#My mc now has phobia of mannequins

[zetadraconis11]

Don't forget that MC actually has a shop in Hogsmeade. and the things that you can collect from the animals and plants.

But with the Animals only what they want to give.

That too! MC was a lil moneymaker, lol

The only disappointment was that you couldn't REALLY sell things in the shop. Like, you could sell clothes, but that's normal. I wanted to sell my surplus of plants and things, but I couldn't. We were robbed.

So this is how I imagine the group would be/react...

*in the MC's shop in Hogsmeade*

MC: If you need any potion ingredients, let me know, and I probably have some you can use.

Garreth: Really? Like...mongrel fur and spider fangs?

MC: Yeah, I've got a whole cubby for just jars and jars of spider fangs. I even alphabetized which spiders they came from! I was very bored.

Garreth: Wow...You probably want some payment, right?

MC: Eh, I'll give you a student discount. You don't have to pay. Just don't completely wipe out my storage.

Poppy: Is that...THE giant Venomous Tentacula leaf?

MC: Yep. Hobhouse didn't want to come with and get his own leaf, so I thought some herbalist would love to buy it.

Amit: Wow, you have such an array of scarves.

MC: So many of the same ones. I figured someone would want to buy a few.

Natty: I cannot believe you have your own store! Was it expensive?

MC: Not too expensive. I managed to save up some gold-

Ominis: You mean Galleons.

MC: Yes, those. Anyway, I managed to pay upfront, and now, I've got this place! Oh...what time is it?

Sebastian, checking pocketwatch: It's almost nine.

MC: Okay, everyone out.

Garreth with arms full of jars: I wasn't done perusing your supplies!

MC, once they're all outside: I made an agreement with the poltergeist, and he gets to have the store after nine.

Natty: Wait...what?

Amit: Did you just say poltergeist?

MC: Yeah, when I bought this store, the owner was in cahoots with the poltergeist that lurks in the shop. He drove past owners mad, but I managed to make an arrangement with him.

Poppy: ...Can we go back to the part you said a poltergeist lurks here?

MC: There's a chest that leads you down to his elaborate labyrinth of spooky things. There were mannequins, flipped rooms, and stretched hallways. Then I fought his "monster", which was a troll-sized pile of furniture.

Sebastian: You faced all of that ALONE?

MC: Oh yeah. And then when I went to report to Officer Singer about the owner, the owner easily stopped her, and I had to face that mental witch alone. So, not THAT unusual for me. Just annoying.

The group:

Ominis: ...

Ominis: HOW ARE YOU STILL ALIVE?

[starlightandetherealshadows]

I got a question :D!

Based on the new portrait of X, I assume the aliens from Nion 8 (if that’s still the same!) look more human now? Is that right? Because you nailed it on the head with the Tim Burton-human-character look you described!

Has X changed quite a bit now in terms of personality as well :o? I’m really into how design impacts the character since a lot can be conveyed based on appearances, so I’m really curious! Especially since previously the look of X really hit the “out-of-this-world”, strong, intimidating appearance that you just know to not mess with (monster lovers and fuckers, we rise), whereas now the aliens of Nion 8/X might be underestimated with the gaunt appearance if they still have the same physical strength which would be a really cool thing to explore and might hit that kind of uncanny valley territory humans might experience with a species that appears similar to humans (at least in comparison to previous designs), but clearly aren’t that they previously lacked since they used to look very “not-human, cannot be mistaken from a distance as one”, which is also a really cool concept to explore! Even more so since some humans are really sensitive to the uncanny valley phenomenon, hence why some people have a phobia of dolls/mannequin last I heard! So I wouldn’t be surprised if quite a few humans get severely anxious and avoidant of the aliens and X more so because of that now, which potentially provides some really interesting dynamics!

Sorry for the paragraph, as I said, I really like seeing how the appearance of a character can change how they’re perceived and was super curious!

Hi sunshine!

You've got a question; I've got an answer!

You have some really thoughtful insight! I'm gonna try to go piece by piece.

X's personality has changed, but not as much as you'd think! You see, my thought process for them was that we already have so many members of the group that are combat oriented, I wanted to add some balance to the group. So I thought about how the military has different "factions" with varying skillsets, and X has been moved from ground-troops to intelligence/security. X is basically a member of the NSA (in layman's terms).

X is still much stronger than a human and should consider a basketball career, but they aren't as skilled in combat/using that strength compared to other soldiers. (which also eases much more seamlessly into how they get into the group in the first place)

You're spot on with the uncanny valley point! I think what scares us as humans the most are the types of monsters that seem so like us? When we watch shows like American Horror Story, the most popular quote that took over the internet is "all monsters are human." We fear what goes against out expectations. We hate the unknown.

The aliens from Nion 8 being so gaunt and tall outside of their armor can give them a slenderman like appearance from afar, and up close, you get a glimpse of those tentacles, horns, forked tail and you're like what the FUCK is that thing? but they walk on two legs, have two eyes, their chest rises and falls in time with their breathing. it makes humans uncomfortable. (and terrified)

Then you have aliens like Delphine that, when they want to, can blend in with humans completely. When they aren't using their powers, you would never know the person in front of you wasn't from Earth. That is a terrifying revelation for the human race, and you'll see that fear play out as MC and the group encounters different groups of humans.

There are some "tests" now that humans can use to determine if someone is an alien (not foolproof, but the lesser skilled/advanced species will get caught). Remember how I mentioned the aliens from Nion 8 established their own societies and kinda left humans alone after their take over? There are still human societies, they're just struggling to stay alive and the world is very desperate to cling to humanity.

So just like they used to take our temperatures before entering any building during the pandemic, the humans do a similar sort of thing before anyone can enter their nightclubs/bars/shops whatever is still around now that the world has gone to shit.

Isn't it fascinating how the human race perseveres through such hardship? Like even in history, we've survived some real fucked up stuff.

Thank you so so much for your question!! I had fun answering it!

All my love,

Cheye