Mathieu Lark

[mathieulark]

Mathieu Lark

....the mask

Your Name: Kim, Kimberly, Kimmers, Kimmersonothy, etc. You can pretty much just warp Kim into whatever you want and I'll be fine with it.
Where did you find us?: I found it via RPG Directory.
How long have you been roleplaying?:Four years, though I've only been roleplaying somewhat decently for two.
Password: [admin edit!]

...basic character information

Birth Name: Mathieu Lark. Poor Matt doesn't get a middle name. Pronounced Matt-two.
Nickname: Matt, Matt-o.
Gender: Male
Age: 15
Sexuality: Straight
Nationality: Danish/Afrikaner
Grade: 9
Birth date: April 2nd, 1995
Program: Bachelor of Arts
Major: Criminal Justice
Major Explanation: Mathieu has a drive to help make the world a better place, and to help people along the way. The vulture takes the dead and rotten out of society, which is what Matt hopes to do in his career. His shift allows him to fly as a scout and reach places others are unable to get to.
Animal Identity: Griffon Vulture

...personality

Likes:(at least 10)

• Art, books, etc. - He's always found other peoples' ideas fascinating.
  
• When the sun comes out right after it rains - Matt is convinced this could be scientifically proven as the perfect combination of heat and humidity.
  
• Flying - While his animal isn't glamorous, Matt always finds joy in swooping around as a vulture.
  
• People - If you ask him why he loves people so much, Matt will probably just ramble on a bit about how there are so many different kinds.
  
• Martial Arts - He started as a child, and now happily lists it as a hobby. He's skilled in Karate and Judo.
  
• God - Matt is quite religious. Though he's not a fanatic Jesus freak, he will take offense to anyone who insults his religion.
  
• Desserts - Matt has a huge sweet tooth.
  
• High Metabolism - This prevents Matt's sweet tooth from turning him into an obese diabetic.
  
• Helping Others - Once you realize that Matt is a total cheeseball, this makes perfect sense.
  
• Languages - While not the best at learning them, he likes how each one has a unique feel.
  

Dislikes: (at least 10)

• Cussing - Matt is that rare teen who's bothered by cussing.
  
• Drugs, alcohol, etc. - Matt is a goody tooshoes, so these unnerve him.
  
• Carcasses - Yes, his shift is a vulture. No, this does not mean he enjoys eating roadkill off the street.
  
• Loneliness - Matt gets antsy quickly if he's alone, and will quickly get out and find someone to bother.
  
• Lazy Days - Matt always has to be doing something. If he does a day of absolutely nothing, he just feels useless.
  
• Confrontations - These lead to fights and awkward situations.
  
• Heat- Oh hey, it's Summer! This is great! Let's go outsid- never mind, it's too hot.
  
• Silences in a big group of people - When this happens, Matt gets this 'I should probably start a discussion, but I don't know how to start it without making it awkward' thought process going in his head.
  
• Religious extremists - Really, they just give other people of their religion a bad name.
  
• Negativity - Yes, Matt is willing to listen to it. He'll show obvious sings of annoyance three seconds in.
  

Fears:

• Being Forgotten - Mathieu assumes this is a universal fear.
  
• Fire - Just something unnerving about it.
  
• Deep Water - Fun fact! Mathieu is not a good swimmer.
  

Strengths:

• Sensitive - Matt can get a good grasp of other people's feelings, and takes extra caution to never provoke anyone.
  
• Strong Morals - Matt has set moral boundaries in his head, and you'll need the strength of an elephant to make him cross them.
  
• Kind - You know that person who's so nice when you first meet them that it's borderline creepy? That's Matt.
  

Weaknesses:

• He's a Doormat - he lets people step all over him. He just can't bring himself to say 'No'.
  
• Bottles Up Emotions - He keeps his bad feelings stored in a dusty space at the back of his mind. Eventually, the dusty place reached full capacity, overloads, and Mathieu snaps.
  
• Overly Forgiving - Mathieu likes to believe people are good. This causes him to forgive people for things that shouldn't be easily forgiven.
  

Overall:

Cynical people have a hard time being around Matt. This is due to the fact that he's idealistic to the point of naivety. On one hand, this allows him to be optimistic, always seeing the good in situations and people. It grants him with a universal kindness, convinced that enough good acts can make the word a better place.

On the other, more depressing hand, this idealism comes packaged with many faults. His idea that people are universally good causes him to put trust in people he shouldn't, and makes him quite gullible. Don't expect him to be able to deceive people - his mind will guilt trip him for things as small as lying. Even if he does lie, he has a thousand tells that will make it horribly obvious.

Despite these faults, Mathieu has an endearing awkwardness about him. It could have something to do with the nervous way he goes about talking, or how he seems to enter any task with the enthusiasm of a small child. Something about Matt just causes people to put their guard down.

Another quirk of Matt is how he talks to people as if he's trying to walk through a field of eggs without breaking any. He takes special caution to never offend anyone. If he does, you can expect a long explanation on how he didn't mean to, and if there's anything he can do to make it up to them. When Matt has to apologize, the person he's apologizing to will be praying for him to shut up.

However, Matt being talkative isn't an uncommon thing. He's quick to start a conversation, and can usually manage a good first impression. While not the most zany or witty, he can uphold a good discussion. Matt has had several interests over his lifetime, and therefore he knows tons of interesting facts and tidbits that he'll be happy to tell you.

People often walk into Matt's room and see him poking his nose into a book. The topic of said books often vary depending on what he's interested in at the time. He may be reading a fantasy thriller one week, simply to move on to astronomy the next. Matt rarely tends to stick to one interest for long, causing many people to label him as flighty. The few interests he's held over the long term are karate and several areas related to human rights.

...appearance

xx

Celebrity Play By: Mathias Lauridsen
Appearance:
Confusion came to many when a brown-haired, blue-eyed teen shifted into a vulture. A vulture shift is expected to be something tough and rugged - instead, it ended up being Matt. The shift makes some sense to them when they realize Griffon Vultures are the ones with fluffy heads, rather than the bald ones.

If Matt were a meat, he'd be the badly cooked kind. He's the type of meal in which all the fat has shriveled off and the texture is all wiry. To put it in words that aren't a confusing metaphor, Matt doesn't have too much fat on him and has a wiry, muscular body.

Matt is the tall side of normal, weighing in at 5' 6 and 155 pounds. Karate and Judo have given him some muscle. It also gives him the capability to hold his own in a fight, though he's screwed if someone pulls a gun on him. The constant practice has also made him flexible. However, it hasn't helped as much in the way of agility.

However, these things aren't the first one notices about Matt. Rather, it's the demeanor. Matt always seems to be rather laid back, and has an that calms people down. He walks with shoulders back and a smile on his face. However, this same atmosphere makes it hard for people to take Matt seriously.

It could also have to do with the fact that his face isn't the type that'd say serious things. It has no harsh angles, and pretty much screams "Hey, I'm a nice guy!" It also can't hide any emotions. Matt looks happy when he's happy, guilty when he's guilty, and tired when he's tired. His emotion is also revealed in his stride - his arms swing happily when he's ecstatic, while his feet drag if he's in a bad mood.

His shift is the Griffon Vulture. Imagine a normal old vulture, then add a feather color of sandy brown with some white fuzz on it's head, and you have the general idea. He has a large wingspan, weighing in at about eight feet.

Matt's shift seems intimidating at first, but then you notice that his head is mainly a pile of fluff. On top of this, you notice the careful way he walks in this form, as if he's being extra careful not to knock anything over. With some added research, you find out the Griffon Vulture's claws and beak aren't too strong. This quickly takes away any remaining threat.


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...history

Parents: Jonah Lark, Michaela Erasmus
Siblings: Only Child
Matt was a shifter on both sides - a crane on his father's and a hippo on his mother's. Matt found this ironic, as his father had a hippo's body while his mother had a crane's grace.

Mathieu came from a lower class family. They always had enough money to get by, but never enough for luxuries such as video games and fancy toys. Despite this, Matt was known for his happy and outgoing attitude. Of course, being a small child, he often complained and whined about their lack of luxury.

As he grew older, he noticed some more distinct differences between his family and others. Of course, there were the obvious - at his friends' homes, the houses were bigger, the food fancier, and so on. However, the families were also calmer. There wasn't the constant arguing over money issues, and one didn't have to tiptoe around the dad in fear of him snapping.

Much of Matt's personality can be traced to living in a home where one was forced to be a peace maker. One didn't want to create more arguments, as it would just heighten the tension of the house. Matt's peace loving personality has a lot to do with trying to keep peace in his own home.

Outside of the house, Matt quickly made many friends. He was likeable and athletic, though he didn't get the best grades. At some point, his parents scratched up enough money to enroll him into martial arts lessons - they'd decided he needed a hobby.

Fourteen years old ended up being the big turning point for Matt. It was a year later than the average transformation time, so his parents simply assumed he didn't get the shifter genes. This means there weren't many precautions in place during his first shift.

He distinctly remembers that he riding on the bus to the annual zoo field trip when it happened. Okay, maybe not riding, as he'd been sent there as a punishment for bad behavior. His bones creaked as his arm swiftly snapped into the formation of a bird's wing. The skin on his arm became rough, erupting into hundreds of feathers. Matt felt the vertigo of shrinking.

Matt's memories are rather blurred on what happened next. He remembered flying, but that's about it. Most of his thoughts were scrambled by the power of panic and adrenaline. At some point, he got the wits together to find his house and crash through his window with all the grace of a falling plane. It was at this point that the parents heard - it turns out he did get the genes, after all.



Fortunately, Matt had heard about shifters from his parents, so the incident wasn't as scarring as it had the potential to be. A few weeks later, he found himself being shipped to some little known school...

...connecting human to animal

• Griffon Vultures are the friendliest and most social of the vultures. Anyone who knows Matt would describe him as friendly and social.
  
• Griffon Vultures can fly for up to seven hours and 100 miles. Matt also has good endurance.
  
• Griffon Vultures mate for life. Matt approached his relationships with similar loyalty, though this sometimes causes him to hang unto friendships that have long gone sour.
  
• Griffon Vultures rarely make the kill. Matt rarely partakes in acts of violence.
  

...literacy

RP Sample[/i]
Mathieu nervously fiddled with his suitcase. In the past ten minutes, he could tell you everything about it - each mysterious smudge and stain. It helps to focus on a suitcase when your stomach is three seconds away from emptying itself.

The whole 'being on a boat' thing didn't help the situation. Matt had assumed that traveling by boat would be like taking a cruise. Instead, it was like letting someone loose in an empty box and saying "Have fun sitting here for the next two hours!" Sure, it was a boat, but there wasn't much to do other than wander around aimlessly. The whole 'being seasick thing' just added to the fun.

"Ten minutes till docking!" A speaker announced, static stabbing into each syllable.

Matt's whole posture changed with this news. Instead of slacking over on a chair, he jumped up with excitement. Three seconds later, he was leaning over the edge of the boat like a small child. There it was - the school! It hung over the horizon, looking like Godzilla coming out of the murky depths. All he could see was a boxy silhouette, but even this gave him the equivalent of a sugar high.

"So that's the Shifter Academy..." Mathieu murmured to himself. He raised himself up over the edge of the rail, until he was near the point of falling off. He entertained the possibility of shifting into a Griffon Vulture and simply flying the rest of the way. This plan was quickly shot to pieces as logic stepped in to say that a vulture couldn't carry a heavy suitcase for almost a quarter of a mile.

Fortunately, this whole problem was resolved by the boat coming into dock. Matt was surprised by how smoothly the boat stopped - he'd always imagined it more as a roller coaster, with lots of rumbling and sudden noise. Instead, it rolled into the port like a raindrop racing down glass. With a shuffle of luggage, Matt gathered his things and walked on to shore.

The moment grew awkward as Matt realized he was the only one getting off. He waited by the edge, expecting some late passenger or fellow shifter to come rushing out. Instead, the boat slowly trudged away, leaving Matt alone.

It made perfect sense, he supposed. Most normal - Matt used this term with hesitation, as he didn't want to label himself as abnormal - people didn't know there was anything on the island. Shifters probably weren't common enough for there to be a truckload of people coming every time the boat stopped here. Yes, it made perfect sense for him to be the only one. Disappointing - at this point, he just wanted to meet some of his fellow students.

So Matt took a breath to prepare himself, and marched towards the school.
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