#gliding possum

[critter-creature-or-beast]

Photo by Timur Garifov on Unsplash

[morgansram]

Squirrel Glider

[heartnosekid]

pocomomo15 on ig

[sunshine-in-your-smile]

in the 2nd grade my teacher asked me what my favorite animal was and i said sugar glider and she looked me in the eye and said they weren't real and i still get mad thinking about that from time to time

[bethanythebogwitch]

Australian Pokemon - new evolutions

Another set of my Fakemon designed for my original Goorda Region based on a combination of Australia and Aotearoa/New Zealand. This time I'm designing new evolutions for older Pokemon, plus a bonus convergent line. Links to previous entries below.

Factortry, the Industry Pokemon, fire/steel type, an evolution of Torkoal. It started eating metal as well as coal and its internal heat melted the metal into slag. The slag has started covering its shell, increasing its defense, but the smoke it releases is toxic. During the industrial revolution, Factortry were used for metal refining, but the practice was banned after it produced too much pollution.

Factortry is based on a coal-burning refinery and industrial age factories, with all the pollution that came with them. Industrial pollution has been reduced thanks to regulations, such as the ones that banned Factortry for use in refining. Its name comes from "factory" and "tortoise".

Castla, the Coral Pokemon, water/rock type, an evolution of Corsola. Its branches have grown together into a fortress-like structure that is virtually unbreakable. It has a symbiotic relationship with small Pokemon that live in its fortress. It defends them from predators while they help clean it. It needs clean water to live in and the populations has dropped considerably due to pollution.

I figured that if Galarian Corsola gets an evolution, the original should too. Like the original, this Castla is based on staghorn coral, but also castles. A castle is a type of barrier and Australia famously has the great barrier reef. Reefs are famous as habitats and are essentially ecosystems based on symbiosis, just like Castla. Like the great barriier reef, pollution and global warming is signaling hard times ahead for poor Castela. Its name comes from "Corsola" and "Castle"

Glideon, the Sugar Glider Pokemon, flying type, an evolution of Eevee. Glideon live in trees and glide around their rainforest homes on flaps of skin between their legs. Using their tails as rudders, Glideon are very proficient gliders and they will perform aerial tricks to impress each other and attract mates. Trainers should be aware that Glideon are highly social and need a diet high in sugar.

Wormeon, the Velvet Worm Pokemon, Bug type, an evolution of Eevee. Wormeon are reclusive beings that live deep in the forest and are rarely seen. Their fuzzy pelt is so soft people can get addicted to petting them. Wormeon bodies are soft and fragile, so they defend themselves by spitting out sticky slime and powerful acid.

If Gamefreak won't make new Eeveeloutions then dammit I will. Glideon is based on sugar gliders and Wormeon is based on velvet worms. Sugar gliders are a type of possum that glide around on skin flaps called patagia and have a very fruit-heavy diet. They are found in Australia and have been exported as exotic pets. Unfortunately, the biggest provider of sugar gliders is pretty unethical. Velvet worms are members of a unique phylum and can be described as worms with legs. They are very soft, hence the name, and spit slime for offense and defense like Wormeon. There are many species of velvet worm in Aotearoa. I may end up revising the Wormeon design as I'm not totally sold on it. I don't think it looks enough like an Eevee for my liking.

Frozosis, the Cryptobiosis Pokemon, ice type. It was once thought to be a regional variant of Solosis, but is now known to be unrelated. These strange Pokemon are found frozen under the ice on high mountains, where the cold keeps them in stasis. Scientists believe they froze themselves possibly millions of years ago to survive a mass extinction and are only now beginning to thaw out. Those who thaw out often roll down the mountains to be found in the lowlands.

Frozosis evolves to Frozuion, the Cryptobiosis Pokemon, ice type. Despite being frozen to the point where biological activity should cease, Frozuion are still capable of moving and feeding. Scientists suspect they are in a sleepwalking-like state of half-stasis and that if one were to fully thaw out, it would have mysterious powers, though nobody knows how to do it safely.

Frozuion evolves to Reunifroz, the Cryptobiosis Pokemon, ice type. They have some strange power that allows them to levitate and act alive, despite being frozen so cold that no conventional life could exist. Scientists are unsure of what would happen if one were to thaw out as they are so cold even molten magma cannot warm them. It is possible that a thawed Reunifroz would have powers unlike any other Pokemon.

The Frozosis line is convergent to the Solosis line. They are based on cryptobiosis, a state of near-death stasis that certain living things can enter to survive extreme conditions. The Solosis line are based on embryo development and the Frozosis line are based on frozen embryos. The first successful pregnancy from a frozen embryo happened in Australia. Because it's frozen and in cryptobiosis, the cell in the Frozosis line doesn't develop like the one in the Solosis line. Frozuion and Reunifroz are based on micro-animals. Some species of micro-animal can enter cryptobiosis to survive changing conditions. Frozuion is based on a tardigrade (the poster child for cryptobiosis) while Reunifroz is based on a rotifer. Their names come from "frozen" and the Solosis line's names.

Previous entries in this series. Misc 4, misc 3, single-stages, non-natives, regional standards, creepy lines, regional variants, birds, early-game standards, misc 2, misc 1, starter variants, starters

[athena-xox]

Okay lots of people don’t like Dizzie (Daring/Lizzie) and say they have no chemistry. Which is fair IN THE TV SERIES. but I’m a wonderlandiful world? Even tho Darings barely in it he still has so much chemistry with Lizzie. Maybe it’s just my theatre kid heart (hahaha) but like they’re so adorable.

AND WHEN LIZZIE KNIGHTED HIM.

Okay minor spoilers for a wonderlandiful world, I’m going to put some of my favourite Dizzie quotes from there.

“Now, kneel.”

Cedar was surprised to see Daring do so without argument.

Through some twist of magic, Lizzie’s butter knife had enlarged with him, now as big as a sword. She picked it up, solemnly touching its flat side to each of Daring’s shoulders.

“I knight you a defender of Wonderland, Sir Daring Charming. Heroic, loyal, fuzzy doom.”

“Yes, exactly like a pirate,” Lizzie said. “I would be much more comfortable speaking with you if you were a pirate.”

Briar put a finger to her chin, considering, and promptly glided to the ground, fast asleep.

“Arrr, Lizzie Hearts! Have ye killed Briar Beauty?” a voice asked from behind.

Daring Charming sauntered up and saluted her. He’d been so accommodating with her pirate request that Lizzie felt certain her mother couldn’t disapprove of their friendship.

“Aren’t you supposed to be racing?” Lizzie asked.

“No rush,” he said. “I always win. Even when I don’t.” He winked at her. “Ahoy, matey.”

“Daring swooped into a royal bow and said, “Be still, my heart! A fair princess has arrived!” And, strangely, he was looking at Lizzie, not Apple. Daring’s complimentary, showy stuff seemed to set the Ever After girls’ lashes aflutter, but Lizzie raised an eyebrow.

“If your heart were still, Mr. Charming,” she said, “then you would be dead.”

“Excuse me?” Daring asked.

“You said ‘be still, my heart,’ thereby commanding your heart to stop beating,” said Lizzie. “If your heart is obedient, I expect you to drop dead at my feet.”

Daring stared at Lizzie. He opened his mouth and seemed surprised when a chuckle escaped it. Lizzie smirked. She didn’t often hear Daring Charming chuckle.”

Off with its head!” shouted Lizzie.

Daring drew his sword with a flash of steel and an equally brilliant flash of a white-toothed smile.

“I’m just the prince for the job,” he said.

Lizzie smiled in surprise that someone was actually taking her seriously.

Daring winked

Lizzie lifted one hand, posing as she had on the amphitheater’s stage. “I

have returned, Boreas, wind-herder, to watch you writhing in the agony of age and death.”

Daring laughed heroically. “What a battle. Bards will sing of my deeds! Or perhaps a pop singer. Do you listen to Katy Fairy?”

“I do not!” Lizzie said grandly. “But I shall listen to her squalling posthaste as you are my friend, and friends recommend music to each other!

The audience gasped. Lizzie smiled. Maybe this strutting-about-a-stage business wasn’t so bad. She glanced at the anxious face of Headmaster Grimm for inspiration and decided to make up a few more lines. “I will not be the daughter who does nothing but watch her wrinkled father writhe with the agony of age and death, your voice slowly becoming more nasal and oddly high-pitched, as if you were being strangled by a possum or a really weak octopus or something.”

Daring pressed his lips together, valiantly attempting to hold back a laugh, and ultimately failing.

Darabella, Darise, Dapple or Farring could never. Also Dizzie technically got the beauty and the beast (well daring as a beast and Lizzie is always obviously beautiful) arc first. Even if it was sadly under developed.

Anyways Shannon Hale obviously ships Dizzie (well probably idk if she’s said anything on the matter) and it’s the best Daring ship. I suppose Kizzie (Kitty x Lizzie) kind of comes close but they just don’t have that romantic tension like her and daring do.

Anyways I think more people should appreciate them.

[jessiesjaded]

Animal of the day: The feathertail glider (Acrobates pygmaeus), also known as the pygmy gliding possum, pygmy phalanger and flying mouse is a species of marsupial native to eastern Australia. They are the world's smallest gliding mammal and are notable for their feather shaped tails 🪶

[ezlo-x]

Want to add the Remlits into my au mostly cause I write Ganondorf calling Sheik “Remlit” or “Little Remlit” as a nickname. I want to design them having a more arboreal aspect to them. For worldbuild

Remlits have evolved to live in the trees like the dragon trees that are in the Tabantha region; you would most commonly find them there

Remlits have extra skin on their sides and when they leap off from tree to tree they start to glide

Remlits can scare off small monsters like Bokoblins, Remlits are very territorial especially towards animals/monsters around their size.

Remlits are not territorial to one another and are commonly found in groups

Some Rito in Rito Village have adopted Remlits and keep them as company. A Remlit’s food diet is mostly plants like tree leaves or berries.

Remlits are marsupial! (We need more marsupial creatures in tloz me thinks)

Recently after the attack of the Calamity. Many Remlits have lost their native home. Remlits have been also been encountering too many monsters too large to for them to fight off. This has prone to them to become more hostile and aggressive even more when a Blood Moon emerges

I still want to keep the kitten aspects of Remlits but I do have some animals to keep as an idea and inspo (greater glider possums, the bearcat, and kangaroo tree)

[milomaxxy]

My spouse has a hoodie that has "Tokyo Ghoul" written on the sleeve up-and-down. Good anime (at least til it becomes copaganda lowkey).

The issue is my dyslexic ass reading it as "Toy Ko Ghoul" every. Single. Time. Several times a day, day after day. We'll be having a serious conversation and my eyes will just glide over the letters, but my silly little possum brain just goes "nah, Toy Ko" without even really reading them

[sneefsnorf]

tell me bout those headcannons

OK CBENCH TIME

well first of all ctommy is a sugar glider he is a tiny little possum guy with big sad eyes and he glides fast from tree to tree looking for various sugars and saps

next is cranboo and he is a cassowary because is so big and tall and hes got fucked up feets. he would do anything for his son and that includes getting aggressive. he carries seeds far and wide across the server by way of eating berries and then well you know. hes vital to the ecosystem but hes a very sad guy because theres no one else like him just like there are very few cassowaries left in the wild

ctubbo is a northern hairy nosed wombat hes fat and hairy and a lot of people think hes passive (see cdream) but they dont know anything. wombats often crush the skulls of predators chasing them. theyre territorial, theyll defend their home to the best of their ability.

[pikku-peruna]

I made a lil guy based off of @jayrockin 's Avian Aliens from RTTS because I love them.

I've been calling them Paragliders since they're Pear Shaped Gliders (ahaaaaaa)

But they're based off of Sugar Gliders, Rodents, Opossums, and ofc- Avians from RTTS

I'm not too proficient with the speculative biology of things, but i started to doodle and it turned into an alien creature.

I think they'd live in a mountainous region where they can glide and climb around in search of Scraps and dead things/small game because they're like Vultures in that way. They could also hang upsidedown like bats or Possums with their prehensile tail, which could open up the possibility of them having a semi-upsidedown society.

They have hands like Avians because nothing else made sense, but They'd be very affectionate towards others since They Eat Dead Things and no predators wanna eat the things That Eat Dead Things bc diseases. They'd also probably have an iron gut from all the different types of needed microflora in their organs keeping them from dying after eating some bubbling rotting mush.

You'll notice they don't have an teeth onto than the fangs on their mouth, well that's their skull, and those are outside teeth for holding things and grooming each other. They DO have inside teeth but they're like rodent teeth but the buck teeth are sharp and curve inwards to tear flesh with canines around where their outside fangs are and molars in the back, for the rare plants and root veggies they eat, or Fungi because tasty.

Their stripes (not colored in but lined bc im stoopid) are furry like bat fur and serve to camo to the sediment rocks in their weird mountain world, so assume these guys are naturally Gray, Yellow, Black, Orange, and Red -not necessarily in that order* they're usually only two to three colors plus their face, fingers, tail, and ears as Skin, but their Crests are just more vibrant coat colors, with Males having cool spots on theirs.

Paragliders aren't built for walking, in fact they can't really unless they straighten their spine to a 180° angle (minus their tail, that can stay curled until needed) or they'll end up having to pretty much flip themselves sideways and THEN take a step forward which just sounds awful to do. They can hop like frogs on all fours tho, and they pretty much launch themselves forward, grab the ground with their hand claws, yeet themselves forward again, and jump with their legs again, rinse and repeat to "run" (ALL OF THIS AT THE 180° ANGLE THO!) But most prefer Climbing so maybe a vertical society??

They have rat like ears, and hear pretty similar to humans but with cat-like ear motion, plus they have sniffers which are kinda like humans but a little bit stronger to better look for Dead Things To Eat.

CLOTHING AAA, HOW TF DO I DRESS THESE GUYS?!

Maybe similar to Jay's Avians? But less poofy clothes and no head covering for females/duns. I think clothes would be kinda like BIG, WIDE, STRETCHY onesies/jackets to stay warm and covered, it has holes for the fingers and tail and head, clasps on the front to hold it together, and small cuffs on the finger holes and tail hole and head hole to make sure IT STAYS ON.

Unlike Avians they'd be more ok with skin showing, since their membranes are so big but piercing their membranes are a NO-GO. It will HURT a LOT since they have a lot of nerves there, but small enough wounds will heal back up fine. But ears can be pierced :D

They will bow to greet each other and lovers may hold tails while they walk. They are mammals like Bats and can have 3-5 'Pups' (PARAGLIDER PUPPIES AAA), usually if only 1 pup is born that means the mother is sick/got too stressed during pregnancy (which lasts about 6 months, during that time the mother should not go gliding around and will usually stay home to prep for birth and then Puppies.) Pups are borthed without Crests and grow them as they reach sexual maturity (the crest is the first sign of Puberty) and they are born face first from [normal mammalian genitalia]. Males btw have normal mammal (not human that's WEIRD) genitalia too. Im just not gonna draw that because ew.

EYES: You may notice I drew them blank, that's because I'm lazy. They have slit pupils like cats, with their night-vision too. And yes, they can go idiot mode like cats too XD

Uh ill post more later but EEE PARAGLIDERS :D

[dari-ede]

Seven Times I Hated Kim Seokjin: Ch 6

Chapter 6: "Ain't Easy Tryna Stay In Love"

Chapters : 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05(M) | 06(M) | 07

MASTERLIST

Summary: I was living a perfectly, normal, mundane life.... So why in the HELL did Kim Seokjin walk into it and ruin it all for me???

Pairing: Idol!Jin x Female Reader

Rating: M (language and sexual explicit scenes)

Status: Complete

Note: I briefly considered cutting this chapter in half due to its length, but I want to keep this story as 7 chapters. Not to mention that this entire chapter follows one theme; makes no sense in cutting in half.

_____________________

Before our one-year anniversary, Seokjin had bought himself a house. In the beginning, he spent half of his time at his house and the other in the dorms with the guys.

I mostly came over on the weekends, which was when he stayed at his own place. Time at my place became almost non-existent. It was mainly because his complex had security. He no longer had to disguise himself because we worried about neighbors catching him.

By our second year, I was fully moved in.

"I got that, gongjunim," Jin said to me as he saw me struggling with one of my heavy boxes.

He was on my side, taking the box from my arms in a flash.

I thanked him, looking around to see what I could take care of since Jin seemed to be handling the heavy lifting.

That's when I noticed it. "Seokjinah! The door!" I rushed over to the entrance and closed the door Jin had left open. I began to look around frantically.

Seokjin looked a bit lost at my reaction. "What?"

I sent him a glare. "Gukmul is out here."

He shook his head as he began to look around. "No, he's in his room."

"Remember when I said that I opened it and he came running out? I couldn't find him." I looked frantically around, trying to make sure that the sugar glider had in fact not left the building. God, if we lost him, I would never forgive myself.

In the background, I heard Jin call out for Gukmul as well. For what seemed forever, we looked everywhere. I was ready to go into the hall and start knocking on neighbors' doors.

Thankfully, Seokjin called out my name from one of the rooms. He had found the little gliding possum and put him back in his habitat.

I was more than relieved. That little guy meant too much to me. He was my sense of comfort and company while Jin was gone. After losing our two other gliders, I don't think my heart could take it if something happened to Gukmul.

"He's ok," Jin assured me, kissing my head.

I let out a sigh, allowing myself to relax.

Suddenly, his phone went off. He looked down, noticed the caller ID, and then gave me a knowing look. I knew it all too well. I gave him a nod, leaving him to privacy. It was work.

I went into the living room and continued to unpack. Every once in a while, I caught myself looking down the hall to ensure that Gukmul's room remained closed.

After several, long minutes, Seokjin finally arrived back.

"What was that about?" I asked. It was rare when he got a phone call from work after hours. Usually, he was sent a message.

He gave a light shrug as if the call was no big deal. "Some stuff got moved around. Plus, a lot of our American promotions are about to start and they submitted their questions. Looks like they're all interested in asking about mandatory enlistment."

I became a little quiet, noticing how Seokjin was not making any eye contact. It was a topic we mostly avoided. Every time it would come up, we spoke about it as if it was far in the future and not something to worry about now.

However, we were both adults. We were living together now. We needed to start having conversations that might be a bit uncomfortable.

"You know, we never really discuss it," I started.

He turned to me, looking a bit hesitant and worried, but he kept quiet.

"What are your plans?" I asked, looking him straight in the eye. I needed to show that I wasn't scared of his answer, whatever it was.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Well, you have a couple of years before you have to enlist. Do you have a thought as to when you plan on doing it?"

He took a breath and seemed to think about his words before speaking. "Well, the team thinks it's best if we just wait it out. Best not to rush it. When it happens, it'll happen." He gave me a small smile, thinking that would be the end of the conversation.

I frowned at his response, though. "Well, what do you want?"

His brows knitted. "What do you mean?"

"Well, what do you want? It will be you signing up."

"I want what's best for the team," he said almost intuitively.

There was a slight sense of irritation within me. I wasn't sure the reason for it. I wanted to press him further on this, but I also felt I didn't want to get into an argument.

It had been a long weekend of moving. Plus, I was hungry. Maybe I was feeling crabby and wanted to just start a fight--something I tended to do whenever I got too stressed. I was trying to get better at it. Seokjin and I rarely fought, but the few times we did, it was mostly because I was stressed about something at work.

I gave him a nod, accepting his answer and I went back to unpacking. Seokjin went into the kitchen, I figured so he could organize it.

A few moments later, I felt him come beside me. He placed something to my left, gave me a kiss on my cheek, and went back to the kitchen.

I looked down, finding a good-looking sandwich and a glass of orange juice. I felt my heart expand.

***********

At first, I had to admit that I was a little worried we would run into some problems living together. But I was proven wrong every day. Living with Sokjin was easier than breathing. Sure, there were some bumps on the road but nothing we couldn't handle. Our biggest problems were mostly external. Usually, it was our jobs that brought us the most stress. As Seokjin's world popularity with the group expanded more than anyone could have imagined, I kept climbing the ladder in my company. Every promotion I applied for, I was given. And just like before, with the pay raise came more responsibilities and time at the office. Not to mention that the pandemic hit in our first year of living together. It was added pressure for work-related purposes but didn't cause us any strife in our relationship.

Despite our busy schedules and, at times, being in different time zones, we made it work. Because I had my eye on a high position in my company, I took on more projects. Of course, Seokjin was nothing but supportive. He encouraged me to take chances, even if it meant the position I had my eye on would take time away from him. Honestly, I loved the man more every day.

My favorite moments with him were the rare mornings we spent together.

I would usually be the one who made breakfast, allowing him to sleep in as late as he wanted to. Not that he would wake up late, anyway. Usually, he was up by mid-morning.

After eating, we would have a lazy morning in front of our flat screen, sitting in our favorite spot on our couch. Sometimes we would watch a movie and at times we would skim the channels until we found something.

He would recline back as I sat in front of him, his arms and sometimes legs wrapped around me from behind. His head usually was placed at the crook of my neck. To anyone looking at us, one might think Seokjin was an octopus trying to strangle me with every one of his limbs. To me, he felt perfect.

Today, I was skimming the channels until something caught my eye. It was the news. Normally, we avoided all news on mornings like these. We liked to ensure we had happy mornings. But the headline possessed me.

It was a man discussing the possibility of a new law passing that would allow idols to defer their military service until they were 30. Jin was only a few months shy of turning 28, the required age for all able-bodied men to enlist and report to duty.

It was a topic that was still avoided in our house. As much as I needed to discuss it, Jin gave very vague answers, never giving a straight answer. I usually accepted it, but there was something about today that made me want to not avoid it. Maybe it was because he was so close to reaching 30.

"Seokjinah," I said.

"Hmmm," he responded, squeezing me a little to let me know he was alert. Sometimes he would take small naps while he wrapped around me. The squeeze was the signal we had silently and jointly created to let me know he was fully alert.

"I hate to ruin our morning…."

"Then don't…." he mumbled, but followed it up with a light chuckle, letting me he was only teasing. He kissed the side of my forehead. "What is it, gongjunim?" he asked sweetly.

After years together, the endearment still warmed my heart. "Any idea what your plans will be if this new law passes?"

He took a breath. "The team is wanting to wait."

"But your birthday is only months away…. Have you thought of any possibilities?" I push away from him, turning my body towards his, so we could be face to face.

He was trying to keep his face straight and was controlling his emotions. "Well, if the law doesn't pass, then I will be reporting. There's nothing I can do about that."

"But what about if the law does pass?" I pressed again.

"Well, it's been discussed that if it does pass, I'll put in my deferment."

I waited a little, letting the information settle. "Is that what you want?"

"I want what's best for the team," he said. Automatically. Intuitively.

Something inside me churned, and not in a good way. I gave a small nod and turned away from him.

For a long moment, I didn't say anything. I kept my eyes on the television, looking at it but having no idea what I was watching. I did my best to not feel hurt. But it was so hard not to.

I always found it sweet how much Jin loved his members. How much his fans meant to him. I never doubted his love for me. Never doubted how important I was to him. I knew my role in his life and was confident in it. However, there were a few instances where it felt like I was taking a backseat in his life. Instead of being in the passenger seat.

Would the guys always be in the forefront, helping guide him?

I snapped out of my thoughts when I felt warm fingers against my cheek.

"What's wrong?" I heard him ask, his voice full of concern.

That's when I felt the wetness on my face. I had been crying. I sniffed and wiped some of the tears. "What about me?" I forced myself to ask.

"What do you mean?" he asked, confused.

"Where do I fit into your decisions?" I did my best not to let my emotions take over. I needed to have a sound mind so he could understand.

His face didn't straighten, he still didn't understand my sadness. "You're always part of my decisions."

"When?" I challenged. "I'm certainly not in this one."

He shook his head, denying the accusation. "If I have to leave by this December, everything will be taken care of. While I'm gone, I'll make sure your name is left on everything I'm leaving behind. People will think you might be a staff member looking after my property. You won't have to deal with any legal issues."

He didn't hesitate in his answer, which proved he had planned this out. "Where was I in any of this planning?" I asked, crossing my arms.

"I just figured you would trust I would take care of things. Did you really think I would leave you high and dry?" He looked a little hurt by this.

I refused to feel bad for him, though. I had my own hurt to think of. "How am I supposed to think that? We never talk about it. And whenever we do, your response is the same: what's best for the team. And that hurts to hear," I say that last part in a small voice because I feel my throat close up. Tears have started to form.

I wanted to keep cool, but as the words come out of my mouth, my emotions took over.

His hands were on my face again. "Gongjunim." I felt his lips on me, soothing me. His plump lips landed gently on me.

With his soft touch, he managed to calm me.

Once I was fully settled, he cradled my face in his hands and looked into my eyes. "There is no one I love more in this world than you. You mean everything to me. At the very top of my list of most important people is you. The guys, the team, and even the fans hold a place in my heart, but nowhere near how much you take up." He kissed me once again as if sealing his promise. "I'm sorry I failed at making you feel like you truly are my most prized treasure."

There was a crack in his voice and his face faltered when he said this.

I reached his face. "I don't doubt your love. But there are times I doubt my value. If you can't discuss everything and anything with me, what's the point of me? I know the importance of the guys and I don't ever want to take their place or mean more than them to you, but I want to be let in on the decision-making. It's not that I want a say; I just want you to talk to me."

"I hate talking to you about this because I hate making you worry," he explained. "To be honest, even with the team and the guys, we don't talk too much about it. We don't like discussing it either."

"Well, I want to talk to you about it. However uncomfortable something might be, I don't want those walls."

He nodded, understanding. "I promise to not keep this away from you again."

I reached over, taking his lips in mine.

**********

He kept his promise. Whenever the subject of his future service was brought up at work, Seokjinie reported back to me. The closer December came, the higher my anxiety and worry became. If the law didn't pass, he would be leaving sometime the following year. It started to feel more real.

I didn't realize how bad my anxiety was until the morning when the law was made official: idols could defer until they turned 30.

Seokjin was quick to let me know what the plan was within a day of the announcement.

"We're going to submit the paperwork to defer for two years," he said as we were getting ready for bed.

He had a long day, as I had. Normally, we liked to hang out in the living room for a while before turning in for bed, but today we opted to just head straight to bed.

"Two years?" I asked, applying lotion to my legs. I had just finished showering and had changed into my pajamas.

"Yeah, we're not planning on it being that long, but just to make things easier." He went on to explain in detail what he, the members, and the team had planned for 2021.

As I listened, I recognized its brilliance.

"If that doesn't work out and the law does not change, then I will be withdrawing the deferment in the summer of 2022. That way, we dedicate all of 2021 to the fans and our family. There will be a lot of time off, which means we can have a year similar to this one." He took hold of my left hand and brought it to his lips, focusing more on my ring finger.

Marriage was not a topic we shied away from. Quite the opposite, we spoke constantly and openly of our future together. He wanted to give me a huge wedding, but I wanted a smaller one. One in which only our loved ones were present. One with no crew, and no equipment. Just us and the ones who mattered most.

While 2020 had been devastating to the entire world, there had been a few good things that came out of it. One of those good things was the amount of time I managed to have Seokjin. I now mostly worked remotely and Seokjin hardly traveled anymore. It was rare when we didn't share at least one meal together every day. There were many couples we knew that the pandemic managed to break up, but the lockdown affected us differently. It only brought us closer.

I very much would love to have another year with Seokjin almost never leaving home, but that only meant the inevitable was being postponed. It was either going to hurt now or later. Was it best if he pushed it back? Would it hurt more later? But, dammit, I was selfish. I did want him to stay longer. I wanted more nights with him. More cuddles in the morning. More lunchtimes when I would randomly pop up at his building and hang out with him for the entire time. Until this year, I had never been able to do that. Hell, due to my long hours in the office, I hardly visited him at work anymore. This year allowed us to recreate the first year of our romance.

Seokjin must have heard my many thoughts and worries. He leaned in, catching my lips and making my worries float away.

**************

One Year Later...

"Thank you for dinner," I said to him after taking my last bite.

Due to my hybrid-style work schedule, I was usually the one cooking more lately. However, today I arrived home from work with Seokjin already there. A pleasant surprise since I was expecting him late at night. He insisted on planning dinner for me, which I happily welcomed.

I didn't want to push it, but I knew there had to be a reason why he was doing it. He was buttering me up for something. While he was always sweet and caring and romantic, today he went over the top. He cooked my favorite dish and had taken out my favorite bottle of wine. Not to mention ordering from my favorite dessert place. It was all classic signs: he had news for me that I may not enjoy. I stayed quiet about it, though, letting him go at his own pace.

He took our dishes, pecked my head, and took them to the sink. "Want dessert?"

"No. I want to wait a while. Let the food settle first," I said, taking a sip from my wine.

He was quick at washing the dishes. After he was done, he came back to sit next to me. "I have a bit of news, gongjunim," he said gently.

I said nothing but gave him my full attention.

Taking my hand in his, he began to speak. "As you know, the team has been discussing what next year's plans are. We have everything scheduled until the album comes out. There's a plan put in place and I have told them my plans for next year."

I nodded but still said nothing. I had a feeling I knew what this was going to be about. My stomach clenched a bit as if preparing itself.

He took a breath. "I've told the team that I want to withdraw my military deferment sometime in the summer." He kept his eyes on mine, blinking a couple of times.

Different emotions began to run through me, my stomach responding to them by churning. I did my best to suppress them. In front of him, I needed to keep it together. He was holding it together for me; I needed to do the same for him. I took a deep breath of my own. "Ok."

His thumb stroked the back of my hand. "I figure after the album comes out and we do a bit of promotion, we could dedicate some private time to us."

I gave another nod. So many emotions wanted to come out, but I held back.

We were getting closer to the summer and the reality of that was really hitting me.

He leans in, pressing kisses along my face.

I wanted to cry so much, but I fought them off. As Seokjin continued to kiss me, lust lingered in the bottom of my stomach. I honed in on that one emotion and allowed it to rise above the others.

Taking his face into my hands, I held his gorgeous face and captured his plump lips with mine. Opening my mouth against his, I deepened the kiss. I found myself pushing off my chair and climbing onto his lap.

His fingers wrapped around the back of my neck as he slipped his tongue between my lips.

I let out a moan, grinding on his thigh.

His other hand squeezed one of my hips. A moan came out of his lips as I ground harder.

It didn't take long for him to put me on display on top of the table; my top off and my bra gone. His lips were wrapped around my nipple, sucking gently as one of his palms squeezed my other breast.

I pulled at his shirt, making his toned abs clearly visible. God, he was physically hot. I found it cute that he was so publicly shy about showing it off, but when we were alone, he was fully comfortable. I felt my panties getting wet as I stared down at his bare back, his well-defined muscles moving as he explored my chest and stomach.

Even after all our years together, I maintained a very average figure. I had lost a bit of weight since our relationship started, but the gym was just not for me. Not to mention my love for food beat out my care for being skinny. I also quickly discovered early in our relationship that Seokjin loved my body as it was. He had actually mentioned several times how he loved having some meat to hold onto as he rammed into me. Hearing that bit of information always sounded fucking hot to me.

His body went down on mine, hot kisses trailing all the way down to my navel. He tugged off my pants and panties quickly, wasting no time to take my pussy into his thick lips.

My hips arched up at his touch, a deep moan coming out of me. I called out his name when I felt his tongue enter me.

"How do you always taste so sweet?" he asked in between slurps.

A fingertip lingered at my entrance. I writhed underneath him, my legs wrapping themselves on his broad shoulders. "Please."

"Tell me," he mumbled. The tip of his finger went slightly in, but he still kept it mostly out.

"Inside," I let out, gripping his hair now, pushing his face more into my core. I wanted him to suffocate in there.

He knows me so well. He let out a low chuckle as he let me push his face further into me. His finger slid in with no resistance; I was far too soaked.

It was one of my favorite things he does to me. His fingers are curved in such a way that he hits angles inside me without really trying. His fingertips especially only need to tilt a little to have me shivering underneath me.

And that's how he had me in less than a minute. My legs were shaking and my walls were squeezing around his single digit. "Not yet, jagiya." He was getting me so close to coming, I was sure of it. And I wanted it to last.

"Let's see how many we can get out of you tonight," he let out, his eyes digging into mine.

He looked so untamed between my thighs. His hair was a mess, his face was flushed, and his mouth was covered in my juices. The look in his eyes told me he had made up his mind. He was going to do whatever with my body and he would do everything in his lustful power to make me comply.

The last time he had this look about him, we didn't get out of bed for close to two days. Our bedroom was a mess. I swear COVID days had turned him feral. Not that I had any complaints. I might have been beyond exhausted by all the lovemaking, but fuck I didn't admit I instantly got wet thinking about it.

Reliving that experience always gave me a nervous thrill. My logical brain didn't think it could handle it. But my body always managed to win over.

"You're gonna be the end of me," I said to him, feeling myself give in to his touch.

His mouth tugged up into a devilish grin. Without another word, he dove in and pushed in several digits inside me.

A wail full of arousal came out of me as my walls tightened around his splendid fingers.

*****************

In the months that followed, Seokjin and I seemed to be going at it like rabbits. It felt as if we were in the first year of our relationship rather than getting closer to our fifth year. At first, I thought it was mostly me initiating the sex due to my need of wanting to take full advantage of every moment I had with him, but at times when I wouldn't initiate it, Seokjin had his hands all over me. I imagined he was thinking the same as me. Summer kept getting closer.

Thankfully, other than preparing for the concerts and his month away in the States, Seokjin's schedule was pretty free. We had plenty of time to spend together.

Shortly before they left for their time in the States, one morning Jin received a message regarding an unexpected meeting they would be having with their managers later that day.

I had made us a light breakfast. We were both early birds, so we still managed to have a morning all to ourselves before he had to take off.

After we were done eating, we cuddled on the couch and watched one of our favorite cooking shows.

"Any idea what the meeting is going to be about?" I asked, curiously.

"All I know is that it will have to do with the Expo in 2030. We think they want to involve us in the bid. Probably give a small performance. We might have to record something," Jin said casually. His attention was more on the screen.

Instinctively, I got a little worried. "When would that take place? You guys have so much scheduled all of May. You only have a little bit of time off in April after the concerts."

"I'm sure we'll be able to squeeze it in." He kissed my head. "Don't worry. July is still going to be only ours," he promised, giving me a smile.

His words were all I needed to calm down. I stretched my neck and caught his lips with mine.

We continued to watch the show in front of us but a little later, my eyes scanned the room and they landed on the clock. I let out a groan.

"What?" he asked, his thick lips lingering around my throat, placing hot pecks.

"Your car is going to get here in an hour." I pressed back against him, loving how great he felt around me.

As I felt his breath skim over my shoulder, his fingers slid under my shirt. Well, it was actually his shirt I was wearing. But regardless, his fingers were being naughty. "Seokjinah," I warned, not being able to hold back my smile.

"Hmmm?" he hummed as his lips pressed to my warm skin.

"We don't have time," I giggled as he kissed a sensitive spot.

His fingers found one of my breasts and he squeezed. "I can get us there fast."

I giggled again at his mischievous behavior. "Seokjinssi."

His other hand started to make its way into the front of my pants. "Give me ten minutes. Max. That's enough for two rounds."

"Two rounds?" I asked, incredulously. "I am not some porn star, you know."

"The way you rode me the other night could have fooled me," he whispered into my ear. His voice was low and husky. And the way his fingers made it under my panties right at that moment and slid between my bottom lips sent a quiver down my legs.

A flash of our recent lovemaking came to mind. He wasn't wrong. I had been possessed.

I didn't further protest as his finger entered me. The position we were in allowed him to hit my sweet spot rather quickly. My hand took hold of his pants and I gripped them tightly. I breathed out his name.

His nose and lips skimmed her skin and hair. Though his touches were light, they were enough to spread a powerful heat along my body.

"How about it, gongjunim? You think you can go two rounds with me?" his deep and husky voice traveled up my neck and hit my eardrums.

I couldn't think clearly, though. The tone of his voice and the way his fingers were working my pussy were distracting me, making my head foggy.

Not sure when it occurred, but my pajama pants were pushed down, along with my panties, allowing Seokjin's fingers to work inside me easier.

My hips rotated, allowing my ass to rub against his bulge. The feeling of his clothed member pressed against me made me moan deeper.

His finger pinched my nipple as his fingers went in and out of me in a faster and rougher pace.

This only made me rub against him harder.

"Shit," he let out. He pushed my shirt up, his head digging in and mouthing my bra.

His hands were too busy, so I helped him out. I reached behind me and unhooked my bra.

Those beautiful, full lips were instantly around my nipple. His tongue ran circles around the bud as he sucked and pulled.

The sound of his slurps and my wet pussy quenching against his fingers started to push me over the cliff.

"Almost," I announced, grinding harder against him.

"I can feel it. Cum for me, beautiful." He purposefully made his slurps louder and his fingers became rougher, blasting the wet sounds in the room.

I was pushed closer, loving how beautiful our lovemaking sounded. And then I felt his thumb flick against my clit and I came fully undone. I called out to him as I reached the stars. My thighs clutched onto his hand, keeping him there as I rode out my orgasm.

However, I didn't have enough time to fully land back on earth before he bent over on the couch. The next time I felt was his large and engorged tip pressing onto my entrance. I only had enough time to take a breath before he pushed inside me.

I mewled underneath him. I was so grateful I was now fully on birth control. I loved not needing to think about it. It certainly made our lovemaking stress free.

I pushed back against him, wanting him to speed up. I felt my arousal come back in such a short time. Honestly, you would think I was some sort of horny teenager. How was I this wet again and ready to go so quickly?

He gripped my waist, took a good hold of my meat there, and slammed hard against me.

I fell down onto the cushions below me, losing my balance from his powerful thrust. Whimpers came out of me as he adjusted and pushed my thighs further apart. He settled down on me as his hips banged strongly against mine. He twisted his movements a little and hit a sweet spot inside me.

"Oh, god," I moaned, feeling another orgasm approaching.

He pushed up, the angle now striking my g-spot with full force. "I want you shaking underneath me," he growled.

Seokjin had a kink in watching my body fully lose control. He loved to watch it spasm, which was why he took delight in giving me multiple orgasms. He liked to see the aftershocks.

I had a love-hate relationship with his kink. My body loved the action, but my brain hated not being in control. But I never regretted it. Quite the opposite, every time we did it, I secretly hoped for multiple orgasms--which he almost always gave.

One of his hands wiggled under my body and searched for my core. Once he found my clit, he stroked it.

"Seokjinaaaaaah," I whined, my legs coming up and wiggling under his powerful body.

His other hand pushed my waist down, holding me still as he applied all his weight there. "Come on." He encouraged me as he slammed in, his long cock coming in and out of me.

A few strokes later and I came undone. This time, he allowed me to stay in the stars. He joined me quickly after, his hips aligned with mine and his cum pumping into my walls.

My body shook underneath his. It curled in a little, needing to self-soothe.

His breath was on my neck, coming in pants. "I love you, gongjunim."

My pussy squeezed his beautiful cock. I turned and my eyes met his. I knew I looked like a mess. "I love you, jagiya."

He leaned in and kissed me lovingly.

*************

Every day was hard. With every day that passed, it got both easier and harder. The nerves were always there. He would be leaving soon. I had come to accept it and brace for it. It had taken a long time, but as he had told me over and over again, "The sooner I leave, the sooner I can come back to you."

He was busy again, but still never broke the first promise he made me. He never went more than 48 hours without contact. Hell, he actually never went more than 24 hours without reaching out to me. And even during his concerts, he ensured we didn't go longer than two weeks without seeing each other.

Every promise he made to me had never been broken.

"July is all ours," he would vow when I felt his schedule was too busy.

It was all I needed to calm down.

So, you can imagine how I felt that day when I arrived home early from work.

I was positive Jin hadn't heard the door announce my arrival. I heard voices coming from the living room. Taking off my shoes, I slowly made my way in. From the words I was catching, I knew this was a serious and private conversation. I didn't like being nosy, so I made my way to the spare bedroom, knowing Seokjin and our guest wouldn't have heard me.

Just as I took out my earphones so I could listen to music as they spoke, I recognized the voice of the guest. It was Namjoon. There were a few words he said that pulled me and caused me to eavesdrop.

"Last concert." "Our fans will be disappointed." "We need you." "It would only be a few months you would push it back."

Possessed, I felt my body moving closer in so I could have a clearer listen.

Seokjin's voice came. "I have postponed this multiple times. You don't understand the pain it causes every time this subject is brought up. For so long, I couldn't give her a direct answer. I finally gave her a definite date. I can't keep doing this to her," his words were tight and controlled. But there was an almost lethal tone to them. I had heard it from him before but it was so seldom and never directed to any of his members.

"I know, hyung. But this is our last time. We didn't get to have this full experience in February. We've been given another chance," Namjoon sounded desperate.

"It's always something. First, it was the world tour, which didn't happen. Then it was the GRAMMYs. Then it was the concerts. Then the GRAMMYs again. Then it was the album. It's never-ending."

Namjoon agreed. "I know, I know. But we mean it this time. This will be it."

There was a long pause.

My heart stopped beating. My breathing paused. Desperately, I waited.

I wasn't completely sure what they were talking about, but I knew it wasn't good. It sounded like his deferment was going to stay intact another while longer. More months of waiting. More months with my worry. But my heart screamed at me. Seokjin promised. He always keeps his promises. But still, I was frozen and I waited.

Seokjin finally spoke. "This will be the last time you ask this of me, Namjoonah."

The feeling of a thousand knives dug into my chest and heart.

Then, with a small voice, Namjoon finally responded. "Yes, hyung."

It was an odd tone to hear from Namjoon. As the leader of the group, he never appeared submissive. He wasn't authoritative, but he certainly wasn't one to bend over and take it.

I might have felt concerned for his feelings if my own heart wasn't shattering at the moment.

There was a shuffling noise. Steps.

Closer.

"Noona," came Namjoon's voice. He was in front of me, in the hall. I was still inside the guest bedroom.

I'm not sure how I looked, but his entire face almost came undone. "I'm sorry. I didn't know you were here." He turned, probably towards Jin. Then turned back to me. He gave a most polite and respectful farewell. "Stay in good health, noona," he said and then made his way out.

I still couldn't move. I wanted to. Wanted to yell and Jin and demand answers.

Then, he was in front of me.

"Gongjunim." Seokjin's voice was full of nervousness and slight fear. "When did you get home?"

And then I came undone. I felt the tears start coming down.

His arms were instantly around me. "I'm so sorry. I'm sorry," he said over and over, desperately.

It seemed as if after all the years of holding it in, I finally cracked. I had respected his decision so many times. I kept it in every time I felt disappointed. Disappointed that he kept putting it off. I had been understanding. I had been patient.

But he had promised. He had fucking promised me!

As I cried on his shoulder, I felt his own sobs. "I'm sorry," he kept mumbling.

And I hated him.

Hated that he was an idol.

_______________

Chapters : 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05(M) | 06(M) | 07

MASTERLIST

NOTE: While the other chapters were a little more light and ended in a more "fluff and cute" kind of way, I wanted a couple of these "Hates" to be more heavy and realistic.

While this chapter was a pretty long one, next one is VERY short and sweet.

[botheringlevi]

Hey Levi 👋

I'm curious, have you seen any weird animals while outside the walls? I cant imagine spending days out there and even camping overnight!

*Remarks* Two weeks on paper. If there’s no complications that send us back early or late.

I have, mostly back then. *Slightly nostalgic* Just about every animal was weird to me… I thought possums were oversized rats until one seemed to fall over dead right in front of me. *Unnerved* What a shitty incident that was.

In a similar vein, squirrels. They look less like rats, but I didn’t realize they could climb trees. Some have these creepy lumps of loose skin under their arms to glide, but those are less common.

Skunks. *Revolted* Weird and fucking disgusting. Thankfully I was warned early on about those… but that didn’t stop Hange’s accidents.

I’d heard of wolves and coyotes. Didn’t know the difference. I found it weird how much they sounded like dogs. Too bad they’d rather maul you to death than make friends.

*Reverent* Birds. For a variety of reasons. Not all bad. There are so many kinds, some we still don't know about, I bet. Some thrive in water, or live exclusively in the mountains. I'm not a fan of the ones that look like wrinkled old men and eat dead things—buzzards circling above before a battle make me sick—and yet their brethren can sing, and splash in birdbaths. That's weird.

And what about all the types of eggs... the first time I saw an ostrich, I mistook it for a horse. *Grumbles* It had eggs the size of my head.

*Fascinated* I don't expect you've heard of murmuration. For no clear reason, one kind of bird called a starling and hundreds of its friends sometimes fly in these complicated patterns. Like a light show, I guess... except they work together in unison, as if they’d practiced. Weird.... *Quietly* But incredible, too.

[deldeldel90]

Leelathae/Isolde college au headcanons because the latest episode ruined me and I need something happy <333

- isolde is def a little spoon

- and also touchstarved but won't admit to it

- leelathae likes having somebody to hold, it makes her feel really cozy and warm inside

- isolde is crazy about her girlfriend. Loves her to a gushing amount. Like, if you ask her about her day, there's a 99% percent chance that leelathae will end up being brought up

- leelathae is a bit more chill/subtle about her affections but it's clear that she cares for isolde really deeply

- leelathae calls isolde her princess <3

- they both live in a shitty apartment with a equally shitty landlord that lowkey hates them both, leelathae still defends him when isolde calls him an asshole

- they both still have their issues and its a bit hard to talk about sometimes (leelathae doesn't wanna bother her girlfriend while isolde is prideful and doesn't want to shatter the image she's given leelathae)

- leelathae takes pottery classes and donates her creations away bc she thinks that it's better for them to go to someone who would cherish them more than her (and because she doesn't think she deserves nice things)

- leelathae's past with Jack's family instilled a lot of stuff in her

- they're both English majors !!

- isolde's in a band that she's been in since freshman year, leelathae goes to every concert she can

- leelathae attracts possums into their apartment somehow, they just come and she'll let em stay

- isolde thinks the possums are pretty cool :) they have the same taste in music

- isolde works at a pet shop while leelathae working at an aquarium (and, during the holidays, she usually bakes cookies to sell on the side)

- isolde was a bit of a party girl in her first year, always planning something with someone but now she's just kinda likes to stay with her girl and her select few of friends watch movies on the weekends

- leelathae wants to visit her family a lot and she misses them everyday but since they live in another country, its difficult. Each month, she saves money for one week-long trip in December so she can go

- isolde and leelathae are the type of couple to always be touching. Isolde is more kissing and hand holding, while leelathae likes shoulder touches and leaning against each other

- isolde is 5'5ft and leelathae is 5'6ft

- leelathae writes in diaries and isolde has a blog - they both enjoy writing out their feelings

- isolde literally loevs loves loves desserts. About 10% of her income each year is spent on sweets. She'll drop anything for a slice of pie, and the fact that leelathae sometimes bakes makes her want to marry her on the spot

- leelathae knows how to ballroom dance <3 isolde loves to watch her while she's doing it, thinks that she's the most graceful woman to ever glide ever

- leelathae plans romantic, slow dates like picnics so that they can bond better. Isolde plans dates that are more geared towards having the most amount of fun like amusement parks. They both plan movie dates

- isolde once tries to randomly play guitar for leelathae and normally she's pretty good at it but she got really nervous because Cute Girl, oh my god, this is straight out of a cheesy romance movie--

And she ended up playing a single note and dropped her guitar directly on the sensitive part of her foot and swore every curse in the book until the cows came home

- leelathae thinks that was the moment she fell in love with isolde

[mutant-distraction]

Luis Noel Otero

Pigmy Possum

AUSTRALIA

Pygmy possums could melt the hardest of hearts. But they’re not just pretty faces: though they can’t glide, they use their prehensile (grasping) tails like fifth limbs to climb swiftly and can deftly leap between tall trees.

Pygmy possums are tree-dwelling marsupials. From head to tail they can be as large as 12cm and, fully grown, as small as 5cm! They weigh between 10g and 50g.

Critically Endangered

[bethanythebogwitch]

Welcome to the final instalment of my series where I discuss the origins of every fish Pokemon. Today I’ll be covering gen IX. For previous generations see here: gens I-II, gens III-IV, gens V-VI, and gens VII-VIII.

People criticize Paldea for having too many birds and dogs, but I haven’t seen people talking about how many fish it has. I bring this up because Paldea has a lot of new fish. Only Hoenn introduced more fish lines. The first Paldean fish is the Wiglett line, which is also the only new multi-stage line. In this case, the species name helpfully tells us what it’s based on: garden eels. These eels are famous for poking their heads out of the sediment while keeping most of their bodies in an underground burrow. Because they typically live in large colonies and look a bit like grass, a group of eels can look a lot like a patch of plants, hence the name. Garden eels are very shy and will retract into their burrows at any sign of danger. This behavior is shared with Wiglett, which will retract if it sees the player coming, forcing you to sneak attack it to battle.

(image: garden eels looking adorable)

Wugtrio follows the garden eel origin, but also incorporates some moray eel inspiration. Both Morays and Wugtrio lurk in holes in rocks and grab passing prey, dragging them in. The fact that both Pokémon are slimy enough to get the Gooey ability is likely a reference to hagfish. These jawless fish are famous for their defense tactic where they secrete large amounts of slime when threatened.

(image: somebody playing with hagfish slime)

Finally, Wugtrio’s red coloration may draw from the giant tube worms found around hydrothermal vents.

(image: giant tube chilling on a hydrothermal vent. Except not chilling because it's really hot there)

As one of the two convergent pokemon lines, the Wiglett line is an example of convergent evolution. This is when distinct groups of organisms evolve similar adaptations in response to similar selective pressures. A classic example of this is the flap of skin used for gliding known as a patagium that has evolved independently in flying squirrels (rodents), gliding possums (marsupials) and colugos (primate relatives). All three groups evolved the patagium to beter move between trees in their arboreal environments. In the case of Wiglett’s similarity to Diglett, the dex entries and official website helpfully tell us that the two species evolves similar body plans because they are both dedicated burrowers.

(image: a diagram showing an example of convergent evolution in sugar gliders and flying squirrels)

Veluza is based on hakes, specifically merluccid hakes. These are predatory fish in the same family as cod and haddock who are known for being indiscriminate predators of smaller fish. Fittingly, Veluza is pretty aggressive, chasing down the player whenever they get near one. Hake are pretty economically important in Spain, Paldea’s main real-world basis. The Spanish love their hake. Not only do more than half the hake sales in Europe go to Spain, Spain is also the world’s largest consumer of the fish.

(image, a silver hake)

Veluza having a prominent dorsal fin and what seems to be an anal fin followed by smaller triangular finlets reminds me pretty heavily of tuna, who are also very fast predators.

(image: a tuna's tail, showing the finlets)

Veluza also almost looks kind of mechanical, which makes me wonder if there’s some inspiration coming from torpedoes or submarines. Veluza’s habit of removing parts of its own flesh is an example of autotomy. This is when an animal will remove parts of its own body and is the basis for the pokemon move autotomize (which Veluza doesn’t get for whatever reason). Autotomy is mostly used for defense while Veluza uses it to increase its speed and offenses. In my very quick search I was unable to find any examples of fish that use autotomy, but the fact that the move that represents this in Veluza is called Fillet Away and the dex mentions how the shed flesh tastes, it’s pretty clearly another reference to how much the Spanish eat hake. In this case, it’s a fish that fillets itself for you.

I’m going to talk about Dondozo and Tatsugiri together as while they’re different lines, they’re linked to each other. Dondozo is a giant catfish, specifically a wels catfish, the largest freshwater fish in Europe. While not native to the Iberian peninsula, the species has been introduced there. Dondozo’s diet including bird Pokémon is a reference to how wels catfish will beach themselves to try to catch and eat birds.

(image: an absolute unit wels catfish with human for scale)

Something I can’t understate is that Dondozo is big. At a height (presumable length in this case) of 39’04”, Dondozo is the second largest non-legendary in the franchise and 3rd largest overall after Eternatus and Wailord. That’s whale shark sizes and dwarfs the beluga sturgeon. The largest freshwater fish in the world. The two largest non-legendary Pokémon being aquatic is true to real life, where animals in the water can get much bigger than animals on land. Nothing as big as a blue whale can exist on land because without the support that water gives, the animal’s own weight would crush it. This is why beaching is usually a death sentence for large whales. Of course it would be remiss of me to not mention that both Tatsugiri and Dondozo have a sushi theme. Dondozo is based on a sushi chef. It’s head frills look like the traditional sushi chef headband and its tongue looks like a sushi geta, the wooden bench sushi is commonly served on. The sushi theme is more prevalent with Tatsugiri, which looks like a piece of hand-shaped sushi.

(image: sushi nigiri)

The different forms and colors of Tatsugiri make different individuals look like different dishes. The different colors may reference koi, which could also explain its dragon typing. Koi, and carp in general, are often associated with dragons. Tatsugiri can use its fins like limbs and survive out of water, possibly referencing fish like lungfish and mudskippers, who can live out of the water. Dondozo and Tatsugiri have a mutualistic relationship, a type of symbiosis where both parties benefit. Tatsugiri is the brains to Dondozo’s brawn, giving instructions to the larger fish and acting as bait to lure in prey. This is a form of aggressive mimicry. Tatsugiri is stated to dwell in Dondozo’s mouth. This could reference two things. The first is mouth brooding, where a parent fish will keep its offspring inside its mouth to protect them. The second is cleaner fish, who can safely go into the mouth of larger predatory fish because of a mutualistic relationship with them.

(image: a mouth-brooding fish)

The final fish Pokémon so far and the only legendary fish is Chi-Yu. This adorable little malevolent monstrosity is based on a goldfish, or rather fire in the shape of a goldfish. Like the other Treasures of Ruin, its true body is the actual treasure, magatama beads in this case, while the rest of the body is gathered from the environment to support the treasure. Chi-Yu being born from envy and the jade beads being in place of the eyes makes it a very literal green-eyed monster. Chi-Yu and the Treasures of Ruin in general are based on the Four Perils, malevolent beings from Chinese mythology. The Treasures don’t map exactly to the Perils and the connection is stronger in some than others. For example, Ting-Lu is based on the Taotie, which is usually depicted on cauldrons, and it has a massive cauldron on its head. Chi-Yu is probably based on the Hundun, a faceless creature with 6 legs. Chi-Yu doesn’t have a proper face, just beads where eyes should be, and it has 6 fins on each side of its body. The Hundun also has wings and fins are kind of like wings I guess? Not related to Pokémon, but the Hundun appears in the Iron Widow, which is a book you absolutely should read.

(image: a depiction of a Hundun)

And with that, this series comes to a close, at least until we get Gen X. I may do something similar with other Pokémon based on aquatic creatures, but I haven’t decided yet. I may also discuss some of my own fakemon if anyone is interested.