Dios Meow!

originally i was planning on only taking april off and then coming back around may-june so i could work on tidying up my blog assets and come back with fresh content. so, what happened to that?

the answer kind of sucks. to put it simply, i've been struggling with a really bad period of depression which i had been misattributing to the fact that i've been off my ADHD meds for months (thanks, nationwide supplier shortages).

in addition, about a month ago we had a really awful experience where my partner and i were going to foster a shiba inu with the intent of keeping her, only to bring her home and found out she was way more aggressive than either of us were equipped to handle. we would find out afterwards that the person running the shelter was a piece of garbage who verbally abused me and lied to everyone involved with the dog; luckily, we were able to get the dog to another home within a couple of days, but the whole incident combined with everything else i've been going through has left me really shaken up still.

(for clarity, i don't blame the dog at all and the person who took her in is someone i know and trust as a dog handler personally. in hindsight, we were set up for failure, but ultimately i still wanted the dog to be okay)

kind of funny trying to navigate the internet with a newfound fear of shibas (doesn't it sound so stupid?)

that's all to say i have no idea when i'll be back on the blog regularly because i have a lot i need to sort out with myself before i can even think about it. don't worry--i'm still very interested in continuing with the story and characters! as interested as i can be while my brain has me convinced that nothing is worth doing and nothing feels good anymore. you shouldn't worry about me at least, because i've been through this before and i'm committed to getting out of this rut. plus, i'm grateful to have a really good support system on my side and i feel safe here.

in the meantime, my partner still updates on @ask-boreal and i generally lurk on my main blog @deerkibble. it's been really hard for me to maintain any sort of social connection so i apologize if you've reached out to me and haven't heard from me in a long time; it's not you personally, my brain just sucks

(( Here's a bit of trivia about Charade's type changes!

For those who don't know, Meowscarada's flower when in bloom bears resemblance to a pomegranate, which you can read more about on Bulbapedia. The meaning behind the flower in the base design is what inspired me to have her flower change based on her type!

As a Water-type, her flower is based on a white water lily. The bulb is replaced by a lily pad. The idea to change her cape (for all forms, but especially this one) was inspired by these Meowscarada variants by mykocalico!

As a Fairy-type, her flower is based on a pink shrub rose. While I can't find an exact name for the species, these roses are called "The Fairy" by some gardeners (it's also a plant in Stardew Valley). I think the design for the bulb was based on a generic flower bulb, but I can't remember (I'll update this post if I figure it out)!

As a Dark-type, her flower is based on the genus datura, one of several plants commonly known as moonflowers. Not only does this beautiful flower bloom at night, but their poisonous properties have led them to be commonly associated with witchcraft! The bulb is based on the datura's seed pod.

If Charade becomes a pure Grass-type through her ability, her appearance is the same as her default. (Don't fix what ain't broke, right?)