Yuletide!
Dear Yuletide Writer,
Hi! First of all, thank you so much for writing for me. This is my first Yuletide and I’m unbelievably excited about all of my requests. I’m about to ramble on in extensive lengths about my preferences, but that is mostly because I’m verbose and like to explore things. I have complete confidence that I will love any story you write with the chosen characters, and my rambling is in hopes of assuring any worries you might have about my preferences, and possibly giving you a place to start if you're the type of person who likes to have something to work with. Really, I just enjoying flailing about my fandoms.
Gen, het, or slash - all are fine, though nothing explicit or smutty. I love reading about relationships, whether romantic or not. Characters who care deeply for each other (platonically or otherwise) make me very happy.
I’m leaning towards happy endings in all fandoms, though if you want to do something bittersweet, that’s lovely too; I do prefer a bit of hope, though.
Things I like:
As I said, romance or gen; I love stories that focus on best friends, or best friends falling in love. I read for relationships much more than I do for plot. Though I do enjoy a good adventure story in the more adventurey-type fandoms.
I love watching my favorite characters be worried over, and the other characters getting protective. I don’t like it, however, when it comes at the expense of my favorite character being helpless and inactive; I’m all for proactive characters. (This is especially true if the character in question is female; I love watching the characters around her be worried and/or protective, but only as long as she gets to be strong and self-reliant at the same time.) I have a tendency to fixate on a single character, and I love seeing them loved. I think my enjoyment of whump and pining stems quite simply from the fact that I want to see my favorite characters being needed. I want to see how the other characters depend on them, miss them, worry over them, are happy when they are around, etc.
Also: pining, eventually-requited pining, obliviousness, friendly teasing/snark (particularly among siblings), jealousy*, unnecessary jealousy, protectiveness, unnecessary protectiveness, best friends, characters that can laugh at themselves, platonic love, whump, sacrifices, insecurity, longing (and I don’t mean this in a romantic sense - that’s pining. Longing is for anything else: an adventure, or a piano, or the ocean, anything. Wistfully wanting, perhaps I should say), self-reliant characters, wanderlust, guilt, forgiveness, characters with a great capacity for forgiveness, banter, misunderstandings that are eventually resolved, weather, familial love
*I do not like jealousy when it gets icky and excessive and leads to relationship angst. For established relationships, I only really like minor jealousy, where maybe the jealous party knows he is being silly and is half ashamed when coming out with "but you just kept talking about him/her", and it ends in laughter and "I can't believe you thought I was interested in him/her!" I particularly like jealousy in non-established relationships when it leads to snark or pining or being mildly rude to poor, oblivious third parties who have no idea what they did wrong. But creepy jealousy that leads to fighting and breaking relationships and people suspecting each other of cheating? I do not like that at all.
Things I do not like:
cheating, smut, excessive humiliation, deathfic, incest, genderswap, mpreg (for these fandoms? I can't even imagine!,character bashing
In terms of specific fandoms, let me repeat the warning that I have been very rambly (especially in regards to The Five Little Peppers. Eek!). Please take this with the understanding that I just get excited about my fandoms, and don’t think that I’m hoping for you to fit in everything I mention. If you already have an idea, go ahead and write it without worrying about my further details - mostly they’re just there in case you need a starting point and want to know my take on the fandoms.
Hornblower: Horatio, Archie
Archie-Horatio friendship; slash or gen are both lovely, though I’m not a fan of smut. Other than that, I’m up for pretty much anything: adventures on the high seas! or boys getting to know each other! or if you’re in the mood for romance, stoic bff pining! I have to admit a fondness for stories in which Horatio worries over Archie, nor am I averse to a bit of whump. I don’t care if the story is set before or after “Retribution”, but no character death, please.
I am head over heels in love with Archie, so it should not be hard to satisfy me here. During or after the series, both are great - post-“Retribution” is fine, though I’d rather not have a ‘fixit’ story. If you want to after the series, go ahead - I’m willing to take the fix for granted without too many details. I’d rather have something that deals with a plotline of its own rather than something that’s wrapped completely around an existing episode (though if you want to use an episode as a starting point, or refer heavily back, that’s fine - I’d just like exploration of stuff that doesn’t happen in canon, as well).
When I say plot, btw, don’t worry if you’re not up to writing a high seas adventure with ocean battles and captured ships and continental spies or whatever (though that would be awesome). Also awesome, though, would be a plot that is relationship focused. Overall, relationships are what make a story for me, as much as I may enjoy adventure-plot trappings. Archie being able to make Horatio laugh like no one else! Banter! Obliviousness! Or, on the angstier side, coming to terms with past or present traumas (Simpson, I’m talking about you. or Spanish prisons. Or whatever. We’re certainly not lacking in trauma to choose from)! Whump! Worry! Pining! Misunderstandings! How Horatio really does need Archie! If you want to get dark or serious, great! If you want to keep it fun and light, great! If you want to have some of each, even greater!
I have a rather extensive post here, with some squee about my love for Hornblower, which may be helpful if you’re still unsure of what I like. But please know that I’m pretty much guaranteed to like anything if it has Archie and Horatio being best friends.
I should warn, this next section turned into an overflowing of fannish love. I’ve never had an outlet for my love for these books before, so apparently it decided to erupt now. Please excuse the length.
Five Little Peppers: Polly
I love how Polly is the glue holding everyone together, so anything about her, particularly if it focuses on her relationship with Jasper, Ben, or Joel. Polly and her brothers and the transition from poverty to the Kings! Polly/Jasper friendship or romance! Measles!fic! If it extends beyond the Victorian ideology of the books, all the better - looking at how they were actually effected by issues that the book skims over, poverty, or class, or historical events (this isn’t necessary, though - anything within the scope of the books is lovely, too).
This is pretty much the fandom where anything you write will make me happy, because I never dreamed I’d get Pepperfic, ever. These were the characters of my childhood, though, so nothing highly rated, please. I realize this might be a tricky fandom to write, mostly because of certain outdated ideals and Victorian entrenchment, not to mention the do-goodish-ness that the books are rife with, so I’m just going to ramble a little about what I love about the characters and hope that gives you a place to start:
As I said in the prompt, Polly was my childhood favorite, and I really kind of love her. She takes care of her family so staunchly. She plays piano on the table and she tells stories, and she loves nice things. She wants so badly for everything to be just right, and takes the little failures hard. She’s warm hearted and cheery and has a temper that she struggles to control. She grows up so quickly, cooking and making do and taking care of her siblings, but in other ways she’s still so young and earnest and ideologically innocent - I imagine that the transition to the Kings’ house must be a very surprising one for her, more than is shown in the books. Oh, and I know it’s a little bit Mary Sueish, but I love that everyone loves her - because really, how can you not love Polly?
As for the other characters, well, again, I’m particularly interested in them in relation to Polly. The Jasper of the books is pretty much the ‘perfect character’, the befriender, the comforter, the educated, knowledgeable one. I love him dearly (he was early on my list of fictional boyfriends. I was, like, six) but I’d love to see some of the uncertainties we don’t get in canon. How does he react to the differences between his family and the Peppers? What is it like for him, child of privilege, to come into contact with their poverty? How does it affect his relationship with Polly? Oh, and canon does give him one weakness, which I love: his jealousy for Polly. Not just his unnecessary and unwarranted jealousy when faced with her potential suitors - he gets all polite and honorable and sometimes a little bit snarky and you know he’s just bristling with jealousy underneath, and I kind of love it (oh, Jasper, like Polly was ever going to end up with anyone else!); but also the way he always chooses her over everyone else, is jealous of her company because he can’t think of anyone he’d rather be with.
Ben! Ben is staunch and loyal and he’d do pretty much anything to make Polly happy (and she’d do the same for him). He goes all quiet and gruff and unassuming and he often falls into the background, until he comes out and does something startlingly sweet and wonderful, and you just want to hug him. I love Ben. He kind of recedes in the later books, but he’s honorable and dutiful and pays Mr. King back for everything instead of finishing school, which... oh, Ben. If you go the Ben-Polly route, it’s all about the sibling love. Worrying about each other, taking care of each other, shouldering each other’s burdens, teaming up together to fix things… so many possibilities. There’s also room for Jasper-Ben friendship, or! Jasper-Ben-Polly friendship!
Joel. Joel!. He’s the harum-scarum wild one. He’s all over the place, bouncing off walls and getting into trouble quite by accident, even in later days when he’s learned better how to harness his energy. He and Polly have a lot in common, I think, both impetuous and earnest, and so eager to Do The Right Thing, even though they very often can’t figure out how. One of my all-time favorite scenes book scenes is from Phronsie Pepper, when they go into the Little Brown House and Joel has filled it with candles, just the way Polly wished in the beginning of the first book. He remembered that wish over all these years, and when he could fill it, he did. Oh, my heart! (I also love when Polly breaks her arm in FLP Grown Up, and he’s at school and his first thought is to drop everything and go to Polly. I was very upset at Davie for talking him out of it.) Their relationship is underexplored in the books, but they have so many fascinating character parallels, and such a strong bond.
In more general terms: I’m a huge fan of stories that expand past the original Victorian scope of the series, looking at the elements that couldn’t have been dealt with in the canonical context. For example: the Peppers are portrayed with a Victorian understanding of being idyllically poor, but what are the realities of this poverty? How does it affect their relationship with the Kings? What about questions of class mobility? Or if you’re historically minded, placing the characters against a backdrop of historical events could be interesting; the books were written between 1880 and 1916, so there’s plenty of leeway in terms of date (and honestly, I don’t care if you stretch that). Or, social themes aside, just taking the stories farther in terms of content is lovely too - exploring the serious sides of issues or relationships or what-have-you - I’m all for that. Though this is also a fandom where I’m leaning toward a happy ending (though if you end up going down a bittersweet path, that’s fine too - as long as there’ s hope in the end).
And… wow. I didn’t know I had that much to say about the Peppers. Again, I feel like I should reiterate, I’m just tossing out ideas here. I won’t be disappointed if you go off in a completely different direction, and I certainly don’t expect you to include everything (because that would be epic-length fic)! I’m just tossing out ideas in hope of sparking creative juices. Because, seriously, I mean it when I said that I’ll love anything. Especially if it contains people loving my Polly.
Note for anyone else who may be reading this (because I'm always trying to advertise my fandoms): the Pepper Books were written for children by Margaret Sidney at the turn of the century. They’re hardly at the forefront of children’s literature of the time; they’re moralistic and at times overly saccharine and pedantic. That said, I fell in love with the characters at a very early age, and I really, truly love them. (I had no idea exactly how much deeply rooted fannishness I had for these books until I started rambling just now.) If you’re interested, several of the books are available online at Classicreader or Project Gutenberg. There is also a resource page here
Wind in the Willows: Rat, Mole
Oh, this is comfort fic. Ratty and Mole, BFF. What I love about this book is how Rat loves the river, and Mole loves him for it, and Rat loves Mole enough to go away from it. Anything focusing on that dynamic will make me wonderfully happy. Or something about Rat’s wanderlust versus his love for his home - with Mole in the role of the best friend, of course.
Ratty and Mole are BFF forever. I mean it when I said that anything focusing on the dynamic of their friendship would be brilliant. I’m leaning toward something gentle, nothing too dramatic or serious or angsty or anything, just comfort and love and some bittersweetness in the form of longing (not romantic longing, I don’t mean, just longing for the things they love, each other, their home, the river, the sea). Ratty and Mole making house and getting comfortable with each other. Rat loving the river and making up poetry, and Mole loving him for it. Mole’s whims, and how willing Rat is to drop everything and indulge him. Rat’s bouts of wanderlust, and Mole steadying him through them.
Or, a different track: the Sea Rat wasn’t listed as a character, so I couldn’t ask for him, but if you wanted to do something with him, that would be lovely as well. The tension between love of peace and love of travel is central to both him and Ratty; they are torn between the wandering life and the idea of a home, and I love them for it. I also love that Mole is the reason Rat doesn’t go; that if it weren’t for Mole, Ratty would have followed the Sea Rat down the path and onto the ships - but he stays, because Mole reminds him that he loves this place, loves his home, loves his friends, loves the river. So, if you want to go down that path…
I got carried away while flipping through the book just now, and started typing up my favorite parts. If you’re feeling in need of further inspiration, my favorite quotes are listed here.
Casson Family
I’d love some Caddy/Michael, set anywhere in the series, or perhaps after the last book. Caddy is brilliant and crazy and wonderful, and Michael is hopelessly in love with her but not sure that the feeling is mutual. Michael loving Caddy, and Caddy figuring things out! Or, if that’s not up your alley, Michael and Caddy’s adventures after she catches up with him. Bonus points for the rest of the Casson family, especially Rose.
Comparative to the others, I don’t have that much to say about this prompt - which is not to say that I’m not just as eager for the story! I love the Cassons, especially Caddy and Michael, who have been my OTP since the first book. “Don’t call me darling! I’m a driving instructor!” Hee! I love Caddy’s wild exuberance and vivid flightiness; I love that she appears to be quite brilliant underneath it all. And I love Michael’s gruff reluctance, and how it segues into being head over heels in love with her. So… anything about them will make me really happy.
That is probably the length that all of the other parts should have been. Sorry.
Again, dear Yuletide Writer, thank you! I hope my ramblings haven’t scared you off. Really, I am very easy to please, I promise. And I can’t wait to see what you come up with!
Hi! First of all, thank you so much for writing for me. This is my first Yuletide and I’m unbelievably excited about all of my requests. I’m about to ramble on in extensive lengths about my preferences, but that is mostly because I’m verbose and like to explore things. I have complete confidence that I will love any story you write with the chosen characters, and my rambling is in hopes of assuring any worries you might have about my preferences, and possibly giving you a place to start if you're the type of person who likes to have something to work with. Really, I just enjoying flailing about my fandoms.
Gen, het, or slash - all are fine, though nothing explicit or smutty. I love reading about relationships, whether romantic or not. Characters who care deeply for each other (platonically or otherwise) make me very happy.
I’m leaning towards happy endings in all fandoms, though if you want to do something bittersweet, that’s lovely too; I do prefer a bit of hope, though.
Things I like:
As I said, romance or gen; I love stories that focus on best friends, or best friends falling in love. I read for relationships much more than I do for plot. Though I do enjoy a good adventure story in the more adventurey-type fandoms.
I love watching my favorite characters be worried over, and the other characters getting protective. I don’t like it, however, when it comes at the expense of my favorite character being helpless and inactive; I’m all for proactive characters. (This is especially true if the character in question is female; I love watching the characters around her be worried and/or protective, but only as long as she gets to be strong and self-reliant at the same time.) I have a tendency to fixate on a single character, and I love seeing them loved. I think my enjoyment of whump and pining stems quite simply from the fact that I want to see my favorite characters being needed. I want to see how the other characters depend on them, miss them, worry over them, are happy when they are around, etc.
Also: pining, eventually-requited pining, obliviousness, friendly teasing/snark (particularly among siblings), jealousy*, unnecessary jealousy, protectiveness, unnecessary protectiveness, best friends, characters that can laugh at themselves, platonic love, whump, sacrifices, insecurity, longing (and I don’t mean this in a romantic sense - that’s pining. Longing is for anything else: an adventure, or a piano, or the ocean, anything. Wistfully wanting, perhaps I should say), self-reliant characters, wanderlust, guilt, forgiveness, characters with a great capacity for forgiveness, banter, misunderstandings that are eventually resolved, weather, familial love
*I do not like jealousy when it gets icky and excessive and leads to relationship angst. For established relationships, I only really like minor jealousy, where maybe the jealous party knows he is being silly and is half ashamed when coming out with "but you just kept talking about him/her", and it ends in laughter and "I can't believe you thought I was interested in him/her!" I particularly like jealousy in non-established relationships when it leads to snark or pining or being mildly rude to poor, oblivious third parties who have no idea what they did wrong. But creepy jealousy that leads to fighting and breaking relationships and people suspecting each other of cheating? I do not like that at all.
Things I do not like:
cheating, smut, excessive humiliation, deathfic, incest, genderswap, mpreg (for these fandoms? I can't even imagine!,character bashing
In terms of specific fandoms, let me repeat the warning that I have been very rambly (especially in regards to The Five Little Peppers. Eek!). Please take this with the understanding that I just get excited about my fandoms, and don’t think that I’m hoping for you to fit in everything I mention. If you already have an idea, go ahead and write it without worrying about my further details - mostly they’re just there in case you need a starting point and want to know my take on the fandoms.
Hornblower: Horatio, Archie
Archie-Horatio friendship; slash or gen are both lovely, though I’m not a fan of smut. Other than that, I’m up for pretty much anything: adventures on the high seas! or boys getting to know each other! or if you’re in the mood for romance, stoic bff pining! I have to admit a fondness for stories in which Horatio worries over Archie, nor am I averse to a bit of whump. I don’t care if the story is set before or after “Retribution”, but no character death, please.
I am head over heels in love with Archie, so it should not be hard to satisfy me here. During or after the series, both are great - post-“Retribution” is fine, though I’d rather not have a ‘fixit’ story. If you want to after the series, go ahead - I’m willing to take the fix for granted without too many details. I’d rather have something that deals with a plotline of its own rather than something that’s wrapped completely around an existing episode (though if you want to use an episode as a starting point, or refer heavily back, that’s fine - I’d just like exploration of stuff that doesn’t happen in canon, as well).
When I say plot, btw, don’t worry if you’re not up to writing a high seas adventure with ocean battles and captured ships and continental spies or whatever (though that would be awesome). Also awesome, though, would be a plot that is relationship focused. Overall, relationships are what make a story for me, as much as I may enjoy adventure-plot trappings. Archie being able to make Horatio laugh like no one else! Banter! Obliviousness! Or, on the angstier side, coming to terms with past or present traumas (Simpson, I’m talking about you. or Spanish prisons. Or whatever. We’re certainly not lacking in trauma to choose from)! Whump! Worry! Pining! Misunderstandings! How Horatio really does need Archie! If you want to get dark or serious, great! If you want to keep it fun and light, great! If you want to have some of each, even greater!
I have a rather extensive post here, with some squee about my love for Hornblower, which may be helpful if you’re still unsure of what I like. But please know that I’m pretty much guaranteed to like anything if it has Archie and Horatio being best friends.
I should warn, this next section turned into an overflowing of fannish love. I’ve never had an outlet for my love for these books before, so apparently it decided to erupt now. Please excuse the length.
Five Little Peppers: Polly
I love how Polly is the glue holding everyone together, so anything about her, particularly if it focuses on her relationship with Jasper, Ben, or Joel. Polly and her brothers and the transition from poverty to the Kings! Polly/Jasper friendship or romance! Measles!fic! If it extends beyond the Victorian ideology of the books, all the better - looking at how they were actually effected by issues that the book skims over, poverty, or class, or historical events (this isn’t necessary, though - anything within the scope of the books is lovely, too).
This is pretty much the fandom where anything you write will make me happy, because I never dreamed I’d get Pepperfic, ever. These were the characters of my childhood, though, so nothing highly rated, please. I realize this might be a tricky fandom to write, mostly because of certain outdated ideals and Victorian entrenchment, not to mention the do-goodish-ness that the books are rife with, so I’m just going to ramble a little about what I love about the characters and hope that gives you a place to start:
As I said in the prompt, Polly was my childhood favorite, and I really kind of love her. She takes care of her family so staunchly. She plays piano on the table and she tells stories, and she loves nice things. She wants so badly for everything to be just right, and takes the little failures hard. She’s warm hearted and cheery and has a temper that she struggles to control. She grows up so quickly, cooking and making do and taking care of her siblings, but in other ways she’s still so young and earnest and ideologically innocent - I imagine that the transition to the Kings’ house must be a very surprising one for her, more than is shown in the books. Oh, and I know it’s a little bit Mary Sueish, but I love that everyone loves her - because really, how can you not love Polly?
As for the other characters, well, again, I’m particularly interested in them in relation to Polly. The Jasper of the books is pretty much the ‘perfect character’, the befriender, the comforter, the educated, knowledgeable one. I love him dearly (he was early on my list of fictional boyfriends. I was, like, six) but I’d love to see some of the uncertainties we don’t get in canon. How does he react to the differences between his family and the Peppers? What is it like for him, child of privilege, to come into contact with their poverty? How does it affect his relationship with Polly? Oh, and canon does give him one weakness, which I love: his jealousy for Polly. Not just his unnecessary and unwarranted jealousy when faced with her potential suitors - he gets all polite and honorable and sometimes a little bit snarky and you know he’s just bristling with jealousy underneath, and I kind of love it (oh, Jasper, like Polly was ever going to end up with anyone else!); but also the way he always chooses her over everyone else, is jealous of her company because he can’t think of anyone he’d rather be with.
Ben! Ben is staunch and loyal and he’d do pretty much anything to make Polly happy (and she’d do the same for him). He goes all quiet and gruff and unassuming and he often falls into the background, until he comes out and does something startlingly sweet and wonderful, and you just want to hug him. I love Ben. He kind of recedes in the later books, but he’s honorable and dutiful and pays Mr. King back for everything instead of finishing school, which... oh, Ben. If you go the Ben-Polly route, it’s all about the sibling love. Worrying about each other, taking care of each other, shouldering each other’s burdens, teaming up together to fix things… so many possibilities. There’s also room for Jasper-Ben friendship, or! Jasper-Ben-Polly friendship!
Joel. Joel!. He’s the harum-scarum wild one. He’s all over the place, bouncing off walls and getting into trouble quite by accident, even in later days when he’s learned better how to harness his energy. He and Polly have a lot in common, I think, both impetuous and earnest, and so eager to Do The Right Thing, even though they very often can’t figure out how. One of my all-time favorite scenes book scenes is from Phronsie Pepper, when they go into the Little Brown House and Joel has filled it with candles, just the way Polly wished in the beginning of the first book. He remembered that wish over all these years, and when he could fill it, he did. Oh, my heart! (I also love when Polly breaks her arm in FLP Grown Up, and he’s at school and his first thought is to drop everything and go to Polly. I was very upset at Davie for talking him out of it.) Their relationship is underexplored in the books, but they have so many fascinating character parallels, and such a strong bond.
In more general terms: I’m a huge fan of stories that expand past the original Victorian scope of the series, looking at the elements that couldn’t have been dealt with in the canonical context. For example: the Peppers are portrayed with a Victorian understanding of being idyllically poor, but what are the realities of this poverty? How does it affect their relationship with the Kings? What about questions of class mobility? Or if you’re historically minded, placing the characters against a backdrop of historical events could be interesting; the books were written between 1880 and 1916, so there’s plenty of leeway in terms of date (and honestly, I don’t care if you stretch that). Or, social themes aside, just taking the stories farther in terms of content is lovely too - exploring the serious sides of issues or relationships or what-have-you - I’m all for that. Though this is also a fandom where I’m leaning toward a happy ending (though if you end up going down a bittersweet path, that’s fine too - as long as there’ s hope in the end).
And… wow. I didn’t know I had that much to say about the Peppers. Again, I feel like I should reiterate, I’m just tossing out ideas here. I won’t be disappointed if you go off in a completely different direction, and I certainly don’t expect you to include everything (because that would be epic-length fic)! I’m just tossing out ideas in hope of sparking creative juices. Because, seriously, I mean it when I said that I’ll love anything. Especially if it contains people loving my Polly.
Note for anyone else who may be reading this (because I'm always trying to advertise my fandoms): the Pepper Books were written for children by Margaret Sidney at the turn of the century. They’re hardly at the forefront of children’s literature of the time; they’re moralistic and at times overly saccharine and pedantic. That said, I fell in love with the characters at a very early age, and I really, truly love them. (I had no idea exactly how much deeply rooted fannishness I had for these books until I started rambling just now.) If you’re interested, several of the books are available online at Classicreader or Project Gutenberg. There is also a resource page here
Wind in the Willows: Rat, Mole
Oh, this is comfort fic. Ratty and Mole, BFF. What I love about this book is how Rat loves the river, and Mole loves him for it, and Rat loves Mole enough to go away from it. Anything focusing on that dynamic will make me wonderfully happy. Or something about Rat’s wanderlust versus his love for his home - with Mole in the role of the best friend, of course.
Ratty and Mole are BFF forever. I mean it when I said that anything focusing on the dynamic of their friendship would be brilliant. I’m leaning toward something gentle, nothing too dramatic or serious or angsty or anything, just comfort and love and some bittersweetness in the form of longing (not romantic longing, I don’t mean, just longing for the things they love, each other, their home, the river, the sea). Ratty and Mole making house and getting comfortable with each other. Rat loving the river and making up poetry, and Mole loving him for it. Mole’s whims, and how willing Rat is to drop everything and indulge him. Rat’s bouts of wanderlust, and Mole steadying him through them.
Or, a different track: the Sea Rat wasn’t listed as a character, so I couldn’t ask for him, but if you wanted to do something with him, that would be lovely as well. The tension between love of peace and love of travel is central to both him and Ratty; they are torn between the wandering life and the idea of a home, and I love them for it. I also love that Mole is the reason Rat doesn’t go; that if it weren’t for Mole, Ratty would have followed the Sea Rat down the path and onto the ships - but he stays, because Mole reminds him that he loves this place, loves his home, loves his friends, loves the river. So, if you want to go down that path…
I got carried away while flipping through the book just now, and started typing up my favorite parts. If you’re feeling in need of further inspiration, my favorite quotes are listed here.
Casson Family
I’d love some Caddy/Michael, set anywhere in the series, or perhaps after the last book. Caddy is brilliant and crazy and wonderful, and Michael is hopelessly in love with her but not sure that the feeling is mutual. Michael loving Caddy, and Caddy figuring things out! Or, if that’s not up your alley, Michael and Caddy’s adventures after she catches up with him. Bonus points for the rest of the Casson family, especially Rose.
Comparative to the others, I don’t have that much to say about this prompt - which is not to say that I’m not just as eager for the story! I love the Cassons, especially Caddy and Michael, who have been my OTP since the first book. “Don’t call me darling! I’m a driving instructor!” Hee! I love Caddy’s wild exuberance and vivid flightiness; I love that she appears to be quite brilliant underneath it all. And I love Michael’s gruff reluctance, and how it segues into being head over heels in love with her. So… anything about them will make me really happy.
That is probably the length that all of the other parts should have been. Sorry.
Again, dear Yuletide Writer, thank you! I hope my ramblings haven’t scared you off. Really, I am very easy to please, I promise. And I can’t wait to see what you come up with!