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Character Name
Rick Katan

Occupation
Traveling Musician

Character Appearance
Standing at a solid 5' 6", he's neither imposing nor weak-looking, just the kind of build that one would see in an average athlete. His eyes are a deep brown, easily noticeable from a good distance away, despite the way he averts them. His skin is an exotic tan, due to one of his parents coming from the middle-east. For that same reason, he has thick black hair that comes almost over his left eye, and is slightly longer than most men's hair in the back, just shy of reaching the base of his neck. One would almost be brazen enough to call it a mullet. One noticeable characteristic about him would be that his hands are very lithe, his fingers slender and very dexterous. With a look at his face, one would think that he's in his twenties, when he's actually a newly-graduated eighteen years old. He usually wears a black sleeveless shirt and cargo pants, along with a bandanna to keep his hair up.


Character Personality
Rick’s overall personality is very laid-back, with a, “whatever happens, happens” attitude. At first glance, he seems wary, and almost untrusting, due to many times being betrayed by people. This is if one might catch him in a crowded place, where he feels uncomfortable and left out of the conversation. However, simply speak a word of kindness to him, and he’ll open up, revealing the caring and relaxed person that he is (even if he may seem somewhat erotic and gauche at times). He has never had a girlfriend of any kind, simply because he unknowingly maintains an air of mystique that is no longer found attractive. His relationship with his parents was a close one, since he didn’t have anyone else to rely on, and while they did not totally understand him, they tried their best to comfort him and raise him to be the man that he is.

Unfortunately, no personality goes without his flaws. This couldn’t be truer with Rick. He blames genetics, but it is difficult to determine where it came from, since his father expressed similar traits. All that he can come up with that would determine such a trait was the fact that at times, his father would easily anger, often shouting at him and making threats of multiple kinds. For some reason, deep within him, rests a seed of rage. Usually, he is calm and nonchalant, but if one would dig too deeply at him (which would be a rare case indeed) that seed would come to life. The result would be pure, unadulterated and fueling rage, maybe not as outward as a tantrum with throwing things around, but something dark and brooding, unhealthily contained within himself. He has told very few people about this.


Likes
Music
Swimming
Electronics
Hiking
Biking
Warm days


Dislikes
Violence
Crowded places
Cold days
Having to rush to do something



Character Background
One would best describe the life of Rick Katan as interesting, but nothing extremely inordinate.

From a young age, he developed an affinity for three things: music, sports, and literature. Thanks to his parents, who wanted to give him everything that their parents denied them, helped him to culture his talents. His abilities grew at an astonishing rate, and while not publicly recognized for this, he was confident in his physical, mental, and physical capabilities.

One such thing was his affinity for a multitude of sports. He liked to be active outside, playing sports such as soccer, tennis, and hockey. However, he couldn’t help but express a distaste for sports such as football and baseball, the concept of the games just simply not appealing to him.

Throughout school, up to highschool, he was one of the most accomplished students. While not being the genius of his class, he probably had the potential to become one of them, but preferred to do other things, rather than sit in all day studying. In terms of bullying, he wouldn’t hesitate to stand up for himself, but when it came to others, he let them deal with it how they chose, not wanting to intervene, since he had his own concerns. His teachers constantly complemented his behavior, but he knew that it was because he simply remained out of their way.

His first encounter with a percussion instrument was when he was only six years old, and happened by a teenager playing a xylophone. After the player left for a break, he picked up the mallets, and played several notes, which eventually became a song. In that moment, he had fallen in love with mallet instruments.

From there, his parents paid for private lessons, and by the time he got out of junior high, his skill rivaled that of a majority of students that went to the local college. By then, he already knew that he was destined to be a great musician.

When he graduated from highschool with above average grades, he already had his sights set on San Diego State University, with enough ambition to break down a granite wall. Making friends along the way, he graduated with a major in music performance, and now hopes to make a living giving out the gift of music to anyone who will listen.

Arrival
Since it's usually hard to rise to the top in big cities right off the bat, he figured that he needed to try somewhere else, somewhere less populated. That, in combination with little fear of superstitions, has brought him to Cape Fear.

This one is just beautiful. Many thanks to Chhayawolf.