#merlin (xe/he/they)

[interstellarsystem]

Nonhuman expressions of affection are great. Purring. Exposing weak points as a show of trust. Head bonks. Preening and chewing. Nuzzling. Biting. Intertwining tails. Feeding each other. Little chuffs, chatters, beeps and squeaks. Fluffing up of feathers, fur or other things. Dancing to impress. Cleaning their fur, scales, feathers or skin. Sharing body heat. Ears pointing toward those you care about to show your full attention is on them. Slow blinking.

[terror-punk]

Be Openly Scary

Society is scared of a lot of things it shouldn't be. A lot of those things can't be helped, a lot of those things don't hurt anyone, and a lot of those things are not what people even think they truly are.

So you know what?

Talk about your hallucinations, your delusions, your psychotic symptoms. Share things about your gender identity whether it be nonconforming, trans, xenogender or anything else. Scream about your nonhumanity and animal urges. Be open and unwavering about your systems existence, presenting as more-than-one wherever you want. Use and introduce your pronouns, even if people find them weird or offputting. Rock back and forth, pace, twitch and stim in any way you please. Wear things that reflect your identity in public. Get tattoos and body mods to your heart's content. Tell people about your personality disorders.

Don't make yourself small because others can't handle you. Be open where safe. Be you. Be scary.

[abadbutsadcollective]

One moment I'm like "why am I hearing things that aren't there. why did our psychosis come back hard" but the next I realise I'm a psychosis holder. Hallucinations georg if you will. The guy who Just Does That. Wow who would've thought.

[disabirbity]

We've been so low on spoons lately. A little bit of extra stress is really all it takes to make it much harder to do the exact same things you were doing before.

[grimwalker-grimoire]

When you're partially curled up on your side to sleep and your cat decides to sleep in-between your stomach and your knees to be close to you and be warm? That means the world to me. I'll be your warm shelter and you'll be my hot water bottle.

[grimwalker-grimoire]

Jerrys allowed? He's not all black but he absolutely does something.

why don't you look at a black cat's fur turning brown in the sunlight and maybe you'll calm down

[interstellarsystem]

We didn't actually know plural pride day was a thing, somehow (it's every 3rd Saturday of July).

So, happy plural pride day to systems and plurals of all kinds. Systems of all origins, structures, member counts, disorders or lack thereof; you are real, you are valid, and you have a place in this world just as anyone else. People will not always be accepting, but that goes for any identity. Their perception of you does not define you or your reality.

The future is plural. Be proud.

[abadbutsadcollective]

Bird culture is gently nibbling on your friends to "preen their feathers" that totally exist.

[disabirbity]

Man. Why can we never remember what our symptoms are when we experience them. Like we know we have disorders and symptoms. We know this. But we always wonder why the fuck we are the way we are and get all Surprised Pikachu Faced when we realise it's one of The Disorders.

Us like 5 days ago: Talking over people, not caring about money, talking loud and fast, feeling great, living on 4 or less hours of sleep.

Partner: Hey are you manic.

Us: Oh. Fuck. Yeah probably.

Me, a fool, today: Bro why can't I sleep. Why did I clean the room at 1am instead of sleeping. Why is my brain going so quickly. Why do I type so much today.

[interstellarsystem]

Other kinds of alterhumans too, not just nonhumans.

Otherhearted people in or above their 40s, their hearttype as strong as ever. Systems of all origins working everyday jobs, their headmates working together. People with hearthomes who are older but kept that feeling close to them. Furry lifestylers living their best lives and connecting with others like them. Those who are alterhuman in a vague and undefined way, living on as the rest of us do.

Older alterhumans of all kinds exist everywhere. They might be working at your school, or at the local cafe down the road, or in the library. They might attend game nights or social groups. You could walk past them on the street, or they could live 3 houses down. We're out there, and our alterhumanity doesn't have to go away just because we grew.

i love you older alterhumans i love you therians in college i love you nonhumans in careers i love every single speciesqueer or otherwise nonhuman individual who breaks the stereotype of our identities being just a phase

[grimwalker-grimoire]

ALSO HOW IS UR BLOGS SO WELL ORGANISED LMFAO ✨😭🙏🏻, OURS ARE A MESS EJSJEBE/SILLY GEN

Personally we need everything to be as organised as possible or we go a little bit feral. Even though the tags and the search doesn't always work, the system for tagging + the sideblogs are part of why we stay on Tumblr. I mean, our computer files are so organised there's subfolders upon subfolders within subfolders that probably would make it hard to navigate for anyone else, but hey, we know exactly where everything is.

[interstellarsystem]

Has this been done yet? Probably.

Tried to use language that's inclusive of alterhumans who are still human.

[spro-o]

i noticed that in your art you referred to gowther as auncle and that had me kicking my feet so may you please spare your nnt gender/sexuality headcanons and fave ships? hope your exams have gone/are going well and that you have a great weekend :D

*laughs evilly* yes,,,, my time to shine,,, >:3

thank you very much for the ask!! indeed i would love to share my queer hcs and favourite ships for the gang!!

hcs (heads up, some references to horny preferences)

Meliodas:

trans man (he/him) (im not projecting, trust) (lie)

pansexual

he has a very high libido/pervy tendencies, yes, but also an equally strong potential for romantic love - i do think of him as quite the possessive/protective type on a very deep emotional level, he just covers it up by acting like a perv all the time (something something traumatised and doesnt want others to see him caring for people since he fears they will take them away from him)

top-leaning switch and much freakier than his appearances may lead some to believe

Diane:

cis woman (she/her)

bisexual

has definitely kissed elizabeth multiple times on their "girl's nights/sleepovers"

the type to blush and fawn over every woman in existence,,,, and her husband too ig

pegs king on the regular

Ban:

masc-alligned genderqueer (he/they) (not projecting again) (another lie)

bisexual

finds men and women attractive at about an even ratio

he picks his clothing to be so slutty for a reason (queer signalling + hes a sucker for that kind of attention, though he might act like he doesnt care) (he cares most when said attention comes from meliodas, which is affirmed every time mel takes the chance to feel him up)

bottom-leaning switch and the most masochistic masochist you ever will meet

King:

cis man (he/him)

bisexual (god damn all these bitches bi ‼️‼️)

i think we all know how king discovered his like of men (,,, cough,, helbram,,)

yeah helbram definitely pull a couple of those 'leaning in for a kiss/doing some other gay shit' stunts as a joke and was like haha got you and king was just sat there, bright red, blood streaming down his nose

denied these stunts had any effect on him whatsoever

gets pegged by diane on the regular

Gowther:

non-binary (they/them) (intersex??? i mean, theyre a doll, probably got interchangeable parts lmao)

demisexual and demiromantic gay/queer

they dont really have a specific label to describe what genders theyre attracted to, its just sorta 'anything goes if we vibe', and its gay either way, so they keep it broad

as mentioned, theyre referred to by gender-neutral titles, but dont mind the occasional "miss ma'am" for comedic effect

tends to prefer bottoming, but not exclusively

Merlin:

nb trans woman (she/they)

aro-spec lesbian

shes never had much luck or want for romantic relationships but has definitely had her fair share of thotin around with women

very skilled at rizzing up said women, but its really a 50/50 whether shes doing so to get someone laid or to acquire her next social-experiment subject (whom she will also probably dick down later, who knows)

Escanor:

cis man,,,, he/him

straight,,

sorry yall, gotta have the token straight ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

tho i do hc as being aware of the fact that merlin wont return his feelings, but having accepted that, so all the poetry he writes for her is more of a sign of appreciation of her as a friend, and not as an attempt to hit on her

Bonus!!

Elizabeth:

cis woman (she/her)

pansexual

the type to have gotten so so many crushes when she was younger,,, finding everyone really attractive and charming, and as a result being the most easily flustered person ever

as each sin rejoined the group, shed have her mandatory moment of "oh god,,,, its another very very hot/attractive person"

switch, but very gentle and caring no matter the position

Elaine:

demigirl (she/they)

sapphic

very easily flustered (extremely weak for elizabeth)

pillow princessing all over the place

Zeldris:

non-binary (he/they/xe)

bisexual, with a preference for women

tends to be pretty resistant to flirtatious remarks and whatnot, but is the absolute weakest when its from gelda (professional simp /pos)

,,,, also a massive bottom, but i digest

Gelda:

trans woman (she/her, also doesnt mind they/them)

demiromantic bisexual

knows exactly the effect she has on zeldris, but loves pretending she has no idea

shell say "oh, sorry just need to grad a book from the shelf behind you" and then get her boobs as close to zel's face as possible without making skin contact, and stay there until xe's gone bright red

hung

ships:

Melban - obviously, this one goes kinda goes without saying for me. i absolutely love the dynamic between these two, and their shared history as well. they are both very much sick in the head and have so many issues they each struggle with, but at the same time they cant take anything seriously. there are countless interactions between them which are just so so homoerotic, if not just really sweet. these two quite literally will go to hell and back for the other without a second thought, and i adore that (say its bros bein dude all you want, you cant convince me they didnt fuck in purgatory and on many other occasions)

Elilaine - theyre like melban but less punchy, more of the "normal about expressing love for the other". i know there arent many deep interactions between Elizabeth and Elaine, but i just, once again, think that they have a really adorable dynamic and would just make for the most lovely couple (with equally deceivingly harmless looks, but very much the potential to whoop ass if need be)

Geldris - these two, despite canonically being just a straight couple, are one of the most queer duos in the damn series,,, they just are, man, idk. big fan of them both being very gothic and stuff, and obviously im a sucker for how much zeldris buckles at the knees for anything gelda does,,, love them

Hendreyfus - old,,, old man yaoi my beloved (i just think theyre really adorable and are like and old married couple - very cutes!!) (also yeah old men)

i also do love the rarepair (? polycule) of all time, that being melban x elilaine,,, we should have seen more interactions between mel and elaine, and between ellie and ban!! they definitely got up to all sorts of stuff, i just know it

anyways!! thank you very much for the ask!! thankfully i only have one more exam left on monday and then im free from those :,) i hope you have a lovely day!! :D

[interstellarsystem]

Sometimes using an approximation of something to get you closer to feeling more animal is better than having nothing. And sometimes, finding comfort in a tame version of your true, wild self, is more fitting due to the circimstances you find yourself in within this life, timeline or body.

Dear wild canine alterhumans, you’re allowed to use and enjoy domesticated canine esc gear. Collars and chew toys and dog beds. You’re still wild.

[abadbutsadcollective]

Questioning: Future Life? Kintype? Hearttype? Or Something Else?

Ok, weird new experience for me time. Hoping to get some feedback but also get my experience out there. No one in my system has ever felt this before, so I'm doing what we always do and writing about it. Gonna put this under a cut because it's long, but feel free as ever to read and give input.

Point is: do you ever feel like a character would have you as their kintype?

This character, Hawks from MHA for your information, is very very similar to me. Bird guy with red feathers, his backstory if you twist it lines up eerily well with Hunters (from The Owl House, the guy I'm a fictive of), his general outlook in a lot of ways matches up with me. But I'm not him.

Honestly it's like looking into a funhouse mirror. The reflection is similar to you, but definitely to the left, and if you saw that thing walking down the street you wouldn't call it you. Just something that looks like you. Something that was you, but got changed somehow, even if it still holds the pieces of what you were.

This would be all fine and good, no problems--he's just not something I identify as even though he's similar, right? Simple, problem solved! But the actual problem is... I feel closely intertwined with him to the point where I feel like he should have a me kintype. Instead of a sense of "I have experience of being this man and see myself as him", I feel like he would have experience being me, and that if anything he'd literally have me as a kintype.

Obviously this guy is a fictional character and can't have kintypes unless the source creators wrote it in there. So this isn't even about the source material itself, this is... A distinct feeling. Different to "haha he's like me, he'd probably have me as a kintype" too--it's deeper. It's not a joke or a fandom thing.

I've seen people talk about future lives around--rarely, but I've seen it. Never in-depth aside from "a life you believe you'll have in the future", so we never really learned about what it's like to have an identity that stems from that. I feel like maybe this could be related? It seems to fit the feelings well enough, I'm just not sure how that would work in a logical way. Not that it needs to be flawless in its logic--but I do prefer to have a satisfying explanation for things that concern me.

Hell, is it a parallel life maybe? We've seen more on those. It'd be confusing if Hawks-me in whatever other timeline had a me kintype and I didn't have him as one--though I guess it could work regardless? Maybe? Haven't got anything else pointing toward that explanation yet though--once again it's something I'm not entirely familiar with.

Could it be a hearttype? Never heard them described in this way, though. We've seen "this is like family to me"--not what I experience. I don't know him. We've seen "I should be this"--also not true. I should be me because that's who I am right now, I don't think I "should have" been Hawks. It just doesn't seem to fit, though in a pinch I guess I could describe it as one for a quick explanation?

In the end I could always go with vaguetype and call it a day. But I still don't think that's direct enough of a term--it's not vague, it's a distinct feeling that doesn't have a name. It's unclear on what this is, sure, but only because it doesn't have a name or explanation.

Not that I really need to put a name to it, but this isn't something we've heard of before. I'd like answers, or at least to put this out and maybe have some form of solidarity with someone over it--whether that be now, or a year or two in the future when someone else finds this and goes "wow, just like me!".

I'll keep thinking on it, I just needed to get this all down somewhere.

[ask-an-alterhuman]

I recently figured out that I was otherhearted, does that still make me part of the therian or alterhuman community if I'm not a therian?

Hey!

As a refresher, therian means to identify as a nonhuman animal. Such as being able to say "I am a cat", and feeling as if in some aspect, you are literally a cat--even if not wholly.

Otherhearted means to identify with something. Such as saying "I feel as if cats are my family", or "I should have been a cat but I'm not", along with other things that don't mean you're literally a cat.

Alterhuman, on the other hand, can mean a lot of things. It is a big umbrella term that just means you don't fall within the societal definition of "normal humanity", which can absolutely include otherhearteds, as well as therians and many, many other things. Alterhumans can be completely human, they can be nonhuman, both at once, or even aspecies too.

You'd be included under the alterhuman umbrella and a welcome part of the community, but you wouldn't be a therian. That being said, otherhearted experiences can still be very adjacent to therian experiences and a lot of the time you won't be actively removed from therian communities if you're "only" otherhearted. You can still talk to therians and share similar experiences, and you're still absolutely welcome in the alterhuman community as a whole.

A lot of the time, otherhearted tags are crossposted into by therian blogs, which does make it pretty confusing when they're talking about therian/otherkin experiences in a tag meant for a different identity. It can be difficult, but if you're looking for more 'hearted blogs to follow, @otherhearted-culture-is is one we can personally vouch for, and they might have tips for finding community if you need them!

Merlin (Xe/He/They)