Template:Featured Articles/30-2024
 "I'll be your friend, if you wish. I'm Megan, though most people know me as Pixie." She leaned forward slightly, intrigued, while maintaining a respectful distance. The change in position sent the lights scattering in different directions. The cat pounced. "I am Sharon, though the internet knows and fears me as Catseye," she said, scrabbling with humanoid hands as she chased a splash of light across the concrete. Her tail lashed the air playfully. "We shall be friends. Enjoy meeting other heteromorphic mutants. New experience for me." "Wonderful." Pixie's gaze drifted to Sharon's hands on the pavement, noting the worn state of her nails. "If you'd like, I could help you with a manicure. It's a small thing, but it can be a relaxing experience." With Pixie's wings now stilled Sharon had no more lights to chase. Now she sat to regard the other girl, the lashing of her tail now concentrated to slow flicks of the very tip. "I have experienced before," Sharon allowed, feigning casual disinterest. "But first, have some questions." Pixie smiled at the hint of a shared experience. "Of course." Tilting her head slightly, she asked, "What do you want to know?" Excitedly, the cat hopped forward a few paces. "Your wings," she said, craning her neck for a better view of Pixie's back. "Have met mutant with avian wings, but not insectile. Fascinated. You do not have an exoskeleton to which muscles can attach and deform torso, so means of propulsion must be direct flight, with thoracic muscle attaching directly to wing bases. Like dragonflies. Venation seems also roughly equivalent. Wings stroke out of phase also. Omnidimensional movement then? Up, down, forward, back, left, right?" Pixie looked over her left shoulder to glance at a wing. "I don't really think about the underlying mechanics, but I can fly in all directions. And hover, which is really quite nice." She hesitated. "Do you mind if I ask where you came from? I've met a faerie cat, but I've never met a mutant with such interesting cat qualities before." Sharon preened. "Not so exotic as faerie cat. Only a homeschool-weirdo from Manhattan. But I am very interesting." She circled the deck chair to get a full 360 view of the other girl, sniffing delicately. Sharon came to a halt beside Pixie and sat on her haunches, one clawed hand raised. "I can touch?" she asked, eyes on the glossy membrane of the nearest wing. Pixie eyed Sharon's clawed humanoid hands. "Yes, careful touching is fine." Despite their rough condition they looked gentle enough, and her wings were tougher than they looked. "Fascinating, to be an internet sensation and yet, a frightening enigma to others." "Reddit trembles before me," Sharon replied gravely. Gently, flexing her fingers so her claws wouldn't scratch the gleaming membranes, Sharon ran a hand across Pixie's wing. "Seem to be very many fold-lines, like a fan, maybe," she said. "Unusual for this sort of structure. Only familiar with basic claval and jugal folds, but my entomology is not so strong. See jugum, though, which suggests you can beat fore and hind-wings as one if necessary. Do you have sensation? Suppose some form of proprioception is necessary for flight, but curious if sensitivity differs from skin." "It does differ. I feel temperature strongly, and pressure, but not with the same nuance as skin," Pixie explained. "Is your tail very sensitive? Might you be willing to share a bit about your abilities? Besides ruling Reddit and the internet, I mean." "I am generous. I shall share." Sharon withdrew her hand and snaked her tail over her shoulder, twisting it into a loose spiral. "Tail is very sensitive, and prehensile. More like that of a spider monkey than a cat. Suspect a large concentration of mechanoreceptors involved, maybe. Not strong enough to manage brachiation, but I can grasp objects. Most useful for balance, especially if I must be on two legs." "A prehensile tail, remarkable. The diversity of mutants, it's beautiful and endlessly inspiring." She paused, contemplative. "Do you ever, ah, wear clothes? I only ask because I enjoy creating clothing for people with physical mutations, who can find regular clothes shopping difficult." |
