III: Ringling Aging and Veils
In book: Identity and Families in Merlot
Sex, Gender and identity
Ringlings are born with a biological sex at birth. Like most Merlot animals, they are typically male or female, though intersex individuals exist. Ringlings do not have sexual dimorphism, with both sexes able to grow the species' impressive beards and whiskers. Ringlings place no strong importance on biological sex, and both sexes are viewed as equal, with no particular gender roles assigned to either of them.
Gender identity is free to explore to the individual's liking-- though they typically haven't had as much gender exploration as, say, sqwaguls have with their identities--neopronouns and xenogenders seem to be a relatively new thing to them, with the most common non-gendered pronoun sets for ringlings being a simple they/their or its/its, though cultural exchanges are leading to the increasing commonality of newer invented pronoun sets and identities.
Conception
Ringlings are capable of sexual reproduction, though this has become relatively uncommon in recent years, especially with the nature of ringling reincarnation.
Gestation takes about a month, at which point 1–2 veils will be born. Hormonal changes in both parents begin to take place shortly before birth-- both mother and father will begin to grow longer, sturdier fur across their backs, in preparation to hold and carry their offspring safely. For ringlings with tufted wings, their wings will become considerably more fluffy, and those who have no tufts will surprisingly grow out some tufts during this time. The lengthened fur not only serves to warm the veil and give it a place to cling while it grows, but also increases the ringling's size and shape to intimidate potential threats. In some cases, hormonal problems and imbalances mean that parents will not go through this process-- instead, they will often carry their babies in a handmade, over-the-back sling/pouch.
Newborn veils emerge very weak-- small, hairless pups that can do little besides wriggle about and cling to their parents' back fur.
Aging
A ringling's lifestyle is bizarre. They age like any animal or human would, but when mortally wounded or passing from natural causes, a Ringling does not "die", instead it is reborn again as a child. Their appearance and personality may change, as well. ringlings cannot manually trigger reincarnation, they must sustain a harsh injury or be killed.
When it is time for a ringling to die, it will pass away quietly, its body quickly becoming a wisp of smoke that vanishes into the aether once more. This wisp of smoke instinctively seeks out other ringlings, at which point it will begin to slowly take the form of a veil.
Ringlings do not reform until they reach their home, where other ringlings reside. The mote almost always finds a way to make its way back to home, though there have been some cases of stray wisps getting lost.
When it is time for a ringling to die, it will pass away quietly, its body quickly becoming a wisp of smoke that vanishes into the aether once more. This wisp of smoke instinctively seeks out other ringlings, at which point it will begin to slowly take the form of a veil.
Ringlings do not reform until they reach their home, where other ringlings reside. The mote almost always finds a way to make its way back to home, though there have been some cases of stray wisps getting lost.
1. Wisp
This is the beginning of life, or of rebirth. A new Ringling may suddenly poof into the world as a wispy, sparkling mass, or it may be caused by it reincarnating. The color of this wisp often reflects the ringling's blood color-- but not always.
Ringlings born from reproduction will not appear as a wisp, and will instead be born as a newborn veil (see next stage.)
2. Newborn
Disproportionate, alien little creatures, newborn veils are weak, small, and hairless. They cannot see or hear. They use their large paws to crawl about their parents' backs for safety, sheltering themselves within their fur while they begin to grow.
These little ones aren't capable of much besides grasping with their paws, which they're surprisingly good at. Their paws have a shocking amount of control and dexterity, which they will begin to lose as they mature and become too big to cling onto their parents' backs.
At this stage, newborns lack the "leg swirls" that adult ringlings possess.
Newborn Characteristics:
- Hairless
- Large, disproportionate paws
- Thin, translucent skin
- Small tails
- No elbow swirls
3. True Veil
At this point, a ringling has grown enough that it has become too big to cling to its parents. From here, it will begin to run about on its own and explore the world.
Springy, flighty, and curious, these Ringlings are full of energy and are often seen sticking their noses into places that they shouldn't belong.
They can be described as looking like a fawn, with big heads and long, spindly legs. They retain their large paws from infancy, at least for now. These large paws help distribute their already-light weight, and keep them from sinking too much into the clouds-- at least until they get a better hang of traversing them on their own. However, they still require supervision and often stay close to the rest of their clique.
At this time, their leg swirls will have finally grown in
Veil Characteristics:
- Smaller snouts
- Larger, "doe" eyes
- Long, spindly legs
- Retains the large paws of their infant stage
4. Adult
These ringlings have mellowed down considerably, though some still retain their childlike personalities.
Their proportions are generally balanced now, but this isn't always the case for some, who still may retain their large paws and elongated legs.
5. Elder
Elder ringlings are wise and experienced. They have seen and heard much. Physically, they remain similar to adult ringlings, though in their old age they may succumb to the effects of aging, such as weaker bones, graying fur, etc.
Bastions to their communities, most ringlings will typically seek out the opinion of an elder before all others-- something that has its pros and cons, and often leads to some of the more "change-averse" viewpoints of some ringlings.
Whiskers
Ringlings commonly grow whiskers on their snouts-- these come in varieties of styles and shapes, and are a common way to tell the age of a ringling.
The longer the whiskers, the older the ringling-- some ancient ringlings have been seen with whiskers even longer than their bodies!
Parentage and Families
Ringlings have 1-2 veils at a time, though new children are growing increasingly uncommon. Most wisps are produced when existing ringlings reach the end of their life cycle.
It's very common for adult ringlings to adopt/foster veils instead of having their own. For this reason, many ringling families consist of parents who have adopted a child. It's notable that, like with the non-child-bearing parent of a veil, adoptive parents may also begin to grow in long back fur if the veil is young enough to need it.
While not as extreme with their child-rearing as sqwaguls are, ringlings also tend to raise their family in groups. When the parents aren't there to care for their child, the rest of the community will commonly pitch in to help.
Romance and Dating
Ringlings take their dating very seriously-- courtship takes months, if not years before either party is fully ready to commit. When all is said and done, couples tend to pair for life.Ringlings are able to date polyamorously, but typically are monogamous. Homosexual and heterosexual couples are equally common, as well as pairings between individuals of other identities, with no stigma behind different pairings.