#Theme: Misunderstanding

[astrologysaysno]

[Hi, Hello, like 8 people wanted more of what I wrote about Strange Omega Qinghua so I guess I'm delivering on that]

[The Prequel]

To Shang Qinghua, scenting is a useless phenomena.

He understands it theoretically. It's the process in which an item is marked with the pheromones of an individual to indicate an underlying social context.

The problem is, he has no idea what it's actually like.

Despite his omega status for his secondary gender, he has never actually participated in the process. Being scent blind, the smell of pheromones is something he is unaffected by, and as something that's so key in the use of social interactions, it forces Shang Qinghua to really be able to understand other cues to give a tell on how things work.

For the major characters, he doesn't need a tell. He has wrote them down with painstaking detail, dedicating chapters and paragraphs and enough words that it would make a novel feel like a drabble in comparison. He can see the twitch in Liu Qingge's hand whenever he wants to hunt, the movement Shen Jiu's fan does when he's pissed, and the way Yue Qingyuan's smile becomes a little more lifeless whenever the Qing Jing Peak Lord passes him silently.

For the characters he didn't write, he sometimes fumble. He can't smell them sometimes when they hide their anger but after years of practice, he can tell when they're mad.

It was what made him advantageous when it came to deals. Though he could never tell when a merchant was happy with the deal or not, he would be unable to be intimidated by scent. The scent of particularly aggressive suppliers who uses their scent to pressure their business partners into agreeing to a more lucrative agreement find trouble with Shang Qinghua, he simply sits casually, as if the room that is heavily intoxicated with the scent of danger was only a figment of your imagination.

But scenting itself is an instinct, an instinct that Qinghua does not have. Sure, he can emit pheromones, but it's a rocky attempt at best, and uncontrollable at worst, with the scent of these pheromones coming out at random with no clear way to start or stop. Scenting is an intentional process that relies on a person's innate ability to imbue an object with the smell of them.

It's not like he can smell it anyway.

It's why, despite his Omega status, he has never shared his scent with other omegas. it would be impossible to properly practice normal omegaverse customs without the capabilities to do so.

In my idea of the Omegaverse, people give and mark their scents to each other regularly to indicate their belonging to a pack, whether it be something such as a family, or an organization like Cang Qiong. Many have tried to gift Shang Qinghua these in the form of pillowcases, robes, or accessories.

But ignorant to his own place in the world and the way people feel about him, he takes this as his role on An Ding to be inadvertently assigned as an outer disciple in charge of the laundry; and being charged with the task of becoming the Peak Lord of An Ding by the system, he swallow his pride to take it in stride, washing vigorously and returning them back to the person in pristine and sterile condition.

This has caused strain and even a punch to the face for Qinghua, with him wrongly assuming it was simply his destiny to be mistreated. Of course he's treated like dirt, ut's probably why he became a traitor in the first place. Time passes, and he slowly gets less and less of these gifts and continues his unprecedented distance to the people of his peak.

Maybe it was why it was so easy for the people in the caravan to throw him to the man who would one day be his demise, a sacrifice for a world that values the people of their pack so highly, that seems to place such a significant weight over protecting their own.

(He hears the whispers that pity him, that suspect him, that makes guesses on why he survived, all of which center around his distance. That the demon had came for Cang Qiong specifically and his detachment gave him an out to lie about his allegiance and pass himself off as a bystander who was just unfortunate enough to be there. He seems pitiful enough, why not let him live.)

Maybe it's also why Mobei-jun has such a hard time trusting him for so long. You would assume from a man that said he would dedicate his entire life to you, that he would give everything to be your servant, he would be unashamed in being part of your pack. That he would show a visible attempt at indicating that. Pride for your pack is important in such a territorial world.

He's grated that his subordinate seemingly refuses to show his loyalty by keeping his scent, that whatever he has marked will be scrubbed into sterility.

(Shang Qinghua was once asked by his fellow disciple what that scent was, and it clicked pretty fast that Mobei-jun was marking his things. He stays up late and scrubs and replaces everything regularly, praying that the system gives him a hand if it wants the plot to stay on course.)

[javussyannihilator]

anyway. javert is a good person with pretty average morals for his time period, who tried his best and worked his ass off despite the odds stacked against him from literal birth, all while never receiving a shred of affection or compassion and struggling to be the one halfway decent person surrounded by the flip and corrupt. and he cared so little for his own life that his idea of punishing himself for his mistakes was to end it, in a death so tragic hugo took it from his own daughter’s demise. there is nothing evil or amoral about javert; he’s honestly just a guy doing his best in a system designed to make everyone fail, and he doesn’t even realize it until it’s far too late.

[stagefoureddiediaz]

Ohhhhhh!!

The Shannon saying to Eddie at the lake she thought he was someone else and Buck confusing who he has feelings for and ending up dating Tommy parallel!!!

[steddieunderdogfics]

I'd like to rec "it must be something in the water" by rosefire for the College AU theme weekend. It's very sweet and also great smut!

it must be something in the water by rosefire

@r-o-s-e-f-i-r-e

Rating: Explicit

13,961 words, 1/1 chapters

Archive Warning: Creator chose not to use

Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alpha Eddie Munson, Omega Steve Harrington, Misunderstandings, Idiots in Love, Musician Eddie Munson, Steve Harrington Needs a Hug, Service Top Eddie Munson, Dubious Consent, Mutual Pining, Eddie Munson Has ADHD, Not a PWP, Actually a good amount of plot

Summary

“Oh my god,” Steve said, panic threading his voice, “Oh my god oh my god —” “Hey, dude, relax, okay, we’re gonna — they’re gonna figure out we’re stuck in here and get us out. We’re gonna be fine,” Eddie said, actively tamping down the wave of frustration rising up in him. He felt his lips pull back from his teeth, a little, slamming the button for the lobby over and over, pressing the emergency call button, remembering he didn’t have his phone. He was too close to his fucking rut for this shit. “We’ve just gotta calm the fuck down —” “No,” Steve whined, “I — I can’t —” and Eddie whipped his head around, alarmed. Steve was flushed now, and the faint sheen on his face had been upgraded to actual beads of sweat, pooling at his temples. His pupils were dilated, and while Eddie stood, frozen, because he’d never in his life heard Steve sound like that, Steve shouldered off his backpack and unzipped his windbreaker with shaking hands, still gasping for air. “Hey, Steve, dude, we’re gonna be fine,” Eddie tried again, only then Steve whipped his windbreaker off his shoulders towards him and Eddie got a face full of his scent, and that wasn’t just warm rising off of him, that was heat.

Thanks for the rec!

This rec is a part of Theme Weekend. The theme this weekend is College AU.

Know a fic that deserves extra love? Submit through our asks or the submission box!

[aftgficrec]

keeping my fingers crossed (maybe you'll take the long way home) by Talls

https://archiveofourown.org/works/47776711

this was written so well with such a crack-y premise. i adore the writing and interpretation.

also Kevin is a talking donkey

Who could resist Kevin the talking donkey?

The fandom clearly agrees with you, we’ve had a submission for this previously (find it here). - S

keeping my fingers crossed (maybe you’ll take the long way home) by Talls [Rated T, 22089 words, complete, 2023]

In which Andrew is very concerned about his swamp, Neil is a prince with a secret, and Kevin is a talking donkey

or

In which two lonely souls realize that they are not quite as monstrous as they previously believed, and Kevin is a talking donkey

tw: violence, tw: blood

[starflungwaddledee]

Hey, Star! I have a submission for the Starstruck Starganza! What would you do if you saw Whitolor?

Personally, I think it'd be funny if Starstruck could playfully tease him, & Whitolor would act like he doesn't like it, but actually does lel.

(BTW, Hope you're having a great day!^^💚)

he doesn't even like sweets that much anyway... she can have it, this is fine....... 💦

[notebotted-x31]

if your takeaway from mouthwashing is that jimmy and curly should've just kissed i think you've failed actually reading

I don't want to use the term media literacy but if you can't read into the idea that the story itself is about complacency, the complicatedness behind it and the fact jimmy isn't a buzzword villain but rather true raw representation of an entitled man who exerts his control wherever he can.

Then please go read a book and try analyse themes.

Please now is not the time for shipping

[niaerinisms]

People mad that Nia’s ‘evil version’ was just her being mildly snarky and angry did not grow up in religious households

[oldwitchsleep]

happy iwtv on netflix day to all those who celebrate newbies you better not ruin this for us

[martyrbat]

dc holiday special (2017)

*puts on my scholar glasses* is the cookie tiny or are his hands gigantic?

[funnyscienceman]

so far it feels like all of the praise, or at least hype, for arcane is about playing around with the facts of the champions and not the actual meaning to their stories

im pretty sure this applies to other champs too but like theone foremost in my mind rn is everything to do with Orianna. people are going like oh, viktor will make her a machine! or singed won't be able to bring her back. Orianna's just dead or asleep in stasis and this is not at all the clockwork girl who tried to befriend an amusement park automaton because she was so lonely

it feels like this with warwick, with viktor, jayce even ekko and kinda jinx — season 2 has been nothing but. playground toys. make-believe in the sandbox. action figures are being mashed together but nothing of what made these characters Themselves is actually. Here.

idk it's 2 in the morning. this endless stream of praise is just bewildering. how haven't anyone else's brains been turned to mush by the rapidfire bullshit going on in each episode? shit just happens and there's no emotional weight to any of it. there's no time. off to mark the next thing on the checklist

ugh

[tavernfest]

Round 13 Masterlist

Apologies, a little bit of late housekeeping! Round #13 is now officially CLOSED and we will announce a new round in the future; however, if you find yourself inspired to create something for this or any of our previous rounds, we will be accepting submissions indefinitely! For more info on how to take part, check out our FAQ or send us an ask 🙂 In the meantime, you can find a list of Round #12 submissions below! ——— Title: The Cure All Creator: chaosgenes Rating: Explicit Length: 6,603 Pairing(s):  Merlin/Arthur Warning(s): None Summary: Merlin accidentally enchants the wrong “sword”—and it’s irreversible. To make matters worse, a curse falls on Arthur—and there’s only one way to save him. Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/55667023 ——— If you have a moment, please remember to stop by and leave the creators some love! ❤︎

[blueteller]

So, Let's Talk Themes in TCF!

"Themes" is such a weird topic for me, not gonna lie... I always feel like it's something you're just supposed to know and feel instinctually – like rhythm in dancing. Which, btw, I'm not really good at. So it's difficult to talk about without that background anxiety that I'll totally flop and miss the point, despite my best intentions.

Still, I decided to give it my best shot anyway, and try to decide what "themes" there are in "Trash/Lout of the Count's Family", and why I like them, because that part is subjective and thankfully, I can decide without freaking out over the "correct" answer.

First, let me make one thing clear: I don't believe TCF was written to convey a single theme or idea. It's an adventure story, and it's supposed to be pure fun. Which it is!! But nevertheless, there is a lot of effort and thought behind it, and I believe that thoughtfulness from the author manifests itself clearly in the overall work, so it's definitely worth talking about.

Now, with that lengthy explanation of what I'm going for out of the way: what are the themes in TCF that I noticed (and like)?

Found Family

Beloved Hypocritical Hero

Overcoming Prejudice

Victory in Working Together

What makes Humanity, what makes a Monster

Healing and Moving Forward

Misunderstandings

Found Family is the most obvious theme, overall, so I don't think it requires much explanation. Cale doesn't "find" his new family on purpose as much and trips all over them, on total accident – then proceeds to adopt them all, despite his inner monologue telling the readers over and over that he intends no such thing. It's pure comedy, but it's also incredibly wholesome and heartwarming. Cale has the biggest, softest heart of them all, and he's the only one who doesn't see it. I wanna squish his cheeks and coo over how cute he is most of the time.

Beloved Hypocritical Hero is the second theme, which isn't apparent at the start. Cale's biased inner monologue does his best to convince us that he's totally selfish, and doesn't intend to be a paragon protagonists who selflessly helps others in the slightest! ...However, over the course of the story it becomes clear that Cale is one, big, fat, liar. He is exactly the sort of hero he constantly denies he is. His whole spitting-blood-from-power-overuse act practically became a meme at this point. Still, despite how frustrating Cale's blatant hypocrisy is, we can't help but love him all the more for it. I'd like to say that he gets better overtime, but.... yeah, personally, I don't see much progress on that front. He did promise Raon he won't get hurt one time, and he managed to keep that promise, but then he (spoiler alert) went ahead and stabbed himself right after, so. Yeah. Cale is a hero and a hypocrite and we all love him. That's definitely a major theme in the story.

Overcoming Prejudice is the best way I found to describe the whole plot of "anti-darkness attribute" propaganda in TCF. What I love about it is that the author found a much more interesting way to convey the theme than just make it about "fantasy racism". It isn't just about the Dark Elves, it's about Necromancers too, and all people using dead mana. The best part is that dead mana is, in fact, used by the very higher-ups who spread the prejudice in the first place, proving without a doubt that it's all 100% hypocrisy and there is nothing wrong with dead mana in the first place. It's all propaganda, and it serves a purpose. The true beauty of this plot unfolds when the Sun Twins show up, and Cale brings in Mary to help Hannah with her dead mana poisoning. Jack goes through an entire arc of realizing what "true light" is, and that despite the "voice of the Sun God" constantly ringing in his ears to eradicate all darkness, he comes to his own conclusion that it isn't what the power is, it's about what ones does with the power. It's just, beautiful. I feel like that part of the story doesn't get enough credit. Mary is one of my favorite characters, and Jack and Hannah combo is amazing as well. Definitely one of my favorite plotlines in TCF.

Victory in Working Together is another obvious theme throughout the story. It isn't just reserved for the good guys, either: the bad guys have a ton of alliances, too. The difference is that the good side is based on genuine intent, without stabbing each other in the backs, while the bad guys only pretend as long as they need to, then throw away their "allies" to the wolves when it's convenient. It's portrayed less as a "message" and more of a purely pragmatic fact: to get anywhere, you need to have support. Cale knows this from the start, which is why he manages to make so many allies in such a short time. This theme is simply about being able to overcome the biggest of obstacles, as long as you honestly work together with others and put all your effort into it. It is the simplicity of it makes it so effective, in my opinion.

What makes Humanity, what makes a Monster is an interesting one for sure. In a world full of so many interesting races, the final boss is – always – human. Be it Venion Stan, Redika, Prince Adin, Queen Elisneh, the White Star, or even the Sealed God – all of the main villains are either purely human or started off that way. I think it's very much deliberate, in order to show how what makes these people evil isn't some in-born characteristic; but only their choices. Not to say that non-human characters aren't ever bad, of course not – there is a bunch of evil non-human characters all over the story. But evil, true evil, is always a choice. And thus, non-human characters who choose good are more "human" than the "monsters wearing human skins". I won't call it an allegory, because it isn't even as indirect as that: it's a fundamental truth of life that the only real monsters are people who are rotten on the inside. And since the author put so much effort to make all the fantasy races in TCF feel very much human-like, it only makes sense that their choices is the thing that makes them evil, not their race. Even actual Monsters aren't all pure evil in TCF! I truly appreciate it. It's such a simple concept, but it works extremely well.

Healing and Moving Forward is one of the themes which honestly melts my heart. It doesn't simply apply to Cale; it applies to everyone in the cast. Everyone in Cale's group comes in damaged, scarred, hurt or threatened in some way, and comes out better in the end. From the children, to the adults, the entire group heals through their "Found Family" and their quest to defeat the evil forces threatening their world, in order to achieve a peaceful, happy future. Every time we see the evidence of it – like Cale admitting his life is precious, Eruhaben agreeing to extend his life, Choi Han attribute changing, and so on – it feels like an amazing triumph, and yet completely natural and earned. One could simply call it "good character development" and move on, but I see a commond trend and it deserves to make itself a theme of its own. It's not just about everybody finding their place in the family: it's about them growing as family. And doing so, despite their traumatic pasts. And since I once called Cale a "poster child of trauma", it's no wonder he's the one who has the most of "healing" and "moving forward" to do of them all. I hope it continues all throughout book 2!

And of course, I saved Misunderstandings for last. I think the name speaks for itself. TCF is practically a comedy built upon misunderstandings; except misunderstandings of the BEST kind. The misunderstandings where people look upon Cale – tired, in-denial, clueless Cale – and see whatever they need to see the most in the moment: a saviour, an inspiration, a leader, a friend, a parent, and so on. Many misunderstandings result in people seeing Cale in too-good-to-be-true light, which is always funny (Clopeh instantly comes to mind). The thing is: Cale deserves most of it, even if he doesn't believe so. Because it's not about what Cale actually is that matters in those situations: it's about what others need. Cale inspires just by being, well, himself. And that inspiration is what changes people. It's Cale doing his best and affecting others, that makes all the huge waves of change. In my opinion, there is no better misunderstanding than one which results in inspiration: because even if "truth" was revealed later on, the effects of it were 100% real, and something to be grateful for. Imagine if you had a terrible day, and you suddenly saw someone smile at you, and you felt better. Even if the person wasn't actually looking at you in that moment – that doesn't matter!! What matters to you is that your day DID get better, and that person was to thank for! That's the beauty of TCF's misunderstandings. Cale will never truly comprehend the gratefulness of others, without understanding how he can affect them without even trying. ...Then again, his obliviousness and hypocrisy is one of the many reasons why we love him 😊

Let me know if there are other themes in TCF you like!

[hp-fanfic-archive]

Spell It Out by Allthatissacredandholy Pairing: Harry/Hermione Rating: G Word Count: 6k "At some point while you are growing up, your magic will manifest itself physically. You will get a set of words on your wrist. These words will be specific to your soulmate, the one person your magic knows you are supposed to be with."

[steddieunderdogfics]

Need Brooks no Delay, but Late is Better Than Never by etlagiapet

@etlagiapet

Rating: Explicit

20,620 words, 1/1 chapters

Archive Warning: No Warnings

Tags: fifteen years later, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Eddie Munson Lives, POV Steve Harrington, Misunderstandings, Angst and Feels, Not Actually Unrequited Love, Love Confessions, Idiots in Love, Platonic Soulmates Robin Buckley & Steve Harrington, Smut, The Lord of the Rings References, Angst with a Happy Ending, No beta we die like Barb

Summary:

The year is 2001. The Fellowship of the Ring is out in theaters, and Steve is being dragged along to the supposed most important day of Dustin's life. The thing is, Eddie Munson's coming, too, and Steve hasn't spoken to him in nearly six years. Not since misaligned feelings and an ill-timed love confession created a rupture Steve didn't know how to repair. - “We just drifted apart, man. That’s all.” Dustin sighs dramatically. “Was it because you figured out you liked dudes and freaked out?” Steve winces. It’s a joke. He can tell by Dustin’s tone, knows he likes to poke fun about Steve’s sexuality after he identified as a self-proclaimed ladies' man for so long, but it’s never come up this way before. Steve could deflect, but something in him shifts and instead he says, “More like because I figured it out too late.” “Ooooooh,” Dustin breathes, and Steve can all but imagine the lightbulb flashing to life above his head. It makes Steve think of Dustin’s old hat with THINKING CAP on the front. “Oh my god, that makes so much more sense."

Thanks for the rec!

This rec is a part of our Birthday Celebration! The theme this weekend is Time Skips.

Know a fic that deserves extra love? Submit through our asks or the submission box!

[tophthedaydreamer]

character that was raised/created to be Evil: chooses to be Good

me, every time: