Housepets!

Heh, nothing quite like teenage sass to convince a parent.

Also, is Keene just straight up going public with the whole human-to-animal transformation thing?

Yay for gratuitous modesty!

Wow. His mom is a . . . charming young woman.

So, zazzing up and looking Smart,
The squirrel tries a sweet smile;
he’s improving with his old mum;
yesterday she’d have run a mile.
Looking sharp in adjusted pants,
dressing like he always has done;
accepting fate on his own terms;
the future is nuts. It’s begun.
The Forest trail led back to home
and all the paths branch out from here.
Will he get his old life back
or his Human time disappear?

Perhaps a bit hurtful, but I'm not sure I'd react any better in the first couple minutes. At least shes on board by the final panel.

I do wonder about Dad. He was mentioned in present tense wat back at the beginning. Wonder where he is?

leinglo wrote:Heh, nothing quite like teenage sass to convince a parent.

Also, is Keene just straight up going public with the whole human-to-animal transformation thing?

That's what I'm wondering (and honestly worried about). Nice stress on son, by the way, Marion, high four for snark.

Nobody wrote:Wow. His mom is a . . . charming young woman.

That a callback to King getting a watch to the head? If it is, nice one!

Not the awkward conversation I was expecting but still pretty awkward. I'm kinda disappointed that we had such a big skip and moving past the "Hey Mom I'm a squirrel now." Although part of me is glad because I don't think I could handle that much awkward or the annoying back and forth. But I am curious about how it went and how much of the Milton's and the K9's were involved.

Also "Ooooh Sass."

I am glad that Marion is wearing clothes. But I feel like it's time to ditch the bracket. It clashes with the rest of the look. Also the fact that shirt is tucked

Also Julia's reaction makes me rolls my eyes . I mean I know it is hard but still, seriously lady. Tone it down this is not bad reality TV.

And apparently, much like I feel like I need a family tree and a lineup to figure out the wolf clan, I evidently need one for the Ferrets. I've apparently been thinking that Pit was Lana in a playful mood.

leinglo wrote:Heh, nothing quite like teenage sass to convince a parent.

Also, is Keene just straight up going public with the whole human-to-animal transformation thing?

I think so. I wouldn't be surprised if he tries giving Marion a reality TV show. If you think back to all the stuff Keen has filmed or attempted to, I think that might be part of his plan.

Title Text wrote: my fashion expertise is being wasted on this

Being super honest, if I had Pit and the Milton's budget on my side, I'd go crazy with designer and unnecessarily expensive clothes. I'm talking the D&G, Carolina Herrera, Dior, Oscar de la Renta, Hugo Boss, even an expensive watch. The watch is the size of your head because you're a squirrel? WHO CARES

I'll go ahead and claim that Marion's the first animal to break the "no pants" rule.

Now watch as someone proves me wrong by pulling up a previous strip of an animal wearing pants.

shadowlucario50 wrote:I'll go ahead and claim that Marion's the first animal to break the "no pants" rule.

Now watch as someone proves me wrong by pulling up a previous strip of an animal wearing pants.

No can do... there aren't any.

mentioned this on the discord but marion's mother using a few of the lines parents of trans kids often use is an interesting, subtle touch

shadowlucario50 wrote:I'll go ahead and claim that Marion's the first animal to break the "no pants" rule.

Now watch as someone proves me wrong by pulling up a previous strip of an animal wearing pants.

I think someone wore an Elvisesque jumpsuit once if that counts. Was it Pit?

Its cases like this that make us say Rick Griffin doesn't like drawing human faces despite having done so in the past. This strip also demonstrates why animals shouldn't wear pants. His tail is clearly phasing through fabric in the second panel.

dr_eirik wrote:And apparently, much like I feel like I need a family tree and a lineup to figure out the wolf clan, I evidently need one for the Ferrets. I've apparently been thinking that Pit was Lana in a playful mood.

There are several family trees for the wolfs, but there is no consensus for which one is right.

shadowlucario50 wrote:I'll go ahead and claim that Marion's the first animal to break the "no pants" rule.

Now watch as someone proves me wrong by pulling up a previous strip of an animal wearing pants.

Champion Wallace wrote:Its cases like this that make us say Rick Griffin doesn't like drawing human faces despite having done so in the past. This strip also demonstrates why animals shouldn't wear pants. His tail is clearly phasing through fabric in the second panel.

dr_eirik wrote:And apparently, much like I feel like I need a family tree and a lineup to figure out the wolf clan, I evidently need one for the Ferrets. I've apparently been thinking that Pit was Lana in a playful mood.

There are several family trees for the wolfs, but there is no consensus for which one is right.

shadowlucario50 wrote:I'll go ahead and claim that Marion's the first animal to break the "no pants" rule.

Now watch as someone proves me wrong by pulling up a previous strip of an animal wearing pants.

Guess I was wrong. My bad. Well, this is going to be interesting...!

I am glad it this puts to bed all the "Where is Marion going to stay from now on?" questions to rest. Julia is begrudgingly accepting this just like Marion had to. The fact that he can say "...I'm just a squirrel now" without breaking into tears is step towards full acceptance. Also want to point out how rare this is. I read a lot of TF stuff and having the parents or even family involved is a super unusual. Denial, not so much. It is definitely going to be an adjustment but if Marion keeps up the Sass then it might speed things up.

I do like the sass here.

leinglo wrote:Heh, nothing quite like teenage sass to convince a parent.

Also, is Keene just straight up going public with the whole human-to-animal transformation thing?

I would assume so. As long as he can provide convincing evidence there wouldn't be a reason not to.

Gotta love the sass.

Say what you will about the new species, that is one squirrel who knows how to vogue!

Pit is clearly a fan of A&H Club. The ferret has good taste in webcomics

I hope we see more of Julia. She's not my favorite character (I would be warming up to her more if she wasn't so dramatic and cliche about Marion's change) but honestly I do love this back and forth. It's amusing to watch her struggle with this new reality and it would be interesting to have a more natural dynamic in the comic of a parent dealing with their child being turned into an animal since we didn't get that for the others. I'm not saying all the time because it would get old and I've said this before and I'll say it again, parents suck the fun out of plots when they get involved. But again we get to see more sass. I like sassy Marion.

fenrirblack wrote:I am glad it this puts to bed all the "Where is Marion going to stay from now on?" questions to rest. Julia is begrudgingly accepting this just like Marion had to. The fact that he can say "...I'm just a squirrel now" without breaking into tears is step towards full acceptance. Also want to point out how rare this is. I read a lot of TF stuff and having the parents or even family involved is a super unusual. Denial, not so much. It is definitely going to be an adjustment but if Marion keeps up the Sass then it might speed things up.

Marion is in a far different place than he was 24 hours before. Hes reestablished his support structure, discovered hes not alone, and been allowed to let loose his secret without being committed. I suspect tears are coming again someday.

I've written a lot of TF fiction over the years and family isn't that common, no. I've done it, but it depends on what you're going for. It's a natural reaction to have someone flee with the idea that they wont be just rejected, but actively hunted or captured.

So... thing are moving along, and now the Milton money and ECP are behind him. We are now beyond telling mom and the local ferrets. Who wants to wager that he will end up taking his finals? He may not have even missed any.

Didn’t expect a hard cut to the next day and Marion getting to confront his mom, and it leading to what looks like positive results.

I love Marion’s new look; his bracelet-necklace actually goes real well with the ensemble. Looking at his Driver’s License, it seems roughly similar to what he was wearing: colored undershirt with an open button-up shirt on top of that. Still, he looked super cute without the clothes on, too; here’s hoping if it turns out he’s perma-squirreled he’ll eventually ditch the outfit and go back to his fuzziness and necklace.

I’m interested in where things go from here, but a bit worried. If Keene goes public and all media blitz with Marion and humans being able to transform into animals and magic(k) existing, is this going to become some thing where he actually does become the “face” of the ECP and we get an arc where the fame goes to Marion’s head and all that? Cause I really hope not; never been a fan of those kinds of stories in cartoons, movies, etc..

Now that Marion’s back home, what I hope happens in the next couple of strips is that Keene talks with Marion and his parents to discuss the particulars of what Marion’s going to have to do now that he’ll be enrolling in the ECP. I personally want his transformation and magic(k)’s existence kept on the down-low from the public, but this strip combined with Keene wanting to make this a “thing” doesn’t give me hope...

I found the most appropriate thing.

Ash Greytree wrote:Didn’t expect a hard cut to the next day and Marion getting to confront his mom, and it leading to what looks like positive results.

I’m interested in where things go from here, but a bit worried. If Keene goes public and all media blitz with Marion and humans being able to transform into animals and magic(k) existing, is this going to become some thing where he actually does become the “face” of the ECP and we get an arc where the fame goes to Marion’s head and all that? Cause I really hope not; never been a fan of those kinds of stories in cartoons, movies, etc..

Now that Marion’s back home, what I hope happens in the next couple of strips is that Keene talks with Marion and his parents to discuss the particulars of what Marion’s going to have to do now that he’ll be enrolling in the ECP. I personally want his transformation and magic(k)’s existence kept on the down-low from the public, but this strip combined with Keene wanting to make this a “thing” doesn’t give me hope...

How the ECP fits into all this is still a BIG question. Just because Pit is there and the Milton's are assisting doesn't mean that Marion is fully on board with the ECP. I can't imagine he would want to be the "face" of anything but what his Mother decides will have an impact as well. Honestly I would like to see the heart to heart scene where Keene and company explains what happened to Marion and where they go from here to fill in the gaps.
Keene's plan is still a big unknown. Is this part of the "thing" or just preparing for a much greater "thing." Of course what is the "thing" because as much sense as it would make to unveil to the world that magic and human transformation exists, it would cause unfounded chaos and discord not to mention put Marion in an uncomfortable position. As far as "faming goes to Marion's head" it is possible since the arc is called "My Life as a Teenage Squirrel" so theoretically something like going on national tv and being a "star" would fall into that category. This is your life now for better or worse. But that is cliche. But on the other hand, Rock and Keene have been known to exploit the pets for their own selfish publicity.

Well, she adjusted quickly....

Hold on....Marion is a female squirrel now, right?
Doesn't it mean he is her daughter now?
Honestly that is the bigger question for me

HundKatzeMaus wrote:Hold on....Marion is a female squirrel now, right?
Doesn't it mean he is her daughter now?
Honestly that is the bigger question for me

From a purely technical biological standpoint, perhaps. Marion is still mentally male, though, and seems to be actively repressing acknowledgement of that particular physical change.

It feels like that last panel needs some finger-wagging.

See? Things are practically already back to normal.

I was wondering if Marion would reject going native like Joel did... Though, I doubt Joel had a choice when he transformed into King, and was under Pete's watch. He probably got used to being pantless unlike Marion.

fenrirblack wrote:I read a lot of TF stuff and having the parents or even family involved is a super unusual. Denial, not so much. It is definitely going to be an adjustment but if Marion keeps up the Sass then it might speed things up.

Yeah, only one comic comes to mind where the whole family (actually more than one family, a school of scientists now that I think about it) is involved in a situation where both kids were transformed into animal/human hybrids... Keep in mind they did do a fake out before ultimately showing them finding out. They seemed to have handled it better, even started with a little fun parent scolding... Although this is a forum for HP so I'm not gonna drop anymore links.

However yeah, other comics that deal with TF either don't acknowledge family connections (like OOPS and the MC being turned into a Yinglet), or even lose their memories (like the MC from Foxy Flavored Cookies when they turned into a were-fox).

What in the name of Zach is Lana wearing??

Edit: my bad that's Pit but my point still stands

I hope Marion’s mom is moving towards acceptance, it looks like she is thanks to Marion’s sass.

fenrirblack wrote:Also the fact that shirt is tucked

Good point. Shirt should be loose if you're not wearing a belt.

Still, Pit has some fashion skills.

Vanice wrote:What in the name of Zach is Lana wearing??

That's Pit.

biddyfox wrote:mentioned this on the discord but marion's mother using a few of the lines parents of trans kids often use is an interesting, subtle touch

I thought it was a nice touch too, really gives her words a punch

I'm actually interested in the possibility that Marion's mom won't accept him back, that it'll all just be "too much" for her. But then, I've always got a bit of a soft spot for suffering characters

Argent wrote:Still, Pit has some fashion skills.

Love the color coordination!

"Where is this madness that people can just turn kids these days into squirrels? I need to talk to the person that does these things. He or she needs to be taught a lesson." - Marion's mom after this arc.

I dig the pants idea on Marion simply because small things like this let us know he still misses his old life, but i like how he enjoys showing it off like he's the coolest thing on the block to his mom. Can't wait to see him show off all the things 'he' thinks are cool :3

You gotta feel a little sympathetic for Marion's mom - but this is a webcomic. Mwahaha x3

Looking good, Marion. He's got more style than me And pants?! This comic has peaked.

Now I wonder if the mother is gonna transform into an animal...I blame this forum for making me think this theories up xD

Also, is that Pit in the first panel? Don't think we seen him for a while.