alone by all her friends who were grieving, Sylvani was told to go off on her own- and did. However, she quickly became lost in the unfamiliar outskirts of the territory and was attacked by a hawk.

It was lucky that Taren and her brother Jace heard her screams. They rushed to the scene of the attack and chased it away, trying to stop her bleeding and get her to Light Tribe. By the time they did, and the Silver-Light herself approached, Sylvani was nearly gone. Basil did everything she could, but it was still too late. Sylvani locked eyes with Taren and died.

Yet when Jace pleaded with her, Basil gave Sylvani one of her and Kehri’s precious lives to restore her own. The Pink-Earth returned- beaten, traumatized, and half-blind, but alive. Yet Sylvani could not focus on the positive at first; when she was returned to Earth Tribe, she hid her face, horribly embarrassed and struggling to cope with this new anxiety. Everyone slowly began to stop visiting her- including Taren.

When she turned Pink-Orange, she realized she had wasted a month of her entire life. She sought out the Green-Earth and begged him to teach her to survive on her own; after a moment’s hesitation, Taren agreed. He also bestowed her with a blessed necklace so that if she were ever attacked again, she could help herself even more.

It was ultimately Rey’s death that drew her and Iris apart, but it brought her and Alcina together. Sylvani trained hard beside Taren to make up for her new handicaps and gained confidence; she learned how to believe in herself after telling Alcina the same thing so many times. Akida’s kits didn’t seem to mind her new face, and she happily continued on, soon learning to be even more satisfied with this life than her last.

The new Silver, Soren, suddenly disappeared after the joint deaths of the Silver-Water and Sylvani’s adopted uncle Conan, and Alcina was thrust in as the new leader. After consoling the distraught tabby, Alcina asked if they could be soulbonds when Sylvani turned Orange, and she agreed in awe. Soon after Alcina graduated her as a full miner.

It was not very long after the two made their agreement that Taren asked Sylvani the very same question. But Sylvani meant to honor her promise with Alcina…and she wanted something else with Taren. To her great surprise and joy, her best friend agreed, and they decided to try and see how a relationship beyond friendship would work between them. Thus far, it has brought her nothing but delight.

Yet tragedy does happen sometimes, and Sylvani was horrified to return to camp months after the accident and find Akida’s body. She had been killed protecting her daughter from a fox. Sylvani was stunned, but through her grief she promised to watch over Akida’s kittens and make sure Weiland, her former mentor, was alright.

She melded into Orange and soulbonded peacefully with Alcina. Only days later, Shasta gave birth to her second litter- four more kits by the names of Wren, Kite, Sparrow, and Junco. Sylvani adored her siblings with every breath in her body and cared for them, especially little Sparrow, whom she attached to first. So of course she was absolutely devastated when, just a few moons before he could get his tattoo, Kite was killed by one of the new elemental animals.

She is managing to work past her grief and try not to act differently around her younger siblings, though she will always wonder if Kite would be the one to stay with her in Earth Tribe.

The gathering came and Sylvani looked to her siblings’ ceremony with a mixture of dismay and excitement, praying for one of them to be named an Earth Triber. Yet to her great disappointment, none of them were- and in the next heartbeat everything fell apart. Cats bearing golden tattoos appeared and held the new apprentices ransom, demanding authorities of the Tribes as trade. Alcina stepped forward, and Sylvani’s heart cracked. In a moment of indecision she decided to go with the Followers of Alriyel and make sure Alcina stayed safe.

Yet when she moved to leave, Taren yowled out at her, ending their relationship. Unable to explain herself to him in the presence of the Golden-Butterflies, she was forced to take it in silence and continue. It was this pain, this heartbreak, that drove her to decide to be a spy. She threw everything she had into appearing entirely loyal to the Followers, and they slowly fell for it. Sylvani endured numerous difficult tasks, the hatred of former friends, and the jeering of truly loyal followers for over two months. She was forced to torture Ktori during her time, but the tom acted along with her, giving her hope that one day others would realize she hadn't meant anything she'd done.

When the raid came, Sylvani found herself against Aeverie, her unknown cousin of sorts. She refused to fight against another Tribe cat and was nearly ripped apart in the following fight; when at last Aeverie let her go, Sylvani's tattoo scarred permanently, she threw herself in front of her uncle's path as he attempted to take Breel's life. Instead, he took Sylvani's, and her heart stopped for the second time in her existence.

Yet John was quick on his paws, and when Breel had backed away he took Sylvani's body to Light Tribe's camp and used the electricity that had killed her to bring her back. Sylvani spent the next half-month recuperating in Light Tribe camp, but when the gathering came at which she would return home a Spirit claiming to be Alriyel took over a soulless kit's body and promised to release the hostages. When the power-stripped Golden Butterflies fled, Sylvani chased them, wanting to get to Alcina's prison first. She found Kahotep, but in the midst of questioning him an Orange-Air appeared and began to torture the tom with shocks and claws. Sylvani remembered how it felt to be electricuted to death and took mercy on the rogue, killing him in half a second with an earth spike through his heart The Orange-Air was angry with her, but Sylvani fled without explanation, hunting down Samael next. The two had a physical fight in which Sylvani received no information but injuries.

When she finally returned, the leaders had indeed been returned, and Alcina was sharing a den with the Yellow-Fire. Sylvani was forced to sleep away from her soulbond the first night, but the next day she heard that the Yellow-Fire had been killed and resurrected, just like she had been once. She asked him cordially for permission to stay in his den and he reluctantly agreed.

The two found a friendship in each other that neither expected. They were so alike that Sylvani felt as if she had finally found someone else who understood; they spent sleepless nights talking, even taking short walks together. He filled part of the whole in her heart. When they parted for their Tribes and he left her an owl feather, Sylvani realized that it was perhaps more than just friendship. She didn't want to get over Taren...but Kintsu didn't exactly give her much of a choice. She fell for him fast, and even though she discovered that his sister was the cat who'd murdered Iris, nothing could destroy her feelings. Their next meeting was filled with so much relief and affection that Kintsu suddenly admitted what they both knew- they were spiraling out of control for each other, and Sylvani was ready to take the fall.

Longer Version | TBA | Lifelong

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O O C

{ Defining the roleplayer's preferences and statuses in roleplaying, as well as uploaded memes for the character }

{ A V A I L A B I L I T Y }

RP Methods ||

dA Notes || Open

dA Chats || Limited

dA Comments || Closed

Personal Forums || Closed

Google Docs || Open

E-Mail || Closed

Skype || Open

Literacy Levels ||

Script || Open, but preferably on Skype

100 - 300 Words || Limited (200+, please)

300 - 800 Words || Open (preferred range)

800 - 1.000+ Words || Limited

Time Zone || Eastern Time (UTC-5)

{ R O L E P L A Y S A M P L E }

Palette | The-Golden-Butterfly ||

At least, the pale-furred she-cat mused as she picked her way carefully across the camp and towards the entrance, today's weather was nice enough. And indeed it had been. The sun was not so blaring hot against her hunched shoulders as it had been just yesterday, and therefore the cracked ground pained her less. Her paw pads were finally recovered after the last sandstorm, and she shivered slightly to remember the craggy rocks tearing them apart. At least the skies have held. Her pale eyes flickered up towards the overstretch of blue; though it had not rained, it had not stormed, either, and Palette would rather it be dry and clear than sandy and windy.

Love blossomed in her chest as she glanced back in the direction of the small den that Csilla lived in alongside her kittens. Palette remembered distinctly the first time she had entered, her head bowed shyly as her eyes adjusted to the darker lighting. Immediately her mouth had softly fallen open in astonishment at the sight of five curled bodies nestled against the Orange-Shadow's belly fur. Though Cyrus had explained to her that two had been discovered, starving and alone after the second sandstorm, Palette saw no difference. Blood did not matter; they were as much Cyrus and Csilla's children as the three she had given birth to, and that meant she loved them just as dearly. Nothing was more precious to her than family and kittens, and Palette almost felt as if the Spirits were being too kind. It made her afraid; her luck never held. Yet she could not help but watch her terror vanish into thin air when she watched Cassie and Karui play, or when one of the tiny newborns' paws touched her own. There was simply something about them that made Palette feel better.

The Orange-Fire gently brushed past a Light Triber carrying a load of herbs between his teeth to exit the camp in quiet peace, her eyes sparkling slightly. Time kept rushing by; Primus was gone, but she could not find any trace of sadness in her. Wistfulness, of course, but that was for any kit- she was achingly glad that he was back with his parents. She could only imagine Shadow's joy. Soon these five tiny kits would have their own tattoos, but Palette couldn't even pull fear from the idea anymore. They would be happy. And their happiness was all that mattered.

Of course, it didn't mean she didn't silently hope Cassie and Karui would stay with her and their father...or that she might get the great delight in watching one of Cyrus' kits grow up in Fire Tribe. But didn't any family member? Palette sighed softly through her nose and paused to check her paws just outside of the entrance, feeling a sharp jabbing sensation interrupt her thoughts. With a quick glance she spotted a jagged black pebble protruding rudely from the scarred tissue, and she flicked it away carelessly without a second thought. There was so much more to consider that aching feet hardly even captured her attention anymore.

{ C R E D I T S }

The-Golden-Butterfly © Toadfoal

Drawn Application Template © Zaabu + cake-dog

Written Application Template © Hollyseven

Sylvani © Bayflight

Application Art © Bayflight

Design © Silvadil