#well noting species variation as well

[biologicalfandomhippo]

I'm very tired and kind of sore but unfortunately I must science!

[iguanodont]

The Monoculi (informally dubbed ‘peebs’) are not exactly a new species from me, but they’ve gone through a pretty drastic redesign since I last posted anything about them. These are a spacefaring species from the same universe as birgworld! Details under the cut.

The Monoculi are so-called for the large compound eye that comprises the “head”. The densely packed ommatidia allow for crisp image resolution, and a variation in the depth of the lenses give the eye a range of acuity from only a few feet along the lower half to hundreds of meters along the top. Monoculi are nocturnal creatures which evolved to navigate complex cave systems by day and tangled branches by night; they have good depth perception and low-light vision but are nearly blind in regular daylight, and cannot perceive color.

The Mono homeworld is peculiar for the presence of a ring, the remnants of two moons which collided early in the planet’s history and bombarded the surface with chunks of space rock long after the planet’s crust had cooled. The result is an unusual abundance of heavy metals in the environment. Iridium, a prohibitively rare mineral on earth, comprises orange-yellow compound which carries oxygen through a Monoculus’s veins. The ring itself also has drastic effects on seasonal surface temperatures, though as on birgworld, life there has adapted accordingly.

Monoculi molt to grow like earth arthropods, but they only do so one segment at a time. A newborn larvae, one of 2 - 5 siblings, will remain soft and aquatic for about 8 months, until it loses its gills and hardens for the first time. They do not begin growing the first proper body segment until the thorax is as large as an adult’s. Molting and mating are both intimately tied to mineral pools found deep in their ancestral cave system. Without them, a molt will invariably fail and lead to severe health complications. Monoculi are hermaphrodites, and mate by pressing the gonopores (small openings under the first pair of arms) against the soft carapace of a first - third instar body segment, fresh after molting. The spawn will bore directly into the segment and trigger its transformation into a reproductive segment, which falls off after young are produced.

These sophonts are relatively large and long lived, with 200+ year old individuals sporting nearly 20 body segments not unheard of. They are also well into their space age, with a once-thriving space tourism industry buckled by a massive recession in recent decades. Rumour has it that several of the abandoned exoplanetary retreats still harbor stranded staff… but the company that built them dissolved and nobody has scraped up to funds for a rescue mission. They avoid contact with other sophonts, with the exception of the swimslugs, with whom they maintain a friendly cultural and technological exchange.

————

Btw, I do still post almost weekly sketches and worldbuilding notes on my patreon

[planariaareneat]

Dogs are Weird

It’s safe to say humans will likely be a ubiquity through the galactic community, for the most part. Many of us have a tendency to go beyond, to see new things and forge frontiers. Undoubtedly it must be true of many other species, especially those that make it to space all by themselves, but it’d be wrong to discount it simply because we’d be one of many.

Of course, on the odd ship that permits sufficiently domesticated and socialized fauna (‘pets’, if one wants to be informal) alongside sophonts, we’d be accompanied by a wide variety of fellow mammals. Small, fluffy creatures that yip; elongated and sinuous animals, borne on stout legs and bearing long snouts; friendly yellow beasts with lips pulled into a smile and fur like a shag carpet; maybe even muscular guardians, originally bred to fight or to protect - though hopefully more well-tempered by now. Maybe even variations of them we can’t yet envision will accompany us by the time we can bring them to the stars. 

Aliens might be deeply confused when they ask about what any one of these are, just to get the same answer: a dog. 

Domestication and selective breeding won’t be unfamiliar to most aliens. Even being in the company of (ancestrally) efficient social predators that can enmesh well into the hierarchy is likely not to be as odd as one might think. But even among our own throng of domestic mammals, canines outshine them all in one way: variation. 

Only 7 sets of genes (containing ~25 genes total) control the size of dogs, and just a couple need to be mutated to drastically change dog size. The difference between a chihuahua and a mastiff lies on these genes. Compare this to cats, who tend not to have much size variation in spite of a history of focused selective breeding spanning around the same amount of time as dogs. It’s argued - and not questioned - that dogs may have the most phenotypical variation of any land mammal, extant or extinct, within a single species. 

It’s entirely possible that many aliens may never have domesticated a species with such a simple control for massive changes. They’ll see us come to the stars with an endless menagerie of creatures under a single name.

On one last note…we often sing our praises of our capacity to pack-bond with just about anything; but dogs also chose to pack-bond with us those 30,000 years ago, and they chose to do it again and again and again…

Just as we pack-bond with our new allies among the stars, dogs will likely trot and frolic with all manner of aliens as well. They’ll tussle and fight over toys just as excitedly with insectoid hounds and scale-clad schnauzers as they do already with us and each other, while we sit on the side with our extraterrestrial friends and watch them, just as we always have.

[t-tomuras]

✺ ─── • 𝐆𝐨𝐝𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐃𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐬

Pairing: Kitsune!Katsuki Bakugou x F!Neko!reader

Wordcount: 3.2k

Warnings: Kinda lore heavy, katsuki and reader are animal spirits with ears + tails, clawing, pinning, taunting, blood, biting, creampie.

Notes: Silly little rewrite I did since I've made some headway with my companion piece featuring Tomura. Fun little AU I share with @katsukikitten inspired by @m-ete0ra's amazing Kitsune Katsuki art!

You’d seen the fires before, nothing created by man ever licked into the night sky quite as high or burned as hot even from miles away. You could be on the other side of the mountain, far from the flames and still know its source by smell alone; you knew well what now scorched your lands was foxfire.

Able to do nothing but lounge in the perch of your tree as you watch the choking smoke plume and singeing cinders blot out your view of the full moon and glittering stars as if whatever vendetta the wrathful fox spirit currently held that resulted in the havoc he wrought took precedence. It makes you snarl, deadly elongated canines glinting in the lowlight as mighty trees that stood the test of time now cracks, splinters and tips from both the blaze and the spirit destructively flitting about the forest floor below.

Watching with a look of utter disdain over all the desolation the spirit, what the humans foolishly revered as gods, caused. Yet still the Mountain God himself favored them over your kind simply because the Nekomata refused to appease the humans that encroached on their lands like the kitsunes did. Using mortals as what they truly were and should’ve always remained: prey. 

Tails of pristine fur compared to the neko’s thinner variation, sharing the same feline gaze but somehow only Kitsunes were favorable while the yokai’s were deemed ominous and menacing. The fox spirits, favored only for the beguiling sense of wonder they evoked in the simple minded creatures, rescued the wretched species from a lower station on the food chain. Tales soon spun that painted them as saviors and holier beings and their praises sung while the nekomata’s reputation devolved into scary stories used to instill obedience in naughty children; your kind driven into the shadows and yet still you thrived. 

You, alongside a democratically elected King of the Yokai’s as well as a few other formidable Nekomata, held the power to disrupt the unbalanced ‘natural order’. The king and yourself personally harbor the capability of resurrection, the ability to restore a life as easily as you could take it if you saw it fit. 

And yet, still the world in which you inhabit find a way to demonize you, neither the insolent humans nor the Mountain God were ever satisfied with the feats in which your kind can accomplish. Proclaiming the act part of the dark arts and condemning the practice, only worsening the view and casting longer shadows for your people to stand in. 

Would it be so unspeakable if the Kitsune’s found themselves capable of that gift? Would it still be labeled necromancy unjustly and criminalized? You’re certain the answer would be yet another favorable outcome for your sister race.

Insufferable, infuriating. 

Your fury only grows as you continue to watch the destructive rampage, knowing well that there could be only one culprit with the strength to cause calamity of this magnitude so suddenly; understanding easily that only a ninetails could accomplish such a feat and only one hails from this region, Katsuki Bakugou. If you listen closely enough, you’re almost positive you could hear his maniacal laughter and guttural growls echoing through the night as he finds joy in his tirade that bleeds from his territory into yours. Keen eyes watching from your perch until the flames finally breach the imaginary line that separated his kind’s turf from your own before you pounce. 

Descending from the highest treetop with precision from branch to branch, sleek tail curling and tilting to aid in your venture. It’s easy to find him, even without the heady scent of burning caramel he always exuded, with a path of destruction that leads you right to Katsuki. 

He’s chasing some other poor yokai labeled as evil in nature and an enemy to humanity, a defenseless tengu, fortunately for Katsuki. You already weren’t feeling particularly hospitable with his invasion on your lands but your mood would’ve only stoked into a murderous rage instead of the current ruminating resentment if it were one of your own people. 

You land gracefully atop a sturdy branch as you stop just short of four hundred yards of Katsuki, finding a decent vantage point on a branch in a tree safe from his spreading fire to leisurely observe his actions with increasing contempt from the high ground. It’s funny, would the weak little humans still find spirits like Katsuki so ethereal if they saw the ferocity in which he pursued his prey and towered over the lifeless body before he let it be consumed by his foxfire, reducing it to ash as if to remove the possibility of evidence? 

“You must be bored,” you finally call in a mocking tone, bleeding into playful as you watch Katsuki glance around for the source, “all of this carnage for a lowly tengu? Or are ninetails actually just weak?” Your voice echoes around the open clearing, joining the cacophony of carnage as it dances around for the added effect of coming from all directions. Cat smiling spreading on plush lips before you laugh at the slight bristle to the fur of his tails and the way he hunches into an offensive position despite not knowing your location. 

Yet. 

Katsuki’s ears flick wildly but his back remains to you, cautious not to give away that he’s trying to pinpoint your location but you’re smart. You know better than to taunt your targets from a stationary point when you intended to attack. 

Smile on your lips tugging further into a full cheshire grin to twist pretty features as you gracefully circled Katsuki from the high ground. Quietly darting from branch to branch in the surrounding trees, burning or otherwise.  

“Found it along my way,” haughtiness bleeding into the rumbling grown of his voice as his spine straightens in feigned nonchalance, “recognized its nasty scent as the one that stole from my kin.” 

Dazzling bromine attempts to track your practiced erratic movements, watching for any leaf that flutters hastily to the ground and listening for the slightest groan of tree bark that’s even moderately a pitch different to the others that burn under his fire.

“But you smell like something else I’ve been lookin for.” 

Katsuki crouches low on his haunches, shoulders creeping high as his tails of a beautiful gradient of off white and toasted gold fur swirl and sway like the flames that rage in the underbrush around you. The hair on your nape stands on end as bromine hues begin to glow brighter and you recognize the beginnings of a casting, your own feline-like pupils constricting with intent and from the dazzling blaze before you finally pounce. Sharp claws gouging flesh from his sculpted back first, finding purchase in his shoulder blades as you toppled Katsuki to the ground from the force. Your teeth sink deep into the toned flesh of his trapezium muscle next, bidding deep mauve to weep from the wound and down your chin as you bite harder, guttural growl rumbling in Katsuki’s chest. 

“Funny,” your taunt slightly muffled around his flesh, “I thought you gods only bled gold?”

He snarls at that, the vibrations of his pain and rage reverberate against your own sternum as you release your hold a moment later to go for his jugular; but, Katsuki’s quick to recover, staggering to all fours then propelling back to slam your back into the rough bark of a tree behind you. Your hold releases from the force, gasping in a desperate bid to fill your lungs with air in a steady rhythm once more but that moment is all Katsuki needs in order to seize the upper hands. Gives Katsuki enough time to grab at the pretty kimono you wear, certainly stolen from a poor human that strayed too far into the wrong woods of the mountain. 

He fists the delicate material so harshly you can hear it rip as you’re wrenched over his shoulder, back slammed flat into contrastingly frigid solid earth. The base of your skull colliding first and so suddenly you’re unable to guard before the impact, disoriented easily as Katsuki climbs on top of you and pins you down by your hips and shoulders with all of his weight. 

Snarling victoriously and gnashing his teeth tauntingly as he crowds your space, making you thrash even more wildly than you would by simply being pinned with the unwelcome proximity. Writhing just enough for your knee to come up and connect with the sensitive tissue dangling unprotected between meaty thighs that makes Katsuki growl again.

Though he doesn’t buckle the way most others do, you should’ve expected enough of him and his infamous nature. Grunting as he pushes your head into the ground with his palm and impresses more of his weight to secure you properly. Bakugou palms your face then, tilting it upwards to give him clear access to your throat with the intention of ripping out your windpipe in one fell swoop. 

Panic threatens to seize your lungs, your claws desperately dig into Katsuki’s skin but he pays the pain no mind, going for the kill only to stall with his dripping maw almost enveloping your throat. Glowing bromine widening and burning brighter as he retracts just enough to press his nose against your pulse point, earning a surprised yelp from you that makes saliva gather on his tongue. Worsening to the point it drips from the corners of his lips with the scent that clouds Katsuki’s senses. 

Usually overpowering notes of ash and poison that naturally comes with dabbling in the dark arts are successful in masking the individual scent of each demon but that doesn’t seem to be the case with you.

The ominous scent is greatly overshadowed by the overwhelmingly pleasant notes of orchids and berries that linger on your skin even despite the smell of burning wood that chokes the atmosphere. An intoxicatingly sweet mix that has Katsuki inhaling deeply again, finding your wrists to grasp with a bruising strength in one hot palm in a subtle threat of foxfire as he pins them to the ground above you. Splaying you out beneath him as he shifts, pressing his thicker shins into your own to effectively immobilize you despite your thrashing before placing his free hand at your ribs. Pads of his fingers digging into your flesh with a bruising strength as the points of his sharp nails just graze puncturing the delicate meat in warning to keep still.

He chastises himself even as he drinks in the smell of you, reminding himself that you’re a demon and he has a duty to put you down and yet he can’t. Drunk on everything happening in this moment, ignoring how you hiss at him threateningly but not how you buck your hips into him. You hope to cast him away, even with the difference of strength, it’s your center of gravity, you should have the advantage but he uses his weight and build to his own, snarling long and low until you reluctantly settle.

Katsuki takes it as a submission, and with each deep inhale of you, his nose glued to the column of your throat that begs for him to run the flat of his tongue up the expanse of it, he feels slightly deluded into thinking it’s also a reciprocation of interest.

The more rational side of his brain, quieter now as he loses himself to lust, reasons this has to be some cheap spell he’s never encountered before but he can’t bring himself to care. Doesn’t really feel the need to break himself of its hold, at least not before he satiates the carnal desire bubbling in his gut, roaring in his veins and threatening to consume him the way his foxfire engulfs the forest around them. 

He shakes the distracting line of thought away, fully devoting himself to this moment and his desire as he tightens his hold on your wrists so the other can slide from your ribs, down your waist and push your pelvis into the ground. Thick and calloused thumb digging into the fat of your hip as he does and he succeeds in pulling a pretty whine from you that makes his cock stir against your mound. He releases a shaky breath, lips parted for the humid puff to dampen the skin of your throat and send a pleasant tremble down your spine. Lips resting at the curve of your shoulder before his tongue laps up your throat, forcing you to tilt your chin upwards with the movement and give him more access, crimson hues threatening to roll at the slightly salty taste of your flesh on his tongue. 

Katsuki has to swallow thickly, hum rumbling in his throat as he adjusts his body so his hips slot between plush and powerful thighs to grind his cock against your barely covered cunt. Your legs almost instinctively spread further to feel the delicious friction at your burning core even though your mind screams to fight back, that now is the perfect opportunity to free yourself. That he’s still a fox, a wretched spirit that believes themselves a god, a man who’s heart you should steal and bring back to the king as a spoil of war while Katsuki’s distracted but you don’t. 

You can’t.

Almost purring along with him as his hot palm paws at the fullness of your chest, thick digits a ghosting tease over pebbled nipples, torso nearly exposed from the way he’d manhandled you earlier and he forces your back into a slight arch from his nosing alone. 

Another deep breath from him, inhaling you once more as your own lips part around a silent moan as Katsuki’s face presses against your jugular but you don’t feel threatened in the slightest, “yer not who I’m lookin for.” 

You weren’t sure what you were expecting but it wasn’t Katsuki’s sudden and altogether withdrawal from you. Soothing weight against your body is gone all at once, already on his feet and palming at his hard cock as he leaves it neglected while you sit up on your forearms, working to regain your senses quickly before Katsuki is able to leave.

And you react violently the moment you do, as you should. Ears flattened against your skull and teeth bared at the ninetails as he swipes at the drying blood you’d drawn from him earlier, already thinking of how he’ll explain to the village healer just how exactly he’d gotten such deep wounds for her to mend. 

But there’s a smirk on his face as he crouches low enough to grab at you from your underarms, gravely voice settling deep into your bones and (regretfully, for you) straight to your throbbing clit, “but you might be now.”

Your eyes widen as he lifts you, pressing you to his body as your back connects with the tree trunk he’d slammed you against earlier. Katsuki paws roughly, fingers digging harshly into the meat of your under thighs just below the curve of your ass, urging them to hook over his hips. Lips melding with yours in a bruising kiss before you can spit venom at him, prefer a less verbal sort of tongue lashing from you while he fumbles at the obi of his Yukata, pushing the material back enough to free his aching cock without leaving him fully bare.

Pushing at the already open neck of your kimono to finally expose your chest before he shoves at the intricately layered obi to peel away the layers that hides away your weeping slit, slotting his length between your folds with a throaty groan at the feel when he’s revealed a satisfying amount of your body to him. Tongue swiping over yours, rutting into you slowly to coat himself in your slick while the fat tip kisses your clit with each drag that has you mewling sweetly for him. Rewarding Katsuki with wanton moans to swallow greedily, repeating the action almost cruelly slow, just enough to draw more pretty sounds from you but not enough to deliver you sweet rapture until he catches at your fluttering entrance. 

He pushes in slowly when he does, the gradual stretch so delicious your eyes roll and you reach between your body’s to grasp at the girthy base as if you want to push him in quicker. It makes Katsuki chuckle against your lips, ducking to your throat to hear your mewls uninhibited as he marks you with a gentler touch as he sees fit. 

As gentle as a man like him can be, anyway. Sharp canines scraping against this skin, raising the flesh in his wake before leaving deep punctures to lap at the blood he draws with a low hum.

You’ll regret allowing this later, you know, sure to sneer at your reflection but for now you moan unabashedly as you both find a satisfying rhythm. Eager to reach euphoria even if it was with a creature you were predisposed to loathe. 

But those were the best kinds of highs, the things you shouldn’t partake in nor enjoy. Sinking your claws into his shoulders when Katsuki nudges at that spongy patch within you just right while you keen. He’s quick to take cues, especially with the way your cunt squeezes him tightly, groaning in turn, claws digging into the tree bark with a ferocious grip as he fleetingly tries to subdue his climax while yours washes over you in pleasant waves.

Teeth grit as he feels the coil tighten in his abdomen, driving into you with precision until you’re careening over the edge so soon after your first one with a cry of his name. Head lolled back for him to freely nip at your throat, sucking another mark right at your pulse point. Drinking in the inebriating mixture of your natural scent, burning pine and the sheen of sweat that clings to both of your bodies as you cream around him. 

Thrusting into you with a renewed vigor when you slacken against him, desperate for his own euphoria after relishing your own. Running his tongue along his canines, gripping tightly at your hips while you can only helplessly take what he has to offer. His jaw hangs agape the closer he teeters on the edge, sac tightening when you clutch at Katsuki’s shoulders, sharp nails of your own carving out your pleasure in his flesh as you whine in such a sweet way, begging “please suki, please.” 

As if your only need is for him to fill you so full his seed will leak around his spent cock.

Grunting in a near animalistic way as he hurtles towards his demise, sinking his teeth into your shoulder when he reaches his peak, groaning long and low against your skin like he was more than relieved. Painting velvet walls pearly white in thick spurts, hips twitching into yours until he feels the threatening sting of overstimulation. 

Allowing both of you to bask in the afterglow of your coupling as felled trees crackle soothingly in your surroundings. If you closed your eyes, if you were delusional enough anyway, you could imagine a plush mattress top caressing the skin of your back instead of biting bark and the crackling of woof sounds from a warm heart. That maybe your lover was just that and not a mortal enemy that precedes your own bloodline.

He pulls his softening cock from you, shushing your pitiful whine playfully as he tucks himself away before lowering you until you’re settled on the ground and certain you stand on mostly steady feet. 

Practicing a tenderness you didn't know the kitsunes to have as Katsuki takes the time to fix your clothing, smirk only widening as you hum in the afterglow of your orgasm tipping your chin for your hazy gaze to meet his. 

Regarding you as if he had something to say before his lips press to yours again and you melt into the contact, indulging in him for just a moment longer before Katsuki is sure to stoke another flame in you. One that will burn with the fuel of determination to have his heart in your hand before long, muttering a sultry taunt into your skin as he expects to partake in you again.  “Mountain God’s wrong, you yokai’s are good for somethin after all.”

[metalmewtwo-kxb]

Pokédex Update:

Auroreon - the Iridescent Feather pokemon. A flying type. When it fans its wings and tail, it can manifest beautiful yet powerful beams of light in concentrated attacks and healing moves. If it ever opens its eyes, it will unleash its wrath on the unjust.

Notes:

- Auroreon's feathers always seem to glimmer in the light, causing even its body to give off a faint prismatic glow. They are also sturdy, soft as cinccino velvet, and capable of keeping sheltered pokemon warm. If the weather and conditions are right, Auroreon will spread its feathers over the grass and sunbathe (or moonbathe at night). This makes the moisture in the air above it become a captivating blanket of shifting colors. The shiny variation of this pokemon is said to also manifest colors of light that very few humans are able to see.

- The 'eye spots' on Auroreon's feathers serve as a natural statement of beauty as well as a means of confusing opponents. And the halo above its head is a result of the fur's natural light refraction.

From Recovered Texts and Documents:

- Long ago, a king encouraged the use of these feathers for decorative purposes during his reign. This greatly decimated the population of both eevee and Auroreon in their region. Those with dark feathers were considered "impure" and hunted for sport. A few were kept as pets and servants, which was illegal save for those with the king's written permission.

- Some groups of the past believed Auroreon to be among the pokemon known as "the Heralds of Arceus", messengers and light-bearers who served the Creator of Worlds. There were a variety of pokemon believed to hold this title, each described as "familiar yet unique" to each respective species. They were more powerful than their counterparts, and some rarely spotted if not considered an illusion. They were also quite gentle and well-mannered, and their roles involved giving life and healing to the world. However, these pokemon were considered dangerous in times of conflict.

- It is said "the false king" of their home region was single-handedly responsible for the disappearance of the Heralds, the beginning of conflict between humans and Arceus, and the terrible aftermath of the last great war. Rumors spread that Arceus removed the Heralds from the world of humans to save those pokemon from the cruelty that would follow in coming years.

Notes Continued:

- Further research is being conducted, as a single pair of Auroreon were recently spotted in an isolated area with an unusual eevee. One white, and one dark. The gender of each is unknown, though ancient texts suggest that females have shorter capes than males.

- There is no documentation of what their open eyes look like. Texts only say that no one who saw them directly lived to tell the tale, including the false king.

----------------------------

Decided to take my own stab at creating a flying type eeveelution, and potentially add a second typing later on.

I'm really happy with how it turned out, and glad I had another chance to delve into more of the comic's background lore.

[marlynnofmany]

I Know A Guy

The post office on this space station was close to the landing docks, nice and convenient, so several of us went to check our mail while Captain Sunlight met with the sister ship. Not all of the crew had mail drops set up, but I did; this station was a big hub that we stopped at with some regularity. Perfect for relaying the occasional news from home.

And care packages, as it turned out.

I opened the box with some curiosity, sitting on a bench while the others waited in line and the spaceport bustled around us. Inside I found multivitamins, a letter from my parents, a type of cereal that I’d loved as a kid, and a smaller box with a sun logo.

“Ooh, what’d you get?” Paint asked, trotting over with her own box clutched to her scaly orange chest.

“A lot of stuff,” I said in distraction, turning the sun box in search of words. No luck. I opened it to find a fist-sized yellow globe and a base with lots of buttons. And an instruction booklet, thankfully. “Oh, it’s a sun lamp!”

“It even looks like a little sun; how nice! Is it warm, or just bright?” Paint gave it an appreciative look while she opened her package.

“Not sure yet.” I skimmed the instructions and decided to leave that for later. “It’s thoughtful, though. I think my parents were concerned that I’m not getting enough Vitamin D up in space. And other vitamins.” I rattled the bottle.

“That’s a lot of vitamins.”

“Yup. And look, they found the discontinued cereal! I thought it was gone for good.” I carefully opened a corner and fished out a palmful of the maple syrup flavored crunchy goodness that I hadn’t had in years. It was just as tasty as I’d remembered.

Paint sniffed the air. “I don’t recognize that smell. What kind of food is it?”

“Breakfast food,” I said. “I think it’s wheat based, so it’s basically made from ground-up seeds, and flavored with sweet tree sap.”

“That’s … creative,” Paint said.

“Delicious, too. Most tree saps aren’t worth eating, but this one is.” I crunched another mouthful. “Want some?”

“No thank you,” was the prim answer that I’d fully expected. “But look what I got! Fancy heat stickers!” Paint held up a stack of vividly colored starburst shapes, fanned out like playing cards. “I’m going to see if Sunlight, Coals, and Eggskin want any.”

“Thoughtful of you,” I said, closing up the cereal. All four of the lizardy Heatseekers on our ship enjoyed warm things. The ambient temperature was always kept at a comfortable compromise for the various species onboard, but a handy little warm sticker that wouldn’t get in the way was bound to be appreciated.

“Oh, they’re even scented,” Paint said, rubbing one against her snout. “I’m going to have to order more of these.” She sorted through the stack, checking scents and color variations.

Mur and Zhee were still in line, stuck behind a Frillian who was shipping many things to many places, so I settled in to read the note from home while I waited. It was a nice update on the various goings-on of the extended family; all reasonably good news, nothing earth-shattering. Somebody got a scholarship, somebody had twins, somebody was doing well in a competitive bumper-ship derby league, and was incredibly excited about it. There was a lot of detail about that one. I got the impression that this particular second cousin had given everybody a rundown at a family gathering, so now they all knew more about the best types of shrapnel shielding than they probably wanted to. Sounded like the favorite was a human-made version, combining tech that other species had already come up with. The force field worked with the ship’s scanner to predict which parts of the shield would need the most power for a given impact. My cousin was a big fan.

The quiet slap of tentacles on the ground accompanied Mur. “Well that was a long wait,” he said. “But now I’m all set for media for the foreseeable future.” He held a data chip in one tentacle.

Zhee was right behind him, hissing in what sounded like joy instead of irritation for once. He set a box down between his bug feet, not waiting for a bench, and tore it open with his pincher arms. Inside was something that looked like another kind of data chip, and something with straps that I couldn’t begin to figure out.

“Excellent,” Zhee said. “The correct version, the highest quality, and Trrili does not get to listen to it, heathen that she is.”

It took me a second. “Oh, that’s music?” I thought back to the impassioned rant about Trrili’s incorrect opinions on traditional Mesmer leg-singing. I hoped Zhee played it quietly. “And is that — I want to say ‘headphones,’ but—”

“Personal speakers, yes,” Zhee said as he stuffed it all back in the box. “I will be able to listen to the glorious arias in privacy.”

Paint nodded. “Great idea.” She’d heard the leg-singing when I did, and probably wasn’t eager to hear the artful screeching again.

I was trying to guess whether Zhee would be offended if I asked where his ears were, since it occurred to me that I didn’t actually know. But the others were gathering up their things to head back to the ship, and I decided to put it off until later. Maybe I’d ask Eggskin the medic instead.

Something occurred to me as I put the letter back in the box. “Hey guys, pose for a second. I want to send my family a picture with some of my cool alien coworkers.”

The three of them agreed that they were awesome and worth photographing. (Their responses ranged from excited to confident to egotistical.) A few moments later, I had a fantastic group selfie to send with my letter back. Paint’s open-mouthed lizard smile was adorable; Mur stood tall on his blue-black tentacles; Zhee loomed over all of us with the lights shining off his purple exoskeleton; then there was me grinning in the front. I’d definitely be keeping a copy of this.

We made our way back to the ship where it was parked next to a similar lemon-shaped courier ship with folded solar sails. The two captains hadn’t gone inside yet, which made me wonder what they were discussing with such intense expressions.

As we approached, Captain Sunlight was saying, “I may know someone who can help us out, but I’d hate to give him the satisfaction.”

She broke off when Paint trotted up to give her a handful of heat stickers and to show off the blue-white one she herself was wearing. Apparently it smelled like a plant I’d never heard of.

“Thank you; that’s very thoughtful,” Captain Sunlight said. “Those sound like just the thing.” She picked out a green one and pasted it to her own chest, where it contrasted nicely with her yellow scales.

Zhee and Mur tromped into the ship. I lingered, curious. “Is all the ship business going all right?” I asked.

“For the moment,” the captain said as she stowed the rest of the stickers and the backing for that one in her belt pouch. “Just considering our options with some monetary considerations.”

Captain Kamm waved a tentacle. “Both ships are on the family plan for damage insurance, and the rates have made an unpleasant jump.”

I shifted the box to my other side. “Do we need to earn more money?”

“No, it will be all right.” Captain Sunlight shook her head. “I have a lead on a better deal. I just need to make a call or two.”

Captain Kamm ushered us all into our ship, wasting no time. Paint disappeared to share her heat stickers while the two captains adjourned to the lounge. I put my things away and hurried back. No one had told me to mind my own business, so I was going to listen in before writing a letter to send back home.

I was quick, but Captain Sunlight was quicker. She was just ending the holo call when I arrived. A green-scaled Heatseeker gazed earnestly from the projection, urging her to get back to him as soon as she could.

“If you can get better shields, I can promise you a savings of at least 15% compared to your current plan!”

“Yes, thank you,” Captain Sunlight said. “I’ll see what I can do. Say hi to the elders for me.”

He said he would, and she turned off the projection with another deep sigh. Captain Kamm sat next to her, weaving tentacles together thoughtfully.

Captain Sunlight tossed the communicator onto the table and sat back with folded arms. “Of course it couldn’t be that simple. He talks a good game at every gathering, but oh no: prerequisites.”

I sat down at the end of the couch, absently petting Telly who was curled up in the center. In proper cat fashion, she responded by stretching to take up even more space. I was thinking about what the captain had just said about shields.

I asked, “Does he need a certain kind in order to get us the better deal?”

Captain Sunlight waved a hand. “Just a higher degree of resistance to micrometeorites. The shielding we have is perfectly serviceable, but it’s apparently not enough for the good rates.”

“Would we need to overhaul everything, or would it be enough to layer another kind over what we have? Like, say, a kind that connects to the ship’s scanners?”

The captain gave me a look. “Do you have a specific type in mind?”

“Possibly,” I said. “Are you familiar with bumper-ship derbies?”

Captain Kamm twirled a tentacle. “That’s some of the human ‘adrenaline junkie’ nonsense, yes?”

“I think there are some Smashers and other races that really get into it as well, but yes,” I said. “The letter from home I just got mentioned the shielding they use.”

I explained what I knew while they listened intently. Paint came in to join us and sat on the other side of Telly, who took the extra attention as her due. By the time I was done talking, everyone in the room was looking optimistic.

“Go ahead and reach out,” Captain Sunlight said. “We don’t have to rush off anytime soon. With any luck, we can get all this settled at once.”

“Here’s hoping!” Captain Kamm said, touching four tentacle-tips together over her head in what looked like the Strongarm version of crossed fingers.

“I’ll see if I can route a call through to home now,” I said, getting up.

Telly meowed in protest at the movement, then crawled onto Paint’s lap and rubbed her head against the heat sticker, purring audibly. Paint looked delighted.

I left with a wave, hurrying off to my quarters with plans to make a phone call, potentially save the day, then set up the sun lamp for the benefit of a certain fuzzy little heat-lover as well as for my own sake.

~~~

These are the ongoing backstory adventures of the main character from this book.

Shared early on Patreon! There’s even a free tier to get them on the same day as the rest of the world.

The sequel novel is in progress (and will include characters from these stories. I hadn’t thought all of them up when I wrote the first book, but they’re too much fun to leave out of the second).

[illustromic]

My thoughts on drawing wings (an unofficial tutorial)

Do you want to get better at drawing your favorite winged character? Do you have winged OCs? Just want to learn something new? I can't promise this post will help, but maybe it'll give you some helpful tips.

I know, I knowww, wing tutorials have been done to death. I don't care. This was initially inspired by a conversation on twitter, but actually I've wanted to write down my notes on the topic for a long time lol. Basically wings are one of my special interests so it's very important, for me, to draw them both nicely and also realistically.

On that note, let me first show you my resume *distant sound of floodgates opening*

Like what you see? Read on! (Oh, and I will only be covering feathered/avian wings bc those are the type I know best.)

Now, I'm not here to give you a step-by-step guide on wing anatomy and aerodynamics, because there are plenty of other resources that cover this already, and I'll list my faves at the end of the post. Right now, I'm going to give you some easy guidelines and tricks that I wish more artists knew.

1: Wings do, in fact, have bones (crazy, I know) and are actually very rigid because they have to support the weight of a living creature. There are some positions you cannot physically force a wing into irl.

2: Flight feathers are not placed willy-nilly on the wing, because then they wouldn't catch the air properly. Again, like the bones, they are rigid and strong, so don't draw them like fur or ribbons. All wings have the same pattern of feather placement, with slight variation depending on species. If you learn the feather sections, it will automatically improve your drawings a lot.

2.5: Feathers overlap each other like a handful of playing cards, and this looks different depending on which side of the wing you're drawing. They always do this unless they're extremely untidy.

3: The size of the wingspan is important if you're going for a more realistic design. There is no "scientifically accurate" measurement when it comes to fictional creatures, but my general rule is when in doubt, you probably need to make them bigger. Personally, for my original winged human species, I give them wings that can be up to 12 feet long each (the artistic sacrifice is that it's really hard to fit the wings on the dang page lmao, so make your own call).

4: Get used to drawing folded wings. Most of the time, birds keep their wings folded because it prevents them from getting damaged and it conserves energy. The trick is to get good at visualizing how the joints bend and overlap (look at plenty of photos!) In general, they can fold much tighter than you think.

5: Wings and feathers take a lot of patience to draw, but the results are worth it. I've seen so so many incredibly beautiful and skillful artworks that are---well, maybe not ruined, but still negatively affected by a pair of wings that look like an afterthought, or not even like wings at all. You have no idea how much a little extra time and practice will add to your work until you see for yourself.

Finally, some notes on "stylized" wings: Of course it's perfectly ok to draw more simplified/cartoony wings if that's your preference!! BUT there is a difference between a stylistic choice and a lack of effort/poor understanding of the subject matter. Even cartoonists have to learn the fundamentals of realism so they know how to make their designs logical and appealing. Here are some examples of more stylized wings that I feel retain the core principles of anatomy/aesthetics:

And last but not least: A list of helpful links I use personally for reference and inspiration!

I made this pinterest board for general artsy inspo, and this board to curate my very favorite tutorials/refs/information, focusing on the scientific aspect of wings and flight in general. Feel free to use both! (I also suggest pinterest in general for pose refs and such, but try to only practice using photos at first and not other drawings.)

I highly recommend this blog and this blog if you want examples of artists who draw more realism-based winged creatures!! They are both huge inspirations for me and I think you should totally follow them even if you don't plan to draw wings lol <3

If you're REALLY serious about it, my favorite ref books are: Winged Fantasy, a lovely drawing book by Brenda Lyons; Proctor & Lynch's Manual of Ornithology; and Angelus vincens by R. Spano, which is essentially an artbook by someone who (I believe) designed biologically plausible "angels" for their senior thesis.

Ok, idk how to end this lol but I hope it helped! I know it's not my normal kind of post but I'm super busy with college stuff rn and this was all I had time for. If you guys have any questions or feedback, please let me know!!!

-Aloe <3

[smugpugchimera]

Visual aid for mouthparts of Hymenoptera (part1)

(please excuse the abysmal amount of typos\misspellings) Note I'm not an entomologist and this is purely for artistic\recreational purposes and I may have gotten some stuff wrong! I've accumulated the most material about Wasps, being a common ancestor of both Bees and Ands they show a lot of variations between species, some more similar to lapping Bees and some to solid+liquid food combination of intake like in Ants. Unlike the Mantis I covered, the entire group has a fused maxillo-labial complex, which may make it a bit less clear to the eye to understand. Galea and Lacinia are part of the Maxillae Notable are the Glossae (and paraglossae) a tip of the labium, they are often fused in other insects. In Hymenoptera they form a tounge-like structure covered with setae (small hairs\bristles), whish they basically use to "lick" with. Here some common wasps blepping :D

Exampes in Hornets and a species of parasetoid wasps, that has adaptation more similar to a Bee

Some good shots of a prosterior view! (their chin?)

In their resting position, note mostly just the palps are sticking out and fold back. (similar for ants as well)

And a very nice diagram for spacial understanding of the mouth anatomy, note the Epipharynx (spelled wrong in the pic) that isn't seen on the photos, it's a chitin plate forming the pallet\roof of the mouth cavity of the insect.

Also just a fun detail, Common wasps have these little bumps on the flipside of their glossae :>

I hope this helps cause this actually took pretty long to research, even if very surface level. Second part for Ants and Bees soon. Consider chipping in on my Patreon >< Sources: 1 2 3

[spacelesbiandisaster]

My favorite Headcanons for the Togruta Species

And Shili

And Kiros (Kinda)

Biology

Togruta babies are called Cubs (because I think is a cute word and bc they are aliens after all. Also it translate well to my native language, so when I say Cub I thinking of the word "Filhote" and I'm well aware I probably mixing up translations here).

They live in small groups up to 500 members (but rarely more than that).

Note: I'm saying "small" because our smallest towns have 5.000 member's, but ancient Togruta lived in actual small groups with 50 members or less.

Togruta can grow anxious if they don't have a community around them. Their species were made to live in groups.

Togruta's Montrals are capable of hearing frequencies up to 200000 hz (similar to tigers and bats) and are able of echolocate close objects.

They also have powerful noses and can recognize people from their smell.

Their eyes have a peripheral vision of 200°, that combined with their hearing and flair make them the most powerful predator in Shili.

A adult Togruta eats about 1,5kg of meat every day. Ofc there's alternatives such a rations bars that can lower that amount, but considering they feeding exclusive with meat that's the right amount to maintain themselves health.

Togruta are strict carnivorous (this cannon, but I just want to reassure the idea)

The average height is 1,9 meters for Female and 2,5 meters for Males, counting with their Montrals.

Togruta can easily live up to 90 years, some even got to 120, but they rarely live much more than that. It's a little longer than most humans, but they don't come near Mirialan's lifespan of 250 years or Yoda species that basically turn into living fossils.

Males tend to have longer Montrals while Females have longer Lekkus.

They share 80% of their DNA with Akul (similar with how humans share 90% of our DNA with chimpanzee) what suggest they had a common ancestor.

Their vocal cords can mimic sounds to attract their prey and avert other predators (such as the Akul). Trogruta Cubs were specially good at this and it's not rare see them trying to imitate sounds they find curious or funny. This also means they were very talkative, if a Togruta Cubs is quiet something is terrible wrong.

Because of this trait Togruta are one off the few species capable of learning how to speak Ithorese and Shyriiwook, although their accent is told to be sloppy and child-like.

The muscles on their legs are the strongest on all their body. They were originally a migratory species, so they needed the extra force and speed.

Their gestation period is around 7 months, a little shorter than humans. But their Cubs grow faster and usually start walking around their five mouth after they were born. They development that trait so neither the mother or the Cub stays vulnerable for long.

Togruta skin color have multiple variations, but the more common are: Orange, purple, yellow and dark blue. This colors also appear on the stripes of their Montrals and Lekkus. The flash color scheme serve two purposes: It warn their predators they are a thread (like some snakes do, the vibrant colors usually scares predators away) and it's also a sign of their health.

Health togruta have stronger colors, the more vibrant their color are the more attract they were consider to be.

Togruta are usually monogamous and tend to spend their whole life with a single partner. This whoever is changing due cultural facts, current is not expected to a individual to stick to a single partner but it's a constant event on their community.

Hybrids between other species are rare, however it's uncertain if this is due their biology or they general lack of interest of breeding with other species.

Hybrids between Togruta and Twi'Lek were been recorded although their appearance are highly inconsistent. Usually they keep smaller version of the Montrals and their Lekkus are more similar with the Twi'Lek version, thus stopping growing at a certain length.

It's said they can have hybrids with human and humanoids species (such as, idk, Mirialans), but there isn't enough Togruta in the galaxy making out with humans to know exactly what that would look like.

They change the teeth twice during their lives, one time when they still cubs and another once they hit 60 ~ 70 years. This happens so they can maintain strong teeth for all their lives.

Their canine teeth are sharp ass hell, even more so when they are Cubs. This can be a problem because Togruta bite each other as a form of affection. Also it's not uncommon for them to leave bite marks in visible places on their partners. When other sentient species saw that they thought the marks were from fighting, but turns out it's from the opposite of fighting.

(Note: I saw some other writes with similar headcanons, specially in barrissoka fanfic, and it's cute! But I'm going to make a point here that they can easily kill small animals with their bite, so I get kinda nervous when people make Ahsoka bite Barriss's neck with "all her strength" because that would probably be enough to pierce her skin. So only small bites are allowed here, Barriss doesn't need die like that.)

Togruta's Montrals and Lekkus can turn shriveley if they are raised under stressing ambients. (That's why Ahsoka's Lekkus are so short for her age). Headcanon send by @kayberrie

History/Politics/Culinary

As I mentioned the Togruta were originally a migratory species, that means they used to made camps so they could hunt in certain areas and then move to another region once the resorts became scarce. This whoever changed with time as they learned to cycle their prey with the seasons.

This is a vague example, but during spring and summer they hunt Thimiars (a rodent species from Shili) and other small prey, but as the autumn comes they start to hunt bigger prey so they can store the meat for the winter. During the winter itself they fish. Base on that their villagers are usually construed near river and always with around the forest.

Unlike most of sentient life Togruta are against the domestication of animals, so to this day they still hunt for eat, however all the food (with exception of a few ritualistic hunts) are share with the whole village. So if they can't get food for a while they will start prioritize the children and the elderly while their adults focus on solving the problem.

A exception to that is the domestication of Shilidogs, a species of Tooka (relatives to Lothcats) the Togruta adopt as a companion. The Shilidogs keep pests way from the villages and are very good companions for children. Like a real dog.

Togruta development a way to dry the meat with a space salt (that I don't have a name for yet) so they don't have to throw away the rest of their meal.

Also they when they hunt they make sure to use every single part of the animal and are very against wasting food. The feet of the prey usually is transformed into soup (which they feed the babies and the elderly bc they believe it helps their bones to grow stronger), and the organs are smoked and eaten as a delicacy (god, I hope I used that word right).

As for the actual meat, they cook only with salt but don't you dare think it's blend or without taste! Think about a Brazilian barbecue, that's how it's like.

Once their society started to interact with other planets the Togruta became very close with Wookies and Ithorians mainly because of their ability of speaking Ithorese and Shyriiwook, but also because both of these species also live in forests and share similar values towards dealing with nature.

However their relationship with the Ithorians started pretty rough because when the Togruta first meet the species they believe to be prey animals. Which they kinda are... But this is all put in the past once the Jedi came and solve the misunderstanding.

Because of the Ithorians the Togruta learned how to make the own space ships without destroying their forests.

Because the Jedi help with their relationship with the Ithorians the Togruta respect their order very much and begin to send some of their Cubs to become Jedi.

With their population growth they decide to make a new colonie rather than open the forest to expend their villagers, that's how Kiros was born.

The government of Kiros and Shili are very different. The Togruta of Kiros adopt a lot of the republic politics and build their on government in reference, naming a Chanceller of their own and a senator to represent them to other planets.

Kiros also have big cities rather than the small villagers of Shili.

Talking about Shili government, they usually spread around the planet in small villagers led by a elder council. This villagers are independent but usually live with some level of collaboration, trading goods with each other.

Because they need to deal with other species now they do elect a senator and a small government situated in one of the few big cities they have, but Shili's Togruta couldn't care less about politics and usually let their colony on Kiros deal with all the trouble. If you go to a random village in Shili and ask the name of the senator chances are that most of the people will get it wrong.

Because of this trait most sentient species believe Togruta to be less intelligent, but that's not the case, they just have a different approach to politics.

Kiros is considered a mere extension of Shili, and although they have a more development government they still answers to the people of Shili.

Their economy with the republic are based on the commerce of healing herbs that they collect from their forests. They are far from being the richest being of the galaxy, but they gather enough money to buy the essentials for their survive.

Realistic they don't need much of outside resources anyway because the way they live it's pretty minimalist.

I already mentioned a few misunderstanding others species made while meeting Togruta for the first time, and there was a actual debate if Togruta could be considered a sentient species to begin with, but luckily for them both the Wookies and the Ithorians already faced similar problems and were able to help the Togruta introduce themselves properly to the rest of the galaxy.

Culture

As you problem can see, their society are very close to nature and try the best to not break the balance of the chain by hunting more than they need or building house in animals habitats.

They are usually led by their elder and wiser members, regardless of gender.

Both man and woman engage with all types of chores: Hunting, cleaning, taking care of the children, religion rituals, you name it!

I'm not finished writing their religion yet, but the have a vast pantheon of gods for various realms of adoration. Their most important gods are the a representation of the Sun, the Moon and the death, but I'm not going into details because I don't have any yet.

I mentioned that they don't like throwing away the rest of their prey, so they carve idols, toys and jewelry from the bones and make their clothes from the skin/leather.

Ancient Togruta also used bones to make weapons, nowadays this pieces are used in religious rituals.

Speaking of religion rituals, the hunt of Akul is exclusive made for religion purposes and it's considered a crime to kill a Akul without a reason.

The Togruta are very aware they had a common ancestor with the Akul so that's why they respect the animal so much.

When a child is given to the Jedi they first make a celebration with all the members of their village so everyone can say goodbye properly. It's a joy to have one of their own in the Jedi ranks, but it's also sad to some extent because of how close the communities are. That Cub would probably had live their entire life with them and know that they have to go the village take some time to assimilate that. (So yeah, Ahsoka got a little party with mommy and daddy before Plo take her to the Jedi temple).

Raising cubs is seem as a community work, so it's not rare to leave your kids with the neighbors while hunting or working. Usually is some elder man or woman who stays with the cubs since they can't work as well as they once did.

Some parents make straps bandages in their Cubs Montrals so they can grow in certain patterns. This is especially popular among the Togruta from Kiros and it is a mere esthetic proceed. It doesn't hurt the cub because their Montrals still soft.

They made a holiday to celebrate their friendship with the Ithorians! They invite their alien friend for a three day party as a way to say sorry for trying do hunt them down when they first meet. The Ithorians are a strict vegetarian species, so the Togruta gather exotic fruits to give as a present. The Jedi send represents from both species to act as mediators in case of conflict, but ever since they stated their partnership, hundreds of years ago, they never had any conflict ever again. They truly became best buddies! (And I like the idea of having this alien festival between species that are so different. Let me have my exotic aliens!)

They used theatre to record their history, so instead of books they told teach using their plays. Usually they are full of exaggerated acrobat acts and sometimes songs. Yes, they have musicals!

Their musical instruments are also made of bones and they particular found of flutes.

Kiros is specially connect with all forms of art and their government had imported Togruta plays to all around the galaxy. Their acrobats and singers are praise and recognize as one of the best of the republic. But that's actually why the Zygerian were so interesting on making them slaves on that incident on the Clone Wars.

The children games are usually a sort of exercise to teach them how to hunt, so if you go to one the their villages you problem going to see children "hunting" each other, lefting bite marks everywhere and being absolutely chaotic, but this is considered normal so the adults don't really care. Other species say that Togruta Cubs are usually a nightmare to be around. Their best friends (aka the Ithorians) are still scared of their children.

At some point in ancient history Togruta started to cook theirs meals, but they still eat raw meat on some occasions and specific rituals.

Besides the festival with the Ithorians Togruta have a few holidays they celebrate with their village. They really like a party and even the people of Shili have a special love for the art exhibitions they do during theses events.

That's it for now.

Please feel free to use any of these headcanons if you like them. Also I would love to talk more about them, so you can make comments or ask questions if you have any.

[kiame-sama]

wait, you already said what you think the twst cast is as monsters, but what do they look like?

Warnings: my twst monster au, almost all characters with names (other than Yuu and Grim) in monster forms, mythical creatures, deer rack point system, measurements given in ft and cm, animal traits, various animal and plant species mentioned, usually I would say to use your imagination to think it up but I have thought about this way too much myself so I may as well share ideas of what they would look like, feel free to draw these monster men and if you do please share with me because I want to see these goobers drawn, some spoilers for Rollo's backstory,

Divus is a Harp Seal Selkie;

- Divus has a black and white fur coat of a Harp Seal with slight spotting pattern similar to Leopard Seals. His coat is always shiny, clean, and wrapped around his shoulders. Divus appears fairly humanoid and close to his canon appearance other than the sharper than normal canines that are closer to the cone teeth of seals. Selkies do not part with their coats lightly so it is very rare to see one without their pelts on their shoulders. His coat is more natural Harp Seal patterning than the clear black and white lines he has in canon.

Sam is a Shadow man;

- White skull markings along his face with burning purple eyes. He has several black tattoos on his skin that move and can even detach into actual shadow to ensnare his prey. There is constantly a darkness around him that seemed to repulse light, making him appear to be surrounded in constant shadow.

Vargas is a Texas-Longhorn Minotaur;

He has very long and large bull horns with the minotaur expression on his lower half making his upper body appear human other than his horns. His lower half is the same shade as his hair with white speckling on the left leg. His tail is often lazily swinging back and forth as he talks.

Trein is a Mountain Lion Sphinx;

- Lower-half is the body of a Mountain Lion with wings, upper half is Trein's usual upper body. He does have a lot of grey and white furs/feathers due to his age in his coat and it is clear he favors his right back leg as it usually sits at an angle. He can often be seen lounging with Lucius in a sunny spot in his classroom when not teaching.

Crowley is a Crow Fae;

- Similar to his appearance in canon TWST, but his large black wings are more prominent as are the iridescent colors in them and his hair. He actually has talons on his hands and not just the golden talons. He does wear golden caps on his talons however and has a medium length train of black tail-feathers.

Ace is a Saanen Satyr;

- He has short twisted horns and his orange hair is also the same color on his goat half- just a bit darker shade. His hooves are an off-white ivory. He does have the little billy-goat scruff of a goatee due to his Satyr heritage.

Deuce is a Rocky Mountain Faun;

- Deuce has large spiral horns and his blue hair is the same color on his goat half- just a shade darker as well with white speckles around his hooves and tail. His hooves are black. Deuce does not have the goatee often seen on Satyrs and Fauns.

Note; it is part of my AU that Satyrs usually have shorter horns and are closer to farm goats in their animal halves. Fauns are closer to mountain goats and therefore have longer more curved horns often seen on rocky mountain rams. Females of both Fauns and Satyrs grow the same large horns, but their horns are often thinner around than the males of their species.

Cater is a Lake Water Nymph;

- Cater is considered unusual among Water Nymphs because of his hair's coloration being a bright red instead of a more blue or green which is more common for Water Nymphs. Cater's hair is closer in color to a red Ludwigia as he is a lake Water Nymph and the flora of lakes tend to have a fair variation of green to red color hues. Cater's bright green eyes are closer to the usual colors of Water Nymphs and he accredits this to his mother who is a river Water Nymph. In the water Cater gets fins more adapted to lake swimming so he is not as strong in currents.

Che'nya is a Bakeneko;

- He is similar to his canon appearance, but the purple and pink of his hair is also visible on the skin of his arms, legs, and back. He also now has a two pronged fluffy tail similarly striped that is often seen waving mischievously behind him.

Trey is a Kelpie Centaur;

- When out of the water, Trey's Centaur half is that of a white horse with a long tail of the same green hair that Trey's human half has. His horse half is closer muscular build to Scottish Draft horses. When in the water, the white fur of his horse half becomes a lake green with fading blue hues. His tail hair becomes more stringy like lake reeds and his fur takes a more prickly quality. His back legs become a large fin when he is submerged completely in deep water, making him more of a Hippocampus in physiology while swimming.

Riddle is a Unicorn Centaur;

- His horse half has a pure white coat with a long tail closer to that of a lion than a horse, but long bright red hair for his tail. Riddle's hooves are a rather lovely golden color that shine like metal, same with the tight spiral horn that sits in the center of his forehead. There is a faded blue star shape at the base of his horn that seems to tattoo his fair skin, he often covers this up with his bangs. His horse half is similar in musculature to that of an Arabian Horse making him appear more dainty than Trey.

Note; Cater is often seen lounging on Trey's back while Trey swims in the Heartslabyul lake with Riddle laying in the grass on the shore. They often spend their afternoons doing this and Cater will frequently try to get Riddle to swim. Thus far, he has been unsuccessful.

Jack is a Gray Wolf Werewolf;

- Unlike his canon appearance, Jack constantly has that wolf-head and white fur all over his body. He can shift between being bipedal or a quadruped with little issue between the two forms of locomotion, meaning his limbs are closer in length than human limbs. He has fur similar in length to wolves and even has paw-like hands. His tail is frequently wagging whenever he is with friends or those he is fond of.

Ruggie is a Spotted Hyena Gnoll;

- Similar to Jack, Ruggie now has a Hyena head and pelt instead of just the ears and tail. He is still somewhat humanoid, but he is still shorter than Leona or Jack. His back legs are more like a Hyena and he has that same muscular ridge on his shoulders that Hyenas do. He still has his bright blue eyes despite how odd it is for Gnolls, but his coat is the same sandy light-brown as his hair usually is with dark brown spots.

Leona is a Nemean Lion;

- Nemean Lions are golden furred beasts much larger and stronger than any regular lion on top of being impervious to damage from mortal weapons. This translates into Leona's skin having a more golden sheen to it, always seeming to look like he has been dusted with fine powder gold sparkles. His dark hair has several bright gold strands woven in that makes it shiny as well. The fur on Leona's tail and ears is also that glittering golden color which only makes the tuft of fur at the end of his tail look darker. He is a little taller than in cannon and slightly more defined in musculature due to the natural strength of Nemean lions.

Azul is a Coconut Octopus Cecaelia;

- He is very similar to how he appears in canon, but now he has several black marks along his arms and body similar to how he looks in his merman form. Even in a human form, it is clear Azul is still not human due to these dark markings that wrap around his body. A few of these black tendrils frame his cheekbones and make those brightly colored eyes of his only seem brighter.

Jade and Floyd are Moray Eel Mermen;

- Similar to Azul, Floyd and Jade look similar to how they do in cannon, but their merman features are more visible even in their human forms. The fins they have alongside their faces are now present in their human forms as are the colorations of their merman forms on their shoulders and faintly around their faces. Their gills are still visible in their human forms.

Kalim is a Genie;

- Kalim is the closest out of everyone to his canon appearance as his identity as a Genie changes very little. He will likely wear clothes akin to his dorm clothes appearance but have the addition of golden bands around his wrists and ankles. He can form legs to walk on, but often chooses to fly instead, where his legs become more smoke-like in the typical Genie 'tail' that many Genies are often seen with. Kalim now has a golden aura around him that makes him glow slightly with a golden color due to his high-magic Genie nature.

Note; Kalim sleeps in his lamp and keeps many of his treasures in his lamp as his magic allows the lamp to be more like a hotel suite than a prison cell despite the size on the outside. Only Kalim and those he invites into his lamp can enter.

Jamil is a Sand Viper Naga;

- Jamil's upper half is similar to how it is in canon, but his lower half is that of a rather large snake. His shake half is 22ft (670cm) comprised of black and maroon scales. His maroon scales are closer to the color of dried blood and often get dark enough shades that they mix with the black diamond and striping patterns his black scales make. The scales on the stomach side of his snake body are a slightly more red tone than his skin tone. He does have golden scales that line his stomach scales and are in the center of the diamond patterns on his back.

Note; Jamil often sleeps with Kalim's lamp in the coils of his Naga tail. Having come from a long line of Naga that are usually the guards and guardians of the wealth and well-being Kalim's Genie family has amassed through the years. Wherever a Genie from Kalim's family lives, so too lives a Sand Viper Naga from Jamil's family to guard them.

Vil is a Peacock Harpy;

- Vil still has his flawless skin and purple ombre hair even as a peacock harpy, but he does have hair-like cobalt blue and emerald green feathers that often get woven into braids. He also has seven pristine head feathers that are the same 'eye' patterns as his tial feathers that often lay back against his hair unless he is feeling particularly proud, in which his crest will rise up like a crown atop his head. Vill has feathering along his shoulders, upper back and neck that are the bright cobalt blue of male Indian peacocks. Along his shoulder blades are his wings which have a full span of 8ft (244cm) but are often tucked neatly against his back and folded so the flight feathers don't drag when he walks. Vil has the full peacock train of tail-feathers and spends quite a bit of time preening and grooming them to maximum shine. He will only fully display his tail-feathers when being prideful or showing off to a prospective mate.

Rook is an Australian Golden Huntsman-Spider Drider;

- Rook's legs are a long spindly gold that are many times the length of his thorax and abdomen. The thorax of his spider body is larger than the abdomen of the body due to the typical shape of Huntsman-Spiders. The thorax area on Rook's spider body has a large black mark among the back hairs trailing down to where the abdomen part of his body is more narrow and the marks become black lines making their way down. His human half is attached at the top of the thorax where the spider's eyes are usually located. His spider legs are as thick as a Human's legs, his mandibles and pedipalps being similar in thickness. His fangs are to scale and are extremely long as well as being like blacked curved knives, he often keeps them tucked away to not unsettle others.

Note; Rook and Vil have a very mutually beneficial relationship just as they do in regular TWST. Rook helps Vil preen and take care of his feathers, often being the one getting the pin feathers Vil can't reach on his back and shoulders. Rook uses the silk he creates as a Drider to make fabrics for Vil as they are of high quality, and even higher thread count. Both are content to be the others boon companion and will often be seen working together outside of class as well.

Neige is a Mourning Dove Harpy;

- Neige has the same dark black hair and big brown doe eyes he does in cannon but he also has grey-brown feathers throughout his black hair. His cheeks, neck, shoulders, and upper back have the same gray-brown feathers with speckles of dark brown, white, black, and gray feathers throughout giving a light speckling pattern. His wings are that same gray brown color and are 6.5ft (200cm) in length. The ends of his flight feathers are often trailing over the ground beneath him when he is relaxed and he rarely opens his wings fully. Like most mourning doves, he has a lovely soothing voice and his unassuming species of Harpy makes him all the more charming.

Note: I was going to make Neige a Willow Grouse Harpy due to the coloration match with Neige and his RSA uniform, but I have a childhood fondness for the call of a mourning dove and Neige is supposed to have a beautiful voice, so I figured sweet Neige can be a mourning dove and not the goofy sounding Willow Grouse.

Epel is a Beliy Naliv Apple Wood Nymph;

- Epel has white tree bark as skin, occasionally having the slight dark mark or blemish where Epel had gotten into fights despite being a more peaceful species of Wood Nymph. His hair is made up of pale green leaves that are often covered in powder lavender blooms that are the same color as his canon hair color. Epel has the same large blue eyes as he does in canon. Occasionally the blooms on his head will grow into small apples that are white due to his species of Wood Nymph being the White Cloud Apple. His skin is rougher in texture and closer to the texture of bark.

Idia is a Shinigami;

- He still has his blue flaming hair and blue tinted lips and gold eyes. His skin is closer to a light gray in tone now, his nails a natural black. He now has these scraggly black wings that are kind of like bird wings but more haggard in appearance. The feathers are more slick and almost oily in texture and have some traces of blues in them similar to Idia's hair. He can use them to fly, but they make a very loud wooshing sound that he isn't overly fond of so he doesn't often use them. His limbs are just a bit longer than they are in canon giving him a more skeletal and gaunt appearance.

Ortho is also a Shinigami;

- Similar to Idia, Ortho still has his blue flaming hair and golden eyes. He will have the same light gray skin tone Idia does, but his wings are now cybernetic due to an unfortunate accident when Ortho was much younger that caused him to lose his Shinigami wings. Ortho also has several cybernetic limbs as a result of that same accident, making monster AU ortho closer in appearance to canon Ortho, but still able to eat/sleep/behave like a living being. Ortho is not AI but does have several augments to allow his brain to function with the aid of AI due to his unfortunate incident when he was younger.

Silver is a Reindeer Cervitaur;

- Silver is a leucistic deer cervitaur. This means his deer half has white fur as well with light gray spots along his back similar to the spots fawns have for camouflage purposes. His antlers are also an ivory white, and only have three points. From burr to tip of the beam, Silver has two points at the end of the beam and one point near the burr of his antlers. Lilia throws a party any time Silver gets another point on his antlers. Silver's deer half has the musculature type closer to reindeer than whitetail deer.

Lilia is a Vampire Bat Fae;

- Similar to his canon appearance, Lilia looks almost the same in his monster AU form, but his monster AU form has bat wings and a little tail. Most bats have tails and delicate wings, so I decided Lilia should also have bat wings and a little tail. His wings are sturdier than most bats and have several holes in them from past battles he has endured. He is still the Fae variation so he has the same pointed ears, sharp teeth, and slit pupils other Fae type have. His wings are black with Light pink highlights near the tips just like his hair.

Note; Lilia likes to sleep upsidedown in this AU and will often settle himself in the cafeteria chandeliers or even the rafters of various buildings to take naps throughout the downtimes of the day. Lilia is more nocturnal in this AU as well with increased sensitivity to sounds/lights.

Malleus is Dragon Fae.

- Malleus in the monster AU is similar to his canon appearance but has his dragon wings, tail, and various clusters of black scales along his body. His nails are decent length black talons and he has black scales along the backs of his hands and up his arms. His neck and upper back/shoulders have more black scales. His wings are the same deep black with a slight purple tint to them anywhere the skin is exposed. His tail is about as thick as a leg and tapers off to a wickedly sharp point that Malleus could use to impale someone if he wanted to. Black scales frame his eyes like their own kind of makeup and are more colorful around the eyes in purples and green sheens that highlight the obsidian base color of the scales.

Note; Malleus is more in touch with his dragon instincts in this AU due to being more outwardly dragon. He does make a nest out of his bed and is much more inclined to hoard things he is fond of, including but not limited to Gargoyles, unusual stones, and various creatures he takes interest in. Once he considers someone to be part of his hoard, he will be possessive of them and fiercely protective. Only creatures part of his hoard are allowed to enter his nest. Lilia, Silver, and Sebek are three of his living hoard.

Sebek is a Raiju Fae;

- His hair is a bit more wild and fur-like compared to his canon appearance with yellows mixed in to the sage green color. His teeth are much sharper and he actually has more dog-like qualities similar to Jack's canon appearance. Raiju are lightning dog mythical creatures, so Sebek's appearance will be similarly dog-like with the beastman ears and spiky furred tail that has a rougher texture compared to most fur. His tail and ear positioning will often be a dead giveaway for what emotions Sebek is feeling at the time.

Rollo is an Inferno Fire Nymph.

- Rollo's eyes are an ashen gray as is his skin and hair when he is not in his active inferno flame form. Much like a burned log, his flesh will bare the same ashen faded look to it. Rollo is usually in this form as he is not overly fond of the fire he creates and he can keep himself mostly calm despite the constant annoyance of others around him. When in his active inferno fire form, his ashen hair will ignite into flames, his gray eyes turning a bright fire red. Similarly, his skin will take a redder tone and embers will float off of his hair.

Note: Rollo's fire can burn others, but he can also consciously change the temperature of his flames to only warm and not harm if he felt so inclined. He would only willingly do this for someone he deeply loved and cared for as his full flame form reminds him far too much of his deceased brother, hence why he uses it sparingly. There are many types of Fire Nymphs, but Inferno Fire Nymphs are considered the most deadly as their flames get the hotest. Young Fire Nymphs cannot control their fire and can burn themselves out if they get too hot internally.

[jojo-schmo]

I’m looking into making my own Kirbysona. I was wondering if you have any tips??

you don’t have to answer! Also I love your art and your AU is awesome :)

Hello! Thank you so much for the kind words! <3 I'd be happy to share some of my thought process behind creating my bubble-blowing baby, Ripple Fairy Kirbysona! I will always cheer on the existence of more Kirbysonas! :D

I had a Kirbysona in childhood that was just a little puffball, like Kirby- and she looked like this :D I loved the Star Rod, the Beam Kirby hat was my favorite, I just finished playing Kirby 64 so I added some Crystal Shards to the hat, and I slapped on my favorite colors. Bam! I'd draw her in the margins of my notebooks, interacting with other Kirby characters in little stories I'd write... Great fun!

But now as an adult posting my work online, I wanted something that felt more like "me," as opposed to an OC that felt like someone else. A direct extension of myself to interact with the characters I love, as well as characters and sonas of other creators in our Kirby corner over here! Like a gaming avatar! But in a series with so many different species and characters, where to start?!

Step 1: THERE ARE NO RULES. BE CRINGE AND BE FREE!!

The important thing is to have fun! You can choose to confine yourself to the rules of the Kirby universe, or just make something up! The important part is that a sona represents you!

These are the thoughts that went through my head, but it's not the only way to make a sona! If you follow what your heart is saying and not what you think others want to see, you'll find a design that feels like you!

Step 2: Ask some basic questions to establish a design direction.

These are the questions I asked myself during the creation process, but your questions can be different! This is just how I set up my rough plan of creation.

Sonas don't need to look like you or be named after you irl if you don't want! But in order to feel like "me," I decided on something that shared a lot of my actual physical traits. For me personally, if the sona didn't look a lot like me, I would always have a disconnect with it. I also settled on the name "Jojo" quickly because that's my actual nickname, part of my username, and I respond quickly to it.

From there, answering the other design questions I had came quickly after that!

Step 3: Settle on a species.

I went with a Ripple Star Fairy in the end because 1) They're adorable and I love their cute wings, hair ribbons/accessories, 2) They're shown as adults, which is perfect because I am one lol, 3) Look human enough for me to relate to while still having a lot of freedom to make up powers, lore, and design traits, and 4) Ripple Fairies deserve some love hahaha

Side note: if you can't decide on a species, throw the rules out the window! Be a shapeshifter. Or have multiple forms for no reason. Be a combination penguin/puffball knight/human/waddle dee born from the cosmos!! Refer to step 1, there are no rules! Hit your sona with a Waddle Dee beam whenever you want!!

Step 4: Design yourself, superstar!!

I brainstormed with a page of sketches and tried a bunch of different variations of a Ripple Fairy with different hairstyles and outfits, (I need to find that sketch page) but I eventually settled on these concepts!

I wear braids almost every day, so I added that. Ripple Fairies in canon all have cute hair accessories, so I made sure to tie off the braid with a little ribbon!

Also my hair in real life does this "devil horn thing" that is one of my favorite things about myself. Like I have these baby hairs on the sides of my head that love to curl upwards on their own, so I kept the "devil horn" silhouette with the braid's bangs :D

ALSO, I LOVE BOW TIES. SO MUCH. I love shirts, dresses, anything with a bow on the collar. So I added that.

I have this black coat with a sailor-like collar IRL that I love. I feel SUPER DUPER AWESOME when I wear it, so I added the collar with the bow tie.

I added buttons, a stripe along the bottom of the dress and sleeves, and gauntlets because a lot of canon Ripple Fairies have them. My college marching band uniform also had big gauntlets that I felt really cool wearing, so I shaped mine like that! And clothes with scalloped hems are my favorites, so I added one as a unique twist to my dress!

Now for the fun magic stuff. I wanted my powers to be connected to bubbles because I just think bubbles are neat!!! Simple as that haha.

So how am I going to blow bubbles, then? I'll need a bubble wand! How about a weapon that can change forms to be pocket-sized and functional, AND a super cool staff? Because I think staffs are SICK. I'd carry one around all the time if I could.

I got a little sentimental with my design too, borrowing some elements from my childhood Kirbysona like the Star Rod, stripes, ribbons, and diamond shapes. It's one of my favorite details because I like paying homage to the baby Jojo I once was as often as I can.

I added a little bit of red to the IRL brown color that my hair and eyes are (added more red to my eyes because I always felt like my brown eyes were boring lol). I finished off the theme with my favorite color blue, a little bit of yellow to complement, and BAM! There I am, Gary! There I am!!

Jojo The Schmo was born! She is me, and I am her, haha. Everything about the design has aspects that mean something special to me. I wanted to keep things unique and fun, but simple enough to draw over and over, while still representing me. And that's why I love my sona so so much!!

Hope this could provide some helpful insight! Go forth and create your unique and wonderful sonas!! When you're done we should all have a picnic together in Dreamland. <3

[crow-n-tell]

I had a lot of trouble with this lil guy. Weird lil music men aren't easy to shift over when their body's are so... Weird. Still, here! Hermit Crab Music Men!

If you wanna see what went on in my mind for this come right this way...

So a lil info about these boys! These lil music men have adapted to live in the safe shallows, as well as some undersea areas if need be - having two different palettes which match... you've probably guessed by the additions of orange in the music mans usual pastels

Acid mushrooms! I realized as I was trying to get it all sorted that they are a nearly identical color scheme so it worked out that their colors are a little wacky. Not that real life crabs aren't a bit audacious in their colorings too. Actually the deep sea version of this guy is based off a purple crab called the Palawan Purple Crab who comes from the Philippines.

Their colors are more so for other crabs of their species to recognize them, or so I've read, but in this particular scenario it suits our lil music man as a sort of camouflage too.

Aside from it being a sort of camouflage, it also gives you insight into these lil guys diet. Most of what (I really need to come up with a name for these guys, but all I keep thinking of is crab rangboom. like crab rangoon? but a sound pun.) they eat are poisonous, which has directly affected how predators view them. Yea see, there are certain families of crabs which are toxic only because they are eating things that should not be eaten.

So music men don't have a lot of predators, other than those who have natural immunities to things like that... ahem, moon.

I imagine that the crabs closer to the surface tend to a little smaller than knee high for an average height human, where as deeper sea versions of them are a lot bigger... Like... I DONT KNOW, Leviathan big? After all these are just lil guys, lets not forget about the big music man!

Next topic is... oh yeah!

Seismic communication is basically communication through vibrations. Not just through the water, actually it's used by spiders which we can all sort of agree is what the OG music boys are. Spiders use seismic communication when it comes to their webs in particular, able to sense through vibrations in their web if they've captured prey.

Similarly a lot of sea creatures use vibrations as means of communication. Not only in the way spiders do, but sensing out prey; but by avoiding predators or talking to each other. Crabs in particular use all three, but in terms of communication to one another its been noted they will rub their legs together like crickets to talk to other crabs.

For our lil crabby boys, their claws are fashioned sort of like the the original music man has. Hollowed out in the center, they are able to click their lil crab claws together to make sounds and vibrations which distress and confuse their prey long enough to snatch em up and eat em.

Of course they also have the very on brand to SB behavior of just being a literal face hugger if they come out of the shell.

m...mmmmm..... no... noo....ooo.......

I guess the only thing left to mention is his lil

Barnacles!

I struggled with how i'd give this lil guy a top hat. Then. I remember how WEIRD barnacles are. You see a lot of barnacles that look a lil something like this:

But they come in many variations!

And I hate all of them! they are great for designs, helpful in this case, but I get nauseous when looking at them and I can't even begin to understand why.

Sorry if my adhd really popped out on this one, I am actually holding back some of the mostly irrelevant information about colors and uh, other stuff.

[pokemonshelterstories]

Hiya! i'm currently writing a paper about the differences between domesticated and wild pokemon, and i figured you'd have good info since you probably interact with both quite a lot :) i'm mainly curious in any physical changes that come with being domesticated! any notes on behavioral changes would also be wildly appreciated thanks in advance!

i'm a little confused about the question. do you mean wild-type vs. mutant phenotypes?

when a pokemon is domesticated, it splits off into an entirely different species- consider the difference between growlithe and lycanroc, which is thought to be growlithe's original ancestor. take my pidove as an example, too; both hocus and pocus are wild-type variants, while presto!'s coat coloration and bulk are the result of selective breeding. they're all still pidove, but hocus and pocus look more like the sort of pidove you'd see out in the wild. hence, they're wild-type.

we've bred all kinds of variations into pokemon, from appearance to behavior. a well-known example of this is wild-type vs. working breed pikachu. wild-type pikachu are pretty pudgy and round, while working breed pikachu are slimmer and more agile, because they were bred for battle. unfortunately, wild-type pikachu have largely been overtaken by working breed in the wild because they're better able to avoid predators, but there are some heritage breeders who still breed them.

there's not too many pokemon out there that are truly domesticated, but if you're looking for a start for this paper, i'd suggest looking at domesticated species that have regional variants.

[elbiotipo]

How should nekomimi be inherited to not look weird?

I think that if they are simply humans with certain animalistic traits then it can be done like irl phenotypes, basically "some mixed kids inherit them, some don't" and leave it here, so there can be a community of mostly cat people with some individuals with fully human features to not make it look weird (and vice-versa, some nekomimi people amongst "normal" humans who don't belong to any of the cultures of cat people).

But what about some more complicated feline features like vision or dietary needs and such?

And even more importantly, is my idea of how to do nekomimi genetics in a fantasy setting not weird in itself?

It's NOT weird. The only thing better than catgirls are catgirls who fit in the worldbuilding.

Now, if you want a technobabble excuse, you could always use homeobox genes that you could say develop different kinds of ears, tails (biologist note: this is NOT exactly how homeobox genes work, but they do kinda work as an technobabble excuse) inside a wider, let's say, "humanoid" species or genus. These could be inherited as diverse alleles of such traits (for example, the 'ears' gene could have cat-like, dog-like, human-like, etc. alelles) and also have mendelian or non-mendelian distributions. Suppose you want to make a fantasy mendelian system, you could say "cat ears are recessive, human ears are dominant" (note: "recessive" and "dominant" don't mean "worse" and "better" it just means than an allele is "hidden" or deactivated by the dominant one. Sorry if I make a mistake, I learned all this in Spanish) and figure out inheritance from there, just traits that are cleanly inherited in regular proportions. This is not how most genetics work, however. There's multiple kinds of non-mendelian inheritance... multiple alleles, codominance, sex-linked inheritance, and of course quantitative genetics which is when alleles don't manifest in a single discrete trait but rather a continous measurable one (such as height)... now I feel I'm doing my genetics course again, but I'm sure you can tell how such things can work if you read an intro text about it.

There's a bunch of caveats here, and I'm gonna speak very broadly here. In humans, there aren't single, well defined genes that codify appearance for, for example, hair texture and color, skin/eye color, etc. in the sense that there's a "blue eye gene" or "curly hair gene". In fact this is the case for most genes, most are multi-allelic or quantitative with different 'weights' for a continous trait. Or BOTH. People tend to inherit different genetic 'weights' (very unscientific term here, sorry) from one parent or another and this can be very random, with some expressing different traits even if having the same family (this is why you see people who resemble almost perfectly to one parent instead of a "mix" of both, and of course those who indeed look like a mix of both. And these in turn have nothing to do with genetic diseases, blood types, or other inheritable things) There are hundreds of genes involved in each trait of human appearance and they all interact with each other, and most aren't even known, we don't fully know the genes that regulate skin, hair or eye color, just to give a few examples. So it's almost never stuff like "dominant purple flower, recessive white flower", Mendel was VERY lucky and smart to pick out discrete alleles to find out his laws. Most traits aren't like that at all, especially in animals.

Which brings me to my next point. It's very unlikely mendelian inheritance of traits such as ears or tails would have evolved naturally in animals. The development of characteristics such as ears or tails is deep, deep in the early embryo development, a very fragile period for animals. A species that has such huge genetic variations in such key periods of development faces severe selective pressure and it's unlikely these extreme "alleles" would remain, errors on them would cause extreme malformations or just embryos not developing at all. Even humans have this trouble, the loss of tails in apes, for example, has let us to suffer from spina bifida, every body plan change has a huge cost and this is why animals are sometimes very conservative with it, most body plans are the modification of existing features rather than the apperance or removal of different ones, and this is at evolutionary scales, not even living populations. Of course, some animals are more, let's say, plastic, like dogs, but even they have a general body plan, there aren't dogs without ears or tails, for instance. Even dogs are the consequence of tens of thousands of very intensive artificial selection which did not happen naturally at all, I mean, it's not like poodles or daschunds have any sexual or natural selection advantage for themselves, they are adventageous for us. You can see that wild and feral dogs, without the pressure of human artificial selection tend to converge into a more general dog plan (the so called "pariah dog", but also see dingos, and of course wolves, I'm skipping a lot of stuff here), adapted to local climates.

Surprisingly, I can see diet being less problematic in this sense. After all, we know there are for example human populations adapted to lactose. Dogs have also evolved enzymes to digest carbohydrates which wolves don't have, while not as nutritious as their carnivorous diet it works better with our human diet. Different bacterial flora can also help digest things that are surprising though, such as cellulose (though bacterial flora is still an underrated and ongoing field of study) It's also much easier to imagine changes in dentition than the whole head plan. So I can easily imagine different populations adapting to different diets. Same with eyes, I mean, daltonic and colorblind human population exists, the EYE is mostly the same, but it works differently. But again, the body plan remains the same. Humans or dogs might have different aptitudes for diets, but they don't stop being omnivores or carnivores.

Of course, tis' fantasy. So why expect things to follow natural evolution? Hell, why even expect fantasy people in a pre-industrial setting to know about homeobox genes? Depending on your setting, it might be that these traits are stable and inheritable because of a magical curse/blessing, or that the gods or the inherent magic of the world said so. However, if you have a species that has multiple, very different appearances and those are inheritable, you're dealing with some rather heavy stuff here that redefines your concept of humanity. In Dungeon Meshi, for instance, they talk about this, as the typical "elf, dwarf, halfling, human" fantasy races all can and do have children with each other, and (spoilers!) they seem to have a common origin, and thus all are actually called "humanity" which is a very interesting concept, because, indeed, what else are they if they don't actually have any real biological barriers. Meanwhile, the differences with other more "distant" species? races? such as orcs and kobolds (canine-like) are shown as rather arbitrary and depending on the culture, in fact, even humans (or rather "tallmen") get excluded from "humanity" in some cases. (not even tackling the whole long-short lived races thing). Similarily, you could say these "nekomimi" are just humans with a particular blessing or curse (again, in Dungeon Meshi, there is Izutsumi), but that works on the particular designs of your fantasy world and magic system... and let's say that when such concepts have appeared in real life, well... I don't need to tell you these are rather heavy and controversial topics to tackle. I don't think you should shy away from portraying them, but again, it's something to think about very carefully.

Since this is a heavy topic, I'm gonna take you out of fantasy for a sci-fi perspective. In my biopunk setting (it's on the tag "soft biopunk" on my blog) there are kemonomimi people all around, and in fact, all sort of genetic cosmetics, in fact, one of the main characters is indeed a communist catgirl. Most of it, however, is made in adults, much like getting tattoos or piercings. Tegument (i.e, skin) in humans and most vertebrates is surprisingly plastic, and one can 'grow' ears and implant them, or estimulate the production of feather or scale genes in the skin. Meanwhile, things such as tails have a little more involved surgery, since you also need to take into account nerves, muscles, circulation, etc. Meanwhile stuff such as muzzles and others require very extensive surgery, so it isn't as common. So these are implants (non inheritable) rather than expression from embryos, what geneticists would say germline modification. Such things also occurs but is done way more carefully and is more extensive, and it's nothing you would do just for the sake of cosmetics, when you're doing that, you're basically starting a new branch of humanity with all that implies. On the other hand, sentient "uplift" cats, dogs, and many other animals do exist, but they aren't animals that act like humans, they are sentient animals with a way of thinking and behavior very different to us, you aren't talking to a "cat with human intelligence", you're talking to an intelligent cat (when they want to talk, anyways). So, you can't REALLY turn a Felis catus into a catgirl, but a Homo sapiens can do a rather passable one.

Well, this has been a lot of fun to write and think about, so I hope you enjoyed it, and sorry for the walls of text! I promise to make a better post with some better illustrations of hot catgirls. In any case, if you found this useful, I would be very grateful if you gave me a tip! Given our economic situation here with Milei (the guy who cloned his dog, how appropiate), anything helps!

Feel free to ask anything you'd like!

[pigeon-dyke]

PIGEON HRT: Part 4

》~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~《

MONTH 4

[Patient Checkup Report, from the office of M. Washington M.D.]

Today is the fourth monthly checkup for “Pigeon” [LEGAL NAME REDACTED].

Pigeon (as it would like to be called from now on), has been taking an experimental variation of HRT, or Humanity Removal Therapy, for the last four months. This has been undertaken with the goal of transforming her into an anthropomorphic pigeon-human hybrid. Notes on its transition status are as follows; 

Physical Changes

The most notable change so far is the patient’s feather development. The quill growth was noted extensively in its last visit, but they have sprouted and developed barbs and barbicels at an unprecedented rate. Many of the patient’s primary feathers have now fully formed, and the amount of bare skin visible is decreasing daily. 

I expressed my concerns about this quickened pace of transition, and suggested that the dosage be lowered, but the patient says it prefers these fast changes. As long as there is no physical danger in this dosage, I will follow the patient’s wishes. 

The shape and structure of Pigeon’s skull has begun shifting, with the beginnings of a beak evident around its mouth. The patient has described a dull, ache of a pain, but says it is nothing she “can’t handle”. I have prescribed her low strength painkillers as a precaution, as the discomfort is likely to increase steadily as the beak takes shape. 

The patient has also described “weird” feelings in its arm joints, likely the start of wing formation. According to measurements, its arms have grown roughly 3 inches longer since the last visit, and close observation shows that thick flaps of skin are developing between the patient's forearms and brachia. I have made a note to monitor this area closely in future visits. 

Mental Changes 

Going through the mental changes with Pigeon has been a somewhat complex process; many inherent species instincts have appeared, and, rather than directly questioning them, the patient seems to accept them with little to no thought or anxieties. This is obviously the ideal way for mental shifts to happen in an animal transition, but it does make cataloguing individual changes rather challenging at times. 

One such example is, Pigeon neglected to mention her new, more intense nesting instincts until near the end of the visit, when she casually mentioned stopping at a store to acquire new components for her nest on her way home.  

After some directed questions, the patient also spoke about its recent, heavier prey instincts. These included deep discomfort and anxiety around large cats and birds of prey, as well as increased feelings of safety in higher, secluded spaces.

A change that she did take direct note of, however, is the newfound desire to consume insects. She phrased her discomfort with the idea as “being a bit weirded out”, but after some advising, she stated that she would try incorporating them into her diet. I have made a note to ask about progress on this during its next visit. 

Overall, Pigeon reports that she is feeling happy, and optimistic about these changes. Its transition is coming along very smoothly, and I see no need to change any medications or schedule additional checkups on top of the current monthly plan. 

END REPORT

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[practically-an-x-man]

Since I was just talking about this with a friend... here's the symbolism for my various OCs' names!

At least... here are the main OCs, though I usually apply symbolism to the antagonists, secondary characters, etc. as well (I can talk about them too, but that would make this post ridiculously long)

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Rachel "Rae" Ayla McKinney: the name Rae is used as a shortened nickname from Rachel, but on its own means "protector" - fitting, with her protective personality and ability to create impenetrable energy shields! Middle name was chosen from her grandmother's first name; the same grandmother that she inherited her mutation from. Surname was not chosen with intentional deeper meaning, just chosen for a Scottish surname. Hero name, Aegis, is a reference to Athena's mythological shield.

Robin Eleanor Cassidy: first name is both a traditionally Irish name and links back to the music- and sound-based themes within her story. Middle name is also Irish in origin, and can be seen as a variation on the name Leonore, as in the opera Fidelio. Surname wasn't chosen with deeper symbolic meaning, just to connect her to the X-Men's Cassidy family as a whole. Hero name, Aria, is a reference to her sound-based mutation and operatic background.

Madison Sarah Douglas: first name has multiple derived forms, one of which means "strength in battle", and was also chosen with nicknames in mind to symbolize the stages of her life: she goes by Maddie until she's 15, then leaves that behind once she runs to the wilderness and begins going only by her full name, then begins to adopt the nickname "Mads" as she grows comfortable with Alex. Middle name was chosen from a list of popular names for the time, intended to be simple and unassuming like Madison's parents (her mother especially) expected her to be. Surname is can be translated from Gaidhlig to mean "black stream", a symbol towards her aquatic-based mutation. Hero name, Lionfish, is a reference to the physical traits her mutation grants her, and in the earlier stages of her story can be seen as foreshadowing towards the venomous fins and more lionfish-like traits she will later develop.

Ophelia Jo Octavius: first name stems from the Shakespearean Ophelia, intended both to connect her to her literary-focused mother and to foreshadow the tragedy she will experience throughout her life (and at one point, foreshadows her multiversal variant that genuinely goes mad and later dies to her own actions). Middle name is also literary, stemming from Little Women; however, her middle name is only Jo, not the full Josephine, meant to symbolism Ophelia standing apart from expectations. Surname is not chosen with deeper meaning, just to tie her into the canon Octavius family, but the alliteration of her first and last name is meant to be "superhero-like" and further connect her to her father. Hero name, Argonaut, represents both Jason's mythological Argo and a species of pelagic octopus.

Giovanna "Gia" Isabelle Pantazis: First name, in both its full and shortened forms, translates to "God is gracious", symbolizing Gia's faith and feeling that her surviving HYDRA was an act of God's will. Middle name also holds faith-based translations to further this symbolism. Surname is derived from the Greek blessing "live forever!", representing how having her life force bound to her clover makes her effectively immortal (at least in certain ways).

Jasper Nightingale Wilson: First name was chosen from a list of modern gender-neutral names, mainly meant to be a fitting, likely choice for a name a genderfluid teen would choose for themself in the 2010s. Middle name was chosen to honor Florence Nightingale, Jasper's personal hero and the person that inspired them to go into nursing. Surname can be derived in some ways from "desire", but was also chosen for an ongoing joke with their partner about having "two first names". Derby name, Gemstone, is meant as a connection to the name Jasper. [note: I will not be analyzing the symbolism of their deadname, and I didn't choose extensive symbolism for their deadname even if there's some to potentially be found. The only thing I chose to line up is that they chose their former derby name to be derivative of their first name, the same way Gemstone is derived from Jasper]

Indigo: Uses no surname until marriage - first because she didn't know her family, later as an act of rebellion for how "loaded" her family surnames would be. She chose her first name herself, for the deep blue color of her eyes, because being a foundling on the dog-eat-dog world of Corellia meant nobody bothered to choose a proper name for her (prior to choosing her name, her guardians would just summon her with "girl!" or "hey, you!"). Name was also chosen with a nickname in mind, both to provide variety and as a symbol of familiarity as she moves through the story.

Prometheus: Name as a nightmare was Nyx (from the Greek god of night), or the Fear of the Dark, for them being a primal nightmare of the dark. Name as a dream keeps the Greek mythological roots, but represents them claiming fire for the sake of the human dreamers they choose to protect, as well as representing the day-by-day injury they undergo in order to protect those same dreamers. The transition from Nyx to Prometheus also represents them becoming closer to their human dreamers - beginning as a primordial god, ending as a human hero.

Eris: Given name from Themyscira was Adamantia, meaning "untameable" or "unbreakable". After their bloodlust and sense for conflict became clear to the people around them, those on Themyscira began referring to them as Eris - believing they were an embodiment of conflict itself, a reincarnation of the Greek god Eris (similar to the Ares story in Wonder Woman)

Nikoletta Bordeaux: First name means "victorious" and is drawn from the Greek Nike. Surname is a region in France, but has no other translated or derived meaning (especially considering that Nikoletta's family stem from Louisiana Cajun French, not traditional French, and the further linguistic separation there). Altogether, her name symbolizes "a victory that means nothing", indicating the various façades she implements while in Belle Reve - holding a position that only grants her power while within the prison, and her abilities themselves being used as a symbol for death while actually having no tangible danger.

Azalea Jordan "AJ" Campbell: First name is a flower, connecting her to her mother Violet as well as representing her career as an assassin in disguise: azaleas are beautiful flowers, but are toxic to humans and animals. Middle name, as well as her nickname, are intentionally gender-neutral, meant to symbolize her ongoing disguises and anonymity as an assassin (since the names apply to any gender, there are fewer visual assumptions that can be made about her). Surname translates to "crooked mouth", representing and foreshadowing the reveal of her facial scars.

Quinn: Any surname or former name for her have not been revealed or even decided, and I don't intend to choose any - that stage of her life has been left long in the past, and she's intentionally placed a distinction between that life and her current identity. The name Quinn has various meanings: it can be derived from "wise", "beautiful", or "chief", but was also chosen in-universe as a reference to Harley Quinn. Her rooftop name, Aces, furthers the association with Harley Quinn, decks/suits of cards, and luck/gambling.

Kestrel: Name and character design as a whole are pulled from an American kestrel - solitary animals save for their lifelong mating bonds, known to be adaptable to a variety of habitats and nesting conditions, and extremely effective hunters despite their small size. Former name, Deborah "Debbie" Browning, was merely meant as a mundane and human identity for them to have held before they revealed themself as a changeling.

Katherine Alessia Johnson: Name is largely derived from the NASA astronomer Katherine Johnson, known for contributing valuable research and computations to the moon landing (the moon symbolism also being tied back to the moonlight-powered Tablet of Khonsu). Middle name Alessia means "defender" or "truthful", notable elements of Katherine's character as well as her connection to Bastet, the Egyptian god of domestic protectiveness.

James "Jimmy" Aaron Luciano: As a whole, name was just chosen on a whim based on what sounded right, and wasn't intended with particular deeper meaning aside from being a period-accurate name for an Italian-American New Yorker in the 1910s. However, there is symbolism to be found in that both his former partner Robert and current love interest Lars choose to refer to him as James rather than his nickname.

Vivienne Siversdatter Andenæs: First name means "life", representing her being saved from death by her transformation into a siren - the name was also chosen to be a classically beautiful and feminine name, both for a siren's ethereal beauty and as a subversion towards Vivienne being nonbinary (at least, that it would be nonbinary by modern standards). Middle name is a family surname from Norwegian naming conventions, preserving her father's name. Surname has no listed translation or meaning, but is also Norwegian in origin.

Souriya "Spider" Prakash-Cooper: First name is Lao in origin and means "sun" to symbolize his explosive energy and social "brightness", and was chosen by his parents to honor his maternal grandfather. Surname is his parents hyphenated last names - his mother Adhira Prakash and his father Darius Cooper. Prakash also means "sunlight" to double that earlier symbolism; and while the surname Cooper originally derives from barrel-making, the name was chosen more for the juxtaposition between his father's family in America and his mother's family across India and Laos. His nickname Spider comes from friends at his speed-climbing gym, who gave him the nickname for his long limbs and fast, eclectic climbing strategy.