Changeling and Hippogriff/Hippocampus Headcanon · 5:27pm Apr 28th, 2019
Changelings
If they're given enough love, changelings are pretty darn overpowered (even more than earth ponies), because they can assume the powers of any species they turn into. They can alter their size up to ten times larger and five times smaller than their original body mass. Changelings cannot hold an altered shape while they are asleep, and they require at least six hours of sleep in a 24-hour period. Whenever changelings had to blend in with other creatures long-term, they took catnaps in locked rooms or cocooned themselves in a blanket at night.
Changelings supplement their emotion-based diet with nectar, which their bodies convert into the sticky webbing that they use to make their pods.
The most loved changelings in the hive are the most fertile, and these usually happen to be the monarch and her (or, in rare cases, his) consort. The monarch will leave the hive to find a mate, and every changeling of the hive is the offspring of the monarch.
Even before the metamorphosis, changeling nymphs who hatched in the same month were grouped together, and the nymphs in the same group thought of each other as brothers and sisters closer than their other hive-mates. Recently, changelings have added to their family structure by placing nymphs with one or two guardians to raise as their own, whereas before, the nymphs had been cared for by various nursemaids in shifts.
Changeling nymphs shed their exoskeletons three times before reaching adulthood. Like some arthropods, adult changelings continue to grow slowly and shed their exoskeletons every so often.
Although most changelings have horns, only queens and kings can telekinese in their original forms.
Hippogriffs/Hippocampi and the Origin of the Magic Pearl
Hippogriffs have magically-boosted flight, but they lack the ability stand on clouds or control the weather. This is why they live on the ground while in their winged form.
Unlike some other species, hippogriffs are unable to infuse their magic into objects. Instead, they are attuned to magical sources in their surroundings and tend to intuit how to make the best use of them. They can also see ultraviolet like griffons can, whether in hippogriff or hippocampus form. Also like griffons, hippogriffs are omnivores with a preference for fish.
The power to transform into hippocampi is a relatively recent development. Two hundred years ago, a young brother and sister explored a cave on the shoreline. A storm suddenly swept over Mt. Aris and the water rose over the cave entrance, trapping the siblings inside. They retreated to the back of the cave, where they found a giant oyster. The siblings felt magic radiating from the mollusk, and they asked it to help them. The oyster opened to reveal a huge pearl. Instinctively, the siblings took the pearl and felt the magic flowing from it. The oyster's shell closed, its magic reduced as most of it transferred to the pearl. The brother looked at the rising water and wished that he and his sister had gills so they could swim out of the cave. In a moment, the siblings transformed into hippocampi with gills and fins. They slid into the water and swam away, carrying the pearl. The two swam in the ocean for awhile, enjoying their freedom and exploring the depths. After the storm passed and the sun began to set, the siblings wanted to return to their home on Mt. Aris. The brother wished they were hippogriffs again, and the two siblings transformed back to their old forms and waded onto the shore.
The next day, the siblings presented the magic pearl to the queen at the time. They wanted to share the magic with all of the other hippogriffs, and they figured that the queen would be the best one for the task. The queen knighted the brother and sister as a reward. She used the pearl to transform any 'griff who wanted to explore under the sea. Groups of hippocampi eventually established settlements on the ocean floor.
Hmm. This hippogriff headcanon makes them incredible magical engineers and artificers. I can only imagine what else they can come up with when given magically active components.
Headcanons accepted
5050665
"Magical engineers" is a good summation of hippogriff abilities.
5050821
Glad you liked them!