Kitsune
by Heron
Singular: Kitsune
Plural: Kitsune Group: Clan of Kitsune Communication - Mindspeech Size Ranges – Average 3ft at shoulder +/- 1ft Colorations – By Rank Naming Convention -- Prefer Japanese but will (grudgingly) accept other names relating to Clan not in English |
General Information Ask a thousand different people, “What is a Trickster?” and you shall receive a thousand different answers, all of them correct. Tricksters have been many things over the course of civilisation, and every iteration has been equally valuable to the very idea of culture.
This may explain why Kitsune are regarded so highly amidst the variable peoples of Teragaia, as they are each, somehow, Tricksters. Kitsune come from seven different elemental Clans, four earthly and three otherworldly, but they all have a few things in common. All Kitsune appear to be long-limbed foxes, after a fashion, with exaggeratedly large ears and very long, somewhat fluffy oversized tails, elegant and graceful despite their physical potential for absurdity, roughly three feet at the shoulder on average, though individuals may be larger or smaller by up (or down) to a foot of height. Kitsune develop additional tails as they grow and age, meaning that single-tailed Kitsune -- the most common of them -- are usually younger and less experienced, while a nine-tailed Kitsune would be considered the most ancient and wise of the entire Kitsune species. This is not always an exact rule, however, as some Kitsune are simply limited to a certain potential and will never grow more than a certain number of tails no matter how old they live to be. These limited Kitsune are generally looked down upon by their own kind, but in a way this makes them more sociable creatures; it was to escape this cultural disdain that led the Kitsune to Impression, bonding to sapient humanoids in search of the friendship that could not be attained among their own kind. That isn’t to say friendship isn’t difficult for them anyway, however. They are a very formal and polite species, usually most careful to speak well of you when they most hope you die. Kitsune preface every introduction with a bow, and they place their words with incredible attention to detail. The attitudes of individual Kitsune tend to be more specific to their Clan, however. Every Clan is organized by elemental alignment, and the Kitsune can be identified both by their fur coloration and the kanji on their foreheads, but also by habit and tendency. Every Clan has an archetype to which it more or less adheres, the individuals comprising it varying along a common theme. Clan affiliation is often also betrayed by the “foxfire” a Kitsune can generate, mystical balls of elemental energy they can manifest in orbit around their tails on occasion. Regardless of Clan, however, all Kitsune share a few common abilities. They can disappear from sight in the blink of an eye and reappear somewhere else entirely, subtly manipulate fortune and circumstance around them, and cause the mind to experience sensory input that is not, in fact, real. When a Kitsune is old enough to grow its seventh tail, it gains a more complete mastery of the magic of its element, growing more powerful both offensively and defensively. When a Kitsune grows its eighth tail, its grasp of power over luck and fortune is no longer subtle, and the Kitsune can then affect progressively larger changes in circumstance. When the Kitsune achieves its ninth tail and becomes the absolute apex of its species, its illusory magic becomes second to nothing, and the Kitsune gains the ability to cause total sensory hallucinations even in creatures and beings otherwise immune to such tricks. Mating Information When a Kitsune is ready to mate, he or she sends a foxfire beacon into the sky to attract all other eligible and interested Kitsune in the area to the terrain of choice. What terrain this is changes by Clan; Water Clan prefers riverbanks and the seashore, Earth Clan prefers the forest or the mountains, generally speaking the chase initiator will want to be close to his or her native element somehow. What follows among the approaching suitors is an ostensibly polite but ultimately ruthless battle of wits and wills as each trickster bows to the others and then proceeds to try and knock them out of the running by pulling every trick they know out of their hat. These battles usually don’t turn lethal, though with Void Clan participants the accepted rules of engagement have been broken in the past, but they do go until suitors either give up or are incapacitated, and then only one to three suitors remain to partner with the initiator. The winner(s) of the chase will follow the initiator to privacy to collect on the prize for their victory, and the rest will return home to recover. Bonding Information Kitsune kits are born intelligent and mostly able to speak, though they gain a more rounded and complete understanding of the world after they open their eyes at two weeks of age, and both their mindspeech and verbal mimicry are fluent by the time they are three weeks old. It’s a month before their mothers wean them off of milk and introduce them to solid food, and it’s at this time that they tend to either find a humanoid bondmate or are shuffled around to the correct Clan -- a Fire Clan mother might birth kits of all four earthly elements, while a Spirit Clan mother might birth kits of all seven elements, to be sent to live with others of their own kind when they’re old enough to part ways with her. Bondings tend to be populated both by brand-new kits and by intrigued older adults, and what attracts them varies by Clan and by individual. Some like cleverness, others look to the less clever as sheep that need guidance, some seek to bring balance, and still others look to cause mayhem. Kitsune prefer names in Japanese, their native tongue and one in which they are universally fluent, but they will at least grudgingly accept names relevant to their Clan orientation or personality in any language that is not English. CLAN INFORMATION Fire Clan A Fire Clan Kitsune’s base coloration is along the orange spectrum, with markings coming in shades of gold and reds. Their tails are tipped in crimson, and the kanji for “fire” sits upon their foreheads as if written in blood. Their large, exotically tilted eyes are in shades of flame, and when they manifest the trademark foxfire of their species, the elemental balls are always fire. Perhaps the most volatile of the Kitsune, those of the Fire Clan tend to embody the Vengeful Trickster. They are temperamental creatures, though they are rarely openly seen to be so, always contained, firestorms in bottles. Fire Clan Kitsune are perfectly capable of being sociable, and so long as they are treated fairly, they will remain fair. Slight them, however, and they remember it forever. They internalize every insult and every wrong done against them, they carry with them every time they have ever been discriminated against, ganged up upon, or treated unjustly. When they are angry, their very presence prickles unpleasantly against the consciousness and inspires a sense of foreboding and dread in those wise enough to heed their instincts. The floodgates can only hold back so much rage, and when it breaks free, the rage is a wild and consuming thing. At best, at its least destructive, a Fire Clan Kitsune will lash out with words, aiming perfectly tailored barbs to cut hypocrites and oppressors down at the knees and make them bleed at a soul-deep level. It’s rare, however, to have one of the Fire Clan with so much restraint, to only wound to kill with words alone. More often, those who boast from on high and invite the ire of a Fire Clan Kitsune will suffer and greatly. Justice will be served, and it will be both poetic and very bloody. Lest they be mistaken for monsters, Kitsune of the Fire Clan do not only lash out at wrongs served to them personally. They collect the anger of the oppressed, they stand for the downtrodden, the poor, the undervalued, the discriminated-against, the enslaved, and the otherwise mistreated. In their own way, Fire Clan Kitsune are also protectors of the unfortunate dregs of society. They’re just never direct about it, always arranging their vengeful reactions to best teach the wrongdoers a lesson about why that behavior is bad...assuming the wrongdoers survive to learn, that is. Wind Clan A Wind Clan Kitsune’s base coloration is a very pale green, with all markings coming in shades of slightly darker green, but never darker than the inside of a kiwi fruit. Their tails are tipped in this kiwi-green, and it is also the color of the kanji for “wind” on their foreheads. Their large, slanted eyes are a brilliant jade color. Their “foxfire” orbs are balls of wind. The Wind Clan is a bit of a break from the Kitsune tradition of formality. They’re a surprisingly playful lot all told, prone to sneaky mischief and good-natured pranks. They also tend to embody the Heroic Trickster archetype. Pity and compassion drive them to do things for those in need, although their nonlinear approaches are sometimes incomprehensible. When they see problems, they solve them, usually by getting the better of whoever has the solution to that problem and stealing that solution. Whimsical and energetic, Wind Clan Kitsune are incapable of maintaining ill feelings and they’re equally incapable of being straightforward. They speak fast but think faster, a constant upwelling of kinetic energy and creative thinking, perception bouncing strangely around corners and deriving unique, often astounding perspectives along the way. Wind Clan Kitsune also have very little respect for things like rules or ownership, particularly where welfare and the greater good are concerned. And...don’t get too attached to your dignity, because they don’t much respect that either. The two main priorities of a Wind Clan Kitsune are to have fun and to make the world a better place for those most in need, and both goals are often met at the expense of the property, pride, and patience of whoever happens to be the greater power with the most resources at hand. More than pranksters and/or unlikely heroes, though, Kitsune of the Wind Clan are also driven by an insatiable wanderlust. There’s a WORLD out there! It’s bright and it’s interesting and it’s full of wonders and people and things to do and things to see and-and-and-and-and! More than any other Kitsune, those of the Wind Clan are prone to traveling and poking their long noses into all sorts of new things. Earth Clan An Earth Clan Kitsune’s base coloration is along the brown spectrum, with accents and markings coming either in lighter or darker shades of brown or in rich shades of deep forest green, and it’s either a rich chocolate brown or a dark forest green that tips their tails and colors in the kanji for “earth” on their foreheads. Their wide, tilted eyes are either deep emerald or some shade of brown, and the “foxfire” orbs they can manifest are comprised either of leaves or of sand and grit. Whether these markings are brown or green at any given time is a fairly good indicator of disposition. Of all of the Kitsune Clans, those of the Earth Clan are perhaps both the easiest and the most difficult to understand. Theoretically, they are extraordinarily simple creatures. It is very easy to say that they exist to maintain a cosmic balance and that they strive to live according to that balance, as they are the Balanced Tricksters. Putting in-theory to in-practice, however, requires a certain mental flexibility and the understanding that Earth Clan Kitsune never change, always change, and both of these things will always be true no matter how contradictory they seem. There is good in the world and there is evil in the world and these two things must always exist in balanced ratio. To that end, an Earth Clan Kitsune who is surrounded by darkness, by chaos and hardship and evil, will have green markings and will be a champion of goodness and compassion. An Earth Clan Kitsune surrounded by too much good will have brown markings and will be driven by insatiable evil and cruelty. These extremes exist within each individual Kitsune of the Earth Clan, to be exercised as needed to maintain equilibrium. The same Kitsune can be a harbinger of doom one day and a saintly peacemaker the next, if necessary, a dichotomy that often finds the other Clans unnerved by those of the Earth. Beneath the changing colors and shifting morality, however, lie a few constants. Earth Clan Kitsune are very wise creatures, above most of their species, perceptive and knowing. They are uninhibited, particularly sexually, they are pragmatic, and they are almost universally unknowable. More than other Kitsune, those of the Earth Clan are drawn to music, particularly drums, and enjoy activities such as dancing more than most of their species. They’re also prolific storytellers and, despite the nobility of their heritage and the power they wield over the grand balance of the universe, oddly humble. They do what they must because they must, but do not value their own lives as being superior to others in the process. Water Clan A Water Clan Kitsune’s base coat coloration is pale and runs the spectrum between blue and teal, almost but not quite kissing green on some individuals. The accents, tail-tipping, and markings generally come from a darker, deeper palette, ranging in shades of sapphire, cobalt, midnight, and azure. The kanji for ‘water’ rests upon their foreheads above sly cerulean eyes that are constantly on alert and perceptive, no matter the mood. Of all of the Tricksters, those of the Water Clan may be the least actually understood at the best of times, and the most appreciated at the worst. The Water Clan Kitsune are the ones most prone to committing taboos, though the point is more often not to break taboo but enforce it by holding up a mirror and forcing people to confront themselves and ask WHY. The Satiric Trickster, or Sacred Clown, promotes spiritual growth by provoking introspection whether it’s desired or not, freely violating taboo at will to force people to question what they might be afraid to question, to force them to ask things that are difficult, and to face truths that are, perhaps, unpleasant. They exist primarily to aide the world in self-examination, often by way of doing things backwards. Water Kitsune, like rip currents, must by necessity run diagonal to everything. They are the sacred clowns after all, and their lessons would not be so easily learned without a dose of strange, befuddling humor. Some walk only backwards. Another might call himself the “straighten-outer” and attempt to flatten all round things, such as pots and wagon wheels. One suffering from heat exhaustion might complain of the chill and shiver beneath a blanket. And it is this strange humor that make Water Kitsune so desperately valuable in times of strife, when there is no hope. The company of a Water Clan Kitsune in a war camp or in a plagued village is invaluable, because as she must run counter to all she encounters, a Water Clan Kitsune must run counter to despair. Sometimes the sacred clown’s antics are the difference between enduring and surrendering. This village choked with plague, that nation under siege, those lands wracked by drought and famine, the dark and ugly in the world could easily become too much for someone trapped in that darkness, but sometimes one Trickster’s incomprehensible jokes and steadfast refusal to fail is all it takes to replenish a will to survive and overcome. Void Clan The sinister-looking Void Clan Kitsune are unmistakable and easily distinguishable from the rest of their species by their light-drinking black pelts, so dark that the Void Kitsune oft resemble fox-shaped holes in reality. This deep base coloration is highlighted by shades of purple or sometimes red, which tips the tails and accentuates the ‘void’ kanji emblazoned across their foreheads, above amethyst-dark eyes that usually glimmer with a touch of madness, be it natural or self-imposed. They can form “foxfire” of pure void energy. Other Clans of the Kitsune have their dark and scary moments, but few Clans are as legendarily terrifying as the Void Clan, and with good reason. The face of the Anarchist Trickster, the Kitsune of the Void Clan most often act with cruelty and discord in mind, seeking to upset balances of power and disrupt long-standing relationships and wreak a little havoc in a world so orderly it’s boring. It’s hard to make that a solid accusation, however, as the Void Kitsune rarely act in a direct fashion. Strife is so much more fun when it’s confusing and anonymous, when the blame cannot easily be wiped off on an outside perpetrator. Sometimes all it takes is a shiny gift entrusted to “the most beautiful maiden” or “the strongest warlord”. The Void Kitsune can claim it isn’t at fault when the party inevitably devolves to bloodshed and murder over insults and broken trust...and it’s almost true. Nobody forced those fools yonder to be so vain and self-absorbed, after all, nobody made them act contrary to their own base natures. The irresistible temptation was merely dangled in front of them, to devastating effect. Void Kitsune are masters of manipulation, playing lesser creatures as easily as puppets dancing on strings, knowing exactly which subtle nuances to apply to evoke the most drastic reactions. If anyone gets hurt in this scheming? Well, that’s just too bad, now, isn’t it? The Void Clan doesn’t care overmuch whom they hurt or how badly, as long as the results are interesting, and that quality makes them the least desirable allies of all Kitsune-kind. They’re unreliable too, prone to changing sides when the whim suits them. They’re as happy backstabbing their allies as they are engaging their enemies, and Teragaia hasn’t met a Void Kitsune yet that minded the hard-won reputation for lies, treachery, and sedition. Moreover, they are likely to consider themselves snubbed at the smallest provocations and once they have been wronged, whether the slight is real or imagined, they lock on to their ‘aggressor’ and fixate, making this person (or people) the new target for their indefatigable intensity and vindictive wrath. Spirit Clan Misty and ethereal-looking, the Kitsune of the Spirit Clan have a gauzy silver-grey base coloration that pulls into a light lavender or sometimes shimmering platinum at the tips of their tails and paws and which marks the Kanji for ‘spirit’ that rests upon their foreheads. Their too-knowing eyes tend to come in matching shades, either lavender or platinum, and they always carry an expression that says they know more than they’re saying. Their “foxfire” orbs are pure spiritual energy, not necessarily elemental. Of all of the Kitsune of Teragaia, perhaps the Spirit Clan is the least surprising. The Spirit Clan, after all, is the Resilient Trickster, hallmarked by such immaculate care for the survival and continuation of the spirit, no matter the circumstances. The spirit of the living soul, the spirit of history. They take it upon themselves to preserve much, from the oral traditions of old to the survival of slaves in captivity. And the stories! Stories are a large part of how they accomplish all of this. Spirit Kitsune are ravenous collectors of all manner of stories, and they remember everything they hear, the better to retell it themselves later, to share it, to keep the story alive. History is a living, breathing thing, kept so by the lungs and tongues of those who speak. In captivity, this takes on a new context. More than continuity of history, it’s the continuity of identity, keeping each individual person as alive and whole as if they were free instead of in chains. They inspire resistance and survival with their tales of clever slaves turning the tables on brutal oppressors, they give hope where it might not otherwise exist. Even more than the other Clans, Spirit Kitsune are collectors of stories and wisdom, and they feel absolutely no remorse for getting clever with tricks if they need to accomplish a task. Particularly if the task seems otherwise impossible or extremely difficult. Why waste time tilting at windmills when they can, instead, find a creative and nonlinear solution that wraps their problems up in a neat little bow? Heavens Clan The Kitsune of the Heavens Clan have a base coat roughly the same color as butter, soft and shimmering as if lit from within. Their feet and tails are accented in a bright metallic gold or copper, the same as the ‘heaven’ Kanji emblazoned on their foreheads. Heaven Kitsune have eyes the color of molten metal, burning with too much inner knowing and also a great deal of power. They manifest orbs of scorching heavenly divinity as their foxfire. Even the Kitsune have a creation myth to explain how Teragaia came to be, and it begins with the only ten-tailed member of their species that has ever existed, a Heavens Clan Kitsune that crafted the world from clay. They say this Heaven Kitsune of extraordinary ability even created Aeon, and it is stories like this that has garnered them the reputation as the Creator Trickster, the ones who made the Beginning...begin. Whether any of this is true or not is entirely subjective and it’s up to the individual to believe or not, but the Heaven Kitsune are the sacred idols of their kind, shaping the actions of gods from the shadows and guiding world events from where they cannot be directly seen or, if they can be seen, from where they cannot be directly blamed. Lest one mistake them for utter seriousness, however, the true role of the Heaven Kitsune as the first in everything is also to be the first to make mistakes. They make mistakes and they are laughed at and hopefully somewhere in this, they have taught a lesson, they have made the mistake so that you don’t have to, and you have learned the lesson and been entertained in one act. Heaven Kitsune cannot always be trusted to tell the truth of the matter, but they can always be trusted to say what must be said. Sometimes this means they lie to tell the truth. If this sounds contradictory, perhaps it is, perhaps it is not. Heaven Kitsune will say what they need to say to make the truth understood, even if that is not the truth itself, because often the mind edits what it hears until speaking truly no longer conveys the truth at all. Out-Of-Character Fiddly Bits ◘All Kitsune are born with one tail. Extra tails are gained as they age, and this is how their ranks are decided, regardless of elemental Clan. Some Kitsune will be capped at a certain number of tails and may never exceed that rank -- and this is a cultural taboo among the species, to which other Kitsune are liable to react badly. ◘A bonding-holder running a Kitsune bonding may only have Kitsune of five and fewer tails in the bonding. ◘Bonded Kitsune will advance in rank upon the anniversary of the bond. For example, the character Jeremiah bonds his Kitsune Yoshikaze on March 3rd. On March 3rd of the following year after the bond, Yoshikaze, if he is not capped and forbidden to advance further, will grow another tail and advance in rank. ◘Claim write up is as follows: Species Element Clan Gender Name -- Character, for example, Kitsune Wind Clan Male Yoshikaze -- Jeremiah, if Jeremiah is purchasing his Kitsune. For descriptions, the fades are laid out Title Element Clan Gender, example Hidden In Plain Sight Wind Clan Male. ◘Rank is decided by number of tails, not elemental alignment, though the star value per rank IS decided by elemental alignment; the otherworldly Clans are rarer, more powerful, and slightly more expensive than the earthly Clans. The star value per tail of each Clan-type is listed in the chart below. |