we_protect_each_other (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
we_protect_each_other) wrote2019-08-31 02:37 pm
we_protect_each_other) wrote2019-08-31 02:37 pm
Dear Multifandom Tropefest Author:
Hello Tropefest Author!
Thank you for visiting my letter. If you are my assigned author, extra thanks for being interested in whatever we matched on! Please remember that this letter is intended as an elaboration and a guide. You don't have to use any of it, because I will put my hard DNWs in the sign-up form per the rules. If you already know what you want to write, go for it! But if you want to read any extra clarifying notes or preferences, those will be here below. If you are someone who is here interested in writing a treat, then again, thanks! If you want to do art treats, I welcome them, but I am more familiar with writing so I request fic in these things.
You can find me at:![[archiveofourown.org profile]](https://p.dreamwidth.org/b164c54b26e4/-/archiveofourown.org/favicon.ico)
Prix, prixmium, and ![[tumblr.com profile]](https://www.tumblr.com/favicon.ico)
indulgentcrowley
General Permanent List of DNWs: Gratuitous gore or torture; breathplay; lifestyle/hardcore BDSM; permanent injury related to sexual activity; noncon; unrequested dubcon; unrequested mundane/no-powers or total setting change AUs; misogyny/other bigotry; character bashing of anyone especially a different possible love interest for a character
This Exchange/Trope Category DNWs: A/B/O, unrequested BDSM, mpreg (with the exception of transmen), Fpreg - Futanari / Girl Penis (this is not the same thing as transgirls imo so no thanks), unrequested Rape, unrequested Soulbond(s), unrequested Soulmark(s), unrequested Soulmate(s), Vampires, Werewolves, unrequested Wingfic
Other than the above, feel free to borrow from other unrequested tropes in addition to the requested trope(s) you choose if you see fit.
Ratings: Anything from Gen to Explicit is fine with me unless noted on the specific fandom/relationship. I'm also equally happy with gen or ship fic or some combination of the two. I do prefer that explicit fics at least have a bit of context/plot for flavor.
General Likes (edited for this exchange): canon-typical violence, casefic/monster of the week, canon-divergent AUs, missing scenes, survival, facing or (trying to) evade consequences, killing / getting revenge against abusers, slow or medium-burn bonding, competence (or lack thereof), stuff about loyalty, canon-relevant political drama, striving against adversity or oppression
NSFW Likes (provided for reference in addition to any selected tropes): hurt/comfort (again); first-times (together or ever); wound-care turns intimate but NOT wound-fucking pls, very LIGHT blood-play if any; ritualistic sex | The Old Ones Made Them Do It, etc.; dealing with the aftermath of Aliens Made Them Do It as it pertains to dubcon even if they kinda liked it; morning after; I-almost-lost-you-and-I-can't-stand-it sex; Covered-in-the-blood-of-our-enemies sex; Awkward-cute-playful sex; Improvisational light-bondage / powerplay / orgasm tease/denial-play / soft BDSM if it makes sense for the characters; In-character sex, whatever that seems to be for the people in question
I have listed each fandom and each relationship requested for that fandom. Then, I have provided a list of all tropes requested for that specific request. For some of the tropes I have provided additional thoughts. This does not mean that I only want that trope played to my suggestions or that I want those that are not annotated less. I just had no idea how to do this in a better way without making it even longer. A few times I request that a specific character not be the specific end of a trope, but don't view this as a hard and fast DNW - just a DNW unless you are particularly inspired by doing it contrary to that wish. For poly-ships, please also read any twosome blurbs containing those characters. This is to avoid redundancy. Thank you for your patience! ♥
In case(s) where I have two (2) same-fandom requests, you may cross-reference and mix and match where you see fit. I am trying to group them so that there is absolutely no reason you need to do that, but in general if there is any overlap, you can assume that you can overlap the requested tropes, too. Only if you want to, though.
On the other hand, in trying to do things in as few duplicate requests as possible, there may be times when a trope tag fits one relationship tag more than another. However, even if I used it or reference it more with one relationship tag and you've got an idea for it with another one from that same request, absolutely go for it!
This thing is a MONSTER so here's some more links in case it will help. They're targeted to the Tropes list so just scroll up slightly to see relationship tags.
Jump to Merlin Request #1 cut
Jump to Merlin Request #2 cut
Jump to The West Wing Request cut
Jump to Good Omens Request cut
Jump to Marvel Cinematic Universe Request #1 (Gen) cut
Jump to Marvel Cinematic Universe Request #2 (Ship) cut
Just a blurb about stuff I like about the show and like to see in fic. I enjoy that Merlin is such an odd mix of mature themes and almost cartoon-y lightness. I love it when fic sort of color-corrects it toward the more serious and mature elements of the show, showing us things they wouldn't in the show proper. I think that in spite of its being more like a high budget play than a fully produced TV show at times that Merlin is, ironically, one of the most flavor-correct productions of Arthuriana around if people would be honest with themselves. I think it's easy to sense that this story is taking place in a power vacuum just post-Roman control. Anything you want to do with creative license about politics,religion, and history relevant to the time period is great. I don't mind some homophobia and sexism in these stories as long as it isn't gratuitous and contributes to the plot.
I love Merlin pining, and I especially like those moments when it seems that Arthur sort of sees it for what it is but is afraid to go there. The same is true of his magic. I particularly like fics that draw subtle parallels between Merlin struggling with his sexuality/romantic orientation and his magic, but I don't like fics that completely conflate the two. I like seeing Arthur as competent but willfully blind about some things, especially where it comes to Merlin.
This ship's canon portrayal is actually really sweet barring a few really excessively cheesy moments. I felt like that in trying to get the audience to stomach it in spite of Merlin/Arthur being preferred by almost everyone who was watching it, they actually shied away from some of the more interesting drama that could have been have. I particularly would like to see sort of S3 era or S3-divergent content for them if you're going with canon and adding to it. I love that Gwen can't stop herself from speaking up about what she sees as societal injustice even though she can't and won't speak up for herself early on in the show. Arthur growing to appreciate her perspective is one of the best things Arthur does so more of that please. Pregnancy fic would be welcome here as long as any subsequent child, if the pregnancy is successful, isn't like a Romantic Prop.
I hate that the show just kind of conveniently swept away that they were trying to lead you down the Merlin/Gwen and Arthur/Morgana route in S1 rather than actually acknowledging it S2 onward and showing that the characters, like, moved on from this or whatever. It was like it never happened and that bugs me. Thoughts: Impulsive (anything from kissing to sex) that they try to rationalize as being a friends with benefits situation or "just practice" or something like that to happy or angsty ends. Hurt/Comfort with similar outcome?
Read the above entries as well for more thoughts. One of my absolute favorite scenes in the show was when the Round Table was introduced and Merlin was at Arthur's right hand and Gwen at his left. I think that was when I began to understand what having an OT3 rather than just modal multishipping was. Particularly would be interested in a fic with the Triads Are the Societal Ideal trope where it takes them a while to work out the logistics. I would also like any kind of formal, courtly proceedings involving the three of them. If you don't do the Triads are the Norm thing then a fic about Gwen and Arthur both hiding their relationship with Merlin in the ways that are necessary but not doing it very well would be cute. What if Arthur and Merlin did one of the accidental marriage tropes (obviously probably like a marriage rite out in the wilderness with the Druids or something rather than in Camelot) either before or after Gwen and Arthur meant to get married? Or Merlin being jealous of Arthur/Gwen but it all working out.
Read the above entries as well for more thoughts. With the inclusion of Morgana, one might tend to go with some of the more solemn tropes and that's okay! But if you want to do a happier fic you can also feel free to do a canon divergent AU where Morgana isn't driven to do whatever-she-has-to to change things. I love but for want of a nail stories and also their thematic opposites where they have "the nail" as it were. I would also like stories where the S1 Arthur/Morgana angle that they abruptly dropped in the following series mattered. Gwen/Morgana as a starting point (and Merlin/Arthur?) could be an element, too, especially if it has to do with maybe hiding from homophobia even if everyone is varying amounts of interested in everyone else. Fix-It fics, dark fics with happy endings, or political/court intrigue are all equally desired. With regard to Arthur and Morgana, I can take or leave the twist that they're actually related in this series, but if you keep it canon and they are related you may include any of the incest tropes.
You can see my first blurb about the show by scrolling up, but for this particular pair of pairings, I have chosen some possibly darker themes. I thought that this list of tropes overlapped well for these two very different relationships because I imagine that the tone would be different in most cases. However, I think that it is interesting to see them as sort of a duality of possibility for a relationship between a magic-user and a would-be king.
I wrote some about them which you can scroll up and see above. In saying other things about them for these darker tropes, I guess I would just ask that you try to leave even really dark fics with them with a silver lining of hope that things have gotten better or will one day. That said, I don't mind if even in trying to care for each other things are really messed up where the trope makes it appropriate. I also like stories where Merlin is really struggling with the fact that he's attracted to a man. I feel like Arthur may also struggle with it but may try to downplay it as less than love and more like some kind of battlefield camaraderie even though that doesn't make sense so he can make it not "count" at first. Hopefully both of them could get past that, but I don't mind either thing being prominently in the story or similarly uncomfortable themes.
I'm not looking for fluff or a romance that even deserved better here. That doesn't mean I don't want a vision of a happier time or even a Canon Divergent AU with a happy outcome if you've got that in you. What I am looking for, though, is an exploration of that deep emotional tension between them. In order for Uther to have trusted her so much and for her to have been so betrayed without directly murdering Uther long before, there had to be something complicated and messy there. She says that she was "thrown out" of the Court, but she was not executed or imprisoned forever, so I assume that in some sense Uther probably gave her some "run away and never return" ultimatum that she didn't see a way around or didn't WANT to exercise what would have been her way around it. You can make them have their good moments, you can make them have redeeming qualities (to the point of redemption or not), but just let them be a terrible bloody force with or against each other. Explain it to me.
So despite not being even close to left-leaning, my father loves The West Wing almost as much as he loves my family. It honestly feels like The West Wing characters are a part of my family. He watches/listens/falls asleep to it on repeat. It is his default of what-to-watch when he doesn't have a plan. It's his comfort media. It is the one fandom he has and he doesn't know what fandom is. When I had to set up a small TV for my family on the WiFi recently and it asked for a network name, since I knew my father would be using it, I named it "WestWingMachine." I have Stockholm Syndrome with these characters. I've been watching it as an active practice since it was currently airing with the pre-streaming era as the only release. Please help.
I don't want to step on anyone's toes about how they feel about canon. If you loved their relationship the very last season of the show, then I don't want to yuck your yum at all. However, I always felt pretty disappointed with the way they wrote Donna apparently coming into her own competence and independence enough to hook up with Josh without it being sketchy. It honestly felt like they were writing different characters sometimes, and I only become more convinced of that with age. Therefore, I would like maybe a canon-diverent AU at least where their relationship is concerned. They got together earlier or Donna's personality didn't change so much? I love-love-love the "If you were in an accident, I wouldn't stop for a beer." "If you were in an accident, I wouldn't stop for red lights." exchange. That's the heart of it for me. Forbidden dating given their work positions and the complexity of navigating the fact that technically it is kind of hinky would be good for me if that's something you like.
Tread with caution here if you like Republicanism. So I think The West Wing does a great job representing Ainsley as a person who is a part of a backward, often harmful party who has well-reasoned arguments for why she is in that party. I am also not suggesting the Democratic Party is what it should be by any means, but let's just say that when I was ten and thought she was the coolest because my parents had always voted Republican and I wanted to Be Her someday that I was kind of out of my mind. However, I appreicated that she was presented as so smart and competent and pretty... while being southern more than a Republican. That's probably why I still like her besides the aforementioned well-reasoned arguments. However, because of my own leanings I would prefer stories that don't beat Ainsley up for having been a Republican but which allow her to face, come to terms with, or wrestle with the fact that her party is the best platform for Neofascists to get any traction with "normal" people like her. I've mentioned some nigh-apocalyptic suggests, or you can do it more subtly. As for her relationship with Sam, I though they did an excellent job with being sparring parnters that helped to change each other for the better. I'm always disappointed when she disappears from the storyline, as I wish I could've seen that continue to a more satisfying conclusion. Perhaps I would like a canon-compliant-adjacent reunion fic or an AU where they carried on without losing momentum a lot. I would also like a fic where Sam sticks by her even when she is lambasted by some people because of her culpability-by-affiliation with something. It comes to mind that they sort of hinted at Sam being a presidential hopeful at one point before Rob Lowe tried to get independently famous again rather than seeing it through. In-universe, I feel like they have a lot in common: meteoric potential followed by something of a misstep into the afterglow. I'd like them to be help and comfort to each other.
I just felt like this was such a missed shot. They seemed to love each other so much and so quietly. I would love to see a fic where she goes to him after he has basically been written off by everyone else, and people are staying away from him for the time being for image reasons. I would also like any canon-divergent fic where they dance around attraction and eventually properly confront it during the show. I love Toby, but I don't want him getting off easy for being an asshole at any point. Toby Ziegler is one of the most relatable characters to me now that I'm becoming a solidly adult individual, and he cracks me up. I also really appreciate that C.J. acknowledges the cultural stereotypes about the fact that she is a very tall and powerful-looking woman. Their height-difference is cute, so it would be cool to see it acknowledged but not heavily fetishized.
I am savoring this show for everything it is worth. I realize that a lot of the tropes that I picked are tropes the show has anyway, but I am interested in every twist and elaboration on it. I would especially be thrilled with fics that take place during the past six thousand years. They can diverge from (relationship?) canon or not in terms of what does or doesn't happen, but overall I would just love to see more of the first half of Season 3. I could devote several years of my own life to more of it, I'm afraid. I really love the show because it is religious satire that isn't mean-spirited to people of faith. It's also just hilarious and the perfect mix of genuine drama and creepiness and absurdity.
Since this is a ship tag and you're here, I assume you ship them. I do too - so, so much. However, I am totally up for content that takes that ship in any way that I have seen it taken. I feel like those who came in through the book and those who really feel the need for asexual representation are really attached to them as an asexual romantic couple. On the other hand, those who don't have either of those backgrounds tend to be more amenable to them occasionally having sex. I happen to be in the latter group, but I am totally happy to see beautiful expressions of affection and love and romantic desperation through means other than sexuality if that works for you and/or your story, personally! They just seem to be each other's everything, and it's codependent as all hell but I love it with all my heart. Oh, and you can include stuff about their wings in this fic as a part of affection, intimacy, plot, whatever!
I have requested the shippy version of this relationship below. However, I can understand why people would view any hope at a redemption arc for Ward as involving Skye | Daisy being unable to get back to a place where she felt safe enough or forgiving enough to be attracted to him in that way again for a long time if ever. If you want to write them as genuinely becoming just-friends, then you're in the right place. If you want to write it as ambiguous, then you're more than welcome to do that or look at the shippy add-ons below. More than anything, I just want them to get the chance to be what they could have been had Ward been allowed to redeem himself when he genuinely, earnestly tried to find a way to over and over again. And I want Skye | Daisy to be able to come to terms with what Ward is and was to her, in whatever way, before he's just... gone. I love what they apparently had in S1 before it blew up, and I also love the complexity that it sometimes has after that. If you wanna do an everything-is-better-from-the-start AU with Ward being a Fake Defector, go for it. If not, then give me all the earned redemption and chance-giving and rough and tumble of that you've got.
See above for anything about Skye & Daisy and Ward. For the others, I would just really have liked the Team to finally get past their anger and betrayal enough to realize that how they treated Ward was basically every single way S1 had taught them all to not treat people who could be saved. And I believe that Ward could have been. I would especially like to see Fitz and Jemma able to work out their anger past that murderous rage and have Ward do something to really show that he's sorry for the damage he caused. And with Coulson and May, I think that just having some acknwoeldgment of the hyprocrisy with which they treated him would be nice, even if it is the case that he absolutely owes them more than he can repay without the element of forgiveness.
Of course it was just words and he literally killed people, but the way Ward was able to turn himself off toward Maria Hill and to be such a rank asshole to her is honestly one of the moments when I came close to giving up on him. I don't necessarily agree with Maria about everything, but I don't think she deserved that. If you chose this tag then maybe this could be a story about Grant having proven himself redeemable but Maria, understandably, not wanting to be burned twice and having some serious objections and questions. I don't want Ward off the hook; I want him to have a chance to be different and better.
I'll be mildly upset forever that Quake never got any kind of nod or cameo in the MCU movies proper. I just want her to get her shot. Missing scene, canon divergence, or anything of that nature that would let her work with or even become (for a little while) one of the Avengers.
It made the most sense to put this up here with the other gen tags. Below, I'll be putting my shippy Marvel tags, so you can reference that for anything I'd like about Skyeward in particular, but I assume that this fic would be after he had very much proven himself a changed man. However, whether the Avengers buy it at this point or not is up to you! And Ward really would be the normie in the group, though he and Natasha might almost line up.
Please see the above for my other blurb. This request is for shippy stuff, and it can be combined (or not) with gen requests above as you see fit! I have chosen two ships that I will love forever. They're not exactly the same in dynamic, but they are similar, and one shows a way for it to end in heartache and the other shows a way for it to... well, briefly resolve into a good partnership, even if it also ends in heartache. I welcome canon divergence, time travel, angst, second chances, and whatever else you want to do here.
I have shipped them since TWS. I actually enjoy that they never became officially romantically canon, because that might have ruined it for me. I enjoy the fact that ever since TWS, they were always shown to just be fucking steadfast in their care for each other. Even if their causes were opposed as in CW, they took care of and looked out for each other. And then Natasha just... didn't leave Steve's side for most of the rest of Phase 1. I appreciate that maybe Natasha thinks that she is not good enough/would be bad for Steve because of her past but that Steve doesn't buy into that. I also appreciate that he does distrust her at first but then actively learns to trust her more than nearly anyone. I like the ambiguous nature of their canon relationship, but you can be as ambiguous or explicit about them being attracted to and loving each other as you like.
This ship and also the discourse surrounding it broke my heart and changed the way I consumed fandom. However, I'm still here and back at it. See the other Marvel request for most of the Redemption tropes, but I have listed a lot of shipping tropes here you can use. I would enjoy canon divergence where Ward was "gotten to in time" in S1 - someone noticed, maybe Skye, and acted on helping him stay on the better path he was on in spite of Garrett's influence. Or if you go further into canon, then I would like some real grit in a redemption arc. If you want to go with that gritty, tough redemption arc having happened already, that's fine as long as the characters act like Ward has had to do that, even if you don't feel like explaining the details. I love how they're on opposite sides. I love how he senses the kind of similar feelings and experiences he and Skye have early on, and I like how Daisy ultimately comes to understand him. I just wish it had happened better and sooner.
Thank you for visiting my letter. If you are my assigned author, extra thanks for being interested in whatever we matched on! Please remember that this letter is intended as an elaboration and a guide. You don't have to use any of it, because I will put my hard DNWs in the sign-up form per the rules. If you already know what you want to write, go for it! But if you want to read any extra clarifying notes or preferences, those will be here below. If you are someone who is here interested in writing a treat, then again, thanks! If you want to do art treats, I welcome them, but I am more familiar with writing so I request fic in these things.
You can find me at:
prixmium, and General Permanent List of DNWs: Gratuitous gore or torture; breathplay; lifestyle/hardcore BDSM; permanent injury related to sexual activity; noncon; unrequested dubcon; unrequested mundane/no-powers or total setting change AUs; misogyny/other bigotry; character bashing of anyone especially a different possible love interest for a character
This Exchange/Trope Category DNWs: A/B/O, unrequested BDSM, mpreg (with the exception of transmen), Fpreg - Futanari / Girl Penis (this is not the same thing as transgirls imo so no thanks), unrequested Rape, unrequested Soulbond(s), unrequested Soulmark(s), unrequested Soulmate(s), Vampires, Werewolves, unrequested Wingfic
Other than the above, feel free to borrow from other unrequested tropes in addition to the requested trope(s) you choose if you see fit.
Ratings: Anything from Gen to Explicit is fine with me unless noted on the specific fandom/relationship. I'm also equally happy with gen or ship fic or some combination of the two. I do prefer that explicit fics at least have a bit of context/plot for flavor.
General Likes (edited for this exchange): canon-typical violence, casefic/monster of the week, canon-divergent AUs, missing scenes, survival, facing or (trying to) evade consequences, killing / getting revenge against abusers, slow or medium-burn bonding, competence (or lack thereof), stuff about loyalty, canon-relevant political drama, striving against adversity or oppression
NSFW Likes (provided for reference in addition to any selected tropes): hurt/comfort (again); first-times (together or ever); wound-care turns intimate but NOT wound-fucking pls, very LIGHT blood-play if any; ritualistic sex | The Old Ones Made Them Do It, etc.; dealing with the aftermath of Aliens Made Them Do It as it pertains to dubcon even if they kinda liked it; morning after; I-almost-lost-you-and-I-can't-stand-it sex; Covered-in-the-blood-of-our-enemies sex; Awkward-cute-playful sex; Improvisational light-bondage / powerplay / orgasm tease/denial-play / soft BDSM if it makes sense for the characters; In-character sex, whatever that seems to be for the people in question
Fandom-Specific Information
I have listed each fandom and each relationship requested for that fandom. Then, I have provided a list of all tropes requested for that specific request. For some of the tropes I have provided additional thoughts. This does not mean that I only want that trope played to my suggestions or that I want those that are not annotated less. I just had no idea how to do this in a better way without making it even longer. A few times I request that a specific character not be the specific end of a trope, but don't view this as a hard and fast DNW - just a DNW unless you are particularly inspired by doing it contrary to that wish. For poly-ships, please also read any twosome blurbs containing those characters. This is to avoid redundancy. Thank you for your patience! ♥
In case(s) where I have two (2) same-fandom requests, you may cross-reference and mix and match where you see fit. I am trying to group them so that there is absolutely no reason you need to do that, but in general if there is any overlap, you can assume that you can overlap the requested tropes, too. Only if you want to, though.
On the other hand, in trying to do things in as few duplicate requests as possible, there may be times when a trope tag fits one relationship tag more than another. However, even if I used it or reference it more with one relationship tag and you've got an idea for it with another one from that same request, absolutely go for it!
This thing is a MONSTER so here's some more links in case it will help. They're targeted to the Tropes list so just scroll up slightly to see relationship tags.
Jump to Merlin Request #1 cut
Jump to Merlin Request #2 cut
Jump to The West Wing Request cut
Jump to Good Omens Request cut
Jump to Marvel Cinematic Universe Request #1 (Gen) cut
Jump to Marvel Cinematic Universe Request #2 (Ship) cut
Merlin (TV) - Request #1
Relationships:
- Merlin/Arthur Pendragon
- Gwen/Arthur Pendragon
- Gwen/Merlin
- Gwen/Merlin/Arthur Pendragon
- Gwen/Merlin/Morgana/Arthur Pendragon
Tropes:
- Accidental Marriage - Getting Married After Misunderstanding To Avoid A Diplomatic Incident
- Accidental Marriage - Characters Keep "Forgetting" to Annul It
- Accidental Marriage - Joke Marriage Is/Becomes Legally Binding
- Accidental Marriage - Woke Up Married
- Alternate Marriage Norms - Triads Are the Social Ideal
If you want to do this for Gwen/Merlin/Morgana then it could still be a break of the norm. With either twosome, you could have them deciding that they are content without a third or leave it open to one in the future. If you want to do Gwen/Merlin/Arthur seems pretty straightforward!
- Battle Couple (TV Tropes)
A scenario where Arthur becomes aware of Merlin's magic because of a situation like this and then has to sort it out later would be interesting. Alternatively, a scenario where magic is legal once more and either Merlin or Morgana or Merlin and Morgana engage in something like this. Gwen using her knowledge of armor and weapons makes me excited, too!
- Big Damn Hero (TV Tropes)
Merlin reveals his magic with this trope. Morgana is acknowledged as being (anti)heroic for her efforts against Uther's oppressive regime? Gwen bursts into Court against decorum. Arthur uses his knightliness for good.
- Building a world (terraforming/infrastructure/urbanplanning/etc. through magic or tech)
Merlin and/or Morgana helping with this in a reality where magic is at least revealed. Maybe these efforts lead to its acceptance when something is very much needed by the people, or it can be the building up of a Golden Age after magic is reaccepted into the land.
- Confessions - character confesses love due to imminent death but whoops! they're rescued
Depending on which relationship you're writing, I would like it a lot if Merlin was the one doing the confessing. For Gwen/Arthur, then I would prefer it if Arthur did the confessing. Any is fine, though!
- Confessions - Adrenaline Fueled Love Confession
See above.
- Duty - Defying Duty for Love
I would like it if Arthur was the one making the choice between either Duty trope.
- Duty - Choosing Duty over Love
I would like it if Arthur was the one making the choice between either Duty trope.
- Faustian Bargain with an Escape Clause
Merlin or Morgana are experiencing suicidal ideation because of feeling isolated with their powers and make a deadly bargain. Someone helps them see the light and break the bargain. Gwen wants to protect someone she loves and makes a Faustian Bargain and someone else helps her get out of it at the last minute. Arthur makes one to protect his father but is persuaded to go back on it.
- First Time - Pretending it's for Reasons Other Than Desire
- Getting Back Together
Especially after Morgana's "betrayal" (depending on how one looks at it) or Merlin's initial betrayal of Morgana. Maybe it is sometime in the future but Everyone Lived at a cost. After the dust has settled, things happen to facilitate this trope. Suitable for any requested ship tag with or without Merlin or Morgana!
- Kissing - Physical Fighting Leads to Making Out
- Kissing - Adrenaline Fueled Make-out
- Kissing - Characters Make Out While the World Still Needs Immediate Saving
- Legal Drama - character prosecuted for canonical actions
- Loyalty - King and Lionheart
- Loyalty - Rescue
- Loyalty — Character Betrays the Other to Protect Them
- Magic - Sex Magic
Dubious consent or being coerced by circumstance acceptable here but the attraction should exist beforehand, please!
- Magic - Sudden Powers
- Morality Exploration - He Who Fights Monsters
Especially focus on Morgana or Arthur given what they have been raised in and taught and their disparate responses to their cirumstances with any requested relationship focus.
- Morality Exploration - Trying To Be A Good Man
Especially with a focus on Arthur regarding his father's legacy versus what he has learned is true "good manhood." Especially with a focus on Merlin about how that perhaps he has some issues with portraying "tough guy" or extremely traditional masculinity.
- Morality Exploration - Violating Moral Principles For A Loved One
The obvious application of this might involve Arthur "overlooking" magic, but it could also involve any other possible character overlooking Arthur's blindspots and stubbornness about magic or any other social issue because they love him and don't want to undermine his "potential."
- Pining - Because of Social Oppression
Magic, social class, or sexual orientation would all be good for this trope.
- Pining - Promiscuous Character Sleeps Around Because They Can't Have the One They Really Want
I would honestly be happy with any of the charaters fulfilling this trope, but I would be especially interested if the "promiscuous" one was either Merlin or Gwen due to the fact that they could more easily "get away with it" due to their lower social class.
- Politics - Court Intrigue
- Politics - Regime Change
This could be Arthur's coronation, his being overthrown, or someone else becoming king between Uther and Arthur somehow.
- Polyamory - Dating Musical Chairs or Stupid Love Triangle Until Settled by Polyamory
If you go the Gwen/Merlin/Morgana/Arthur route for this one, I am reminded of the way they teased Gwen/Merlin and Arthur/Morgana in S1 then... never acknowledged it ever again rather than dealing with the potential for any of this. Maybe not just forgetting that happened? Or if you wanted to do Gwen/Merlin/Arthur, maybe this could have to do with uncertainty or insecurity about social class or sexual orientation or both.
- Polyamory - Infidelity Leads to Polyamory
See above.
- Raised as a Weapon
A story which focuses more heavily on Arthur's offhand comment that he was "trianed to kill since birth," especially where it comes to practioners of magic after he finds out loved one(s) has/have powers. A story in which Morgana is raised as a sort of femme fatale/black widow for reasons given that Uther can be unscrupulous in his efforts to maintain his kingdom. Perhaps Gwen's father taught her a lot more about armor and swordsmanship than we are typically led to believe. Usurpation or any of the falling in love with the mark tropes would be accepted here though they werne't formally requested - just a thought!
- Redemption - Earning Trust After Betraying [X]
While Morgana might be the obvious target of this trope and that would be great, you could also go with it having to do with Merlin regaining someone's trust for having lied about or ommitted the truth about his magic. After all he has imperiled many people by doing this out of fear. On the other hand, it could be Arthur recognizing that his blind following of his father's beliefs about magic, however branded into him they may be, essentially betrayed people he has come to care about. I would prefer if Gwen was not the one held "accountable" for "betrayal" even in the case of, like, Lancelot because I think she was raked over the coals enough in any version of that story.
- Relationship-Salvaging Disaster (TV Tropes)
- Relationship Makes Characters Less Competent
- Relationship Makes Characters More Competent
- Hurt/Comfort - Comforter Is Secretly Nursing Their Own Injury
- On the Run - Together
Especially if Arthur chose loved one(s) over birthright. Can fix it in the end or not.
Further Notes:
Merlin (The Show)
Just a blurb about stuff I like about the show and like to see in fic. I enjoy that Merlin is such an odd mix of mature themes and almost cartoon-y lightness. I love it when fic sort of color-corrects it toward the more serious and mature elements of the show, showing us things they wouldn't in the show proper. I think that in spite of its being more like a high budget play than a fully produced TV show at times that Merlin is, ironically, one of the most flavor-correct productions of Arthuriana around if people would be honest with themselves. I think it's easy to sense that this story is taking place in a power vacuum just post-Roman control. Anything you want to do with creative license about politics,religion, and history relevant to the time period is great. I don't mind some homophobia and sexism in these stories as long as it isn't gratuitous and contributes to the plot.
Merlin/Arthur Pendragon
I love Merlin pining, and I especially like those moments when it seems that Arthur sort of sees it for what it is but is afraid to go there. The same is true of his magic. I particularly like fics that draw subtle parallels between Merlin struggling with his sexuality/romantic orientation and his magic, but I don't like fics that completely conflate the two. I like seeing Arthur as competent but willfully blind about some things, especially where it comes to Merlin.
Gwen/Arthur Pendragon
This ship's canon portrayal is actually really sweet barring a few really excessively cheesy moments. I felt like that in trying to get the audience to stomach it in spite of Merlin/Arthur being preferred by almost everyone who was watching it, they actually shied away from some of the more interesting drama that could have been have. I particularly would like to see sort of S3 era or S3-divergent content for them if you're going with canon and adding to it. I love that Gwen can't stop herself from speaking up about what she sees as societal injustice even though she can't and won't speak up for herself early on in the show. Arthur growing to appreciate her perspective is one of the best things Arthur does so more of that please. Pregnancy fic would be welcome here as long as any subsequent child, if the pregnancy is successful, isn't like a Romantic Prop.
Gwen/Merlin
I hate that the show just kind of conveniently swept away that they were trying to lead you down the Merlin/Gwen and Arthur/Morgana route in S1 rather than actually acknowledging it S2 onward and showing that the characters, like, moved on from this or whatever. It was like it never happened and that bugs me. Thoughts: Impulsive (anything from kissing to sex) that they try to rationalize as being a friends with benefits situation or "just practice" or something like that to happy or angsty ends. Hurt/Comfort with similar outcome?
Gwen/Merlin/Arthur Pendragon
Read the above entries as well for more thoughts. One of my absolute favorite scenes in the show was when the Round Table was introduced and Merlin was at Arthur's right hand and Gwen at his left. I think that was when I began to understand what having an OT3 rather than just modal multishipping was. Particularly would be interested in a fic with the Triads Are the Societal Ideal trope where it takes them a while to work out the logistics. I would also like any kind of formal, courtly proceedings involving the three of them. If you don't do the Triads are the Norm thing then a fic about Gwen and Arthur both hiding their relationship with Merlin in the ways that are necessary but not doing it very well would be cute. What if Arthur and Merlin did one of the accidental marriage tropes (obviously probably like a marriage rite out in the wilderness with the Druids or something rather than in Camelot) either before or after Gwen and Arthur meant to get married? Or Merlin being jealous of Arthur/Gwen but it all working out.
Gwen/Merlin/Morgana/Arthur Pendragon
Read the above entries as well for more thoughts. With the inclusion of Morgana, one might tend to go with some of the more solemn tropes and that's okay! But if you want to do a happier fic you can also feel free to do a canon divergent AU where Morgana isn't driven to do whatever-she-has-to to change things. I love but for want of a nail stories and also their thematic opposites where they have "the nail" as it were. I would also like stories where the S1 Arthur/Morgana angle that they abruptly dropped in the following series mattered. Gwen/Morgana as a starting point (and Merlin/Arthur?) could be an element, too, especially if it has to do with maybe hiding from homophobia even if everyone is varying amounts of interested in everyone else. Fix-It fics, dark fics with happy endings, or political/court intrigue are all equally desired. With regard to Arthur and Morgana, I can take or leave the twist that they're actually related in this series, but if you keep it canon and they are related you may include any of the incest tropes.
Merlin (TV) - Request #2
Relationships:
- Merlin/Arthur Pendragon
- Nimueh/Uther Pendragon
Tropes:
- Age-Gap Relationship - Mayfly-December Romance (TV Tropes)
For Merlin/Arthur this could be tied into reincarnation or variations on what the end of the series indicates may happen. For Nimueh/Uther, this could be that she was ancient and unaging from the time they met OR the fact that she didn't age and Uther did.
- Arranged Marriage - Political Alliance
This could be an AU with Merlin/Arthur. It could also be an AU for Nimueh/Uther; however, I think that the marriage to Ygraine may have been arranged, so perhaps this is a Nimueh/Uther dealing with the fact that he needs to marry someone else.
- Arranged Marriage - The Marriage Must Be Consummated
See first Arranged Marriage note. This could go with any Sex Magic or Something Made Them Do It tropes if you like. If you are doing Merlin/Arthur consummation, it doesn't have to be penetrative sex if you don't want to do lube logistics in the somewhat ancient world. IF they do have penetrative sex, please do give them lube - olive oil or magic-derived, just something. if Nimueh and Uther are married then you can play it straight, no pun intended. If Uther and Ygraine are the arranged marriage but Nimueh/Uther is a thing, then maybe there is just angst over the fact that he has to be with someone else? Or jealousy over the fact that he doesn't seem to mind much.
- Arranged marriage - to prevent extradition or incarceration
See first Arranged Marriage note. Furthermore, if it is Merlin/Arthur, perhaps Arthur finds out about Merlin's magic and marries him to protect him. This can include either an acceptance of m/m marriage as an option or a societal lack thereof and Arthur "I'm the King"-ing it. If you want to include either of the poly options I listed in my first request (depending on how you got here), perhaps Arthur marries Merlin instead of the person he intended to marry and there's angst about it but it works out. In the case of Nimueh/Uther, perhaps it is why he married Ygraine (referring to the first Arranged Marriage note) or there is an AU where this is something Nimueh/Uther go through without Ygraine in the picture.
- Battle Couple (TV Tropes)
See Request #1's entry for Merlin/Arthur thoughts on this trope. For Nimueh/Uther, I feel like this is the main stage on which they would have been an attractive couple or force in Uther's youth. You could make this a good thing or a bad thing.
- Betrayal - Fake Defector (TV Tropes)
- Bonding Over Shared Trauma
For Merlin/Arthur, especially after a Magic Reveal that didn't go well? For Nimueh/Uther, something about how they came to trust each other in Uther's youth?
- Can’t Stop Thinking About It - The time they kissed
- Captivity - Kidnapped and used as leverage against the other character
- Captivity - Offering sex to a captor to pacify them
Obviously as a shipping trope, this one is pretty dark. You can either lean into it or give it a silver lining. For Merlin/Arthur, maybe it is after Arthur must imprison Merlin after finding out about his magic and Merlin is both a heartbroken pining wreck and trying to save his own life while getting Arthur to see value in him. For Nimueh/Uther, maybe it is after Ygraine's death and Uther's throwing her out of the Court. It seems like at some point he must have let her go. Maybe this is why? Had they ever acted on their attraction before this?
- First Time - Character Doesn't Want to Die a Virgin
For Merlin/Arthur, perhaps this is especially about the fact that Merlin doesn't know what to do with the fact that he is attracted to a man. [Up to you if he is also attracted to women - I'm good either way!] Doing this in a time where they fear for their lives is ideal. For Nimueh/Uther, maybe it is very early on in their knowing one another. Cocky upstart ruler who is bullying villages into unity gets in over his head. Sex Magic optional.
- Flirting - Sparring Together Becomes More
- Forced Proximity - Huddling For Warmth
- Forced Proximity - Snowed In
- Gods and Religion - Religious Symbolism and Rituals
I cut my teeth on The Mists of Avalon miniseries for Arthuriana, so I'm quite interested in the interplay of the Old Religion and "the New Religion" (i.e. Roman Catholic Christianity in its early stages of popularity in the British Isles). Merlin never directly states that this is what the New Religion is, but from the overlapping history of the proposed time period "if Arthur existed" it is a reasonable inference. If you choose to deal with this, I ask that you be respectful to the religious beliefs themselves, whatever they may be and whatever creative license you take, but you can deal with corruption in the ruling class in both religions if you like. Syncretism is also super interesting to me. Also rituals related to marriage and sexuality are always fun for fic. Anything serious or light you wanna do with this, go for it.
- In Denial - He's Not My Boyfriend
- Infidelity - Character A is in an Arranged Marriage with Character B but is in love with Character C
If Merlin/Arthur, feel free to include either of the poly tags in Request #1 as a happy ending escape clause or have Character B be an outsider for the angst and possible needy infidelity route. If Nimueh/Uther than Uther is A, Ygraine is B, and Nimueh is C?
- Loyalty - Swear an Oath of Loyalty
- Magic Systems - System of Rituals
- Marriage and Weddings - Ritual Ceremony
For Merlin/Arthur, maybe this could overlap with an Accidental Marriage trope. They are in a foreign kingdom or a Druid village in go through one of these either because they must or because they don't appreciate its full significance. For Nimueh/Uther, perhaps Uther practices some kind of bigamy by marrying Nimueh according to a more ancient ritual. Or, for angst, Nimueh has to help officiate his wedding to Ygraine. Whether their attraction is acknwoeldged, consummated, or whatever else is all up to you if you wanna go that route.
- Obsolescence - Character feels they're becoming irrelevant/falling behind the times
Unfounded for Merlin? Perhaps he is almost sad to be given more privileges as a Court Sorcerer/Wizard/Whatever because it means he gets to be near Arthur somewhat less. For Nimueh, perhaps this is a story about very founded fears as Uther grows to love Ygraine too and then, perhaps very abruptly, instead.
- Pining - While trying to be Friends-with-Benefits
For either - it's "just" practice or some kind of letting off tension after stress or trauma?
- Pining (Mutual) - Everyone Can See They're in Love Except Them
- Politics - Court Intrigue
- Politics - Regime Change
For Merlin/Arthur, see Request #1. For Nimueh/Uther, this may well be because they are the Regime Change. They are conquerers and uniters, for good and ill.
- Secret Relationship - One is kidnapped by antagonist who found out about the relationship
- Self Sacrifice - Sacrificing own happiness for the sake of someone else
Whatever you like with this but just popping in to sa this is basically Merlin's entire existence so if it's Merlin who's doing the sacrificing give him a hopeful ending at least?
- Sex Tropes - Careful Sex Because One Partner Is Injured/Ill
- Sex Tropes - Sex in the Blood of their Enemies
If this is Nimueh/Uther, it's probably par for the course. However, if it's Merlin/Arthur, I would imagine this would be a complicated story. Perhaps it is something that sort of horrifies both of them later. Maybe Arthur directly intervenes in Merlin being executed for sorcery and this is the aftermath?
- Sharing a Bed - Mutual Pining
- Something Made Them Do It - Bad Guys Made Them Do It
Aware that it is (possibly longed for) infidelity? If Nimueh/Uther angst all the way. If Merlin/Arthur optional poly escape clause.
- Something Made Them Do It - Guilt After Succumbing To Sex Pollen While Other Character Resisted
Prefer the character who "resisted" to have been resisting for reasons other than lack of desire to be with the other character. Dubious consent or coerced consent are fine for this trope but please no blatant nonconsent.
- Something Made Them Do It - Lust Potion/Spell
- Something Made Them Do It - Lust Potion/Spell Was Really Just A Placebo
- Survival - Wilderness Survival
Medieval Times being Medieval Times.
- Unequal Relationships - Dating Despite Workplace Power Imbalance
King and Servant/non-noble, whatever.
- Unequal Relationships - Should Not Date Because of Workplace Power Imbalance
King and Servant/non-noble, whatever.
- Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms - Asking For Rough Sex
For Merlin/Arthur, I slightly perfer Merlin ask. Arthur can comply and then deal with the aftermath when he realizes it's fucked up OR refuse and help Merlin worth through whatever it is instead. For Nimueh/Uther, either is fine. If Nimueh asks, perhaps this tends to worsen some of Uther's personality traits. Not to go issue fic totally but just how sex isn't completely divorced from real life. If Uther asks, have fun with your femdom but don't go full Scene BDSM, pls.
- Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms - Dubiously Consensual Relationship as Unhealthy Coping Mechanism
For Merlin/Arthur, maybe it would be a way for Merlin to keep Arthur distracted from his magic or, as in the captivity trope earlier-mentioned, save his neck as a result of Arthur knowing. For Nimueh/Uther, maybe it is always how their relationship was in one direction or the other.
Further Notes:
Merlin (The Show)
You can see my first blurb about the show by scrolling up, but for this particular pair of pairings, I have chosen some possibly darker themes. I thought that this list of tropes overlapped well for these two very different relationships because I imagine that the tone would be different in most cases. However, I think that it is interesting to see them as sort of a duality of possibility for a relationship between a magic-user and a would-be king.
Merlin/Arthur Pendragon
I wrote some about them which you can scroll up and see above. In saying other things about them for these darker tropes, I guess I would just ask that you try to leave even really dark fics with them with a silver lining of hope that things have gotten better or will one day. That said, I don't mind if even in trying to care for each other things are really messed up where the trope makes it appropriate. I also like stories where Merlin is really struggling with the fact that he's attracted to a man. I feel like Arthur may also struggle with it but may try to downplay it as less than love and more like some kind of battlefield camaraderie even though that doesn't make sense so he can make it not "count" at first. Hopefully both of them could get past that, but I don't mind either thing being prominently in the story or similarly uncomfortable themes.
Nimueh/Uther Pendragon
I'm not looking for fluff or a romance that even deserved better here. That doesn't mean I don't want a vision of a happier time or even a Canon Divergent AU with a happy outcome if you've got that in you. What I am looking for, though, is an exploration of that deep emotional tension between them. In order for Uther to have trusted her so much and for her to have been so betrayed without directly murdering Uther long before, there had to be something complicated and messy there. She says that she was "thrown out" of the Court, but she was not executed or imprisoned forever, so I assume that in some sense Uther probably gave her some "run away and never return" ultimatum that she didn't see a way around or didn't WANT to exercise what would have been her way around it. You can make them have their good moments, you can make them have redeeming qualities (to the point of redemption or not), but just let them be a terrible bloody force with or against each other. Explain it to me.
The West Wing
Relationships:
- Josh Lyman/Donna Moss
- Ainsley Hayes/Sam Seaborn
- C.J. Cregg/Toby Ziegler
Tropes:
- Politics - Regime Change
- Politics - Political Machinations
- Survival - Infrastructure Collapse
Please forgive me for taking out exaggerated real life anxieties on this show. If this is to "real" for you, please know that I don't anticipate total infrastructure collapse as a result of the current state of real world politics, but I am, like, scared? So I guess this trope is basically here for "What if the American government as we know it was crippled, especially due to something from within rather than without?" And how would these characters handle it? It could be in the administration directly after Santos or it could be a hostile takeover during his administration. It could be sometime closer to the present day, though it's hard to believe how far away we're getting from when this was airing. But basically, I just want to see any of the relationship tags coping with the absolute terror that would cause, even if it was temporary or fixable, and if they're headed for post-America entirely, heaven help them. This line of thinking can be applied to or combined with any other trope listed here.
- Unequal Relationships - Dating Despite Workplace Power Imbalance
- Unequal Relationships - Should Not Date Because of Workplace Power Imbalance
- Didn't Know Who Else I Could Trust
Somebody has gotten a hold of very dangerous, world-shaking information and confides in relationship tag partner. Is it Russia? Is it aliens? Is it some real world environmental horror silver bullet? Whatever you want!
- Duty - Defying Duty for Love
If Josh/Donna, something-something red lights. If Ainsley/Sam, I would especially like it if love helped her rethink her politics somewhat, though I don't expect a miracle. We've got precdence in canon of her walking out on actually evil Republican schemers to take her job at the White House, though. If C.J/Toby, then maybe one of them says to hell with professional ethics for the sake of protecting the other.
- Duty - Choosing Duty over Love
Angst stuff, especially about why they can't be together in spite of mutual attraction? Fix it or not.
- Hurt/Comfort - Everyone has turned against Character A except Character B
Especially appropriate for C.J/Toby if you are choosing a point in later canon to branch off of. If you want to do it with Ainsley/Sam, then perhaps one or both of them has found themselves out of the good graces of their political party and they can't find safe harbor anywhere else.
- Enemies Forced To Work Together - Against a Common Enemy
Use canon-typical concepts and structures to write a story like this OR maybe see my Infrastructure Collapse blurb. What if they really are in a really deep cloak and dagger, political intrigue-y situation or an outright war (hot or cold) and have to do this. It doesn't matter to me if relationship tag partners are the enemies or if they are watching each other's back against a third-party enemy who is helping them fight the worse enemy.
- Failure To Read The Fine Print
Anything from office comedy to whole worldview shake-up.
- Fake/Pretend Relationship - For PR purposes
- Family Feels - Found Family
May include other characters in addition to relationship tag chosen as you wish.
- Flirting - Through Obscure Literary References
- For Want of a Nail (TV Tropes)
- Forced Proximity - Handcuffed Together
Anywhere from real life-endangering circumstances - being held hostage, any of the other negative tropes I've expounded upon, etc. - to a party prank gone terribly wrong.
- Marriage and Weddings - "We Could Be Dead Tomorrow So Let's Get Married Today"
- Enemies Forced To Work Together - Against a Common Enemy
Further Notes:
The West Wing
So despite not being even close to left-leaning, my father loves The West Wing almost as much as he loves my family. It honestly feels like The West Wing characters are a part of my family. He watches/listens/falls asleep to it on repeat. It is his default of what-to-watch when he doesn't have a plan. It's his comfort media. It is the one fandom he has and he doesn't know what fandom is. When I had to set up a small TV for my family on the WiFi recently and it asked for a network name, since I knew my father would be using it, I named it "WestWingMachine." I have Stockholm Syndrome with these characters. I've been watching it as an active practice since it was currently airing with the pre-streaming era as the only release. Please help.
Josh Lyman/Donna Moss
I don't want to step on anyone's toes about how they feel about canon. If you loved their relationship the very last season of the show, then I don't want to yuck your yum at all. However, I always felt pretty disappointed with the way they wrote Donna apparently coming into her own competence and independence enough to hook up with Josh without it being sketchy. It honestly felt like they were writing different characters sometimes, and I only become more convinced of that with age. Therefore, I would like maybe a canon-diverent AU at least where their relationship is concerned. They got together earlier or Donna's personality didn't change so much? I love-love-love the "If you were in an accident, I wouldn't stop for a beer." "If you were in an accident, I wouldn't stop for red lights." exchange. That's the heart of it for me. Forbidden dating given their work positions and the complexity of navigating the fact that technically it is kind of hinky would be good for me if that's something you like.
Ainsley Hayes/Sam Seaborn
Tread with caution here if you like Republicanism. So I think The West Wing does a great job representing Ainsley as a person who is a part of a backward, often harmful party who has well-reasoned arguments for why she is in that party. I am also not suggesting the Democratic Party is what it should be by any means, but let's just say that when I was ten and thought she was the coolest because my parents had always voted Republican and I wanted to Be Her someday that I was kind of out of my mind. However, I appreicated that she was presented as so smart and competent and pretty... while being southern more than a Republican. That's probably why I still like her besides the aforementioned well-reasoned arguments. However, because of my own leanings I would prefer stories that don't beat Ainsley up for having been a Republican but which allow her to face, come to terms with, or wrestle with the fact that her party is the best platform for Neofascists to get any traction with "normal" people like her. I've mentioned some nigh-apocalyptic suggests, or you can do it more subtly. As for her relationship with Sam, I though they did an excellent job with being sparring parnters that helped to change each other for the better. I'm always disappointed when she disappears from the storyline, as I wish I could've seen that continue to a more satisfying conclusion. Perhaps I would like a canon-compliant-adjacent reunion fic or an AU where they carried on without losing momentum a lot. I would also like a fic where Sam sticks by her even when she is lambasted by some people because of her culpability-by-affiliation with something. It comes to mind that they sort of hinted at Sam being a presidential hopeful at one point before Rob Lowe tried to get independently famous again rather than seeing it through. In-universe, I feel like they have a lot in common: meteoric potential followed by something of a misstep into the afterglow. I'd like them to be help and comfort to each other.
C.J. Cregg/Toby Ziegler
I just felt like this was such a missed shot. They seemed to love each other so much and so quietly. I would love to see a fic where she goes to him after he has basically been written off by everyone else, and people are staying away from him for the time being for image reasons. I would also like any canon-divergent fic where they dance around attraction and eventually properly confront it during the show. I love Toby, but I don't want him getting off easy for being an asshole at any point. Toby Ziegler is one of the most relatable characters to me now that I'm becoming a solidly adult individual, and he cracks me up. I also really appreciate that C.J. acknowledges the cultural stereotypes about the fact that she is a very tall and powerful-looking woman. Their height-difference is cute, so it would be cool to see it acknowledged but not heavily fetishized.
Good Omens
Relationships:
- Aziraphale/Crowley
Tropes:
- Accidental Baby Acquisition
Either they raise Adam | The Antichrist themselves or, if you rightly don't trust them to do that competently on their own, maybe they raise the third baby that probably gets prizes for tropical fish.
- Accidental Marriage
I've given you the general tag or you can use any of the specific ones below~
- Accidental Marriage - Characters Keep "Forgetting" to Annul It
- Accidental Marriage - Long time roommates realise they're common law married
- Accidental Marriage - Woke Up Married
- Acquainted with Emergency Services (TV Tropes)
Near misses with "inconvenient discorporation." Crowley trying to do his job and get up to no good. Aziraphale bumbling his way into causing problems for himself and others. Pretneding to be a part of various emergency services to get where they need to be at any given time.
- Antagonist Surprises With Honorable Behavior
Back when Aziraphale still honestly actually believed Crowley even might be an honest actual villain rather than just someone who antagonizes people for fun. Perhaps it is one of the times when Aziraphale realizes that Crowley actually isn't very good at being a demon.
- Bonding - Nerds Bonding Over History
And the roles they've played in it.
- Bonding - Through Problemsolving
- Bonding - Under Traumatic Circumstances
- Can't Stop Thinking About It - A Accidentally Sees B Naked
This can be either really literal or more abstract. Maybe they see the other's True Form without meaning to at the moment. On the other hand, if it has to do with their humanoid forms, I have wondered if they sort of have a Ken-doll situation unless they decide they have a use for genitals or not. I kind of lean toward the notion that they do. I would prefer no xeno genitals but optional ones or being able to have any possile human genitals at different times is cool!
- Captivity - Surrender to enemy in exchange for the other's safety
On the cosmic level or otherwise.
- Case Fic - Amateurs solving a case
I've never watched/read it at this point but some hollistic detective agency-esque shenanigans? Or just generally not really knowing what connections that do exist between factors mean. Missing the point. Succeeding in the end or not.
- Character A Chooses To Die/Risk Death At Character B's Side Rather Than Face Life Without Them
- Character Doesn't Know How To Process Their Own Happiness
- Characters have to choose between being exposed to sex pollen or truth serum
- Compromising a Mission
As you do. Could be having to do with their blessing and tempting business or something entirely other they've set about to do. They could be working together from the start, or the other's presence could be what compromises it.
- Confessions - Adrenaline Fueled Love Confession
- Crisis of Faith
I've read a lot of meta on this since I started watching the show, and I think my perosnal favorite take on it is that "Crowley is a demon who has faith and Aziraphale is an angel who doubts." And as a religious perosn, I can say that most intelligent and earnest people of faith I know would assume that faith and doubt are both healthy parts of being a human being, but both Crowley and Aziraphale know at least some of what is going on in their universe, and the way they both approach it troubles them. I find it touching. However, I would prefer that this not result in a loss of faith, both because God demonstrably exists by anyone's yard-stick in their universe and because I am uncomfortable with dismissal of faith. Just isn't fun for me to read.
- Fake/Pretend Relationship - As Part of a Job
- Falling for the Enemy - attempt at manipulation leads to feelings
While Crowley trying to manipulate might be the obvious reading, Aziraphale puppy-eyeses his way into a lot of things with Crowley, so I wold be happy with this going either way.
- Family Feels - Struggling To Be A Good Guardian
Of Adam | The Antichrist from near or far. Or with Warlock.
- Flirting - Joke Flirting Taken Seriously Turns Into More
- Flirting - Through Obscure Literary References
- Getting Back Together
After a falling out/done with you forever spiel.
- Good Is Not Soft (TV Tropes)
- Hurt/Comfort - Breaking Down Upon Finding an Imperiled Loved One is Safe
- Hurt/Comfort - Everyone has turned against Character A except Character B
- Identity Porn — Both Characters are Lying
I think true identity porn is impossible for them because they can sense each other and what they are in some way. However, I like how they have had to weave themselves into the local culture throughout history. Picked this trope basically for fics playing with the fact that they can't even pretend they don't know each other very well and are always glad to see each other but that they must try to obscure the depth of their long, long relationship anyway.
- In Denial - Repressed attraction
I was torn between this one and the sexual identity one, but I chose those one because I am happy to read Aziraphale/Crowley as asexually in love or sexually in love. The nature of how they wish to express their attraction doesn't matter so much as the attraction itself.
- Pining - Character A incorrectly assumes that Character B knows that A is pining for them
- Pining - Everyone Thinks They're Together But They're Still Pining
- Pining (Mutual) - Everyone Can See They're in Love Except Them
- Protection - Mutual
- Secret Relationship - Secretly married to someone on the opposite side of the conflict
- Under the Influence - Wake Up Together but Not Sure What Happened
- Undercover - Being Deliberately Bad at it to Help the Enemy
- Secret Relationship - Relationship Development Through Clandestine Meetings
Of course. Canon. I just... want... more of what they did for six thousand years. Go as in-depth or cute and fun as you want.
- Retirement - Retiring from badassery
They get to just hang out and be together with maybe the occasional odd snag, post-Apocalypse.
Further Notes:
Good Omens
I am savoring this show for everything it is worth. I realize that a lot of the tropes that I picked are tropes the show has anyway, but I am interested in every twist and elaboration on it. I would especially be thrilled with fics that take place during the past six thousand years. They can diverge from (relationship?) canon or not in terms of what does or doesn't happen, but overall I would just love to see more of the first half of Season 3. I could devote several years of my own life to more of it, I'm afraid. I really love the show because it is religious satire that isn't mean-spirited to people of faith. It's also just hilarious and the perfect mix of genuine drama and creepiness and absurdity.
Aziraphale/Crowley
Since this is a ship tag and you're here, I assume you ship them. I do too - so, so much. However, I am totally up for content that takes that ship in any way that I have seen it taken. I feel like those who came in through the book and those who really feel the need for asexual representation are really attached to them as an asexual romantic couple. On the other hand, those who don't have either of those backgrounds tend to be more amenable to them occasionally having sex. I happen to be in the latter group, but I am totally happy to see beautiful expressions of affection and love and romantic desperation through means other than sexuality if that works for you and/or your story, personally! They just seem to be each other's everything, and it's codependent as all hell but I love it with all my heart. Oh, and you can include stuff about their wings in this fic as a part of affection, intimacy, plot, whatever!
Marvel Cinematic Univerise (MCU) - Request #1 - All gen tags and one ship+gen tag
Relationships:
- Skye | Daisy Johnson & Grant Ward
- Grand Ward & Agents of SHIELD Team
- Maria Hill & Grant Ward & The Avengers Team
- Skye | Daisy Johnson & The Avengers Team
- Skye | Daisy/Johnson & The Avengers Team
Tropes:
- Politics - Political Machinations
Recovering from the Rise of Hydra and Fall of SHIELD. Trying to make deals. Basically S2 episode tags of canon divergence I guess? But give me all of it.
- Undercover - first time working together on a mission
First time ever, first time after reconciliation/redemption, or first time in that particular team-up. Or anything else you can do with this trope!
- Compromising a Mission
Unwelcome reunions? Mistrut in spite of efforts at team cohesion or redemption. Surprise help from an unlikely source causing things to go off the rails even though it was a good effort at help.
- Missions - Gone Wrong
- Redemption - Earning Trust After Betraying [X]
Almost certainly aimed at Ward but if you wanted to do something with someone else in one of these relationship tags, then go for it. Particularly Natasha at least knows something about this in the past. Perhaps she would have insight on stuff to do with Ward that would actually help if you're doing one of those groupings.
- Redemption - Trying to Do Better Without Expectation of Reward
Perhaps Ward at some point diverges from canon and goes off on his own as he does in S2 but keeps on trying to learn to do genuine good and getting the chance to. Then gets help from some quarter. If you want to do something with another character here, perhaps Wanda or Natasha after some incident made them feel at fault or Steve or Tony for their role in general bullheaded stubbornness that gets people hurt.
- Redemption - Living with the Consequences of Your Actions
- Redemption — Character Nearly Dies to Redeem Themselves
I don't like just straightforward Death = Redemption, though. Just a little more complicated than that. Notice it says "tries." They have to actually earn it by facing up to people afterward.
- Redemption - Trying to make amends for past mistakes
- Resurrection - A Brings B Back From the Dead
Intentionally? Unintentionally? For information? With the intend of putting them down after getting information? Anything is possible in comic books. Maybe they evne just missed them badly.
- Family Feels - Found Family
A found one. A shattered one? A healing one? One that's been through hell and back? Different found families that come to understand each other.
- Betrayal - Fake Defector (TV Tropes)
Canon Divergent AU for S1 Ward? Or one of the very trusted Avengers doing this and scaring the whole world to death. Anyone but Cap going Hydra - enough with that one already.
- Loyalty — Character Betrays the Other to Protect Them
Not a good look when trying to work on those trust issues.
- Rescue - realisation that rescuer helps because they care
- Big Damn Hero (TV Tropes)
- Missions - Gone Wrong
Further Notes:
MCU
Skye | Daisy Johnson & Grant Ward
I have requested the shippy version of this relationship below. However, I can understand why people would view any hope at a redemption arc for Ward as involving Skye | Daisy being unable to get back to a place where she felt safe enough or forgiving enough to be attracted to him in that way again for a long time if ever. If you want to write them as genuinely becoming just-friends, then you're in the right place. If you want to write it as ambiguous, then you're more than welcome to do that or look at the shippy add-ons below. More than anything, I just want them to get the chance to be what they could have been had Ward been allowed to redeem himself when he genuinely, earnestly tried to find a way to over and over again. And I want Skye | Daisy to be able to come to terms with what Ward is and was to her, in whatever way, before he's just... gone. I love what they apparently had in S1 before it blew up, and I also love the complexity that it sometimes has after that. If you wanna do an everything-is-better-from-the-start AU with Ward being a Fake Defector, go for it. If not, then give me all the earned redemption and chance-giving and rough and tumble of that you've got.
Grant Ward & Agents of SHIELD Team
See above for anything about Skye & Daisy and Ward. For the others, I would just really have liked the Team to finally get past their anger and betrayal enough to realize that how they treated Ward was basically every single way S1 had taught them all to not treat people who could be saved. And I believe that Ward could have been. I would especially like to see Fitz and Jemma able to work out their anger past that murderous rage and have Ward do something to really show that he's sorry for the damage he caused. And with Coulson and May, I think that just having some acknwoeldgment of the hyprocrisy with which they treated him would be nice, even if it is the case that he absolutely owes them more than he can repay without the element of forgiveness.
Maria Hill & Grant Ward & The Avengers Team
Of course it was just words and he literally killed people, but the way Ward was able to turn himself off toward Maria Hill and to be such a rank asshole to her is honestly one of the moments when I came close to giving up on him. I don't necessarily agree with Maria about everything, but I don't think she deserved that. If you chose this tag then maybe this could be a story about Grant having proven himself redeemable but Maria, understandably, not wanting to be burned twice and having some serious objections and questions. I don't want Ward off the hook; I want him to have a chance to be different and better.
Skye | Daisy Johnson & The Avengers Team
I'll be mildly upset forever that Quake never got any kind of nod or cameo in the MCU movies proper. I just want her to get her shot. Missing scene, canon divergence, or anything of that nature that would let her work with or even become (for a little while) one of the Avengers.
Skye | Daisy Johnson/Grant Ward & The Avengers
It made the most sense to put this up here with the other gen tags. Below, I'll be putting my shippy Marvel tags, so you can reference that for anything I'd like about Skyeward in particular, but I assume that this fic would be after he had very much proven himself a changed man. However, whether the Avengers buy it at this point or not is up to you! And Ward really would be the normie in the group, though he and Natasha might almost line up.
Marvel Cinematic Univerise (MCU) - Request #2 - Ship Tags, See Above for Gen Overlap
Relationships:
- Steve Rogers/Natasha Romanov
- Skye | Daisy Johnson/Grant Ward (MCU)
Tropes:
- Accidental Baby Acquisition
Is it theirs? Did they conceive it the old-fashioned way? Is it lab-grown? Is it an alien? For either ship tag before or after romantic relationship/attraction.
- Accidental Marriage - Joke Marriage Is/Becomes Legally Binding
- Backstory - Adult Character Deals With Childhood Trauma
Either character in either tag!
- Can’t Stop Thinking About It - The time they kissed
- Captivity - Imprisoned/locked up with person who needs medical care
- Captivity - Kidnapped and used as leverage against the other character
- Case Fic - Case Has Thematic Resonance With Characters' Lives/Relationships
- Certain Death Averted - Character survives injuries
- Character A Chooses To Die/Risk Death At Character B's Side Rather Than Face Life Without Them
In the case of Steve/Natasha, I think of the best scene (in my opinion) of AOU where Natasha says "I didn't say we should leave," and then their SHIELD connection actually shows back up in a positive way. I also think of the fact that through the last several films of Phase One they were just determined to protect each other and hung out quite a lot even though canon never indicated it was romantic (directly anyway - we can all argue subtext all day, right?). In the case of SkyeWard, I think that this is considerably stranger and touchier, depending where they are in their relationship. You could do a schmoopy S1-era fic that helps change the tide of Ward's life with this trope, or ou could do something where it's rather creepier later on, or it could be the moment at which Daisy knows that there was something to the person she originally thought Ward was.
- Character Doesn't Know How To Process Their Own Happiness
- Characters Exhibiting Mental Health Issue
- Confessions - Adrenaline Fueled Love Confession
- Confessions - character confesses love due to imminent death but whoops! they're rescued
- Cultural Differences - Different Attitudes to Sex
Especially geared toward Steve/Natasha of the two tag choices. However, I don't like the take that Steve is an absolute prude. He just thinks it Means Something no matter what, maybe? And if you wanna do SkyeWard it's very possible that Scary Abusive Republican Household Upbringing Ward has some sexual hang-ups that need to be dealt with stat.
- Dimension Travel - Character Ends Up In Timeline Where They’re Dead
- Dimension Travel - Trying to Find a Timeline That's Not Doomed
- Dimensions and Alternate Realities - Mirrorverse - Alignment Change with Worldbuilding/Backstory
Could someone have been different or persuaded to work for the "Other Side" of a conflict, whether it's good/evil or something like Civil War, based on different circumstances in their upbringing? Particularly interested in Ward and Natasha with different back stories, but not-so-good Steve or Skye | Daisy could be good too. Just no Nazi Cap, thanks.
- Enemies to Friends to Lovers
- Fake/Pretend Relationship - As Part of a Job
- Fake/Pretend Relationship - Getting Married So You Can't Testify Against Each Other in Court
- Family Feels - Strong Family Resemblance
Could go with Accidental Baby Acqusition. Could be a melancholy fic about the ways they couldn't outrun affects of their parents/parents' generation's choices. Could have to do with more positive notes about how they resemble something or someone good from their past, biological or found-family related.
- Family Feels - Struggling To Be A Good Guardian
Can have to do with children or possibly a teammate or newbie with powers and/or problems. Maybe Wanda for Steve/Natasha? For SkyeWard, you can pick!
- Flirting - Sparring Together Becomes More
- Forced Proximity - Handcuffed Together
- Forced Proximity - Huddling For Warmth
- Getting Back Together
After their separation post-TWS or at any other point in their relationship for Steve/Natasha. For SkyeWard the sky is virtually the limit with this one, no pun intended.
- Ghosts & Hauntings - Haunted by Ghost of Friend or Loved One
First I'm gonna say: canon compliance. Then I'm gonna say: maybe fix it for me.
- Good Is Not Soft (TV Tropes)
- Grand Romantic Gesture - Violence Against Others
Can involve problematic gratitude, reprimand and correction, or both.
- Hurt/Comfort - Almost Mortal Wound
- Hurt/Comfort - Bonding Over Shared Trauma
- Hurt/Comfort - Character accidentally reveals trauma
- Hurt/Comfort - Everyone has turned against Character A except Character B
- If Steve/Natasha, then maybe something from Natasha's past comes up in a big way and makes people distrust her, but he believes her because he knows about deep dark pasts from his own experience and Bucky's. If SkyeWard, maybe it seems like Ward has betrayed everyone again but this time Skye | Daisy knows beyond a shadow of a doubt that he is innocent this time.
- Loyalty - dubious consent because loyal A will do anything B wants of them
For Steve/Natasha, it could be either that Steve doesn't really know how to say "no," after they've been intimate once, or it could be her sense of gratitude and "be whatever he needs" to the exclusion of her own. For SkyeWard it could have to do with Ward's fear of Skye hating him and lack of sense of personal autonomy.
- Marriage of Convenience
- Pining - Pining character is objectively not "good enough" for their loved one
- Redemption - Characters does Heel-Face Turn for Love Despite Thinking it's Unrequited
- Saving the Orphanage (TV Tropes)
By force if necessary.
- Time Travel - to bring love interest back to life
Further Notes:
MCU - Shippy Appendix
Please see the above for my other blurb. This request is for shippy stuff, and it can be combined (or not) with gen requests above as you see fit! I have chosen two ships that I will love forever. They're not exactly the same in dynamic, but they are similar, and one shows a way for it to end in heartache and the other shows a way for it to... well, briefly resolve into a good partnership, even if it also ends in heartache. I welcome canon divergence, time travel, angst, second chances, and whatever else you want to do here.
Steve Rogers/Natasha Romanov
I have shipped them since TWS. I actually enjoy that they never became officially romantically canon, because that might have ruined it for me. I enjoy the fact that ever since TWS, they were always shown to just be fucking steadfast in their care for each other. Even if their causes were opposed as in CW, they took care of and looked out for each other. And then Natasha just... didn't leave Steve's side for most of the rest of Phase 1. I appreciate that maybe Natasha thinks that she is not good enough/would be bad for Steve because of her past but that Steve doesn't buy into that. I also appreciate that he does distrust her at first but then actively learns to trust her more than nearly anyone. I like the ambiguous nature of their canon relationship, but you can be as ambiguous or explicit about them being attracted to and loving each other as you like.
Skye | Daisy Johnson/Grant Ward
This ship and also the discourse surrounding it broke my heart and changed the way I consumed fandom. However, I'm still here and back at it. See the other Marvel request for most of the Redemption tropes, but I have listed a lot of shipping tropes here you can use. I would enjoy canon divergence where Ward was "gotten to in time" in S1 - someone noticed, maybe Skye, and acted on helping him stay on the better path he was on in spite of Garrett's influence. Or if you go further into canon, then I would like some real grit in a redemption arc. If you want to go with that gritty, tough redemption arc having happened already, that's fine as long as the characters act like Ward has had to do that, even if you don't feel like explaining the details. I love how they're on opposite sides. I love how he senses the kind of similar feelings and experiences he and Skye have early on, and I like how Daisy ultimately comes to understand him. I just wish it had happened better and sooner.