Sometimes people end up forming patterns without realizing it. People may call it simply coincidence, but with so many different known patterns in the world, it would be nearly impossible to not fall into one whether someone was aware of it or not. And even if the first parts were unintentional, that doesn't stop others who notice it from continuing the pattern.
For instance, Zhen was more interested in becoming a white-lipped pit viper to end the agony of her feet and to play up the mystical theme of a serpent. Ruogang wanted to become a Clydesdale to become an Animalian that was as big and strong as she had been small and weak. But unintentional or not, their other lotus-footed friends had noticed they had become a snake and a horse, the two zodiac signs that will featured in the next two years. As such, it influenced their choices as to what they became.
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Zhen hadn't had a lot of time to set up shop on Heiya Island. She wasn't even sure if she was settle on Heiya Island in particular. Apparently, several contested islands between China, Japan, and Korea are being given to Animalia to form 'Heiya Prefecture'. Zhen was a little doubtful that several islands, particularly ones that were many miles away from each other, could be counted as a prefecture. Well, they were too scattered to really be called an archipelago.
In any case, choosing an island to set up shop was going to wait. Zhen had been invited along with a select few by Aiko to spend spring break on Ao Guang Island. The island's resort wasn't quite complete yet, but at least there were enough amenities to make it not feel like a deserted island. Considering the select few invitees are the Five Elements, their small families and families-to-be, plus her group of former lotus-feet, Zhen was pretty sure this was mostly meant to drum up more publicity for the island resort before it officially opened. Well, she didn't have any real reason to object to a tropical vacation.
As soon as she was packed, Zhen went to check on the others. "Ok, I assume you all are packing something to wear other than swimsuits," she said.
"Well, I've got plenty of sports bra and running shorts," said Ruogang.
"You are going to bring more than that, right?" asked Zhen.
"Well, it is a tropical island. We want to dress lightly," said Yu.
"And it's not like there's going to be any fancy restaurants there yet," said Na.
The eighth sign of the Chinese zodiac was the one sign that was most open to interpretation. The original Chinese word, yáng (羊), refers to both goat and sheep. The terms shānyáng (山羊) and miányáng (绵羊; 綿羊) refer exclusively to goats and sheep, respectively. It seems that the choice of whether it's Sheep or Goat depends on the culture. For instance, in Vietnam, it's Goat while in Japan, it's Sheep. China itself differs depending on the region, with the north saying Sheep while the south says Goat.
As such, Yu and Na decided to split the difference between them, becoming a sheep and goat respectively. To be precise, Yu became a Valias Blacknose and Na became a Nubian goat with particular coloration. The results were Yu being a white sheep with black hands, hooves, ears, and face while Na became a black goat with white hands, hooves, ears, and face. Together, the two were a walking yin/yang symbol and they were planning on putting it to use in a shared modeling career.
"Perhaps not yet," said Zhen, "But there are other things to do on that island. Like...hiking in the jungle."
"Oh, I can definitely get behind that," said Hua. Of the five of them, Hua had gone for the most extreme transformation. Zhen didn't want four arms for herself, even though it was a growing trend among snake Animalians. Hua had decided to go for it herself and went for something more dramatic. The spider monkey is named for its long limbs, including its particularly strong and flexible tail. Technically, Hua is one limb short of being a spider, but she was showing off her new flexibility at pretty much any opportunity. Such as now when she was hanging by her four hands from the ceiling fan and using her feet and tail to put things in her bag.
"You know, I thought that spider monkeys didn't have thumbs on their paws," observed Zhen.
"They don't?" asked Yu in surprise.
"I watched a documentary on them," said Zhen, "It seems that they've adapted to arboreal swinging so much that thumbs would only get in the way."
"Well, I asked the scientists to put a little Capuchin to fix that," said Hua, "I don't intend to spend all my time hanging from trees."
"Yes, because ceiling fans are so much sturdier," said Ruogang dryly. A loud creak from the fan made Hua let go.
"Anyways, we need to be moving on. We need to meet up with another guest. She was also a lotus foot," said Zhen.
"I thought we were the last ones," said Ruogang.
"There may be others that we haven't heard of," said Zhen, "But considering our success, the Chinese government will be looking for more old women who have lotus feet so they can be changed too. This one's already gone through her conversion."
"Let me guess, chicken?" asked Na.
"No, rabbit. I wouldn't expect everyone to follow your pattern," said Zhen.