#anyway! you can relate to a character even if that character isn't 100% aligned to your contemporary identity

[whifferdills]

apparently endless depths of Discourse re: Flint being bi or gay which like, i'm new here, but surely the real question is 'did he engineer the affair with Miranda just to get at Thomas'

[the-monkey-ruler]

So, whether the mother is an adoptive mother or not is complicated.

It is said that the word "godmother" was something from the monkey king's TV media and that in reality the nine-year-old fox is their biological mother. Golden and Silver Horned Kings had to cultivate in the right way and become immortal to then work for heaven, something that for one reason, the nine-tailed fox couldn't or didn't want to along with her brother (The nine-tailed fox does not refuse to eat Tripitaka, so it is normal for her to eat humans like other demons). It would make more sense for them to follow their mother's poor cultivation than good cultivation. Furthermore, they were transformed into demons, they are NOT demons from birth, we assume that they have human appearance. They are strong but their mother and uncle are weak in comparison. The nine tailed Fox is not a demon who served heaven, so she was still quite weak compared to Wukong and her sons. It is mentioned that they are Taoists, and that they had good relationships with other Taoists. Taishang Laojun never mentions the mother when he explains their origins. Furthermore, Guanyin's plan ended in the mother of the two children she borrowed being murdered along with her uncle. Their story simply does not align with them being children of a demon. I'm assuming they are humans, because it is never said what kind of being they are, but they are not demons by birth.

It could be that she left them with someone else and then they found out about their family relationship when they escaped. Either the mother wanted them to have good cultivation or they had the talent for it. The demons don't seem to know about Guanyin's plan, but the idea that her plan would end in the birth mother dying even though she was an evil demon is...kind of very manipulative. I'm speculating that the nine-tailed fox's death didn't matter because it was an evil demon anyway. So I guess it's more preferable to think of them as her adopted children. It would make more sense that they had fox traits if the nine-tailed fox conceived them with a human, but I think they can also be born 100% human (which is not uncommon). Idk if family relationships count if some immortal considers you to work in heaven, so everything is very complicated,

It is said that they were originally the children of Taishang Laojun (probably the first versions of the story?) and that would mean that he and the nine-tailed fox had children together or she adopted them later, but it seems unlikely.

It is said that the word "godmother" was something from the monkey king's TV media and that in reality the nine-year-old fox is their biological mother.

I’m sorry, but while this is a possible theory, I think in practice it’s just far too convoluted to be considered practical, especially for such minor characters. Not to say that this arc isn’t exciting but it would just make no sense to give these characters such a complex backstory but have other characters shown to be adopted and provide a far simpler explanation and an explanation that has been used multiple times in the story.

There is no reason for Silver Horn and Golden Horn to have a bio mom when we've seen four other examples of them being adopted. And if they were related then it would make sense to never address it at all either. I think that if it was never said in the story then it is because it is meant to be read in the story.

I’m not saying that this theory can’t be discussed, but just that it’s far too unlikely that the Nine Tails is their bio mom and shouldn't be considered 'reality' when there isn't a passage confirming that either. Story wise it follows other adopted demon's patterns.

White Deer was saved because he was from heaven and White Faced Vixen died. Nine-Headed Lion was saved because he was from heaven and his 8 adopted lions died. Silver Horn and Golden Horn were saved because they were from heaven and Nine Tail and Seven Fox King died.

Golden and Silver Horned Kings had to cultivate in the right way and become immortal to then work for heaven, something that for one reason, the nine-tailed fox couldn't or didn't want to along with her brother (The nine-tailed fox does not refuse to eat Tripitaka, so it is normal for her to eat humans like other demons). It would make more sense for them to follow their mother's poor cultivation than good cultivation.

Already if they were born to a human-eating demon then they wouldn't be able to go to heaven because she would have them eat humans as well. If they used that bad cultivation, then how would they be recommended to heaven? Who would vouch for them if they didn't have an immortal teacher? Who would hire demons that only know how to take cultivation from humans instead of making their own cultivation? And even if they get to heaven without knowing how to cultivate without eating humans, how would they keep their powers? None of this makes sense practically.

Furthermore, they were transformed into demons, they are NOT demons from birth, we assume that they have human appearance. They are strong but their mother and uncle are weak in comparison. The nine tailed Fox is not a demon who served heaven, so she was still quite weak compared to Wukong and her sons.

Yes, they were not demons at birth and we see that with other mothers like Yellow Robe's Wife that if they were half-human they should have come out either monsterous as well. Or like with White Snake they would have been weak in cultivation since we never got to see her son gain any powers that I know of.

It is mentioned that they are Taoists, and that they had good relationships with other Taoists. Taishang Laojun never mentions the mother when he explains their origins.

Exactly, he never explains their mother because she isn't related to their backstory. This allows us to see that because they never go into details, it is most likely that there is no detail to go into.

Furthermore, Guanyin's plan ended in the mother of the two children she borrowed being murdered along with her uncle. Their story simply does not align with them being children of a demon. I'm assuming they are humans, because it is never said what kind of being they are, but they are not demons by birth.

I agree! They must be human because with how the story of the narrative they could not be a child of the Nine-Tails. They were borrowed in Guanyin's plan and were willing to put other demons as risk because they are evil. Without any family relation they should be fine with having both the mother and uncle killed.

It could be that she left them with someone else and then they found out about their family relationship when they escaped. Either the mother wanted them to have good cultivation or they had the talent for it.

Unless they are heroes of legend with a secret destiny there is not reason to give them this backstory. Again this could be a fun theory but there is nothing to suggest that they found a long-lost family since that was never mentioned. Also that their mother wants a better life for them, but still being okay to eat human flesh also doesn't align with the story either.

The demons don't seem to know about Guanyin's plan, but the idea that her plan would end in the birth mother dying even though she was an evil demon is...kind of very manipulative. I'm speculating that the nine-tailed fox's death didn't matter because it was an evil demon anyway. So I guess it's more preferable to think of them as her adopted children.

I agree! It just seems to be out of left field and completely strange to think as to why have the birth mother involved at all if this was all planned. And why save Silverhorn from his death when arguably he did more damage than his godmother or uncle.

While she is an evil demon this story still has a strong sense of filial piety in its message. We see other stories like Journey to the South where a deity Huaguang dadi does has a demon mother and gives her an immortal peach so she never has to eat humans again to save her. We never see that with the Horn brothers and it just makes more sense that they are adopted by her in the short time they were one earth.

It would make more sense that they had fox traits if the nine-tailed fox conceived them with a human, but I think they can also be born 100% human (which is not uncommon). Idk if family relationships count if some immortal considers you to work in heaven, so everything is very complicated,

I'm not sure about a lot of half-yaoguai and how often they seem more human or not but I would think that if a half-yaogaui was to become a full yaogaui then they would take on traits of their parent.

It is said that they were originally the children of Taishang Laojun (probably the first versions of the story?) and that would mean that he and the nine-tailed fox had children together or she adopted them later, but it seems unlikely.

Oh I didn't know that kind of backstory! Yeah, that sounds like it would track even if I'm not sure who Laojun would have kids with. But I kinda like the idea of him working with his kids and they keep stealing his shit.

Oh him hooking with the Nine-Tails Fox.... now that is a new theory I didn't think I would hear.

[ultraclops]

Day 3: Be True To Yourself

Aka me literally just infodumping about my Ocs because I love them ♡

Brought to you by Colorvision! Yep, I decided to get off my lazy butt and color traditionally today :)

First off, Tiara Depurrnaire (She/Her)! A Sweetypie cat who's partially related to the Snugglemagne family and, in my timeskip AU, Adorabat's future girlfriend. Like Adorabat, she lost her leg to a monster while wandering the King's dungeons. She aspires to be just as brave as Adorabat but lacks the gall, being content to watch and learn from the sidelines. As they both get older Tiara realizes that she is a lesbian, and develops a mutual crush on Adorabat that turns into a relationship. As she ages, Tiara' aspirations to become a hero fade, and she settles for becoming a ballet teacher. She learns to be brave in her own way and unconditionally supports her monster-slaying adventuring partner, no matter how their paths diverge.

T H E Y (Also I need to post my full adult Adorabat design sometime)

Next up is Sherbet (They/Them), a Sweetypie rabbit who makes ice cream for a living! I don't really have a backstory for them but I believe they realized they were nonbinary in their younger years (around early middle school age) and have fully embraced their identity! They don't let anything get them down and are eager to cheer up the citizens of Pure Heart Valley, one ice cream cone at a time. They're also good acquaintances with Badgerclops and Adorabat, for obvious reasons. Their eyes function similarly to Badgerclops', as they only open when they feel strong emotions.

Next (and honestly one of my favorites) is Moa Nola (Xe/Xem), an agender Oriental Shorthair cat who, surprisingly, isn't related to the Mao clan. Xe originally started off as a joke character based on the misspelling of Mao Mao's name in "I'm Mao Mao", but I eventually grew attached to xem and gave xem a full-fledged backstory. Xe comes from a family of fishermen, but after xyr father was killed in a monster attack, xe decided that xe wanted to become a legendary monster hunter. Xe created xyr cloak after xyr first successful monster fight. After being mistaken for the son of Shin Mao too many times, xe used it to xyr advantage and began going under Mao Mao's title for a while. However, after being stopped by Mao Mao himself, xe dropped the act and began looking for a new sense of purpose. Ironically, xe starts collecting antique ventriloquist dummies similar to Mr. Din Danalin.

Following up on the "based on a misspelling" theme is Rhapsody (She/They), a femme-aligned nonbinary Sweetypie vampire bat inspired by Adorabat's name being mistranslated as "doorbat" in YouTube autocaptions. She is Adorabat maternal cousin, as their mother is Sonara's sister. Rhapsody was heavily impacted by Sonara's death, but rather than becoming tough like Adorabat or overprotective like Eugene, she became more reserved out of fear that they could be next. In other words, she became a doorbat (haha funny). With the arrival of Mao Mao and Badgerclops, plus the defeat of the monster that killed their aunt, Rhapsody begins to come out of her shell and indulges in their biggest passion - music. Like Adorabat she learns to use their voice as a weapon, but hers is more of a siren's song than a sonic screech. In my timeskip AU, they leave Pure Heart Valley to become a popstar, writing songs inspired by her childhood memories and their home. It's obscured by the flag but the marking on her chest is a bleeding heart, emphasizing her passionate drive.

(Rhapsody's kid and adult forms [kinda old])

+ OCs of mine I didn't feel like making alternate drawings for:

Buzz-Buzz (Zhe/Ze/Zhey), a demigender Sweetypie bumblebee bat who protects the bees of Pure Heart Valley! Despite zer small stature, zhe is actually an adult, just naturally small. Zhe also grows herbs on the side and volunteers at the Pure Heart Valley hospital. Primarily because zhe has a crush on the head doctor there... (I did not make zer to selfship with Cuddlestein. Nope. Not at all.)

My Badgermao "fankid", Sai (They/He/It)! I say "fankid" in air quotes because they're from an AU where Badgerclops' spare arm became corrupt and gained a conscience. Their robot arm is actually their body - the rest of their body is a projection of light, similar to the gems from Steven Universe! They have masculine programming (as their AI was made using Badgerclops's DNA a la Cortana from Halo), but identify as agender and use they/he/it pronouns. Originally they began as a blank slate with no personality aside from the programmed personality Badgerclops gave them, but they eventually grow their own personality and moral compass as they analyze the Sheriff's Department's work. Just like Badgerclops, they have a passion for building robots and weapons, and can even modify themselves to fit the situation! Most of their creations are usually for fun, though.

Anf the last one I have a reference for but not the least, Karma Vesper (She/They)! This one is actually my self-insert, lol. She is a biro-ace demigirl Javanese Cream-Point Cat! Her necklace was a gift from her family, and her hood was a gift from her mentor. After her village was ambushed by criminals, she became a wandering hero, and accidentally stumbled upon Pure Heart Valley while following a report of increased monster activity. At some point during her adventures alone she realized that she was biro-ace, since she felt no sexual attraction but still felt romantic attraction. Around the time she came to Pure Heart Valley she realized that she never really felt, like, 100% a GIRL girl (if that makes sense) and began identifying as a demigirl. (Yes this is my hidden self-actualization story :>) She enjoys researching gemstones and ancient artifacts, and the Ruby Pure Heart immediately caught her attention once she laid eyes on it. While she is still a wandering hero, she has a temporary residence in Pure Heart Valley, where she stays to research the Heart's powers as well as assist the townspeople. Her and the Sheriff's Department didn't start out on the best terms since Mao was worried she was trying to replace them, but they tolerate each other now.

+ the OCs I don't have references for:

I did have a reference for these guys but idk where it is rn ;-;. Anywway, my most recent OCs and also some of my favorite OCs are Bernard and Pierre, a black bear and polar bear respectively (both use He/Him)! They are both gay and in a healthy relationship & live in a cabin in the forest together. They are just. Two old gay granddads and I love them. Anyway! They both met after an accident which caused Bernard to blow out his left knee and Pierre to lose his left hand; they had been best friends since, and boyfriends later on! Bernard is a baker while Pierre is a wood carver, although they indulge in each other's interests as well. For the most part they just stay in their cabin in the forest, but they leave to buy groceries and sell their products.

And the final OC I'm gonna talk about is Storm Mao (They/Them)! They're from an AU where Mao was born in a litter of five, like his sisters. Ever since Storm were young, they felt like weren't "normal" compared to their siblings. They didn't feel like a girl or a boy. After Mao came out as a trans boy, they began questioning themselves further. Eventually they decided to ask Contacts Sister for help, as she was among the smartest of the Mao children. Contacts explained to Storm that there are people who don't identify as a boy or a girl, and Storm realized they weren't alone. Since then, they started identifying as nonbinary and began using they/them pronouns, and their family supported their decision. Aside from them and Mao, their litter siblings are also LGBTQ+ - Mamoru (He/Him) is AroAce, Bernadette (She/Her) is bi and Zhijun (He/Him) is gay. I'd talk about the AU more in a separate post, if anyone wants me too^ ^;;

If I remember any other LGBTQ+ OCs I have, I'll reblog with them ✌