Appearance:         In human form, a Vist will see kirin as a cross between a deer and a horse, but with 1-2 horns and glowing fire around their shoulders.  In kirin form, kirin are elegant cloven-hooved creatures with fire actively burning on their shoulders, feet, mane, and tail.  They may have 1-2 horns and their fire and coloring are dependent on what kind of magic they have.

Abilities:                Kirin generally have different kinds of elemental magic, whether fire, earth, water, or air, but may sometimes also have poison, lightning, or ice.  All kirin can water walk, use air to essentially leap from spot to spot in the sky (like flying, only it’s leaping and they have to keep moving or they will fall), are immune to fire damage, and cannot suffocate.  Kirin may be able to use small amounts of other types of magic, but they will be affected by the kirin’s primary elemental type; for instance, a water kirin would have blue fire that is colder than most fires.

                                Kirin also have some amount of nature magic that allows them to grow flowers to eat (kirin like to eat flowers, which would make fairies sad, but at least they can grow their own).  More importantly, however, they have nature-related camouflage magic.  When a kirin is in an area with heavy vegetation, they are able to blend into the environment seamlessly.  Their coat will change colors to match the surroundings, their horns may start growing flowers or leaves to match, and even the pattern of their coat will adjust.  They will also match the natural scents and sounds around them.  When they are truly camouflaged, it can be difficult even for a supernatural to identify them, with the exception of Vist.

                                Kirin hearth magic will correspond to their elemental type.

Alignment:            Kirin are cousins to unicorns, only with elemental magic and a little bit of nature magic.  They are fairly peaceful and generally get along with light-end magic users, shifters, and anyone who is willing to leave them alone.

Lifespan:               Kirin can live about 2000 years.  They do not have the same fake stories surrounding their bones, blood, etc. as unicorns, so they are not likely to be killed for that reason.  Kirin are very hardy and more likely to survive many injuries, but are not quite as nearly-unkillable as their unicorn cousins in surviving almost anything.

Personality:           Like their unicorns cousins, kirin are very peaceful and are not interested in engaging in combat.  Unlike unicorns, they can fight if they’re forced into it, but they will only do so very, very reluctantly and when there is absolutely no other option.  Kirin can be fairly shy and timid and will often hide rather than confront someone nearby.

Known hybrid variants:      No true hybrids known, but kirin have a higher than average likelihood of making hybrid children generally, with either the magic of both parents or a mixture from both parents.

Example members:                 Kiera (hybrid)

                                Currently the only kirin is Kiera, a hybrid who appears late in TME Volume 3 and in Volume 4 as well as the bonus story New Beginnings.