reject humanity, become dragon

All you can find are claims and articles which support the idea alterhumans are somehow "taking away" the rights of trans people.

The overlap of queer and gender diverse folks and nonhumans is actually huge and cannot be denied nor ignored.

I usually find this all boils down to wanting to be one of "the good ones". Like "I'm not like one of those dog-identifying people, I'm normal!" and then they will go on a whole rant about how species dysphoria is not a valid/real thing.

But the thing is, I myself am a therian, and I also happen to be trans! And I do fully believe my identities are connected and overlap.

I know it hurts when people compare you to a dog when you are not one, same as I don't like being called a human as I am not one.

But the issue does not lie withing the alterhhuman community. It lies on them. The ones who insist on defining what's normal and what's not, who deserves rights and who does not.

self indulgent art of myself pre-watcher transformation. look at how beautiful I was... don't get me wrong, I love my watcher wings, but it's just not the same, yknow? unfortunately for me, my jay wings were beautiful in a way my watcher wings are not.

and my DNA will always be from a jay. after all, being a watcher doesn't change my biology, because watchers can change forms and powers and abilities but never internal biology. their powers are not quite there, I'm afraid. it's not because they're not powerful (a hilarious thought, I will admit), but, as far as I can remember, watchers as a species were very very few and were kinda dying (don't quote me on that, they were rumours). I mean, that's the only possible explanation why they were turning players/humans into watchers. they wouldn't grant mere mortals that "gift" if they were not desperate for survival.

from what I can tell, I didn't really receive almost any magical training, I can't transform my wings into jay wings for long periods of time. I can transform its form and its colors, but they will never be the same as what they were before (my code was overwritten by the watchers into a watcher's code and, even tho the base code is there, it's like it's hidden away. does that make sense?). I've made peace with that, even if I liked my jay wings better, it's better than having no wings at all, right?

it kinda makes me think. so, if scientists can can take a human and turn it into an avian, why wouldn't watchers do it? if humans can, watchers can as well. and yes, I will miss my jay wings in a way that I can't really comprehend, but what's done it's done. in its form and base colors, they're still jay wings. that's kind of enough.

this drawing is a bit of a reminder to myself of some of my watcher duties. before being trapped in this world, or server, whatever you call it (and yes, Earth is kind of a server. a huge public server with billions of players, if we go by watchers point of view, because for us minecraftfolk everything is seen as minecraft vocabulary), after fleeing from the lab (when they tried turning me into a regular human) but before I left the watchers, I had my own little Beta world that was given to me as a gift. my main duties were always archiving, of course, but I had to practice my Watching skills in some way, and what better way than Watching? my skills were not very good at that (well, better than combat training, from my own memories I was pretty bad at that, I've always been a builder at heart), but I was deemed worthy enough.

posting the rest of my attacks on Pern dragons!! I had 6 more bookmarked but just couldn't find the time - I'll get em next year >:)

Above is Keroth for Kayosh, below are Torverith (and A'lys) for matiera, Quaith for AiurJordan, Ameth for michyinkdroop, Gorrauth for ruvy_ruvy, and finally Eigith for Sparky-Draws

So, I have a good idea of what I look like and I'm pretty sure I'm some sort of merfolk, but I have no clue what the name of the specific creature I am is.

I have some pictures of the different body parts I have. Below that, I also wrote out some of my behaviors / instincts :3.

I don't actually look all that similar, but this is one of the closest things to me that I could find. Everything is slightly off, and my descriptions above describe me much better!

I am Gillman! I am a gillman! Here is some art of me.

Mer-ish folk with two legs have no standard name. I call myself a gillman after the Creature from the Black Lagoon! But fishfolk, amphibian folk, and sea monsters (this one is after Luca) are also very common!

There are some of us who prefer specific terms from mythology, like siyokoy. Some forms of media have their own names for us, like Hellboy's Ichthyo sapiens or Locathah from DnD.

It's really sort of.... free reign as to what we call ourselves. Unlike many aspects of mythology, there isn't really one specific thing we can point to.

Listing some of blogs who are of a similar type below! (sorry if I leave someone out, this is off the top of my head)

I should probably start of by saying that I am not an otherkin, and I do not know much about the communities, but I have yet to see a discussion about gardening, which I think is a shame. I think gardening is a great opportunity to get in touch with otherkin identities whilst benefitting your local area, particularly for those with animal-based identities. Potential Benefits for Animal Identities (including extinct or mythological, some of this applies to nature-linked mythological identities too)

For carnivores and omnivores, gardens attract insects, as well as the various animals that eat insects, though you shouldn't harm these animals, it can be fun to search for them or watch them

For omnivores herbivores, it can be fun to research edible plants, and grow and harvest them. Whether these are fruits, vegetables, herbs, or other safe-to-eat plants, it can be a lot of fun, and potentially introduce more nutrients to your diet

Many animals enjoy sitting amongst plants, or hiding in foliage, even if there are only a couple plants in your garden, it's still closer to a natural habitat

Many animals like to dig, and gardening provides a good opportunity to do so

Benefits for fictionkins This largely depends on what character you are, but some characters may be potentially interested in gardening or farming. Otherwise, it could be fun to create a garden that is thematically or aesthetically linked to your character (e.g. if your character likes a certain flower, or a certain colour, you could choose linked plants accordingly). You could also base the plants you grow on their symbolism, choosing plants symbollic of things linked to your character.

Bonus Benefits

Gardening is fun!

Gardens can be very pretty

Growing local plants can help create spaces for local fauna and flora to thrive in

Gardening can help you develop relationships with housemates and neighbours who share your interest, or if you join a community garden

Gardening can be relaxing and benefit your mental health, as well as giving you a new hobby to explore, talk about, and get you out of the house

I wasn't a skinny or particularly elegant looking dragon. My scales were smooth and bumpy, but a rather dull shade of green. My underbelly was also smooth and a shade of light creamy yellowish-white, starting at my lower jaw and continuing down the length of my entire body to the tip of my tail. My eyes, vibrant gold in color with a slightly rounded pupil, appeared almost gentle in a way.

I was in swamp lands, on a bank of slightly muddy and sandy ground. I looked down at the damp dirt and with both of my partially webbed front claws, I dug into the earth. Not too deep, just a divot big enough to reveal a more moist layer underneath. I did so gently and with great care; it was the place that my hatchlings would be welcomed into this world.

The scene changed to be a nature documentary-style time-lapse, perhaps spanning over the next week. I would watch rains come and go. My nest slowly filled with moss and reeds gently ripped from the thriving, lively biome. Next, eggs appeared. Three of them. They appeared one by one. They were big compared to the eggs of modern day alligators or birds, but compared to myself they were small and very delicate.

Suddenly the time-lapse stopped, and it was my perspective again. Crouching down, I nudged one of the eggs with my broad snout... They really were small things compared to me. Suddenly I heard a noise behind me. I rose my head and looked in the direction of the sound. Another dragon in the distance. Not close enough to be too much of a threat on an average day, but it wasn't an average day. I had my babies to protect, and they could accidentally step on my unborn.

I walked a short distance from the eggs in the direction of the stranger. Just enough to make sure I wouldn't hurt my offspring, and I made a warning display. It wasn't aggressive, or even loud. My species wasn't very territorial or defensive usually, only when we had to protect our own.

I stood up tall on my hind legs, belly facing them. I then lifted my snout towards the sky, and released a deep rhythmic pulsing sound from my throat. My pale throat pouch, that I would soon use to carry fish-meat back to my young, expanded very slightly and moved in tandem with the sound resonating from it.

It was not a sign of danger or aggression. I was not intending to hurt the other dragon, merely communicating "Hey, I have my babies here, they are fragile. Do not come closer or you may cause them harm." My species was intelligent, and very good at communicating with one another. We often lived in small, closely bonded groups, with the exception being the nesting/hatching season. The message came across clear and without any possible room for misunderstandings to be had.

The other dragon did the same, mirroring my own actions, the rumbles coming up from deep in their chest: "Do not worry, I hear you, I understand you, I will be leaving." They lowered back onto all fours without so much as a small thud, as to not disturb the environment around us in any way. I lowered my own front claws to the ground, no longer defensive or worried as I watched them turn around and leave. I returned to my eggs, nudging them once more with my snout, guiding them into proper upright position. They had shifted in the short moments that I was away from their tiny bodies moving within. They would hatch soon. The idea of welcoming them into the world filled me with intense feelings of pride and happiness. I would care for them, nurture them, and love them until they were mature enough to go out into the world.

I laid down. My thick, armored tail coiled around the slightly elevated dirt edges of the nest. I rested my head on the soil and closed my eyes. I would wake soon to the tiny chirps, chitters, and trills of my newly hatched. Them eager to explore and experience the world around us, me here to guide, watch, feed, and protect them...