Podhome

The podhome is one of the most common Neptunian dwelling units. Podhomes with basically similar structure can be found in a variety of environments, and may be filled with air, water, or oxygenated breathing liquid. Some are fully submerged, and can be found floating, drifting with sea currents, or anchored to the ocean floor. Others can be found inside domed cities, inhabited for air-breathers.

Podhome structures are actually living creatures, derived from jellyfish, and tuned to provide light, utilities, and even some furnishings as part of their basic structure and processes. In appearance, they still bear quite a bit of resemblance to their jellyfish heritage, existing as flattened domes about 20 to 60 meters in diameter. Each podhome is segmented radially, with a central area that serves as a communal gathering area, and truncated wedges used as individual rooms. Most podhomes have somewhere between 4 and 16 of these divisions, one for each occupant.

Although a podhome has individual rooms, privacy is not a large concern for Neptunians. In fact, podhomes themselves exist not to separate Neptunians, but to allow them to live close together. Podhomes are designed so that all inhabitants are in mutual close-mindlink range, as Neptunians don't deal well with being cut off from each other. Further demonstrating their communal nature, the walls between rooms are themselves transparent and even permeable. The passibility of light and individuals from one room to another is controlled automatically by the moods and interpersonal feelings of each room's occupant, automatically mediated by the mindlink, which the living podhomes themselves are also receptive to.

That being said, podhome structure and organization has another aspect too. Podhomes always keep themselves separated by at least 100 meters, so that when at home the occupants are only in close range with their podmates. As much as they have a need to be close to others, Neptunians also usually desire to have time when they are only close to those they know particularly well, rather than being constantly overwhelmed by the strength of public-area mindlink.

As such, the interpersonal composition of a podhome is very important. Podmates consider each other to be family in all ways that matter. New families are usually formed from the amicable fission of larger groups, or from individuals meeting in other contexts and deciding they feel most comfortable with each other. The promiscuous emotional intimacy of Neptunians also ensures that podhomes slowly grow over time, and there is a well-established physical and social procedure for admitting a new member to an existing home. The prospective member is introduced to the group in the common room (though usually is already known to some of all of the occupants. This close mindlink between all interested parties (including the home itself) quickly establishes if the prospective new occupant is a good fit, and if so, the home detects this and automatically begins a process of growing and shifting to create a new segment. This always entails a bit of reshuffling of the original ones, and the weighing of this adjustment is always considered as part of the 'cost' of a new occupant, in both a practical and a symbolic sense.