I was trying to come up with a new spin on the elf archetype, when I thought about them being based on oriental rather than Celtic culture. That in turn led me to thinking they could've descended from Chinese dragons, hence the pointed ears. And THAT led me to a considerably more bestial re-design.

I quite like how they've turned out. Strange but exotic, and they have that pretty, androgynous quality elves are so famous for.

I call them ren, which means 'people'.