maskormenace | 014 ♍ VIDEO

[ Kanaya is sitting at her desk, with Ashiah laying down on it in front of her. The little grub keeps glancing around in various directions, while her mother's gaze and smile is fixed on the camera. ]

I've been thinking recently about the cross-section of the imPort community who aren't human, perhaps most particularly since the ambassador elections last month. There are a sizable amount of us, not a large group, but significant. I've spoken with many of you on individual terms, and while the resources Governor Kang and SELF have provided to those of us with more unique needs have been invaluable, I feel there is still something missing in our collective socialization. We live the imPort experience in a way that many others won't fully appreciate, and I think we could benefit from sharing those experiences with each other.

[ At this point, Ashiah tries to wander off camera, but Kanaya suppresses a giggle as she puts a hand on top of her and scoots her back into place. ]

I'm unsure exactly what form that would take, but putting us all in a room to share our stories would be at least a start. If anyone is interested, please let me know, and I'll see about renting some space. Of course, if you have any special dietary needs, in terms of snacks, I would like to hear those as well.

This is generally something I'd prefer to save until we're in person, but... [ She's interrupted as Ashiah turns around and nuzzles into her chest, then tries to climb up her shoulder. Kanaya stops and laughs to herself, then plucks her off and cradles her, despite all her fidgeting. ] Anyway, for those of you who I haven't had the pleasure with yet, my name is Kanaya Maryam, and this is my daughter, Ashiah. I'm an Alternian troll, specifically an awakened jadeblood, which basically means I'm a vampire. She's a Daughter Grub from the same planet. [ She raises a finger, shaking her head. ] And before you ask, no, she isn't a troll, and she won't grow up to be one, either. Once she finally pupates, she'll become a Mother Grub. They acted as gestational surrogates for trolls, while the jadeblooded caste were their caretakers and midwives. It's all a bit complicated, this is just a general summary.

So, hopefully we'll be able to put something together moving forward, and I'll be able to hear all of your stories, as well. I'll be looking forward to hearing from each of you.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Hm. Ghouls always lived on earth so it's a bit weird to be caled alien. Though semantically we are, to this world at least.

I always end up wondering about how many non human species are there among ImPorts.

Well, yes, that is a salient point. Even while non-Terrans may make up the majority of us, there are plenty native to their own Earths.

Though, in my experience, there haven't been many multiples of the same species. Not lately. Barring some occasional exceptions, mostly us.

[ he is honestly glad there aren't more ghouls around, as sad as it may look at first. ]

I imagine it's also a lot easier for the native population and the goverment - or even other imPorts - to deal with a whole new species showing up here. I don't think they'd know what to do if many ghouls suddenly came out of the porter. [ but he ghouls certainly would know what to do ]

[ She laughs lightly. ] Not all at once, certainly.

And we have a tendency to cause more drama, the more trolls are around. I suppose it's a sort of responsibility that falls on our shoulders, more of our kind means more we need to keep in check.

[ After a moment of thought, she adds with a sigh. ] Still, it can be nice to not be the only one.

Don't we all cause drama?

At least you have more vampire I suppose.

There are very few forms of drama that really compare to troll drama. Blood tends to run.

Vampires are a bit different. Many of them could do with some supervision, but there tends to be less common ground. They aren't really my kind, just others who have been infected with the same condition I was born into.

You don't seem very dramatic.

But even so, isn't there some sort of relief to know someone understands?

I can be dramatic in the right circumstances. [ A veritable drama queen, honestly. ] But I was also supposed to be the reasonable, responsible one, the one who kept the rest in line. I don't seem dramatic because I'm not supposed to be.

[ She says it with a laugh, as she thinks back on all of the vampires she's known, trying to remember the last time she'd felt a kinship with any of them, instead of a responsibility. It's really been that long, hasn't it? ]

When I was younger, there was a vampire working with the police. I think she may have been more recently turned, too, maybe a few years prior, but she never came off as a fledgling to me. She was kind and had everything together, she knew what she was doing and how to manage herself responsibly, and looked in on me every now and again.

Thinking back on her now, she was probably her own private mess, but it helped me then to know she was out there, and doing the best she could. Every vampire I've met since, I've been the one trying to do the best she could, and so many of them have been... I don't know. Disaffected, or cruel, or thoughtless to the harm they could do. I have much better luck with the newly turned than those who've been at this for hundreds of years.

You are the "mom" then. [ Sasaki is clearly amused. He too is a mom, after all ]

Do you see it ass your responsibility to take care of these vampires or what theh do? Why does it have to be you?

Because I care. I can't really count on anyone else to that. I mean, I already told you how the other vampires tend to be, you can't count on them to do anything but serve themselves.

Isn't that a bit of a generalization?

besides, even if you do care, you are insisting on taking a rather heavy burden on yourself. You can't feel responsible for over what every vampire does.

Of course it's a generalization. And probably not even an accurate one, either. I keep finding there are more vampires here than I realized, some of them are just less open about it.

But still, it's something that needs to be done as it arises, and some things you can't take for granted that someone else will take up that burden. It's not like I've ever been a stranger to burdens.

I mean, it isn't every vampire. It's just the ones that need looking after, someone to guide them along the basics. The older ones ought to know better.

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