TOPPAT - TIMELINE #5366329

(Timeline Tuesday #115)

Toppat’s are a parasitic invertebrate who are known for their strange and unique shells. This shell is constructed from sturdy fabric and closely resembles a natural hat from this timeline, featuring a cylinder body between four to twelve inches tall. This shell will sport a small brim that runs the entirety of its opening, and decorative bands in various colors will also streak this length in circular fashion. The toppat shell is not actually sewn or crafted by an outside source, but is naturally created by the body of a toppat over several years.

The actual form of a toppat is dark green, and features sixteen long tentacles. These limbs emerge from the bottom half of the creature’s round body, and surround its soft mouth. Within this mouth there is a final central tendril with a sharp, needle-like point at the end. This stinger is small but incredibly powerful, used to pierce the skull of its host when a toppat is worn.

Toppats thrive on needless and unused information, sustaining themselves on the thoughts of their host but only consuming thoughts that have been forgotten or deemed worthless by a conscious mind. In this way, they are similar to maggots, who only eat decaying flesh, and in some cases toppats have been used in psychological treatments. It is this use that has led them to becoming the fashion statement they are.

While there is no scientific evidence to back this up, there are claims that using a toppat will make its host intellectually nimble, free from any excess thoughts clouding their brain. Those hoping to appear sophisticated will sometimes wear a toppat, a way of positioning themselves in an intellectual light. While this practice has become rarer as time goes on, it is not unheard of to spot a guest wearing a toppat to a black tie event.