#and i don't think they know that Nimona is a shape-shifter just yet

[nikoisme]

Okay so a little thing I noticed is how this random citizen flinches and calls Nimona "freak" when he sees her. This is actually a lot of people's reactions when they see someone using this style (punk rock ig, vibrant colors). And in my experience a lot of queer, especially trans people enjoy this style. You can see that Nimona's design is much different than those of the citizens', even when she is in her "human" form trying to blend in. Everyone is dressed pretty casually, like you could walk down the streets and see someone wearing their clothes. But Nimona stands out. And a lot of people are judgmental purely if someone stands out and doesn't follow their traditional beliefs, norms and roles.

[yrrtyrrtwhenihrrthrrt]

Can you write a story where Ballister somehow gets Nimona’s animal shapeshifting powers and Nimona has to train him on how to properly change forms?

Hi hi!! Great asks, here you go!

I hope you don't mind a bit of canon-divergence, I was inspired to include a bit of Comic Nimona's backstory (although this drabble takes place in the movieverse) and I would be lying if I said I wasn't inspired by @ambrosius-goldheart 's ideas about the Institute turning people into monsters!

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Ballister darted through the streets, panting, trying to run through the day's events in his head. 

He was supposed to be knighted tomorrow, and for some reason, he'd started feeling weird, and he'd turned into– it was so absurd.

He turned into a dog, a street dog, mangey and aggressive. When Ambrosius saw him outside their apartment, he'd screamed and chased him with a broom. Headlines were already running about how the controversial knight-to-be disappeared, abandoning his kingdom and his post like a coward. Some people were worried about assassination. Some people were angry at him. He had no idea what Ambrosius was thinking, or himself, for that matter. How did this happen? 

Was he a monster, some sort of shape-shifter? Was he born that way? He couldn't have been! He hadn't done anything out of the ordinary, he just had that physical with the Institute doctors, they'd given him some shots– but they wouldn't have done anything to him. This kind of science didn't even exist! 

Yet somehow he'd started frantically flopping from animal to animal without control, until he got stuck like this. He managed to find some old ruins to hide in. Gloreth, he couldn't speak, how would he get help, how would he switch back!?

His ears pricked and his head whipped around. A pink dog was in the room– he hadn't smelled it– since when could he smell things? He growled and flattened his ears. 

Then, the dog spoke. 

“Hey! I'm Nimona, it's okay, I know you're freaking out. I know you're human, you can relax.”

Ballister blinked. What? If this dog was talking, surely it was a monster, but then, wasn't he? 

She continued. “I'm gonna help you shift back into a person, it's really not hard once you get the hang of it.” 

Ballister yelped when the dog materialized into a teenager in a flash of pink light. “See?” 

Tail between his legs, he backed up warily. What was this thing? Why was it helping him?

She crossed her arms. “Are you gonna freak out? Or are you gonna let me help you?”

He paused for a moment and sat down. He didn't really have much choice here. She made a mocking expression, “Good doggy!” Ballister grimaced.

“So, the first thing you're gonna wanna do is relax– difficult, given the situation, I know. But just take a deep breath and let all your limbs turn to jelly!” Her arms dangled in an exaggerated, unnatural way, like the bones inside disappeared. Trying not to be terrified, Ballister tried to relax his strange new body. 

“Cool! So now, you need to picture what it feels like to be a human, remember what it feels like to stand on two feet, to have hands and legs and all that other crap, picture the form in your head, and now– I know I'm contradicting myself– you gotta tense up everything inside you, thinking only of the form you wanna take.” 

Ballister swallowed. This he could do. He pictured it, how his hands felt, how his face felt, how his body looked, and he stiffened his shoulders. 

“Keeping that image in your mind, clearly, relax all that tension at once!”

Ballister closed his eyes and exhaled, relaxing everything. When he opened his eyes, he was in his original body. He gasped. “You saved me! Thank you!”

She shrugged. “No prob. But in case you're planning on tattling to the Institute, keep in mind you're still not used to these powers. You're gonna wanna keep me around.”

“Powers?” Ballister looked down. “How did this even happen? I'm not– I'm not a monster–” 

Nimona rolled her eyes. “Please. You think you're the first person the Institute wanted to disappear?”

Ballister's eyes widened. “They wouldn't.” 

“They did,” Nimona hissed. “Of course, I'm the original, but about sixty years back they managed to nab some of my blood and have been using it to fuck with people ever since.” 

Ballister shook his head, “There's no way– wait, SIXTY YEARS!?” 

Nimona rolled her eyes. “Yes, keep up. Listen, this is only gonna keep happening. So, if you wanna learn to control your powers, and if you wanna protect the people you care about, we're gonna have to work together. Deal?”

Ballister was uneasy. He wanted to run home to Ambrosius, to tell him what happened. He wanted advice, but if he rejected this– apparently sixty year old child– he might become emotional and switch forms again. He might do it in front of someone and be banished from the realm as a monster. He didn't have a choice. 

He reached out and shook her hand. “Deal.”