Dissimilar Tentacles (Kait)

@"Kait"

Tenta loved fall. They'd never experienced autumn before, like so many other things that were part of this planetary life, but they still loved it. Leaves to eat everywhere, random trash blowing in the wind, and fewer people interested in telling hungry children to stop eating whatever they could find.

Or maybe they were finally learning that no, it was not bad for this particular child's digestive system to eat things that others considered completely inedible. Or too large. Or too sharp and pointy.

They still had to sit on benches rather than eat them, though, and that was kind of sad. But at this hour of early evening, with a wet threat on the cold wind, there wasn't anyone at all to get worked up over Tenta balancing on the back of the bench, leg tentacles tucked and squished through the boards for support, and trying to catch blowing leaves with both tiny hands and wide-spread head tentacles. Whenever a wet leave ran into a head tentacle, it steamed slightly as it warmed up before being pushed past Tenta's array of jagged face and uncountable needleteeth.

@"Kait"

...............

TENTACLES!!!

If Tenta hadn't just been lifted up and entwined in the mysterious slimy tentacles, they 100% guaranteed would have flung themself into the midst of blue to do just that. As it was, they shrieked in sheer delight and sort of flopped over to hug one and bury their head tentacles in the bigger, less dry appendages. Most tentacles were also much lower in temperature than their head tentacles; starfire, even contained baby starfire, tended to have that effect. Still, it wasn't enough to burn most people.

"YOU AREN'T RUDE AT ALL!" Tenta yelled back, although their diminutive size kept them from being anywhere near as loud as the vaguely sourceless voice. Really, that effect was delightfully familiar, as it was how their mother spoke. Purebred black holes didn't really have mouthparts, even to the extent that the halfbred child did.

The halfbred child that was currently snuggling a stranger's tentacles. "Who are you?"

@"Kait"

Other people thought the tentacles were rude? How rude of them! They were so snuggly! Tenta didn't get nearly enough hugs in their life. "Those people are rude," they said dismissively, and rubbed the side of their face against a tentacle even more.

"I don't really know what that means," Tenta admitted freely, and almost completely unbothered by not understanding. "I'm Tenta. I'm part black hole and part SSCEREEEAASUUIUISSSSHORRIBLEAASCCAEEEEIOOONOISESASSCIOOIIIAACCE." They were never truly satisfied for how that carefully practiced string of horrible noises came out, but really Tenta wasn't completely sure how it was supposed to sound.

@"Kait"

Didn't understand? Well, Tenta had a backup word for their dad's race now, so they could try that, but explaining a black hole??? "The SSCEREEEAASUUIUISSSSHORRIBLEAASCCAEEEEIOOONOISESASSCIOOIIIAACCE gets called eldritch here," the child clarified. "Black hole. Um. Out in space, there are spots that just sort of. Eat everything that comes near them??? Those are black holes. My mom was one. I was with her until something weird happened and I ended up here."

All alone. But they weren't really alone anymore!

The child squinted, though it really only looked like their face scrunched up a bit. Rudeness... pattern... recognition...? inconsistency??? The words made sense on their own but together???

"Now I don't understand."