Street Cats

OH HELL YEA BABY SWAG!!

🐞 - What does a perfect day look like for your oc? What do they do? Who do they see?

For Laurel it would be a day where he manages to solve a complex case that also doesn't take too much sleep out of him while also being 100% happy with the results where he can go "Yes, I did something good this time" (So rarely LOL) and then go home without much issue without anyone extra trying to talk to him to sit down in front of his aquarium eating something sweet. Basically peak autism day for him where he does everything he likes and nothing that annoys or overwhelms him. An alternative is like if there is one of those aquarium conventions in the city where people all over the world bring and sell fish (Legally) and stuff for aquariums and just passes the whole day planning a new tank without, again, anyone trying to talk to him more than necessary or ever getting touched. Literally pure vibes.

Olive.... Olive just wants to rest LOL For her staying to long in one place would eventually lead her thoughts wandering into Bad Places, and going to work or tagging along Ryan and King's jobs just reminds her of her situation so that also is a no-go. I think a good day would just be one where she can try and do something pretending she is still a journalist, some low-stakes reporting while just hanging out around the city and not worrying, although the anxiety gets to her when she least expects it so U know, give or take.

They both could go to the aquarium and would have a pretty good day. Perfect date.

🥊 - Has your character ever been in a fight? Did they win? Do they fight often? Are they professionally trained or self taught? Do they enjoy fighting or only do so when necessary?

Their job usually forces them into fights from time to time and neither of them are particularly good LOL Laurel quickly resorts to firearms because that's the way he can try and take control over a situation, but Olive has been banned from using them (The first and only time she used a gun she did it so badly and in such an unsafe manner that she got hurt) so for her fights are straight up avoidance game, and if forced she would try to take advantage of the terrain to get away more than confront anyone.

They leave the fighting job to more capable people like Frederick or Tania or in Olive's case, King and his bazillion dogs or Ryan. Laurel is interesting because a lot of his relationship with Frederick is that if there was ever any issues, Laurel just waits for his friend to beat whoever is bothering them.

👠 - How does your oc dress? Are they stylish or casual? Do they keep up with trends or do their own thing? Do they prefer designer clothes or going to the thrift store? Do they have a signature item of clothing?

Teehee they dress like meee :3 But real talk, they do have a pretty similar style lol I will say Olive's prioritizes comfort while Laurel tries to look professional. Also Laurel is more used to buying his clothes from good places while currently, most of Olive's clothes have been given to her by someone else (Although she would buy if she could).

For signature Item mmmm I would say Olive's oversized jacket is important as it is the only thing she has left from Adrian, and now she uses it anytime she can. And for Laurel mmmm while I forget to add them LOL I would say is that he always has gloves on. It doesn't have to be an specific pair, if anything I think he has a bunch of them to make them fit with whatever he is wearing. He just has a bunch of gloves that he doesn't take off because if he ever was to touch something or someone and not like the texture (which is most of the time) he would cringe into non-existence and his whole day would be ruined lol.

AND FOR 🍓MMMM Like I said before I need to worldbuild whatever religion these people have (Is very similar to Christianity I just- Don't want it to be straight up Christianity U know? SDFG) but I do have some vague ideas so I will just make a lightning round of characters at the top of my brain 🍓 - Does your oc believe in anything? Are they superstitious? Religious? Atheistic? Has anything in their past made them this way?

Laurel - Atheist, he is a "I believe in science!" guy

Olive - Grew up with the religion but doesn't really believe. If anything she believes in luck over how bad hers is and if there is a god, it is out to get her Belen - Religious trauma and she will kill god with her bare hands

Frederick - The same as Laurel but actually holding religious shame.

Tania- She believes in god and practices her religion and she is normal about it

Mathew - Religious trauma and atheist. He no longer cares.

Sonia - Agnostic and normal about it

Ryan & Maria - Both grew up religious and still are but in a very casual way, only go to church if needed

King - Religious and in a very loving way because that's how his mom is. Hates the church because they mistreat people like his mom

Sebastian - Atheist and is extremely annoying about it

Mikan - Believes in god and she hates him so engages with Sebastian being annoying about it.

Raphael and really any of the Fjords- Really religious and whatever actions they take can be justified in the eyes of god... somehow.

OH HELL YEA LETS GO MY WET SAD KICKED ANGRY CAT LOL She IS miserable!! And terrible and I love her <3

❤️ - Who is the most important person to your character? To what lengths would they go to protect this person?

Nour is weird in this aspect because the people she cared about left her, letting her relationships wither as she became more and more resentful, to the point really all that she has left is her job.

Now there, she is very protective of those under her command- I mean, it is HER job! And she knows her captain is too self-centered in her little close-knit group she made for herself to the point of not caring for other officers, so FINE! She'll do it herself then. She is very close to Sergio for this reason, as being the youngest and most inexperienced one, normally gets on trouble. She also has a soft-spot for Lydia, but can do very little to help her as she is under Finn's command.

I will say that during the story however, she and Tania do become really close, so at least there is that!

💔 - Who has your character hurt most? Physically or emotionally? How did it feel? Do they regret it?

OUGH the thing about Nour is that she was the perfect girl for a long time. She peaked in highschool which included bullying the "weird" kids, then, without a lot of prospects of what to do apart from marriage, became a cop because the position of power over others just Fit Her LOL So one can get an idea she has hurt a lot of people through her life and she hasn't really done any work to unpack that- Instead she is in a role that encourages this attitude.

However and what I think is important to note that Nour has been hurt A LOT. This has led her also to think any pain she inflicts on others is justified. She is still terrible but she has basically has sunk down to the spiral of "I am awful towards others, which makes them awful to me, which means I have to respond the same way". It is still a position she put herself into and it doesn't take away her flaws but... well, circumstances define people, there is some complexity in why she acts this way that is based a lot on what has been expected of her.

🍓 - Does your oc believe in anything? Are they superstitious? Religious? Atheistic? Has anything in their past made them this way?

OH YEA! She is highly devout to the main religion of this place (Which- A little behind the curtain, I still need to worldbuild a bit LOL) and tries to live her life based on the perception of what the "Norm" should be. This is why she is deeeeeep in the closet LOL why she tried to get married fresh out of high school and why it didn't work out. Basically she had her whole life the idea of what an idea woman should be, chased it and failed and now she is here. She is still devout to her religion and in a way she hopes one day karma or god will reward her for all this hardship- But also, deep down, she does feel a sense of resentment, hasn't she suffered enough already?!

🚨 - What’s your character’s relationship with the law? Have they ever been arrested? What for? What are their opinions on law enforcement?

She is a cop! And one that has no particular hard feelings over her role- If anything, she enjoys it! She choose this instead of taking the time to become a nurse of something so lol She is the kind of person to believe that "Actually maybe people need MORE policing!". This mindset is the reason why Belen has pushed her away from her group and neglected her, and Nour doesn't understand why because??? She is doing her job???? U know, not to be that guy but to be in a place full of hypocrites who think themselves to be better than her for Well at least I see the problems which make me GOOD, having someone who is just very honest with believing in the bad system is kind of jarring lol.

YIPEE SO!! I already answered 🚨 right here! and I will respond this one with the same characters (Laurel and Olive) :3c 🍎- Does your oc go to school or take classes? Did they go to college? What was/is their favorite subject? Did/do they get good grades? Did/do they enjoy school?

SO Laurel had a very good education in private schools, and he did graduate with a criminology degree! Although he never got his private investigator license (He has all the qualifications though- He just hasn't applied for it despite it being his original plan) Laurel for the longest time was between becoming a detective or a marine biologist LOL He likes solving things, taking people's testimonies apart and figuring things out, but he also does have an special interest in marine ecosystems!! He was also always better in the science than the humanities, which is something that gave him some issues when going for Criminology. But ultimately he choose that career because of Frederick and the future they both envisioned! As they wanted to work together as private detectives and tackle crimes the system didn't care about.... And for Olive! She went to public school in her town and eventually moved to a city to study journalism alongside her childhood friend Adrian. However, she never graduated, as she was in her final year doing her internship when huuuuuuuh everything happened to her and she is now here! And she isn't going back anytime soon...

OH MY Starting strong.... >:3c 🚨 - What’s your character’s relationship with the law? Have they ever been arrested? What for? What are their opinions on law enforcement?

For Laurel is... extremely complicated, but if I had to say it in a way, he is the guy who is like "The system is extremely flawed and here I have the prof, this is why we have to fix it from the inside!", basically believing HE can fix it without uprooting everything. And neither Belen or Frederick help with this, not only as they hold the same beliefs, but also because they uphold Laurel's vision, to the point he "fixing" things is not even just for the good of the people but because!! His friends need him!! Right?

Laurel is also huh kind of trapped in staying working for the police? Whole plot point, but basically he feels like he cannot leave so no matter how much his opinion on law enforcement, both from the outside and the inside, deteriorates, he still has to clock in every day so he is inhaling that copium every day. He HAS TO believe he is the "Good Cop" or he will be sent to the shadow realm.

FOR OLIVE THO... OH HELL YEA she is ACAB to the bone which is, to everyone's surprise, the reason why she does the things she does LOL. She knows cops will defend each other just for their own pride, that the state will rarely punish an officer because it would never admit fault, and that it gives her power over civilian scrutiny- It is very dirty, and very questionable in the way that she is just indulging in the worst aspects of it, even if her goal is to actually destroy the system from the inside.

In a past life Olive would have had higher morals, knowing not to engage with the system she hates because she only perpetuates it. But currently she is... not in a good mental state. In a way, sacrificing her morals and becoming what she used to hate feels like a fitting fate for her....

HEHEHE So far I haven't really posted about Sonia! Or well, at least I haven't mentioned her and haven't made her profile card SDFGHJ I have some art of her laying around though! (The first one is really old though. The second one has her updated face markings)

For context. She and Belen met a long time ago because of Amelia, a mutual friend who eventually starting dating Belen. When she went missing, Belen and Sonia became way closer as they tried to find her. Eventually Sonia became very.... infatuated with Belen, even if she knows she will always be second place in Belen's heart...

She is also a prosecutor!! and of a very high position, so she is generally very good assistance in the story!

ANYWAY QUESTIONS!!

3- What were their first impressions of each other? How does that compare to their impressions of each other now?

For Belen, she found her kind of intriguing when they meet, basically being Amelia's silent shadow which she always asked for her opinion or advice. When realizing that Sonia is very smart and a good planner that always has a way for them to do what they wanted without being caught ("That wouldn't be advisable, instead, you should do this, that way, legally there is plausible deniability") she started to see what Amelia saw in her, not just in usefulness but also that she had a very interesting way of expressing things. They are friends :)

Now Sonia is the only person that Belen shares basically everything, even the things that she hides from everyone else. Not only will Sonia never tell a soul, but her input allows Belen to find better solutions, to the point she really wouldn't have gotten as far as she has without her advice. She hates to admit it but she is dependent on Sonia's help not just in planning but also emotionally. She... doesn't think she loves her. Maybe she does, or maybe she just appreciates how close they are. But I mean, as long as Amelia might be out there, there is no use thinking about that...

From Sonia's part, when they first meet she was a bit off put by Belen's strong personality, but eventually came to adore it because ey! That's someone that is not paralyzed by choice anxiety! Belen is a really easy person to like socially. I think Sonia already had a small crush back then, but I mean, she also had a crush on Amelia and probably other women of the group. This was around the 50's so this woman is deeeep in the closet.

Now Sonia is just- straight up obsessed with Belen, infatuated with whatever the hell she is doing. I think having such a strong personality in her life that constantly says she needs her and that she would be nothing without her help did something to her brain LOL If is love love or just codependency is... a good question sdfgh

17- Are they keeping a secret together? How do they feel about that?

Literally any of Belen's past actions and future plans, which some are very... ;) They are very big secrets even in the story.

Belen is weird about it. She likes having control over absolutely everything so having a second person know sometimes stresses her out. Then she remembers that person is Sonia and she calms down because she knows she is basically the only person 100% under her control ❤️ She just has to make sure she keeps it!

TEEHEE THANK U!! What is a trait your OC has that those around them don't see very often? Is it seen by a rare few or completely overlooked?

SO these are addressed in canon because I do find fun when characters have secret abilities that come into play sometimes >:3c Also, the point is Laurel and Olive knowing each other so is fun when they learn this stuff!! Laurel knows a lot of biology!! Specifically botany and zoology, specially the marine kind as having an aquarium in your apartment is easier than having a full zoo lol Originally he was between studying Marine Biology and Forensics and ultimately went with Forensics because of Frederick... He still kept a lot of his knowledge and interests even if just stored in a bookshelf and rarely comes into play. Still he is very good at understanding animal behaviors (Even if he doesn't get along with most animals....) and plants... including poisons.......

How do they speak? Is what they say usually thought of on the spot, or do they rehearse it in their mind first?

OH NOOO SDFGH

I already responded for Olive so now every other girlypops (Or at least the really relevant ones I have art for)

✦BELEN

She generally has a soft but firm way of speaking that can quickly turn into loud orders- She is the military-trained Captain of this whole police department, and just listening to her speak tells you everything you need to know, which is to obey whatever she told you to do.

However that softer tone is how she generally speaks outside of work. She really doesn't appreciate loud noises.

✦TANIA

Tania my love <3 She is the least refined of anyone in the team as she grew up in poor neighborhoods, so she speaks with a lot of slang. She is also the most communicative of the whole group, addressing anyone she meets with such friendliness that she instantly disarms them. I would also like to think of her like a high CHA character, but the way she twists people in her words is way more purposeful than Olive's. After all, Tania IS a trained detective.

✦SONIA

As a prosecutor, the legalese has gotten to her brain, to the point that anytime she speaks she does it in a very... formal manner. She always has a clear and uniform tone of voice, unless she really doesn't know how to respond to something or someone, in which case she would stutter into silence. In general she is very silent, sometimes not saying a single word in conversation. Again, the legalese in her brain tells her to speak only when needed. Is fine, really, Belen seems to understand her just fine.

ATHENEA

Oh the queen... She is running as a presidential candidate and it shows. She has a charming, energetic tone that just catches you, and before you know she has not only told you about many policies but also is getting you to speak her about all your beliefs and weaknesses. She sure was made to be a politician and can be very manipulative if she wants to.

NOUR

She is Laurel's coworker and Belen's subordinate but oh she couldn't be more different. She can be quick to rage and has a very overpowering voice, perfect for giving orders, bad if you are caught in a verbal fight with her. She is also not above throwing curses into the air and straight up mean... In general, the most straightforward character, if she thinks you are a bitch she will call you that to your face.

MIKAN

OUGH love of my life <3 Mikan has what most would consider a cute voice. generally soft-spoken, almost like she can't raise her voice that much... Instead, if she is angry or annoyed, her voice will have a raspy hiss to it, similar to an animal threatening you...

HII <3

7- What triggers nostalgia for them, most often? Do they enjoy that feeling?

Ough Laurel generally gets nostalgic when he is spending time with Frederick and thinks "Is just like the old days", like when they are hanging outside of work or they managed to fall into the dynamic he expects them both to have. Is generally a nice feeling for him, making him go "Ah yes this is why we been friend since childhood" and he tries to hold onto that feeling when things aren't that... Good, between them. Man maybe you shouldn't need to remind yourself why you two are friends...

AND FOR OLIVE OUGH I think... Way too many things cause her nostalgia now, anything that reminds her of her old life. Sometimes she can be hanging out after work with the team and suddenly she starts to close off and gets very defensive, one time they meet a young, bright-eyed Journalist and she became so protective over him. Is generally a very bitter, sad and even angry feeling that is hard to predict when it will kick.

10- What lie do they most frequently remember telling? Does it haunt them?

Oh god this one HELP So huh the two are detectives and a pair of bitches at that LOL So they lie a lot/obfuscate information constantly when talking to others (And even to each other as they work to trust each other) for the sake of getting information they want out of anyone. However bigger lies that they keep mmm...

Laurel is more of a "I am lying to myself" kind of guy. "I am happy in my position, I deserve to be here" kind of deal, he knows these are lies but goes "Well is not like I can change anything so might as well take the copium"

For Olive..... huuuh this whole deal she got herself into hangs on a lie. She tries her hardest to keep it and she feels very justified (And she is) too keep it up, however keeping it every single day in a place that she gets herself in some very intense situations is exhausting. At some point, she even starts keeping the lie around the people who are there to support her on it like Ryan for the sake of not worrying them...

11- How do they cope with confusion (seek clarification, pretend they understand, etc)?

Again both are stubborn bitches so they would try to hide that they didn't get it. Laurel would try to make sense of it in his brain, and while he keeps the information in case at some point it makes sense, if he can't find it after several tries, will most likely discard it as "Foolishness".

Meanwhile Olive does have a degree in bullshitting something out of someone, so if she didn't get something she will try to keep the same line of reasoning as the person, trying to get them to talk and hopefully explain more in the process.

That said, they are detectives working on a team, so lucky for them there are others more willing to ask for clarification (Specially if they notice these two have no clue)

AND FOR MEEE

H- What trait do you admire most?

asdfg I'll assume is which traits of them I admire and OUGH I know I make a lot of fun of her for it, but Olive's ability to just know how to talk her way out of situations is very cool, again going through life with a high CHA stat alone. She also has the determination to see her goals through even in dangerous situations, which I think is really cool <3

OUUGH THANK U!! The thing about these OC's is that they are really old- some from back from 2015 even. Is when I was into Deviantart WC roleplay groups so is one of those things that like... The characters have changed, but I don't think there has ever been a super drastic change and more making them appeal more to my current design sensibilities.

Also, some of them are adopts- Like Laurel and Olive! So I feel a bit odd changing them. Although Olive has received several changed from her original so U know, but is one of those bits that is more... simplifying the design and keeping the colors and elements I really liked asdfdfgh

If I remember correctly, Laurel, Olive & Mathew are the designs I bought, while Belen, Frederick and Tania are the ones I designed!

(Laurel - Olive - Belen - Mathew - Frederick - Tania)

Then there is.... oh, source of my childhood cringe, this drawing I did with all the characters around that time (Btw, everyone in this picture is still a character in the current series- They were just moved to be secondaries lol)

THE POINT IS there is a lot of art from this time but really the designs themselves aren't too different, just my style, anatomy and how they dress lol

THEN around 2019 I believe? I was thinking on reviving them as warriors- Or at least just draw them for a bit in their original forms, where I made this!

This is the big design overhaul and pretty much all the designs stayed the same! The main changes being

A) Shapes, Laurel cannot be this square lol

B) Belen's white mane & Freddy's huh... hurt eye (I think I changed which one it is by accident and now I just roll with it lol)

Then in 2021, when I became set on developing them I made this group drawing!! Which is basically them now. The only prominent change after this is that with her new role & personality, I really wasn't vibing with Tania's design, so she is the final one I did an overhaul- Just trying to capture more of a conventional "racoon" look and make her colors more saturated!

AND THIS IS WHERE THEY ARE NOW!! YIPPEE <3

Help I was very fun to go back to the development of this group <3 again the designs themselves don't change A Lot is mostly them getting refined but ought they are such a delight <3

And well... for an interesting change... Olive does have an ALT version due to lore reasons that I designed on my own and it is very different to how she normally looks. I wonder what this is about...

OUGH answering with Laurel & Olive because Venture is already well known FGHJK 2- It kind of depends. To get a hearty laugh out of Laurel is HARD, but it doesn't mean he has a hard time finding things amusing or even funny, is just that his mannerisms are very subdued, so he would mostly smile and make some remark, at most he would snork a bit.

For Olive she is easier to make laugh in general! Is just... there is a lot in her mind at the beginning of the story, so joking with her can very quickly do a left turn and leave her more bothered than before... However when she starts to calm down she is very lively! Most times is a small, chest-y laughter!

15- Oh boy they are 100% opposites on this. Laurel mostly keeps to himself and his thoughts so he can have full internal monologues and then he says something out of nowhere and you get 0 on how he got to that conclusion (Unless someone asks him). That said he is not very good with interactions or charismatic, in part because he thinks too much and starts to get anxious when there isn't really a right way to respond to a person.

Olive on the other hand is 0 filter 0 thoughts bullshit through life and you can charisma your way out of any situation. A bit of backstory but she used to be a journalist! So she in general knows how to talk to get things out of people...

37- The two are very organized at taking notes! Again, Olive is a journalist so she is used to taking notes as she hears them, and Laurel as a detective also makes a point on noting anything that feels relevant (And if not... well, he has Mathew as his assistant to write anything <3).

Laurel is better with keeping stuff in his brain and waiting to have some downtime to write it all out, while Olive takes notes on the run or she might get lost on a mind tangent sdfghj AND FOR MYSELF OUGH <3 B- Ough this is so much fun. SO all of the main Part 1 Street Cats OCs are actually characters from WC roleplay groups from 2015! I made a bunch of OCs for these groups but they eventually started to die and I felt bad my wiwis didn't have homes. THEN Around that time in 2016 I started playing Ace Attorney and god Phoenix and Miles gave me so much inspiration for Laurel (Which was like- one of my main roleplay OCs alongside Belen) and so as the groups started to die I just- wanted to do something similar with these OCs, I like mystery stuff dfghj

The original concept always was "Laurel is doing his job until out of nowhere Olive joins and the two go hater mode on each other and eventually evolves into romance" SDFGH But it was more centered in Laurel and it had very little to no plot, just vibes dfghj Then I forgot/canned it for a few years until in 2021... Oh, the infectious worm attached itself to my brain. I was reading A Lot of Royai fanfics and cool concepts but I was like "Damn, I want more exploration of these themes just- in a way I have more control AKA me having OCs" and then I remembered WAIT I DO. These two fit sooo well those ideas I wanted to explore and as I developed Olive more I grew obsessed with her. I love feral insane women <3

A "small" test comic I did to try and get used to constantly drawing these two over and over and over again LOL Also general writing of their dynamic and such.