GRYPHON GALLERY - JASMINESTAR

she/they | 84 moons | Fenstrider of the FenKin Jasminestar is a Wandering Albatross gryphon with lime green eyes and pinkish skin, claws, and beak. She is mostly a striking white color with a fade to black along her wings, head crest, and the bottom side of her shortened tail. Her body fur and feathers are fairly dense and short, the only lengthening being on her wings, chest, and head. Her ears are pointed and long, darkening at the tips to blend in with the head feathers. A pretty large gryphon, she hits 18 hands at the shoulder with a massive wingspan being just under 40 hands. Built for long distance gliding, she has a barely average weight for her size. She also has a waterproof pelt for swimming.

Jasminepaw started humbly as an artisan, dabbling a bit in warrior ways. A bit of a late bloomer, Jasminetwist finally got her full artisan name at the age of 16 moons, just a few moons before the Conflict and cult of Fenmoon began. With her parents succumbing to the cult, Jasminetwist was left alone with her thoughts and tried to distract herself from the horrors of war. However, their quiet and anxious personality caught the eye of Fenmoon, especially when the former deputy passed in the Conflict.

To Jasminetwist's surprise, she was chosen as deputy despite the other two candidates being far more qualified. Fenmoon chose them himself as a means of propping up his own power even more. Fenmoon's death and Rapidstar's disappearance meant that Jasminetwist was the sole gryphon in charge. While they wondered whether they were worthy of the role, Andromeda's acceptance of her has given her confidence that she can lead the FenKin as Jasminestar.

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FEN icons for anon!! these were super fun!! i hope you enjoy them and feel free to shoot an ask if you want them changed!

GRYPHON GALLERY - MILKMOON

she/they | 87 moons | moonspeaker of the FenKin Milkmoon is a waterfowl smew gryphon, her size somewhat smaller than average at a height of about 13 hands with a wingspan of 22 hands. The plumage at her head starts as a red-brown (this red-brown matches the color of her slightly small, roundish ears), but cleanly stops and becomes blue-gray at the base of her neck, and this gray continues for the rest of her body; her hind is the exact same color, though with the tip of her tail being white and her having white socks. Her tail is a bit short, but medium length and plenty fluffy compared to her (mostly) smooth, waterproof feathers. ... appearance continues on sheet.

Similarly to their leader, Jasminestar, Milkpuddle was seen as an ideal candidate for moonspeaker tyro thanks to her meek nature. However, it was originally her brother Yewmoon who held the position, a fiery contrast to Milk's silence. Yewmoon's later opposition to the cult of Fenmoon is what would lead to his quiet demise, Milkpuddle replacing him and being told to do just as Fenmoon said.

Throughout the war, Milkpuddle was expected to heal the clan and question nothing. It came to no surprise that she was one of the most affected by Fenmoon's death. Without the former moonspeaker's guidance, was she even deserving of the title? When they first met Andromeda, the dragon soothed their worries by forgiving them, promising that nothing was their fault. Milkpuddle returned from the meeting with a new name: Milkmoon.

A cub who was left on the border shortly after the conflict was named Dahliacub, accepted into the FenKin without hesitation. As Milkmoon kept an eye out for Dahliacub, who became Dahliaspark, the two of them grew attached. Milkmoon knew she could never adopt a cub thanks to the code, but Dahliaspark was like a daughter to her. Even if they are distant now, this still holds true in Milkmoon's heart.

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Fairies (FenKin territory)

There are multiple places on the FenKin clan’s territory that do not belong to them - namely the Fairy Circle and the Fairy Garden. Fairies are small satyr-like creatures with wings who gather in large groups. They live in the trees of the FenKin environment and have a complex civilization beyond the knowledge of gryphons. Because of this, they are capable of taking down gryphons together, so there has been a “mutual agreement” of sorts to leave the Fairy Circle and the Fairy Garden alone unless granted permission to enter.

Fairies and gryphons can not communicate, but it’s well-known that fairies enjoy their antics. Fairies help the gryphons with their tyro trial, as well as growing herbs in the Fairy Garden that are specifically used by the gryphons. In exchange, the gryphons protect fairies, and occasionally fairies will enter the camp in search of assistance from the clan.

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Stories of the FenKin

As mentioned in the art post, a lot of music sung by the FenKin feature tales that they created themselves. Ask any gryphon, and you’ll likely get a different story. Below are a couple of the most common ones.

Arguably, the most notable story of the FenKin is that of the Chimera. At the southernmost tip of FenKin territory is a cove and in that cove is a cave - this is where the Chimera is rumored to live. Those who enter the Chimera Cove, and in turn the Chimera’s cave, rarely return to camp if they venture beyond where light reaches. Different FenKin gryphons will say different animals compose the Chimera, including a lion, a goat, a snake, a fish, a dragon, an elk, a boar, a chameleon, a peacock, a twoleg, a horse, or an alligator. What the Chimera truly is made of and whether it actually exists remains a mystery. 

Like every other clan, the FenKin need a story that will scare their cubs into staying into the clan. In the early stages of a cub’s life, they might hear about the tooth fairy. However, it is said that since most gryphons don’t have teeth and the ones that do don’t have “good enough” teeth for the tooth fairy, the tooth fairy will just steal your beak instead! It’s said if a cub wanders too far, they’re destined to find the tooth fairy. 

Other stories are encouraged to be made up by FenKin gryphon players, in particular any musical ones. From a two-headed bunyip to an enchanted river in the North, the possibilities are endless!

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Music

The FenKin have their own unique sound that differs from the rest of the clans. They like to make music that blends in with their environment, so most of their songs are quiet, whistling hymns that tell a story from folklore or, for the more religious, a canticle that worships Andromeda. Rarely, you may find a FenKin “bard” who likes to write cheery folk music and perform it in the clearing. These “bards” are also popular in the Moonlight Festival. All FenKin music has a purpose, ranging from as small as a tune to teach cubs about pin feathers to as large as a full poem about how a mythical warrior took down a dragon.

Jewelry

The FenKin are the most decorated of the clans. Most if not all enjoy covering themselves in flowers, shells, carved bone or wood, and threads with beads. Their craftiness also extends to their camp, where you might find stringed beads and flowers laced throughout trees and nests that can be removed and worn on the body. Artisans spend a large chunk of their free time on creating jewelry. As established before, the symbols of the moon and star represent Andromeda; a large amount of FenKin jewelry will feature them. When the gryphon who wore the jewelry dies, it is typically buried with them or strung up on one of the camp trees depending on their wishes.

Art

While some FenKin indulge in painting hide like the RainKin, most paint is utilized on beads, shells, or carved bone and wood that will soon be turned into threaded jewelry. FenKin art is incredibly detailed and smooth with broad strokes and those who do paint on animal hide spend many moons to create masterpieces. Typically, these masterpieces will be detailed retellings of an event in the form of icons or a landscape.

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While all Kin have a connection to Andromeda, the FenKin are the closest to her thanks to their proximity and their history with her. Though Fenmoon, her first moonspeaker, betrayed her trust, the rest of the FenKin did nothing wrong and have been assured that they have been forgiven; during the Conflict, they had no choice but to follow Fenmoon’s deceit. Many FenKin “repay her kindness” with examples being:

The Moonlight Festival. On the first full moon of greenleaf, the FenKin gather flowers in the center of the clearing and celebrate. While most FenKin gryphons use this as an excuse to mingle, show off their collection, and gorge on food, more dedicated gryphons will spend this time in silence. Very dedicated gryphons will have their eyes closed or blindfolded for the entire festival. This is to symbolize the opposite of moonblinking and show dedication to Andromeda.

Altars. A FenKin gryphon might have a small altar somewhere near or in their nest that contains items connected to Andromeda, including white flowers, stones, pearls, or other light-colored objects.

Jewelry. Some gryphons will carve jewelry from wood or bone to look like a star or the moon, both symbols of Andromeda.

These acts don’t necessarily give the FenKin favoritism over the rest of the Kin - in fact, other gryphons from other Kin might do an altar or wear Andromeda jewelry, themselves. It’s obvious, however, that the FenKin are the most dedicated to Andromeda.

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It’s not often you’ll find FenKin taking a liking to athletic activities like the RainKin or mind-games like the SunKin. Though mud wrestling is growing more popular amongst younger warriors, the most common hobby is floriculture, as the one thing the FenKin never lost in the Conflict of Noctus is their love and connection to nature. 

Gryphons in the FenKin gather dirt into carved bowls and plant flowers that they have pulled at the root or gathered the seeds of. Different gryphons take a liking to different flower species, so their method of caring for these flowers vary widely. There are dozens of species to find in the FenKin territory. One gryphon, Bumblefrog, claims her favorite is poppies, while another might claim their favorite are orchids and another claims their favorite is daisies. It depends on the gryphon. In general, a Fenkin gryphon’s prized possession is commonly their flowers and giving one to another gryphon is seen as a very personal gesture whether platonic or romantic. 

CHARACTER CONCEPT: FLORIST (OR) ANTHOPHOBIC Oh, how you just love flowers! Roses, lavender, marigolds, hyacinth, hydrangeas - no matter what, you've always been drawn to them. You wear them on your pelt and in your feathers, and you keep dozens of planters full to the brim with as many as you can find. You'll even trade trinkets for others' flowers. Or... Maybe you're the opposite. You hate flowers! You've never liked them. They give you allergies, they're sticky, they're obnoxious, they're hard to care for. Maybe a flower even killed your grandma! Who knows? Whatever he case, you just hate flowers. Let's hope the both of you don't exist in the same clan. It'd be a shame for you two to butt heads... or maybe, like... y'know... fall in love?

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