Ask the Ruminerds; Dismurinae Couples

 

Gus: I mean, I think in terms of Dismurnea stuff, it's kind of reflective of the time.

Melly: Or I mean, the story being told. Obviously the Lion King is always going to feature Simba and Nala as lions...Although they did explore that whole Kion and Jasira couple thing in the more recent 'Lions of the guard' miniseries.

Gus: What I mean is that the more recent stuff is going to more...experimental? In terms of pairings. Case and point "Lions of the guard."

Melly: Snow woolt for instance, is a ewe, and the Prince is a ram.

Gus: Well with a name like that, it's also a given. But I mean, Tarzand and Jane didn't stray so far in terms of species, with Tarzand being an antelope, and Jane Porthoof being a doe. 

Melly: Herculion strays a bit further with Mewgara being a Leopard and Herculion being well...a lion.

Gus: I'd say hooves down, the most dramatic interspecies pairing is Cetacia; the Lost Empire. I mean a Fox and a Dolphin creature....that's pretty out there.

Melly: They did make Delphida look pretty for something so...alien-looking I guess. I mean, her and Milo did look cute together. I'm cool with that canon ship.

Dawn: Yeah....but since Dolphins don't...really exist anymore, can you count that as Dismurinae taking some sort of risk in portraying cross-species romance?

Gus: At the end of the day, it's all fictional isn't it? I'd say it counts. Dolphins used to exist, therefore they aren't like...completely made up aliens.

Melly: Also Ariel was technically half-cetacean right? That's how mermaids are classified? So it wasn't like Dolphida was the first.

Dawn: True..., but by the end of the film she was all cougar. And so was the prince. I don't think you can count them, because by the end of the movie they were the same species.

Melly: I suppose that means Beauty and the Beast is out too.

Dawn: Yes, as much as that's one of my all-time favorites, Beast turned into a buck at the end instead of a lion. And Belle was already a doe...so...

Gus: Mam' a lot of the oldies feature Bucks and Does....or Lions and Lionesses...When are we going to get a goat Prince and a goat princess already. *Laughs*

Melly: I think the best we'll have to settle for is Esmeralda's friend Djali from the Hunchpack of Coltredam. At least for now.

WT: Yes, Cetacia is Zootopia's "Lost City of Atlantis" Equivilant. Brayto's descriptions, as well as information gleaned from various cultures around Animalia all, seem to have some myth about a species of smooth-skinned, extremely intelligent aquatic mammal having existed up until a great calamity either sealed them away from the surface world, or that they elected to seal themselves away until the deemed the surface mammals worthy to be further enlightened by them. "mermaid" stories have also further muddied this ancient tall tale, despite most mermaid sightings now being choked up to ancient sailors seeing manatees while delirious. Some legends have these ancient dolphins coming to the land in strange costumes similar to what we'd now compare to a swimsuit, although having the opposite function, to enlighten burgeoning mammalian tribes. While other legends tell of mammals who were taken back to the fabulous underwater domed city the Cetaceans called their home, and shown fantastic wonders eons beyond the technology available to the surface mammals at the time before being returned to the surface.

However, in truth Dolphins were one of the few species of mammals spared by whatever caused mammals as a whole to take what historians call 'the great leap'. Nearly all sea mammals didn't make that leap before the ice age, and sadly in the case of Dolphins, they quickly went extinct before the ice age even started. To date they have yet to find a single set of Dolphin remains from after that period in the fossil record, and following that logic, there would be no way this supposed evolution of the Dolphin family could exist in modern Animalia. However, many conspiracy theorists still cling to the existence of the Cetacean race, and their secret domed city. And many believe that one day the Cetaceans will reconnect with the mammals on the surface, when the time is right.

Ask Val and Qali; Best things about Wolves

 Qali: Oh gosh, the list is endless for me when it comes to Trenny! *Giggles* It's hard to even start to like... narrow it down to just a few. 

Val: They make good pillows.

Qali: *Snickers* Yes they do! Trenny is just so warm and cuddly, I love to snuggle up against his chest on a lazy morning!

Val: You want Fluffy, try a real arctic wolf, not just a grey wolf colored like one. *Chuckles* In the dead of winter it's like being buried in an avalanche of shag.

Qali: Also, being so small compared to Trenny means he can scoop me up and curl around me, something that feels so safe and cozy...Mhhh...

Val: I think you're alone on that one...I like the fluffy pillow bit, don't get me wrong, but personally, I don't like feeling as though I'm being...protected. Like as if I need to be protected, which is something Kodi still slips into doing a lot of the time. I guess wolves are sort of hard-wired to be like that when it comes to mates or family, that whole pack mentality thing.

Qali: Oh I love that though! Trenny is so protective of me...and he's so emotional...even if he doesn't really show it off to anyone else. I'm not sure though if that's strictly a wolf thing though.

Val: Based on what I've seen of the Hunters, and Kodi especially, I can say for better or worse wolves seem to wear their heart on their sleeves. Only a pawful are really good at pulling off appearing indifferent or not as invested as they actually are. Between their tails wagging and their howling being a dead giveaway for how they're feeling in the moment, they've got a lot working against them in that regard.

Qali: I think it's super cute though! Especially the howling when they're happy or sad! Foxes don't really do that...we have things that you could call an equivalent to howling, like gekking. But we aren't so...well...it's not something that's easy to get a fox to do.

Val: Makes them easier to read, which is a bonus. I can always tell when something's wrong with Kodi...and it doesn't take a lot of prodding to get him to spill the beans. Foxes are more...guarded than that in general.

Kodi: Doesn't seem that way with Qali or your Dad. Ever think it might be just you S'more?

Val: I told you not to call me that in public you dork! *Blushes slightly* Jeeze...

Kodi: Ah! someone's flustered! So much for not being easy to read!

Qali: Oh...um...also...*Blushing* I find that because Trenny is so...in touch with his emotions...it makes him really...in tune to my needs...in the bedroom I mean. *Giggles*

Dawn: I'll second that for Vernon. *Giggling* Although maybe that's just a Hunter thing? I've just...I've never had a mammal pay so much attention to my needs and urges in the bedroom...but Vernon...*Blushes intensely*. Whenever we're together it's...it's just magical. I've never felt more loved and cared for in my life.

Val: I'd be...lying if I said Kodi wasn't...pretty decent when it comes to that...so maybe it is a wolf thing?

Kodi: Was that a compliment there?

Val: *Flustering slightly* M-maybe it is...But don't let it go to your head, alright...

Kodi: Hey, it's not a clean win, but I'll happily take it.

Ask Wasty, Age of Maturity Across Species in Zootopia

 

Wasty: Phew, you've kind of launched a hot potato in my lap here. Maybe I should just pull the cryptoland route and say 'Mental maturity should be more than enough ;)'. Pft...But let's get serious for this, and try to keep the jokes to a minimum.

Zootopian age of consent is slightly more complicated than that of our own, in that there is a difference between the maximum lifespan of certain mammals. To keep things simplified, the real difference is in Megafauna and Microfauna, as Megafauna are seen as taking longer to get to physical adulthood, and most rodents take a shorter time. This can make interspecies relationships involving either a bit more legally complicated. Using Moira and Giselle as examples, Moira would have been considered an adult mouse at the age of fifteen rather than eighteen, and Giselle would have been seen as a legal adult at the age of twenty. 

To add a layer of further confusion, there is a legal sliding scale of consent for interactions between certain age brackets. This is to prevent an eighteen-year-old from necessarily being jailed for a relationship with a fifteen-year-old. Generally, there are two legal brackets for that. The twelve to sixteen bracket, and the sixteen to twenty bracket, each given a little leeway for those on the cusp. The partitioning is designed to deter a relationship between a twenty-year-old and someone fourteen or younger, as it could be argued such a relationship naturally entails grooming while creating a cut off between the upper end and lower end of the teen years to separate those who have little to no understanding of their sexual development, and those who understand enough to begin experimenting with those in their peer group. Naturally, this can cause some legal issues if a mammal is say seventeen and their significant other is fourteen, but such relationships are reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

Generally, microfauna and megafauna have been awkwardly shoehorned into this system with special exemptions. With the first bracket of maturity of mice being lowered to ten to fourteen, and fourteen to eighteen respectively. Whereas with Megafauna the brackets are fourteen to eighteen, and eighteen to twenty-two. And much like with special circumstances, any interspecies relationship between a Mega/Microfauna and an average lifespan mammal must be reviewed on a case by case basis. Granted, all this only comes into play if the parents of either party feels the need to contest something.

In terms of ages to run for political office, the age is twenty-four for average species and mega-fauna and twenty for Microfauna.

Rodents can legally drive at fourteen, whereas average and megafauna mammals can get permits at sixteen and full licenses at eighteen. 

Voting has a blanket age of eighteen, regardless of species, although the residents of Districts like Rodentia have been trying to get the age lowered to sixteen in their district.

Drinking and Smoking are probably one of the more complicated ones, as it adheres to the age range used for consent. So, smoking for rodents is at sixteen, and drinking at eighteen. Average life span mammals can smoke at eighteen and drink at twenty, and Megafauna can smoke at twenty, but have to wait till the age of twenty-five to legally drink. (This is because there is a severe degree of concern about the risks of a megafauna mammal getting drunk and hurting others.

Lastly, Marriage adheres to legal adulthood across each species class. So fifteen for rodents, eighteen for mammals like Dawn and Vern, and twenty onward for Giselle.

Of course, all that is just for Zootopia. In other parts of Animalia I can imagine those stats are even more confusing and all over the place. And to stop you ahead of time, if you ask me about that,  don't expect an answer! Thanks for the Ask!

-Wasty

Ask Wasty; Representative Political Parties

 

Wasty: Consider this I guess a part two to the "Representatives of Zootopia" ask I answered just below this one. Granted this one won't be nearly as long I suppose.

Starting with Adele Snow and Elton Hart, the current Mayor and Assistant Mayor of Zootopia. Marking a departure from what you'd expect, mayor Snow is a Preygressive, as is her assistant. While they hadn't initially been elected the first time around, instead being the next line in the chain of command after Lionheart and Dawn were ousted, the fact that she was re-elected shows Zootopia wasn't quite ready to give another Preditionalist like Lionheart another crack at the wheel. It's also noting that Dawn and Vernon are both Preygressives.

Ruddy is also a Preygressionalist, but also has connections to the Bellwether alliance (No relation to Dawn's family) which advocates for caprid mammals interests. Loupon is your standard Preditionalist, but like Ruddy has ties to the local native wolf councils which is how he ended up meeting Ana in the first place.

Caprini is a Preditionalist, which is surprising considering some nasty rumors are floating around about him being affiliated with 'The order of the Horns and Hooves', and that he's using the title of Preditionalist to throw off suspicion. Shearling, is a Preygressive, who similar to Ruddy, has ties to the Bellwether Alliance.

 Nilgaillia, the Savannah Central rep is a Preditionalist candidate, at least officially, however, her stance and actions in office largely paint her as a centrist and her assistant is much the same in that he's also a Preditionalist, but comes off too timid and centrist in most of his dealings. It's also worth noting that Vera Leone is a Preditionalist, and while not confirmed to be her running mate, Barry Clovis, her current mate and personal secretary is a Preygressive. 

Mikhail Oski is a classic Preditionalist, with no other known affiliations. And Uki Probodean is generally considered a Preygressive, although she also is part of the 'Primordial Pachyderm Party', which concerns itself largely with the interests of mammals often considered the forbears of modern society, essentially those that survived the ice age.

 

Lastly, Ussuri and Sarccoson are both proud Preditionalists, with Sarccoson also being an ex-affiliate of the Austailian Marsupial Society, and the Predator Pride party, having been ejected from both due to the rumored scandals surrounding him and Ussuri. Oh, and Paisley Ringer and Evelyn Renaud are both Preygressives, however, Paisley is also a member of the Omnivorous Eaters Organization, a party that deals with specifically with Omnivore Rights Issues and concerns. 

So there's your party alignment chart. Thanks for the ask!

-Wasty

Ask Wasty; District Reps and Assistant Reps

 

WT: Goodness...If I recall correctly, it's confirmed by Friedkin that Zootopia has twelve unique ecosystems, which is what I roughly ascribed to districts when working on my fic. Removing the four primary ones, and accounting for the North and South Meadowlands, Rodentia, Alpine Glade, The Nocturnal District, The Canal District (Which is part of the Rainforest District), and The Marshlands, I've roughly defined eleven of them, leaving one open for interpretation. One could point out 'Outback Island' as the twelfth and final district, however, my version of Zootopia has more or less relegated it to a prison island that was formerly an immigration port (similar to Ellis Island in our universe) during the Great Austailian Migration, hence how it got its name.  Still, that means there's twenty-four representatives and Assistant Representatives respectively. 

As I mentioned in an earlier ask, with stuff like this I like to leave myself wiggle room when writing future works, so generally I wouldn't go out of my way to come up with a name and backstory for every Rep and Assistant Rep currently holding office. I've already made enough accidental retcons as is. I will however try to drum up a few interesting ones so this question isn't a total non-answer.

Naturally, those of you who have read LAW are familiar with the timid and easily flustered Damon Ruddy, the North Meadowland Representative who was one of Dorian's puphood friends. As well as Kendrick Loupon, the clean-cut, young upstart wolf who had a hard time standing up to his mate Ana Redclaw regardless of how bad she made him look. But with the North and South Meadowlands being technically separate Districts, that means the more suburban South Meadowlands has A Rep and Assistant Rep of its own. The current representative of the district is Lorenzo Caprini, a gruff, no-nonsense goat of Italambish descent, and his Assistant representative is the soft-spoken and kind Caroline Shearling, a ewe who is in a somewhat similar position to the one Dawn previously found herself in under Lionheart. Caprini and Ruddy have a strong dislike of one another, and try to avoid dealing with each other directly unless absolutely necessary, as they will almost always butt heads over inter-district relations, sometimes even literally.

It's also worth mentioning that while the Mayoral seat of power is situated in Zootopia's Savannah Central, the district also has a Representative and an Assistant Rep in the form of Meridith Nilgaillia, an Ursian antelope who has a similar disposition to Cheif Bogo, and Marton Lepson, a surprisingly timid serval who acts more like Meridith's secretary despite not being treated as such. Although rumor has it that Vera Leone is thinking of running for the position of Assistant Representative in the upcoming election in 2024.

Some other interesting Reps of note would be Mikhail Oski, the Representative of Tundratown. Granted a polar bear holding that position is not uncommon in Tundratown, as the Koslov family always had a rather big presence in Tundratown's history. However, what's worth noting is his Assistant Representative, Uki Probodean, the first-ever Wooly Mammoth to hold a position in the Zootopian Government of any kind. With Mikhail coming to the end of his term limit, it's highly speculated that he will endorse Uki to run in his place, a rumor which the public seems highly in support of if true.

Lastly, we have the rather questionable Egor Ussuri, a vampire bat working as the representative to the already sketchy Nocturnal district, and Harrison Sarccoson, a Tasmainian Devil working as his Assistant Representative, although it is often joked that Sarccoson is Ussuri's muscle more than anything. Both have only been in office for one term so far, and there have been no shortage of scandals involving bribes from crime families and criminal organizations, as well as accusations that he consistently looks the other way and goes soft on certain criminals that may or may not have connections to the Ussuri and Sarccoson families respectively. It looks like the pair will barely make it to the end of their respective terms before being ousted by an up and coming female raccoon named Paisley Ringer, and an arctic vixen named Evelyn Renaud, both of whom have taken a hard stance against crime and gambling, and are promising a major cleanup of the district should they be elected as the Representative and Assistant Representative. Needless to say, they are very popular with the citizens of the Nocturnal District, aside from the crime families and other criminal organizations their election is threatening to oust.

So there's a few ones I've come up with that I think will fit in nicely in the Bellhunterverse, as well as answer this ask. Thanks for asking!

-Wasty

Working on a New Chapter

Yep, I'm working on the next chapter of The Family Vulpes, So asks are going to be a bit delayed. I'm also shooting for working on the next page of Savage Love this week...so I'm gonna be a bit busy.

-Wasty