Dogs, Bats & Monkeys Series: EXTRAS

Supernatural Glossary for the Dogs, Bats and Monkeys Series

Here are some terms regarding the supernatural beings in my Dogs, Bats & Monkeys series. They are in alphabetic order.

• Alpha - The leader of a pack of shifters.

• Beta - Second in command of a pack of shifters and the Alpha's right hand. In some packs, when an Alpha dies, the Beta inherits that position, in others the two occupations are separate and a Beta can never be elevated to the rank of Alpha.

• Branching out - The process of a pack splitting. When a pack becomes too large and starts attracting a lot of unwanted attention, some members would branch out - that's to say, move away and form a new pack.

• Dayers - One of the two vampire subspecies (the other being Nighters). Dayers usually appear as tall and slender humans although their hair and eyes could have unnatural/unusual shades. For example, Alec's eyes are grey, but unusually pale and Sasha's hair is unnaturally bright red. Unlike Nighters, Dayers only need a very small quantity of blood to sustain themselves. Sunlight doesn't bother them, hence the name. They can have children and can't turn a human into a vampire.

• Feeders - People (usually human, but could also be shifters) who are registered Feeders can legally give their blood to Dayers in exchange for money and protection. Drinking blood from people who are not Feeders and don't know about the supernatural world could expose non-humans and is therefore illegal.

• Feeding permit - A permit given to Feeders to show that they are physically and emotionally capable to serve as Feeders.

• Gifteds - Humans with supernatural abilities. They could include physical ones like enhanced speed or psychic ones like aura reading. Gifteds are rare and almost always human. The only exception is when a Gifted human is turned into a Nighter (vampire) in which case their abilities (Gifts) sometimes disappear, but in rare cases are kept after the transformation.

• Halfbreeds/halves/mixed breeds/hybrids - A person who has one parent from one species and one parent from another species. Halves can be: half-human/half-Dayer (sometimes the more general "vampire" is used instead of "Dayer"), half-human/half-shifter and half-Dayer/half-shifter. Halfbreeds can display both Dayer and shifter abilities.

• Mate - A significant other that a shifter can recognize as soon as the mate is near the shifter, granted the shifter has reached The Age of recognition. Only shifters can recognize a mate, although that mate might end up to be human or Dayer.

• Mate bond - The bond a shifter feels towards their mate.

• Nighters - One of the two vampire subspecies (the other being Dayers). Nighters are skinny, humanoid creatures, covered with deceptively thin grayish skin that looks like a scaled membrane. The only way for Nighters to reproduce is by draining the blood from a human then putting some of their own blood in that human. It is debated whether the human should be on the brink of death or already dead before Nighter blood is poured into their mouth. After a human is transformed, their irises turn a rusty, reddish hue and their hair falls off. Nighters need regular, large supplies of blood to sustain themselves. Due to their strong blood lust, they can't live amongst humans and other supernaturals and are hunted down by both the Sentinel and Hunter Orders.

• Shifters - Shifters have one human and one animal form. The animals forms can't be anything too small (like a mouse) or too big (elephant). A person takes the form of an animal that is native to the land this person or their ancestors are from. For example, Europeans can turn into bears and wolves (sometimes called were-bears and werewolves), Africans can turn into lions and cheetahs, and Asians can turn into foxes (also known as kitsune). A person descended from two different shifter subspecies (for example bear and lion) can turn into only one of those species. Shifters are usually bulkier than Dayers with the exception of kitsune, who are known to be slender.

• Supernaturals - An umbrella term for vampires (both subspecies), shifters and Gifted humans. Some would add the Great Spirits to the list, but others consider them a myth.

• The Age of Recognition - Applies only to shifters and means they are turning sixteen - the age at which (and after which) they could recognize their mate.

• The Evaluations - A series of tests that determine who the next Alpha and Beta would be. The tests vary from pack to pack and there are even packs who consider the titles hereditary and don't use any type of tests.

• The Great Spirits of Nature (also Spirits of Nature and Great Spirits) - Powerful, mythical creatures who are said to have created vampires (both types) and shifters. Some people don't believe in their existence, others do. Some supernaturals who are Christians believe that the Great Spirits are actually angels.

• The Order of the Hunters (or simply The Hunters; always spelled with capital H) - The Hunters are a group of people, usually human and often Gifted, who hunt down Nighters and renegade supernatural beings for money. Consider them bounty hunters.

• The Order of the Sentinels (also Sentinel Order and just Sentinels; always spelled with capital S) - The Order of the Sentinels is a complex international organization that was created to bring order to the supernatural world. They have many different divisions and Sentinels can have jobs as mundane as doctors in a Sentinel facility or as extraordinary as aura readers. The Sentinel Order consist mostly of Gifted humans, but also of shifters, Dayers and ordinary (non-Gifted) humans who know the supernatural world exists. Some of the Sentinels' jobs are: making sure the supernatural world stays hidden from the majority of the ordinary humans; investigating crimes involving supernaturals; judging supernatural beings who have committed crimes; giving out Hunter and Feeder permits; helping packs branch out; registering and monitoring Gifteds so they don't abuse their powers.

A/N: Most of this information is already given in the books, but I thought I'd post it all in one place for easy reference. I hope you found it entertaining or at least useful in understanding the world!

Please give this chapter a VOTE if you did!

As always: if you have ideas/requests for future extras, leave them in the comments!

I hope you have a great time wattpadding!