#striped field mice

[antiqueanimals]

Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia, vol. 11, Mammals II. 1972.

1.) Brown rat (Rattus norvegicus)

2.) Black rat (Rattus rattus)

3.) Greater bandicoot rat (Bandicota indica)

4.) House mouse (Mus musculus)

5.) Wood mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus)

6.) Striped field mouse (Apodemus agrarius)

7.) Yellow-necked mouse (Apodemus flavicollis)

8.) Eurasian harvest mouse (Micromys minutus)

9.) Eastern spiny mouse (Acomys dimidiatus)

10.) Greater stick-nest rat (Leporillus conditor)

11.) Giant white-tailed rat (Uromys caudimaculatus)

12.) Typical striped grass mouse (Lemniscomys striatus)

13.) Southern multimammate mouse (Mastomys coucha)

14.) Four-striped grass mouse (Rhabdomys pumilio)

15.) Gambian pouched rat (Cricetomys gambianus)

[strawberrykidneystone]

the normandy cat

-yk how pirate ships had cats on them to eat mice and stuff? yeah the normandy definitely had a cat on it in ME3

-she’s a grey-striped tabby with one eye missing, so shepard named her winky

-she kinda just wandered on one day and never left

-she gets in the tunnels and airways all the time and edi tracks her movement

-she's usually in the shuttle bay and wacks at the robot dog (sorry kei-9)

-vega and cortez keep her food and water filled at all times (they get her the good wet food and put ice cubes in her water)

-vega insisted he was more of a dog person, but was immediately found with winky crawling all over his shoulders and using him as a living jungle gym with vega laughing like a little schoolboy

-cortez had to start doing "winky checks" because she has snuck onto the kodiak during take-off on more than one occasion

-becomes the ship-wide ESA

-garrus trims her claws whenever he trims his own talons

-tali can frequently be found holding her and baby talking to her, telling her how cute and fluffy she is, 10000x worse when she's drunk

-when grissom academy was saved, the teens had a FIELD DAY playing with her and using their biotics to float her in the air (don't worry she enjoyed it, they also made some of her bird toys fly for her to "hunt")

-shepard usually holed up in her room to read reports, but now she can frequently be found on the couch in the common area with winky purring away on her lap

-liara softly scolds the cat when she tries to attack glyph but it's never serious, she enjoys the cat jumping around as a distraction every so often

-kaidan is such a cat dad, he hand sews her a little N7 vest and makes her an eyepatch too

-ashley is very neutral about the cat, she never calls her by her name but never pushes the cat away when she curls up next to her

-traynor is less than pleased about having a cat on board and has to invest in antihistamines like no bodies business, but she sees how happy she makes the crew and that's enough for her

-the cat almost made them crash one time when she jumped up on the normandy consul so joker is not a huge fan "keep her out of the cockpit shepard!"

-edi likes the cat, at least she thinks she does. she definitely seems to like her.

-javik doesn't get the appeal, but does enjoy the feeling of her fur so he tolerates her near him

[gallifreyinstituteforlearning]

What native Gallifreyan species are there?

Gallifrey has a diverse range of fauna, both native and introduced. Despite claims of minimal ecological impact, the installation of the Eye of Harmony and millions of years of Time Lord civilisation have significantly altered Gallifrey's original biosphere.

🦋 Invertebrates

Beatitude Flies: Begin as maggots and pupate into golden-winged nocturnal insects. They use nectar to create helium in their bellies and are attracted to light and decay.

Butterflies: Various species flutter across Gallifrey.

Bees: Essential for pollination.

Gullet Grubs: Likely to live in digestive tracts of larger mammals, or similar environments.

Blossom Thieves: Possibly insects that steal nectar or pollen.

Scrubblers: Likely small, cleaning insects.

Neversuch Beetles, Sandbeetles, Waspbeetles: Various beetles.

Dustworms: Likely live in dry, dusty environments.

Scissors Bugs: Possibly predatory insects with sharp mandibles.

Flutterwings: Gigantic insects (3 meters by 25 meters) that never land. Five races include Wild Endeavor, Mandrigal, Silver-Band, Blue Crystal, and Perdition.

Snails

Water-Sligs: Likely aquatic or semi-aquatic molluscs.

Web-Spinning Insects: Including spiders about an inch long.

Other dangerous invertebrates: There are also nasty creatures that live beneath big stones.

🐟 Marine Life

Singing Yaddlefish: Notable for their song, and they can be eaten.

Kittensharks: Hatch from eggs and presumably grow into Catsharks.

Axolotl Salamanders: Amphibious creatures with regenerative abilities.

🐍 Elapids

Taipan: A venomous snake, 10 metres long.

Venal Snakes: Possibly nest-stealers or highly venomous.

Bat-Snakes: Presumably flying snakes.

Dinosauria: 20-meter-long reptiles resembling brontosaurs with thick chitinous scales and serrated teeth.

🦅 Avians

Owls: Symbol of Rassilon.

Flurry Birds: Likely small, fast-moving birds.

Trunkikes: Game birds whose eggs are often eaten.

Air Diamonds: Fly in the upper atmosphere, possibly crystalline or bioluminescent.

Song Birds: Various species.

Gargantosaurs: Dinosaur-like creatures, twice the size of a hab-bloc, with two legs, vestigial wings (with purple and white feathers), and four eyes.

🦣 Mammals

Plungbolls: Thumbnail-sized furry creatures living in mountains, attach en masse to warm objects.

Taffelshrews: Edible rodent-like mammals.

Fledershrews: Bat-like, mushroom eaters, nearly extinct.

Cobblemice: Mice that sprout wings.

Rovie Mice: Field-dwelling, long-lived if kept safe, sometimes pets. They have short memories.

Moss-Rats: Possibly rodents that live in marshes with moss-like camouflage.

Vex: Burrowing animals.

Gallifreyan Womprats: 1-metre-long rats with fifteen legs.

Pig-Rats: Inhabit the Drylands, presumably combining porcine and rodent traits.

Rabbits

Flubbles: Small six-legged koalas.

Unnamed rounder rabbit-like creatures

Ounce-Apes: Might be tiny monkeys that are particularly agile.

Sealak: Perhaps a kind of seal, often eaten.

Bear-Ass: A donkey-like animal with bear-like qualities.

Horse-Cats: Probably a horse/cat hybrid-like species.

Sagittary: Horse-like creatures.

Elephants

Pig-Bears: Can be trained as pets.

Wolf-like Creatures: With long snouts and black-and-white striped fur, almost as big as adult humanoids.

Broakir: Live in foothills, often hunted for food.

Baanjxx: Arboreal browsers that like to eat hallucinogenic cerub nuts. As a child, the Doctor was kicked by one in the head, apparently.

Cows

Walrus

Gallifreyan Marlot: Purple and unique in all of time and space. Probably a bit cat-like.

House Cats: Revered as symbols of intelligence. Traditionally, Presidents kept them as pets.

🐱 Killer Cats (C.A.T.S)

Killer C.A.T.S: These sapient creatures possess instinctive precognitive powers and cat-like physiology. Known for their lethal gladiatorial contests, they despise Time Lord traditions and live in the Gin-Seng Sector of Southern Gallifrey. Their culture includes mercenaries and oracles; they are telepathic.

🏞️ Ecosystem Preservation

Though Gallifrey's outer ecology has suffered, the Time Lords have used technology to preserve many species. Extinct species have been collected, ensuring none become completely extinct. The more fearsome creatures are contained in the Death Zone, while xeno-zoos hold alien species from other worlds.

🏫 So ...

So there's your whistlestop tour of the species on Gallifrey. One day, I'll try to put these onto a species distribution map. Oh, by Rassilon's Beard, I just gave myself more work.

Related:

How is Gallifreyan geography different to Earth?: The landscape of Gallifrey.

Factoid: The Fruits of Gallifrey

What could be some biological traits of Gin-Seng cats?: Looking at who the Gin-Seng cats are, their biology, and their place on Gallifrey and in society.

Hope that helped! 😃

Any purple text is educated guesswork or theoretical. More content ... →📫Got a question? | 📚Complete list of Q+A and factoids →😆Jokes |🩻Biology |🗨️Language |🕰️Throwbacks |🤓Facts →🫀Gallifreyan Anatomy and Physiology Guide (pending) →⚕️Gallifreyan Emergency Medicine Guides →📝Source list (WIP) →📜Masterpost If you're finding your happy place in this part of the internet, feel free to buy a coffee to help keep our exhausted human conscious. She works full-time in medicine and is so very tired😴

[ceiling-karasu]

I keep thinking about the concept of field mice in the show (also revisiting old concepts on species research).

These poor mice go through so much for the Weasel Unit. I know we rag on the Flower Hill Commanders a lot in here, but just think about how stupid the Weasel Unit commanders have to be to not rely on them more.

For one, these mice are super loyal. They happily go to infiltrate Flower Hill despite the limited disguises, and still continue to be loyal after they are betrayed.

But one would think a field mouse would be able to tell that another field mouse is a squirrel. And the Weasel Unit Commanders do nothing to capitalize on that.

(Field mouse number 2 on the left, squirrel in the right).

Of course, I assume that by field mice they mean mice in the field. They are more likely to represent Japanese dormice, who do have bushy tails. Also light to yellow enough that I don’t have to bring in hazel dormice at all if I want.

Which matches nicely with red squirrels, who also have darker patches on their backs and heads, depending on phenotype. I just think about the work the writers must have put in to notice this. Can’t use regular gray squirrels here! (Asian red squirrels grow tufted ears in the winter, and you can kind of see this on Bamsaegi)

(I have better pictures but those are at home).

Mind, I assume Juldarami’s pattern is stylistic to help tell him apart, but there are also many types of striped squirrels in Asia I have already talked about if I wanted to make things more complicated.

So it’s a wonder that the field mice don’t appear as often, even if they are more of an elusive and rare species. They could easily call out Geumsaegi and Juldarami.

Field Mouse Number 6 doesn’t even hesitate.

I wonder if they weren’t killed off by the commanders because they looked so much like squirrels. Also, apparently they are rare and elusive, so I doubt they would be drafted as much, considering the confusion they might cause.

I can really see Huinjogjebi and other weasels as going into ‘I have to protect myself and the unit’ mode and just purging them.

Which could lead to an AU or short story someone could make about the mice having to flee to Flower Hill in order to escape the commanders, only for him to later realize he’s made a horrible mistake with all the intel he’s lost with them being gone.

[sp00ntaneous]

'Eight-To-Go' ~ When I posted this on another site a few years back a couple of folk were offended by it.... thinking I was promoting harm to cats. But what I explained was that this goofy carving was actually an 'ode' to the only cat I have ever 'owned'.

'Aslan' was a grey striped kitten that would climb your britches leg or the curtains. A wild natured cat but kids could awkwardly pick him up and he would not scratch them.

As he grew older he would always follow me into the woods when I went hiking. He'd wonder off on his own and show back up a day or so later. He was really good at hunting. He would stalk a bird and leap to pull it out of the air. He'd leave mice on the front porch for us.

Once he had a big cut on his back and the vet told us that an owl or a hawk had tried to pick him up. With those 9 stitches in his back he fell off the third floor balcony onto concrete... and just walked it off. So many stories I could tell about that cat.

One day I saw a Labrador Retriever running across the field with something in his mouth. I ran out and headed him off and it turned out to be Aslan. He had been up in the woods and got himself shot. I'd like to think it was a case of 'mistaken identity' but never found out.

We had a Christmas ornament made with his photo and I carved this piece out of a pine 4" x 4" post... as a remembrance of that crazy cat.

'Cat Incense Burner' was carved in English pearwood and had malachite cabochons for eyes.

'Wildcat' was a marquetry panel composed of several different species of wood veneer.

[deusvervewrites]

Seiai Academy: so, Hosu just straight up either doesn't happen, or if it does, Tenya isn't there, so Stain would get away most likely.

Also, would Ketsubutsu and Seiai do joint training from time to time?

Thought I had, Blackwhip probably wouldn't be the first legacy quirk Midoriya unlocks. I can't see Mido getting angry enough without Monoma and in a much more supportive school, so I feel like Float or Danger Sense would be the first.

The Summer Camp attack wouldn't happen, but I could see Seiai possibly contacting The Wild Wild Pussycats and set up a similar training camp to canon's, just without any LoV attacks because the LoV has no reason.

Also, how does the MLA get shut down here, or do they play an Actual Role in this, instead of just being convenient villainous cannon-fodder?

And you know what I can see happening? Star and Stripe seeing All Might guest lecture various hero schools, and decides that's a great idea, and contacts All Might, who is going to be guest speaking at Seiai soon, and decides that S&S is a perfect role model for these fine young women and invites her along. On the way they happen to run into Inko, who was visiting her daughter, and, well, we all know what happens from there.

Hosu is unlikely to happen at all. While Tensei getting taken down by Stain isn't affected by this AU, the League never attacking the USJ means they have no reason to try and get better recruits, so they don't meet Stain, so they don't unleash the Noumu. And as mentioned elsewhere in this AU, Tenya would struggle to run off to fight Stain without, like, straight up running away from home.

Ketsubutsu and Seiai doing joint training makes sense. Actually, it makes sense for all of the smaller schools to collaborate this way more often than UA would because it's an efficient way to get different experiences.

Now there's an idea. Midoriya being in a different headspace at Seiai at that time resulting in a different Quirk activating.

I did mention the idea of Seiai using field trips to get different environment training

I don't really know what I'd do with the MLA here. Though if the League are struggling to make headway, then the MLA might go ahead with their own plans since there's no competition...

Okay normally I don't respond to the 'And Then CathInko' asks because I feel like pure shipping posts might distract from the main point of the AU (see also the mice from Little Mouse) but Cathleen showing up to talk at an all-girls Hero School where her master's pupil is makes a lot of sense.

[naturepunks]

clawing at the sides of my enclosure trying to get out of this insane bout of artblock that persisted for the majority of 2022

so! to help mend that, i wanted to do personal headcannons of what the book clan cats physiques are. minor additions below that i couldnt fit on the images themselves

⚡️ThunderClan are the most… cat? like, they’re truly the generic brand of feline. their overall body and form didnt really need to change that much to better their ability to survive in their own environment… so it didnt! they’re typically more warm coated to help blend into the greenery that surrounds them.

🌌ShadowClan are small but strong. Pray is scarce, so their population hasnt been able to grow to rival other clans, but they’re truly masters of their territory, using the thick tree cover to their advantage. Their paws are also very tender due to the pine needles making a cushy blanket that covers the forest floor, which also helps absorb any sound they may accidentally make. Theyre mostly dark solids, any brighter color typically does more harm than good.

💨WindClan also isnt a very big clan, but they’re very closely knit. Rabbits and field mice are very plentiful almost all year round, so they’re able to eat plenty, but both are very quick to duck into burrows. Need to be fit and fast to survive… they’re also really annoying cats to be around. They know they can outrun anybody.

🌊RiverClan cats are very prideful in their proportions and hold themselves in high regard and believe themselves to be the prettiest of all cats. Their fur grows very full and long, but they use fish oil to slick their hair back to aid in swimming and dry time. They spend a lot of time sun bathing and try not to let the other ugly cats bother them too much, as they hate getting their paws dirty. They’re majority thin striped tabbies with light underbellies as the fish have trouble seeing them.

🌳Skyclan is very kindly, as they see other clans as very polite for letting them join them in their lives. They’re well known for being very welcoming to new members, and are a refuge for any cat trying to leave their old life behind. They’re very arboreal and spend a lot of time building muscle to leap great lengths.

[critter-of-the-day]

1st of September 2024: Oldfield Mouse

Let’s begin this month with a rodent, shall we? Here’s the Oldfield Mouse (Peromyscus polionotus). They have a total length of 11-15 cm [1], and are spread across the South Eastern US [2].

One of their notable characteristics is their burrowing. They build long tunnels of around 1.8 m long which consist of three parts: an entrance tunnel, a nesting chamber, and an escape tunnel. The latter can be used to flee if a predator such as a snake is blocking the entrance [3]. When compared to the closely related Deer Mice (P. maniculatus) (who also build smaller and simpler tunnels), they begin their construction very early, with Oldfield Mice as young as 17 days building complete burrows. Both of these traits are genetic, as cross-fostering (aka giving Deer Mice children to Oldfield Mice parents and vice versa) did not change anything. Those behaviours are also genetically linked, as cross breeding indicated [4].

Oldfield Mice are firmly monogamous, with both the male and the female providing care to their young. This is also genetic, as this was maintained even when cross-fostering with the promiscuous Deer Mice, who also care less for their children [5]. Oldfield Mice have 1-8 children, averaging 4, at a time [6], but it is suspected they are able to mate year round [2].

Their fur colouration can vary quite a bit, depending on where you look. They have a total of 16 subspecies, and as their habitats vary between disturbed fields and sandy beaches, it isn’t surprising when certain populations have darker backs with stripes, while others don’t [1]. It has also been shown experimentally that blending in helps with survival rates [7]. While they are classified overall as Least Concern, certain subspecies are considered endangered [2].

Sources: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [Image]

[josendlessmonolouge]

21, 22, and 24.

21 I have a lot of pet all extremely spoiled/ well taken care of. I have three inside cats and one barn cat. 3 dogs and a rabbit. Idk how we afford to take care of them all and give them vet care but somehow we do even though I literally qualify for reduced lunch 1)I’ve posted quite a bit about my new barn cat Julian, he’s just a little black and white kitten he’s kinda imprinted onto me and follows me everywhere in the yard. 2) Dumbo is our oldest pet he’s a 13 year old orange cat, he’s my best friend ever and I love him so much. When he was born he was the biggest kitten so my mom and dad named him jumbo but I was a little kid so I called him dumbo bc that was my favorite movie.

3)Then we have moo moo he’s a big huge fat fluffy black and white cat whose favorite person is my step-dad. My stepdad calls him prince moo and sits in bed and reads with him on his days off. Also everytime you eat you have to offer moo moo some. He won’t eat it but you have to offer

4) final cat- ivy. Ivy is our smallest cat she’s a grey striped tabby. She only sits with my mom but likes to be petted and loved on by my step dad and i but won’t sit with us. Her and moo moo are both fixed but since all our lick on each other and sit with each-other we say her and moo moo are married

5) my rabbit radar- he’s a jerk. I named him after radar from mash but he is nothing like little kind radar o’riley bc he likes to throw things in the middle of the night. He’s a harlequin rabbit and spoiled rotten I have to remind my mom not to give him too many fruits bc they aren’t good for him in large quantities. Also when he was a baby he peed on my keyboard and messed up like 5 keys. Luckily I don’t play the keyboard anymore but still.

final stretch here y’all gotta understand we’re a three person family with a big yard and my mom has always been raised with pets and my step dad always had cats

6) bandy- bandy is my Shetland sheep dog. She’s tricolor and a little old lady. She thinks she’s the boss around here

7) ginger- lab poodle mix technically a labradoodle but she doesn’t have the special traits since true labradoodles are more poodle than lab. And she’s half and half. She’s the smartest dog ever. She’s very protective she used to sit inbetween me and my ex and she only likes strangers if my mom or I introduce them to her

8) tophy- west highland white terrier. Little jerk, (she’s plenty sweet but she’s just very protective of my mom) . She likes to run out into the cow fields and have us chase her we found out if we just sit on the front porch she will eventually come back. She’s caught more mice than all our cats combined. Once I was playing video games with my ex and I he was getting loud talking at me bc he beat me at mariocart and she jumped down from the couch to get him bc she thought he was being agressive to me.

okay finally off the pets onto 22

Probably chocolate almond, or strawberry from braums. I like homemade mint chocolate.

finally 24

the sims or the papa’s flash games. Idk I’m very partial to them and definitely don’t play them while I’m in chemistry lectures

[catharusustulatus]

Random Steve Harrington headcanons I have:

He was cool and aloof as King Steve, but he’s always been and still is a self-assured, leaps before he looks, takes life in strides, try anything once type of guy. He likes to think he’s changed a lot, but he isn’t a dweller. He ate a worm on a dare in seventh grade and thought, not bad. Then he moved on.

When he realizes he’s bi he “figures it out” because he didn’t want to not know what kissing a guy (besides Tommy, who was his first kiss) felt like, and then didn’t hate it, and it’s that simple. He’s a flirty, romantic, horny guy and when he figured out he could seemingly double the amount of dates and kinds of orgasms he could have? He brought an ice cream cake to work to celebrate, which Robin laughed about (over ice cream cake).

His middle name is Thomas. Tommy’s middle name is Steven. They used to joke about that, how they were “two sides of the same coin.” He still has Tommy’s baseball glove in his closet shoebox of trinkets and important items - he never had the heart to return it after their fight. But he thinks about Tommy all the time. About if he’s changed.

Other items in his closet shoebox: his Scoops Ahoy name tag, his pressed penny from his field trip to Chicago in fourth grade, his stuffed rabbit, Polaroids of Robin, asleep with a marker mustache, Robin, holding a fish she caught with Lucas, Robin, flipping him off while prank calling the donut shop, Dustin with his eyelids flipped up, Dustin when his new tooth finally came in, Max on her bike with a big smile, Lucas and Erica at Erica’s lemonade stand this past spring, his camera, his first photo strip with Nancy, his first note to Nancy (not delivered because he spelled beautiful incorrectly) his favorite photo of Nancy, waving from her doorway - that one was taken by Jonathan. A note from Jonathan. Max’s letter. Two dice, some playing cards, Robin’s cootie catcher she made for him when he was sick and bored last winter. All his prized possessions.

When he was seven his dad dislocated his arm. He lied and told everyone he fell. His dad never touched him again, but his dad also never really looked at him again either.

He loves German chocolate and carrot cake, and Dustin makes fun of him every birthday for his “old man palette.” But he and Mrs. Henderson still bake him a cake every year.

His favorite mole on his body is the one by his belly button, because that’s the one his mom used to tickle.

His obsession with stripes goes beyond polos. His striped wallpaper is still up, on only one side of his room (Robin made him take the other walls down, said his room was too like a cage), but his bedding is striped too. He also has a striped shower curtain. He loves stripes :-)

His favorite color is green, like the trees by the quarry in spring. His second favorite color is “Robin’s egg blue” which he didn’t believe was a real color until Robin showed him at the library. He likes it because it’s Robin, but also because he secretly loves his mom’s turquoise ring she always leaves on her nightstand.

He read Of Mice and Men in one sitting, and cried for three days afterwards.

He knows all the lyrics to Queen’s discography. But his favorite artist is Springsteen.

He doesn’t smoke weed for a long time after Starcourt. He doesn’t drink either. The first time he’s able to smoke without panicking is when Argyle gifts him a roll of Palm Tree Delights for his birthday, and graciously smokes them with him.

Sometimes he showers just to cry.

Robin has seen him fully naked and vice versa. Sometimes he pees when she’s in the shower at his house (he has better shampoo and water pressure).

When he can’t sleep, he thinks of all the people he loves. What they look like, their favorite things, what he loves about them, until he dozes off.

He loves peanut butter and jelly but also sometimes when he wants a sandwich he eats butter between two slices of banana bread. Everyone else is disgusted but he swears by it.

He keeps his car so nice because he has a feeling it will be the only thing he truly gets to keep from his father.

He loves blowing gum bubbles. His favorite gum is the Archie comics one, Bazooka. Guess he should have figured he was bi, he always loved Jughead.

These days, when he thinks of his loved ones to sleep, he thinks about Eddie, too.

[stevie-b13]

Paradise Lost- Oh, Purest Love

—————————————————————————

Suguru is the first to wake up that morning. The golden beams of sun are poking through the ivy covered hut and resting on the cheeks of the man next to him. His white hair and eye lashes take on the suns color and Suguru is amazed that his love could look any more beautiful.

He is just as beautiful as they day god had created him and yet staring at him like this never was a bore and never dulled his beauty.

“God must have unimaginable power to have created someone with such immeasurable beauty as you. You are the true power of his divinity.” He whispers to the sleeping face.

Without ever opening his eyes, Satoru replies in a hushed voice, “I come from your rib, my dearest one. I am so glad to have part of you within me.”

They lay and smile at each other, blushes on their cheeks as if this was the first time they’d met.

——————

The morning was spent bathing in a pond, taking the time to gently clean each other. Maybe it was all an excuse to feel the other’s skin or to show affection through rubbing suds into the other’s scalp.

Once out of their bath, they tended to their many animals and hundreds of varieties of plants.

As he was watering a patch of grass, Satoru came upon a purple flower with wild tendrils striped with white at their bases. If he remembered correctly, Suguru had named the only one he’d ever found Passion as the gardens they tended to were a passion of his and that flower seemed a fitting reward for such a thing. Without a second thought, he plucked it from the ground to bring it to him.

He found Suguru laying in the grass surrounded by deer, foxes, bears, all snoring in harmony around him.

“Napping without me?” Satoru looked down and asked, his tone showing more endearment than annoyance.

“I was waiting for you. You know I can’t sleep without you by my side.” Suguru smiled without ever opening his eyes.

Satoru stood for a moment longer, watching the slow rise and fall of the other man’s chest and how his expression could only be described as one of utter peace.

It was so beautiful.

Without a word, Satoru took up an open patch of grass to the side of Suguru and rested beside him.

“Hey Suguru, look at me for a moment.”

Suguru obediently tuned his head to the side and cracked an eye open.

“Hm?”

“A flower for you.” Satoru answered, taking a finger to brush Suguru’s hair back behind his ear and tuck the flower stem into it.

“Divine man, full of beauty, god could never give me a greater treasure than you. I admire you more than the soul of the earth.” He says as he stares back into Satoru’s eyes.

——————

Though they have never know the feeling of clothes on their bodies, neither hungers for the other as they lie naked together, rather they look at their naked bodies as wonderful creations that deserves nothing but respect a reverence.

Their sex is delicate as if either man were a petal of the passion flower behind Suguru’s ear. They lust not for their own pleasure, but to bring the other pleasure. They wrap arms around each other, not to catch their prey, but to embrace the soul of the other in an attempt to transfer even a small amount of the abundant love they feel.

When angels come down from heaven to tell them stories, if one is napping they will wait to hear the story from the other for they trust one another more than the angels in heaven.

But is a snakes word more worthy of an ear than god’s?

——————

Satoru is the first to wake up. He wouldn’t dare disturb his love’s slumber and it would bring him great pleasure to finish their chores if only for the smile he may receive in return. As quietly as the field mice around them, he tiptoes off to the fruit trees to harvest the ripe stock.

——————

Mangos, peaches, pears, figs, plums, and so many more. All varieties of fruit one could ever want for and yet on this day, the whispers of the only apple tree in the canter of the grove call to him- the only tree they’d been told never to eat from.

As he creeps closer, he can see a lone, bitten apple at the base of its trunk. Curiosity gets the better of him as he searches for a culprit.

“Did you come for an apple as well?” asks a voice with no owner.

“No. We were told not to eat from here. Who are you?” Satoru naively asks.

To his surprise, a snake slithers down from the dense branches and speaks.

“Eat one to gain knowledge. I was only a hungry snake and now I can speak with you. What will happen when you, a being closer to god, partakes?”

The snake knocks a whole apple from its branch onto the ground at Satoru’s feet. He reaches down to pick it up and hold the foreign fruit in his hand. It feels like any other fruit.

The snake speaks again, “This fruit will give you knowledge, knowledge that shall make you that of a god.”

“I wish to ascend to that level and be as great as my god.” Satoru mumbles out loud despite everything in his mind telling him to obey that god’s orders.

He brings the fruit up to his nose and again, it smells like any other fruit. Nothing telling of its supposed god-like knowledge within.

Curiosity again bares its fangs in the form of a bite to the apple. Satoru’s mouth is flooded with sweet juice. Its taste is like any other fruit in this grove.

He takes a moment before swallowing for a revelation to appear, but none comes.

“Swallow.” the snake prods.

Satoru obeys.

“I have eaten of this fruit, I have invited death in.” He tells himself. ”If Sugur eats of this fruit, will he ascend to the same godhood?” “If I die from this knowledge, I couldn’t stand for him to have another I. We will share all, even death.”

The moment the fruit is gone from his throat and within his stomach, he resigns himself to his new status and waits for the knowledge to flow in.

He leaves the grove without a word to find the only other person in the world.

——————

Suguru is exactly where he had left him, sitting in a patch of grass surrounded by animals and feeling of peace in his heart.

“Eat of this and we shall be gods together.” Satoru coheres him.

Suguru’s blood runs cold in horror at the sight of the bitten apple extended to him. His hands lose their strength and the flowers he had almost finished weaving into a crown fall from their grasp onto the grass below.

The color of the flowers had faded to grey-ish a while ago, and Suguru now sees the reason for their grief. He too feels overcome with the same grief.

“I could give all my ribs and never find love like that I have found with you.” , he somberly states. ”I cannot live in a world that does not have you, grand or hellish. My certain resolution is to die.”

Suguru musters his strength to stand, the flower behind his ear falling to the ground like the others, and takes the masticated apple from Satoru. It’s already gone soft and isn’t so sparking red as it had been on the branches he’d looked at many times before.

With the apple pressed to his lips, he murmurs the final words to leave his mouth, “Oh, Satoru you’re so adventurous. I’d call you a fool but that name seems more befitting of I.”

His peace spoken, he takes the bite that seals his eternal fate.

[antiqueanimals]

La Vie des Animaux Illustrée. Written by Alfred Brehm. Illustration by Robert Kretschmer. 1869 French edition.

Internet Archive

[just-another-fic-blog]

Valentine’s Day: Mulmangcho/Guemsaegi

“Hey.” Mulmangcho didn’t bother to play nice when he saw the two so-called “field mice” talking together in the room. It didn’t matter. Not when he only had eyes on one. “You, stripes. Get out. Now.”

The other seemed offended. “E-excuse you?!”

“I said get out. I need to have a talk with your friend. Alone.”

The other sputtered a bit, before the mammal Mulmangcho had actually been looking for placed a hand on his shoulder. “It’s alright. I’ll be fine.”

The other looked between them, shot Mulmangcho a dirty look, then walked out of the room. Slamming the door behind him.

“So,” the first spoke up. “What is it that you needed to-”

“Cut the crap.” Mulmangcho glared at his nemesis. “And listen. Alright? Just listen. You took my fucking tail, I think you owe me that much.”

Slowly, his nemesis nodded.

“Great. So.” Mulmangcho walked forward. “About two months ago I came forward with an accusation against you to Vixen. Since, you know, I’d recognize your fucking face anywhere and I knew you were here to spy on them. And on us. She didn’t really believe me, so we came to understanding. She’d set up a test. You failed, you die. You succeeded, I die. Simple enough. Only,” his nemesis was against the wall now. “The test never happens. And Vixen’s avoiding me all of a sudden. Which I figured was fine. She’s kind of a bitch, see, so I don’t mind not having to deal with her. But then, last week, she comes up to me and my brother. Says there was a rescue operation we weren’t told about. And one of the rescuees just so happens to be the weasel we figured was dead. For years now. I ask her how she knows this, she doesn’t say. And when I ask her why she was telling us, all she said was ‘I owe both of you a big favor’, and that was it.” Mulmangcho placed an arm above his nemesis. “My brother’s getting married in a week or two. I should be focused on that. And yet I can’t help but shake the feeling that something’s going on. And you are at the center of it all. So, talk. What the hell is going on?”

His nemesis didn’t say anything. Not for a long, long time. Then, finally, he spoke again. “Your…brother?”

“What about him?”

“He’s getting married? T-to your former commander?”

Mulmangcho blinked. “That’s what you’re focusing on?! Yes. My brother’s getting married. Why does that-"

“I-it’s just…I thought the Scout Commander was dating you.”

Mulmangcho somehow managed to keep a straight face. “You thought I was with him?”

“Y-yeah…you were his lieutenant and I figured that meant…you were…close.”

“Interesting theory. But no. He’s been making goo-goo eyes at my brother from day one.”

“…oh.”

“May I ask how that’s relevant? To…any of this?”

His nemesis didn’t answer.

“I asked you a question, you fucking piece of-"

“Guemsaegi.”

Mulmangcho halted. “…sorry?”

“I just realized I never gave you my name. It’s Guemsaegi.”

Mulmangcho gave a nod. “Uh…huh. Why’d you tell me?”

“Because I realized I hadn’t before.”

“Okay then. Guemsaegi. Fine. Just tell me what this is all about.”

Guemsaegi swallowed. “I…I just…I wanted you to be happy.”

“Happy?”

“I…overheard that deal.” Guemsaegi played with his finger. “And I realized I couldn’t let her kill you. Not over something like this. I wondered why, so I sat down and unpacked my feelings, and…and I realized…that I’d fallen for you. I’m not sure how, but I did.” Guemsaegi swallowed. “So I thought…if I told Vixen I wanted to switch to her side, a-and gave her the location of a prison camp…”

“…where you knew my old commander was.”

“R-right. I thought…that…that would…”

“What, win me over? You just said you thought we were dating. Wouldn’t I just go back to him?”

Guemsaegi didn’t say anything. Slowly, it dawned on Mulmangcho.

“…that…that was your plan. You wanted me to go back to him.” Mulmangcho looked at Guemsaegi, a bit baffled. “Why?”

“Because you’d be happy.”

“And?”

Guemsaegi shrugged. “That was the reason.”

“So let me get this straight. You just…straight up betrayed Flower Hill, became a double agent, and got my old friend back…because you thought I’d be happy with him.”

Guemsaegi nodded.

“And…you?”

Guemsaegi swallowed. “I-I’d be happy that you were happy.”

“That’s all? You just painted on a target on your back for me? Betrayed your nation for me?!”

“T-there were other factors for that last one…but…yes.”

Mulmangcho just stared at Guemsaegi. “You’re kind of dense,” he finally said. “Smart, but…dense.”

“I’ve been told that.”

Both of them sat there for a moment longer.

“So,” Mulmangcho finally said. “What now?”

“I…I guess that’s…up to you.” Guemsaegi shrugged. “I don’t really feel like I can say how you feel about it.”

Mulmangcho thought for a moment. “…you’re cute,” he finally said. “And I won’t lie. I’m flattered that you’d put my happiness over yours. But.” He looked Guemsaegi in the eyes. “Like it or not, you’ve caused me a lot of pain in the past. I know we’re in the middle of a war and none of that was exactly personal, but still. And hey, pretty sure I haven’t been perfect there either. I think there’s a lot we need to talk through.”

Guemsaegi nodded. “So…”

“So let’s talk through it. Let’s go get some coffee, sort through some shit. And see where…this…goes.”

“Wait, so…y-you want to…try?” There was a certain amount of cautious optimism in that voice.

“I want to talk about trying,” Mulmangcho said. “Bit of a difference. But I think we might be able to make this work.” A pause. “Provided we start being honest with each other.”

Guemsaegi gave a bit of an awkward laugh. “That’s gonna take some getting used to.”

“Yeah, well, I think we can get used to it.” Mulmangcho reached out his hand. Cautiously, Guemsaegi grabbed it and they started to walk towards the canteen. “Starting with one question. The smaller squirrel that’s always hanging around you. He’s your cousin or…?”

“My brother.”

“No kidding? Bamsaegi, then.”

“Yeah, Bam…wait, how’d you know his name?”

Mulmangcho laughed. “…well…I think there’s something, uh, you oughta know too…”

[atlanticcanada]

Owl rescued from P.E.I. field to be taken to N.S. for treatment

As darkness descended and temperatures plunged in a Prince Edward Island field, Dennis MacKenzie tried to coax a scared, injured barred owl down from a spruce tree.

He had no plans to visit the field in Crapaud, P.E.I., en route to drop his sons off for a basketball game at their school, but he was struck when his car lights picked out a little head bobbing in and out of a ditch along the roadside.

He soon recognized it as an owl's head and realized the bird was trying to cross the street.

He turned on his blinkers and the short line of vehicles behind him stopped to let the owl pass. That's when he saw it was dragging its wing as it hopped along in the bright lights streaming from vehicle headlamps.

"I only had to take my sons two minutes up the road, drop them off, and then came back to where the owl was," he said.

"By this point it had moved on. I found its tracks and could locate it because it was dragging it's wing, it was hopping. There was a wing mark as well, along in the snow."

The owl was about 100 metres off the road and trying to hide itself in one of the spruce trees, he said.

That's when he called Candy Gallant who runs P.E.I. Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation to help him capture the injured bird.

Gallant said she arrived to find MacKenzie standing with his car lights blinking by the side of a road.

"He immediately said, 'it's over here,' and pointed into a large field full of snow," she said from her home in P.E.I. while injured and recovering birds chirped in the background.

"I'm nearly 70 and not very spry anymore. We walked what felt like a mile through snow until we got to a tree where we could not find the owl."

They eventually found the brown and white striped bird hiding in the branches of a "very old, beat up, prickly spruce tree," she said.

"After we stood and looked at one another for a few moments, (MacKenzie) decided he was going to climb up in the branches and catch the owl with me telling him how to catch an owl, because they have very sharp claws and can use their beak quite well."

The owl eluded their first few capture attempts, but Gallant was eventually able to seize the bird when it reached a lower-hanging branch.

In her 48 years as an animal rescuer, Gallant said she's caught an average of one owl once every four or five years. Over the past 12 months, however, she said she's rescued nine.

She attributes the spike to the possibility that owl numbers are rebounding.

"Apparently their population is growing to the point where now we're finding them being hit by cars and in people's backyards," she said.

MacKenzie and his family will be driving the owl, along with a goose that needs a ride, to Nova Scotia on Monday morning. Once at the headquarters of Hope for Wildlife, an animal rescue and rehabilitation organization, the birds will be examined and assessed to determine next steps.

Gallant said while the owl has been eating eight or nine mice a day, it doesn't mean it's well. She said she hopes it can heal but it's possible the bird may have to be euthanized.

"I just have my fingers crossed that it is a clean break and we can get (the wing) fixed," she said. "Hopefully he gets fixed up and comes home to me so I can get him better and let him go."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 12, 2023.

from CTV News - Atlantic https://ift.tt/A4Hl9Yh

[ceiling-karasu]

Have to do a lot more species research for this AU

So far I'm keeping my idea of Geumsaegi trying to pass himself off as a hazel dormouse/striped field mouse cross (even though those aren't compatible, but I have to drop the realism somewhere). Still have to study the behavioral and dietary habits between squirrels and mice so Geumsaegi can watch himself or the Wolf Unit might get suspicious.

Red squirrels in Asia and Europe are said to have more tufted ears than American ones, but it turns out that is primarily in the winter, meaning they have rounder ears during the rest of the year.

So my plot point in the first AU on Guemsaegi and Juldarami having to trim their fur to avoid detection is still something I need to keep in mind. I don't think SEK wanted to worry about it though.

Turns out that stripe looking thing is not even a stripe. Some Red squirrel families just kind of have that darker color around the head and back, to the point that it can be solid black. Black stripes of a different color on the sides are how you determine red from gray squirrels in some areas.

I have heard (I wanted to look up the names other countries use) some Russian and near Russia Localizations like to use 'Chipmunk' instead of 'Squirrel?' But I'm not here to trample on anyone's personal headcanon, if they want to say chipmunk then I'll respect that for them.

Yes, Darami can translate into squirrel or chipmunk, but Red Squirrel and Hedgehog does not sound as natural coming off the tongue, I would think.

Of course, there is Juldarami. His name means striped, and I read somewhere that 'Juldarami' is an old archaic word for 'chipmunk,' but that it in turn can mean striped.

There are in fact, multiple species of striped squirrel, especially in Asia.

These include but are not limited to (excuse the PowerPoint screenshot I made):

Plus, chipmunks have stripes on their face, while it does not appear that striped squirrel stripes go into that area for the most part.

So far, no character has been shown with stripes on their face that I have seen, so I'm sticking with squirrel.

Honestly the bigger question is how Juldarami managed to pull off being a mouse. I can't think of any mouse species right now that would have multiple stripes like that.

There is the Four Striped Grass Mouse, but while the Weasel Army is grabbing species from all around, a mouse from Africa is a bit of a stretch.

I am assuming that the Weasel Army calls any mouse that does not look like a typical gray mouse a field mouse without worrying about the abundance of species.

I bet someone has been spontaneously executed because there were a dormouse and said field mouse, only to get shot because that is not what a field mouse should look like. Dr. Huinjogjebi seems paranoid enough to do that.

[cloud-ya]

striped field mouse but make it big cat