we_protect_each_other (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
we_protect_each_other) wrote2015-09-16 12:20 am
we_protect_each_other) wrote2015-09-16 12:20 am
Entry tags:
[comm] dear trickortreatex author:
Dear trickortreatex author,
Trick or Treat! Thank you so much for writing something for me! And happy fall season/Halloween.
This exchange is my first that I can remember when I have not requested any live-action fandoms. This is not pertinent information but mundane trivia about me. It does tell you, however, that I'm mixing up my world a little in this particular exchange, which is exciting.
Because of the trick or treat gift nature of this exchange, I'll try to be a little more specific about my "Do Not Wants"/Dislikes than I usually am, but these guidelines are for our mutual comfort. If you choose to do a 'trick' gift, then as long as you stay somewhere within those guidelines, feel free to go nuts! I'm less picky about any type of "Do Not Wants"/Dislikes for any 'treat' fic I might receive, but in either case I want to avoid those guidelines feeling super restrictive to your creative process.
For some of the fandoms I have requested, I requested "Any" nominated characters and for others I was more specific. If you matched with me on one of the fandoms where I chose specific characters rather than "Any," please don't feel concerned about any disparity in the relative prompt lengths. I just have tried to cover my bases with all my requested characters. I list each fandom as it is listed on AO3 so you can CTRL+F if it helps you to find what you're looking for!
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Dislikes (or Do Not Wants): character bashing towards anybody, graphic depictions of rape / rape as plot device, gore, torture, mutilation, breathplay, bloodplay, nihilism, hopeless endings (but sad is okay)
This stock list basically covers everything I don't want in a fic. However, I am perfectly fine with dark themes that may crop up in a 'trick' fic and would be excited to read them. Concerning 'gore' I felt that I should clarify - blood and violence are fine. What I don't want is torture or mutilation. If for some reason your story needs truly horrific violence, I'd prefer the rated-PG-13/R version to the NC-17 version, if that makes sense. 'Torture' includes psychological torture, too. I'm definitely interested in your dark fic if that's what you'd like to write, but the above are some basic guidelines that I thank you for considering.
Likes: domesticity / slice of life, missing scenes, character study, action / adventure, traveling / vacations, hurt / comfort, partnership, healthy polyamory, found family, constructive confrontation, realistic use of social media where appropriate / epistolary fiction, canon typical violence, post-/pre-canon, arc-alteration / fix-fic, political machinations and intrigue, arranged or ritual marriage tropes, loss and recovery, rescue, time travel/loops, monsters and folklore
For any and all of the prompts and suggestions provided below, please take them with a grain of salt. I am perfectly happy with receiving gen or ship fic! I love character development and relationships, but if you prefer to focus on worldbuilding or action/adventure, feel free to do those things with a specific character or characters. I will list some ships or general relationships that specifically interest me for each fandom, where clarification might be applicable. I will mark things I ship with ( / ) and general relationships that interest me with ( & ). With these, feel free to write gen/friendship/general relationship fic about any that are marked with /, but please do not write romantically shippy fic about any marked with only & even though I'd love to receive fic about their relationship. Of course, if you only want to write about one character or about interaction between any of the applicable characters, then I'd be happy to see that, too.
Also, if you feel like including any other characters from a given canon that I have not requested or which are not nominated just in the course of your story, then that is fine with me too. Whatever makes what you'd like to write work!
If you would like to check out my fic or online presence to gauge who I am and what I like beyond this wall of text, please see:
failsafe @ ao3 | my tumblr
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Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works (Anime 2014)
Characters Requested: Any (Arturia Pendragon | Saber, Cú Chulainn | Lancer, Emiya Shirou, Gilgamesh, Heracles | Berserker, Heroic Spirit EMIYA | Archer, Illyasviel von Einzbern, Tohsaka Rin)
Ships / Relationships: Rin/Shirou, Archer/Rin, Rin/Shirou/Saber, Archer/Saber, Illya & Berserker, Cú Chulainn & Archer, Cú Chulainn & Rin, Illya & Shirou, Shirou & Archer
Prompts:
- Any kid of missing scene or "what if" scenario would be welcome here. Particularly with Illya, I know that her fate is different in the original Fate route anime (which I have not seen in full). Playing with the circumstances or details in any scenario is something that would interest me. If you happen to have seen Zero then references to that would be understood if you want to include them.
- I'm not sure what to list as specific prompts for single-character focus fics, but I am generally interested in each character's relationship to magic. For the Servants, anything from their original lives or how some memory relates to their present motivations would be interesting to me.
- Rin and Shirou at the Clock Tower following the epilogue. Anything you'd want to write about this! They could just do sweet domestic things, or they could discover some kind of mystery or spooky thing there. New conflict is always fun. I'd also be interested in anything during canon or something from before when they were mostly just aware of each other.
- Archer and Rin either during the War or at some point post-canon? If it's during the War, it could be something we didn't see. I'm very interested in the link between Rin, Archer, Shirou, and the necklace, for example, as far as plot things are concerned. Their relationship when they're at home alone - what kinds of things do they talk about when they aren't just bantering? If it is following canon, then perhaps Rin could come into contact with Archer again somehow while he is performing his duties as a Guardian.
- Rin, Shirou, and Saber. I like healthy polyamory, so if you choose to go that route then that would be nice. However, if you want to just write about the three of them and their interpersonal interactions, I would love that, too! (Archer can come too if he's not feeling too antisocial for group activity.) I really loved how Rin and Shirou included Saber in their "date" without pushing extremely when she kind of insisted that she was there essentially as a bodyguard. She still seemed to enjoy it as a social thing, too, and I just thought that was really sweet. I'm vaguely aware of the Shirou/Saber stuff that happens in Fate route, and consolidating the two in some way would be of interest to me if you want to do that. Otherwise, I would like to see them just doing something together - dealing with a conflict or something cute. I could also be happy with something post-canon where Saber got to come back because I am an idealist and I think the "happy end" in the VN allowed for this so there are a number of ways one could go about this. I really wished that Rin as Saber's sort of interim Master thing had lasted longer, just as another thought.
- Archer and Saber have a kind of shared life experience that really interests me. Also, I think that since Archer is sort of from an alternate future, I think the show implies that he has a history with both Rin and Saber. I would be interested in any perspectives on that, but particularly with Saber it is interesting that as Archer remembers aspects of his life that he seems to remember her even more clearly than Rin in spite of UBW's Rin focus. Also, Archer knows what it is to be a Master when he recalls being Shirou, so he kind of knows this from both sides of the fence as it were. I would like to see them interacting in some situation where perhaps Archer's past with some alternate version of her (of any kind) comes into play, maybe?
- Illya and Berserker's bond is really touching to me. Did they ever do anything where they were able to more clearly communicate about ideas than they seem to typically? Did she ever teach him anything? What kinds of things scare either of them? These and any other questions you'd like to answer would be nice for me to see further articulation of their bond.
- Cú Chulainn and Archer. I can't tell if they really come to respect each other or if they're purely rivals who are both too cool to be extremely rude in their battlefield banter. They are rude, but in a "cool" way. This isn't specifically from UBW canon so doesn't have to apply, but in watching Carnival Phantasm I have always noticed that Archer seems the most kind of horrified when Lancer dies in a silly way. I really hate the term "bromance" being thrown around, but in this case I kind of think it's appropriate. Could they be brothers in arms with a shared goal? In either a trick or a treat fic something like that could be fun.
- Cú Chulainn and Rin. The way he seemed so taken with the woman she could be was really moving to me. I was also really pleased with the lengths he went to genuinely protect her even after it became clear what Kirei's motivations and intentions were. Rin's discussion of her own disappointments with herself to him as he passed were was also really interesting to me, and since Servants can come back I'd be interested to see them reuniting at some later point? Just checking in or fighting for something life or death.
- Illya and Shirou. I'm sort of terrified of Illya's intentions for Shirou should she ever really interact with him. However, I know from osmosis that in some cases she can accept that he is kind of her brother in a more genuine way. Anything about a brother and sister bond developing between the two, particularly in dire circumstances in which they actually both survive would be nice.
- Shirou and Archer. I would like to see any story involving the two of them interacting after they "accepted" each other. It was pretty gutting that Archer was taken from us right after that, and I'd like to see anything that involved them still clashing and still having very different identities but interacting just the same. It could be funny or bitter or dangerous or sweet - anywhere you'd like to go with it!
Fate/Zero
This is actually the fandom I'm most concerned about how dark 'trick' fics might get in staying in line with canon. To clarify: I am basically extremely terrified of Ryounusuke and Caster. They aren't nominated, but if you for some reason wanted to include them as part of things I don't mind their general presence. It's just that I don't want graphic depictions of that type of violence or the psychology behind it. Otherwise, just going with my guidelines I should be fine with anything!
Characters Requested: Any (Arturia Pendragon | Saber, Diarmuid Ua Duibhne | Lancer, Emiya Shirou, Gilgamesh, Illyasviel von Einzbern, Irisviel von Einzbern, Iskandar | Rider, Tohsaka Rin, Waver Velvet)
Ships / Relationships: Saber/Gilgamesh, Saber/Diarmuid, Saber/Irisviel, Irisviel & Illya, Iskandar & Waver, Rin & Gilgamesh, Saber & Illya, Saber & Shirou
Prompts:
- Saber and Gilgamesh being presented as kind of aesthetic and ideological foils who aren't as different as they first appear really appeals to me in Zero. I realize that Gilgamesh's "pursuit" of Saber is really unhealthy, but I don't mind that being presented as long as it's not sugarcoated. Any type of genuine emotional interaction between them - whether it's good or bad - would be something I'd love to see. Saber seems as confused as appalled, which could be elaborated upon or played for laughs depending on the type of thing you'd like to write.
- Saber and Diarmuid are actually healthy matches for each other, I think. Either romantically or platonically, I think they just really understand one another. Being from the same geographical era and withing about a century of each other really gives them common ground I don't think either of them have seen in a really long time. I would love something that would let Saber acknowledge her own lack of fault and for Diarmuid to see it in that situation. However, we can't always have everything work out in an idealistic way, so if you wanted to write a darker fic dealing with them sharing a trial or with Diarmuid still not understanding were they to be reunited at a later point, I would also like to read that even though it would hurt me a lot. Something with shared folklore might be interesting for them since they're from places and times so close together!
- Saber and Irisviel didn't get enough time together, but the time they did share seemed to have created a really profound bond between them. I am so proud of Irisviel for being the Master that Kiritsugu couldn't/wouldn't be for Saber. I would love to see them learning something about the world together and finding a little more time. I think that the visual contrast between them, particularly since Iri deliberately created it, is really interesting. Saber doesn't necessarily seem to want to continue to present as a "gentleman" to me, but she seems to do it for Iri?
- Irisviel and Illya were both cheated out of their beautiful relationship. I would love to see anything from it from the nine years they had together. Or, was that appearance of Iri to Illya in the immediate aftermath of the War in any way "real"? If so, did it happen again? Is that version of Iri in some way corrupted and if so what does the 'true' Iri - wherever and whatever she is - think of it? If you wanted to, it could even involve Iri and Illya being reunited on the "other side" at last even though that would be twisting several knives. If you would like to include Kiritsugu in this in any light - positive or negative depending on the context and time period I'm sure - feel free to do so.
- Iskandar and Waver. While I was emotionally involved in a lot of the character relationships in Zero, this is the one that made me literally cry. I would love to have anything about Waver and some kind of grieving, tribute-giving process that he goes through in the aftermath of losing Iskandar. I would also be happy to see a missing scene during their time together or at some point an older Waver who is settled at the Clock Tower meeting Iskandar again. Gilgamesh promised Iskandar upon his death that he would never find "his" world boring and so playing off that in some type of reunion fic might be strangely fitting. Scaring Waver out of some of his chip on his shoulder could always be fun to me.
- Rin & Gilgamesh. I know that this is probably an extraordinarily dangerous and stupid thing to wish for, but I would have liked to see little child Rin meet dad's Servant. I don't know if you'd like to explore the ramifications of this if it's taken seriously which I would definitely love to read, but silly would be just as wonderful. Their personalities clash so much and in ways where they're not that dissimilar but completely disagree with the other's methods? Basically something like terrible step-siblings who don't get along. Tiny Rin is already so self-assured, and I know that there's some kind of strange canon about Gilgamesh age-regressing with herbs too. Regardless of what you did with it, I think it could be hilarious or terrifying.
- Saber and Illya. Did they ever meet except from visual distance? What do they think of one another? Did Irisviel ever invite her daughter to play with herself and Saber? What if Saber were in a position to protect Irisviel's daughter somehow while Irisviel was endangered or gone?
- Saber and Shirou. While they never meet, we have the connection between them that is foreshadowed and portrayed. Shirou's life was spared by Avalon which was still powered by residual amounts of Saber's mana even when she was going through one of her darkest hours. I also thought that it was interesting that when Shirou had his conversation with Kiritsugu about becoming a "hero of justice" in his place that Saber was shown on the hill at Camlann, still grieving and broken but a light began to shine down upon her. Something about a spirit bond between the two or their being kind of aware of the foreshadowing in some type of in-universe way might be fun or beautiful or bittersweet.
- I'm not sure what to suggest for purely individual fics for most of them, but I am interested in each of the character's relationships to magic and to their 'roles' in this war since so many of them seem pre-assigned and bogged down with duty, responsibility, and fate.
- For Shirou, I am interested in knowing what his life was like during the War. We know nothing about him before the fire, and he doesn't know anything about himself either. What kinds of things might have brought that about? Was he aware that the world was slowly crumbling around him or was he blissfully ignorant? What might have been something that would have happened to him during all of this?
Robotics;Notes
Characters Requested: Any (Frau Koujiro | Furugoori Kona Hidaka Subaru | Mr. Pleiades Senomiya Akiho Yashio Kaito)
Ships / Relationships: Aki/Kai, Kai & Frau, Aki/Kai/Subaru, Subaru/Frau (Subaru & Frau)
- If you choose to write about these characters for me then I think I would honestly be happy with anything you choose to write. Any kind of slice of life or dealing with peril brought on by the Committee either during canon or after it would be absolutely wonderful.
- Is anything on Tanegashima actually haunted? That folk museum is pretty creepy, and I still have questions. Any characters could be involved.
- On the subject of haunting, there is that pseudo-scientific theory that hauntings are perhaps caused by residual energy left in structures. That theme could be played in a bittersweet way between any of the characters and someone from their past or between each other.
- Aki and Kai having really, really different attitudes toward urban legends after all. Or maybe not?
- Frau and Kai and some kind of creepypasta horror. Comforting each other and guiding their way through the darkness that lurks on the internet or around them because of the internet. I don't mind if it's somewhat shippy I just don't end-game ship them personally.
- Subaru being the biggest skeptic or the most superstitious person on Earth. Which is it? Maybe Frau knows and it is either prove him wrong or blackmail time. Maybe they are alike in their skepticism and Kai accidentally ruins their lives.
Portal (Video Game)
Characters Requested: Chell (Portal), Wheatley (Portal), Adventure Core, Fact Core, Space Core
Ships / Relationships: Chell/Wheatley, Wheatley & Adventure Core & Space Core
Prompts:
- Any new take on a Chell and Wheatley reunion fic would be good for me. Chell having the opportunity to finally have some kind of closure would be good. I don't mind if you consider her perspective on him positive or negative - I'd just like to see it happen.
- Something about the Robot Ghost Story that Wheatley tells Chell when they're traveling through Aperture together might be apropos for this exchange.
- Anything about the Cores hanging out and interacting with each other. Fact Core is welcome to come along, too. I just selected the ones I did because I think that Adventure Core and Space Core might make an interesting, funny duo, while Fact might just kind of be irritated with them. But he can totally come along and be irritated.
- What happens to Chell when she makes it outside Aperture?
- I really hate considering the theory that Chell actually was killed at the end of Portal 2 "canon," but it would be an interesting AU for something Halloween (and maybe afterlife) themed?
- This is in no way whatsoever a specific request or demand but I am familiar with both Blue Sky and the Puella Magi Madoka Magica fusion fic Grief Science, so if you wanted to write something set in either of those "universes" then feel free.
Avatar: The Last Airbender
Characters Requested: Zuko (Avatar), Katara (Avatar), Aang (Avatar)
Ships / Relationships: Zuko/Katara/Aang (any combination, shippy or gen)
Prompts:
- When Zuko is alone, does he have some kind of experience we didn't see?
- What was the inspiration for the Blue Spirit?
- Some kind of compare/contrast or "teaming up" of the Blue Spirit and Painted Lady personas Zuko and Katara have could be really interesting to me. It'd also be interesting to see Aang's reaction to the fact that they both definitely have some kid of vigilante streak that isn't going to go away just because the immediate need for it that was apparent at the time isn't as big a threat anymore.
- What is something from airbending culture that Aang wants to keep alive for himself or share with others? Does he continue to be very protective and private about some aspect of it, inversely?
- How does Katara's journey with knowing that she can bloodbend go in the aftermath shortly after the war was over?
- Katara and her healing arts, involving one or both of the boys or just by herself. Perhaps she heals someone after an encounter with something seasonally appropriate in-universe.
- Anything and everything involving the three of them or any pair of them interacting politically after the war. They all are important and children of a revolution, so I would love to see any kind of political thing you wanted to write.
Wreck-It Ralph (2012)
Characters Requested: Vanellope von Schweetz, Wreck-It Ralph
Relationships: Vanellope & Ralph
There is too much of an age gap for me to ever be comfortable with Vanellope/Ralph as a romantic ship. Even if she is aged up, I would prefer not to receive shipping fic about them.
- Vanellope is apparently now a political leader among her people and she matured a lot. However, she is still a child avatar and I just wonder how this works for these characters. While they seem to develop as 'people' they also seem sort of static in a way. For an adult, this doesn't seem like as big a deal, but I'm fascinated with the possibilities of what might happen with a child character who kind of outgrows herself. If Ralph's life begins to improve and he develops a sort of adult life, is she envious? One could even have her age into being a teenager or something through design updates to her game? Or perhaps she is stuck in being a perpetual child. Anything kind of exploring maturity versus appearance with her or some kind of magical situation for her - since there could be a game about magic? - might be fun.
- I would love to know something about how Ralph is doing a little bit later. What kinds of progress does he make in his life? How is this reflected in the "real world" and does it matter?
- Ralph and Vanellope in a horror/scary game.
- Maybe one could do a 'trick' story about something to do with power outages or surges or something like this? If getting unplugged kind of 'kills' them, then what happens when the power goes out? I can't imagine that the arcade has never endured a power outage. Little plot hole that I think could be made into an actual story.
Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magika | Puella Magi Madoka Magica
Characters Requested: Sakura Kyouko, Miki Sayaka, Akemi Homura, Kaname Madoka, Momoe Nagisa, Tomoe Mami
Ships / Relationships: Kyoko/Sayaka, Homura/Madoka, Kyoko/Homura, Mami & Nagisa, Mami & Sayaka, Sayaka & Madoka, Kyoko & Mami, and any other combinations that suit your fancy
Prompts:
Please note, a lot of these are pasted from another similarly-formatted letter because I feel that they're still relevant to my interests and fitting for this exchange. The slight difference in the formatting is because of this, but they are still vaguely grouped by character relevance. A lot of them refer to Rebellion, but I am equally happy to receive something that only takes the anime into account.
- Any glimpse at another timeline apart from those featured in the anime; be as creative as you want and include anyone and as few or as many people as you like!
- A slice of life from before Homura became a magical girl during that first month? Her relationship(s), how she sees the word. Did she ever consider another wish before the one she ultimately chose? Seeing one initial place her life could have forked off from would be really interesting.
- Madoka's primary motivators are kindness, hope, and compassion. We all know that. But I think we also see a broader range of emotion than even her canon-mates give her credit for. Something that evokes another emotion in Madoka and explores its implications would be great (at any point in her journey). Anger, indifference, bitterness, hurt, jealousy, or even a different positive emotion.
- What if in either the anime timeline or Rebellion Homura managed to tell Madoka the truth about her suspicions before so late into the endgame?
- For Sayaka, I am curious about her relationship with/to her family. They seem to be present in her life but never visible to us. Does this have further implications -- even if they're relatively benign?
- If you've read the manga, maybe flesh out was happened after Chapter 9 for Sayaka?
- In the original anime, Sayaka seemed to idealize Mami so much. What would have happened if she had lived (for longer or in general)? Or anything else regarding Sayaka and her response to what she perceives as Mami's legacy.
- In Rebellion, Sayaka seems to be an angel or even possibly the archangel for Mado-kami. I am so fascinated by this and its implications. What was her existence like before Rebellion? How well does/did she know Nagisa before going on the Rebellion assignment? How does she feel about her 'true nature' versus the life she is living in Rebellion?
- In Rebellion, how did Sayaka come to apparently take Kyoko in and why? (Especially maybe given the above.)
- Since we mainly meet Nagisa in Rebellion, what is her existence like as one of Mado-kami's angels? Why does she prefer her typical form or is it just part of disguise? Her bond with Mami interests me a lot, especially given past circumstances surrounding Mami's death in the anime. I assume she's aware of that, but is she?
- I haven't read The Different Story so if you have just make it accessible to me if you go this route: What was Kyoko's life like between when her family died and the events of the anime? What is she interested in? How exactly does she cope?
- The character juxtaposition between Kyoko and Homura fascinates me a lot. Kyoko is so physical while Homura is very convinced of her own dissociation from her body that it apparently affects everything about her conduct. Something about them at any point during canon or in the space following the anime would be interesting to me - gen or shippy. If it's shippy, I'm interested in hurt/comfort in particular.
- I'm not super interested in shippy fic about them but I could be persuaded, but I'd also love a fic about Kyoko and Mami growing back together as people/friends/whatever you'd like maybe in a canon-divergent thing from Rebellion or in a doomed timeline.
- In Rebellion, something further from Kyoko's perspective during the fallout of Homura realizing whose labyrinth they were inside. We see her reacting to apocalyptic events in a world that she had even until that moment accepted as safe enough to continue doing something ordinary. Then, the next time we see her the imagery is very striking. Something from her POV during that sequence -- what does she do or think and how does she get from one point to another?
- Mami says that she just acts cool and elegant because it is what is expected of her as a veteran magical girl. Will anything give he the opportunity act the way she really feels in the long-term? Since she is a veteran, does she have any long-term goals?
- How does Nagisa fit into Mami's life, during Rebellion or in some situation following it?
- For Halloween, something about any group of the girls or any individual girl facing something in a Labyrinth that was seasonally themed would be a lot of fun. If you want to make a Halloween-related Witch, feel free!
- Literally any combination of these characters would make me happy so I think I failed to provide prompts for a couple of possible character combinations, but if you have another idea for any of them, go nuts.
Trick or Treat! Thank you so much for writing something for me! And happy fall season/Halloween.
This exchange is my first that I can remember when I have not requested any live-action fandoms. This is not pertinent information but mundane trivia about me. It does tell you, however, that I'm mixing up my world a little in this particular exchange, which is exciting.
Because of the trick or treat gift nature of this exchange, I'll try to be a little more specific about my "Do Not Wants"/Dislikes than I usually am, but these guidelines are for our mutual comfort. If you choose to do a 'trick' gift, then as long as you stay somewhere within those guidelines, feel free to go nuts! I'm less picky about any type of "Do Not Wants"/Dislikes for any 'treat' fic I might receive, but in either case I want to avoid those guidelines feeling super restrictive to your creative process.
For some of the fandoms I have requested, I requested "Any" nominated characters and for others I was more specific. If you matched with me on one of the fandoms where I chose specific characters rather than "Any," please don't feel concerned about any disparity in the relative prompt lengths. I just have tried to cover my bases with all my requested characters. I list each fandom as it is listed on AO3 so you can CTRL+F if it helps you to find what you're looking for!
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Dislikes (or Do Not Wants): character bashing towards anybody, graphic depictions of rape / rape as plot device, gore, torture, mutilation, breathplay, bloodplay, nihilism, hopeless endings (but sad is okay)
This stock list basically covers everything I don't want in a fic. However, I am perfectly fine with dark themes that may crop up in a 'trick' fic and would be excited to read them. Concerning 'gore' I felt that I should clarify - blood and violence are fine. What I don't want is torture or mutilation. If for some reason your story needs truly horrific violence, I'd prefer the rated-PG-13/R version to the NC-17 version, if that makes sense. 'Torture' includes psychological torture, too. I'm definitely interested in your dark fic if that's what you'd like to write, but the above are some basic guidelines that I thank you for considering.
Likes: domesticity / slice of life, missing scenes, character study, action / adventure, traveling / vacations, hurt / comfort, partnership, healthy polyamory, found family, constructive confrontation, realistic use of social media where appropriate / epistolary fiction, canon typical violence, post-/pre-canon, arc-alteration / fix-fic, political machinations and intrigue, arranged or ritual marriage tropes, loss and recovery, rescue, time travel/loops, monsters and folklore
For any and all of the prompts and suggestions provided below, please take them with a grain of salt. I am perfectly happy with receiving gen or ship fic! I love character development and relationships, but if you prefer to focus on worldbuilding or action/adventure, feel free to do those things with a specific character or characters. I will list some ships or general relationships that specifically interest me for each fandom, where clarification might be applicable. I will mark things I ship with ( / ) and general relationships that interest me with ( & ). With these, feel free to write gen/friendship/general relationship fic about any that are marked with /, but please do not write romantically shippy fic about any marked with only & even though I'd love to receive fic about their relationship. Of course, if you only want to write about one character or about interaction between any of the applicable characters, then I'd be happy to see that, too.
Also, if you feel like including any other characters from a given canon that I have not requested or which are not nominated just in the course of your story, then that is fine with me too. Whatever makes what you'd like to write work!
If you would like to check out my fic or online presence to gauge who I am and what I like beyond this wall of text, please see:
failsafe @ ao3 | my tumblr
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Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works (Anime 2014)
Characters Requested: Any (Arturia Pendragon | Saber, Cú Chulainn | Lancer, Emiya Shirou, Gilgamesh, Heracles | Berserker, Heroic Spirit EMIYA | Archer, Illyasviel von Einzbern, Tohsaka Rin)
Ships / Relationships: Rin/Shirou, Archer/Rin, Rin/Shirou/Saber, Archer/Saber, Illya & Berserker, Cú Chulainn & Archer, Cú Chulainn & Rin, Illya & Shirou, Shirou & Archer
Prompts:
- Any kid of missing scene or "what if" scenario would be welcome here. Particularly with Illya, I know that her fate is different in the original Fate route anime (which I have not seen in full). Playing with the circumstances or details in any scenario is something that would interest me. If you happen to have seen Zero then references to that would be understood if you want to include them.
- I'm not sure what to list as specific prompts for single-character focus fics, but I am generally interested in each character's relationship to magic. For the Servants, anything from their original lives or how some memory relates to their present motivations would be interesting to me.
- Rin and Shirou at the Clock Tower following the epilogue. Anything you'd want to write about this! They could just do sweet domestic things, or they could discover some kind of mystery or spooky thing there. New conflict is always fun. I'd also be interested in anything during canon or something from before when they were mostly just aware of each other.
- Archer and Rin either during the War or at some point post-canon? If it's during the War, it could be something we didn't see. I'm very interested in the link between Rin, Archer, Shirou, and the necklace, for example, as far as plot things are concerned. Their relationship when they're at home alone - what kinds of things do they talk about when they aren't just bantering? If it is following canon, then perhaps Rin could come into contact with Archer again somehow while he is performing his duties as a Guardian.
- Rin, Shirou, and Saber. I like healthy polyamory, so if you choose to go that route then that would be nice. However, if you want to just write about the three of them and their interpersonal interactions, I would love that, too! (Archer can come too if he's not feeling too antisocial for group activity.) I really loved how Rin and Shirou included Saber in their "date" without pushing extremely when she kind of insisted that she was there essentially as a bodyguard. She still seemed to enjoy it as a social thing, too, and I just thought that was really sweet. I'm vaguely aware of the Shirou/Saber stuff that happens in Fate route, and consolidating the two in some way would be of interest to me if you want to do that. Otherwise, I would like to see them just doing something together - dealing with a conflict or something cute. I could also be happy with something post-canon where Saber got to come back because I am an idealist and I think the "happy end" in the VN allowed for this so there are a number of ways one could go about this. I really wished that Rin as Saber's sort of interim Master thing had lasted longer, just as another thought.
- Archer and Saber have a kind of shared life experience that really interests me. Also, I think that since Archer is sort of from an alternate future, I think the show implies that he has a history with both Rin and Saber. I would be interested in any perspectives on that, but particularly with Saber it is interesting that as Archer remembers aspects of his life that he seems to remember her even more clearly than Rin in spite of UBW's Rin focus. Also, Archer knows what it is to be a Master when he recalls being Shirou, so he kind of knows this from both sides of the fence as it were. I would like to see them interacting in some situation where perhaps Archer's past with some alternate version of her (of any kind) comes into play, maybe?
- Illya and Berserker's bond is really touching to me. Did they ever do anything where they were able to more clearly communicate about ideas than they seem to typically? Did she ever teach him anything? What kinds of things scare either of them? These and any other questions you'd like to answer would be nice for me to see further articulation of their bond.
- Cú Chulainn and Archer. I can't tell if they really come to respect each other or if they're purely rivals who are both too cool to be extremely rude in their battlefield banter. They are rude, but in a "cool" way. This isn't specifically from UBW canon so doesn't have to apply, but in watching Carnival Phantasm I have always noticed that Archer seems the most kind of horrified when Lancer dies in a silly way. I really hate the term "bromance" being thrown around, but in this case I kind of think it's appropriate. Could they be brothers in arms with a shared goal? In either a trick or a treat fic something like that could be fun.
- Cú Chulainn and Rin. The way he seemed so taken with the woman she could be was really moving to me. I was also really pleased with the lengths he went to genuinely protect her even after it became clear what Kirei's motivations and intentions were. Rin's discussion of her own disappointments with herself to him as he passed were was also really interesting to me, and since Servants can come back I'd be interested to see them reuniting at some later point? Just checking in or fighting for something life or death.
- Illya and Shirou. I'm sort of terrified of Illya's intentions for Shirou should she ever really interact with him. However, I know from osmosis that in some cases she can accept that he is kind of her brother in a more genuine way. Anything about a brother and sister bond developing between the two, particularly in dire circumstances in which they actually both survive would be nice.
- Shirou and Archer. I would like to see any story involving the two of them interacting after they "accepted" each other. It was pretty gutting that Archer was taken from us right after that, and I'd like to see anything that involved them still clashing and still having very different identities but interacting just the same. It could be funny or bitter or dangerous or sweet - anywhere you'd like to go with it!
Fate/Zero
This is actually the fandom I'm most concerned about how dark 'trick' fics might get in staying in line with canon. To clarify: I am basically extremely terrified of Ryounusuke and Caster. They aren't nominated, but if you for some reason wanted to include them as part of things I don't mind their general presence. It's just that I don't want graphic depictions of that type of violence or the psychology behind it. Otherwise, just going with my guidelines I should be fine with anything!
Characters Requested: Any (Arturia Pendragon | Saber, Diarmuid Ua Duibhne | Lancer, Emiya Shirou, Gilgamesh, Illyasviel von Einzbern, Irisviel von Einzbern, Iskandar | Rider, Tohsaka Rin, Waver Velvet)
Ships / Relationships: Saber/Gilgamesh, Saber/Diarmuid, Saber/Irisviel, Irisviel & Illya, Iskandar & Waver, Rin & Gilgamesh, Saber & Illya, Saber & Shirou
Prompts:
- Saber and Gilgamesh being presented as kind of aesthetic and ideological foils who aren't as different as they first appear really appeals to me in Zero. I realize that Gilgamesh's "pursuit" of Saber is really unhealthy, but I don't mind that being presented as long as it's not sugarcoated. Any type of genuine emotional interaction between them - whether it's good or bad - would be something I'd love to see. Saber seems as confused as appalled, which could be elaborated upon or played for laughs depending on the type of thing you'd like to write.
- Saber and Diarmuid are actually healthy matches for each other, I think. Either romantically or platonically, I think they just really understand one another. Being from the same geographical era and withing about a century of each other really gives them common ground I don't think either of them have seen in a really long time. I would love something that would let Saber acknowledge her own lack of fault and for Diarmuid to see it in that situation. However, we can't always have everything work out in an idealistic way, so if you wanted to write a darker fic dealing with them sharing a trial or with Diarmuid still not understanding were they to be reunited at a later point, I would also like to read that even though it would hurt me a lot. Something with shared folklore might be interesting for them since they're from places and times so close together!
- Saber and Irisviel didn't get enough time together, but the time they did share seemed to have created a really profound bond between them. I am so proud of Irisviel for being the Master that Kiritsugu couldn't/wouldn't be for Saber. I would love to see them learning something about the world together and finding a little more time. I think that the visual contrast between them, particularly since Iri deliberately created it, is really interesting. Saber doesn't necessarily seem to want to continue to present as a "gentleman" to me, but she seems to do it for Iri?
- Irisviel and Illya were both cheated out of their beautiful relationship. I would love to see anything from it from the nine years they had together. Or, was that appearance of Iri to Illya in the immediate aftermath of the War in any way "real"? If so, did it happen again? Is that version of Iri in some way corrupted and if so what does the 'true' Iri - wherever and whatever she is - think of it? If you wanted to, it could even involve Iri and Illya being reunited on the "other side" at last even though that would be twisting several knives. If you would like to include Kiritsugu in this in any light - positive or negative depending on the context and time period I'm sure - feel free to do so.
- Iskandar and Waver. While I was emotionally involved in a lot of the character relationships in Zero, this is the one that made me literally cry. I would love to have anything about Waver and some kind of grieving, tribute-giving process that he goes through in the aftermath of losing Iskandar. I would also be happy to see a missing scene during their time together or at some point an older Waver who is settled at the Clock Tower meeting Iskandar again. Gilgamesh promised Iskandar upon his death that he would never find "his" world boring and so playing off that in some type of reunion fic might be strangely fitting. Scaring Waver out of some of his chip on his shoulder could always be fun to me.
- Rin & Gilgamesh. I know that this is probably an extraordinarily dangerous and stupid thing to wish for, but I would have liked to see little child Rin meet dad's Servant. I don't know if you'd like to explore the ramifications of this if it's taken seriously which I would definitely love to read, but silly would be just as wonderful. Their personalities clash so much and in ways where they're not that dissimilar but completely disagree with the other's methods? Basically something like terrible step-siblings who don't get along. Tiny Rin is already so self-assured, and I know that there's some kind of strange canon about Gilgamesh age-regressing with herbs too. Regardless of what you did with it, I think it could be hilarious or terrifying.
- Saber and Illya. Did they ever meet except from visual distance? What do they think of one another? Did Irisviel ever invite her daughter to play with herself and Saber? What if Saber were in a position to protect Irisviel's daughter somehow while Irisviel was endangered or gone?
- Saber and Shirou. While they never meet, we have the connection between them that is foreshadowed and portrayed. Shirou's life was spared by Avalon which was still powered by residual amounts of Saber's mana even when she was going through one of her darkest hours. I also thought that it was interesting that when Shirou had his conversation with Kiritsugu about becoming a "hero of justice" in his place that Saber was shown on the hill at Camlann, still grieving and broken but a light began to shine down upon her. Something about a spirit bond between the two or their being kind of aware of the foreshadowing in some type of in-universe way might be fun or beautiful or bittersweet.
- I'm not sure what to suggest for purely individual fics for most of them, but I am interested in each of the character's relationships to magic and to their 'roles' in this war since so many of them seem pre-assigned and bogged down with duty, responsibility, and fate.
- For Shirou, I am interested in knowing what his life was like during the War. We know nothing about him before the fire, and he doesn't know anything about himself either. What kinds of things might have brought that about? Was he aware that the world was slowly crumbling around him or was he blissfully ignorant? What might have been something that would have happened to him during all of this?
Robotics;Notes
Characters Requested: Any (Frau Koujiro | Furugoori Kona Hidaka Subaru | Mr. Pleiades Senomiya Akiho Yashio Kaito)
Ships / Relationships: Aki/Kai, Kai & Frau, Aki/Kai/Subaru, Subaru/Frau (Subaru & Frau)
- If you choose to write about these characters for me then I think I would honestly be happy with anything you choose to write. Any kind of slice of life or dealing with peril brought on by the Committee either during canon or after it would be absolutely wonderful.
- Is anything on Tanegashima actually haunted? That folk museum is pretty creepy, and I still have questions. Any characters could be involved.
- On the subject of haunting, there is that pseudo-scientific theory that hauntings are perhaps caused by residual energy left in structures. That theme could be played in a bittersweet way between any of the characters and someone from their past or between each other.
- Aki and Kai having really, really different attitudes toward urban legends after all. Or maybe not?
- Frau and Kai and some kind of creepypasta horror. Comforting each other and guiding their way through the darkness that lurks on the internet or around them because of the internet. I don't mind if it's somewhat shippy I just don't end-game ship them personally.
- Subaru being the biggest skeptic or the most superstitious person on Earth. Which is it? Maybe Frau knows and it is either prove him wrong or blackmail time. Maybe they are alike in their skepticism and Kai accidentally ruins their lives.
Portal (Video Game)
Characters Requested: Chell (Portal), Wheatley (Portal), Adventure Core, Fact Core, Space Core
Ships / Relationships: Chell/Wheatley, Wheatley & Adventure Core & Space Core
Prompts:
- Any new take on a Chell and Wheatley reunion fic would be good for me. Chell having the opportunity to finally have some kind of closure would be good. I don't mind if you consider her perspective on him positive or negative - I'd just like to see it happen.
- Something about the Robot Ghost Story that Wheatley tells Chell when they're traveling through Aperture together might be apropos for this exchange.
- Anything about the Cores hanging out and interacting with each other. Fact Core is welcome to come along, too. I just selected the ones I did because I think that Adventure Core and Space Core might make an interesting, funny duo, while Fact might just kind of be irritated with them. But he can totally come along and be irritated.
- What happens to Chell when she makes it outside Aperture?
- I really hate considering the theory that Chell actually was killed at the end of Portal 2 "canon," but it would be an interesting AU for something Halloween (and maybe afterlife) themed?
- This is in no way whatsoever a specific request or demand but I am familiar with both Blue Sky and the Puella Magi Madoka Magica fusion fic Grief Science, so if you wanted to write something set in either of those "universes" then feel free.
Avatar: The Last Airbender
Characters Requested: Zuko (Avatar), Katara (Avatar), Aang (Avatar)
Ships / Relationships: Zuko/Katara/Aang (any combination, shippy or gen)
Prompts:
- When Zuko is alone, does he have some kind of experience we didn't see?
- What was the inspiration for the Blue Spirit?
- Some kind of compare/contrast or "teaming up" of the Blue Spirit and Painted Lady personas Zuko and Katara have could be really interesting to me. It'd also be interesting to see Aang's reaction to the fact that they both definitely have some kid of vigilante streak that isn't going to go away just because the immediate need for it that was apparent at the time isn't as big a threat anymore.
- What is something from airbending culture that Aang wants to keep alive for himself or share with others? Does he continue to be very protective and private about some aspect of it, inversely?
- How does Katara's journey with knowing that she can bloodbend go in the aftermath shortly after the war was over?
- Katara and her healing arts, involving one or both of the boys or just by herself. Perhaps she heals someone after an encounter with something seasonally appropriate in-universe.
- Anything and everything involving the three of them or any pair of them interacting politically after the war. They all are important and children of a revolution, so I would love to see any kind of political thing you wanted to write.
Wreck-It Ralph (2012)
Characters Requested: Vanellope von Schweetz, Wreck-It Ralph
Relationships: Vanellope & Ralph
There is too much of an age gap for me to ever be comfortable with Vanellope/Ralph as a romantic ship. Even if she is aged up, I would prefer not to receive shipping fic about them.
- Vanellope is apparently now a political leader among her people and she matured a lot. However, she is still a child avatar and I just wonder how this works for these characters. While they seem to develop as 'people' they also seem sort of static in a way. For an adult, this doesn't seem like as big a deal, but I'm fascinated with the possibilities of what might happen with a child character who kind of outgrows herself. If Ralph's life begins to improve and he develops a sort of adult life, is she envious? One could even have her age into being a teenager or something through design updates to her game? Or perhaps she is stuck in being a perpetual child. Anything kind of exploring maturity versus appearance with her or some kind of magical situation for her - since there could be a game about magic? - might be fun.
- I would love to know something about how Ralph is doing a little bit later. What kinds of progress does he make in his life? How is this reflected in the "real world" and does it matter?
- Ralph and Vanellope in a horror/scary game.
- Maybe one could do a 'trick' story about something to do with power outages or surges or something like this? If getting unplugged kind of 'kills' them, then what happens when the power goes out? I can't imagine that the arcade has never endured a power outage. Little plot hole that I think could be made into an actual story.
Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magika | Puella Magi Madoka Magica
Characters Requested: Sakura Kyouko, Miki Sayaka, Akemi Homura, Kaname Madoka, Momoe Nagisa, Tomoe Mami
Ships / Relationships: Kyoko/Sayaka, Homura/Madoka, Kyoko/Homura, Mami & Nagisa, Mami & Sayaka, Sayaka & Madoka, Kyoko & Mami, and any other combinations that suit your fancy
Prompts:
Please note, a lot of these are pasted from another similarly-formatted letter because I feel that they're still relevant to my interests and fitting for this exchange. The slight difference in the formatting is because of this, but they are still vaguely grouped by character relevance. A lot of them refer to Rebellion, but I am equally happy to receive something that only takes the anime into account.
- Any glimpse at another timeline apart from those featured in the anime; be as creative as you want and include anyone and as few or as many people as you like!
- A slice of life from before Homura became a magical girl during that first month? Her relationship(s), how she sees the word. Did she ever consider another wish before the one she ultimately chose? Seeing one initial place her life could have forked off from would be really interesting.
- Madoka's primary motivators are kindness, hope, and compassion. We all know that. But I think we also see a broader range of emotion than even her canon-mates give her credit for. Something that evokes another emotion in Madoka and explores its implications would be great (at any point in her journey). Anger, indifference, bitterness, hurt, jealousy, or even a different positive emotion.
- What if in either the anime timeline or Rebellion Homura managed to tell Madoka the truth about her suspicions before so late into the endgame?
- For Sayaka, I am curious about her relationship with/to her family. They seem to be present in her life but never visible to us. Does this have further implications -- even if they're relatively benign?
- If you've read the manga, maybe flesh out was happened after Chapter 9 for Sayaka?
- In the original anime, Sayaka seemed to idealize Mami so much. What would have happened if she had lived (for longer or in general)? Or anything else regarding Sayaka and her response to what she perceives as Mami's legacy.
- In Rebellion, Sayaka seems to be an angel or even possibly the archangel for Mado-kami. I am so fascinated by this and its implications. What was her existence like before Rebellion? How well does/did she know Nagisa before going on the Rebellion assignment? How does she feel about her 'true nature' versus the life she is living in Rebellion?
- In Rebellion, how did Sayaka come to apparently take Kyoko in and why? (Especially maybe given the above.)
- Since we mainly meet Nagisa in Rebellion, what is her existence like as one of Mado-kami's angels? Why does she prefer her typical form or is it just part of disguise? Her bond with Mami interests me a lot, especially given past circumstances surrounding Mami's death in the anime. I assume she's aware of that, but is she?
- I haven't read The Different Story so if you have just make it accessible to me if you go this route: What was Kyoko's life like between when her family died and the events of the anime? What is she interested in? How exactly does she cope?
- The character juxtaposition between Kyoko and Homura fascinates me a lot. Kyoko is so physical while Homura is very convinced of her own dissociation from her body that it apparently affects everything about her conduct. Something about them at any point during canon or in the space following the anime would be interesting to me - gen or shippy. If it's shippy, I'm interested in hurt/comfort in particular.
- I'm not super interested in shippy fic about them but I could be persuaded, but I'd also love a fic about Kyoko and Mami growing back together as people/friends/whatever you'd like maybe in a canon-divergent thing from Rebellion or in a doomed timeline.
- In Rebellion, something further from Kyoko's perspective during the fallout of Homura realizing whose labyrinth they were inside. We see her reacting to apocalyptic events in a world that she had even until that moment accepted as safe enough to continue doing something ordinary. Then, the next time we see her the imagery is very striking. Something from her POV during that sequence -- what does she do or think and how does she get from one point to another?
- Mami says that she just acts cool and elegant because it is what is expected of her as a veteran magical girl. Will anything give he the opportunity act the way she really feels in the long-term? Since she is a veteran, does she have any long-term goals?
- How does Nagisa fit into Mami's life, during Rebellion or in some situation following it?
- For Halloween, something about any group of the girls or any individual girl facing something in a Labyrinth that was seasonally themed would be a lot of fun. If you want to make a Halloween-related Witch, feel free!
- Literally any combination of these characters would make me happy so I think I failed to provide prompts for a couple of possible character combinations, but if you have another idea for any of them, go nuts.