#theriofictional

Before I get into my own feelings, here's a description of what hearthome are from @otherhearted-culture-is.

(If otherhearted-culture-is would like me to remove this screenshot, let me know and I will).

I first saw the term a while ago, I can't remember when specifically, but it's not until today that I've realised how useful it could be when it comes to my own experiences.

I do indeed have a hearthome, The Nest from The Last Guardian. The image below shows what it looks like from the outside. The Nest is impossible to get in or out of without flight. It's where the Master of the Valley is, who controls tricos through our horns in order to acquire humans. It's where the majority of the plot takes place.

(Image credit: http://www.gendesign.co.jp/qa_01/interview04en.html)

When I first saw a trailer for The Last Guardian, my immediate feelings where that it looked like home. The Nest is not something you can find in this world, only present in the game though perhaps it could have been inspired by a real location. Regardless, I have never been to it and it's not a place I can go to. I was not born there, I did not grow up there, I do not live there. Yet when I see it and think about it, it feels the same as my very own hometown. Like I was born there, grew up there and have lived there my entire life.

Let me begin by saying the thought that sparked this post. It's easier to say I have an OC fictotype than explaining the entire identity and the possibilities of it. That's not the full picture of it though. I think I accidentally wrote down things that happened but I forgot, or I caught a glimpse of things that are yet to happen, or things that are happening in another universe. In my spiritual beliefs, I believe that people can be almost anything at any time. Therefore other people and I have lived, am living and will live a countless amount of lives in different forms. Only some of these lives or forms have a hold on me right now and here. This has been a part of my beliefs for as long as I can remember, way before I found the alterhuman community.

Sometimes, I feel no need to distinguish between 'kin identities because of this. At the heart of it, my soul is a shapeshifting thing. I have been and will be mostly monstrous in appearance to humans. I always say that primarily I identify as a monstrous shapeshifter or a shapeshifting monster. When engaging with the community, I just find it easier to break it down into clearer cut labels. It makes it easier to talk about, instead of having to discuss the context of my beliefs every time. Maybe one day I'll find a way, become more comfortable with the idea of not conforming even in this community, and smash these neat little boxes to pieces.

I take joy in different parts of my identity mixing together like various colours of paint. All these lives and possibilities, they are still me. I do like calling myself fictionkin, otherkin and therian. They're accurate for me, but sometimes I feel like they don't capture the full spectrum of the colour wheel that is my identity. There's also the fact that I've been in this community for 8 years now, I was a preteen when I found it and have grown into an adult. I've seen many alterhumans who have grown up to acquire a looser grasp on specific labels, while still being a part of the community.

I feel that identity can wax and wane, it can come and go and flow in different ways. I know past lives that don't fully match the involuntary identity criteria of 'kin labels, but still have a pull on me occasionally. I just don't identify as those things. For example I remember a red fox past life, and I've had multiple non-alterhumans remark without prompt at how fox-like I seem to them. I'm not a fox right now. There have been parts of this life where I have felt like one, but it's never a long-term thing.

I feel that for myself, and others, at times that there's an overlap between being physically human and alterhuman. Humans are still animals. Our human bodies come with human instincts and behaviours, I don't think they're inherently "better" or "worse" than those of other animals. They can just be different, and it's all subjective.

Humans, like other animals, enjoy climbing, swimming, running and chasing. Humans, like other animals, have different vocalisations and the urge to make them. Humans, like other animals, have the urge to construct a comfortable place to rest. I could go on, but it would make this a much longer post than I want. Having a human body doesn't mean you're less of an animal. As humans we share some traits with other nonhuman living things, as well as having many differences as well. I find it interesting. Even if I don't identify as human or enjoy having a human body, I have a sense of solidarity towards people.

It doesn't have to be a quick process

It's okay to get it wrong, to discover you actually aren't this thing you thought you were or that this other label fits that identity much better

For quite a while now I've been wishing I had a term like theriomythic to describe myself. I didn't feel like it fully fit me due to the fact that the animal species I identify as (a trico, from The Last Guardian) is a fictional species. So I spent some time trying to search for a fictional equivalent of the term theriomythic, but I couldn't find one which has led me to the decision to create my own.

What Does Theriofictional Mean?

Someone who is theriofictional identifies as an animal that is found in fiction. This could mean being a fictional animal species or a specific fictional animal character. Just how someone who is theriomythic identifies as a mythical animal or creature that is animalistic or "beastly", it's pretty much the same case for someone who is theriofictional but instead their identity lies in fiction and not mythology or folklore.

What's The Point Of The Term?

I can't speak for others on this, but I can explain why I feel it was important to create this term. I feel that much of the fictionkin community leans heavily towards discussions of being humanoid or human characters, even though there are plenty of nonhuman and nonhumanoid fictionkin. This has caused me to feel out of place in the fictionkin community at times, and even though I still identify as fictionkin I feel that my identity as my fictotype fits in better with the therian or otherkin communities at times.

I decided to create the term theriofictional for the same reason people use the term theriomythic, because of overlapping experiences that don't always fit in neatly with one part of the alterhuman community or another.

How Do I Know If I'm Theriofictional?

You are if you say you are, if you find that your experiences line up with how I've described this term then it's up to you if you consider yourself theriofictional or not. If you find comfort in the term and want to label yourself with it, I'm glad that you do! If you don't, then I'm also glad that you're happy without it! Put simply: I don't control anyone's identity, and I don't know you better than you know yourself.

Edit:

Being a main character means that it can be easier to find content of yourself. Being able to come across many screenshots, a variety of art and many posts about you can be comforting. It makes me feel closer to myself. Seeing people have a positive opinion of the character that I am can be nice too, I struggle a lot with my self esteem and it can make me feel a bit better about myself.

On the other hand, there can be something particularly uncomfortable about how people discuss Trico from The Last Guardian. Seeing people reduce my species entirely to "cute innocent big dog-cat-bird" feels weird. Most disturbing to me is some of the art I've seen which I will not go into. I don't like to judge, but it unsettles me with the context that a trico is an animal about as cognisant as a dog I'd say.