Daily OpusEverything I write is freely rebloggable. Just keep the source and tell people about my books :D [Until I decide otherwise, my pronouns are Ze/Hir/Hirself. As in "Ze went to the shops to get hir medication hirself". Thank you for the respect.]
Anonymous asked, "In terms of bonding- stuffed animals? Like, we crave affection so much that we make little fake animals to cuddle with. We use them for comfort when we're young and can even get distressed when we don't have them with us. As well as the fact that we save them and pass them on to younger generations. Even when their eyes have fallen out and all the fur is loved off, we love them, in fact, they may become even more precious at that point."
Yes, that is a mass-produced piece of cloth, stuffing and buttons. Yes, it is identical to thousands of other items. No, you can not get the human a new mass-produced piece of cloth, stuffing and buttons to fill the same function. Only this mass-produced item can fill the function.
The function is somewhat unclear.
The mass-produced piece of clothing, stuffing and buttons must always be in a place of honor in the living quarters. The mass-produced item is not allowed to be covered with other items or fall over. That is bad for the mass-produced piece of clothing, stuffing and buttons even though it is not physically harmed. Items indicating actual honors, such as certificates or medals, can be covered or fall down. That is acceptable.
If the mass-produced piece of clothing, stuffing and buttons has unacceptably fallen on the ground where it may be inadvertently nudged with one’s mobility appendages, that is very bad and disrespectful to the item. Apologies are required, but should be directed at both item and human. The item will not reply.
The human may engage the mass-produced piece of clothing, stuffing and buttons in conversation. Most mass-produced items lack the capability to make any sound, and those that were produced with the capability are limited to prerecorded generic comments not indicative of sentience. Furthermore, the mass-produced item is incapable of any other response type, including movement, radio wave transmission, or temperature manipulation. The human will not appear to notice.
Further study is being done to determine if there is another dimension of life humans are attuned to but have not recorded in the scientific literature.
Further study has revealed an arcane text that seems to reveal that the mass-produced piece of clothing, stuffing, and buttons does possess a certain level of life that can be enhanced by contact with a human. The document is suspected to be a taboo subject as every human approached on the matter burst into tears as soon as the subject was broached.
“Our soap operas are weird. Yours are incomprehensible.” – Anon Guest
[AN: All soap operas are wont to escalate into incomprehensibility when given enough time]
“Beshenia, I love you, but I can’t be with you,” said the figure in the holo display. “I tried to keep it hidden, but… I’m your descendant from the future, and it would be incest.”
“WHAT?” said half the watchers in the room. The other half made gestures of victory and cheered, “CALLED IT!” Which sparked so much debate that the host had to pause playing the entertainment in question so that all present could properly hash out their feelings.
Tempers are wont to run high when emotional labor has been expended on anything. Evidence was trotted out from both sides and a Talking Stick had to be employed, then taken away again once once of the more enthusiastic debaters attempted to employ it as a weapon.
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The Archivaas are primarily Human. One of the few sects of Human obsession that made hoarding work for them. They will, like most Humans, adopt anyone who shares their compulsion. Compulsions are not always healthy, but the Archivaas work hard to make theirs as healthy as possible.
Always be wary of an order capable of re-ordering entire solar systems so they can store their collections. They’re very capable of being dangerous if their minds ever turn away from collecting things and towards combat. Even the Vorax don’t mess with the Archivaas, reasoning correctly that they only look like harmless collectors in their brown robes, and there has to be something hazardous under that soft veneer[1].
Thuul was not the first Havenworlder to join the Archivaas, but they were one of the first to enter the Terran archives to view and catalogue some material that had only been categorised on the cursory level. Animation is not a genre, despite many viewing it as such, and the mistake of assuming all animated material is for children[2] is one that the Archivaas are well aware of.
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Humans fighting against claws and big animals were common things to watch in reports.
But the true, bloody fight is only when humans were fist-fighting against each other. Punching throats, kicking stomachs, smashing head against walls. – Anon Guest
All around the Alliance, there is a genre of disturbing footage known as Humans Fighting Things. It is not generally recommended for Havenworlder viewing. Achivaas all over the Alliance and the Fellowship of Terran Planets alike scour it all to be sure that none of the footage is from Deregger blood sport arenas[1].
It is always battles for survival, where the beast or the Human in question have clearly made some kind of mistake and are now in a fight for their lives. Neither side were preparing for years in advance for those moments and therefore is considered a fair fight.
The only fighting-with-purpose content allowed in the genre of Humans Fighting Things is Humans Fighting Humans. There, both parties have agreed to combat, there are rules, and the participants are generally agreed to be having fun. Well. Most of the time they’re having fun. Some of the footage is from bar fights, where the fun is debatable.
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Inter-species relationships are not common but you can bet Humans have the highest percentage of them. – Anon Guest
Love? Love is strange. Especially when it’s Humans doing it. For them, love is many things and not a single one of them is rational, logical, or reasonable. There is, for instance, no reasonable reason why a Human would fall in love with a Chitanean, but they can, have, will, and do.
Love, the Humans insist on pointing out, doesn’t necessarily mean that the plumbing has to be compatible. It doesn’t even mean that the plumbing has to touch. So long as there is mutual benefit, love can grow.
It’s no shock that the Humans have at minimum seven types of love, and an uncounted number of methods for coupling. They’re creative. Love, like life, finds a way. Humans seem culturally prepared to look at a creature that could kill them in one swat and think, “Yes. I will take that home with me[1].”
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