#lore time

For some additional context: In Fairfell, all animals became "rational creatures capable of human thought" during the (presently, out of universe) unnamed Massive Magical Event that changed the world hundreds of years ago, so cats and other creatures have not only formed ideas of society and creed, but some have since had offspring with mankind as well.

Morgan, Queen of Cats, was a laid back and elegant lass before her death. She was close with Emrys and Jack--two people who could not be more different from one another, and yet found something worthwhile in each other's company. She enjoyed going on walks with the two, hunting game, and surveying her large woodland territory.

Jack was the child of a rabbit and man. Lapine creatures were at war during the time he was born, and trusting in their allies the cats, Jack's parents were sure to raise him deep in cat territory. Until their passing they aided in the construction of several tunnels and burrows this particular queendom of cats still makes use of to this day.

Jack himself is a reserved individual. The sort to watch and bide his time before making a move, though he's as prone to spontaneous moments as much as anyone. He is very quiet most of the time, perfectly content to listen more than he'll speak. This preference was the foundation for his friendship with Emrys, who was a natural chatterbox that did not ask for much response in return. Critically, Emrys was cognizant enough of social courtesy to know when to shut up, and so they made good companions.

Only with Morgan would Jack speak at a more generous length. She was disarming; he valued her ability to gently draw things out of people. The two shared common ground in being beastmen as well, sired by both humans and animals and fitting neither category too well. Their relationship only deepened as time went on. At some point they realized they were in love, and set out to be wed.

Emrys meanwhile was more or less a run of the mill cat with big ambitions. He was always sneaking out of the territory to watch the world turn in various ways. Farmers plowing fields, men paving roads and constructing behemoth buildings, kingdoms, legacies--watching the things people would get up to when they thought no one else was around. His curiosity and desire led him to make his decision. One day Emrys struck out on his own to pursue mankind's lifestyle and study magic. He traded in his old body for something more hominid with the help of a witch. From then on he lived as any human would, happy with his new lot in life. This change of scenery suited him well, but when Morgan and Jack married, he was sure to attend. Of course he had to explain himself, but he was welcomed to the celebration just the same.

The couple were happily married for a great length of time. They had sunny ideas about a family and children. Ideas which came to a halt when Morgan met her death.

The terms 'King' and 'Queen' are descriptors of immortality in this world. Kings live forever until directly killed. Queens live on through their reincarnations and successors. They are terms agnostic to gender or sex, class or station, and simply serve as stand-in terms for these ways of being.

Though when one is immortal, they tend to attract power, or at least a degree of attention. So it happens that Kings and Queens are often rulers. When either dies, they pass on the torch in one way or another. This is how Aria came to be. Morgan's health had been failing for some time, and at the very moment she began to truly die, Aria was already struggling to be born. An unnatural birth more akin to casting off a moult. A transference of being, a metamorphosis. Whatever composed the interiority of Morgan was re-arranged entire and ready to experience the world with new eyes. Jack would grieve for what felt like forever, and still grieves. He loves his daughter and treats her with utmost care, yet each moment with her pangs him for want of his lost wife. He struggles with the knowledge that Aria is, in some way or another, Morgan, but knows he must be there for the girl regardless. Now she is a fine young lady and rules the cats of her wood with pride. She is boisterous and in good health, and will one day become someone else. That is the way of the world.

At some point Jack transformed into the king of shadows, slipping far from the light his life once had. He has no choice but to live on forever knowing he will have to see the cycle of a Queen's rebirth spin on for eternity. He cannot die and he will not leave Aria without a father.

This dilemma haunts him, and he enters a state of not allowing himself to form new relationships, cultivating a layer of distance from the world. He carries on with hardly a sense of self.