#murkey

[murkimera]

Choco [pr]

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[catfishofoldin99colours]

*looks at martyn on tumblr*

*remembers that thing about creators and fans being much too close together now and not having a healthy divide between fandom and franchise*

*sighs*

[eggwhiteswithspinach]

murky waters

[hollowed-theory-hall]

Do you think the colour of a polyjuice potion says anything about a person?? I just remembered that Harry's turned a bright gold and wondered if it meant anything

Yes, I think the color does say something about a person (and also the taste). We know different people cause the potion to turn different color and taste:

“Ooh, you look much tastier than Crabbe and Goyle, Harry,” said Hermione, before catching sight of Ron’s raised eyebrows, blushing slightly, and saying, “Oh, you now what I mean—Goyle’s potion looked like bogies.”

(DH, Ch4)

So, let's look at all the Polyjuice potions we see.

Harry Potter:

Harry dropped the hair into the mudlike liquid. The moment it made contact with its surface, the potion began to froth and smoke, then, all at once, it turned a clear, bright gold. [...] Ron, Hermione, Fred, George, Fleur, and Mundungus drank. All of them gasped and grimaced as the potion hit their throats.

(DH, Ch4)

Bellatrix Lestrange:

“She tasted disgusting, worse than Gurdyroots! Okay, Ron, come here so I can do you . . . .”

(DH, Ch26)

Mafalda Hopkirk:

Hermione drank the Polyjuice Potion, which was now a pleasant heliotrope color [purple]

(DH, Ch12)

Millicent Bulstrode's Cat:

The potion hissed loudly like a boiling kettle and frothed madly. A second later, it had turned a sick sort of yellow

(CoS, Ch12)

Vincent Crabbe:

Crabbe’s a dark, murky brown.

(CoS, Ch12)

Gregory Goyle:

Goyle’s turned the khaki color of a booger

[...]

Pinching his nose, Harry drank the potion down in two large gulps. It tasted like overcooked cabbage

(CoS, Ch12)

And Ron actually calls the Polyjuice someone's "essence":

“Urgh — essence of Millicent Bulstrode,” said Ron, eyeing it with loathing. “Bet it tastes disgusting.”

(CoS, Ch12)

And I think he isn't far off.

I think Polyjuice does reveal the "essence" of a person in a way.

Hair and nail clippings have been used in irl alchemy (there are theories that the "hair" is a code name to refer to other minerals and it's sometimes unclear, but sometimes it definitely refers to hair. Really depends on the book) for centuries. Now, hairrepresents a residue of the body. When taken from a living person (like with polyjuice) the hair would represent the person, who they are.

Albertus Magnus (13th-century alchemist) wrote that more gold can be found in the hair taken from a human's head. Now, the gold he wrote about isn't actually gold, but gold in alchemy refers to purity. Basically, human head hair is good for extracting the pure essence of a person. Like Aristotle, he calls hair mostly a mix of Earth and Water — the elements of the physical plane, the body. But head hair, specifically, due to it's closeness to the brain is more than just the physical aspect. It's mostly the physical aspects, but it includes elements of the spirit of the person.

So, head hair is the best way alchemically to get the purest essence of someone's appearance (body and a bit of spirit).

So what do we learn about characters from their polyjuice?

Well, bitter people, taste bitter. Crabbe, Goyle, Millicent, and Bellatrix all tasted terrible according to the Golden Trio. They tasted terrible because they were terrible people.

What I want to note a bit here, is that Harry's didn't taste great either. Better than Crabbe, Goyle, or Bellatrix, but the Order is still described as gasping and grimacing at the taste. My guess, due to the language used, is that the taste of Harry's polyjuice wasn't exactly bad, per se, but was kinda strong and unexpected. What the taste was, we unfortunately don't know, nor could I find the color of the potion for Bellatrix (my guess would be an almost black dark green that's a bit translucent like you added a bit of coloring to water). But, let's look at the colors we do have.

Crabbe - Murkey Brown. Goyle - khaki color (both shades of brown), Millicent's cat - sickly yellow, Mafalda - a pleasant deep purple, and Harry is gold, but I'll keep him for last.

Brown (both Crabbe and Goyle) is reliable, simple, stable, and consistent. But it's also boring, dull, timid, and predictable. Since both are described as ugly browns, the intention is to evoke the negative symbolism of brown.

Yellow can be optimistic, intelligent, and warm, but it can also be cowardly and deceptive. Millicent's cat's yellow is specifically described as a sickly yellow — so, to me, it suggests her cat's unpleasant. But it's also not a potion meant to be used with animal hair, so who knows.

A purple like Mafalda's is interesting. It's described as a nice color, the positive symbolism of purple includes: wisdom, compassion, and royalty. But purple can also symbolize: oversensitivity, immaturity, or hypervigilance. I think, what it says about Mafalda is that she is a pleasant and compassionate person who is just invested in a shitty institution (the ministry). From the color of her potion, it seems she isn't a bad person. Additionally, heliotropes represent the sun, fire, and abundance — positive things.

Now, Harry's potion tuning gold is one of these really interesting things. You see, in Alchemy gold is everything that is pure and good and perfect. Gold is the purest form all materials want to achieve. The Philosopher's Stone, the symbol of immortality and perfection (it's the perfect material), can turn anything into gold. The Elixer of Life produced from the stone, in theory, would be in gold in color. Gold is the color of immortality and purity and perfection. It's the sun and fire and life and abundance and good fortune. Gold is the cure-all and be-all. Alchemists considered it indestructible, pure, and perfect:

But the alchemists were most deeply impressed by its apparent indestructibility: it does not tarnish in air or water, is not appreciably volatilized or oxidized in melting, and is not attacked by any chemical reagent then available. It was therefore regarded as the 'perfect' metal.

(Prof. Dorthy Wyckoff note in her translation of The Book of Minerals by Albertus Magnus)

This honestly really strengthens my theory that Harry was always the Master of Death. If the color that represents Harry's essence (his body and spirit, aka life) is gold — the color of immortality, perfection, and purity — it means he already is in his perfected form. He already is the philosopher Stone AKA Master of Death.

See, in alchemy, in the process of making the Philosopher's Stone, the alchemist is also working on themselves. The work is both on the minerals and on the alchemist. The alchemist would become their perfect, purest self while doing the "Great Work" and would only be able to create the Philosopher's Stone when they themselves, are also their purest ("golden") selves.

What I'm saying is that Harry, by his essence being bright gold, is implied to already be there at the perfection point. He is already at the point where he could make the Philosopher's Stone. So, him being the MoD and already sorta immortal, just really fits that.

Even in the world of HP the color "gold" is associated with immortality. The fire from Harry and Voldemort's wands is gold because of the Phoenix Feather core. Phoenix's in HP are associated with gold, which also connects gold to immortality. Again, this all hints at Harry being the MoD all along.

[ariaste]

*sidles up to* hello! I need you to know the absolute death grip Running Close To The Wind has on my psyche. I have listened to it at least 9 times and read it at least twice. As a disable polyamorous kinky queer with 1 nb partner and one golden retriever boyfriend I have never felt more more lovingly courted by the narrative.

I thought it had been long enough for me to be normal about my emotions but it has not!!!! Instead please have this list of things i admire.

Every Single Character clearly has a rich internal life and develops and changes!!! I can't think of a single character that speaks in more than one scene that doesn't develop. Even Lt Viyan goes from cheerfully neutral to "stressed about the cake festival"

This goes double for how much of Tev's we can see even without the Captain's Log!!!! Tev has SO MANY FEELINGS.

I love the implication that the thing that finally broke their relationship the last time is that Avra sung a song in public that talked about Tev's body, and he never cottons on to the problem! Tev's body and Tev's gender are so thoroughly uncoupled to him that it never even crosses his mind it could be a problem, but it destroys Tev's trust. You would not believe the amount of time I have spent chewing over that one.

And all of that is before the story!!!!! There is never a moment of "Tev and Avra had been fucking off and on for 13 years, since Avra first came to the island of Lost Souls for work etc etc etc" but there is so much backstory that rewards you for paying attention, plus the tension of not knowing things at first.... beautiful

Julian is one of the things I have not processed sufficiently yet. I love him and his dom voice and how his emotional Journey starts off much more oblique to the reader because Avra doesn't know him as well and then the bar scene and and and. Aaaaaah. Special mention also to the lake scene

They're all adults with careers!!!! Not just adults, but adults of diverse ages and life experiences. Except Ellat, who is baby.

Pirate Society really does feel like a it's own distinct cultural group while also maintaining the sense that all of the Pirates came from somewhere with their own traditions, names, and values. You're so good at diversity that doesn't feel like just checking boxes and also doesn't fall into stereotypes.

You have made your own posts about disability in this book and I have been at this for an hour so I will leave it at: yes, thank you

The possibility that the goddess of luck is directly interfering with Avra (possibly deliberately trying to expose the secret) not just making him lucky, for example Avra's overwhelming need to go for a walk when they get to the hotel. I like that this is ambiguous mainly bc Avra just refuses to engage in that conversation

Avra is very smart actually!!!!! He talks about keeping his head empty but he is clever, insightful, educated, and curious about the world

Tev and Avra's murkey understanding of BDSM and aftercare - they have been doing both! But they are not good at it and Avra clearly has no idea what Julian's dom voice is doing to him. Tev knows enough about aftercare to cuddle Avra through the worst of it but also is Anti Touching. Cat's line, "and every so often having the honor of being entrusted quite profoundly with caring for you for an hour or two," implies a lot of trust and some hardcore emotional fallout!

I am going to send on this now before I lose my nerve about being perceived but thank you for writing My Favorite Book

[Second message postscript] Also I forgot to mention the absolute scathing critism of captialism, imperialism, and institutional power. Those things are. Also. Important to me.

I am truly and genuinely honored by these messages. Thank you for the absolute cornucopia of lovely compliments, thank you for taking so much time to write them out, and particularly thank you for all of your excellent insights! And listening to it NINE TIMES and reading it at least twice!! that is so many!!!! It only came out eight months ago! Wow, that is incredibly flattering. <3

I will respond to a couple of your points with the number of your comment: 1 & 2. Yes, Tev has SO MANY FEELINGS, thank you for noticing! I think it is easy to overlook how many feelings Tev has because most of them are expressed as Angry, but that doesn't mean they are Angry. Tev just copes with every emotion by also being mad at whatever caused it.

3. Y'know, I was about to say "To me it was more about Tev feeling shame and humiliation because Avra had exposed part of their sex life and one of Tev's kinks (their collection of spooky dildos)" but then I thought about it for two seconds and! No yeah, you're kind of right actually! Because that IS related to Tev's contentious relationship to their body, isn't it. And so is the Tev Doesn't Like Being Touched thing as you mentioned later -- it is all bound up in the trauma and psychic damage they took from growing up in Tash. Avra's song in particular I think just hit one of those triggers that is both personal/individual and cultural, and... as stated before, Tev copes with every emotion by also being mad, and those were some very, very big emotions they had. But yes, all that was going through Avra's mind was "Breaking News: Captain Teveri az-Haffar is so fucking hot, you guys, let me tell you ALL ABOUT IT" -- because to him, that's a praise song, that's the sort of thing people say about Xing Fe Hua (that he was an incredible pirate and "he kissed me full on the mouth") so why would it not be fine to also say it about Tev? He was using very Scuttle Cove culture-logic, and in THAT contexts, he was right, it does increase Tev's word-fame. But he also stepped on a major landmine in the Tash culture-logic. So... I feel like that illustrates one of the great tragedies of human interaction -- you can set out with the best of intentions and nothing but love in your heart and still manage to hurt someone you care about. That shit keeps me up at night, let me tell you what.

7. Ahhhh THANK YOU! This is something I work very hard at, because I too really dislike the "checking boxes" approach to diverse representation. It never feels sincere, for one thing -- as if the authors care more about diversity (the abstract concept) than they do about people (the living, breathing individuals they're writing about (or the ones who are reading the book)). I think it was particularly easy to do in the case of Pirate Society specifically because I went into it thinking, "Man, every single person on this island has a Story. NOBODY is here by accident except for the people who were born here, but even that is a Story in this context. How many different reasons can I come up with for someone having to throw their life away and move to the Isles of Lost Souls as one of its eponymous lost souls?"

11. Yeah the problem that Tev and Avra run into with their sex life is that they're both profoundly bad at intimacy. All the fraught bits of their relationship stem from that underlying wound they have to work around. Fortunately Julian is very good at intimacy. It is Julian's whole jam.

Anyway THANK YOU AGAIN for the truly lovely message -- the points I didn't respond to were only because I was like "mmm [sage nod] yes that's true" or "ah what a kind comment!" or both. :)

(Side note, but if you would enjoy talking to some other people who also love this book very much, there is an official fandom Discord server here: https://discord.gg/DTyee9HRR9 Come join us!)

[thearcanecat]

Pulp Musicals as dice

Samuel

Rose

Margaret

John

Sia

Kal

Anna

Benjamin

Dakkar

Bonus - Printing press plate

Edit: There’s more now.

[a-dinosaur-a-day]

What's BANDits? I've heard the term before but idk what it is

BANDit stands for "Birds Are Not Dinosaurs" - its. IE, its the term for the group of "scientists" that have continued to insist birds did not evolve from dinosauria despite literally boatloads of evidence to the contrary.

You see, we haven't always known birds are dinosaurs. When we were first thinking about evolution (in the Western World, remember: lots of colonized people had ideas about evolution *and* paleontology that White People essentially wiped out when we colonized them), a lot of people pointed out the similarities between many of the dinosaurs being found and living birds. MANY. It was common knowledge in the 1800s among scientists.

But then along came this guy Dollo. Dollo didn't like the idea birds evolved from dinosaurs. See, he found wishbones in birds. He found wishbones in some of the triassic weirdos of the past, things that dinosaurs would evolve from. But he didn't find wishbones in dinosaurs. And Dollo was convinced that a structure couldn't re-evolve if it had been lost during evolution. So, to him, there was no way birds could be dinosaurs.

There were problems with this:

he didn't know about how traits are gained and lost genetically. In fact, he didn't really know about *genetics*. There are lots of ways to re-gain a trait you lost (if you only lost it by turning off its regulatory genes, or you re-evolve it convergently, that kind of thing).

at the time, we had dinosaur wishbones. we just didn't know thats what they were.

since then, we have found waaaaay more dinosaur wishbones. And also, tons of other evidence. so much evidence. at this point, there is literally nothing else birds could be.

it took time to build up that evidence. For the entire first half of the 1900s, and a good chunk of the second, no one believed birds evolved from dinosaurs.

But then we started to find the evidence.

And we found more.

And more.

And more.

By the 80s, it was becoming pretty clear that birds probably evolved from dinosaurs. At this point, documentaries and fictional material are even referencing it. But, there was still a group of skeptics, the first true BANDits (because at this point it was not the majority opinion). And that's okay - skepticism is important in science.

Its the fact that they KEPT being skeptical even as more and more evidence poured in. By the mid-90s, it was incontrovertible, because we had found fossils of feathered but very clearly nonavian dinosaurs. By the 00s, we were finding them CONSTANTLY.

And yet, the BANDits kept BANDiting.

Most of them have died, because they were old and stubborn. Very few new scientists are BANDits. It's really just

A) in russia, because russia has had a... weird history with paleontology. I don't want to get into it

B) those remaining few old people who refuse to change their minds in light of new evidence (this would be Feduccia)

in the 10s, they were really annoying, because enough of them were still around that people thought they were good scientists (they're not), and so if you said "birds are dinosaurs" at least one person would bring up banditry to prove you wrong, and then you had to go on a whole spiel, and it was exhausting

In the late 10s and now 20s, that's pretty much dead. It's just impossible to argue with anymore. I don't know how Feduccia keeps publishing his crappy books, but I really wish that someone would say "I can't publish this" bc people read them and think they're right.

Like, birds are *such* dinosaurs that we don't even know at what point dinosaurs are firmly birds. It's kind of murkey, because nature doesn't do categories.

So, yeah. That's what a BANDit is. They're almost extinct. May they become as such by the 30s.

[angelicyoongie]

The Obsidian Pearl (teaser)

Preview: Sailing through The Dead Man’s Passage is a death sentence and the whole crew knows it. Your Captain is not left with much of a choice, not when the ship’s stock is as good as gone and you’re still a week away from the nearest port. It doesn’t take long before you realize that starving to death would’ve been a kinder way to go. You can only watch, helpless, as the crew jumps ship one by one, leaving you alone with the demon lurking in the murkey red water. You wish you could have starved to death, warmed by the sun, as the creature beckons you to jump into the icy water – “Come to me, pet” – and you can’t do anything but obey.

Coming soon in June! Set in the same universe as The Crimson Shell.

[tailsbeth-writes]

Happy new year darlings! New year, new style banner. I hope whatever you got up to for new year was fun & your 2025 treats you well. Thanks for the tags @firstprincehornyramblings @thighzp @judasofsuburbia & @littlemisskittentoes!

Here's a snippet from A Siren Song (Accompaniment: Heartstrings) and of course, we get sad and sexy:

‘Hey, look at me. C’mon.’ Henry rolls onto his back, his neck sinking into the pillows. Alex is up on his elbow, holding the side of his head. ‘Can you remember what I said back in December?’ He starts tracing a finger over Henry’s torso. Henry tenses and shakes his head. Alex plants a kiss on his neck and another by his ear. ‘Baby, I will take you…’ He licks a stripe down Henry's neck. Henry focuses on the wetness, the warmth, using it as a floation device, trying to stay afloat. His mind is a muddle of murkey, choppy seas. ‘...any way you are.’

Open tag since I'm late posting today 💛

[toonsurvival]

Last Update of this Fanmade Rockstar Roses AU

[Maybe...it really depends...]

Remember this AU does not Belong to me it Belong too....

@amalsoappickle

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OK I know this AU is supposed to be Dark and serious but...

I have a Funny scenario where Rainmaker one day at Work just minding her own Business doing paperwork or whatever Managers do.

While she's doing that Marble realized that Misty forgot to Grab her Lunch Box today and Decided to Visit her Work Place.

She put on her Disguise 🥸 and get ready to set of with "Gear Riggy" once she finally reaches the Building...

She went to the Front Desk 😳 in a Timid Childlike Voice...

"Excuse Me, I'm Down here."

Cog looks over their Desk

"Well Hello there little Missy, what you need help with?" Why aren't you in School they thought

"My Mom forgot to Grab her Lunch, so I brought it for her."

Tries to put it on Desk but Failed so they walked around their Desk to help her out.

"Do you want me to Deliver it to your Mom? or you want me to Call her on the Speaker?" Why does she look so Similarly to someone I know?

"Call her Please."

"OK what is your Mom's Name? If you don't know I can use your name instead to call her." What is this Nagging Feeling I'm having???

"My Name is Murkey Monsoon and my Mom is Misty Monsoon" she innocently said

The Cog gave Murkey a surprise look on their face "Oh... Wow! OK than kid I'll call 📞 your Mom right know." HOLLY SH×T MISTY HAD A KID?!?!

Turn on Speaker 🔊 in Building "Miss Rainmaker your Kid is here to Drop off your Lunch, please come to the Front Desk." THIS IS GOOD GOSSIP MATERIAL!!! BUT I HAVE SO MANY QUESTIONS???

Rainmaker flying down to the Desk "Hi Sweetie~ 👋 thank you for bringing my Lunch." kneeling down to give hug.

"Hi Mommy!" Jumps to give Hug 🫂 back.

The Cog from the Desk look at them back and forth, holy s*** they look so damn identical!!!

OK maybe a little bit different but still!!!

"Here’s your Lunch Ma'am."

"Thank you." Grabs the Lunch Box from Cog while carrying Murkey and Gear Riggy in her Arm.

"Do you know how to get back home ���� Darling?"

"Don't worry Mommy! I know how to get Home."

Rainmaker Gently put both of them down.

"OK then walk home Safe!"

"We will!"

Murkey & Gear Riggy happily exist the Building

.....

"So... how old is she?" The Cog looked at her Curiously

"She's 6 Year Old" Rainmaker said

.....

"OK then... I have one more Question to ask?"

"What is it?"

"WHEN AND HOW DID YOU BECAME A MOTHER???"

Rainmaker look at them in a very disappointed look but not really surprised.

"I've always have been a Mother in the Very beginning, why do you think 🤔 I worked so hard to reach the Manager position 😅 like I gotta feed my Kid somehow."

The Cog from the Desk looked at Rainmaker in Shock 😲 and have no Idea 💡what to do with this information.

Holly Sh×t! Holly Sh×t!! Holly Sh×t!!!

WTF!!!

While they we're screaming in their head Rainmaker flew away back to their Office.

Here's a Closer Look of Murkey Monsoon and Gear Riggy 😀

Random Information

• Murkey is Home Schooled.

(Fake Info to tell Cogs)

• Murkey accidentally Burnt Riggy's Right Eyelashes while cooking with her Mom.

(Fake Info)

• Murkey is natural Timid around Cogs but is Terrified of Cogs who got a very Scary Upgrade (Since they do not look Kid Friendly at all.)

• Rainmaker and Murkey made sure to make a lot of Family pictures just in case Misty needs to act like a very Proud Mother.

• Gear Riggy is not allowed to Breath out fire 🔥 because it's too Recognizable, but they are allowed to Bite though.

• Murkey makes Consumable Art 🎨 of Rainmaker's Lunch/Dinniner and sometimes it will have little cute Messages on it like.

"Love U Mom"

"Have a Great Day~"

"Remember to take a Break"

"Keep up the Good Work"

"Have a Lovely Day Mom!"

Etc

(Cogs will either get Jelly of Rainmaker's Cute Lunch Box/Bento Box that Murkey made or Curious what it looks like.)

[williamstrother]

Sabine is not Luke

It's quite frustrating how some people tend to think Ezra and Sabine hooking up is "incest", when they are not even related, so it's not. Hmm. I'm kinda confused, why some people tend to treat it that way. I've not nothing against Sabine being a Jedi, but the way Dave Filoni is portaying her relationship with Ezra dosen't make sense. He flirted with her in Rebels, yet she turned him off. Ironically in seasons 3 and 4, they got more interactions. It was never an idea we pushed on Dave, but judging from the epilogue and Ahsoka, Sabine did display some mannerisms that resembled romantic intent. In the OG trilogy, Luke didn't have that strong of an attachment to Leia. only had curosity of the events that surroned her involvment. He also didn't make an issue over her falling for Han, instead assuming the role of the casual obbeserver of an obvious relationship between the two and not wanting to get in the middle of it. Also the idea of Leia being his sister was a twist, which became the core of their dynmanic. Ezra and Sabine could never replicate that (due to having no blood relation), instead replicated Kanan and Hera. It's kinda impossible, actaully. If the idea of those being a platonic pair was something Dave wanted, he could've given each of them different love interests, selling the idea, but never did, hence why many fans shipped them. Ironiclly despite Ahsoka seemingly trying to bury the ship sorta backfired with Sabine displaying traits remsebling romantic intent. Even the reunion also seemed to echo a romantic scene. Despite Ezra's strange line of Sabine being like a "sister" (while scratching his head a bit), he still flirted with her and the two even acted very nervously with each other, leading some fans to questio if it was true he saw her that way (with his previous attempts to woo her also furthering that same question). Also Luke and Ezra are very similar, yet completeyl different characters, so trying to replicate a previous dynmanic wouldn't feel very unique. Thankfully, Sabine is not related to him, so the two hooking up would not be too much taboo, despite what a lot fans are saying. It's not as odd as they think. Still Dave's take on this is pretty questionable and conisdering all the parallels between Ezra/Sabine and Kanan/Hera, it only confuses the future of their realtionship going forward or what the point of it is. The future is pretty murkey about this.

[uttotheegg]

i am the flowers that grow on the side of the road

so pretty and white just over the fence

i am the banjo in your songs

Im black shirts and corduroy pants

i am the concept of outside versus inside

Sundappled grass the color of calico fur

An old derelict barn, sheet metal rusting in the gentle breeze

the murkey green and brown waters of a pond full of turtles frogs

snakes and fish

Murky fog and gentle rain on leaves

too tall grass and long abandoned tree branches

toppled in high wind and chilly ice

now warmed by the sun through the trees

[mrnargle]

going to swampsgiving and eating marshed potatos and murkey and pumpkin slime and cranberries. from the cranberry bog

[the-good-neighbors]

Pulled some artist's proofs from my latest print yesterday

It's not my favorite piece, but i still think it's cool

Prompt was pandoras box (and murkey), and I decided to go with Masque of the Red Death, bc idk brain really likes poe

I plan to do more with Masque tho, maybe a digital print ?

(The image is a lil blurry too. I apologize for that)

[bluebird-poetry96]

Partial Hospitalization Program

What is this feeling inside me?

Like I'm moving through murkey thick water, with an unending amount of mud at the bottom - I'm heavy, feet are sucked in - redging them up takes all of my strength. The strength of my soul; the strength of my body. Running on spite, I put one foot in front of the other. It takes everything in me to move forward.

-Raven Blue Bell

[a-dinosaur-a-day]

This is gonna sound probably stupid but how are bats mammals. That and, what would be their closest ancestor?

bats are mammals because they are descended from the most recent common ancestor of the platypus and the mouse.

or, if you want to go old school, they're mammals because they have mammary glands.

the evolutionary history of bats is a huge effing mess and murkey af. I'll leave that to @synapsid-taxonomy