Kitti-Fae

I have heard much about Heaven, and I have decided not to go. If it's all the same to you, I'd rather stay with my dear kitties.

— dying woman to Death

The world is a hard place, filled with much darkness and despair. Wars and disasters shatter all veneers of bucolic fantasy lives; death steals away all thought of happiness. For most, these emotions - these twisted emotions, this shuddering depression - are temporary.
Not all are so lucky.
Mental health is, in fact, one of the largest unseen threats on Istralar. Yes, arcane magic may have led to the Worldrend. Yes, the shards are steadily walking the world closer to the brink of an unrecoverable apocalypse. Neither one - and no other disaster or event in the entirety of history - can hope to match up to the tragedy wrought by mental health conditions.
Depression steals the will to live; anxiety takes away the courage to function. Attention disorders steal all focus, whilst post-traumatic stress disorder plagues the lives of civilians and veterans both for years on end. The list is endless and ever-changing; the struggles faced by a human are different to those an elf must deal with, and the fight to stabilise minds has only recently begun.
This is where the kitti-fae come in.

Basic Information

Biological Traits

Oh, this good little kitty here? He walked right up to me when I was.. uh.... havin' a bit of a day. Curled right up in my lap! Been together ever since.

— veteran adventurer

The kitti-fae, in their true forms, are luminescent blobs of fur that see out of pinprick gemlike eyes. They are the size of an average housecat whatever their form, and stay just as cuddly. Kitti-fae are not a gendered species; they reproduce through an intricate mating dance that spawns a smaller kitti-fae blob (often referred to as a kittini-fae), with no sexual factor involved. As such, they present little sexual dimorphism. The exception is when they have bonded viciously to life - then, they may take on aspects that seem particularly like their chosen gender to them.
Naturally, their interpretation of gender varies wildly from kitti-fae to kitti-fae, and is generally incomprehensible to most mortals.

Kitti-Fae, Base Form by Endrise

The kitti-fae are, like all fey, functionally immortal. When their lives come to an end, they reincarnate. They still age, when in cat form - those owners that understand the pets they keep are very much comforted by the thought that the kitti-fae have not departed to the great beyond, and will likely find their way back.
Because of this, ordinary cats are sometimes mistaken for kitti-fae. Whilst the ordinary cats do not possess the powers that kitti-fae do, regular folk find it challenging to tell the two apart, and often can find that even an ordinary cat is able to help them beyond their imaginings.

Additional Information

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

How did you know I needed these cuddles, hm..? Oh-- don't touch that! Hey..!

— owner of a kitti-fae

Kitti-fae function on a psychic level, tapping into the thoughts and emotions of their owner (who is usually the person they've decided to be owned by, to help them out). When their owner is having a bad day, the kitti-fae will take action to improve things. Some of the more common possible kitti-fae actions include:

Cuddling into their owner's lap

Playing with their owner's hair

Stealing small items to encourage play

Sitting right next to their owner

Meowing softly

Rolling around to expose their soft belly

Climbing all over their owner

Demanding cuddles, via loud meowing and headbutting

Catching their owner's hand and licking it

Knocking over stress-causing documents

Scratching at curtains (to let more sun in)

Scratching at doors (to get their owner outside)

Cookie, the Cuddle Monster by Hanhula

These are all, however, their mundane abilities. Kitti-fae have a variety of magical powers, ranging from the ability to calm emotions, to mild healing powers. In extreme emergencies - for instance, when their owner is undergoing mental trauma beyond their ability to handle - the kitti-fae can call for help and summon in more powerful fey friends of theirs, or even teleport their owner to safety.
Having cause to use those more powerful abilities, though, is usually a sign that their owner needs more help - the kitti-fae may reveal their true form and speak in Common to their owner in these rare instances.

Civilization and Culture

Beauty Ideals

Smooch, the Chaotic by Blindfoldedchaos

All kitti-fae are perfect. They can transform into whatever they like, and they'll still be perfect. See above.

History

She's so soft...

— awed child

Long have the feyfolk watched the Material Plane from their ephemeral home. Most have trouble understanding mortal troubles and pains - the fey are free spirits unbound from the curse of mortality, and have little trouble ridding themselves of the deep-set pains the world brings them. Elder, more intelligent fey tend to be the exceptions - and these usually care little for the brief specks of mortal lives that flit into their area of influence, and perish before they have any need to genuinely know them.
The greatest exception, then, would be the Eldest themselves.
The Lost Prince has done much for mortals without speaking a word, allegedly. The Fairy Ring of Tir Difyrrwch is supposedly part of his realm; similarly, kitti-fae could quite easily be part of it. He avoids the question when asked, but this is hardly a tell: the Lost Prince avoids most questions.

Kitty or Kitti-Fae? by MGatta

All the mortal world knows is that one day, cats were just cats. The next, some of the cats were more intelligent than others... and wizards soon picked up on the odd fey species. Given how all they do is help - on a worldwide scale - everyone seems quite content with this latest faerie invasion.
(Kitti-fae are banned in the Medimian Empire because they keep undoing the brainwashing. Unfortunately for the Medimians, kitti-fae are also very good at acting like normal cats. They have yet to ban cats on fears of mass rioting.)

Puzzle, the Comforter by Hanhula

Scientific Name

Littil kitti kattus (faerie)

Origin/Ancestry

Fey

Lifespan

Theoretically immortal

Average Height

23 - 25cm (breed dependent)

Average Weight

3.6 – 4.5 kg (breed dependent)

Average Length

46 cm (without tail; breed dependent 76cm (with tail; breed dependent)

Misty doing her job! by Hanhula

The Kitti-Fae at play by Ezra

Detecting owner's emotions... by Annie Stein

The kitti-fae multiply! by JustJacqui

Kotesław stealing distractions! by Angantyr

Kitti-fae in the leaves by Vixenscratch

Dogs are cool, too. Shh. ♥