#i like being more generically conventionally attractive :/

[ultravioart]

How could they pull from Scottish punks and end up at that final result? Not even a pseudo kilt silhouette like how Kiriko has a pseudo Miko Shrine Maiden garments silhouette? Hazard should have had pushed shapes (sell the turtle aspect more, add more spikes) and more body mods (funky prosthesis or punk body mods, the lizard/snake man punks are free inspo).

For a punk 'freak' hero that uses bright graffiti, his design is much too plain and 'safe' imo, not colorful enough. I much prefer that cartoon icon we saw in Venture's trial because he does look really punk with a metal jaw and green hair, possibly cool yellow shades too?

When I first saw Hazard's official design I honestly thought it was a Rein skin. I just hope future skins for Hazard are more punky. JunkerQueen and Zarya both have rather punk-y skins, and Lucio has a concept art based skin, so I am hoping for something more "out there" and fun for Hazard.

Punk is not, and has not, ever been 'conventionally attractive and palatable' and with Hazard's backstory, him being intentionally 'outlandish' would have only reinforced his outlook and story.

Like, people don't love Rein because he's eye candy, they like the hero fantasy of a big knight, being a shield, that he fights for others bravely. People don't love Doomfist because he's eye candy, they love him because his mechanics are hard to perfect but rewarding to land, and his sophisticated antagonist plotline is super engaging, and the hero fantasy of a big powerful genius with a giant fist is badass!

But Hazard? He's eye candy, sure. Got some piercings, but so does JunkerQueen. Plain black leather jacket and pants... okay but Young Cass and Ashe in general do that too. Hell, a young Tracer(in the comics she had a very punk hairstyle) was way more punk than Haz was as a teen. I don't understand why they didn't PUSH his punk design further, when we have characters like Roadhog and JunkerQueen on the roster already. Hazard is very conventional for an overwatch design, he looks like he could be a side character in a gang instead of a main hero... Boomslang(viper Phreaks member) atleast has interesting shapes on her design! The Junkers are scrappy and DIY-low end tech (scrap guns, explosives, knives) survivalists, so imo the Phreaks could have been like a Sombra-version of Junkers, cyberpunk but WAY WAAAAY more out there with wild body mods and DIY high end tech (plasma weapons, energy swords, multiple arms, etc). I did peep a retractable energy sword from Hazard in the cinematic but why not just build a nonretractable sword into his base design instead? He already has a gun arm (like Orisa).

I really do think the metal jaw would have made Hazard instantly recognizable, but man, atleast keep the toxic green spiky hair!!! Haz is brunette, so why choose blonde as the 'punk' color when his body shape is already so similar to Reinhardt? Doomfist already has a "one arm is a weapon" so that's not Hazard's iconic detail, Mauga is already shirtless so that's out as an iconic detail, and the crystal spikes aren't nearly present enough in his design to make it out like that is his iconic 'thing' imo. Meanwhile, look at JunkerQueen: she is somehow MORE punk than Hazard who is intentionally being punk. And even then, I think people forget JunkerQueen has mag tornado powers in her gauntlet. Many Overwatch 2 heroes struggle with visually telling the players what a hero is/does via the design. And don't even get me started on Venture's nonsensical jacket design lol. Juno and Hazard feel like the designs where 'simplified' from concept art so that making skins for them would be easier. Juno looked better with the armor pieces, and Hazard would look better with green hair and a metal jaw.

[fandom-hoarder]

@vanmarkus You're so right on this, too. We used to encourage people more, and we need to again.

A stick figure of my blorbos, or a really rough manip, or a series of Sims screenshots telling a story, or my-first-fanfiction from someone who TRIED means SO MUCH MORE than a generative amalgamation stealing from the biggest artists in fandom, or morphing real faces by combining them with 50 other conventionally attractive people whose pictures were online. Even the least polished photoshops I've seen are better than some of the AI nightmare fuel I see people regularly comment "gorgeous!😍" on without noticing the extra elbows and melted together hotdog fingers. 😒

Skill comes with practice, and everyone's abilities are different even then, but if the passion is there we should nurture it. That's how fandom becomes community.

And as for the artists who have been at it long enough to be professional quality, I fear the AI problem has even further undermined the amount of work they put in to create the ACTUAL art AI rips off. It's like when people don't understand where the meat in a store comes from before it's packaged. 😑 And even further, it's becoming harder to tell the good stuff apart from the AI that rips it off, so that people will discount work that took hours or days as just being AI without even thinking.

This is why some fandoms have been trying to promote actual intercommunity engagement with events and blogs specifically for showing fandom love and putting people with less engagement in the spotlight. It sucks that it's something that needs organized, but that's part of maintaining community, too.

But chastising people about their shitty forms of engagement can have the opposite effect of what we want, too. Not just from contrarianism, but for anxiety reasons like perfectionism--like when people complain about only getting kudos, or getting "i like this" comments instead of details.

As someone who has been greatly affected by these sorts of stalls myself in recent years (I want to leave my typical detailed comment but I can't right now so I will leave this tab open so I can quote...oh no this tab has been open a year. I reblogged with squee tags and left a kudos and maybe even messaged them on tumblr but I didn't PAY THEM WITH COMMENTS they probably think I'm awful), I've become much more forgiving about, for instance, receiving kudos and reblogs without comments, receiving polite comments asking for more when it's marked complete, etc. Those still MEAN something, and they're just as important to fandom engagement. Some people are shy. Some people are newbs. Some people are overwhelmed and have a list of fics they want to properly gush at but will be caught in a loop for hours if they don't just say, "this was amazing," and move on, but that holding pattern gets worse if they think someone is judging the quality of their engagement on the other end.

The readers and rebloggers and kudosers are part of the community too, and sometimes they too need positive reinforcement.

We used to MAKE THINGS in fandom. Manips were works of love and skill. If we incorporated someone else's work, we credited. Yeah sure it's not as easy as having ai make your blorbos kiss, but it also wasn't soulless. It was amazing because a person MADE it.

[echoesofadream]

one thing is certain and that is that taehyung and jungkook hate and cant stand each other and/or have no chemistry and are awkward. imagine being enemies except you're super awkward about it. yeah that is them

[droodlebug]

i dont think you should focus super hard on getting defences in artifight but i cant help bur feel sad for janis knowing she will probably never be drawn for an attack because shes fat and hairy which sucks bc she is so cutee anyone attacking is missing out on her 😩

[digo3d]

Random HC time:

T.C.‘s annoyed by the fact that the humans in their community have a Floof Meter, and it miffs him so much that they use it in casual convo like it’s a beauty meter of some sort -

“Yeah, but Choo Choo? That’s some neat little bit of Siamese and Himalayan - 6/10 right there ❤️”

“Yeah, man. Brain, Benny and Top Cat tho..? 4/10 regular short tabby fur, ain’t nothing special.”

“What about Spook? He’s got short fur too, kinda.”

“Yeah, but it’s like, soft and ripply. You know like when you drag your hand across a soft carpet and it leaves a darker path - hey, don’t judge me.”

“What do yall think of Fancy’s?”

Everyone: “8/10 EXCELLENT FLOOF MASTER OF FLUMF you can see the Maine Coon in him you think he’ll let me sink my face in his fur-“

Tl;dr Humans’ and cats’ ideas and standards of what a handsome/pretty cat entails are different and Dibble’s just having a fun time watching T.C. be so miffed by all this.

PEAK PEAK HEADCANON

[bigothteddies]

I WISH I STILL HAD MY LONG HAIR I JUST FIGURED OUT THE BEST HALLOWEEN COSTUME 😭😭😭😭

[faelapis]

this might sound kind of bad, but in my opinion jenna ortega is almost too pretty to play wednesday? i feel like she should look like more a "character" - distinct, werid, and slightly off-putting, are the words that spring to mind. rather than like every perfect jawline smoky eye-instagram princess.

[designernishiki]

I feel like whatever was going on with majima/mirei/katsuya in the early 90s was some sort of complicated bisexual love triangle situation. like majima is majima and katsuya’s handsome and eloquent and absolutely doesn’t seem straight to me, but on top of that it feels like there was some sort of confusing tension between katsuya and mirei, not sure if it was romantic or one-sided or what but. SOMETHING. I don’t know what the hell was going on with those three really but no way in hell do I believe the romantic/sexual/??? depth ends with majima and mirei

[iammissingautumn]

i can’t believe that there’s genuinely people who judge people solely off of looks

[dimonds456]

Shoutout to the conventionally attractive people who are so fucking tired. To the attractive people who wish they weren't. To the attractive people who wish they were ugly to get people to stop being creepy around them.

To those who can never be confident in their own skin for more than a few minutes at a time because they know someone's looking.

Shoutout to the people who don't have anxiety, but still would rather live in a completely different body because it meant people would stop staring.

Shoutout to the attractive people who don't want to be.

[xiatarot]

pick a pile: your next relationship

< choose an image >

take what resonates, leave what doesn’t.

for entertainment purposes only.

♡

I.

significant signs: big trees, snoopy, rabbits, spider webs, pictures of your grandparents, angel wings, 777, 8, 16, 1717.

zodiac signs: sagittarius, libra, virgo, cancer, aquarius, leo, gemini.

dear pile 1, it seems like the universe here has a different message for you but it's definitely one that you'll need to hear. your next relationship is essentially with yourself. spirit is urging you to look within, and find the love you seek in yourself. love and affection don't necessarily always have to come from a romantic partner; look around you and you'll find many different sources. you have a strong support system, wether in the 3D or spiritually, or both. there's a need for you to retreat and keep yourself in that hermit energy. there's some things you'll need to let go of in order to close a particularly difficult chapter of your life, and as the end of the year approaches, now it's the perfect time to let go of all those negative energies pulling you back from being who you dream of being, so that 2025 can feel like a fresh new beginning. some of you might struggle with addictions or, generically speaking, things that distract you on a daily basis and take you away from spending time doing other more fulfilling things that could benefit you long-term. now it's the time to reconsider your priorities and make amends with the past. what's behind you shouldn't keep you from moving forward. it would be beneficial to open up to one of multiple friends, don't be afraid to ask for help. to-do lists and physical self-care could also help a lot. remember that whatever you're going through it's temporary and it will pass. don't go back to unhealthy situations and toxic behaviors for temporary comfort, act out of love for your future self. take care.

find out more here: ♡ leave a tip: ♡

channeled song:

♡

II.

significant signs: singing, white candles, rainstorms, black guitar picks, silver scissors, anxiety meds, journaling, 12, 444, 1010, 6,333.

zodiac signs: leo, aquarius, capricorn, gemini, libra, virgo, aries.

you will meet your next partner at work or this person will offer you a job opportunity. i'm seeing someone receiving bouquets of flowers at their office. this person could be very conventionally attractive, so much that you wouldn't believe they'd be into you, but they will. this will boost your confidence on the long run. you will meet this person at a time in your life where you feel lost or trapped in some kind of situation that might have to do with finances or unemployment. this person will take it in their interests to do the best they can to help you and take you out of your misery. i think they'll be very financially abundant. beware of jealousy that could arise around you, they could have many eyes on them, for some of you they could even be a public figure or someone that's just relatively known on social media. your person will spend a lot of time observing you and trying to read you from afar, they could've been hurt in the past so they'll take a slow and careful approach for fear that you might turn out to be another lesson for them. this relationship will force you to face insecurities and you might have a hard time in terms of self-esteem and confidence initially. communication and honesty are essential here, as lots of misunderstandments could arise out of it. they will definitely be the one to make the first move. this relationship will be filled with passion and could even lead to marriage if that's something you both want. finances won't be a problem for either of you. brace yourself cause it seems like your person is right around the corner! very happy for you :)

find out more here: ♡

leave a tip: ♡

channeled song:

♡

III.

significant signs: the beatles, monkeys, palm trees, fur boots, cocktails, germany, hummingbirds, golden necklace, december, 1212, 222, 888, 555.

zodiac signs: leo, libra, cancer, sagittarius, capricorn, taurus.

your next relationship will be all about healing. whoever this person is, they will almost surprise you with how much love they'll hold for you. it's like finally feeling warmth after spending a whole life out in the cold. i'm seeing someone deeply stuck in their insecurities and self sabotaging tendencies, your mind might tell you you're not deserving of love and this person will take it as their mission to make you believe you are. it's a gentle and caring type of love, one that speaks through actions rather than words. this person will be your anchor and just overall someone you can count on at all times. they're very caring and sweet, they'll treat you as if you were glass. there'll be a lot of deep conversations and opening up to each other. this relationship will be based on trust. it could be someone you already know or already know of. you might have mutual friends and meet at a party or a special occasion that will require you to dress a bit fancier than usual. this person will immediately want to strike a conversation with you and they'll be endeared by your shyness and modesty. it's a relationship that will heal your relationship with yourself and help you see you're much more deserving and worthy than you were raised to believe. you'll definitely have a family together in the future :).

find out more here: ♡

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channeled song:

[17020]

gn reader, reader is older than 18, younger than aizawa. suggestive.

having shota aizawa as your situationship (?) when you're coworkers is... weird. at first, at least. he feels weird not because you're a tad younger, but because he finds himself doing irrational things for you every day.

because why on god's beautiful earth is he sneaking around the teacher dorms just to get to your room in the wee hours of the night? the upturned corners of his lips have him pondering too—why he has the tiniest smile on his face whenever your surname pops up on his notifications, the world does not know.

your coworkers notice the change in behavior, yet nobody says anything directly to your face. probably because aizawa's almost never touches anyone yet his body is found gravitating towards yours, his fingers grazing yours when he and you exchange papers to grade, or his leg tangling itself with yours during teacher conferences.

but when there's no one else around? he can feel himself loosen up a bit, his hand cradling your jaw and caressing it oh-so softly with the excuse of there being a strand of hair in the way. or when he asks you, his teaching assistant, to dinner—to discuss the upcoming training for class 1-a, of course. or when he knows you've had a hard day and he's suddenly pushing your head into his chest, grumbling about how you need to let it all out in order to focus on other things later on. when the two of you are alone, he sighs whenever you address him, only two words daring to escape his lips.

"it's shota."

and sure, he pushes his feelings aside at first. because it's not rational to have feelings for his coworker. his conventionally young, hot and very smart coworker. the coworker who looks out for him more than any of his other coworkers do, the one who his class has basically accepted as their confidant, tutor, and loving parent.

aizawa feels ridiculous whenever you pop in his mind. because deep down he knows he's throwing all logic away whenever he's with you. the rule to never date a coworker goes in one ear and out the other when the war settles in. it's now or never, right? what if he doesn't get to live another day, what if you don't?

perhaps it's the fact that it's his birthday that has him overthinking. that must be it.

the thought to put a label on what you have never crosses his mind. it's his old man brain kicking in. he doesn't see a rush to label anything. he's yours, and you're his. what's the problem? does the whole world need to know your business?

unfortunately, they do. because his attraction for you goes unnoticed by the ones who aren't on inside his bubble. including ms. joke, who has your eye twitching from jealousy as her mouth seems to move in slow motion as she asks for his hand in marriage for what seems like the fifth time today.

and your mind runs. it goes on and on, you start feeling dizzy. it's not until later in the night when the homemade birthday cupcake with the candle is long forgotten in his nighstand, his hands desperately gripping your thighs as your hips roll against his. you sigh as your swollen lips part from his, gaze fixated on his lap as you try to avoid his eyes.

when he asks what's wrong, you simply shrug. "i know it's not my business since we're not exclusive, but what's the deal with you and joke?" aizawa can tell there's inconformity in your voice as his eyebrows furrow.

"we're not?"

shota aizawa is an idiot. an old, stupid idiot. is this the generational gap at work? you looked at him bewildered, "well, you never said anything about it, so i figured..."

his grip on you tightens. "who else are you seeing, y/n?"

you giggle as you shake your head. "no one else, you big goof. just you." it's during this moment when he feels like he can breathe again. he recomposes himself before replying, "joke likes to run her mouth. doesn't mean i'll concede her every word."

you smile before pressing a quick, sweet kiss to his lips. "do you want to be exclusive, shota? or perhaps are you building your own avengers roster?"

"see, when you put it like that..."

you gasp, playfully slapping his arm. his low, borderline sexy chuckle sends shivers down your spine as he raises his hand to cradle your jaw. "kidding. don't tire your pretty brain for things like that. tell you what, i don't pay any mind to joke—or anyone—because they're not you."

your whole body heats up from his statement. you stare at him in awe as he continues, "you're making me live a life i never lived in my youth."

smiling, you feel your eyes flutter close as your head unconsciously leans towards his chest. he's quick to get you off his lap and tuck you into his bed with him. how in the hell can you get sleepy in the middle of a—

"shota, i can still go on" you whine, a yawn betraying your plea. he shakes his head as his hands fiddle with the rubber band on his hair to let it loose. after switching off the lamp on his nightstand, he turns to you. "i'm a grown man, y/n. your needs come first, and you need sleep."

you smile at him as he lays down at your side, pulling the blanket to cover you both, leaving only your heads to be seen. "happy birthday, shota" you whisper, to which he smiles.

"i l... appreciate you, y/n. very much."

he's not revealing he's utterly lovesick. not anytime soon.

taglist (open): @stunies @hayatoseyepatch @okkotsushi @maruflix @nyxypoo

i'll add a banner later on maybe i'm too lazy. happy early birthday to aizawa sorry if he's ooc. first bnha work in like 4 years. not proofread i'm gonna hit the hay like aizawa and y/n.

[cumaeansibyl]

The Substance

short version: five out of five stars, I had so much fun, for God's sake read the CWs. there are so many needles in this.

further thoughts: I think the viciousness of this movie rests on Elisabeth (Demi Moore) having built her career on promoting the very same unattainable beauty standards that she finds herself in conflict with. It's no coincidence that she's not just an actress, she's a celebrity fitness instructor. Going on TV every morning to tell us all that our bodies aren't good enough. She threw her lot in whole-heartedly with the beauty merchants, she preened and profited, and then she was shocked -- shocked! -- when they inevitably, predictably turned on her.

It's also telling that once she's injected the titular Substance and generated a new, young, beautiful version of herself, what does she do? She goes right back to the same business as before. Being sexier, fitter, more desirable than anyone else. Telling everyone their bodies still aren't good enough. Well, why not? Even her own body wasn't good enough for her anymore.

Coralie Fargeat has zero fucking sympathy for her and I feel the same. Oh, is it hard now? Is it alienating and dehumanizing and humiliating? Did you never bother developing yourself as a person because you were too busy peddling feminine oppression for Dennis Quaid, of all people? Fuck you! Suffer harder! You are complicit!

I would love to know how this lands for conventionally attractive women -- I never put in a sustained effort of this kind because it was made quite clear to me from a young age that the "right" kind of beauty would not be available to me. That comes with its own pain and its own fantasies about a "perfect" version of myself, but I suspect it's a different set.

I also wonder what trans women think of it, because while it's a very cis woman story (in that Elisabeth has always been a conventionally attractive girl and woman) it's also like... about transforming into a more desirable version of yourself, which, come on.

Finally, I feel like there's some disability commentary to be had in here, though that's not a subject I'm well versed in. I did find myself thinking, from time to time, that to many people it would be very tempting to have a body with no pain, a body that always moved easily and performed all its functions with no trouble. Even if only sometimes.

[valtsv]

generally i agree with the sentiment of "if you don't like the canon version of a character then you just don't like the character" but when i take bland soulless unwilling to take any risks perfectly made up hair blow dried and styled airbrushed smooth character designs and make them less conventionally attractive and more weird and offputting in both personality and looks that's not me being a hater that's me doing them a favor

[erose-this-name]

Kabru is such a brilliantly written character, one of the best in Dungeon Meshi (which is a high bar as it is, most of the main cast are similarly genius). 

His thing is that he is very friendly and nice confident and maxed out his charisma stat, but is also kinda ambitious and manipulative. But not in an overtly malicious way. Which kinda scares me.

The most impressive thing about him, writing wise, is that it’s all show-don’t-tell. He very frequently uses his charm and empathy and understanding of how people think in really clever ways.

We’re often walked through his thought process of how he does these social deductions. We’re never told he’s scarily charismatic, besides other characters reacting to him being scarily charismatic.

Kabru is a natural-born leader and social engineer with superlative skills in both, which makes him the perfect foil for Laios, who’s too autistic and unambitious that he’s not even the de facto leader of his own party that he’s the official leader of. He’s so bad at leadership that his party just, sort of, doesn’t have a leader. They just kinda argue and do stuff.

What’s also neat, and perfectly inline with Meshi’s general theme of clever and logical subversions of fantasy tropes, is that Kabru’s character design in no way clues us in on this fundamental character trait of his.

He’s sort of a human fighter / knight archetype, which in the language of fantasy RPGs is a class most would associate with being a white bread jock, chivalrousness optional.

(Laios subverts the same trope in the same way. It’s really funny that the walking exposition dump of the group looks like the character creator default preset spec’d as the most generic class available.)

If Kabru was a bard or noble and Laios a wizard, their character traits would be far less interesting

Even better is that we would expect someone who looks like Laios to have Kabru’s personality, and vice versa. Their character designs are flipped; the confident super charismatic leader is a short wide-eyed twink, while the slightly naive and very autistic monster enthusiast is a tall conventionally attractive Aryan lookin’ mf.

(see what I mean by Kabru being such a good foil for Laios?? No wonder everyone ships them, they’re perfect for each other!)

Yet, their designs also work for them. Kabru just has a face that’s easy to talk to, his piercing blue eyes and curly hair gives him a false sense of naïveté, while his iconic 👁️👁️ expression hints that there’s actually quite a bit going on inside his head. Meanwhile, Laios believably looks like someone who doesn’t know what hair conditioner is. His armor’s collar gorget thing is also pretty dorky.

You can’t trust people like that (I mean overly charismatic people with a manipulative streak, not blue-eyed twinks) because you can’t know what their real motives are. You can’t know they aren’t pretending, you can’t know they aren’t trying to or haven’t already manipulated you. How could you? When he has so much more social intelligence than you do, average socially awkward Tumblr user? He’s touched all the grass!

In episode 16 (spoilers, btw) Kabru finally meets Laios’s party, who he’s been trying to find and fight for the better part of the season, and he just decides that no confrontation is necessary. Like, immediately upon meeting the guy. Just from how Laios looked at him. He figures that since Laios didn’t seem to recognize him, they either have never met meaning he has the wrong guy, or Laios forgot meaning he didn’t think it’d be a big deal, meaning the treasure was a trap or something. Which is pretty in line with Kabru’s established ability to always roll nat 20s for every charisma and deductive reasoning check, so cool.

But he doesn’t even seem curious about which of those cases is true. (He might be interested to find out some of the treasure wasn’t dangerous, but accidentally got thrown off a bridge). Much to Rin’s dismay, he’d rather just not bring it up because that could upset the leader of the party he might be working with for the foreseeable future.

Actions speak louder than words. So, all we really learn in this scene is that Kabru’s goals and M.O. can change on a dime, and that he values reputation and political capital more than money and vengeance. More than his own party’s desire for those things. Not only is he someone with a silver tongue, but he knows its value and is determined to use it at every opportunity.

Kabru and his party might not be very good at fighting or surviving in the dungeon, in fact their frequent TPKs are a running gag. But, he also doesn’t need to be when he can just manipulate Laios’ and Shuro’s much more proficient parties into helping him.

So far, Kabru seems like the most likely one to become king of the dungeon or whatever the mcguffin is. He is the only protagonist so far who has said that’s an actual goal of his. He’s said that he doesn’t think someone like Laios who isn’t a born leader should get it.

In fact, Kabru seems to have very strong opinions on what kinds of people should be allowed to adventure in the dungeon, evidenced by the fact that he murdered an entire party over it, justified or not. Kabru seems to think that Kabru is such a leader, and he’s probably right about that, but what kind of leader? 

What would Kabru do with that kind of power if he gets it? Because I’m not sure. All I know is that he is the kind of person with the ability to use real political power to its full potential. For good, or for very, very bad.

I’m not saying that Kabru is evil or that he’s secretly gonna be the surprise villain. I dunno, I haven’t read the manga. He could just be a nice guy that’s just, like, is like that. Everything he’s done could be justified by the explanations he’s given. He actually reminds me a lot of one of my IRL friends, and I’d trust him with my life.

But, I can’t help but feel a distinct sense of unease whenever he’s on-screen. I try not to trust confident natural-born leaders like him right out of the gate. I don’t like that our instinct as humans is to blindly follow them without thinking about it.

Tyrants and psychopaths also use confidence and charm and a friendly demeanor to make people think they’re a good guy, while manipulating everyone into thinking their self-serving actions are altruistic. Benevolent, confident, skilled leaders do exist. But there exists many more snakes wearing their skin. Wolves rarely bother with sheep’s clothing, they dress as shepherds and sheepdogs.

Anyway, my point is that I think it’s kinda neat that it’s possible to overthink this much about a character whose probably just a nice guy that is the mirror opposite of an autistic person. Writing that kind of ambiguity is hard, and employing it in this way is inspired.

[runa-falls]

he smells like flowers

pairing: steven grant x reader

rating: explicit (18+)

warnings: there is some suggestive content at the bottom so -- edit: nvm it's straight smut down there mb -- est. relationship

a/n: -> this started as a 200 word idea then i couldn't stop whoops [1.4k]

-----

steven smells cute -- pretty, even.

he's always had a gentle sweet scent that further softens everything delicate about himself.

at first you thought he was rummaging in your perfume collection, spritzing some Daisy on his neck before cuddling up to you, but even after a week long mission, he still smells like that mellow mix of tender flower petals and syrupy nectar. ambrosia that glides thick on your tongue and begs you to swallow him down.

if you didn't know any better, you'd think he has a special sex pheromone or something.

it's a scent unique to him, one that you'll never find in any bath and body works or even a high-end designer store -- you've tried and they don't even come close. you swear if you could bottle it up, it would be sold out in a matter of seconds.

he used to get insecure about his naturally 'feminine' aroma because his brothers [alters] have more intensely masculine scents of spice and salt. the type of musk that's conventionally attractive to the opposite sex [or other men].

but you love it. in fact you crave it.

you often find yourself nuzzling into his chest and breathing him in, randomly climbing onto his lap or draping yourself over his shrouded figure just to get him to hold you close. he doesn't mind it, enjoying your closeness and gentle touch, almost proud of how your body yearns for him.

since steven, marc, and jake all share the same body, you assumed they'd be alike in terms of how they look, feel, and smell. it didn't take long for you to figure out that they're actually very different in various ways.

steven is soft, always standing in a way that makes him smaller than he actually is, like he's trying to take up as little space as possible. his eyebrows are either constantly high up on his forehead in wonderment and excitement or low in worry or confusion, brushing along the long lashes of his tired round eyes.

you smooth over the tense lines of his brows as he shifts in a fitful sleep. even when he's unconscious, he's worried, always on his toes, ready to strike at any moment. his expression softens after a while and he instinctively leans into your touch.

he always has tired eyes bags under his deep brown gaze, even when he gets in 12 hours of sleep. and it's just him. when marc and jake front, they look awake and ready to fight, but steven always looks like he could use a nap or a hug.

he has a habit of chewing on his bottom lip when he's nervous, excited, or generally overstimulated, sucking it raw until you tug it out from under his teeth and help him lick the wounds.

sometimes you think he does it on purpose -- wanting to feeling you grace his lips with yours -- other times you worry that if you weren't there he'd do some real damage to himself without even knowing it.

he wears loose clothes, preferring fabric to drape over him rather than cling to his strong build and often stocks his wardrobe with outfits that are one or two sizes too large [marc and jake complain about it, but they still wear the clothes].

the sleeves of his clothes are tugged and stretched out because he likes the feeling of having something to hold on to, it grounds him. it comforts him when you aren't around.

it's adorable to see his large hands engulfed in soft sweaters as he sips on his tea and flips through a book, glasses resting precariously on the bridge of his nose. he sits next to you on his worn couch holding your hand in his lap as he reads, always needing to feel a part of you whenever you're near. you lean against his arm, content to just breathe in the moment of being with him.

his hair fluffs up more than you thought was possible, sticking every which way when he wakes up or lets it naturally dry after a shower. he never puts any gels or creams to help tame his curls unlike his brothers who religiously use mousse or a hat to keep it down.

he loves it when you play with his hair, threading your fingers through the soft fluff before tugging delicately on the ends to keep him awake as he strat to drift from your touch. shivers run up his spine as you softly scratch his scalp and he can't help but snuggle further into your lap.

steven is the epitome of tender comfort, soft and sweet. but he's also addictively delicious in other ways. [cw: suggestive scene]

if you thought steven smells good, he tastes even better. his lips are plump and glossy with the flavor of ripe red cherries. his tongue drips with succulent honey that spreads and soaks feverishly into yours. you drink it in eagerly, tongues mingling and teeth gnashing as his body shutters and bucks under you.

it's even on his skin...

he whimpers when you lave your tongue against a soft spot of his neck, hungrily trying to get a taste of the sweet man under you. his hands that grip at your waist pull you in closer as he lets you nip love bites along his skin, loving how you mark him as yours.

you groan against his slick heated skin -- he tastes like a box of heart shaped chocolates: saccharine, rich, and indulgent. you've never had a sweet-tooth, but steven is a dessert you could eat any day.

it could be argued that the sounds he makes are just as alluring as his taste.

steven is quite predictable: he whines when he wants more, unable to properly voice his desires with how heavily he's saturated with need and lust. it's quite high pitched and desperate, a sound you love to draw out as you tease him with soft kisses and faint touches.

he whimpers when he's getting close or is struggling to comprehend the intense sensations his body is experiencing. this sound is usually accompanied with a tremble body and sparkling lust-blurred eyes. a state in which you could do anything you want to him.

he groans when he finally reaches the end. it deep and guttural, something you never expected from the gentle lightness of steven. this sound could push you off the edge without him even touching you. it's like the euphoric explosion inside of him can translate through the air into you, filling your body with second-hand ecstasy and liquified hunger.

[NSFW]

your sweet steven shudders as you dip down in front of him, hand in your hair to keep it out of your face. dark eyes watch as you clean him up, soft tongue flicking against the mess he made on his stomach.

he hopes you don't notice how he twitches in response to your kitten licks as you shift closer to his center, it's embarrassing how desperate he is, even when it's barely been five minutes after his orgasm.

you hum as you swallow down his essence, licking your lips in satisfaction before you sit back up. steven lovingly swipes a thumb over your moist mouth, cleaning you up a bit, but before he could pull away you capture his thumb in your mouth, suckling gently over him.

his eyes darken ever so slightly as he presses against your tongue, pushing against the silky muscle. he catches himself, shaking out of the trance you put him under and pulls away. you can't help but frown when he does.

your voice is a mere whisper, "you're so tasty, steven."

he looks puzzled and slightly bashful, "i am...?"

"mhm...here taste."

you lean in and press your lips over his before easily slipping your tongue into his mouth. he pours himself into the kiss, moaning lightly as his tastes himself mingled with your own flavor. he licks boldly into your mouth, basking in the consuming hunger that radiates off of you as you zealously pull him closer.

he leans back for a breath though he's still close enough that his lips brush against yours. steven is flushed and in a daze. his voice so quiet that he essentially sighs it against you, "i-i'm pretty sure that taste is all you, sweetheart."