holy CRAPOLY this one is SO long overdue askldjfd
I've had her around for a few years and the sketches for this as well, just neverrr really got around to finishing it, UNTIL NOW
bit more text than usual on it, and this is skipping a few things I wanted to point out too haha

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nagas share a distant common ancestor with snakes. they retained two limbs, however, and are most often seen traveling with their torsos lifted from off the ground, the muscles here more specialized to support the torso rather than locomotion. they have different vision than many other species of people, and can view a greater spectrum of light, including some infrared given off by living things, and have decent low light vision, but are somewhat nearsighted (as a result they often prefer making use of braille or audiobooks, as it's usually easier than visual reading for most of them)

the greatest populations of nagas are among the middle east, india, south america, and some tropical regions of africa. due to issues with accessibility and climate, most nagas stick to primarily naga-occupied areas for the majority of their lives. sonya however always dreamed of exploring beyond her home country, and after high school travels abroad to canada to further her studies, eventually becoming a professor and becoming a permanent resident. the winters are difficult for her - despite not being purely cold-blooded, frigid temperatures are uncomfortable for most reptiles and make her sleepy, and having the majority of her body in contact with the ground doesn't help either - but she loves her new home enough to put up with it and just spend as much time under heaters as possible (the university lets her keep a permanent one in her classroom too)

she teaches at the same school that jamie goes to (and his mate), and it's here that she meets her bestie, a fellow naga exchange student from india named aashi, who more than makes up for sonya's somewhat serious nature with her energy and exuberance (aashi also becomes close to jamie and develops a crush on him but all that's a story for another time, when I actually have art of her haha)

islam is a human-based faith, as is christianity, but both successfully spread to others (save for mermaids and certain more secluded races and groups). nagas however have their own denomination that diverges in certain ways, such as not needing to cover their whole body (as it's simply unfeasible to do so and still retain comfortable movement). depending on the specific branch, some require the covering of the head/hair, some the entire torso, some none at all. sonya subscribes to covering her torso in public save for her hands and face.

she remains single at the moment, but who knows, perhaps that will change in the future 👀

a few more things:

• she always wears a scarf in public (but goes without when at home or just with her lady friends)

• she rarely rears unless trying to see something better (people often draw nagas rearing always but that takes a lot of upper-body strength that my nerd girl does not prioritize, nor would it be a comfortable pose to hold often)

• her vent is where indicated, nowhere near her torso (she's a naga, not a "half-human" anything)

• no boobs!! she's a full reptile! (no hips either!)

• she mostly eats meats, except for pork, and usually just eats one large meal a day before a long nap (she tries to avoid opening her jaw fully around people she knows it may bother :'D)

• she usually takes public transport because naga vision doesn't lend itself the most well to driving (buses, trains, and planes have certain areas for centaurs and nagas to use - larger spaces near the fronts of buses and in certain train cars, and most planes offer padded booths or similar separations rather than seats, where the centaur or naga can lean against the side to nap)

• she has a very strong sense of taste/smell and flicks her tongue to pick up particles

• she's extremely intelligent and is fluent in persian, arabic, english, french, and is learning more

• she comes across as somewhat serious unless you know her - she just takes things kind of seriously and literally and despite all those languages she speaks she has difficulty in 'sarcasm' lmao

• she specializes in biology, especially microbiology, and loves understanding the teeny tiny particles that make up everything

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I thinkk that's mostly everything about her and her species, for now