#>immature early teenage sphinx going through her edgy phase
#>hanging out with the undesirables like the zombie and vampire kids and that weird human boy, telling each other dead baby jokes and laughing like idiots
#>her mom doesn't know how to deal with it, because they're technically riddles and she is practicing coming up with them, but come on
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#>Teen sphinx tries to be gothic
#>Black hair, eyeliner, Ankh scribbled on her face (mom won't let her get a tattoo)
#>Runs out of dye a quarter of the way through dying her fur though

#Is the fast food anon still here? I like how the story was turning out.
#Plus, I'm kind of interested in what sort of stuff the store offers. Riddle burger from the original image, chicken nuggets, fries, and milkshakes from the green. Maybe the shakes are mystery flavored?
1
#Shakes are a word puzzle or something, you gotta solve it to get the flavor name
1

#I like this interpretation of their origin, also the mental image of a sexually frustrated riddlecat trying to throw a cute adventurer off as he solves her riddles via flirting with him in between comments of how tasty he looks, leaving him confused by what she means by saying she wants to "Eat" him. The answer of course, is she means it both literally and sexually, depending on what he answers
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>>sexually frustrated riddlecat trying to throw a cute adventurer off as he solves her riddles via flirting with him
>>"What is cool yet hot, and warm despite seeming cold?"
>>the handsome knight cups her chin in his hand and tips her head to look into his eyes
>>"You."
>>the sphinx erupts in a deep blush, wings fluttering uncontrollably

>I could well see a college librarian sphinx who both guards some restricted books but also likes to freak out new students by casually tossing a riddle at them when they walk in and grinning with big, sharp teeth.
>>"And this here is the library. That's Miss Savorine."
>>"She- she's a-"
>>"Oh good, new ones. Tell me, little ones, what had a head and a mouth but no have, babbles and roars but does not speak, and runs great distances with no legs?"
>>*visible freshman panic*
>>"Is it... a snake?"
>>"...Vince Williams, I do hope you never meet any other sphinx outside of work. Myself, I can resist temptation."
2
#It's a river, isn't it?
2
#>Nervous student hangs around the library and keeps trying and failing her riddles 
#No idea why, but the idea amuses me
2
>Yep! Though, I think Vince probably answers wrong on purpose, especially for an easy one - if he gives the right answer, the newbies might keep thinking she'll eat them if they get it wrong. A different campus guide always tries to get the answer right, and Miss S likes to play mischief with "oh fine, you can keep going then..."
>>Nervous student hangs around the library and keeps trying and failing her riddles 
>Even better: he's not nervous because he thinks she'll eat her, he just wants to impress the cute riddlecat.
2
#>Even better: he's not nervous because he thinks she'll eat her, he just wants to impress the cute riddlecat.
#Well that was implied...
#Wonder if he sometimes tries to ask her some (poorly made) riddles of his own?
2
#>Student is also stuttering ans sputtering while trying to ask the riddle (its a *really* cute sphinx)
#>within a few minutes their is a steady stream of spaghetti pooling out the library door
#Imagine being the janitor walking in on this.
2

#The trick to beating a sphinx in a riddle-off is to pose your own riddle before the sphinx can ask her own. Being riddled first by a non-sphinx should give you an edge against her difficult riddles because she'd get flustered by this not going the way she expected it to.
3
#>Sphinx starts sputtering about how that’s not how it’s supposed to go to hide the fact she’s REALLY bad at solving riddles
3

(2)
>>Miss Savorine wears glasses without lenses
>>they even have that little string attached to hang around her neck
>>the glasses make her look more like a typical librarian, which helps set visitors and freshmen at ease
>>"Miss S won't eat you for failing a riddle, just don't keep books too long overdue, ha!"
>>she's still a bit disappointed that she's never been called out on it
2
#Sweater too? I feel like she’d wear a sweater
2

(3)
#When a sphinx is about to riddle you, you just throw this one at her:
#
#>It expresses what no other device could put to paper
#>Not using a word for that which thousands of words have failed to describe it
#>Combining two closely, but not quite becoming one
#>Know what it is, and you have used it already
#>Know not what it is, and you will receive it in short order
3
>>"You don't get to rape me for not answering your riddle, idiot. This really only goes one way."
3
#>"Its not rape if we both enjoy it :^)"
3
>>and then Anon learned that there's a reason you only ever see one gender of sphinx
>>he was unfortunately only able to express his opinion on the matter after she had finished playing with him
3

>>sphinx offers people "answer a riddle, lose a year" thing
>>after the first riddle, you can try again at double the reward - two riddles, two years
>>and it keeps going, of course, though she stops at 20 for moral reasons
>>though, she also has her own favorite age to eat humans
>>be wary of hitting that age as she rewards you
>>you'll find not true riddles, but traps in their guise
>>answerable, yes, but reliant on knowledge forgotten or undiscovered
>>ancient incantations, the sum of years "returned" to your town, the local rabbit population, her name
>>fall prey to greed and vanity, and so you will fall prey to her
>>and, as one who hunts and feasts on the sapient, she keeps a cruel streak:
>>every meal she wins thusly is told how tasty they are, "de-aged to perfection, a prime dish"
>>she pines after those who do not take her bait, who escape her alluring snare
>>but still, she respects tradition: those who have outwitted a sphinx shall go untouched
>>her challenge is merely larger in scale than the mythological story
4
#>A particular adventure keeps coming back every couple of years
#>Answering her riddles and deaging himself
#>He's even managed to get a few of her impossible riddles correct
#>Though once he realized what she's doing he rarely risks going that young anymore
#>Increasingly often though, he's popping in just to chat or to banter
#>Even offering her a few riddles of his own
#>She asks him about it once, to which he confesses having seen so many of his acquaintances grow old and die, it's left him realizing she's one of the few constants in his life
#>Also he likes witty girls like her
4
>>she, unfortunately, does not see him in the same way
>>his conversation is interesting, his demeanor friendly
>>but, well... he's human, and that's a dealbreaker for her
>>she's glad for the conversation and riddles, but they will stay as such
>>if he ever feels himself growing tired of this, however, she will gladly offer him a permanent respite from watching his friends perish to age
>>one last return to his prime
>>an imitation of a kiss - affectionate, though, not moving - with her lips stretching wider
>>and, one final gift to the most interesting prey she's caught, a conversation until he can converse no more
>>he has refused each time she asks
>>but with each dead friend he must bury - providing there is enough to bury - there's an ever-slightly longer pause before his answer
4

(1)
>>you try to stretch out in your prison
>>as usual, it gives a little, then forces you back in your ball
><"So, how does this end? You haven't killed me yet, and the lack of huge, burning pain leads me to think it's not just slow digestion."
>>no response other than muffles gunshots from the show she's watching
>>you push again, and once more her body pushes back
><"C'mon, high or low exit? I'm gonna start making scatalogical puns. This situation sure is sh-"
>>she rolls over and pins you under her weight
>>you can still speak, but her sinuous body makes existing uncomfortable
>>"Same way you went in, Sunday night. You'll wash off, put your clothes up to dry, and I'll give you my spare mattress for the night. I'll drop us off at work, you get under me, and then make the day a bit more pleasant for me."
>>oh yeah
>>it's easy to forget, but you're still technically in uniform
>>more fake gunshots, the sound of a roaring dragon
><"Oh, not sleeping together? What about a shower?"
>>"I don't sleep with coworkers. Considering your job, it's an arbitrary rule, but I insist on keeping it. Though... if you can behave, maybe a shower. Gets you clean, might get me my back scrubbed a bit."
>>the TV is paused
>>you grip the belly walls, trying to picture as though groping her soft, pillowy che-
>>"In an unknown, trapped temple - touch the wrong thing and a pool of acid is there to break your descent."
>>...noted
>>the sphinx goes back to solving the TV crimes within a few minutes and waiting for the characters to figure it out, too
1
#Thanks anon, cutter than I expected, wonder if it'll become a common thing for those two?
1
>>"Hey, eating you was nice. Mind failing my riddles a bit more often?"
><"Mrphrmrrm."
>>"Oh, right. Here, room to breathe, and speak."
><"Thanks, boss. Rather not, it was pretty tight and you kept rolling onto me."
>>"You seemed to like right before and after. I'll give you a - non-monetary - raise~"
><"Wait, what kind o-rff rmvrm"
>>"Customers incoming. Keep talking, it's a pleasant distraction."
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#>His face when his boss starts getting a lot more teasing on the nights he fails a riddle
1

#How do you know a graveyard is popular?
#People are dying to get there.
5
#>Sphinx mistakes a joke book for a riddle book
#>Has far more success with them
5
#That's cheaty as fuck, I love it
#>Why did the chicken cross the road?
#>I don't know
#>so you give up?
#>yes, just tell me!
#>*chomp*
#>To get to the other side!
#>*muffled outrage*
5
>>some dude armed with a knowledge of anti-jokes debates her on what a correct answer means
>>"What's worse than finding a worm in your apple?"
><"Getting raped."
>>"No, it's finding ha- wait what?"
><"Am I wrong?"
>>"Rrr... that's not a valid- hrmph! How's this: what's black and white and read all over?"
><"A zebra getting mauled by a sphinx."
>>"... you're doing this on purpose."
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(1)
>>>His face when his boss starts getting a lot more teasing on the nights he fails a riddle
>I figure most of her riddles are to pass the time and to get reassured that some humans aren't, well, /that customer/ *angrily rants in cashier* Though, a riddle is likely their go-to game for a bet, and she just starts pushing the classic sphinx prize for if she wins more often.
1

>>Lair actions: once per short or long rest, the sphinx can cause an effect to occur on initiative 20 (after any other initiative 20+ characters go, before any 19 or lower)
>everyone in the lair rerolls initiative; the sphinx may render herself immune to this
>everyone in the lair who fails DC 15 Con check gains or loses (sphinx's choice) 1d20 years. no mention of sphinx being immune to this
>the whole lair is moved up to 10 years forward or backward in time, like a time machine; only the sphinx is immediately aware this happens
>sphinx and up to 7 other visible creatures get plane-shifted somewhere; sphinx can shift back with up to 7 other creatures as a bonus action
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(1)
>Some of these have hilarious implications that I'm definitely picturing with the Riddle Burger group. The only question is whether the manager's Lair is the shop or her home.
><"Hey, isn't it Sunday evening by now? I thought you were gonna let me out."
>>"It's Friday evening; don't you have your phone on you?"
><"No, it's... what the hell? I... I swear that said Sunday before..."
>>"Think on it before you lose on purpose again. I'll give you a reprieve tomorrow, so I can actually eat something that'll give me sustenance."
>---
>>S: "Huh, Boss's late. That's unusual."
><"Well, technically there's half an hour until we're open for busin- er, don't take this the wrong way, but did you switch perfumes?"
>>S: "C'mon, Anon, you know I'm bad at answering riddles... oh, you mean I smell different! Yes, it's-"
>>"Hey you two. Sal, please at least be sober until you clock out at shift's end."
><"Are those lockpicks?"
>>S: "This is actually after like two showers - it does not come off easy."
>>"Well it *is* Riddle Burger. Even the 'keys.' And yes it does, Sally, it fades almost entirely within five hours of use."
>>S: "But boss: Elemental. Plane. Of Catnip."
>>"...what goes on 4 most days and buries her head in 2 this morning."
><"Is it yo-"
>>"Yes."

(6)
#>1d20 years. no mention of sphinx being immune to this
#>young adult sphinx, just old enough to move out into her own lair
#>her first party of adventurers shows up, and are being very rude and not playing along with the riddles she worked so hard on
#>"I'll show them"
#>they all make their saves
#>she fails
#>max roll
#>at least they're being nicer to her now
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>>one of them is careless with the kitten-sphinx
>>staying up late at night with her, unguarded fatigue gets the best of one of them
>>after a maniacally adorable grin, heavily-muffled shouting, and a paw covering a tiny burp after a few minutes, the party is down a member
>>she feigns ignorance as to where they went off to
>>but surely she isn't suspected, at such a tiny size?
>This is devious with hammerspace vore, and hilarious with just a really stretchy belly. "Nope, haven't seen them. No clue at all. What? I'm, uh... pregnant. Very pregnant. It's a sphinx thing."
6

(1)
#>I figure most of her riddles are to pass the time and to get reassured that some humans aren't, well, /that customer/ *angrily rants in cashier*
#Makes sense, I was thinking it was a sphinx's way to destress actually, something about having a riddle answered is fun to them, though given her job I bet it's become a bit of a chore that she sometimes regrets
#>Though, a riddle is likely their go-to game for a bet, and she just starts pushing the classic sphinx prize for if she wins more often.
#The poor fool realizes how he upped the states a bit by that clever answer of his
1
#>The only question is whether the manager's Lair is the shop or her home.
#Part of me wants to say it's the store, much to her chagrin
#>>"It's Friday evening; don't you have your phone on you?"
#I can't help but imagine her smugly purring after this exchange to her meal's confusion
1
(6)
>Tiny, adorably young sphinx curled up in someone's lap purring as they pet them, all the while having a smug grin on her face as the rest of the party looks for their missing companion
6

(1)
>>given her job I bet it's become a bit of a chore that she sometimes regrets
>Nah, she doesn't get to tell /real/ riddles to customers, it's all stuff that's meant to look riddle-y but doesn't actually require significant critical thinking:
>>registers are (eventually) modified to avoid displaying change, merely the total
>>Mystery Shake flavor is a single word scramble
>>Riddle Burger toppings are color-coded letters throughout the menu
>>closest to a riddle, order numbers are never in simple arabic numerals - a couple are the numbers spelled out in pigpen cipher, a few are the Hebrew gematria representation (including 18, of course), some are in binary, etc
>
>>Part of me wants to say it's the store, much to her chagrin
>>"I'm serious, Sally, it's a big exercise in resisting temptation. Some days I wish I just didn't have to deal with people. I could snap us forward to closing, but that's terrible for business."
>>S: "Or you could take an hour of no customers and run it a few times while you ride Anon down there. I don't mind the downtime, but I'm glad the time clock is in the building."
>>you pause mid-lick, letting her hot, slimy folds clamp onto your tongue
>>instinctively, unbidden, her body tries to drag it deeper, but it slides off with each pulse
>>"I-..."
>>S: "I'm bad at riddles, but I think I make up for it with perceptiveness. Speaking of, have some Lair stuff in a riddle if you want to win a bet. I'd do so myself, but I always accidentally give out the answer..."
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(6)
>>Tiny, adorably young sphinx curled up in someone's lap purring as they pet them
>I swear that's almost word-for-word from the first hammerspace dragon thread I used the phrase in
>>wizard exits one door, priest through the other
>>the rogue gets just the right spot between her wings
>>and their fighter just got his second wind within
>>a perfect opportunity
>>"May I ask you a puzzle?"
>>with permission, she lays her trap
>>"When is it when one and one make three, that which man keeps secret is exposed, then hidden from view, and all involved seek 'the little death'?"
>>she rolls over to watch the woman
>>thoughtful
>>ponderous
>>enlightened
>>and... conflicted
>>the sphinx grins that same devious grin
>>the rogue's thumb rests against her, betraying a fast pulse
>>the trap is sprung before it could be disarmed
>>all she must do to live is say "__sex__"
>>but she knows, the sphinx knows, and she knows the sphinx knows
>>she dares not say such a thing to a kitten, to a young child
>>"Will you answer me?"
>>minutes later
>>the rogue, master of stealth, has vanished
>>not hide nor hair of her is found in the camp room
>>merely a tiny sphinx, who appears to sleep, then wake up with confusion and worry when roused
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(1)
#>Nah, she doesn't get to tell /real/ riddles to customers, it's all stuff that's meant to look riddle-y but doesn't actually require significant critical thinking:
#>Her annoyance when she runs into a customer that's stumped by child menu tier riddles
#>#>S: "I'm bad at riddles, but I think I make up for it with perceptiveness.
#And there the boss is reminded that Sally got the job not because she's good at riddles, but because she's GREAT at solving them
#Also, I just realized doesn't this mean the sphinx can give her crew an hour long (or more) break and still lose no time? Would explain why they always seem to be behind the counter from start to finish
1
>>>>Her annoyance when she runs into a customer that's stumped by child menu tier riddles
>>"Can't you just tell me what's in the burger?"
>>the voices above you are muffled
>>her thighs are tight against you as she puts a good amount of her weight on your face
>>"That defeats the purpose of a riddle. It contains a bun, one hamburger patty, and several mystery ingredients found all through the menu."
>>"Harrumph! It's crazy this place stays open! I guess I'll get the regular cheeseburger. And a drink."
>>she lifts her rear a bit up off of you
>>you take the opportunity to breathe before gripping those furry thighs and pressing your tongue right between them
>>"Which size? Small, medium, large, unlabeled?"
>>you can hear the question before he asks it
>>"What size is unlabeled?"
>>this one, at least, she has a spiel for
>>"It's this one here. Costs the same as a medium, and holds more drink than the small and less than the large."
>>"Is it bigger than the medium?"
>>she sighs and sits back
>>you "punish" this with a deft flick of your tongue, eliciting a shiver of pleasure through her body
>>"Depends on the day. Oh, you're picking that one, then? Okay, your total comes to $7.40. From ten... And now you guess your change. Correct or below and you'll get what you answer, too high and you get half."
>>two dollars, two quarters, a dime
>>"This is absurd."
>>"Welcome to Riddle Burger. It's kind of our shtick."
>>"Feh. Hmm, from a ten, was it... Eh, I'll go for the sure thing. Three dollars."
>>you get a nice, big lungful of air
>>the ding of the register, the snap of the bill holder things
>>you know jingling coins are next, but it's hard to hear over the squishing as your tongue explores
>>"I'm sorry, the right change was $2.60. Here's a buck-thirty."
>>he mumbles inaudibly, and your boss's snatch threatens to swallow you up as she pushes against you
>>strategic breaths ftw
>>time to put your tongue to wo-
>>"IS THIS THE PEPSI?"
>>"Yes, that's why it's labeled Pepsi, and has the logo."
1

#Where do manticores fit in here?
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#I'd say they'd be a regional difference of some sort. The fact that they don't ask riddles adds to an air of being uncivilized, so they're probably more feral than sphinxes. Think desert bandits instead of educated riddle-givers.
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>>desert bandits instead of educated riddle-givers
>>"Alright sphinxy lady, me and the boys here are taking over, see? So how's about you lift that tail or skip town, yanno?"
>>"...want a riddle?"
>>"None a your tricks, lady. Scram and let us at the treasure in here, or we'll help ourselves to yours, see?"
>>"Mm. Shield."
>>space distorts around the half-dozen hybrids
>>"According to all known laws of magic, there is no reason the plane of Magic Missile should be able to exist. The plane, of course, exists anyway, because it doesn't care what the universe thinks is impossible."
>>the sphinx vanishes back to her Lair and resolves to take a nap

(1)
#>he mumbles inaudibly, and your boss's snatch threatens to swallow you up as she pushes against you
#Dammit now you're just teasing the unbirth fetishists.
1
>>vore writefag teases the UB fetishists
>Oh, say it ain't so. She could probably hold him in there, but it's not quite as nice as feeling him pinned under her, working out just where to put that tongue, or tasting his body as it slips, inches by inches, over her tongue and down her throat to help fill that primal need to devour foolish humans who thought they could challenge a sphinx's intellect (the five riddles he answered earlier don't count).
1
>>not because she's good at riddles, but because she's GREAT at solving them
>I'm now picturing her being able to notice easily-missed details without noticing they're hard to pick up on (after all, she notices her boss's time stuff not because she's a sphinx, but because she notices the view outside shift).
>>S: "Hey Anon. Riveting fanfic last night?"
><"What? I mean, yes, but what brings this up?"
>>S: "Your eyes are tired like you were watching a screen while tired, but I haven't heard you humming the music to a game you're really into. Plus you're a huge nerd, so it's probably fanfic or internet arguments, and apparently I guessed right."