#but biology is a varied enough thing that that's only useful if you like want to like narrow a search for whose body you've found

[amplexadversary]

welp so now instead of going to bed I've fallen down the rabbit hole of spooky craft store home decor.

to be fair my tastes year-round typically do consist of halloween decorations.

sadly this year's [craft store] fare isn't as good as last year's. they *did* de-gender the personal effects of their skeleton lovers wall decor (we don't have one wearing flowers and the other with nothing), but the art quality is still not $60 level for a print. maybe if they drop the price of this one by half like last year.

[mysticcrownwolf]

So your girl finally had a autistic meltdown and finally asked her mum about her childhood and got some mixed results but long story short I am finally getting an official autism and adhd diagnosis because in my mums words “Everyone deserves things that make their life easier to live”. Not gonna lie guys I did cried about this but it also came up that they did tried to get me diagnosed before (I don’t remember this at all) but were told I just had very high levels of hyperactivity so to make sure this type of bullshit doesn’t happen again I am making a list of all my weird or quirky traits and having the neurodivergents of Tumblr peer review them so I can finally get a diagnosis after 19 years of struggling.

1) I didn’t ever in my life made or had friends that stick around.

2) I was actually alienated a lot by most people in my life for being the umbrella term they all coined as ‘weird’ what this weird means varies from person to person.

3) I have actually been told by other girls that they gave me a chance to keep them company even after many people told them I was too weird and they should stay away from me. These same people later called me slurs, were self absorbed or just plain abusive towards me.

4) Through out my whole life I have sat alone on a double bench because no one wanted to sit with me in class.

5) I have a problem with properly spelling certain words like I write weird as ‘wierd’ or video as ‘vedio’.

6) People constantly doubt I have any sense of knowledge and act like any good idea I give is a surprise even when I was on the top of the class the phrases like “ That’s the first good idea you ever had” weren’t uncommon.

7) I walk a lot and I mean a lot enough that hyperactivity has still been a part of my diagnostic because I walked so much they had no choice but to put that in. I actually come to the school 30 minutes early then walked the whole time, I would just up and leave classes to walk in corridors because I couldn’t sit still long enough, my walking is such a huge part of me my old teachers still tell their classes about me as the girl that walked too much.

8) People in my college nicknamed me the headphone girl because I walked around our whole campus( I would pace a lot around the parameters) with my only noticeable feature being my headphones.

9) I was the only kid in my school not scared of bugs which lead to some notable incidents

I once picked a small green caterpillar and showed it off to my class of 10 year olds they started crying and teacher made me throw the bug even though I wanted to keep it as a pet

Our teacher once asked us to bring butterflies to class so I captured around 30 butterflies put them in a breathable Tupperware and took those to class me being the only person who did this freaked out all the other children with my butterflies , we later released them all in recess it was very pretty

I not only volunteered but gleefully presented live earthworms on my palm to various groups of parents in our school science fare much to the horrified looks of many parents and children about how a little girl like me wasn’t screaming from handling earthworms.

I scared our class mean girl by capturing a butterfly and then turning my hand holding the butterfly in her direction she and a few other girls screamed when I tried to tell them that the little critter was harmless and even offered to let them hold her (I was very confused why they didn’t like this).

10) I was friends with a lot of my teachers as well as higher class teachers especially the Science, Social studies and English teachers. I would often spend my recess in the biology lab chatting with the biology teacher about the different specimens in the lab and how much I enjoyed biology in general. I am half sure I would have loved to study biology/medicine if not for the fact it was a minimum investment of 7 years though I am still an avid reader of new biological discoveries and follow many niche youtube channels that focus on flora and fauna.

11) I was actually friends with all 3 principles in my school and would go to them after my last class to chat about my school day. This was so bizarre to others but I actually enjoyed how much these adults would listen to my info dump even if my own peers won’t.

12) Every single time my report card came I would usually top the class in most subjects except maths in which I usually underperformed ( don’t worry guys I figured out later I just need to know every basic concept to get the deep understanding of mathematical principles which my teachers were very bad at build but I later learned how to do it myself) but it would always have in big bold letters that “I talked to much and have weird questions and am disruptive in class ” which my bad I thought I could get details about what your are teaching and develop great interest but nah we just need to complete the syllabus as fast as we can. Salt on the wound I would only ask questions and discuss topics in class with the teacher since I don’t have friends I could talk to in class. They deadass never ever punished a single student from disrupting in class except me the girl who asked silly questions about what we were studying maybe they thought my questions were weird so I was asking them to disrupt they flow of the class rather than genuine curiosity who knows

13) I had very bad anger issues stemming from how the system as well as authority figures treated me ( I have since been to therapy and gotten help for it ) but a lot of time I verbally and physically attacked an authority figures usually when they punished me for something I didn’t do or when they tried to empty out their frustration on me or tried to bully me in anyway. I never took bullying face down from anybody be it younger or older than me my flight or fight response was always on fight

14) People did tried to bully me physically or verbally but I always returned it in kind with interest so it never really stuck like the isolation did. My most memorable experience with bullying was when I bitch slapped our school mean girl so hard the whole ground heard it , I don’t think I ever got any punishment for it and she later burned every friendship she had by throwing her whole group under the bus for some vandalism they did.

15) I unfortunately never had friends so when they school told me telling an authority figure I am being teased, harassed or even that someone is breaking the rules is what’s morally right I ran with the rules set for me rather than knowing the social norms that this would mark me as the school snitch without the teachers ever doing anything about the issues. Unfortunately I learned the hard way through trial and error that once you are labelled as a snitch their is nothing you can do to get that tag off and it comes with the added benefit of making people never talk to each other near me or even just leave the places I visit alone so yay more loneliness for me

16) I actively volunteered for every single activity and program my school office this sounds great but I picked and got selected for all 7 different fairs (English, Hindi, Maths, Science, Social science, Music, Art) but rather than pick out one or two I helped out with all 7 of them. They later added a 3 groups per person limit.

17) I am actually trained in both classical instrumental and singing but couldn’t complete my singing degree before the program closed down and it’s been 6 years since I played a Casio that I don’t think that even matters anymore. Anyway I added this because at first I did both of these at the same time along with volunteering for all the other activities before they added a 1 course per year limit which is a shame since it cost me my vocal degree.

18) I love reading that just the fact I found reading in my school library when I was 8 haven’t let it go since by my librarian’s estimate I read almost 3000 books (mostly children books) from my school library. I also have a mini collection of about 300 books that I have passed down to both of siblings. These days I read mostly on ao3 or the occasional paperback I bought at the airport but reading is still something I do almost daily.

19) See one thing about me is I was one of the first student at my school so much so my identification number was 35 so me being such an old student my school has actually legends about my quirky ( neurodivergent ) behaviour which has made me understand where most legends actually come from

I walked out of classes so many times teachers to this day still tell stories of the weird girl that likes to walk

My whole school knew who I was mostly because I would be the first and only person that likes to answer philosophical questions asked by our principal in the assembly, I was also great with improvising assembly conductions, thought of the days, assembly quizzes, full speeches on topics told to me 2 minutes ago, even improvised song recitations (can you guys pick up I have social anxiety now).

As I told you my lovelies I love reading so if I was immersed in a book and the class started I would just hide the book to read in class once I got caught so I got termed the girl who like to read books in class( is it stupid yes did it still happened certainly). I later learned to zone out to the stories in my mind during class which was very helpful.

As I told you guys I was actually on pretty friendly terms with my principal and teachers so guess who became the teachers pet for the next 8 years even though most teachers care jack shit about my interest and was further alienated because of this me ofcourse.

I actually once locked myself in the school bathroom for like 4 hours because I hadn’t completed the homework a teacher had given me and she was quite physically abusive towards me. I got suspended for a week because of this funnily enough nobody in my school actually remember this and most are really surprised to know I was suspended.

I am actually really famous or infamous by the way you look at it for physically assaulting a teacher funnily enough the name of the teacher, why I am attacked them and even how I hit them changes from person to person I have actually heard 10-15 different variations from different people( I am not even sure if I actually ever hit a teacher most I remember is I lunged at one teacher but she stepped back so I didn’t even touch her).

20) I was depressed from age 14 to 17 which caused me to chronic pain which later caused me to meet my current psychologist who helped me a lot but is vehemently against me getting any sort of neurodivergent diagnosis most she say is I have borderline adhd tendencies and that I think to much and should focus on calming down my mind which honestly is quite invalidating.

21) I can’t wear any sort of itchy or frilly materials when I was younger ( the texture was soo bad) but my sister could which made my mother think I was being a drama queen.

22) When I was younger I use toilet paper after using a bidet because the feeling of wet pants would over stem me so bad it’s not a problem for me anymore except from sometimes during winters.

23) I didn’t know Chewelry existed when I was younger so I chewed on my nails/skin,my lips, squishy parts of remotes, plastic toys, legos, scarfs, hoody strings, hot glue gun glue, chalk, cement, sand, mud etc. (Yes I know about the microplastics now no I don’t care).

24) I am highly sensitive to sounds so if my fan have a weird creak sound I won’t be able too sleep I also can’t sleep if I hear a clock ticking or any other repetitive sounds ( my mum still doesn’t understand why I can’t just force myself to sleep).

25) I also can’t sleep in continuous silence I need background noise to fall asleep.

26) It took me a whole year of forcing myself to wear bra and panties for my body to finally get used to me wearing them. It was a stimulation nightmare but I think it was worth it I enjoy wearing bras and panties now.

27) I can’t eat apples like I physically cringe even thinking of the sensation of biting into an apple. I have tried cutting an apple into every single why I could I still can’t swallow or even properly chew an apple the texture is such a sensory nightmare for me. Cabbage used to be the same for me but though constant reintroduction I can usually for myself to eat it with a glass of water

28) I have had many foods be absolutely sensory nightmare for me throughout my childhood. I was a very picky eater think bread, soup, lentils and noodles(packet noodles without vegetables). I couldn’t eat any kinds of fruits(except banana), vegetables, pizza , burgers (still don’t eat this), dumplings, wraps, pasta,etc. Heck I was a vegetarian for majority of my life before I learned chicken is actually a great textured food for me though I still don’t eat any form of red meat or sea foods and my food list is still very limited I have constantly reintroduced many foods for myself over the years which I can now usually bear to eat. I also learned that I can usually consume fruit and vegetables better if they are liquids so fruits juices, smoothies and soups were also great help.

29) I was and still am an absolutely clean freak and organiser. Like my bag use to have books organised in this specific order English, Hindi, Maths, Science and then Social studies and it needs to been in this order or I would get anxious. Fortunately no one else in my house ever wanted to organise anything so I would organise everything with way I would want it to be while also being neat.

30) One of my biggest sources of stress came from how dirty my siblings made our room. I would deep clean everything and then organise our books , toys and clothes and then clean and organise our bed they would just bulldozers through and ruin all my hard work in a day or two. Unfortunately I had this sense of cleanliness and order since I was a child and my siblings who were even younger then me weren’t slobs(ok maybe my brother was but anyway) they just weren’t wired to like cleanliness and order like I did and being children anything I told them about how we can keep our room clean went over their heads because I was always their to do it for them.

31) I actually had many special interests growing up though I didn’t have trains as an interest except for the cool toy train set I got as a gift or the maglev trains who are objectively very cool. My biggest special interest were rocks, space and animals especially all the books Nat geography and scholastic puts out on animals. I actually had a rock collection mostly made up of sedimentary rock and a piece of lime stone which my mother later kept in the shed where it got lost during home construction. I also have a modest collection of books and another collection of small childhood trinkets that I still have (I recently bought a clay bird that mimics actual bird call when filled with a little water to add to my collection).

32) I forget I need to eat and drink it’s always been like this I don’t have that internal clock that says you are thirsty go drink water or you are hungry go eat food . I need to remind myself it’s been 12 hrs I probably need water it’s been 32 hrs you should probably get some food or at least have a protein shake it’s like my body has no sense of hunger or thirst but I am getting better at eating and drinking at least the drinking water part anyway.

33) I am tired it’s not recent but in the last few years since I became an adult I feel so tired I use to be the topper of my class the gifted children that participated in everything now I am in college and just getting an 80% feels draining everyone has so much hope for me that I could and should do better but I am just tired. I walk and trekk sometimes but I don’t participate in any events and I see others I see my roommate who participates in like 5 different events and still gets a 95% if she can do it why can’t I. I use to be able to do so much and now I don’t have the drive to do much of anything anymore it’s so painful to realise that I should do better but what does better looks like for someone who is as tired as I am.

I did took some online test as well just to see if I even had a chance and the results were mostly the same I have many Adhd/Autistic tendencies and should probably get a professional diagnosis. I would be very thankful if my fellow autistic and adhd people would help me add more targeted experiences so I can finally get a diagnosis

@my-autism-adhd-blog you inspired me write all of this down and it would be very helpful if you could guide me to get a better diagnosis because of your experience. Also I greatly enjoy the contents of your blog so thank you for that

[witchofthesouls]

I like thinking about humans-into-Cybertronians because of the weird, alien fuckery along with ex-humans making connections to certain things because it's the closest approximation they have.

Imagine if 'running on fumes' is a literal statement among Cybertronians. As their tanks run near empty, there's a petroleum-like taste that lingers in their sinuses and, if left long enough, cycles out of their vents. That's why Cybertronians typically don't like hanging around gas stations because it's a really stark reminder of long-term starvation. Meanwhile, you got an ex-human going like, "Man, I'm starting to taste gas, so I need gas. Huh, y'all have built-in reminders to feed yourself outside of hunger pains? That's neat."

As well as the ex-humans misdiagnosing themselves. Let's take Cybertronian carriage. Humans are used to a pregnancy that completes its course in a designated organ (aka womb), so finding out a mecha had straight up knocked them up that bypassed the initial spark-to-spark teether formation wouldn't freak them out in the ways that a lot of Cybertronians would be really concerned about. Especially the medics and said partner(s).

Ex-human crying over the sonogram because they got told it's a very high-risk pregnancy and all they see is the coming baby is very deformed since it's only a ball within a ball of green soup and silver tendrils. Partner is highly confused yet attempts comforting in varying levels of success.

Cybertronian medic needs to explain that the sparklet is healthy, but ex-human really needs to watch themselves because the entire process will be done within the gestational chamber and goes deep into explaining the complications that can happen.

Partner is absolutely riveted by all the gravity of the matter since the strain of having a full-carriage that initialized in the chamber can put the carrier in danger as there can be coding conflicting with priorities that rends said carrier unconscious or wrecks health complications, especially since there's a high-chance of the newspark not fully detaching from their carrier's spark as the dropping process ensures.

Ex-human that comes from a species where a pregnancy is like getting into a moderate crash, so damage varies each time is happy that they haven't fucked up badly yet and can plan a baby shower. "By the way, when's the due date?"

Medic: "Hard to say with the carriage combined, but it's more in the primary initialization stage. The sparklet's still has a visible, if a bit thin, teether to your spark, and a solid mass hasn't formed yet."

Ex-human: "Okay, so how long?"Medic says incomprehensible length of time for an Earth child and how it can vary.

*Confused ex-human noises over the several human lifetimes is the equivalent of a span to a Cybertronian carriage. And how multiple factors can impact the timeframe.*

*Confused Medic noises out of sheer concern over ex-human's family history, especially over the fact they have extremely and highly dangerously short carriages.*

*Confused partner noises on why their love wants to plan a bathtime for the newspark at this moment, and wonders if ex-human knows that water and infant Cybertronians do not mix.*

Or, another thing. What if the dropping process where the sparklet detaches from the carrier's spark to descend into the gestational chamber below to build its frame has very 'classic'** heart symptoms in a human body?

(** Quick heads up, much of human biology and modern medical understanding derives from male biology. Unfortunately, women usually see atypical symptoms that are more subtle, moderate rather than severe pain/discomfort, or pain in other other locations rather than the chest.)

Ex-human has sudden, excruciatingly chest pain, insides literally quivering and shifting in sync with the bursts. Meanwhile, everyone around them is calm, trying to soothe them, and they think they're honestly dying so fast because there's no rush to the nearby hospital, and everyone is pushing comfort-it's okay-we got you at them.

[inhonoredglory]

I think it makes sense to say that angels as ethereal beings in heaven are sexless but if one or two spend 6000 years on earth BEING male-sexed human bodies it no longer makes sense. As people keep recognising, eating food, drinking and driving fast among other things are all deeply embodied experiences and these have fundamentally changed them as people. The whole Jesus story is the same deal, being embodied human is transformative. We live in a time when the concept of embodiment is deeply unfashionable and Cartesian dualism is entrenched, where endless body mods and casual drugs and careless manipulation of core human physiology is enacted with barely an afterthought for deep-reaching and irreversible consequences, but it's a deeply sick framework for seeing the world

(In response to this meta about ineffables and romance/asexuality)

First of all, they don’t have “male-sexed human bodies.” They are literally "sexless unless they really want to make an effort” (Good Omens, 1990).

Like all of Neil Gaiman’s angels and demons (see The Sandman), Aziraphale and Crowley have no set genitalia, don’t (by default) engage in sexual activity, and they don’t always present or dress as male through history (although they often do).

critical-gemini-hero (excerpt): "Good Omens is the first big show I’ve seen to basically avoid transphobia all together when the opportunity presented itself, and even say fuck you to the gender binary as a bonus." Neil Gaiman (excerpt): "Thank you! That was definitely what we were going for." (source)

So no, they quite literally do not have “male-sexed human bodies” and they do not ascribe to human gender norms.

In addition, what you are suggesting is that “being in a male human body” equates to “feeling male” and “feeling sexual” because “the body dictates internal experience.”

There are literally millions of people, actual human beings living in physical bodies, who (despite living in culture) still DO NOT feel that the gender assigned to their bodies is reflective of their lived, internal experience. Merely having physical attributes does not mean you have a corresponding internal experience. You can be forced by your parents, teachers, elders, peers and everyone else to FEEL a certain way because of your “sexed human body” but it won’t make it true inside you.

If one's internal experience were so unimportant, then we wouldn't have 82% of transgender individuals consider suicide (source) because of the stigma of trying to get out of the norms assigned to them because of their "sexed human bodies."

Aziraphale and Crowley have lived in history long enough to know how varied and complicated the concepts of gender AND sex have been historically. As spiritual beings, I think seeing how much humanity has varied in its ideas on sex and gender only confirms to them how unlike humans they are (with humanity’s obsession with genitalia, sex, reproduction… food, shelter, warmth, breathing––all things that angels and demons do not need to survive).

They love humanity, they love its pleasures and inventions, but they are still very much detached from it. Looking like humans definitely doesn't help them feel like humans at all. (Look at how they talk about us!)

What are we, sniffer dogs??? They don't know what we feel like on the inside or how our biology works (we sure ain't sniffer dogs) because despite some surface appearances, they don't have the same internal experiences as us. Despite being here since the dawn of time. Despite looking like us in many ways.

They can magic up clothing and sideburns and eldritch heads to scare trigger-happy corporate men, and yet somehow gender and sex (as specifically Western-binary concepts) are something they'd totally get down with?

Also, your line of reasoning imagines people having no internal motivation or desire and suddenly get a tattoo and start to become a “bad person” or something. Yes, of course changing our bodies can affect our psychology, but our internal identity much more often influences our bodily choices than the other way around. I'm taking the drugs because I'm already depressed. I'm getting the tat because I want something cool on my body. I'm taking testosterone because I want my inner identity reflected in some ways on my physical body.

[thechekhov]

you mentioned in recent tags about a horror comic you drew- i understand not wanting to link publicly to it to avoid creating MORE misinterpretations, but i really like your storytelling and now i’m curious?? so if you could, that’d be great! no pressure either way!

(i’m sending this off anon so you have the choice to respond to it privately anyways) (love your art thanks) (and the dungeon meshi reacts)

Thanks for the kind message! And it's not a secret or anything, it's straight up this post:

I used language comparing humans and other animals as two separate things (for the sake of drawing the narrative conclusions I needed to, in order to make the concept understood in only a few pages), like this:

But because of this simplified language, people drew their OWN wild conclusions about me as a person.

For example, this guy on twitter:

I never actually said humans WEREN'T animals, never said humans were somehow 'above' biology...I was simply putting them into a separate category capable of a specific set of skills for the sake of the comparison I made in the last couple of pages as the punchline.

But they decided that it must "clearly" mean I believe X, Y and Z.

This has happened MORE than enough times!

Writing is difficult, and writing for varied audiences with different dialects, different levels of reading ability, and different attention spans is hard! Sometimes, people don't want to sit through 2 pages of 'well humans are animals but due to a specific evolutionary niche we fill our ability to use language and calculate mathematical equations to the degree that we do is really unique--'

Now, mind you... I STILL got grief for trying to be soft-boiled in my delivery. People (who don't have a linguistics degree) IMMEDIATELY also messaged me to tell me that chimps CAN learn language - and haven't I seen that one video with the gorilla, the dolphin, etc?

And that's it's own can of worms. (No, other animals cannot learn language the way humans can. Yes, they can communicate in complex ways. No, language is a very specific human thing as far as leading scientists are concerned, at least based on current data. Yes, I went to University for this. I have a degree. Please just trust me.)

It happens, I'm not actively mad about it... Humans tend to take whatever we read and run with it.

But we make this mistake often! I know I also make this mistake. We come conclusions based on scarce evidence! We jump to the worst case scenario! We presume that we know better than that person what they believe, based on minimal interaction with them.

It's yet another thing that's unique to humans thanks to... wait for it... language!

It's the price we pay for having memes.

[redhoodinternaldialectical]

B'traxia's Hive King Mating Guide for the Recently Transformed!

Gonna go ahead and lay down a large chunk of the first chapter of the fic that I'll be posting for this year's TentaTodd week because I'm excited as hell about it and have like zero patience lol

Summary: Tim finds what he thinks is porn with an emphasis on speculative biology in Jason's apartment, but it turns out the only speculative part is Jason's speculation about whether or not Tim will want to actually for realsies mate with him.

(It's very much playing off of my analysis of Brothers In Blood, which may explain a lot)

(Also if you saw the several sentances sunday thing: this is an extended and much more explicit version of that!)

Normally Tim would pretend to know better than to go snooping through Jason's stuff, especially when a storm had forced him to crash at one of his safehouses unannounced, but c'mon, these are only the bookshelves! What did Jason have them for if not to display the books?? Perfectly reasonable to take a look through the different spines, pull a few out enough to see the covers, maybe actually read one. After all there was no reason to suspect there'd be anything to hide such as-

B'traxia's Hive King Mating Guide for the Recently Transformed!

The cover features a lavish illustration of an alien with a roughly 'centaur' configuration of limbs. It's got a set of massive spikes for front legs that look great for digging and cleaving people in two, and a pair of cat like, pawed, digidigrade back legs. The spine and joints are armor plated, while the soft belly is lined with octopus arms of wildly varying sizes.

The alien is also proudly presenting his three MASSIVE PHALLUSES for the audience.

Tim sputters and laughs, opening the book up and flipping through it lazily.

The quality is ridiculously good overall. It's hand bound, full color, lavishly illustrated with diagrams and charts and cultural notes and- it's honestly hilariously Jason in nature now that he thinks about it. Like, of course, Jason with his snobby love of all things hand crafted would masturbate to some niche fetish shit in a weird format full of way too much worldbuilding. It's probably bespoke too; Tim would lay good money that Jason commissioned the artist himself.

Tim flips back to the first page and starts reading.

Congratulations on your successful chrysalis hatching, my new brethren! Whether you got here by choice or circumstance, this guide is designed to help you understand the most important topic for your new biology and psychology: sex! For most species, sex is merely one activity among many. Most adults spend most of their time on other things, such as making objects or completing economic tasks. The internal impulses of such adults account for a wide variety of needs. Hunger, thirst, tiredness, these are all different sensations because the adult is expected to do different things in order to sate them. This is not so for Hive Kings like us! The primary way a Hive King interacts with the world is through his hive beast workers. His biology does not expect him to labor or travel or do anything other than have sex with his brooders, impregnating them with the hundreds of workers who serve him! When a Hive King's blood sugar levels lower, he does not feel anything. Instead it is his workers which feel a desire to feed him. What happens then, when the Hive King does not have enough workers to keep himself fed? He starts craving sex! Breeding makes more workers and workers are how the Hive King eats! Nearly all desires and cravings are sublimated in this way. Either they are passed to the workers who then fulfill the Hive King's wishes adequately, or they go unsated and are converted into potent breeding lust. Thus sexual desire becomes the primary lens through which the Hive King experiences his own needs and wants. This is especially important information for Hive Kings who choose to remain alone or in very small hives. If you want to go this route, I recommend you carefully track and record your own sexual cravings to ensure that you're getting your needs met. Specific kinks may be signs of specific needs. For instance, Kyalgn from Sector 17 reports that thirst often manifests as desires to swallow his partners whole or have them urinate in his mouth. Note that all of the above merely adds to the already elevated sexual drive of Hive Kings. The deep craving for constant, fertile breeding sex is usually the first instinctual effect of the transformation that a Hive King notices.

Tim is... honestly getting into it a bit. He's got one hell of a thing for breeding, so sue him, and while he's not so much into being the alien, he's enjoying the thought of someone truly insatiable trying to knock him up over and over again despite not being the same species.

It is a bit too wordy for his tastes though. Tim skips passed a frankly obscene amount of detailed anatomical and biochemical analysis in order to get to the good stuff already.

The Hive King first wraps the brooder's body in his tentacles and engages in foreplay. If he can coax at least one orgasm out of the Brooder before the breeding process begins, that is ideal. Happy, relaxed, pleasured Brooders are safer Brooders who bear healthier children. Then the Hive King will carefully fill up the Brooder's cunt with his ovipositor, thrusting shallowly until he reaches the cervix. His dilating hooks will then latch on to the cervix, injecting the brooder with aphrodisic-anesthetic-hypermobilitic chemicals, and begin stretching the Brooder open so that they can receive his eggs. Upon achieving enough dilation for his eggs to fit safely, the ovipositor will thrust a few inches deeper and the Hive King will experience ovipositional orgasm as his body pumps his eggs into his mate's womb. Depending on the size of the eggs and the size of his Brooder mate, this process can take anywhere from thirty minutes to two hours and the orgasm will last until the last egg is inside and his ovipositor unhooks from their cervix. Once all the eggs are safely inside, it's important to move on to the second phase of sex as soon as possible. Remember: the longer the eggs spend unfertilized, the more risky the pregnancy becomes. Next, using his cocks, the Hive King must thrust into his mate's pussy again with both penises, ideally reaching passed the cervix and hitting the back of the womb with each thrust. Every time he orgasms this way he will spill roughly two gallons of cum into his mate. As the sex continues nearly all of this will spill out, but don't worry: this is desirable. The flow of perfluorocarbon seminal fluid must be continuous, as it provides vital nutrients and oxygen to the developing embryos. Do not allow yourself more than 43 minutes rest in between one orgasm ending and beginning to work yourself up for the next orgasm. Ideally, you should simply not stop thrusting for the entirety of the roughly 78 hour pregnancy.

It's completely absurd. More than three days of non-stop pregnant sex while high as a kite on alien aphrodisiac venom.

Gods what he wouldn't give for it to be real.

Tim unbuttons his pants, widening his stance and slipping a hand over his underwear, lightly rubbing the head of his clit through the fabric.

"And just what the fuck do you think you're reading?"

It takes every second worth of Tim's years of training not to startle out of his skin at the sound of Jason's voice.

"Really hot porn." He replies coolly.

Jason's still got his mask on and his hood up but it's clear to see he's taken aback (as was the intent).

"Really?"

"What? You think I don't have kinks?"

His head tilts, his lenses narrowing.

"...Guess you are exactly the right kinda tight laced to be into some freak shit."

"Rude. True, mind you, and pretty fucking hypocritical, but still rude."

Jason hmms acknowledgment of his hypocrisy. His gaze drops from Tim's face to the book and finally down to the hand still in his pants. It is so very hard to read any sort of expression through the masks, but Tim feels like he's got a damn solid bet as to what Jason's feeling right now.

He rolls the dice and starts stroking his clit again, deliberately making it obvious.

Jason's breathing gets heavier, his adam's apple bobs as he swallows thickly, his shoulders go tense - all good signs. Then his hips rock in sympathy with one of Tim's strokes and he knows without a shadow of a doubt that Jason is into this.

Tim grins.

There's something deeply gratifying in getting caught and then shamelessly continuing to pleasure himself. It makes him feel depraved - sinfully self indulgent in the best kind of way.

"So you like imagining yourself as a big scary monster who lives to fuck his eggs into people, huh? Got jealous of the xenomorphs while watching Aliens?"

"Yup. Clearly I don't have to explain the appeal to you."

"Actually, I think you do. I'm only interested in being the one getting bred; I don't honestly get the deal about being the one doing the topping."

Jason grips and leans against the bookshelf, clearly aiming for casual and missing by about a million miles to land firmly in 'seems like he's so horny he might faint' territory.

"Oh, cool. Coolcoolcool- uh, what if I get a towel and get you comfortable on the couch and we compare notes?"

Tim just barely holds himself back from laughing and says, "Sounds great!"

[tickfleato]

tell us more about the greys i'm so intrigued

WEHEHE ok so i DO have a slightly outdated post about them here! it's accurate about their biology but not 100% on culture and i've since retconned their average height to be a little shorter, though i kept enen's height the same so i didn't have to redraw their ref and because it's really funny if they're a chilchuck situation.

long ass reply under the cut

Anyway. the greys (in my setting) are by far the oldest spacefaring sophonts, and in fact their original homeworld has been uninhabitable and lifeless for hundreds of years. the majority of their population belongs to the imperial culture (which... i should come up with a better name for What empire it is... but it's hard to come up with grey names for things due to their lack of vocal language), which is highly conformist and is the main reason that despite their advanced genetic engineering capabilities they all look pretty much the same.

for most of the empire and most people in it, life is pretty good. they are largely post-scarcity, having access to large mining operations on uninhabitable planets and producing most materials from bio-machines. people are required to work jobs but generally one is given plenty of choice as to what they want to do in life and it's ok to change. basic rights (sustenance, shelter, etc) are guaranteed.

however... there are absolutely people who fall through the cracks, and their society stands on some unethical columns. imperial society is deeply ableist towards anyone who cannot or does not want to be 'fixed'. this mostly applies to mental illnesses & cognitive disabilities, as well as telepathy-related disabilities (enen, for instance, has the equivalent of a bad speech impediment due to what amounts to brain damage, on top of difficult-to-treat PTSD and alien contamination of the mind).

and now of course we get to OVERSEERS!!

i explained it a bit already but they're essentially their equivalent of AI. whether you want to actually consider it AI or not is wobbly. they're fully made out of meat like all grey tech, and their core minds & brain matter are grown artificially, but a significant chunk of their computing power and the source of much of their personalities and memories while still growing come from a hivemind of grey bodies. and well, you might wonder how they get enough people to agree to subsume their consciousness to a hivemind...

coercion! it is nominally a volunteer position but in practice it happens to:

people with certain incurable mental illnesses or severe distress that can't be fixed (whether forcibly or not) as becoming part of the whole usually makes those issues irrelevant to the overseer itself. enen would technically be in this position but for plot reasons they aren't allowed to volunteer.

certain types of criminals that are too far gone for re-educate. this is carefully arranged so that they don't 'infect' overseers and no individual OS is allowed to get more than one at a time so that they don't form a 'clump'

people who were mentally damaged in some way from botched re-ed, therapy, etc. this is sometimes done on purpose when there's a shortage of volunteers but it's rare and illegal

a certain number of greys are grown with the intention of becoming seers when they hit adulthood, to make sure that quotas are filled when there aren't enough volunteers

also there sometimes are genuine volunteers who aren't going into it just because they've been made to believe it's their only option :) but that's relatively uncommon, most people think it's kind of scary

NOW OF COURSE there are other greys that aren't part of this society, and they all have varying customs and views and government and etc. they are all considered "fringe" cultures by the core. by and large they don't have access to all the tech that the core has, but some transhumanist (trans...greyist?) groups have their own technological advances.

heights for the anatomically standard greys are outdated

the empire currently (approximately for the past century or so) has a hands-off approach to interspecies meddling, and doesn't colonize inhabited planets, but they have in the past. their attitude towards other greys, though, is uh... well, it varies, but there are some sticky situations.

it's worst and stickiest when it comes to the claymin.

the claymin are descended from transhumanist/post-flesh greys, but are considered by all parties to be a separate species... sort of. they have access to the same genetic tech as the empire and can reproduce on their own as opposed to solely growing through exiles like other post-flesh groups, and have completely different anatomy as their true bodies have been engineered down to basically just a brain, referred to as the core, which can be put in various modular constructed bodies.

they are, however, mysteriously exempt from the 'hands off other sophonts' rule that the empire has. when enen was a combat mech pilot, this is who they were fighting.

i'll leave off there... for now. i can elaborate on some of the other groups later :3 hope you liked reading all that

[illarian-rambling]

Can I request niche changeling lore for the Q&A game? I’ve already read the post you made on them but if there’s anything else I’d love to hear it :)

Sure thing! I'll just toss out some tidbit fun facts :)

What will and won't kill a changeling varies wildly. They're basically like if a water balloon was sentient, so they're very bendy and can take about any amount of bludgeoning damage with minimal injury. If they get cut though, that's when things get rough, because the downside to being basically a sentient water balloon is that you bleed out fast. The only way to stabilize a bleeding changeling is to get them hydration faster than they can bleed out. Sterile water does the job well enough - just put one of their hands in and they can absorb it. Diseases are also rough for changelings since medicines designed for humans or elves rarely work on them. Again, water being very important to their biology, changelings are very susceptible to dehydration.

Changeling concepts of gender are predictably all over the place. Many, like Elsind, use the pronouns of whatever form they're wearing while defaulting to whatever they're most comfortable with while in their true form. Other changelings hold one gender identity no matter what, while others still think it's all nonsense anyways and don't care one way or another.

The largest changeling community is in Nace. Lucky Lin Han is the husband of the Veiled Queen, leader of the Veiled Fleet, which serves as the main competitor to the Tunnel Wasp smuggling ring. Lucky is also a changeling. Through his wife's targeting of slave ships, Lucky has been able to rescue many changelings that would've otherwise been sold into bondage. Some leave, however, many other rescued changelings stay with the Veiled Fleet either as sailors or clerks. Oftentimes, this is many of the rescued changelings' first encounter with others of their kind, so they're tempted to stay for that alone. I'd say the Veiled Fleet is made up of a solid 15% changelings, and they frequently spend time together as a community, with Lucky acting as their de facto leader.

When changelings get old, they have a harder time keeping up a disguise. A changeling lifespan is around 200 years (so shorter than and elf, but longer than a human). It's very rare for changelings who grew up in isolation to know their own lifespan.

If a changeling wants to reproduce asexually, they must first ingest some specialized salts on the regular to prepare the body. Then, after about a year of this, they'll be able to create a sort of soft sphere resembling a frog's egg via budding. The sphere must be kept moist, but not too wet, until it develops into a baby changeling in a matter of weeks. It'll take about a year until the baby is able to keep consistent solid form. After that, they mature at about the same rate as human children. Most changelings can't hold a face with any skill until after puberty, though there are some prodigies out there.

It seems to be an inborn trait that changelings find all faces beautiful. You'll find every face from the most scarred and wrinkled to the most perfectly symmetrical in their art. Indeed, many famous portrait painters across Illari history were changelings in disguise. They just seem to find a beauty there that the human eye can't detect.

Not that they'd have any metric for it, but Elsind is actually sort of a prodigy when it comes to taking on faces. Even though they grew up around only elves, they can assume a human or dwarven face convincingly and with ease. They're naturally good at picking up mannerisms and mimicking voices. Also, they can hold a face decently well in moments of pain or stress, past the point where many changelings wouldn't have been able to keep up the mask anymore. So, good on you, Elsind!

Can you tell by now that I love to infodump about these guys lol? Thanks for the ask!

[leviackermanscleaningbuddy]

Question for the pack but very specifically our alphas. While it’s very typical to want omegas during rut, has there ever been an instinct or longing for another alpha to come help? Has another alpha ever stepped in place of an omega to help ease another ruts by slathering themselves in scent blockers?

Additionally, Y/N and Channie are your individual ruts harder on each other because your Moonmates?

Thank you and love y’all!!!

"This is a great question, and it varies based on alpha actually." You say with a glance between the other alphas, and they all nod in agreement. "Subgender may all be the same, cycles may all be the same, but we still all have very different personalities."

"Yeah, some of us-" Changbin gives you a very pointed look. "-get real grumpy with certain scents around that time."

You stick your tongue out at him. "Yeah, and some of us get overly whiney and want Minho to dominate the fuck out of us."

"Who wouldn't want that?" Jisung asks with slight disbelief, making a very good point, and everyone nods in agreement.

"Anyway." Chan shoots you and Changbin a pointed look, then sighs, raking a hand through his messy curls. "I can only speak for myself personally, but I actually really like to spend my ruts with (Y/N). My alpha gets overly possessive during that time-of everyone actually-but the moonmate thing kicks into overdrive when I'm not entirely in my right mind."

"You like to spend your ruts with me until the last couple of days." You point out. "Then when knotting me isn't enough, you usually switch into omega mode."

"I think that's pretty common, to hyperfocus on us around your ruts." Hyunjin shrugs, and Seungmin nods his silent agreeement. The head omega shoots Chan a smirk now. "And we're always entirely happy to be of service."

"He also gets really pissy with me in general." Changbin adds, and Chan gives him an apologetic glance.

"Yeah, sorry about that."

"It's fine. I just avoid the house at all costs during that week usually."

"As Binnie so kindly pointed out-" You glance at the other alpha, who grins and winks in your direction. "-I get pissy about particular scents during rut. I don't usually care very much about subgender? I mean, it's the same thing as Channie, omegas tend to dominate my mind the last couple days, but before then, it doesn't matter, as long as it's not Channie or Binnie."

You wince and reach out to pet Chan's leg in silent apology. He smiles and laces his fingers with yours.

"Their scents are way too strong when I'm so sensitive." You go on, glancing at Minho now. "I can usually handle Minho's because his scent is a little softer for an alpha, so he doesn't spike my wolf's defensive side, but if the other two get anywhere near me during rut, I immediately feel threatened."

"And scent blockers don't seem to help when it comes to us." Changbin points out now. "Which is odd, but your wolf still somehow picks up on our undertones and bares its teeth regardless."

You shrug. "What can I say? She's a Grade A Boss Bitch."

"As far as my ruts go," Changbin continues, looking thoughtful for a moment. "I think we're all the same in that we highly prefer omegas at the end, just because of primal needs and knotting, but in the beginning? I prefer another alpha actually. Unless of course, they're a top leaning omega like Jinnie." He shrugs. "I get a lot more primal in rut, and it's nice to have someone who can tell me what to do and I don't have to think about it. Thus, Minho-hyung."

"He is pretty bossy." Jeongin chirps innocently, with a sly look in Minho's direction, even as the alpha leans over to try to cuff his ear.

"Yah, watch your tongue."

"I also don't particularly care about alpha scents during rut." Changbin adds. "So scent blockers or the lack thereof aren't usually an issue for me."

"As far as the whole moonmate thing," You remark, squeezing Chan's hand, and he squeezes back in response. "biology dictates that yeah, your moonmate's cycle is going to be a little bit rougher on you than just any other cycle. Regardless of subgender of either mate."

"It's interesting when it comes to beta mates though." Seungmin muses, his hand resting on Changbin's thigh, Jisung now playing with the fingers on his other free hand. "We don't experience cycles. But Changbin-hyung and Minho-hyung still have ruts, and I've noticed those take a toll on us regardless."

"Yeah, rut week is hell." Jisung agrees instantly, his dark eyes large and haunted. "Minho-hyung is scary on a good day. He's absolutely fucking terrifying the week of."

Minho levels the beta with a sharp gaze. "Han Jisung. I thought you liked my scary side."

Jisung waves his hands. "Oh, I absolutely do. It's hot as fuck. But also-" He grimaces. "I get awful headaches that week and my skin feels itchy and all I want to do is sleep. And that's your fault."

"Try being the actual one in rut." Changbin mutters beneath his breath.

"No thanks. I choose life."

"That's what I thought."

[captain-lovelace]

Hey I saw your rb, I really want to get into paleontology, specifically working in a paleontology lab doing fossil prep and such. I have no idea how to go about this, I was home schooled and worried I'd not even be accepted, I also do not know what steps to take to get on the path to studying this. I also am mid 20s and worried it is too late. So many people are discouraging to paleontology related fields, saying it is worthless to even bother bc "They're not needed and you won't ever get paid enough to live" etc

Any advice? Thanks!

So also based on your other ask it seems like this is a three part question: first, is studying paleontology worth it; second, how’s the money; and third, how would someone with your background start studying paleontology professionally.

With regards to the first question, I’ve wanted to be a paleontologist all my life and I’ve heard the same things you have about it not being worth it, about paleontology being a useless career/unnecessary, etc. To be blunt, the people who say these things overwhelmingly have no clue what they’re fucking talking about. Paleontology is the foundation upon which our understanding of modern evolutionary biology is built, paleontology is the source of a huge chunk of our understanding of mass extinctions, fossil data is necessary for understanding the relationships between modern species, etc. We absolutely do need people studying paleontology, and it is possible to have a career in it!

With that said, the pay is on par with grad student salaries in general— aka, pretty bad. Academia is kind of unique (derogatory) in terms of structure; usually you’re a grad student for 4-8 years depending on how long your PhD takes + if you do a master’s, then after you get your PhD you have a postdoc position for a varying number of years, then you move on to start your own lab as an assistant professor. After that, you can get tenure and move on to being an associate professor, and then in some cases eventually a full professor. (This isn’t the only path, obviously, but it’s the one I know the most about.) Your pay as a grad student and as a postdoc is likely not going to be great! In my master’s program I was paid around $32,000 a year, and in my upcoming PhD program my estimated pay is around $45,000; I did not have to pay tuition in either program. The livability of a grad student wage is going to also depend on location. Living on a salary like mine would be different in California versus in Alabama, for example. Also, like I said in my tags, I highly recommend going to a grad school where the academic student employees are unionized! Finally, this is US-based— I don’t know how it is outside the country.

About the last part of your question: I am not well-versed in non traditional education, and my advice should be taken with a grain of salt. With that said, if you have no college education, your first step might be getting an undergraduate degree, and I highly recommend looking for people who have gone through the process of getting an undergraduate degree in their late 20s and asking them about the process! Other than that, I advise looking at the geology departments of universities in your area to see if anyone is studying paleontology in them, just to get an idea of where and with whom you might like to study eventually. Usually there will be at least a couple of people with a paleontological focus.

The last thing I want to say is that even though my advice has been geared towards academia, there’s a lot of different ways to get involved in paleontological work. One thing that I really recommend doing is looking up volunteer opportunities at natural history museums in your area! That’s where I got my first experience in paleontological work, and it was really helpful for getting to where I am today. Also, read papers you find interesting! Even if you decide you don’t want to do paleontology as a career, that doesn’t mean it can’t be a part of your life.

[blossoming-sun]

Mutant lore because its been a while since I used this tag

Well this was supposed to be me talking about an AU idea I had but i got distracted

Diet:

The only animals we've seen in the mutant world are pigs, and I do not care how many pigs there are there is no way that there are enough for the entire mutant population to eat. Mutants are clearly carnivorous (they all have sharp teeth and also hate vegetables) but there are hardly any humans left on the planet and they cannot sustain themselves on whatever other natural life is left on the planet. So I theorise that mutants are probably eating each other. Probably not other members of their families (with the exception of hatchlings: see 'life cycle' for more details), but less-intelligent mutants, such as Fetids, do not care, and while they form packs to make survival easier, they will turn on each other as soon as things get rough.

Mutants also have an order of preference when it comes to food: Humans, whatever natural animals they can find, mutants from different families, and lastly, mutants from their own family (Not literal family I mean in like order of genus or something idk). The reason the MB are able to escape mutant attacks every single time is because some mutants will turn on each other if they think that they don't have a chance at getting to eat human meat, which makes things easier.

Social behaviours:

mutants usually stick with their own kind and travel in groups, with the exception of Higher-class mutants. Higher-class mutants are mutants that have some semblance of human intelligence, aka the colossuses (did I spell it right?) Wart, Verruca, Cavity and Stoney. Higher-class mutants are the only mutants that can be classified as sentient, as lower-class mutants have never shown any signs of awareness or intelligence (choosing to constantly attack rather than run away from humans with blasters). Higher-class mutants are capable of retaining information, communicating with humans, and making intelligent plans. Higher-class mutants are also able to summon mutants to them (nobody knows how, Dr White suspects some kind of pheromone, but couldn't test this theory). Higher-class mutants have also been observed to have varying personalities and interests, and while they are just as resilient as other mutants, prefer to inhabit places such as abandoned castles or other luxurious buildings. Despite Higher-class mutants having the ability to order around lower-class mutants, they are in danger of being eaten by other mutants before this skill develops (e.g, while in the egg, see life cycle section for further information), and as an adaptation, have developed a unique way of developing.

Life cycle:

All mutants are hatched from eggs (it is unknown if mutants procreate or somehow reproduce asexually, this is yet another thing Dr White wanted to research, but he was grounded by Su ((in his defence she's terrifying when she gets mad)) anyway, moving on). These eggs are roughly as big as an emu egg, and the clutch size depends on the mutant breed. Newly hatched mutants grow to be the size of a soccer ball within the first week of their life, and are fully mature within a year of their life. Mutants don't raise their offspring, and the baby mutants survive by eating siblings that didn't hatch on time, and apparently also have a tolerance to a wider range of food substances than adult mutants. Mutants can NOT be trained or raised to abandon their aggressive behaviours (this was effectively researched by Dr White, depending on who you ask). Eggs take 2 weeks to hatch, and it is estimated that the average mutant can live for up to 12 years, but this age is rarely reached.

Higher-class mutants have a development that differs widely from lower-class mutants. Due to their unique biology and mental capabilities, their development is much slower, and they do not reach physical maturity until roughly six years of age, at which point they have the mental maturity of teenagers. Before this, they are similar to bees: larvae that emerge from cells as full adults. Due to the fact that it would be impossible for an egg to survive in the wild for long enough for the mutant that hatched from it to mature in the same way as lower-class mutants, higher-class mutants are hatched as what is effectively a sentient cocoon. Wart and Verruca are examples of this form: physically weak and, as Sheriff put it, "absolutely pathetic" in comparison to other mutants. During this time they stay inside of their lairs to conserve energy for their metamorphosis. When metamorphosis occurs, their true forms will burst out of the cocoon-skin, usually less than a meter in length. In this form they are much stronger than lower-class mutants, resistant to fire from anti-mutant weapons, weapons in general, and are capable of putting mutants under their absolute control within a disturbingly large radius. They will quickly grow, and are capable of growing up to twenty metres within five years, the maximum recorded size for a higher-class mutant.

[penig]

The poor Roselands got elected as the white trash Depression Riverblossom family.

Cyd, uneducated despite his Knowledge aspiration because life be like that, moved in aiming to make his living farming, fishing, breeding dogs, and starting a toy store, which he can do as soon as he has a gold badge and the capital to buy a lot.

Well, making toys costs money. Danny and Sarah did their best to help him with the dog breeding but he never had time to befriend a mate for Porthos (buy a dog? Are you crazy?). Farming is not very lucrative when you've got to eat part of your harvest and the growing season is so short, Riverblossom Hills being Winter/Spring/Fall/Winter and greenhouses not being cheap. Biology beats brains and he and his wife LaShawn don't have the education for effective birth control, but dating is such a sure way to cheer themselves up...

Rather than add risky woohoo when I'm only going to want it for some neighborhoods, I have a 20-sided die and sliding odds on whether or not to try for baby. If a parent has a baby want, I just try. If at least half a couple is educated and they have access and privacy to use mechanical devices like rubbers and diaphragms, they try for baby on a roll of 20. The odds might change for married couples with no reason to be reluctant to have a baby, such as poverty or a baby fear or a wife with career ambitions that strike me as feasible. Lack of education, access, or privacy lower the required number 5% each, with access and privacy varying with circumstances. Peter Ottomas fully intends to be faithful to his wife and doesn't carry a rubber around; if he strays in a photo booth with another Romance playable I took out looking for a new lover, she almost certainly left the house with a diaphragm already inserted or in her purse, but if circumstances overcame an uneducated Popularity sim and Peter, she'd have to count days in her head while distracted and a roll of five or better would be a try for baby.

It's a long way to town, you have to ask the teen cashier for the little boxes behind the counter and you know she's gossiping, Cyd and LaShawn have a few misconceptions about how things work (look, even Simone de Beauvoir thought douches were effective, okay?), and they've got three kids. Gordon is a big help with the farm, the fishing, and the dogs these days. Isabel is old enough to help her mother now. Little Petunia will get there. And everybody's going to be too tired for woohoo, because in addition to farming, fishing, school, housework, dogs, and toymaking they need more room in the house and will have to build in spring and fall.

Things got less crowded after Danny and Sarah died on the same day, leaving Porthos and the last of the puppies, Boots. It's been awhile since Cyd fooled with teaching Porthos tricks, but the loss of the big dogs and the lack of cash to make toys with has him doing it again. He's made friends with David Ottomas, who's hired him to tend bar at the Roadhouse to make ends meet.

Any homework that gets buried in the yard will stay buried till thaw, though. Gordon and Isabel have Responsibilities.

[seeasunset]

[ Biology ] !!

Worldbuilding!

❖

➤ And on today's topic is the sirens!

The sirens are one of the focused species in my book's universes. Not only because they are featured a lot, but also because the protagonist is a siren. So, what makes her, well, her is the species she belongs to.

Anyways, by no means am I great with this subject. Science never been a great subject for me, especially in school. Everyone says it's math, but to me, it's science. I did more well in math than I did with science.

I. Origins: Sirens' evolution over the centuries and centuries of living on the planet is quite strange. If you can call it as such. They never started out as a nautical species. They actually started off as a avian species. Looooong ago, they were described to be half bird, half person, flocking around the ocean and luring their targets to them by their vocal sounds. Of course, much like any other species on the planet, sirens evolved to be more in the sea than having a short-period of flight. They took more on an appearance of those dwelling in the sea, taking on a tail and other structures that requires them to function within the water. Their wings becoming more like arms.

In the modern era, you may find a few sirens with feather-like features around their tail and their arms. This includes the protagonist who has said features.

Much like how their appearance evolved, so did their structure, including their vocal structure. This went from vocals similar to birds to actual singing.

II. Outside appearance: Modern day sirens looks like what we think of mermaids, which a lot of people often mistaken the two together. While sirens do have human-like features (nose, eyes, five fingers, the placement, etc), they also take on appearances of the sea life within the waters. They are described to be more terrifying-looking yet in a beautiful way. Black eyes with different variety of colors for their pupils, long nails, gills on the side of their neck, sharp teeth, and depending on where you go, you may some having transparent skin. Others has a large range of colorful appearance. For example, the protagonist of my book has bright pink and blue color scheme, which makes up majority of her body. In-between these colors is a blueish-grayish skin.

It honestly depends on where you go in the world, what animal they take after, and what kind of weather they live in. Not all sirens has a colorful appearance like our protagonist. Some sirens do live in the deep sea and take on the life around them. Others may have to adapt to the colder waters and weather. Going into any great details varies from siren to siren. Their location and their family. So, some sirens can be tall in height because they may take on the appearance of a whale while others may have horns because of a narwhal. Others may have scales because of a fish they take after or tentacles because they may want to look like a squid or an octopus.

In the society of certain locations, the more colorful a siren look, the more dangerous they can be. Likewise to deep-sea sirens.

III. Other features: Other features also has a twist as well and the environment and the family has a major role into these kind of things. Sometimes their occupation. If a siren hauls from a military occupation, of course, they may look more tougher because of the training they have been through. All compare to someone who may be your average siren, who works a 9 to 5 job.

As mentioned before, it also depends on the environment a siren lives in and an animal they may take after. A siren can look similar to a whale while others looks like an anglerfish with a small part on their head to light up a dark area. Deep-sea sirens may be blind because they don't have enough light to use their eyes and rely on other senses to help them out.

Many sirens are built to be strong, regardless of their height and weight, especially surface-level sirens. Surface-level sirens are built more stronger than their deep-sea counterparts because surface-levels are required to latch onto their target and drag them into the waters. This doesn't include human beings, but other species like orcs or ogres. Food is food for the sirens and they'll take anyone if one isn't careful enough around the ocean. Deep sea sirens don't require these types of strength because they don't go to the surface for food.

IV. Fun fact: Unlike their mermaid/merman counterparts, sirens, in fact, are capable of walking on land. They have three forms. One to swim properly in the sea, semi-human form (they still look like a siren but with legs), and their human form (looks exactly like a human). Splashing or throwing a siren in water will not make them transform back into their original form. This has been proven false time after time and only works with the mermaids/mermans. Sirens can and will transform on their own free will. The only times you may be able to get a siren to transform back by force is if by either magic or a magical artifact designed specifically for the siren.

[uncloseted]

I live in the UK and am still in high school, i want to study biochemistry or something similar at Cambridge before doing dentistry at another university, what are some good extracurriculars to do? and what should i do in university to prepare myself for applying to dentistry as i want to get into a top university for that as well.

Pretty sure i will get 10 9s at gcse and hopefully 3/4 A* at a level but not sure if that’s enough to get into a top university? (nowhere near as competitive as ivy leagues but still it’s obviously difficult to get accepted)

From what I can tell, dentistry is a 5-year degree that you can enter upon completing your A-levels, so you don't need to take a biochemistry degree first. You may be able to do a 4-year degree course for dentistry if you already have at least an upper second class degree in a relevant subject (biology, chemistry, or biomedicine), but that seems to be less common, and it means you'll have done 7 years of school for a degree you could have finished in 5.

When you apply for a dentistry course, you may be asked to take the University Clinical Aptitude Test (UCAT) or BioMedical Admissions Test (BMAT). They test the skills you'll need on the course, like critical thinking, problem solving, data analysis, communication and scientific knowledge.

The best dentistry programs in the UK are University of Glasgow, University of Plymouth, Queen's University Belfast, University of Dundee, and University of Liverpool. A list of other qualified schools can be found here.

For those programs, you will need at least 6 GCSE subjects at Grade A/7. This typically includes some combination of Maths, Physics, Biology, Chemistry, and English Language/Literature.

You will also need A*AA – AAA grades on your A-levels. Two of those subjects should be be Biology and Chemistry. The third A-level can be in something that isn't science based.

If you do want to do a degree in Biochemistry at Cambridge, you'll apply to the Natural Sciences program.

For this program, you will need A*A*A*- A*A*A grades on your A-levels. The combination of subjects you take can vary, but should generally include some combination of Chemistry, Mathematics, Physics, and Biology. You will also need to take the Natural Sciences Admissions Assessment (NSAA) at an authorised assessment centre. Cambridge does not have any GCSE requirements.

Unlike in the US, universities in the UK generally don't care about extracurriculars. Your A-level results are far and away the most important thing when it comes to whether or not you'll be admitted. Your personal statement is the only place where you'll have the opportunity to show the university the passion you have for the subject area you're applying to and to show that you have the skills and experiences that will enable you to succeed at university. That said, extracurriculars that are related to the field of study you want to go into may give you a bit of an edge. For example, you might work in a dentist's office or shadow a dentist/dental student if you're applying for dentistry. For biochemistry, you could look for volunteer positions in a biochem lab at a university, get involved with a course at university, or participate in biology olympiads. But your grades will be much more important, so they're the thing to focus on if you have to choose.

[authorred]

Hell's Gate (Hemlock Grove) (Roman Godfrey x Fem!Reader)

Preface: We all know Olivia Godfrey only cares about herself and her legacy. Any threat to that is a threat to her. You, the person whom Roman loves, is a threat. So, she opts to get rid of you. Little does she and Roman know, you have your own secret.

Warnings: Mentions of death, blood, general angst, cursing, reader isn't a baby bottom bitch in this, Roman having a breakdown, crying, some dark gifs to appeal to the edgy readers, etc..

Part 2 here Part 3 here Part 4 here Part 5 here

You knew the moment Olivia walked into the room you were in, alone, that she was going to try something. What that 'thing' was, you didn't know. A dig at your integrity, your intelligence, your lineage; who knows. That's how it always was between you two. Underneath the superficial layer of flowery words of flattery lied malice beyond human comprehension. You could tell from the instance you met her she didn't like you. Why? You were involved with Roman. In fact, he loved you. He loved you more than he feared her. She didn't like that.

So, when you were basically cornered by the predictably unpredictable woman in the Godfrey estate, you knew some shit was going to go down. She was a beautiful woman. It was a shame she was so ugly on the inside.

"Mrs. Godfrey," you greeted with a slight incline of your head. "Is there something you need?"

"Yes, actually." She came to stand in the middle of the parlor room, heels clicking against the polished wooden flooring. "Roman is out currently, and Shelley is resting right now. I would absolutely love it if you would join me on a walk."

You slowly stood up from the comfy chair with a wary gaze. "Through the estate? Or over a bridge?"

"That depends on whether I feel up to dragging you that far away from the house." She gave a tight smile before turning. "Still, I would love to get to know the girl my son seems to be so attached to."

You nodded. "Alright. If you insist." You pulled out your phone and sent a quick text to Roman, who was out meandering with Peter due to some dreams they had about the Vargulf.

'Your mother wants to take a walk with me. I don't like the way she's holding herself. I love you.'

Your message was delivered--and Roman normally texted back moderately quickly. However, this was the one time where he wouldn't be able to see your message in time.

You pocketed your phone and smiled at Olivia, who gave you one of her own. It was pleasant--her teeth straight and white--but the feeling she gave off greatly contradicted it.

The day was beautiful. A calm, autumn day. A crisp 60 degrees with a cool breeze. The fallen leaves crunched under your feet, varying shades of red, orange, and yellow. Olivia has not spoken to you once the entire time, and you weren't quick to start a conversation either. Roman still hadn't responded to you--nor had he actually read it. That was fine. You understood what he was doing was important. You could handle yourself. Probably. Maybe. You hoped.

"How well do you think you know my son?" She suddenly spoke, hands placed delicately in her trench coat pockets.

"Hm," you hummed. "I would like to think I know him well enough. Maybe not the best, but I know him better than my other friends."

"Is that so?" She murmured. "Do you think he loves you?"

You shrugged. "I don't think I have a right to speak on his feelings. Especially regarding me. It seems egotistical."

"You know, Y/n, Roman is a brilliant boy. He is my son, my flesh and blood."

"I'm aware of how basic biology works, yes. He very much looks like your son." You nodded. You may not have been as sharp as her, but with the wit you did have, you would use it at every chance.

"And as his mother, it's my job to make sure nothing gets in the way of his bright future."

You slowed your walking. "Do you think I'm a hindrance, Mrs. Godfrey?"

She matched your slowed pace and looked over her shoulder at you. "Well, I don't believe you to be a benefit. You're a distraction. Surely, you understand where I'm coming from. I just want what's best for him."

"And you don't think I'm one of those things that are 'best' for him?"

Olivia chuckled lowly, playing around with her leather gloves. "I believe that you will lead him astray from the path I've laid for him. That's all. It's nothing personal, truly Y/n. You're a lovely girl, I'm sure. When you're away from Roman."

You nodded slowly, sucking your teeth. "It feels personal." You looked around your surroundings. You were at the back of the estate's yard--the house itself was a good distance away. "Are we finishing our walk here, Mrs. Godfrey?" You asked, tilting your head. You gazed at her eyes with calm intent.

"You're truly not scared?" She asked, slowly removing her gloves. She no longer cared whether you knew or not. You would be the only one to, at least. Aside from her, but she's very good at keeping secrets.

You smiled lightly and stared at her hands. "I've come across scarier things than a narcissistic Upir."

Her lips twitched into a frown. "Then I suppose it's good that that'll be the last thing you come across."

~ Roman fell against the wall, entire body collapsing into itself. Peter didn't catch him in time, but he did attempt to keep Roman's body from crashing to the floor. A violent sob racked through the said man's body, face screwing up in pure agony.

"Roman? Hey--it's okay, buddy. It's okay," Peter soothed, not minding his best friend clinging to him currently. "I know. It's okay."

By the time Roman had read your text, you were already dead in a ditch somewhere; disembowled and dismembered. You were found there a few days later after your walk with Olivia. According to her, you went off on a walk after an unpleasant conversation with Olivia, to which she stayed behind in the house because of Shelly. There were no witnesses and no evidence left at the crime scene enough to create a concrete suspect list.

Olivia was the one who broke the news to Roman of your 'absence'. At first, he just thought you needed space from her--which was understandable. His mother was extremely suffocating, and if you're not used to her, it can quite literally kill you. Unfortunately for you, it did.

As expected, he took it poorly, and Peter had to give all of his energy to keep Roman from lashing out and hurting himself or hurting Olivia (no matter how much they both disliked her). Of course, it pained the older woman to see her son in pain (but let's be honest, she didn't care about the reason), so all she could do was swear to him that they'd find the person responsible for your murder.

Peter couldn't be with him 24/7, and the two boys still had school to deal with as well. Anger coursed through him 24/7, a thin film that kept the grief at bay. Peter knew what was going on, and Letha as well, as Peter had told her. Anyone else who had the misfortune of crossing Roman during that time was left in the middle of a whirlwind of anger and hurt.

"Roman," Peter called softly. "We both know Y/n didn't. . . just randomly die, right?"

Roman puffed out a cloud of cigarette smoke--the fourth one he's smoked that morning alone. He nodded solemnly, expression already screwing up. "No way," he chuckled bitterly. "That woman could punch anyone's lights out." He paused for a brief moment.

"Shit," he cursed, voice breaking and stumbling over itself. "I didn't even answer her text."

Peter nodded slowly, reaching over to pat Roman on the shoulder comfortingly. "It's not your fault. Y/n would've understood. She knew how important this was. It's not your fault." When Roman looked over to his friend, Peter just gazed steadily at him. "We got this, buddy. We'll find the person. And when we do, we'll kill them."

Roman nodded in agreement, sniffing. Both of them knew this wasn't something to come back from easily. If anyone knew Roman past the fuckboy, hard-ass image, they'd know he wouldn't move on--that nothing would, or could, replace the spot you took in his life and heart.

Dirt and mud were peeled away like a sheet of ice, uncovering the freshly dug hole in the ground. Flesh was spiked with shredded wood splinters and blood soaked through the pure white shirt. A hand came up through the ground to claw at the surrounding solid dirt. With a hefty, polyphonic grunt, you pulled yourself out of your shallow grave. With eyes blazing an angry red and a voice like a demonic choir, you uttered one single sentence,

"I'm going to fucking kill that bitch."

[adobe-outdesign]

Pokemon Worldbuilding Headcanons

Exactly what it says in the title. Some are based on the game, some on the anime, and some directly contradict both because the Pokemon lore is made up and your feelings don’t matter.

Biology

Pokemon heal faster when unconscious or asleep--thus, they faint easily from pain or exhaustion in order to recuperate.

During evolution, a Pokemon converts itself into energy and reforms itself. Evolution is optional, and a Pokemon can choose if and when it evolves. Evolution is triggered by both an environmental circumstance (ex: winning a battle), and by the Pokemon storing up energy over time until it has enough to transform.

Stress evolutions are when a Pokemon evolves prematurally in order to win a battle or when they’re in a life-or-death situation. This can result in the evolution being smaller than normal and possibly weaker as well.

“Trade evolutions” are a loose grouping of Pokemon that typically evolve when they start working with a new trainer. The exact reasons for the evolution varies by individual, and therefore can have multiple causes.

Ex: a Pokemon may evolve after it learns something from someone else. While the easiest way to achieve this is through trade, they may also evolve by training under a wiser, older Pokemon.

Trade evolutions are somewhat rare in the wild, but not unheard of.

Pokemon that evolve via stones cannot store enough energy to evolve naturally. The stones contain extra energy that they can tap into in order to aid in evolution.

Everstones work similar to sponges; they absorb the extra energy a Pokemon would normally store up to evolve, thus preventing them from doing so. They’re mostly used for medical purposes (as a Pokemon evolving when badly injured could worsen its injuries) and to help prevent stress evolutions in Pokemon that don’t want to evolve.

Pokemon types are based on the type of energy they utilize, rather than moves or appearance. Ex: Charizard is not dragon-type despite looking like a dragon because it doesn’t use dragon-type energy. New energies are discovered all the time and Pokemon are reclassified as needed.

Pokemon typing also changes as they (Darwinian) evolve. A Pokemon that’s normal/grass used to be normal-type, has started to gain grass-typing, and will eventually be only grass-type.

Humans are descended from Pokemon. They used to be psychic-type before becoming normal-type and then losing their typing all together. At this point they no longer are energy-based nor do they lay eggs, so they’re considered a separate-but-related family.

This is why some people still show psychic powers; those abilities never completely went away in some bloodlines.

Pokemon have been domesticated for so long that there’s actually no such thing as a “wild” Pokemon anymore (with the exception of legendaries). Wild Pokemon are technically feral, and any given Pokemon will quickly adapt to living with humans if caught.

Pokemon used to look different hundreds of years ago, and have slowly undergone Darwinian evolution over time as they were domesticated.

“Most trainers will legendaries shortly after their journey starts” statistic false. Most trainers will see no legendaries in their lifetimes. Ash Ketchum, who’s seen every single legendary in existence, is an outlier and should not be counted

However, areas where legendaries are known to live are oftentimes marked as no-catch conservation areas. People will oftentime travel to these parks to admire “common” legendaries (such as the bird trio) in their natural habitats.

Battles

Not knocking out a Pokemon you’re trying to capture is more of a honored rule than a law. The reason it’s done is to give the Pokemon ample time to flee--otherwise, someone may one-shot a Pokemon that doesn’t want a trainer, resulting in the Pokemon being unfairly knocked out and the trainer wasting their time.

If you give the Pokemon time to flee and it chooses to stay and fight, it’s potentially interested in accepting you as a trainer and you just have to prove yourself. If it flees, you should leave it alone.

Pokemon used for battles are specifically trained to not cause permanent harm or injury to their opponents (ex: that fire blast isn’t as hot as it could be, so it’ll only cause minor burns instead of third-degree ones). While the attacks used might look violent and cause some pain, serious injuries are very rare.

Wild Pokemon are also pretty good at restraining themselves if they’re just battling for fun or to test a trainer. They will not, however, restrain themselves if they feel threatened or are hunting. Trainers are advised to use caution when fighting wild Pokemon and return their Pokemon to their balls if necessary.

Psychic-types (Mr. Mime especially) are used to create protective barriers around arenas/trainers to protect people from flying debris and stray attacks.

Refs always have a few Pokemon on hand that know moves like stun spore or sleep powder in order to stop any fights that get out of hand.

Pokeballs

While some trainers different Pokemon by using different types of Pokeballs, decorating them is also a popular way to do it. Some people draw symbols or initials on the buttons, some add stickers, some paint them, ect.

Stores also sell semi-transparent hard shells that snap over the balls. These come in different colors and designs, so you can have a Pokeball that has a galaxy design on top instead of plain red if you want.

Most trainers keep about 40 some Pokemon or less, which they rotate between their party, the PC, and daycares/Pokemon sitters to keep them enriched and active. Some people keep more, but they generally spend all of their time caring for them and therefore aren’t trainers.

The general rule of thumb is to not leave a Pokemon in the PC for more than two weeks. If you fail to take them out after a month, they will be automatically removed and released back into the wild.

Pokeballs create little miniature simulations of nature, making them feel bigger on the inside. Different types of pokeballs have different or more advanced simulations, which may increase how much a Pokemon likes being in it.

Pokeballs create an invisible “tag” for the Pokemon by altering their energy when they’re first caught. These tags affect nothing, but Pokeballs are programmed to automatically check for one before they’ll activate.

Many poachers and other illegal groups produce their own illegal Pokeballs that do not check for tags before capture.

If a Pokeball breaks, it automatically releases the Pokemon inside and removes their tag.

Tags fade after about a month to allow for other trainers to capture a Pokemon after it’s been permanently released. The tag is automatically refreshed every time a Pokemon is brought back into its ball.

The standard Pokeball pattern is based off of the patterns of the Foongus line. Pokemon are very attracted to their markings, so the balls are painted the same to make the Pokemon like them more.

Eggs

Rather than combining genetics, Pokemon reproduce by combining their energy together (this looks a bit like two Pokemon evolving at the same time). Because of this, they lack reproductive organs and chromosomes.

Gender is a loosely defined concept for them. Pokemon can change their sex upon evolution if they want to, and some will change their sex over time (ex: legendaries are usually genderless, but will gain a sex to breed and then lose it again afterward).

If a Pokemon doesn’t display sexual dimorphism, the only way to determine their sex is to have a Pokemon Center do a blood test.

Eggs aren’t laid, but created. The pregnant Pokemon fosters energy in their body. When ready they separate the extra energy from themselves (once again, looks a bit like evolution), which forms into the egg. This causes them no pain, and means they have short gestation periods.

This also means Pokemon never look pregnant. The only way to tell is by getting them tested or paying attention to changes in behavior. Many trainers end up with eggs out of nowhere because they had no idea one of their Pokemon was pregnant to begin with.

In the wild, some species of Pokemon will lay hundreds of eggs (such as fish and bug Pokemon) to ensure their survival. In captivity, Pokemon rarely create more than 1 or 2 eggs at a time, likely because they understand their young are safe with their trainers.

Pokemon develop more quickly in their eggs than IRL animals. They can technically hatch shortly after the egg is made, but they usually spend extra time inside maturing. By the time the egg hatches, the baby already has fur/feathers/whatever, and can walk and eat solid food. This helps ensure their survival against predators.

Young Pokemon are differentiated by being “mature” or “immature”; an immature Pokemon will still gradually grow and change appearance, while a mature one is fully grown until it evolves. A Pokemon cannot evolve until it’s considered mature (excluding mega evolution for single-stagers).

To use Vulpix as a canon example: a newly hatched immature Vulpix is about 8 in tall and has one white tail. A mature Vulpix is about 2 ft tall and has six red tails.

In the wild, Pokemon mostly breed amongst their own species. The exception are Pokemon with uneven gender ratios (so if a Pokemon is 7:1 male vs female, the males will actively breed with anything in their egg group). Inter-species breeding among captive Pokemon is much more common, and usually based on the Pokemon’s personal preferences.

Hybridization in Pokemon born from two different parents is very rare, but it does happen from time to time. It’s more common in Pokemon that look similar or are distantly related.

“Perfect” hybrids, Pokemon that have equal amounts of traits from both parents as well as typing and abilities, are more sought after than shinies. They usually can’t breed due to their mix of energies.