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emeritus-fuckers · 6 months

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A (relatively long) headcanon post about Ghouls as species

Since we've already theorized birth dates, dick sizes and the way the Ministry works, it's time to focus on the Ghouls. So let's try to come up with some stuff, shall we?

PS: I was gonna include human-ghoul hybrids, but that's a whole another post bc this one is already long af.

Ghouls and Ghoulettes

Ghouls view gender very differently than humans do. Their biology does not correlate to their gender. Most ghouls are intersex, but it's no uncommon for them to be male or female (purely in the amab/afab way) and their sex is not really important when it comes to their roles in the packs. It is, however, worth noting that more biologically feminine ghouls are physically stronger and more dominant. It's worth noting that there's no such thing as a "Ghoulette" in their understanding. They all refer to each other as "Ghoul". The term "Ghoulette" was introduced to them by the Clergy.

Kits

As mentioned above, most ghouls are intersex. Unlike humans, they can have both functional male and female genitalia, which means in majority of cases, a ghoul of any presentation can get pregnant. They get pregnant for about a year and usually give birth to 2-3 kits. Kits are notably smaller than human baby. They're much closer to a chihuahua or a big rat, but they grow very quickly for the first few weeks and within 6 months they're already at the level of a human two-year-old.

Aging

Ghouls do not have a distinct age when they reach adulthood. They reach adulthood "officially" when they go in their first heat, which is when they're around 500 years. However, they function as an adult within a pack after reaching a different milestone - losing their first horns.

Baby ghouls are born without horns. They gain their first horns when they're around 50 years old (a Ghoul equivalent of a pre-teen). They are much more fragile and are a bit like baby teeth for humans. They do, however, show that a young ghoul can now start to learn how to function in a pack. They learn how to hunt, how to fight, all things like this.

Speaking of teeth, ghouls regularly lose some of their teeth and grow new ones. It's not exactly age-related, exactly, but it is worth mentioning.

Heats

Heat period is different for all the kinds of Ghouls. It is the only time period when they are fully capable of impregnating/getting another ghoul (and/or human) pregnant. It's also the only time when ghouls with cocks knot. What's also interesting is that it is possible for multiple ghouls to impregnate the same ghoul/human at the same time, since their reproductive system works differently. They don't exactly ovulate, and instead during heat their womb fills up with a thick, sticky liquid (which gradually spills out as they cum) and the sperm of another ghoul can then swim in it until it finds the ghoul equivalent of egg cells, which they have multiple of just sorta built into little "holes" inside the walls of their wombs (this is a terrible example, but it's a bit like the seeds on a strawberry). And so, if multiple ghouls cum inside a ghoul with a womb, there's a chance for more than one of them to impregnate said ghoul at the same time. This can also happen if (although it's rare) ghoul semen mixes together well enough to become a mix of genetics. Very often, due to how ghoul genetics work, a kit can have multiple biological parents. An example of that is Swiss, who has two biological fathers and a mother.

For Water Ghouls, it's around Spring.

For Fire Ghouls, it's around Summer.

For Air Ghouls, it's around Fall.

For Earth Ghouls, it's around Winter.

For Quintessence Ghouls, there is no specific period, as it all depends on energy flows in Hell.

For Multighouls, heat also varies and it can circulate between the elements they "consist of". For example, a Fire-Water multighoul can have their heat either around summer or around spring. Curiously, Quintessence-multighoul seem to only "inherit" the heat periods from the other elements.

Mates

Ghouls are almost exclusively polyamorous. They usually have a main partner (mate), but it's not uncommon for a pack (not to be confused with tribe) to be a large polycule. They do, however, mate for life, once they have chosen someone to be their mate. A mating bond is the closest to a marriage, but it is a much more spiritual bond than an "official" one. A ghoul can have multiple mates, but there's always one primary mate that they cherish above anyone else. It should, however, be noted, that if a ghoul's mate gets pregnant, they get almost obsessively protective and possessive.

Elements

Speaking of elements, I am a big hater on the ideas of ghouls having "superpowers" such as pyrokinesis or hydrokinesis because it's just stupid, boring and overdone. This is Ghost, not ATLA.

Instead, I believe the elements of ghouls correlate mostly with where they live and their biology. While there is a special, spiritual bond with their element, they have no control over it.

Water ghouls separate into hot and cold water. They have gills and fins on their forearms, calves and on their backs, running down their spines. Their ears are also fin-shaped. Hot water ghouls live closer to the Fire ghouls, near the surface. Cold water ghouls live closer to the bottom of the "ocean" in Hell, closer to the caves Earth Ghouls live in. Cold water ghouls also have slightly bigger eyes that faintly glow in the dark, helping them see in the darkness.

As mentioned already, Earth ghouls live mostly in caves, either underground or in the mountains. They live mostly in the dark, which leads to them being sensitive to light to having relatively poor eyesight in general, especially compared to other ghouls. They have incredibly well developed sense of smell, though. They tend to be rather big. There is also a rather rare subspecies of Earth ghouls, casually referred to as "Surface Earth ghouls" because, as you can probably guess, they live on the surface. They still sleep in caves, but they spend most of their days in the mountains. To prepare for this sort of life, they have evolved goat-like hooves.

In the mountains, you can also find the Air ghouls. They tend to live in whatever high places they can find so they can feel the wind properly. Similarly to Earth ghouls, they have pretty good sense of smell. They also have the best hearing among all the ghouls and are incredibly good at sensing the weather. What's incredibly interesting, however, is that some of them have very serious issues adapting to not being in the mountains of Hell and end up requiring crutches or wheelchairs within a few months after being summoned.

Quintessence ghouls are the most interesting in this regard, since they don't live in one specific area. They are nomads, travelling Hell in search of connection to the Essence/Elements. They're the most spiritual, able to sense energy and very slightly manipulate it to help someone heal faster, which, added to their knowledge of botany and ability to create medicine and them being rather mysterious and mostly keeping to themselves, has lead the other ghouls to assume they have magical abilities while in reality, they're simply in touch with their spirituality. Since they travel almost constantly, they only make nests while in heat.

Can a Ghoul switch elements?

Absolutely! It is a common and fully accepted concept. It's also the closest a ghoul can get to being trans from the human perspective, since they don't really understand gender the way humans do, as mentioned above.

Similarly to how some people don't feel comfortable with the gender they were assigned at birth, some ghouls don't feel in touch with the Element they're born into and that's completely fine! Other Elements very eagerly welcome new ghouls, there's absolutely nothing stopping them.

It does take a few centuries to actually go through the metamorphosis (and it does require a ritual), but the ghouls welcome them as their own the very moment they are told about this. They obviously have certain accommodations until their bodies are prepared to live fully like other ghouls of their chosen element. They will still have bodily characteristics of their original element (like Sodo still has his Water traits), but they'll be useless unless they're a multi-ghoul. For example, a Water-to-Fire ghoul like Sodo can still look like a Water Ghoul, but they will have all the abilities of a Fire Ghoul.

Tribes and packs

Aside from elements (and in case of Water and Earth ghouls, subspecies), ghouls separate into tribes and then smaller packs (families) within the tribes.

Packs are usually lead by one of the oldest ghouls in it (usually grandparents or great grandparents). Said pack leaders form a tribe council, which discusses any issues that might arise. It is important to note that unless there is a need for the council to meet, all packs within a tribe are left to do as they please. A pack can consist of ghouls of different elements and even if they live incredibly far apart, unlike tribes, who live in one specific area. Ghouls from different tribes can very much be a part of the same pack. A ghoul can be a part of multiple packs, but only one tribe.

Similarly to a human family, a pack is primarily a ghoul's biological relatives. It's not uncommon, however, for younger ghouls to find other ghouls to form their own pack with. A pack can be family or just really close friends. At the end of the day, each pack is unique and goes by its own rules.

Laws

Ghouls have only three universal laws. Each tribe and pack can add their own, of course, but there are only three that have to be followed by absolutely every ghoul.

1. Respect consent

While ghouls are creatures who cannibalize each other for fun (it's one of the most common games for kits to nibble on each other and bites little pieces of each other for fun), no ghoul is allowed to touch another without permission, unless it's to defend themselves or those close to them. Ghouls take "no means no" very seriously and are prepared to tear apart anyone who doesn't. This also includes not touching anyone who's not in the right mindset to consent (for example, someone who's drunk/high).

2. No harming kits

While fights between packs, tribes or individual ghouls are to be expected, none of them are allowed to harm a kit. It's as simple as that. And while ghouls believe in eye for an eye, they wouldn't harm children even as revenge.

3. No incest

Goes back to rule one. Incest can never be fully consensual and it's bad for genetics, therefore logically, it has been banned.

Punishment

Of course, with breaking the law comes a punishment. While breaking an individual law is a matter of pack or tribe, breaking the three main laws results in being eaten alive. If a ghoul survives this punishment, they are left in their mangled state for lesser demons to finish them or to simply bleed out.

Religion/Spirituality

While ghouls acknowledge Lucifer as king of Hell, he is not a religious figure for them. Ghouls don't have religious figures in general. They do, however, have a system of beliefs.

Ghouls believe in Essence. Simply put, it's a spiritual elemental energy and their equivalent of a soul. While Water, Fire, Earth and Air ghouls connect to their elements rather easily and don't really seek a deeper connection, Quintessence ghouls are the most spiritual ones and some spend their entire lives connecting to their element to actually transform their Essence into Quintessence, the perfect element. Thanks to this, they are more in touch with their Essence and can help others resonate with theirs more easily.

Pets

Just like humans, ghouls keep pets. It's usually a hell hound (for Quintessence and Fire ghouls), a demonic mole-like creature (Earth ghouls), a hippogryph (Air and Surface Earth ghouls) or any sort of fucked up sea monster (Water ghouls). Usually one ghoul has one pet that they form a very strong bond with until the pet dies.

If, somehow, a pet outlives a ghoul, they are never seen with a new ghoulish companion. Other ghouls respect it and let the animal grieve. They are welcome among the pack and/or tribe, but none of the ghouls try to claim the pet as theirs.

Speech

Ghouls do not have a "humanoid" language. They communicate in what can be described as noises, both animalistic and some rather unique (for example, water ghouls can imitate a "drowning gurgle", fire ghouls can imitate the sound of cracking burning wood and other things like this).

Summoning a ghoul

Despite what some people seem to think, ghouls don't just get pulled out of Hell randomly, shocked and unprepared. In reality, being summoned is also a ghoul's choice, as they go through their own rituals to prepare for that.

Summoning a ghoul is, in reality, merely creating a one-way opening to Hell. It is up to a ghoul to answer it. However, due to the language barrier and how painful the "travel" is, they can act somewhat rabid when first summoned.

After being summoned, a ghoul usually spends a few weeks learning the language of the humans that summoned them (ghouls are incredibly good at copying noises and noticing sound patterns, which is why they're good musicians) as well as human habits. They usually take from one to three months to adapt fully.

During their time adapting, they might speak in weird ways, putting words in the wrong order or speaking with odd, experimental tones (such as Phantom's "where am I going?").

Ghouls Den in the Ministry

Just like living in different regions in Hell, Ghoul's have different places to live depending on their Element, they also have a slightly similar arrangement in the Ministry. The Ghoul's Den is always a separate section of the building (in the LA Ministry, they have a whole wing to themselves). Usually it's the area where boiler room is, seeing as both Fire and Water ghouls seem to find it comforting. And since it's almost always in the basement, Earth ghouls also feel rather happy there. Quintessence ghouls usually take the surface level, sharing it with Surface Earth ghouls, and then Air ghouls take the top floor.

Ghouls and their roles in the Ministry

Aside from playing in the band, ghouls have plenty of potential jobs they can do. Most of the time it's something physical, like carrying stuff around, being a body guard or just assisting the most important people in the Clergy with whatever they need, but they also do other jobs!

Ghouls are natural tinkerers and are very good at repetitive tasks, so they often take over maintenance of different things. And as natural gatherers, they enjoy organizing and counting things, which is why librarians and finance-related jobs are often dominated by ghouls, only a few humans working there to make sure everything's okay (to just oversee them work, mostly).

Some ghouls (mostly Quintessence) also work in Ministry healthcare, using their knowledge of different plants and other forms of medicine they know to help Siblings with their pains and issues.

Many ghouls, especially those more fem alligned (aka ghoulettes), like to work with little ones in the nursery, as well.

Written by Jez.

Taglist: @charlie-is-a-menace @copias-fluffy-asscheeks @lunarsromantichomicide @tuttifuckinfruttifriday @calliedion-dungeon @randominstake @nuntia @dio-niisio @mybotanicaldemise @igodownjustlikeholymary @natoncesaid

#this was supposed to be short #haha no #i want to stab myself #ghost band #ghost bc #ghost #nameless ghoul #nameless ghouls #nameless ghoulette #nameless ghoulettes #headcanon #headcanons

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