Runaway to the Stars: Page 261
Posted on April 4, 2026 by Jay Eaton

A friendly smile.

Runaway to the Stars is crowdfunding to become a printed book this month! Click here to be notified on launch!

Transcript

Verengt: Hm.

Verengt considers Talita for few moments, then half-lids their eye and curls their trunk up again, the point of their lower lip down slightly.

Verengt: Well, let us know if you change your mind. It’s been a pleasure to meet you.

Talita tilts her head and smiles politely, drawing the corner of her lip back to show her teeth.

Talita: You too! Will I see you on… Um…

She peters off, confused by Verengt's face. They have flinched away, mane feathers flared, lips closed but drawn taut, trunk flattened up between their flared nostrils in an "S" shape, eyes squinting with nictitating membranes half closed.

Verengt: Talita. Do you intend to bite me?

Talita stares in disbelief.

Talita: NO??

Runaway to the Stars: Page 261
Posted on April 4, 2026 by Jay Eaton

A friendly smile.

Runaway to the Stars is crowdfunding to become a printed book this month! Click here to be notified on launch!

Transcript

Verengt: Hm.

Verengt considers Talita for few moments, then half-lids their eye and curls their trunk up again, the point of their lower lip down slightly.

Verengt: Well, let us know if you change your mind. It’s been a pleasure to meet you.

Talita tilts her head and smiles politely, drawing the corner of her lip back to show her teeth.

Talita: You too! Will I see you on… Um…

She peters off, confused by Verengt's face. They have flinched away, mane feathers flared, lips closed but drawn taut, trunk flattened up between their flared nostrils in an "S" shape, eyes squinting with nictitating membranes half closed.

Verengt: Talita. Do you intend to bite me?

Talita stares in disbelief.

Talita: NO??

217 thoughts on “Runaway to the Stars: Page 261”

  1. Daredevild

    “Talita. Do you intend to bite me?”
    “No??”
    “Okay just checking” (centaur thumbs up)
    (Everyone links hands and skips into the sunset) (im coping)

  2. Boxthing

    ERROR
    HUMANSMILE.EXE AND TRUNKSMILE.EXE ARE INCOMPATIBLE PROGRAMS
    REBOOT REBOOT

  3. milk4evertoasted

    Talita needs a big red pin that says “HUMAN SMILE HUMAN SMILE HUMAN SMILE!!!!!!!!!!” so so bad

  4. Redacted

    Damn Talita is not rizzin indeed

  5. Arcstone

    ❤️✨❤️✨oh my goodness, smiling talita though, I wanna hug and kiss. ✨❤️✨❤️

    Pretty good indicator really that I would be shaaaaaaait at interpreting alien body language.

    But a question occurs to me. They were just talking to mel, and mel must have been showing human facial expressions, including the smiling that centaurs take as a threatening bearing of teeth.
    Like I realize the same thing from another centaur would probably hit a little different, but seeing as talita is as jay put it, “raised by wolves”, someone in that room would at least after a few seconds be like “wait, ooooh, OOOOOH, she’s doing THAT thing!”, right?

    1. redsquidz

      Good thinking, i bet this’ll be the case

    2. Scolopendra

      I think that’s why Verengt is asking Talita if she’s intending to start biting people rather than, y’know, reacting fully on instinct.

  6. Kencf0618

    Both sides are putting out feelers. Verengt presents Talita the option of marrying into a clan as a worker (and mind you, not only shall Talita be supervising Verengt’s workers, Verengt needs another matriarch with whom she can touch base). Talita is fabulously adorkable and hasn’t an ounce of pretense in her. All of which is to say –this’ll be fun.

  7. Mr. Skeleton

    I have a sinking feeling that Mel is going to blame Talita for any breakdown in communication between herself and the other centaurs.

  8. LeBonk

    Calling it now, THIS is gonna be the running-away catalyst

    1. Adrienne

      Now we just need the stars

  9. beth

    Yeah I do not like Mel for setting up this situation.

    1. Kencf0618

      Mel is not the idiot ball.

  10. MyUniverseinaBox

    Broski she JUST told them she was raised by aliens. Wouldn’t that explain her mannerisms and experssions?? Verengt?? Good grief. Though I still get why this would happen even so. Man this sucks.

    1. Smooti

      I mean, knowing that is one thing, internalizing that that means Talita would make expressions that say happy to humans but “back to fuck off” in centaur is another thing. I’m sure Verengt has never encountered a centaur imitating a human smile before!

  11. kaittzie

    Good thing we dont need facial expressions in the EVA suits

  12. Kencf0618

    They both know they’re dealing with mixed signals, with the Matriarch being the more savvy.

  13. buam

    Oh my heart breaks for both of them. We already know Talita’s whole deal, and how this interaction will reinforce existing trauma, but poor Verengt! They are trying SO hard to be understanding, but Talita is throwing all kinds of weird signals, Mel didn’t warn them about any of this, and they can’t be happy about trusting their clan’s safety to erratic, unreliable outsiders. (And I bet they were really excited about working with another centaur 🙁 )

    1. Kencf0618

      Both sides are putting out feelers. Verengt presents Talita the option of marrying into a clan as a worker (and mind you, not only shall Talita be supervising Verengt’s workers, Verengt needs another matriarch with whom she can touch base). Talita is fabulously adorkable and hasn’t an ounce of pretense in her. All of which is to say –this’ll be fun.

  14. Zacolyn

    I’m assuming by the fact Verengt asked that they understand that ‘raised among aliens’ means Talita doesn’t know how to work her face properly, but ohh boy this is gonna make things difficult when dealing with the other centaurs who are maybe not going to take that kind of thing with such grace. I hope they can work that out, and Verengt gives Mel a piece of their mind for not telling them anything about Talita.

    1. Kencf0618

      She can’t not have been briefed. One doesn’t become a matriarch by digging through boxes of Cracker Jack.

      1. Adrienne

        Verengt has probably not been briefed. They just found out in this conversation that Talita doesn’t have a clan because she was raised by humans.

    2. Zacolyn

      For that matter, I wish this would be where Talita finally snapped and gave Mel a piece of her mind as well for being so utterly insensitive and putting her in this situation.

  15. Rose

    crying sobbing throwing UP nooooooooo Talitaaaaaa T ^ T) nooooo Verengt TT A TT)

    screaming Mel’s name from the rooftops in hated disgust bc they could have EASILY prevented this from happening with the tiniest bit of foresight and actual care!!!!!!!!!! GAH!!!!

    1. Rose

      *foreTHOUGHT

      i mistyped

  16. cvv

    awww crap there it is

  17. Gabe

    im counting on Verengt’s ability to communicate on saving this considering that Talita doesn’t seem to be fully aware of how she mistepped,, still, i’m sure they’d be more cautious of talita after this,, like if she can make such a threatening expression without even seeming to mean to, then what if she does it to their children? how will they know when she *is* making a threatening expression? even if they know talita means well, trust has gotta go down when you realise that you can’t count on someone’s expressions to know how they’re feeling

  18. Undercooked Mothman

    I love Talita’s face in the last panel. Hope she can clear this up with Verengt 🙏 they’ve been so polite for this whole conversation even though things got rather awkward.

  19. Oh6

    It’s interesting how Talia forgets (or doesn’t realize) that human expressions aren’t a good idea, but is aware from Verengt’s reaction that something went wrong.

    1. slv

      i mean i was aware from verengt’s reaction that something went wrong, it’s a very extreme facial expression!

  20. Common Handle

    aw man, something tells me I’m gonna be experiencing a lot of secondhand embarrassment these next few pages. I wonder if anyone in the comments relates… [scrolls down] Aha. Hmm. Something is happening here.
    (no salt intended or anything it’s just surprising to see what people are saying down here sometimes… sometimes I think I’m misreading things a Lot)

  21. AccordYeen

    …my aversion to eye contact has put me in a very similar situation to this. this is physically distressing to read.

  22. Heather

    Person who was raised by wolves politely leans and licks your nose to communicate their respect for your authority

    1. Sparky Lurkdragon

      You know. I think this is a really accurate way of explaining the situation, for different reasons than “person cocks their fist back as if to punch you but was just offering a fistbump.” Well done!

  23. Carolina Reaper

    I feel the relationship between Verengt and Talita is going to be ‘cordial but kind of weirded out on both sides bc they’re missing very necessary social clues’ but like any social blunder for someone with social anxiety, Talita is going to take this to her fucking GRAVE. it is going to keep her awake at night for the rest of her life

  24. plover

    I’m actually extremely glad Verengt is being so open and honest about how they’re interpreting things when they and Talita are conversing. Much better then leaving things unresolved or unknown about between them two. Unfortunately the big thing about “intending to bite me” made the April Fools’ comic come to mind LOL …

    I wonder if Talita will go to Bip and ask them more about centaurs. Maybe they could help her learn more potentially …

    1. HAL9000

      THANK YOU FOR MAKING ME AWARE OF THE CENTAUR YURI COMIC… BEAUTIFUL

      1. Henrik

        Wait what do you mean by centaur Yuri???? Can I haz a link?

        1. plover

          Here you go!
          https://www.tumblr.com/jayrockin/812810015668879360/not-the-first-time-ive-drawn-yuri-for-april-fools

        2. Jefffy

          https://www.tumblr.com/jayrockin/813015209269657600/this-week-on-runaway-to-the-stars-a-rocky?source=share

          Here u go!

        3. Jefffy

          OOPS WRONG LINK SORRY
          It seems like you’ve gotten a link sent your way anyways lol FORGIVE MEEEEE (f’s in chat I’m so cooked and Talita just got buckets more relatable X,3)

    2. Raydfil

      THATS INSANEEE I CANT BELIEVE I MISSED THAT ON APRIL FOOLS LMAOOO

  25. Cobbington

    W H O O P S YUP I WAS WORRIED ABOUT THIS
    my heart just dropped out my ass oh my god

  26. maeshmolow

    this page was posted on my birthday so i am very glad to see everything is going wonderfully (lie) for Talita 🙂 i love seeing my favorite characters be put in “situations”. (but also i do enjoy this page very much i am excited to see what happens. hopefully it doesn’t go horribly wrong…er. wronger. doesnt get too much worse. im forgetting how to phrase this)

  27. Quad

    Oh God this is like. THE worst combo of expressions for these two D: Talita is smiling bright but as a centaur LOOKS like she’s gonna start biting things, meanwhile Verengt is defensive and irritated, maybe a little scared, but if you’re reading their lips through a human expression lens they almost look like they’re smiling. It’s so unfortunate…
    I think we’re about to get an idea of it, but I’ve been wondering how familiar Talita is with how centaurs express. I thought earlier that she was covering her mouth because she knew how open mouths read, but now she seems unaware why Verengt is bristling. Maybe she’s just become so comfortable it’s slipped her mind.

    1. Kencf0618

      When chimpanzees bare their teeth they aren’t smiling. That said, for the purposes of the suspension of disbelief Centaurs have to have ~some~ human expressions in order for us, the human audience, to read correctly. In this wise, the Matriarch is wryly amused. I hope!

      1. Jay Eaton

        I am not making any of the non-Talita centaur expressions more human for readers. Many of you are making false assumptions, which is exactly what I wanted. You are getting thrown in the deep end with no swimming lessons. Drown with Talita.

        1. LineOfThy

          thats wild but i love the tension that these few pages bring :3

        2. Jefffy

          Yaaay splishy splashy :3
          Thank you for not holding any bars in regards to centaur culture stuff, I think it makes it much nicer and consistent with how such a situation would play out, cuz otherwise, if there were aspects we were “supposed” to have read correctly for us it might get, like, even more confusing on our end, like blur the line between what *the reader* is supposed to understand vs *the accurate and true emotions of the characters* (i.e. “wait they’ve made this expression before and it meant this, but now it means that? whuh?”). If that um. Makes sense. lol
          Something-something all the centaurs are epic and cool just the way they are and I love swimming blubllurb

  28. Clayteeth

    Screaming crying I figured this was going to happen eventually aaaaaa

  29. blythe

    kinda makes me wonder what an inverse situation would look like if a human were raised by centaurs

    no smiling bc teeth is rude, even though smiling is kinda instinctual for humans. no trunk, but given how loose lips are also positive, maybe approximate a trunk smile by pursing the lips as if to kiss/pout? to us would probably look like a moody fish when trying to be friendly. flaring the nostrils also helps with the positive centaur face. human disgust cringe i think translates well enough with the wrinkled nose and squinted eyes, along with tightened lips.

    then comes the question of how that would work with the combined airway/esophagus humans have. talking will overtake the lips being used to compensate for a trunk, unless they just talk with duck lips all the time lol. i guess protruding your lips while talking also minimizes the chance of showing teeth accidentally. i dont think any centaur would take a centaurized human snarl seriously though. a centaurized human would have to be super liked by their clan to not get bullied.

    now im imagining an underdog story of a human ngthan player… god theres such good potential material for a reverse talita situation even if realistically, any centaurs recognizing a human child would send them off to the humans. but maybe human children growing up alongside centaurs would pick up some things. iirc naya pradesh has a substantial centaur population. itd be impossible for at least some meshing to not occur.

  30. harpy!

    *remembers the icon for this chapter is gnashing teeth* oh. uh oh.

    1. Eef

      I’m assuming that’s actually the crying we’re going to see soon…

  31. T-Bird

    Oh dear… I didn’t realize Talita apparently knows SO little about centaurs. At least that’s how I interpret her expression in the last panel – less “Oh no, sorry, I forgot to keep my expression schooled” and more “why would you SAY that D8”
    I wonder if this is part of why her previous interactions with random centaurs went so poorly. Not only because of her clanless status but also she kinda comes across as a feral weirdo with her expressions and body language all out of whack.
    I just hope they can sort this out. I mean, Verengt knows Talita was raised by aliens and they seemed extremely chill until now.
    Of course this all could have been avoided if Talita had had more than ten seconds to prepare for this encounter and maybe read a “basic etiquette for centaurs”-primer, MEL!!!

    1. Zidane

      I think she does know at least that showing teeth isn’t something you want to do, when Verengt first approaches her and she sort of bares her teeth because she’s startled, you see her close her mouth with her hand the next panel, I think the transcript on that page also noted it. I think its actually a little worse for her, in that her interactions with other centaurs were probably so brief and anxiety inducing for her that accidentally grinning at them never even became something she had to think about, whereas here she maybe lets her guard down a bit and smiles the way that comes involuntarily to her without even realizing it. Either way its got to be heartbreaking that genuine happiness coming from you is going to be completely misconstrued as hostility or anger.

  32. Solidago

    And the fragile thread of cordiality collapses at an inevitable understanding..

    Verengt is showing how even knowing some context of Talita’s situation, those hard-wired interpretations will happen. Especially given that they only learned Talita was raised by humans like 40 seconds ago, and don’t know the extent of her isolation from her own species. Meanwhile poor Talita has likely never had this level of social failure with a centaur before. Given what we know of her history, I doubt she’s been in a personal enough conversation to have flashed a big freaky smile at one. If it had happened before I imagine she’d be anxious enough to be keeping it in mind right now. Even once they get used to each other, it may be hard for Talita to not be nervous around the calm centaurs because they look annoyed (an expression she’s had to “correct” on her own face!), and it may be hard for the Gwailer centaurs to not feel uneasy when their boss is cheery or trying to reassure them. Unfortunately, I don’t think Talita has a confident enough personality to make them feel welcome and supported despite being hard to read, and I imagine the Gwailers, who have come to this *entirely separate planet on a contract* only to immediately encounter challenging details they weren’t informed of, will not be feeling very secure.

    Wow, this comment section is almost as tense as the conversation on the page 😳

  33. b

    wuh oh, way to ruffle the matriarchs feathers on accident…. i feel bad for both of them here. Verengt is literally poofed like a cat, they must have truly thought talita meant to attack them for that kind of full body response. never forget one cultures ‘friendly smile’ can be anothers ‘im going to kill you’ cue!

  34. Ronaldinhorobloxgamer

    If you think about it, is Talita putting a Jeff the Killer smile

  35. Fallingfeather

    OOPS. OOPS WHOOPS.

  36. mossrabbit

    i feel like we genuinely need to give verengt more grace, and our love of talita is biasing us against them. verengt is nursing (a stressful time for all animals that do so), just came off a (presumably) long shuttle ride either that day or last night, had to organize their clan for a new job, have a long meeting with an alien (mel) and thus remember all the human social cues they know, and then have a second meeting with their new manager and handle a barrage of new and upsetting information within like 2 minutes and then handle a presumably explosive situation as said manager, who seems extremely shy, anxious, and stressed, suddenly escalates with random hostility despite the conversation going well.

    all things considered, verengt gave talita 100x more grace than i would if i was jetlagged, exhausted, nursing, and socially drained, and the person i was talking to suddenly leered at me with a huge cocky grin on their face and their body stanced up to fight. they’re giving her a chance to explain herself instead of resorting to snarling, their teeth aren’t bared, they aren’t making accusations. they’re asking “are you trying to start a fight?” as calmly as they can manage, after just having received a threat from somebody they know was raised by aliens and may not understand the signals being sent.

    [OBLIGATORY DISCLAIMER: I AM AUTISTIC! I AM A PERSON OF COLOUR! I AM BUTCH! I AM AWARE MANY PEOPLE HAVE AGGRESSION ISSUED TO THEM UNDULY. BUT ACTING LIKE VERENGT SHOULD RESPOND PERFECTLY TO RECEIVING A THREAT IS, ALSO, ISSUING AGGRESSION UNDULY.]

    1. shield

      SO TRUE SO TRUE SO TRUE!!! can i form a verengt defense task force with you

    2. Alternate

      Also v true. Those factors are why I worry this social interaction is just going to go downhill more. And I wouldn’t blame Verengt for any of that. But it would yeah, suck for our protagonist big time. (But aye, shes gotta runaway, so,,, something has to happen). I also worry for what’s gonna happen with Verengt and the Gwailers here once she runs away. 😡 Oof. Hopefully things work out for them, they HAVE prior experience– Or with their apparent connections, maybe they could find other prospects… Oof though.

      1. Alternate

        that is not the emoji i wanted excuse me : c

    3. milk4evertoasted

      this comment is a truthnuke

    4. Enai

      Yes, Verengt for sure rolled a critical success on diplomacy here. Talita, bless her, not so much. With a lot (a lot!) of patient talking, these two could get along, awkward body language and facial expressions and all. The workers however may not be so adept at coping with Talita’s quirks, even if Verengt briefs them on her (from a centaur POV) strange facial expressions. To say nothing of Talita possibly being equally unnerved by them looking like they’re perpetually annoyedly squinting at her.
      *sigh*
      Mel, you know how onboarding new workers is your job? So’s briefing their prospective supervisors on cultural sensitivity and such. Preferably before they encounter each other!!!eleventy1!

    5. late

      and on top of the body language, talita is also exceptionally jacked, so any unfriendly gesture is doubly threatening. verengt and co have been really very nice with this meeting in general, even offering her to join a clan, when she is the equivalent of being introduced to your new boss: a huge ripped stranger who is twitching like a methhead, saying they prefer to live in a shack the woods away from society, and snarling like a wolf when you say it was nice to meet them. hopefully they will take the body language difference with as much understanding as they have shown so far

    6. Kencf0618

      The Matriarch Is Savvy.
      Trust the Matriarch.
      She’s been in strange situations before.

      OK, maybe not quite this weird.

    7. RareBird

      I appreciate this comment, thank you.

  37. Alternate

    Lowkey hoping Verengt just follows this up with a ‘then please refrain from doing that’ or some kind of education on why that expression/what part of the expression startled them. Maybe it’s just cause I’m autistic but I’d like a *full detailed run down on what I did that caused someone to startle like that*. But they could also just pull back and perhaps, be at the end of their rope in being chill with Talita. Oh I hope their rope isn’t that short. But the tension of waiting makes me catastrophize as I would with my own interactions wuff.

  38. Green Heron

    The worst part of this is that in panel 4, if you’re not keen on Centaur expressions, Verengt almost looks like she’s about to burst out laughing

    1. Green Heron

      *they. Whoops

    2. Kencf0618

      An adroit bit of teasing to my eye.

  39. mustarjil

    to those who find verengt’s reaction to be uncharitable, or even cruel, i urge you to remember that not only are they carrying children right now, but talita is going to be the manager of their children. this isn’t a casual conversation between two ppl who will never see each other again, but a professional discussion regarding a job that is quite risky & im putting that mildly. obviously, our poor girl talita deserves better than the cards she’s been dealt, but neither she nor verengt were briefed about one another. this whole thing could’ve been avoided if mel had an ounce of foresight. in my opinion, if my manager signaled to me violent intent, idk if i would’ve reacted with as much grace as verengt is currently showcasing lol… i’d be pretty spooked and probably hightail it. i think that illustrates the tragedy of the situation & the lonesome predicament talita finds herself in, especially given that she tried her best to maintain a neutral expression this whole time.

    1. Danny

      Extremely well-said! It’s a very difficult situation that neither party anticipated being thrown into.

    2. Trees

      ‘…not only are they carrying children right now…’
      Wait!
      Verengt is carrying children right now on this page? Not carrying as in ‘is pregnant’ but carrying them physically? May I ask how you know that or have I missed something really obvious like baby centaurs peaking out somewhere?

      1. mustarjil

        hello! so, full disclosure, but this is an assumption on my part– https://www.runawaytothestars.com/comic/rtts-page-245-and-246/ <- here you can see bumps over verengt's back, which to me look like nursing babies tucked under fabric. those very same bumps also appear on the pages before the Fateful Misunderstanding. lastly, i'm not the only one who has come to this conclusion, so it'd be fun if i, along with the others, were correct in our assumption heeho.

  40. pelya

    Verengt: That made my neck fur bristle.
    Talita: Isn’t that normal? Mine is always like that when I talk to people.

  41. A Ninny Mouse

    man, poor talita… mel when i get you!!! at least verengt is asking her if she’s threatening her instead of assuming she is but man… even though its understandable why vergengt would feel threatened its just awful for both parties. talita has to walk on eggshells because even just smiling because she’s happy is seen as threatening in centaur culture, and for all she knows she might cause more miscommunication issues just by being herself…

  42. moonbarking

    Oh Talita nooo! Ahhh I hope she can bring this back on track.

  43. Threethousandonehundredtwentysecond

    Talita: (pulls arm back into a locked fist raised to eye level)
    Verengt: Talita. Do you intend to punch me?
    Talita: nooo?? I’m initiating a fist bump. don’t leave me hanging 👊

    1. Punperson

      This seems like a great comparison to me lmao, that would be pretty bewildering!

    2. Athelind Llewellyn Long

      You nailed it with this one.

  44. Greenjoe

    It is good that Verengt pushing the matter, and dropped it when Talita said no.

    1. Greenjoe

      Wasn’t pushing, rather*

  45. c0rpzet00nz

    fascinating how people are managing to react negatively to Verengt like they’re misogynists when they’re not a woman. it’s really impressive and annoying

    1. c Senaru

      ….Wot??? I’ve been reading the comments on these pages all week because I love the community, theories and speculation about how this is all going down and I don’t think I’ve seen that?

      1. c0rpzet00nz

        yeah it was basically only one guy, and i didn’t want to name who because it’s not my job to moderate. Jay named who, though, so you can scroll to see who they responded to lmfao.

  46. Lilac

    the second hand embarrassment…… it’s so potent……. it’s almost lethal…….. Its going to kill me im going to die………

    1. Trees

      Quickly! Hold the comic page further from your face! I hear second hand embarrassment potency drops off exponentially with distance!
      …. Lilac… come back to us! Don’t go into the light!!!

      1. Lilac

        Being rushed to the hospital As we speak they have confiscated my phone so I cannot look at the page anymore just dont ask how im typing this right now

  47. Ave Zancuda

    If prince Atahualpa calmly stood knewing Hernando de Soto’s horse rearing and neigh were mere bluffing of barbarians – for they disrespect nor know any of the rules any peasant on the Andes must follow when speaking to the Inca.
    Then Verengt should know this girl alienated from her ancestry won’t share any of her expressions, she should have juxtaposing flashbacks of heated Clan drama, Talita and Mel showing they’re gums. She should giggle it out with the wonders of the universe!

    1. gnome_artificer

      Nice historic reference!

  48. BigRiver

    Verengt is one smart cookie…they’re alarmed on an instinctive level, but their reaction is still to pause and clarify Talita’s meaning rather than immediately take offense, because they’ve already noticed her expressional differences…I like them!

    1. BigRiver

      My guess, unfortunately, is that the people from this clan that Talita will *actually* be working with on a day-to-day basis are just going to be a repeat of her last situation with the temps, but in the opposite direction. Sigh.

  49. MutableAlias

    “grandma just passed away 😭💀” type moment

    1. Zidane

      this comment made me realize there must be a younger generation of centaurs out there on the intergalatic internet whose lingo and sense of humor completely baffles their parents, theres no way thats a human specific thing

  50. JamTime

    OHHH TALITA MY BELOVED!!! I love her smile so much, the cultural difference is very unfortunate but makes a lot of sense

  51. Vinemaple

    Augh, reading this conversation as it updates is like trying to follow a fight scene in Aurora as it updates…

    I can see Verengt going one of two basic ways here: “Do you intend to bite me?” seems like a setup for either some kind, motherly advice for the Centaur who just said they, er, SHE, was raised by aliens, or a steely admonition to watch her body language and/or attitude around them and their workers.

    It’s gonna be 2 1/2 days before I find out which. I suddenly envy the people who will, in the future, read this conversation for the first time by flipping through the physical book in a few minutes.

    1. Fallingfeather

      What’s Aurora? :0

      1. Cobbington

        https://comicaurora.com/aurora/0-1-1/
        It is an extremely good fantasy webcomic that I highly recommend

  52. Jason Myers

    I see a lot of people identifying with the centaurs over Talita: ‘how would you feel it if you were sent to a weird human guy with weird inhuman tendencies and bad facial expressions?’ Which is cool and interesting, identifying with the aliens to try to make sense of how they’re treating ‘the big SCARY /WEIRD/ alien’… I’m sorry, but that for me reads the ableism in the room: I have met many autistic people that straight up never smile, to me, the question is no different from ‘how would you react if your BOSS was /autistic/.’ Or, on another note, it can be a little… let’s say, xenophobic, in the Terran sense. Not every human culture utilizes the same facial expressions!!Unusual facial expressions and tones in conversation are normal for humans. If I were to meet a weird guy with no knowledge of my culture, I’d be fine, because that’s just a guy I can ask questions of, even if there’s a language barrier, even if his facial expressions are weird, I wouldn’t just assume a grimace meant he’s going to bite me, I wouldn’t assume that a glare means he’s going to hurt me, especially when my own neutral expression is particularly glare-like. What’s going on here is actually, what if your /real species/ came out of nowhere and had something to say about every facial expression, every article of clothing, every turn of phrase every twist of posture every choice you’ve ever made- and you’re a fuckin weirdo that can’t even fit in with ones you were raised with, being offputting /because/ of the ones you were raised with, of trying to mask and fit in, masking for so long that you don’t know what you look like WITHOUT the mask. Too foreign for here, too foreign for ‘home’ indeed.

    1. Vinemaple

      Top tier analysis!

    2. Jubjub bird

      You’re right, and the mask part sounds awfuly familiar.
      Still, I think if my autistic boss looked like he was going to attack me, it’s only logical and natural that I’d be startled.
      Verengt isn’t used to seeing human expressions on a centaur, so they probably didn’t even realize what is going on.
      Still doesn’t mean it’s okay to think “My boss is a murderer” because of this, especially if he tries to explain it later.

    3. Adrienne

      Frankly I’m just focusing on the centaur perspective because I already understand Talita’s… Is stating “wow these centaurs must be confused because this isn’t what they’re used to” really ableism? No one is saying “Talita is socially inept and it’s her job to communicate better” but that seems to be how you’re reading it lol

      1. Jason Myers

        Assuming that everyone behaves the same way as you, will have the same facial expressions as you, is a form of ableism, and people like me have gone through physical and emotional abuse due to our inability to ‘blend’ properly. Ingrained ableism often looks like ‘politeness’ but is often masked with rude, accusatory questions like this. ‘Are you mad at me?’ Is fine to ask, ‘Did I do something to upset you?’ would have been WAY more tactful (and removes the blame from the person you’re addressing). ‘Are you going to actually attack me?’ IS RUDE, especially when, verbally, the two of them had been exchanging pleasantries quite well.
        You need to trust people for their words- Verengt is not. Some people around you are going to be off-putting. People have literally been thrown in jail for ‘acting weird in public’, even when the behaviour is perfectly safe (or at least, not affecting the wellbeing of others). Talita has multiple times in the comic been accused of being aggressive without cause (or, even in some cases, WITH cause to be!!), and we’ve seen how badly it’s hurt her. And ngl… some of the comments HAVE implied that Talita needs to ‘git gud’ at Centaur shit. Even though part of the crux of the comic is that she wants to do it at her own pace.

        1. HAL9000

          i feel like there’s a 3rd aspect here which isn’t being considered which is that english is absolutely not veregnt’s first language. idk about anyone else but i am often far ruder/blunter in my second langauge, usually unintentionally, because i’m not fluent and my meaning and intent can get lost in translation. even the best bilinguals can stumble on this, it’s why translators are a whole job and you can’t just grab any guy off the street who speaks two languages to mediate something

        2. Adrienne

          I frankly think if a person was with their spouse(s) and kid(s) while talking to a virtual stranger, and then the stranger said “Nice to meet you” while throwing little punches at the air right in the person’s face, it would be beyond diplomatic to ask “Are you okay? Did I say something to upset you?” I think most people would be bewildered and immediately ask “What the fuck are you doing?” and feel the need to protect their family from someone who isn’t predictable.

          I’m sorry you’ve had people assume you’re dangerous when you only meant to be friendly. That must be really painful. What’s happening with Talita is equally sad to watch. We speak Talita’s language, so we see her intent. We have to imagine Verengt’s, and from all the storytelling we’ve been granted, I would say Verengt’s response is as understandable as Talita’s. Verengt’s children are going to work with this stranger in an already dangerous job – Verengt isn’t afraid to double-check that their kids aren’t going to have a boss who will threaten them with violence.

          Agree to disagree, I assume.

        3. blythe

          dude you are all over the comments trying to assert that the gwailer are somehow mean and bad and its reading like mega projection onto a whole other type of person

          its not ableist to flinch if someone acts like they might attack regardless of how they intended to come across. does that make people who suffered trauma ableist??? if someone looks mean, then yeah, we avoid them at first. because body language actually means something whether you like it or not, and usually if someone looks pissed off, they are. both parties have to come to an understanding there if thats not the case, and youre absolutely reading the gwailer so poorly

        4. Morbidipea

          Okay. People are going for a punch analogy, and tbh I DO think that you’re drastically misinterpreting the situation on Verengt’s side.

          So, let’s put this a different way: let’s say I’m a human raised by aliens. We’ve been having a productive conversation, though it’s been off because I squint all the time. Because the species that raised me doesn’t have sclera and find mine disturbing to look at, like I’m already dead (for the sake of argument because their equivalent of sclera are darkly colored by blood and when that isn’t there it’s because of liver mortis).

          “Good talk, I hope you have a great day and it was nice making a friend!” you say, bringing your hand up to wave before heading off to wherever.

          “You too!” I say cheerfully, as I WHIP OUT A KNIFE AND PRESS IT TO YOUR NECK.

          “What the fuck!” you exclaim, shocked and upset and probably pissed. “Are you going to slit my throat?!”

          “No?” I say, confused as hell. That’s normal. Putting your claws to a new friend’s throat means you can be trusted not to, because you wouldn’t warn someone like that, you’d just do it. And I don’t have claws, so I have to do it with a knife.

          That’s the kind of interaction we’re seeing here. That’s why people are saying Verengt is responding reasonably based on what she knows and what that body language should mean. I’m interpreting this as Verengt, in fact, *not* being ableist and trying to work around her initial assumptions- until there was a threat. Now, she needs to make sure for the safety of everyone- Talita and Verengt’s own workers- that Talita KNOWS that, right there, she threatened Verengt’s life. Especially if Talita ever encounters other centaurs who might decide that the threat made warrants a *reasonable self-defense response.* Or, if to another matriarch, whose entourage or workers decide it warrants a reasonable defense-of-another response.

          We’ve gone from weird and off-putting behavior to behavior that is actively threatening. Verengt was trusting Talita for her words until she got a knife to her neck.

    4. Pocoloco

      You wouldn’t assume he’s going to bite you because he’s still a human raised by humans, and you’re also a human; although cultural nuances of facial expression exist, we still share a core set of facial expressions that are recognized cross culturally. Talita and these centaurs don’t seem to have that advantage at all, since she’s imprinted on human body language.

      For the clan centaurs, if I’m correctly understanding the world building stuff I’ve read, it’s not improbable that they *have* seen (or at least could reasonably expect) serious violence after a female centaur bares their teeth at another female centaur, based on the description of pregnancy aggression. Talita isn’t pregnant obviously, but do the centaurs have any way of knowing that? I have no clue! There doesn’t have to be a victimizer here, it’s possible for everyone to be operating in purely good faith and still be hurtful towards one another.

      Like, I dunno, maybe I’m reading this interaction terribly because I’m also autistic and the next page is going to be Verengt going ‘ew wtf I’m not working with this FREAK!’ but that would be pretty abrupt.

    5. OhGollieItsOllie

      I know I made a comment like that partially because people were saying “wow, people who are expecting the centaur clan to be unkind to Talita must think the centaurs are like a bunch of wild ANIMALS!!”

      Like, no? If anything I’m anthropomorphizing them, because as the neurodivergent person, I know from firsthand experience that people can be very cruel to those who don’t express themselves the way they find “normal.” Is it ableist? Yeah. But is it fairly normal and something I’ve come to expect from most strangers? Also yes.

    6. Immersia

      In context this is a full on invitation to fight though. I imagine it would be like having someone randomly pull your hair, slap you or spit on you. I’d have the same knee jerk “wtf” reaction at being threatened before my brain catches up.

  53. Light_In_The_Fog

    omg Verengt is so niceee i was worried that this wouldnt turn out well but they seem chill, especially since they’re still smiling when they ask about Talita biting them lmao

    1. Jason Myers

      That’s not a smile! https://jayrockin.tumblr.com/post/674032871372111872/talita-is-a-weird-fringe-case-with-very-human It seems to be a mixture of some other expressions, but for me, this is reading ‘disgust, irritation, aggression’.

  54. jasper

    Ohhh it’s all breaking my heart. Ohh Talita. We knew it’d be awful. We knew, but maaann, it doesn’t make it any easier to see.

  55. Skadoosh

    And now they’re finding out why Talita doesn’t want to join a clan 🙂
    (or a part of the reason, anyway)

  56. Eux

    oh noooooooo. gosh. as always jay your expression work on literal aliens is so so good!! and i love the way you shade and use contrast. <3 even if the next page is an immediate clearup of like talita saying she was raised with humans and adopted their mannerisms and verengt truly listens to that, it's not going to help that both parties are feeling VERY off kilter

  57. Jackie

    Good Lord what a roller coaster these last few pages have been.
    Talita had her teeth at least partially bared at the beginning of their meeting, V made it known they were aware of Talitas ‘wide eyes’, have been informed T was alien raised and is clearly not ‘normal’ by centaur standards. But only now decide to seriously interpret potential aggression and return the gesture? V… V please… I really want to like you. You were concerned but observant and polite until now I think. Put the pieces together please 😭

    1. Vinemaple

      My own read on Verengt makes it feel like a possible rhetorical question… I hope so, anyway!

      1. Jackie

        A couple of people have posted links to the centaur expression guide/sheet, and I’ve seen it previously. Between the tight lips, ruffled neck feathers, and creases/wrinkles on their face I’m pretty confident that is at least no longer a kind face, potentially a very mad face.

    2. Reid

      note though that Verengt isn’t showing their teeth, and seems to be making an effort to keep their lips closed, despite their alarmed reaction.

    3. Jay Eaton

      When Talita bared her teeth at Verengt on page 257, her body language was obviously tense and frightened. It read to Verengt pretty much as it was, shock and fear. Here, Talita is more relaxed, in mid-conversation, and deliberately tilting her head to show the bared teeth. So now it comes across as either a confident threat or a very inappropriate play-bid.

  58. Adrienne

    Oh god poor Talita… but just imagine what Verengt must be seeing

    “It was nice to meet you 🙂”
    “You too 👹🖕”
    “😳 Whoa! Did you just flip me off?? 😠”
    “No?? 😬🖕”

    1. Fogblitz

      PFFFTT LMAO what an eloquent way to put it!

    2. Ruby

      Spot on, no notes

  59. Ruby

    You know that gif of The Office with the painful grimacing? Yeah, that.

    Also, this gave me flashbacks to all the times I let the ’tism out and I was looked at as if I was unhinged. 😅😓

    1. Jason Myers

      Forreallllll I had a friend I recently was apologizing to for ‘being too silly’ and I had to literally hide my face when they said they like when I’m silly cuz I know my smile can be scary as shit…

  60. ronan

    aw man, just as the conversation was about to end on an OK note…it’s sad that talita’s genuine smile comes off as so alarming :[

  61. Feather

    Talita’s been very carefully not opening her mouth this whole interaction. But as soon as she lets her guard down it all goes wrong 🙁 Of course she’s not going to be able to manage the centaurs – “If you smile at work your coworkers will insictively react as though you got up in their faces with closed fists” is completely impossible.

    I’d be interested to see how the centaurs’ exo-suits differ from Talita’s though – hers keeps her trunk tucked under her chin like she normally does, and I don’t know if a centaur with centaur body language would find that comfortable.

  62. Zuorai

    To-t-t-ttttttooonight!?!?

  63. Uh

    Since Verengt is seriously considering the possibility of being bitten here, they’re being pretty measured all things considered. They aren’t even showing teeth back to her!

  64. Mimi-Fox

    Oh no!! For them, showing their teeth is as rude a gesture as showing the middle finger to a human, or worse? I’m scared for Talita!!!

    1. TeethBurglar

      It’s kinda like balling up your fist and and raising it to their face but more so. Like threatening physical violence but a centaur bite can often be fatal. All considered Verengt is taking this very well and being very diplomatic.

      1. Jason Myers

        Is she though? Personally as somebody autistic that interacts w other autistic people, I would’ve at least asked if she’s /alright/ first, before accusation via question. People keep acting like Verengt is being polite, putting themselves into their shoes over Talita’s: I think people are failing to truly consider Talita’s perspective, where being accused of being aggressive is rude, and more than a little hurtful, especially when there is no aggression there. Imagine, actually, being autistic and then being told that your smile looks like you wanna murder people, when you’re a perfectly capable adult who hasn’t harmed anyone /FUCKING EVER/. If Talita had a history of violence, I’d agree with some of y’all, but the idea that even /Centaurs/ assume she’ll attack them is really hurtful.

        1. TeethBurglar

          You know what, yeah my bad. I’ve never had that my experience so it didn’t come to mind but that’s not an excuse. To be assumed violent no matter what you do sucks. Verengt is definitionally letting their cultural bias show. It sucks all around. And doing something “wrong” without realizing no matter if you are interacting with your species or humans must feel so alienating. Throwing Talita in the deep end trying her best to mask without forewarning and being punished from showing her real emotions. Which brings me to my ultimate point, Talita need to have a serious conversation with Mel. Putting her in awful situations where she feels even more isolated because Mel didn’t both thinking how being raised by humans affects her day to day life.

        2. HAL9000

          Verengt has never met Talita until this conversation, they have no idea if Talita does have a history of violence. Mel clearly hasn’t briefed them on anything. they are trusting Talita with the lives of their children, most commenters are realising that they’re taking a nonverbal threat from a *complete stranger* (who is also visibly a lot bigger and more physically powerful then Veregnt, and appears possibly unstable) a lot better then most mothers would. nobody here is actively attacking anyone else- it’s all a cascading series of misunderstandings.

      2. Pocoloco

        Talita, waving a loaded gun around: nice to meet you, look forward to taking care of your kids soon!

        Verengt: UH??? O_O

        Nobody here for this conversation is at fault! And frankly even if Mel were doing their best and trying to avert misunderstandings, is there even a guide that exists for these situations? I can’t imagine there are too many alien raised centaurs floating about to show the way.

        1. Archieve

          I maintain that the only one who deserves heat for their behavior is Mel who blindsided both sides because they think all Centaurs are the same and don’t deserve the courtesy of standard employer debriefing.

  65. TotallySomebody

    Oooagh 💔

  66. AnormalADN

    naurrr that was going well (well enough) 🙁

  67. Jason Myers

    My favourite thing has been everyone hoping this goes well, and then clicking to the next page.

  68. TeethBurglar

    I need Mel to be chewed out so bad… by both Talita and Verengt. Like this is important stuff to brief both parties on, that Talita has human expressions and is culturally human. Mel needs to be told to their face how hurtful their negligence is and how negligent they have been. But what I’m afraid of is Mel will never understand and keep doing shit like this. Thus making Talita runaway, to the stars perhaps

    1. Jason Myers

      Here’s the thing… it seems clear to me that Mel /doesn’t/ see Talita as human, or human socialised. She doesn’t understand these problems- she barely understands Talita. She ALSO doesn’t seem to understand the social nuances of Centaurs. Talita’s in a unique situation where the lines of her situation are blurred, while Mel, ironic given their whole gender situation, is more content to put Centaur into Centaur Box. Surely that’ll fix everything! And we call that a loving kind of racism.

      1. ribbit

        A foreigner to everyone – classic problem! 😭😭🫂

      2. TeethBurglar

        Fuck, you are right. That loving kind of racism. I’m wondering if they will understand that they ARE being racist if confronted. Knowing how Mel has been so far probably not, because they aren’t being malicious. A lot of people excuse themself because they think racism is purely malicious and intentional. I wonder if Talita will have a heated argument with Mel mirroring how Cal left.
        Also just so you know they use they/them pronouns.

        1. Vinemaple

          I can definitely see Mel taking a “how can you say that?!” stance if someone were to say something.

      3. LeBonk

        Who’s “she”?

    2. Archieve

      Unfortunately, I don’t anticipate any character development from Mel. In the context of having a human family that no longer talks to them and going from a university setting to middle of nowhere high turnover company, I fear Mel already has a firm baked ‘never my fault’ attitude where people either distance themselves from them when they refuse to take accountability or they leave when they get push back in a professional setting. I suspect they left the University in part when other parents complained about their wishy washy approach to discipline.

      1. TeethBurglar

        Yeah 😔… c’est la vie et la vie est une connasse, sometimes there’s no gratifying conclusion where people in the wrong realize it. The best Talita can do is leave/distance themself from Mel. By boarding the convenient space ship. What I’m wondering is what will happen to the clan when she leaves, will Mel find another person to fill Talita’s role? Or will the clan be like “fuck this” leaving Mel understaffed.

        1. Archieve

          Depending on what type of paper work the clan already signed they might have to stay but I think they would be fine (irritating middle manager Mel aside) since they already have work experience off homeplanet.

        2. HAL9000

          not relevant to anything else but i love you for introducing me to this extended version of c’est la vie. what a line

      2. TeethBurglar

        Yeah… c’est la vie et la vie est une conasse, sometimes there isn’t a gratifying ending where the person who does wrong realizes it. The best Talita can do is distance themself from Mel. Which makes me wonder what will happend with the newly hired clan. Will Mel need to find a new temp to take over Talita’s job? I wonder…

  69. Monolith

    Super interesting (and also very sad) to watch the way their crests are flaring here; the centaur ref sheet people are talking about shows that the quills stand up for a number of different emotions, ranging from excitement to fury to fear, but generally it seems to be a response to states of arousal (in the scientific sense of the word; ie, states of heightened response to stimuli like anger, joy, being “up”). Talita’s crest goes up first, presumably because shes delighted! Shes doing it! Shes coming to the end of this dreaded conversation with maybe minimal social mortification! But combined with her big smiley fangs it’s like, a HUGE threat display, and Verengt fluffs up right back, because oh shit, suddenly knives are out. And then the way Talitas crest starts flattening out in the very last panel… I honestly find miscommunication really interesting to observe like this, but I also just feel so bad for Talita here. She thought she’d almost managed this whole dreaded interaction!

  70. Hunter

    Eesh, right, human facial expressions and differing cultural norms…

  71. Claire

    Unrelated to the expressions, I just noticed that Verengt has piercings on their trunk! I’m not sure if its four individual ones or two bars, but its cool nonetheless!

  72. Commander Ledi

    why i am getting a feeling that someone was not briefed enough about talita

    1. Archieve

      More like not briefed at all, I bet Mel misinterpreted all of the clans body language on the tour from a human lens and assumed Talita would be able to talk “naturally” with them.

    2. c Senaru

      I think that was perhaps made fairly clear at the point where Verengt asked about Talita’s Matriarch- They weren’t told anything other than Talita is a centaur and she’s here on her own, without context that she does not have a clan or that she was raised among people other than her own species, and likewise, emotes like a human.

      This is so bad for both parties, if they’d had time to prepare a little bit and be briefed that the way she emotes is like a human, it would still be jarring to them (How could it not be, even if I knew ahead of time someone pulling out a knife to gesture at things was not meant to be a threat, I’d probably still flinch but at least I’d have an idea of what’s going on, yaknow?) Verengt and the others with them didn’t even get that as a courtesy from Mel, who is entirely at fault for not explaining this to the clan, or even sticking around with Talita for the introductions.

      Like I can’t even blame Verengt for the kneejerk reaction to that, it looks like a threatening action- I’d almost bet the reason they didn’t react the same in kind is because what Talita -said- didn’t match what her action was, asking clarification rather than taking it as a ‘lets go’ is at least a positive but it’s unfortunate it happened at all, poor everyone in this situation except Mel. I hope they someday understand what they did wrong, but sometimes folks like that never figure it out in the end.

    3. A Ninny Mouse

      they definitely weren’t, otherwise this conversation would be much different if they at least knew the bare minimum of “hey just so you know talita was raised by humans so she might not know any of your cultural norms”. mel really thought that all centaurs are just guaranteed to get along because theyre the same species and surely talita being raised by humans wont cause potential miscommunication issues 💀

      1. Archieve

        I hope this is what makes Talita realize Mel doesn’t deserve her consideration and is worse then having no connections. Mel is treating introducing Talita to other Centaurs worse then if she were a pet here because I think most people would aleast want to see their pets initial reaction when seeing a new animal of the same species but Mel seriously pretended to have an urgent meeting the minute Talita was there to avoid it.

        1. A Ninny Mouse

          honestly, even if the meeting is real what mel did is still pretty awful, and if they knew they couldnt be there to potentially mediate they shouldve set up a proper introduction for the centaurs and talita later. theyre not just her boss, theyre her foster parent and should KNOW that she might struggle to talk to other centaurs due to her upbringing! and yet, because they believe their way is best they’ve just caused the gwaliers and talita to have more miscommunication issues than if they stuck around to go “hey, talita is just smiling how we humans do, she wasn’t trying to threaten you or your family. maybe you could show her how centaurs normally express so we don’t have any issues in the future?” but alas, their shortcomings…

      2. Mitta

        Yeah you articulated something I’ve been trying to comment but been struggling to put it into words. Im getting racist vibes from Mel. Not hardcore bigotry racist, but more like “i dont see color” type of racially insensitive. We dont see Mel’s side of the comic, but I don’t believe that someone who researched basic centaur mannerisms wouldn’t be alarmed and want to settle the difference immediately before some huge misunderstanding or worse happens. They clearly think they are helping Talita in some way, but that could only have worked if they had briefed the Gwailer on Talita’s situation, so Talita could practice being comfortable socializing with centaurs who understood. This whole thing could’ve turned out to be really good for if Mel just took that extra step. But instead its like “uh I know you’re struggling in some capacity, but instead of addressing serious issues like a human assaulting you, I’m just going to invite these other minorities for you to hang out with, because you’re a minority, thank me later”

  73. boxesofboxes

    NOOOO IT WAS GOING SO WELL!!!!!!! Damn you mixed species facial expressions!!!!!!

  74. anon

    yay everythings going great!

  75. Claire

    I’m actually not worried about Verengt’s interpretation of this- they have a strong reaction, but so would anyone in the face of what *seems* to be extreme aggression. Instead of acting on it, they ask for clarification. but also “Damn this girl really is feral”.
    But… etiquette lesson likely incoming.

    1. Claire

      upon examination of the centaur expression refsheet, Verengt’s expression becomes very interesing. Definitely some irritation, but the eyes don’t seem to be in-line for aggression nor fear. Closer to sadness. Does Verengt pity Talita…?

      Or perhaps I’m misreading all of this.

      1. BobisOnlyBob

        I think she is reacting to her as a human introduced to a feral child raised by alien wolves snarling and hissing at them, but understanding that context, would react – asking if the wolf-child is indeed acting aggressively, or if there’s some confusion caused by their strange upbringing.

        1. Claire

          I agree. The question then is how will Verengt evaluate this in the context of clan social interactions? Even if Verengt knows to handle this with tact, that may or may not be something they can pass to all their clan members. I’m excited to see how this shakes out, though.

          Poor Talita! Poor Verengt! They’re both doing so well.

      2. Archieve

        Referenceing the expression sheet half closed eyelids with raised truck seems to be in line with classic irritated display. I think Verengnt is trying to remind herself Talita probably doest know how to properly act but is still nor happy with this unanticipated working relationship. Imagine getting your children a job with somone from a similar cultiresl background only to realize after signing the contract they will be working under a feral person who knows nothing of your culture.

      3. zaratustra

        kind of a “I BEG YOUR PARDON” face

      4. LeBonk

        yeah, the trunk says aggressive or irritated, the mouth/lips say elated or pleased, the feathers say shocked or aggressive or pleased or irritated…

    2. Jason Myers

      Disgust, shock, aggression- that’s what I read from it. But you know, maybe the point is that we’re human and have a hard time interpretting this.

  76. R

    Well, not in THAT context, anyway. (˵ ¬ᴗ¬˵) (˵ ¬ᴗ¬˵) (˵ ¬ᴗ¬˵)

  77. edenmachine5457

    .FUCK!!!!!!
    .god i REALLY hope this interaction gets cleared up quickly… i was hoping for things to go well, and they still mostly could, so long as they clear this up!!

  78. Kaffee

    This first impression has been quite the roller coaster 0~o

    1. Jason Myers

      You fixed your ‘b’ key! Congrats!

  79. Mobi-gg

    AAAUGHHH THAT WAS HER GENUINE HAPPY SMILE NOOOOOOOOOO :((((
    I really hope they can clear it up auurghhdwaskls Talita :,,(

    1. Archieve

      Atleast Verengnt is asking before assuming, a less understanding Matriarch may have had a less charitable conclusion.

      1. Zidane

        I was thinking similarly, if this a centaur with a different temperament this may have escalated way worse (although we’ll have to see just how poorly this particular scene ends up). This easily could’ve been a nightmare scenario where Talita slips up and does this around one of the younger centaurs and Verengt/one of the entourage gets the impression that their kids are being threatened.

        The risk of being misinterpreted/general cultural barrier was gonna be there no matter what but its insane that it seems this clan wasn’t given a heads up about these differences seemingly at all. Just a rough situation for both parties where Talita has to watch her every expression and these workers weren’t aware that their boss emotes very differently than they do.

    2. Pocoloco

      How sad is it that this is apparently the first time she’s ever smiled in front of another centaur? 🙁 Since she seems absolutely sideswiped by the idea that a smile could be threatening.

  80. Zidane

    so close to ending this conversation on a good note too T_T

  81. Hurgaburga

    At best this ends with verengt being a bit confused and annoyed maybe being like “well don’t bare your teeth so much then” or just deciding to talk to mel about it later

    You really played us jay… thinking this interaction would go well

    1. Jason Myers

      Which would suck so much- I’ve had people tell me my natural smile is off-putting (neurological stuff and faceblindness makes me make some cartoonish expressions, apparently)- Talita is gonna have to mask around these Centaurs, even if she ever IS comfortable around them, they’ll always react with trepidition if she naturally smiles. I wear a mask so masking psychologically is less painful for me, but Talita shouldn’t be forced into a situation where she has to mask, either literally or metaphorically.

      1. ribbit

        Haha, I do that as well. I have clownish/cartoonishly exaggerated facial expressions, I instinctively have to tone them down. I think part of me thinks it’s as hard for others to read faces as it is for me, and exaggerates to the point I can be sure I’m legible 😂

      2. Joey

        At least no one can really see her face in the exosuits. If this turned into a longterm thjng presumably they could learn to meet in the middle learning each others expressions. But a) that only works if mutual open-minded patience wins out over knee-jerk reactions, and b) we know it isn’t long term cause Talita does a (see title, roll credits)

        1. Joey

          Oops was trying to reply to Jason not ribbit, apologies if me formatting to the wrong person made my answer not make sense.

  82. May

    I looked up the post on centaur facial expressions, and I’ll copy it here if anyone wants a refresher. Visible teeth and wide eyes are aggressive, and while Talita isn’t raising her trunk as mush as is typical with aggression, it could be interpreted as fear or nervousness mixed in.
    https://jayrockin.tumblr.com/post/674032871372111872/talita-is-a-weird-fringe-case-with-very-human

    1. Muse

      to be fair I guess if someone raided their fist and pulled back to punch me, but looked scared shitless while doing it, i would also still be startled, baffled, and wary lmao

    2. Morbidipea

      Also this one: https://jayrockin.tumblr.com/post/674282458663075840/talitas-expressions-are-usually-misinterpreted

      tbh if a human, who seemed scared and anxious for no reason, but who I’d been deescalating and at least having a conversation with suddenly made a face like THAT… yeah, without another reason I’m assuming they just decided it was Fight Time. Or flee time, but no running? Or possibly that they’re about to take a Massive Dump RIGHT NOW.

  83. Fantia

    Oof, ouh, and here we go, there it is.. And it was going so well too, all things considered. :’c I really hope Verengt at least will be open on hearing Talita out, but this, paired with the whole “no clan” stuff really doesn’t paint Talita in a good light to them, does it?

  84. abnomi

    NO MORE PAIN FOR TALITA I CANT TAKE IT ANYMORRREEEE GIRL ILL GET YOU OUT OF HERE PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  85. crow

    this made me laugh out loud, talita no!!!

    1. HAL9000

      im also fully feeling Cheev’s dry “haw haw” here

  86. Zii

    I like how realistic this conversation is. Obviously Verengt who is experienced in dealing with the intricacies of working off planet is going to be relatively polite and diplomatic even when they’re dealing with unusual situations. Like your manager being your cultural equivalent of homeless is… strange, but whatever as long as they’re capable in their own work. But your manager’s smile essentially being aiming a fist at your face is going to get a VERY different reaction.

    1. Accursed Dirt Boar

      From Verengt perspective, Talita is like an incredibly buff hobo who is about to throw hands at you for like no reason
      Not a good look!

    2. Mikah

      *while you are carrying 6(?) newborns around, one might add. I think that can explain their reaction even more so.

    3. Jason Myers

      Personally I think people keep giving Verengt the benefit of the doubt, when she clearly has stopped giving Talita proper benefit. I’m autistic, I have faceblindness, I learned my facial expressions from cartoons, and my ‘neutral’ expression apparently is active resting ‘I will murder you’ face. It’s not kind to ask somebody if they’re about to punch you if you’re having a normal adult conversation, even if their expressions are weird. Me grabbing the alien and holding her up ‘THIS GURL IS AUTISTIC AND THERE IS SOME INTERESTING ABLEISM GOING ON IN THE COMMENTS’. I shouldn’t have to wear a mask for people to stop asking me to smile, and I shouldn’t be given flak when my smile freaks them out. VERENGT HAS NO FUCKIN TACT. She could’ve asked ‘…is everything alright? Are you alright?’ instead, she jumps into an accusation in the form of a question.

      1. Gander of the Shinies

        I really don’t think you can blame Verengt all that much here. They’re responding in a reasonable way all things considered. Like, tact be damned when the other person literally looks like they’re about to maul your face off

      2. Zii

        I fully disagree. Human autism is not a 1:1 for the situation here. Talita has the body language of an entirely different species. A resting b*tch face is regarded with caution but isn’t an unknown phenomenon. This isn’t comparable to a resting b*tch face, this is comparable to raising your fist threateningly (except your “fist” is full of sharp teeth and potentially lethal) and no human would react calmly to that. I’d say asking Talita about her intentions is very polite rather than fully assuming Talita’s being aggressive (especially since Veregnt has babies on their back and Talita is larger and likely stronger than them).
        Veregnt doesn’t even show their teeth back. It’s rather absurd to expect Veregnt to take this all of this with an unrealistic level of understanding. They’re not going to understand all of Talita’s intricacies based on the single sentence of “I’ve lived with aliens since I was a baby.” They’ve been very chill thus far all things considered.

        1. Jason Myers

          If that’s ‘chill’ for Verengt, then what I have here is a personal problem with how she interacts with unfamiliar things. At that point you’re allowed to disagree with me however you like, personally, I think she’s a cunt.

        2. Jay Eaton

          Ok, so. You’re allowed to have strong negative opinions about characters and argue for your reading of the situation, but if you’re going to keep gendering this alien to the point of referring to them by words I’d consider misogynistic slurs, you’re gonna get comment blocked.

        3. Jason Myers

          Ableism is really insidious in that it makes those utilizing it feel like they’re in the social interactions ‘right’.

        4. Zidane

          This is somewhat similar to what I was thinking, I can obviously see the connection of people misinterpreting autistic people’s facial expressions and assuming they’re annoyed or being rude when they just have a neutral face but I don’t think its the same situation. It’s more like someone whose culture has a smile as a universal “FUCK OFF” expression meeting someone whose smile means yknow. happiness and the former not realizing this until it happens. I don’t think modern centaurs are out there literally biting each other on the regular whenever they have issues, they’re a race capable of talking things out just like humans do in most interactions so I don’t think Verengt /literally/ thinks Talita is going to jump them but it still has totally opposite connotations than it does to humans and they’re going to have an involuntary response to that.

          Absolutely terrible situation for Talita, who grew up having to learn these human expressions so people don’t think her neutral face is mad and other harassment from humans who dont understand centaurs (based on some of the side comics we’ve seen of her youth) and now having the situation flipped on its head where the people she’s working with now misinterpret the human expressions she now does reflexively. Also to be clear I don’t think people relating this to autism/ableism are completely unfounded or anything, there are some clear parallels to it, just as I think Talita has some parallels to being transgender when she is a woman but as we see from the temps she’s often referred to as “they” by the temps who don’t really respect her as a person and not just as their centaur boss. I just don’t think its that literal as “Talita is autistic” but I do think some people’s comments about her are somewhat dehumanizing. I’m not trying to pick a fight here so I hope I was able to articulate my thoughts well.

      3. HAL9000

        can talita be read as a metaphor for autism? yeah, clearly. she can also be read as a metaphor for so many other things (trans, race, adoption, anxiety, disability, anything involving alienation) but this is not a 1:1 scenario, this is imaginary alien animal body language. art asks the audience to interpret and some readers try and read both sides ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ we all know talita because she’s the mc, verengt is more interesting to speculate on because we a) don’t know alien body language and b) the audience is still trying to get an understanding of their character

      4. Danny

        I think now is a good time to bring up that Jay Eaton has explicitly stated, in the post linked below, that Talita was not /specifically written/ to be autistic. That doesn’t mean she cannot be interpreted that way, of course, but I think it’s worth remembering when talking about your personal interpretation of her.

        You may identify with Talita and her struggles, but ultimately, what she is going through in the story is not 100% equivalent to the struggles of an autistic human, nor is it limited to that. There are psychological conflicts happening, yes, but even more prominently than that, there is a huge cultural gap driving the tension in this interaction.

        https://jayrockin.tumblr.com/post/788439847175176192/is-talitas-autism-coding-natural-biological-or#notes

        1. Danny

          “Your interpretation” being in reference to Jason Myers, not HAL9000, to be clear.

  87. Tentament

    Look at how happy she was, it was so close to being a good interaction!

  88. Minaerva

    OH NO
    hopefully the “NO??” communicates well enough that there’s been a misunderstanding TwT

  89. Red Eclipse

    Oh nooooo everything was going so well too

  90. Alternate

    Ooohh girl. Oh my Girl. Oof. This is rough. Even in trying to be nice, it’s still, a big body language barrier. OOf. Verengts squint and tight lip almost LOOK like a tight-lipped uncomfortable smile, but I know they don’t smile like that. But still. Woof.
    (haha woof,,, she wasn’t literally raised by wolves y’all it’ll be okay,,, C’mon. Being raised by aliens still means you were raised in some sort of social order. Do other sophonts just BITE each other? (Do… Do Centaurs just bite each other? Man the miscommunication both ways has gotta be somethin.

    1. Danny

      I think it’s important to remember that a Centaur’s primary weapons are their teeth – that’s how they evolved to dispatch prey. In contrast, us humans evolved to dispatch prey primarily with our hands, rather than our mouths.

      This is, from what I know, at least a large part of why one of our most common friendly expressions – smiling with bared teeth – is so strange compared to pretty much every other animal ever. To most other animals, including other primates, baring your teeth is considered a threat, because teeth are weapons.

      And I assume this is the case for Centaurs, too; baring your teeth and tightening your lips like Talita does while imitating a human smile as a Centaur is percieved as a threat because it is, quite literally, a threat display. The human equivalent would likely be raising your clenched fists, tensing your body, and contorting your face into an aggressive expression.

      Personally, if I was talking to someone and they, for the entire conversation, looked incredibly tense, distressed, and like they were about to jump out of their skin, I would also get freaked out if they suddenly brandished their clenched fists at me with wide eyes. XD

      1. Alternate

        OOo comparing it to clenched fists got the image through to me. Damn. Poor Talita and these expression/communication barriers.

      2. Ammoth

        I actually think a more apt comparison here would be the weird nervous person suddenly pulling a knife on you. Yeah, raising your fists comes close, but centaurs are apex predators who don’t use their mouths to talk, so there is literally no reason to show teeth other than HARD aggression.
        In contrast, humans use their hands for a million things, including affection and casual communication. Yes, raising your fists at someone and taking a “gonna hit you” stance is def aggressive, but it doesn’t quite cover the level of “I am putting a part of me on display that exists exclusively to rend flesh”. So, yeah, imo Talita just pulled a knife on Verengt, who is understandably freaked out and, I think, surprisingly level-headed about it.

      3. Archieve

        Yeah it’s harder to remain professional/neutral with someone when their default body language reads as ready to throw down. Coming from a culture where physical fighting is a big part of resolving conflict is also a big factor.

  91. Accursed Dirt Boar

    Ok, yeah, i think first impression is kind of a bust now guys, Verengt think Talita was about to chew their face off, this and the “raised by wolves” aspect is probably not painting a good picture at all

    1. Archieve

      What I hate the most about the situation is that whether or not this interaction ends on a (relatively) positive note, Mel probably won’t learn anything. Either Verengnt is understanding and Mel takes it as affirmation there was no need to give anyone proper notice or things go badly and they blame it on Talita.

      1. Darian Ritten

        I think Talita needs to have a serious conversation with Mel about some of these issues to allow them to better understand why things are so complicated.

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