A quick sketch to show the differences between Zi’s different forms (for those few that actually knew about them). Zi is in dire need of a real character sheet but this will have to do for now. Zi’s large form is actually more complicated then ‘just grows into’, but that’s for another day, and for simplicity’s sake I’ve added the ages at which she would reach each of them if she were to grow into them. Now if you aren’t interested in a bunch of over described character details, skip the rest of this text.

If Zi’s growth rate seems odd, that’s because I see her as a hybrid of two (unknown) made up species. Zi was created purely for, and a victim of, the pet trade, and this is why she wares a ribbon and is leucistic (has reduced pigmentation in her fur). Possibly it also explains other traits about her, but since both we and Zi don’t know her parentage, it’s hard to tell (she doesn’t even know she’s a hybrid). Anyway, her growth and general attributes mimic a liger’s so she has prolonged and increased growth period/rate. And onto the form details!

Kitten form: Zi also seems to have the greying(?) gene, where her coat is born darker and gradually gets lighter as she ages. Her spots are very visible at this age, but quickly fade. The base coat can either be this cinnamon-y colour, off white or pure white etc, I’m not particularly consistent, or bothered. You can argue that as she’s aging all this is lightening, so it works! Her ribbon is neatly tied up into a bow at this age. Pretty average kitten build.

Small form: The spots are almost invisible, or completely gone. If they are visible, they’re most concentrated on the belly or in creases of the fur (the spots are made from bars on the individual hairs (agouti fur), not solid colour spots, so they are visible at certain angles, but not necessarily all of the time). The noticeable markings that remain are the caracal like face markings, paws, tail tip and dorsal stripe. The base coat is dramatically lighter or can be pure white already. By this point, she has gotten too big for her owners and been abandoned, so her ribbons are no longer kept in a nice neat bow, poor thing. She’s very lanky at this age and basically caracal shaped.

Large form: She’s pretty much pure white at this point, though you can add (very) faint spots if it strikes your fancy. I don't, I'm lazy. The only striking markings that are left are the ear rims, dorsal stripe, paws and tail tip. All the others have gone. She’s a much larger build as an adult and more lynx or puma shaped. Other things of possible note are that the bell around her neck is noticably smaller (because she’s bigger!) and that her tail has grown to a normal cat’s length, instead of the half length of the small form, or the ¼ length of her kitten one (there's no explanation for this, it just is ).

If you read all that, I commend you.


Zi © Me, ElementalSpirits