The Herín (Styrásh for “cloud”) is actually a very appropriate name for this cat-like creature for more reasons than one. The Herín’s pelage very much resembles clouds. It tends to live in the canopy of trees and thus has been nicknamed “tree cat” or “cat of the trees.”

Appearance. The Herín’s height is about 5.25 palmspan from the shoulder and about 4 heb in weight. Its length can be up to 1 ped, though its extremely long tail can take up 45-50% of its total length. This extremely long tail allows the cat balance in the trees where it usually makes its home. Because of the small size of these cats, they almost always appear as large kittens.

The coat varies from brown to pale or rich yellowish tan, to white or tawny on its belly, on its inner legs, and under its neck and head. As the Herín’s name suggests, its sides and back are covered with irregularly disposed cloudy blotches, which tend to be darker in color than the background and partially outlined in black. Its short legs and long tail are covered with black spots. Its head is also spotted, but also contains stripes, usually along the neck as well as on the face. All Heríns seem to have this mark in common: a stripe running from the far corner of its eye back to about its ear.

Special Abilities. Because of its long tail, the Herín is a master of the trees and has uncanny balance. It has been recorded that they can jump nearly 4 peds in distance.

Usage. The Herín is a very beautiful cat and sometimes end up being pets to nobility. It’s extremely difficult to breed these cats in captivity, but it has been done a few rare times. Heríns born into captivity usually prove to be easier to train and are thus preferred over wild Herín, though wild kittens can at times be easy to tame as well.

Territory. Because the Heríns are exclusively tree-dwellers, they live in forests, usually near water. They are almost exclusively found in the Goltherlon Forest, where they probably originated. Very rarely has a Herín migrated due to the high mountains surrounding this forest. Those that have migrated were usually killed as their coat can catch a high price with most traders.

Habitat/Behaviour. These cats live in the trees and are awkward on the ground due to their short legs. They are stealthy hunters in the trees. They tend to hunt solo, but will, at time, if hunting big prey, team up into a group of two or three. The kittens stay with their mother for the first few months after their birth before going off on their own. Because of the small space that they inhabit, they have learned to not be very territorial, though sometimes there are fights over food. Generally, though, these cats are very peaceful.

Diet. Heríns tend to eat anything they can find, either on land, in the trees, or in the water. They’ll eat birds, small rodents, and even fish. Birds are their main source of food, however, if a small rodent comes into pouncing distance, they won’t pass up the chance. Though they are not ones to go into the water on their own free will, Heríns have been seen fishing in the water or near the water on fallen tree branches. They are exclusively carnivores after giving up their mother’s milk.

Mating. The female Herín goes into heat in late summer or early to mid autumn. The first male that finds her and that she approves of gets to mate with her. Usually female Heríns prefer the biggest, strongest of the males to be her mate, with dark blotches and long tails, though at time there will be fights over females. She will mate with only one male. She will give birth to a litter of anywhere between 2 to 4 kittens after about 90 days.