Pardon the question, but how do the reimagined merfolk reproduce? In MP I recall them saying that merfolk reproduce in a similar way to seahorses (may be a throwaway joke, but in any case) but the reimagined merfolk are obviously different from how they are in MP in many ways.
ah yes, one of those things that i've had worked out fully for forever but never made a dedicated post on it over here... at least partially because im suspicious of tumblr and its ability to nuke anything even frankly talking about sexual selection and reproductive methods of various animals, oops.
which is why this is going under a cut, oops. like i said, lots of frank discussion of sexual selection and the processes of it. im a nerd when it comes to this.
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the first thing most humans would notice when looking upon a group of merfolk (of the same species), is a notable lack of dimorphism. there's no dramatic color shifts, no difference in size beyond usual distribution among a population, no odd behaviors, nothing to really sort them out from each other. this is a consistent theme among merfolk in general — while they continually get larger as they age (at a much slower rate than they did growing up, certainly, and not as dramatic as pop media might suggest this to be), it's still fairly close along the existing curve of height distribution, and usually the only real "tells" for an adult merfolk's age is that they get pitted and worn, a little like a statue slowly wearing down, or similar to the age of crocodilians.
which might be a little odd for these hypothetical humans looking onwards, even if they were already familiar enough to be able to tell merfolk facial features apart. even moreso because as frank as merfolk cultures usually are about sex and nudity taboos seem rare, all of their applicable anatomy is internal, so even seeing one entirely in the nude isn't enough to sex them.
the truth has to do with merfolk as a secondarily aquatic tetrapod. i've mentioned before that the early ancestors of merfolk were temnospondyls that responded to environmental stressors in their freshwater environments by being able to take advantage of a wide variety of environments. they have lungs and gills, meaning they can breathe on land very well if they need to move between pools and ponds, and they have gills to optimize their time spent underwater and not have to surface if the going is good underwater. even more than that, they developed both external gills and internal gills, meaning they could reap the benefits of both fast-moving and slow-moving water.
all of this is relevant, because to be exposed to all of these different environments and to be able to move between them when the going gets tough in one, means they had to make longer and longer treks over land. some were dependent on specific vernal pools that they would travel to to raise their young, but this also limited the areas in which they could live, and if those vernal pools dried up then they could not reproduce.
so these early-line temnospondyls made the same switch that other tetrapods have made, and switched to internal fertilization. this meant that, if they were to find another one of their species during their land-travels, they could mate and continue onwards, even being ready to lay eggs right at the moment they found the vernal pool, limiting the amount of time the offspring needed in the water.
however, they did still need vernal pools and water, and were very vulnerable in these stages. and with the existing push towards shorter and shorter time spent in the vernal pools, well, what if they just didn't bother with them at all? it'd put more stress on the parents, but they were already primed to be able to survive through these periods of stress, so it wouldn't be such a huge jump.
so the line that would eventually lead to merfolk and the leviathans both made the switch to live birth fairly early on in their history.
the rest that happens from there varies. this was a more diverse group, back in the day! there were many different species with many different methods for that live birth. some would continue just carrying the fertilized eggs to be dropped off in the next suitable pool they found, some developed them into tadpoles, some went through metamorphosis in the womb and popped out into the world as mini adults, some left spermatophores for others of their species to pick up, some developed evertable genitalia and went at it that way.
but another shift also happened early on in their evolutionary history. them being able to spread out so far and wide meant that there was a very low density of them in any given area, and these low numbers made them vulnerable. if there was high disparity in the proportion of sexes in any given area, they'd feel the effects of that quicker, and when they were already in competition over the same niches as other temnospondyls, crocodylomorphs, marine reptiles, and later early cetaceans, etc who dominated these niches, they were often kept at these lower population numbers.
which was about when these early-line temnospondyls also made the switch to a trioecious mating system.
this happened because sex determination in amphibians is already weird, so it wasn't too far of a leap for a mutation to arise which created fertile dual-sexed individuals. and these dual-sexed individuals had a lot of success under the niche they had already carved out! now, whenever they did find another member of their same species, it was guaranteed that they could mate with them, which meant that their populations were self-sustaining and stable on much lower numbers. due to how their dispersal already worked, inbreeding wasn't as much of a negative factor, and they were even more capable of making it through the disasters and ecological strain that had the other non-lissamphibia temnospondyls going extinct. they could eke out a living wherever they found it, make long traversals over land if they needed to seek out greener pastures, and they were able to sustain themselves in the background without needing as high of a density of themselves in any given spot.
like i said too - this was a diverse clade back in the day! and you ended up getting different variations on this. some species didn't have any dual-sexed individuals. some species had only dual-sexed individuals. some had only males and dual-sexed individuals, and some only females and the dual-sexed individuals, and all in various different proportions and numbers.
what matters here is that merfolk were a part of the line who had evertable internal genitalia, and who ended up entirely composed of these dual-sexed members, making them an entirely unisex species in the modern day.
(this is also where i butt in, to explain from an authorial perspective, this is me kinda... being sneaky with canon and how it tends to phrase things. yes, technically it is the male who gets pregnant with merfolk! but, also, so would females. because they don't have "male" or "female" in these strict terms, and any given individual to them has the potential to do both. this is something that i do a lot with the usual facts given to me by canon, where it's technically true, just because i like to be contrary about it and not take things in the most literal way. it's just what i find fun, i know some other people do it differently, and that's fine with me!)
what this means is that merfolk don't have a conception of "gender". it checks out with their social structure too, because if a merfolk's miivt'ia have a child, then it doesn't matter who actually physically created that child, said merfolk would still consider themselves their parent all the same. the reproductive unit is larger than a singular merfolk or even two merfolk, and at that point, even if they were bisex, then each grouping still has the same reproductive potential as any other.
what this means is that, when miranda describes herself as a princess or a girl or that the king is her dad or she has sisters — these are best seen as translation errors. to a merfolk, the concepts at play aren't gendered. they would not immediately identify themselves as male, they would not immediately identify themselves as female, they'd be very confused and would only get more confused as you tried to explain it to them. miranda describes herself as a princess and uses she/her because she was told that, for landfolk, everyone had to pick one of two and she had to just choose one. she picked "princess" and "girl" because one of the first things given to her as a way to learn english were fairytales, and she really ended up latching onto the princess characters in them.
in fact, this is why merfolk seem to be a little... reductive? when it comes to gender? as in, if you do take the time to explain it to them, you will have to explain it all. which means starting with gender relating to the different genitalia, and you have just told this hypothetical merfolk that it is important to landfolk, who will now operate under that assumption. they will not innately understand why landfolk care about this or all the distinctions thereof and certainly not the nuance of it, so they end up just going "okay, when this landfolk tells me this person is a girl, that must mean she is like this", and potentially getting frustrated when you tell them that that's wrong.
it can't even really work for royals, who do simplify parentage down to two people, and care a whole lot about who is related to whom. for royals in the current merkingdom, its primarily about attempting to preserve a specific lineage. because merfolk lineage is its own can of worms, they simplify - they take the current heir (one who has been groomed and taught how to behave as though emblematic of that lineage and has been guaranteed to have the strongest claim to it), and will find a suitable non-heir of another royal house, for whom they will forbid either of them to make kids with any other merfolk. this agreement is less like a marriage in the traditional sense, and more like the heir's house is briefly sponsoring the non-heir's house, sending extended political and economic benefits to the latter through this connection, in exchange for reinforcing the lineage of the heir and making it more potent, reinforcing their political ties.
this is to ensure that absolutely no other genetics can be involved and to contain the process. because this occurs by who-was-born-where, it also means that only the heir really matters in this ordeal. if the heir dies while the non-heir of the couple lives, and they already have had children, then the non-heir is "locked in" and cannot remarry, obliged to stay within the heir's house in their current position to ensure the current holders of the lineage are brought up and cared for properly. if the heir dies while the non-heir lives, and they have no children, then the non-heir is sent back to their prior family with no benefits, and the next heir is named as though the marriage never happened. if the non-heir dies while the heir lives, then they can remarry as they please, existing children or not. this is not especially popular, as the non-heir's family can accuse the heir's family of being unfair or snubbing them, but it is still perfectly legal and accepted.
for instance: the king, miranda's father, had to marry into the royal family. it was the queen, miranda's mother, who was the crown princess before miranda, and who is seen as passing her inheritance down onto miranda and the other three sisters. when the queen died, the king could not remarry. he was secure in his position as king, but any other marriages would not carry the lineage of the royal family, and at best he would be seen as trying to "dilute" that lineage.
in this setup, it's not all that important who is the donor party and who is the carrying party. either the inheritor or their partner can be the one carrying, so long as it's certain and guaranteed who the baby comes from and that this can be assured with certainty. usually it's agreed between the two of them for whatever reason, though the carrying partner does have a benefit in being a surefire way to prove that they are one of the parents, with zero doubt. inheritors will do this mostly to make their kids look the most "100% royal line, no doubts", but this can also go the opposite way, to cement it down to it being a specific line who carried them and to reinforce the political benefits their prior family enjoys from this arrangement.
which brings me back to merfolk genetics, and why this is so important for the royals to ensure they know exactly who made what!
which is to say, merfolk never opted for traditional sexual competition, and instead erred towards sperm competition.
early on in their lineage, they didn't have a lot of sexual dimorphism to begin with. they were already fairly widespread, and while gatherings around early vernal pools were a pressure towards sexual competition, after they stopped relying on vernal pools, the differences between the sexes became more of a hinderance than a benefit. why would they bother with any colorful spots or being extra big and bulky when you're not even around enough of your species for choice to be an issue? if you can find another one to begin with, then that's really all either of you need, and challenging each other just puts another bind on that low-population issue. they were all function, minimal fuss, beyond some general traits that were seen as markers of health.
even when the ancestors of merfolk first started forming their colonies along the coasts, they didn't change this. there wasn't an initial hierarchy laid out, they were just a large group of the same species arranged in the same area for the same purpose, and also maybe some protection by numbers. they did start to form the early groups that would later lead to the modern miivt'ia, and they started to primarily associate with those groups and socialize with them, which meant that when they wanted to find someone to mate with, that hunting group was always the first and the easiest to access.
why fight over mates in that situation? why compete? the health of the group starts to become directly correlated to the health of the individual, and you've already determined they all have good genes, or else they wouldn't be this beneficial to helping you hunt and survive and evade predation.
but this isn't to say competition isn't happening. there is still the slight edge that natural selection adds in, and with multiple matings between different individuals, the thing that gets selected upon is the sperm itself. faster sperm, ways to kill competetor's sperm, ways to suppress the immune system of the mating partner to ensure that sperm will take, more output, ways to remove competetor's sperm to begin with, etc etc etc. their internal genitals start to get bizarre, both for the sake of excluding saltwater intrusion as they get more and more aquatic, but also for the sake of this sperm competition. this system also means, not only do more matings occur right after each other, but more partners involved. the "default" evolutionary position for merfolk starts to look more and more like a clump of noodles, writhing around and over each other. sexual contact becomes a way to bond and to connect with someone primarily, and a means to reproduce secondarily. it's an easy way to solve problems and to get merfolk to make up, by them simply fucking it out and everyone feeling better for it.
which is where i can get into the actual mechanics of it all!
unfortunately this is also where i run out of steam (also am sick. that will do it too), so i'll absolutely have to make a part 2 to this... and also i'll make another post sharing a few old writings of mine on this topic.
someday i'll make like. a masterpost on merfolk reproduction and what's going on there, but like i said. sexual selection is one of those things my brain goes ham for and i looooove talking about all these additional little facts. like how merfolk pregnancies last 2 years (to match with other large marine predators), and that they're based off of both tiger sharks and the alpine salamander, the latter of which has the record for the longest pregnancy on the planet at up to five years :3
also read Bitch: On the Female of the Species by Lucy Cooke if this sounds interesting to you! and maybe listen to the episodes the Common Descent Podcast did on Live Birth and Milk!!!
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I shared my (and my friend's ocs) that are related to PK SO-
This is A LOT and I'm kinda embarrassed but I'll fucking "cringe culture is dead" through life or so help me GOD
I like imagining backstories for characters and making cool little nonsensical and completely self-indulgent AUs
(Also for the few people subscribed to my patreon there's more stuff after what I've posted there, just scroll a bit down 👍)
F9r the record I also mangled mine and @demonicintegrity 's thoughts and ideas into one post so it's somewhat comprehensible but jsyk they contributed a lot
An AU where Adamas has her last clutch in her small form
As a refresher Amanita is White Lady's name and Ebur is Pale King's name. Adamas is Pale King's mother, though wyrms use dame and sire for their parents so that's what he calls her. I am yet to properly share Quercus but he's WL's father. Flower is my name for the Pure Vessel in this AU, Hallow is their birth name. Amaryllis is an oc, they're Flower's twin. Any other names that appear here are PK's siblings.
Also using they/it for Ebur and the rest of the family bc as wyrms they don't really have genders
Ebur and Amanita meeting while Ebur's family is travelling and Amanita still lives at the edge of her father's territory and her root system is connected with his but she's getting ready to leave hopefully in just one or two years when she's gathered enough strength and the spring's kind and abundant
Adamas' little group settles near her groove since it's brimming with life and there's not many people to get in the way or compete over resources with aside from the occasional traveller or two, and Amanita tolerates their presence for now, they give her something to do since her father is quite busy with his new seedlings now that she's grown and she doesn't have much company or things to do other than to listen to the occasional mortal passing by and watch the nature, so this small group of wyrms that's mostly composed of ones not much younger than her with all the hubris and boldness of young wyrms is the most interesting thing that's happened to her in a while
Some of them would probably push too far before Adamas had to smack them upside the head and reprimand them for ever thinking about taking over this territory, after all they're really on the larger territory of an ancient God, and even though Roots aren't known to be the most attentive of parents she still doesn't want to tempt fate and check if this one is the same by attacking his daughter
Either way, Amanita notices the younger wyrm isn't quite like the others and seems very intrigued by him
Although their first in face meeting wasn't the best, with her attacking him and managing to stab him in the ribs (you bet your ass Adamas chewed out his ass when he returned to their densite all bloody and holding his side), he kept returning to study her
Seems they both found each other intriguing
And eventually they get to talking, Ebur seemed excited to meet the first rootfolk in his life and actually to get to talk to her, he asks so many questions and she's amused with his curiosity, and eventually actually grows curious about the wyrms (and especially him) herself and asks him things in turn
They grow into unlikely friends though there's definitely more to it but neither is willing to acknowledge it yet
He often sneaks away from his family just to talk to her, and eventually they start sneaking into the more private parts of her groove with the excuse that they wouldn't want Ebur's family finding out they're friends, both of them just ignoring their glaringly obvious attraction to each other
One time Ebur brought her a kill he made and she hoped to GOD her blush wasn't noticeable (it was, not that he'd know because he was also avoiding eye contact to try and hide his own)
Ebur and the bad bitch he pulled by being autistic 💜
The group spends enough time around there for the two idiots to stop dancing around the subject and not only admit to their mutual attraction but to start to fall in love
Enough so that Ebur decides to stay when Adamas decides it's time to move on
At first she was about to talk sense into him about staying permanently in this place but he quickly corrected her
"No, no, it's not like that! I don't want to stay here permanently! I just..." He quieted down and looked away
"...You want to leave?"
"...mh..."
"Are you sure about this? Life as a lone wyrm isn't easy out there in the Wastelands, perhaps it'd be better if you stuck around until we find a suitable territory for you to stay at-"
"No, dame, I- I want to leave now. I think it's time. I love you all and I'll miss you, but...I just...I want to see what's out there for myself. Every year, every day, feels the same now; find some place, stay for a bit and hunt, move on. I- I can't live like this, it feels...suffocating."
"...You were always the curious kind, weren't you? I should have known this routine would bore you eventually," She sighed heavily and approached him, "I always knew this day would come, I just never expected it to be my youngest and smallest wyrmling that leaves the nest first..." She pulled him into a tight hug, "...Stay one last night with us, and if you're still sure about this after tomorrow's hunt I'll leave some supplies for you when we move on."
He smiled and hugged her back, "...Thank you..."
"Just promise me you'll be safe, okay?"
"You taught me well. I'll be alright, I promise."
He spends lots of time with his siblings and mother the next day, maybe Melpomene proposed she could come with since they were always the closest but he reassured her he wanted to be alone
The goodbye is very tearful, even Adamas cries and she's not the type to do that often
Ebur feels a little broken seeing them go, it feels weird being completely alone, strangely quiet too - he usually likes the quiet, but not this time. He goes to hunt to keep his mind off it then that evening he gathers his things and moves them to a densite way closer to his root's (his root, saying that makes him so giddy) and goes to share his kill with her
And that night, for the first time in their lives, he goes to sleep curled up around her amongst her roots. It does help him feel much better about having to say goodbye to his family
He spends the rest of the year in her groove with her - from summer to winter - before she's finally ready to move on next spring and he happily follows her to look for a new home for the both of them
Despite the new normal being hard to get used to at first he was still so unbelievably happy with her
And Quercus was considerably easier to hide their relationship from than his own family, considering they're on the outskirts of his territory and Ebur never saw him in person. As far as Quercus is concerned, Amanita just has a mild wyrm problem that she's handling well on her own
A few different things could happen from then on
Could either go canon compliant or pull out one of my fav moves, a cute domestic AU where they don't found Hallownest or do it later down the line after already having children and just live for a while as a happy family
And also the Drama Flavour where Ebur ends up pregnant despite them not trying to, they say fuck it and have them but he gets very sick and she brings him to her father for help, cue him being appalled that she's partners with a wyrm and her telling him to suck a dick and she'll take care of him herself, then they have the worst luck ever after finding a brand new territory and stumble onto Ebur's family, and Adamas has some very strong opinions about him being mates with a root (she doesn't even realise he's expecting otherwise it would have been. Worse). Fucking Romeo and Juliet up in here
For the last idea, I like the idea of Adamas questioning if that root can even provide for him or any possible clutches he might have in the future and he gets so pissed off he bristles, tells her to drop it and he's done with her attitude and to get the fuck off his territory. She bristles and calls him out on being so cocky as to tell her to get out
"If you're so confident then come on, defend your territory! Kick me out yourself!"
"Stop it-"
"Come on, boy! Show me you can actually protect yourself and yours! If you want me out them force me out!"
"I'm not going to fight you, mother!"
"...Tsk, you even talk like her."
"...Just...Just leave...please."
She circles him, "You should know words won't be enough to protect your territory from intruders, and that young root definitely doesn't have it in her to do it. You promised me you'll stay safe, so show me you can actually take care of yourself!"
Instead she gets violently thrown back by a white root after Amanita returns to check up on her hubby <3
Puts herself between them, ready to snap their necks with her roots if she has to
"He told you to leave, so leave. Or should I make you, you old bag?"
"Amanita-"
Of course, it was 25% him not being willing to fight his own mother and 75% him being sick and not willing to risk the pregnancy, but he's not gonna tell her that when she reacted so negatively about him being mates with a root (and his siblings def teased him before the situation got serious)
He's gonna be SO fucking depressed about this later though
But I also just like the idea of them finding the place that would later become Hallownest and founding the kingdom together
Ebur: Babe do you want me to beat up this old slug for you?
Amanita: Oh how romantic~
Unn:(live slug reaction)
Unn: Just take the damn territory and leave me alone, you brats
I also made an entire AU with Integrity where PK moves on with his family with a promise that he'll be back next spring for her, only to realise he's expecting. And I am obsessed with this version, it's cute and domestic (in a wyrm kind of way) and I am sucker for these things.
Ebur leaves with his family, promising to return to her next spring so they can leave together, but what he DIDN'T account for was him getting pregnant
So now he has to think up an idea to sneak away and keep his pregnancy hidden until he's back with her. Very hard to do with his mother around, an old wyrm with decades worth of clutches she's reared into adulthood by herself, she sussed him out embarrassingly quickly
Ebur, trying to sneak out: 💦💦💦
Adamas, like she’s scolding a teen: where are you going at this hour?
Ebur: …. A walk to clear my head?
Adamas: do you think that excuse worked with your siblings back then?
Ebur: … no
Adamas: do you think it’s gonna work now?
Ebur: ……… no
Ebur, quickly thinking of something else: ......hunting...
Adamas: Hunting?
Ebur: Hunting.
Adamas: At midnight? With your white, glowing ass? After we just ate?
Ebur: .........I'm hungry.
Adamas: Uh-huh
Ebur, bristling: Well! I'm a grown wyrm, I can do what I want!
Adamas: Oh can you now?
Ebur: 💦💦💦
Adamas: You're an adult but I'm still this group's leader, including yours
Ebur: Yes, dame. I'm sorry, dame
He does his best to mask his scent and keep his hormones and instincts under control, tries to sleep a little further from the group, is very careful on hunts and starts eating away from them when food aggression starts kicking his ass
One time Adamas finally approached him at meal time, throwing him her portion
"Here, eat up."
He looks at her, confused, "...I...what?"
"Just eat, kid."
He hesitantly takes it and leaves it near as he continues with his portion, "Don't you need to eat also?"
"Eh, I've eaten enough. Besides, I'm not the one who's eating for more than one right now."
"HRK-"
He looks at her, horrified, and she can't help but laugh
"What? You think I haven't noticed? Come on, you could fool your siblings with your excuses but I've had plenty of clutches of my own," She pats him on the shoulder, "Come on, eat up, kid. You need to put some meat on these bones."
He sighs heavily and goes back to eating, red in the face and a little awkward, unable to look her in the eyes as she's just observing him
"...If you copulated around the time of your first heat last spring-"
"HRNK?!"
"Oh, don't be like that, you're not a child anymore. Anyway, your due date should be in winter...not the ideal time to have a clutch, but we could make this work. You'll need to eat a lot if this kid is to have any chance of survival, though," She looked back st him, "...If you want to keep it, that is."
He goes quiet, his tail curling in close, "...I...y-yeah, I do..."
"...Alright, if that's what you want."
"You seem nervous."
"...How- how could I not be? I mean, all of this, it's...it's my first brood, and if they're due in winter..."
She scoots closer to him and wraps her tail around him, "Hey...you're not alone in this, okay? You have your siblings and I, we'll take care of you and your young. It's going to be alright." And she nuzzles him gently
Obviously they figure out the children are part root, but only some time after they're born
At least now Ebur has an excuse to return to her, saying she'd have valuable input on caring for them
That doesn't stop his siblings from teasing him about possibly wanting to see her again and being in love (they're right, but he's not about to admit it)
Also the moment he accidentally let's her name slip he's not gonna hear the end of it
Adama: So you want to return to the groove?
Ebur: Yes. I mean, she taught me a lot about rootfolk, but-
Io: Uh-huh, I bet she did. Close and perso-
Ebur, slapping him with his tail: ...Anyway. She told me a lot, but still, Amanita would kno-
Adustus: YOU KNOW HER NAME?!
Ossum: OHHH, LITTLE LOVERBOY IS ON FIRST NAME BASIS WITH THE ROOT~?
Ebur: You're killing me
God can you imagine what kind of pains in the ass these cunts were when Adamas and Ebur broke the news to them
Constant teasing and asking who it was
Ebur gets no rest
Adamas takes her little shits on a training hunt again
"Why do we need to train anyway? You've taught us how to hunt seasons ago."
"I did, but not with two members down. You need to practice now before your sibling stops being able to join us on hunts."
"...two...?"
"Yes, two. It'll be safer if somebody stays behind with Ebur when he's further along and carrying for his young, so I need to know we'll be able to provide for this family with two hunters down and more mouths to feed."
"...Can't I join your hunts anyway? You hunted by yourself while pregnant, didn't you?"
"I did, but I was also alone, I had no choice. You shouldn't have to choose between your children's safety and finding food. We live as a family for a reason, what would we be but animals if we don't take care of each other? I'm not letting you or your young live like lone nomads when you have us."
They also hunt more since Ebur needs more food, especially later down the line, and if anybody complains she's gonna cut that shit down SO fast
"I don't want to hear it! Ebur and the brood they're carrying are your kin, so start acting like it and have some damn respect. Do you think Ebur would be here complaining if the roles were reversed? Do you think they wouldn't care for you when you need it? We're a family, we take care of each other, in sickness and in health. Your sibling and his children need you. If that's a problem for you, you're free to leave and live as a nomad, but as long as you follow me and are a part of this family I don't want to hear any complaining, got it?"
"...yes, dame. I'm sorry."
"Instead of apologising to me make yourself useful. And treat your siblings kinder, one day you might be the one who needs their help so you better hope your words don't come back to bite you then."
Adamas is a strict parent but very much loves her family and it's so important to her that they take care of each other <3
She's a good mum, if a little bit hard on them at times
Melponeme, loafing in front of Ebur: ….
Ebur: …. What. Go away
Melp: im not touching you
Ebur: what do you want
Melp, loafing, staring: ……….
Ebur: ………………
Melp: you’re gettin fat
Ebur: no shit it’s almost like a have a litter growing inside me
Melp, reaching over to poke his stomach:
Ebur, batting: stop that!!!
Melp: how many do you think they’re gonna be?
Ebur: I dunno
Melp: probably like. A lot of you keep growing at this rate
(And then it's just two. Absolute menace <3 won't give him a break)
Ebur, growling:
Adamas: Dear, if you keep poking at a predator like that it's gonna strike
Melp: Nahhh, they're harmle-
Ebur, pouncing on her:
Melp: !!!
"Don't be too rough with your sibling, they're expecting."
"Oh come on! They started it! They can't keep holding the pregnancy thing over our head constantly!"
Ebur sitting there like >:3
“Well they’ve got a few more months and then it’s fair game”
"Oh, so you'd beat up a new parent and leave my children orphaned? How cruel"
"I'm not gonna kill you, you maniac?!"
Also once he's much further along he digs himself a separate den and slowly moves in there, it worries his siblings but Adamas assures them it's normal, wyrms prefer to be alone in the first few days before and after giving birth
"Are you sure they're okay? Can't they stay with us?"
"Pff, would you prefer to get growled at and possibly mauled every time you come into your den? They'll be fine, don't worry."
His siblings go out hunting and gathering more often after that and finally give him lots and lots of warm and soft bedding for his new den
"Since you'll sleep alone we thought you and the baby could use some warmer bedding."
And he can't help but smile and wag his tail
Wondering if wyrms would have a word for aunt/uncle and what would it be?? Obviously not auncle, since aunt and uncle aren't wyrm temrs
Currently they don't have any, anybody beyond your parents, siblings and young are just "kin"
Maybe they'd use cousin? (As in. Also use cousin, not a replacement for aunt/uncle. I realised I worded this weird)
Half of this is Ebur's siblings fretting over him and Adamas having to keep them straight and from freaking out KDBDJRB
“GET OUT OF MY DEEENNNN”
“Oh but we worry about our poor lil sibling!!”
“FUCK OOOFFF”
Gonna get hissy and pissy and Adamas will just shake her head and say she warned them
“Can we see the babies now— UAGH”
“-HISSSSS-“
Glaring at them from the entrance of his den before the babies even arrive
"You're so lucky I'm round and slow right now"
“Hehe spherical”
“Shut the fuck up”
Also been thinking about the delivery. This sounds weird,,
TW for childbirth, pregnancy, etc, and mention of near infant death
Anyway, his siblings would notice he stopped eating, only stays in his den, and would bring it up to Adamas
Her ear just twitches and she looks over at his den, "...Seems the little one will arrive any moment, then."
"Huh?"
"How can you tell?"
"I also stopped eating like two to three days before I had you or any of my previous litters. It's normal. Just give them some space, they're going to be especially irritable now."
Then one night one of them wakes up and immediately wakes the others, as Adamas isn't in the den. They peek out to look for her and find her just sitting nearby and staring at Ebur's den
"...Dame? Why aren't you in the nest?"
"Quiet down. Do you smell that?"
They pause to scent the air
"...blood?"
"...It's been a while," She gets up and dusts herself off, "I'll go check up on your sibling, you keep watch for me. Don't come too near, he's probably stressed as is."
She approaches his den and they see her quietly talking before she disappears inside. They keep watch as promised, though all of them are fidgety and uneasy, pacing and shifting around, trying to chat to pass the timd
After what feels like forever though one of them tells them to shut up for a moment and when they do they can hear very faint cries coming from the den
They wait with held breaths and eventually Adamas stalks out of the den holding bloodied bedding (to a group of nervous wyrms looking at her like 👁👁 👁👁 👁👁 👁👁 👁👁, almost makes her laugh)
"...so?"
"So what?"
"Dame, please-"
She snickers, "There's two."
They all seem excited, which makes her smile
"How are they?"
"Ebur is fine. One of the wyrmlings is strong, and the furstborn..." She trails off, swishing her tail, "They'll make it, if they survive this night."
The five visibly deflate at the news
"...Are they gonna...?"
"Only time will tell. Like I said, if they survive this night they should be okay. Don't repeat this to Ebur, though, they've had enough of hardships for one night," She turned to leave, "I'll go burry these sheets. You five, go hunt for your sibling and their young, they're going to need the strength. I'll look after them."
They hurry off, a hunt seems like a good opportunity to blow off some steam
When they return, Adamas shows them how to thinly mince the meat for the the newborns before she delivers the food to Ebur and his kids
That's pretty much the norm for the next few days, Adamas is the only one who he allows into the den so she updates the siblings on the situation and stays with him while they go hunting
The day after, after they made their hunt for the day and Adamas once again disappears into their sibling's den with the food, was probably the most stressful. The five waited for her for what seemed like eternity and immediately pounce on her for info like young wyrmlings the second she's out
"Won't you five calm your tails?! Your sibling and their young are fine."
"And the firstborn?"
"They're doing much better and seem strong. You can stop panicking."
Though they're less intense about this afterwards, everytime Adamas leaves the den she's met with five wyrms staring at her and eagerly awaiting any updates
"Do they have names yet?"
"Ebur said they did pick already, you'll learn them once you meet the younglings"
"UUUUGHHH"
"MAAAAN"
"Stop being dramatic, it's only a few more days"
The five also get an idea to make the twins little clothes so they can stay warm and cosy
They get to gift them to Ebur once they finally meet the little ones
One day, after nearly a week, Adamas leaves the den to see the five wyrms once again waiting on her and she sighs heavily before smiling
"Alright, who wants to meet the babies?"
And they all get SO excited, before she has to remind them to keep calm to not spook their sibling or his kids
They go into the den one by one, which is thankfully big enough for all of them, where Ebur is laying in the corner, curled up around two little sleepy boundless and purring to them
His siblings are just awe struck at the babies and coo to them, showering them and Ebur with so many compliments
"They look a little odd for wyrmlings though, don't they?"
Io proceeds to get very roughly jabbed in the side by Fossor
"Ow, what the hell?!"
"Don't be an ass. Obviously they're not full wyrms, idiot, they're going to look different."
Though none of them is yet to clock that they're half-root
They get the babies thick clothes so they can crawl outside the den (under incredibly strick supervision by all 7 of their family members) once they're big enough
"Ebur, quit grooming them! They won't combust into flames if they have a speck of dirt or snow on them!"
"Mrrrr"
Melpomene: So, how did you name them?
Ebur: The firstborn is Hallow and the second born is Amaryllis
Io: Hm, weird names for wyrms
Ebur: 💦💦💦
Fossor, readying to hit him again:
Hallow, crawling towards Io with intent to Bite:
Io: Ohhhh little lad on a mission, what will they do? Beware the big bad wyrm
Hallow: Grrrr
Io:*casually just rolls away*
Hallow, flopping down and looking at him offended before SCREAMING angrily to voice their displeasure at inability to bite and maim uncle: EEEAAAAAAAAA
Gonna crawl towards him with even more determination
Adustus: Snrk- Stop giving the poor kid a workout and let them bite you
Io: If they wanna bite me they should prove it by getting me the legitimate way
Adamas: that one has a strong set of lungs
Ebur: mhm
Ebur: ...Was I this loud at their age?
Adamas: Absolutely. The loudest
Ebur: .......oh
Adamas: yeah. oh. Little snot
Ebur: hey!
(Mean to him <3)
Just wait till they figure out the connection between Amaryllis and Amanita
Of course loverboy would name the baby after a flower LMAO
".....snrk"
"shut up. shut up. shut the fuck up. I dont wanna hear it. Shut your bitchass up."
Start teasing him that he is SO smitten and in love
None know just how right they are
He's gonna die or commit murder at this rate
Ebur being all "it's not like that, it's not like that" and then when he sees Amanita again they're all lovey dovey and cute
I think Adamas' group was in the groove for like 2 years so they did have time to develop a meaningful relationship, though it's still nothing compared to how they're gonna be in a few years KFBDJFH
Io: not like that my ass—
Ebur: Shut the fuck—
Amanita: :? Not like what my darling?
Adustus: he’s been swearing up and down it isn’t love and he hasn’t totally been courting you
Amanita, amused: aaaww my dear Ebur, so now you’re shy with your affections~?
Ebur, sputtering: Ami, please not in front of my family...
Ossum: AMI
Ebur: I BITE
Ossum: Yeah, I bet ~your Ami~ knows a thing or two about that, huh~?
Ebur: GRRRRR
Amanita, laughing a little: I haven’t heard you growl that loud since we first met my wyrm~!
Ossum: good gods y’all are nauseating
Adamas: Her wyrm, huh?
Ebur: NOT you too
Amanita, not helping as she nuzzles him: My wyrm~
She's having so much fun <3 He can't help but smile though
Ebur: You're...impossible, my darling
Amanita: 🥰
Adamas: So, how long have you been together?
Amanita: Officially? Only one year, but we've been courting for much longer than that~
Adamas: Oh, you're official hm? Ebur, you never told me you've found yourself a mate. Look at you growing up on me, my youngest wyrmling has a mate and children already
Ebur: My dame, please
Amanita: ....children?
Adamas: ... you didn't know?
Ebur: Hey i was suppose to surprise her with that dame!
Ebur: Plus, I only found out after I left, not like I could tell her I was-
Amanita, grabbing him: Darling, what's that about children?
Ebur: .... We have two my darling.
Amanita: We have children!?
Ebur: yes. Our...... time together has resulted in me becoming gravid. We have two healthy children
Amanita, shaking him: Show me!!
Ebur, laughing: Well, stop trying to give me whiplash and I will!
(They're so adorable it makes me sick <- Ebur's siblings probably)
Presents her with the two little guys with a big smile. Tells her their names and she kneels down to hold them both and nuzzle and give kisses and be so so emotionally happy about it
The rest of the family give them some privacy so they can have a proper reunion and Amanita can meet her children
She's so SO happy
Scoops all three of them up and nuzzles him, looks at them as if they're her whole world
"Oh, my darling, they're so beautiful, so perfect...I love them..." She whispers, her breath caught in her throat for a moment, "...I love you."
His heart skips a beat and he nuzzles in close and kisses her cheek, "I love you too..."
And the babies are gonna ruin the moment and squeaking in protest about being held <3
"ooohhh my little sprouts, I need to plant you in my den and watch you grow big and strong youre so precious~"
"wait like. Actually bury them??"
"A little yeah. They should be able to root I think"
"...hm!"
"...Unless they're more wyrm in that regard?"
"Well, they seemed to do just fine on meat, but there's no harm in trying other things. Maybe a combination will be best for them?"
"Oh dear..."
"Don't worry, my love, we'll figure it out together"
Theyre rowdy and like to run around and play
but for sleepy time they get to be buried in the dirt. Makes em giggle and keeps them warm
OH the convo between Adamas and his siblings in the meanwhile
Adustus: ...He's gonna leave, isn't he?
Adamas: Hm?
Adustus: I mean, with our group we can't stay anywhere for too long, especially in a small groove like this, we'd run out of prey. And a root wouldn't be able to keep up for long, they're stationary. And...I doubt he'd leave her, just look at them.
Adamas: ...He seems happy. It'd be good for the little ones to have both parents too.
Amanita, planting the babies for the first time:
Quercus, waking her up at ass o'clock after he sensed two new seedlings near her: 👀 👀 👀
Amanita: huh wh
Quercus: KIDS?? KIDS?? DO I HAVE GRANDKIDS PRINCESS???
Amanita: pfft. yes.
Amanita:
Amanita, internally: wait shit fuck
Quercus: oh hey that wyrm problem came back. Lemme drop by and see how my daughter is doing since im not busy
What a fucking reunion that would be huh
Adamas: I've heard you want to leave? Maybe you should come with us, then, it'd be easier for you
Amanita: Ah, but would you like to leave now? Because it's already almost the end of spring, I don't think it'd be a good idea for me to leave now, I might not survive winter if I'm not rooted down somewhere by autumn. We were planning to leave early next spring, if you'd like to live in my groove until then you're fully welcome to
Adamas: But what of your parent? Wouldn't they notice?
Amanita: It's alright, he didn't came by last time you were here for over two years, I'm sure it's fine now, he won't even notice 😊 (narrator voice he did notice)
"Hey sweetheart how are you.... doing...."
Amanita, with the family of wyrms just hanging out in her den: .......... Daaaadddddddd what a suuurrrppprriiissseee💦
Her just trying to cover up this fairly large family of wyrms
Adamas getting defensive when Quercus is questioning Amanita
Starts growling and pushes to the front of them
Quercus: Stay out of this, wyrm
Adamas: Like hell I am! I'm not letting you step all over my family or my daughter
Amanita: It's really not nece- daughter??? 🥺
Quercus: Daughter?!
Adamas: Yes, daughter, she's my child's partner so as much of a family to me as my own children!
Amanita's just trying so fucking hard not to get emotional and cry over this now
too bad Quercus is bristling at that
Amanita and Quercus are emotional over this but in completely opposite directions
Amanita has to get herself together to step between them before it ends in a fight
GOD. I AM SO EMOTIONAL OVER THIS. AMANITA BEING ACCEPTED INTO HIS WYRM FANILY AFTER THEY SEE HOW MUCH SHE AND EBUR LOVE EACH OTHER 🥺 SO CUTE
She gets to root in and do some wyrm watching with her tubers
Amanita, to the kids: look how silly your father can be. Look, watch
Amanita, wiggling a root:
Ebur: 👁️👁️
His siblings watching him paw at the root
Adustus: ...Dude...
Fossor: Good fates he's domesticated
Adamas: …… oh how the mighty fall
She always knows how to embarrass him in front of his family 🥰
Zooming through her roots to play while Adamas wonders how he inherited such weird quirks
Adamas: I should have judged my mates better, what is this...
Ossum: hey they're the only one Like That
Melp: yeah we’re normal about things
Ebur: Snrk- Yeah, just wait till you find your own mates
Io: I think you're just weird, actually
Ebur: At least I have a mate and children, you lonely ass
Amanita delights in how silly the tubers are. Truly the most delightful thing
Ebur's family think it's funny how the twins have been dubbed the tubers since they came here
But hey, it fits
I bet Amanita sometimes just casually steals her wyrm away
Just picks him up with her roots like "I'll be taking that~"
They're so lovely dovey it's nauseating
Even Adamas teases him about her swooping him off his feet
And he can't keep the smile off his face when he talks about her or hide the blush when they tease him so he really can't hide it
Ebur and the tubers also sleep in her den, keep in her tangle of roots.
The others can set up a den as they please
He at first set up a den near her instead of with her but it was literally abandoned on night one
It's his den in spirit
The second his siblings realise its been abandoned and how fast he's getting teased AGAIN
“Shouldve just saved the time and effort and not done that altogether.”
“I didn’t ask you”
Adamas: No, I bet they tried really hard to use that den but really couldn't help themself be apart from her, didn't you?
Ebur: ...grrrr
Adamas: Snrk, seems I got it right
Amanita: you made a separate den from me???
Adamas: case n point
Ebur: Ooooh, God forbid I want to sleep with my partner! You insufferable twats
Adamas: You’re such a fucking sap
Amanita: Oh but they're my sap~ And I think it's so cute~
Gets a collective "Bleh" out of them
The two looking over their tubers playing with Ebur's siblings
Amanita: Oh, these kids are great, I love them so much
Ebur: Mhm
Amanita: We should have more~
Ebur, sputtering: Amanita!
Io: HEY WE HEARD THAT YOU FUCKING WEIRDOS
Amanita: what? You didn’t think I was going to want just one clutch did you love?
Ebur: w-what—
Amanita, curling around him: I have an urge for my seeds to spread my wyrm~
Io, gagging:
Fossor: What the hell, you two
Ebur: Not- not in front of my family, my love...
Io: literally traumatizing. What is wrong with them both
The rest is pretty much just VERY half assed future stuff and this is long enough as is 😐 So like. Yeah.
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