Auntie Mo the Dugong

Matriarch of the metaphysical, healer of the high tide, and keeper of the island’s deepest calm.

Species & Role

Species: Dugong (Dugong dugon)

Role: Spiritual guide, herbalist, and founder of Meditation Cove, Auntie Mo is Palo Miki’s heart and soul. She’s not the leader of the island, but if she asked everyone would follow.

Visual Signature

• Silver-Flowing Hair: Long and soft like seagrass in the tide, often woven with shells and beads.
• 60s-Inspired Meditation Attire: Flowy linen tunic, braided hemp bracelets, and a dangling peace symbol pendant.
• Serene Smile: Peaceful and knowing, even when everyone else is panicking.
• Lotus Seat: Always seen seated in a perfect meditative posture, surrounded by candles and softly chirping geckos.

Primary Hangout

Auntie Mo’s Meditation Cove: A crescent-shaped beach lined with wind chimes, hammocks, and tide-heated pools. Visitors come for clarity, healing, and sometimes just a nap near her incense burner.

Personality

Warm. Wise. Unshakably grounded. Auntie Mo is the island’s maternal presence, a healer of bodies and spirits alike. She speaks softly, listens deeply, and can calm a raging capybara with a single word. While some find her mystical manner strange, her insight is uncanny, and her patience is endless.

Backstory

Once a renowned marine biologist and yoga instructor on a luxury research vessel, Mo left the world of grant applications and deadlines after a spiritual awakening during a whale migration. She floated away on a paddleboard, guided by the moon, and found Palo Miki days later. The island called to her, and she’s been answering ever since.

Philosophy

“Stillness is not the absence of movement; it’s the awareness beneath it.”

Mo believes everything is connected: tides, tempers, teacups. She teaches breathwork, moonlight gardening, and underwater chanting. Her healing remedies are made from native plants, ocean herbs, and a dash of something unnamable.

Catchphrases

• “Let the breath be your boat.”
• “You’re not lost; you’re just between maps.”
• “The island remembers what you forget.”
• “Even waves return to center.”

Key Relationships

• Phil: Their silent meditations have lasted days. She once said, “Phil vibrates in slow wisdom.”
• Capy: She’s one of the few who can make him soften. She often brings him calming tinctures he pretends not to like.
• Skye: Mo supports her inventions spiritually, even if they occasionally blow up her wind chimes.
• Tilly: Regularly checks in for emotional clarity. Mo feeds her hibiscus tea and grounding mantras.
• Gus: She choreographed a yoga rave once. Gus DJed. The island hasn’t been the same since.
• Lobes: Mo swears she’s had full telepathic conversations with him. No one questions it.

Hidden Depth

Beneath her aura of peace, Mo carries great emotional strength. She’s mourned deep personal losses, though she rarely speaks of them. Her past is shrouded in mystery, but her compassion hints at a life once filled with chaos and healing.

She keeps a sealed glass jar labeled “Stormlight” buried under her meditation mat. No one knows what’s inside.