#mottau flavour profiles

[lbhslefttiddie]

PLEASE tell me about your scent headcanons for MOTT

I'm not gonna include all the details, bc some are for characters who have not even properly appeared and some are spoilers and some are simply still up for tweaking!! that being said...

(excerpts from the Flavour Profile Document below--obviously, this also contains spoilers for Mouse On The Thorn up to ch 15, and some hints at things in the future, specifically regarding sy's scent)

for each character, first i decided elements, then scents, then any additional details or nuances to the scent (ie yqy: water and earth -> wet dirt -> petrichor). there also variances which reach outside their set element(s) for certain situations (ie yqy's ozone scent) and notes for outside influences (such as suppressants). i made up like a whole fucking chart in my brain for why who was what element(s), but that's a lengthy, separate topic lmao

Shen Qingqiu:

Element: wood

Base scent: grass and osmanthus

Notes: smells like rotting vegetation when deeply distressed (ie sad/hurt/scared), smells dry/burnt when extremely angry. leans more to the grassy side than the flowery; the grass, specifically, is almost like bamboo, which sqq himself muses could be mere coincidence, or him being shaped, somewhat, by his environment

the fake scent he uses emulates the scent of a very irritated beta--the scent itself is even fainter than the pheromones its meant to emulate, and the only POV who might even be able to pick it out is lbh, but the scent is almost like bitter almonds (cyanide lol)

Shen Yuan:

Element: wood

Base scent: grass and osmanthus

Notes: like sqq, scent turns to rot in distress. More on the flowery side; particularly, when he is extremely content or aroused (or in heat), he smells like osmanthus wine

(worth noting here: sy was born on the day of the Mid-Autumn Festival)

Is scent hereditary? Are spiritual elements hereditary? I have no idea! Sqq and sy could smell similar bc they are related, or bc they come from the same background, or bc of wacky coincidence. It's more compelling this way, so we'll figure that out later

while still using suppressants he smells almost identical to an unpresented pup, if with a slightly staler quality to it

Yue Qingyuan:

Element: water, earth

Base scent: rain and earth

Notes: yqy is, even for alphas, particularly noseblind, such that he has no idea what he himself smells like, but sqq notes that he often smells specifically like the first rain after a time of dryness (petrichor). When sad, he smells just kinda wet and pathetic, like a long heavy downpour (geosmin). When angry or in serious combat, he smells like right before a storm (ozone). Smell leans more earthy during rut

Mu Qingfang:

Element: wood, earth

Base scent: roots, clay

Notes: Beta scents are fainter and tend to carry less nuance in emotive ability, which works in mqf's favour for the most part. That being said, mqf's scent takes on somewhat muddy quality with upset

Zhao Jie:

Element: earth, metal

Base scent: scalpel

Notes: most metals don't actually have a smell, particularly not the kinds used for scalpels, but zj's scent has a particularly cool and sharp quality to it that calls the idea of them to mind nonetheless

Luo Binghe:

Element: fire, wood

Base scent: smoke, sunshine, lotus

Notes: more smoke when angry/upset, more sunny when happy. Takes on a slighty spicy tinge when Interested

the smoke part itself is a lot less noticeable before his demonic seal is unlocked

Do demons have elemental roots...??? Regardless, i will be designing their scents as though they do

Ning Yingying:

Element: water, metal

Base scent: mineral water

Notes: when high-energy, the scent smells cooler, like a refreshing mountain stream, and when lower-energy the scent is warmer, like hot springs, and is a little bit saltier, too

She hasn't actually presented yet, so obv you cant actually smell any of these things on her yet, but that's the general plan