The Plant People

**The Plant People** are a humanoid species native to all five of the worlds, although they are especially common on Mon Domani and Grimbo (E). They seem to be evolved from plants, and there are many different types of them. They are also referred to as “Saps”.

## Biology and about

Plant People function very similarly to typical humans, but also similarly to plants; they need more water and sunlight to survive than humans do. They have skin in various different shades of green and their hair often mimics leaves or flowers, while their eyes may occasionally be humanoid but other times look more like holes or don’t even seem to appear at all. Their eyes are often in shades of green and yellow. Other than these common similarities, no two plant people look exactly alike— there are several types of plant people, with some resembling trees, some resembling bean pods (those are particularly called Beanu), some with bush-like hair, and some which grow flowers on their bodies. Although most of them have a humanoid shape, some look more like plants and less like people.

Plant People have also been called “Saps” and their blood has been called “Sap”, although it is unknown if their blood is literally sap or if it is just an expression. Many Plant People seem to be gifted in music and can communicate somewhat with mundane plants. They often are somewhat mysterious and quiet, especially towards humans, who they call “flesh people”, although they do not act antagonistic towards humans. They tend to be gifted in alchemy as well, as they are very intelligent, especially when compared to humans.

Several plant people are named after plants, specifically types of plants that they resemble or represent. For example, Willow, a young plant girl, resembles a willow tree, her hair especially so.

## Cross-breeding

Plant People can have children with typical humans, as they are biologically similar enough to do so. These children are called “half-saps” and all known half-saps look very humanoid and less plantlike than their plant person parent: their skin is a lighter green, and they always look like green-skinned people other than their hair, which grows some type of plant, usually flowers, in it. Half-saps themselves can have children with humans, although when they do the human genes fully dominate the plant person genes, causing quarter-saps to look mostly human except for one small plantlike quality to them. For example, An Tzu, a quarter-sap, looked mostly human other than a small twig with a leaf growing from his hair that later blossoms into a flower. Notably, An Tzu’s mother is shown to be a half-sap who looks very humanoid save for flowers in her hair, and An Tzu states that his grandmother was a full plant person.

Those who have any degree of plant person blood in them are also called “half-saps”, despite the fact that they may not be exactly half plant person. This word can be used as an insult as well, which even some plant people use against the supposed half-saps.

Vea, a Domani human, at some point in the series, crushes on a Beanu named Samphire, as such relationships between humans and saps are not seen as odd at all, despite prejudice half-saps and saps may end up facing.

## Prejudice

Although Plant People are not as revered and disliked as the Toki, several humans have shown to be weary of plant people, not allowing them in certain spaces and acting unkindly to them. Half-saps in particular are discriminated against, with many using “half-sap” as an insult and one half-sap character expressing that they will never have enough human blood to be considered a human, but will never have enough plant person blood to be considered a plant-person, which An Tzu agrees with. It is mostly humans who discriminate against plant people, but on occasion, other races do so as well; even the Toki, who should understand what it feels like to be discriminated against, have acted oddly towards plant people.

Once, a man with a twig growing from his bald head (and as such is strongly implied to be quarter-sap, like An Tzu) left a hotel in a fuss, exclaiming he didn’t know how “you people” stay in business, referring to the plant people who owned the hotel. This action implies that some half-saps feel the need to distance themselves from their heritage as much as possible and instead wish to pass as humans instead, even if that means being rude to their peers.

## Known Saps

There are not many main characters in the series who are full-blooded plant people; many are side characters. An Tzu, a main character, is quarter-sap, and a recurring character is half-sap. Willow, an acquaintance of An Tzu, is a full-blooded plant person. Once, An Tzu, along with his friends Oona Lee and Jax Amboy, used a cloaking device in order to pretend to be plant people. These disguises are called Flowfleurs.

One of the biggest scientific minds in all the five worlds, as noted by Stan Moon, was a plant person girl (or a half-sap).