stories I'm not writing (1)
I finally finished Avatar. Some deep, treacly part of my soul wishes Zuko could have reconciled with that little boy in the Earth Kingdom. Or something. The silent Agni Kai with Azula (*sob*) was suitably epic, as was the coronation. Also, I am totally a gen girl and at first couldn't understand how anybody could get worked up by romantic partnerships between 12-16-year-olds, and somehow I ended up desperately (if hopelessly) shipping Aang/Toph. What is wrong with me. (As for Zuko, my only OTP is Zuko/Fire Nation. And possibly Zuko/honour.)
Anyway! I don't know about you all, but when I'm working on something (or, as in this case, two somethings), I always have to fight off the temptation to just wander off and start working on one or two other things. Since I have two au_bigbangs going, this is Not Acceptable, and instead I've started jotting down my ideas for another day. And by "my ideas," I mean "ideas I'd like to see written by anybody, as long as it's halfway decent."
So all of this is to say that I'm not laying claim to any of these ideas or anything, it's just -- if anybody has ever wondered why I never finish anything, it's because I'm lazy and undisciplined my brain is a strange place.
A Few Stories I Am Not Writing At The Moment, and Have Not Previously Written Any Substantial Part Of, But Would Really Like To See Written By Someone Someday, And That Someone Will Probably Be Me: Mostly Austen Edition
(ETA: "and" means the idea follows from the previous thingy, either as a potential addition to the premise, or a requirement; "or" means that it's an alternative to what came before; "and/or" means it could follow from the previous thing, or could be entirely unrelated to everything except the basic premise.)
(1) P&P takes place in the Potterverse (c. 1790s)
-- Fitzwilliam = Black, Darcy = Lestrange, de Bourgh = Rosier (for Rosings), and
-- Wickham is a Muggleborn; his godfather sent him to Hogwarts, and
-- Darcy and Charlotte were in the same year
-- Gryffindors: Elizabeth, Lydia, Lady Catherine, Wickham, maybe others. Not Mrs Bennet, Darcy, Georgiana, Charlotte, or Mrs Gardiner.
(2) After Hunsford, Darcy and Elizabeth go their separate ways, marry other people, are happy, and perhaps even happen across one another (as amicably as might be expected)
-- Elizabeth’s husband is a young protégé of her uncle’s. He makes a fortune in trade, and/or
-- Elizabeth and her husband die comparatively young and their adolescent daughters discover Darcy’s letter. They decide to return it to him. Hilarity and/or tragedy ensues, and
-- One of the girls ends up marrying Darcy’s nephew. Who is named Darcy (Georgiana’s maiden name, obvs). Extra points if the daughter is Elizabeth, so it could actually be Darcy/Elizabeth, and/or
-- Darcy marries some nice sister of a friend’s or something, or
-- Darcy marries Emma Woodhouse, or
-- Darcy marries Emma and Elizabeth marries Mr Knightley. Awkwardtiemz! or
-- Darcy marries Emma and Mr Knightley marries Jane Fairfax, or
-- Darcy marries Emma and Mr Knightley marries someone else, or
-- Darcy marries Emma and Mr Knightley doesn’t marry at all. :( or
-- Darcy marries Mary Crawford, and
-- She's already been through the Mansfield fiasco, or
-- She hasn't gone to Mansfield yet.
(3) Darcy marries Eleanor Tilney.
-- He’s a younger son (given the gap between him and G, there were probably stillborn children anyway-- just say there was one before him in canon and he survived here); in fact, make it better and assume he’s the younger son who’s actually in NA, and
-- Some time after NA, Catherine dies (look, I’m sorry) and after awhile Henry ends up remarrying -- Elizabeth Bennet. It’s still about Darcy and Elizabeth’s relationship … as siblings! or
-- Darcy has his original position; it’s AU for both books. He marries Eleanor after the whole Hertfordshire thing, or
-- Darcy marries Eleanor after Hunsford. The siblings-in-law thing becomes very very awkward, but not ~hopeless tragic romance~.
(4) Zombies! Only less … whatever than P&P&Z, and
-- Emma (per
hl!) takes over as a leader against the zombies. So does Darcy. They take over the world/band together/get married, in whatever order seems most appropriate, or
-- Darcy and Elizabeth fight off zombies!
(5) Persuasion in ancient Rome
-- Anne is a patrician lady and Wentworth is a general. Sort of Marius/Julia-y, with less crazy.
(6) P&P/Bones
-- Special Agent Bennet and Dr Darcy Fitzwilliam; the other P&P characters could probably fill the slots too. (Jane as Angela would be awesome.) and
-- genderswap! Darcy is a girl, Bennet is a guy.
(7) P&P/ST
-- Captain Elizabeth Bennet; Darcy is the science officer, and/or
-- they’re both members of Bingley’s ship until they get transferred away; eventually Elizabeth gets transferred to the Pemberley, or
-- they’re both captains on different ships, and/or
-- Lydia is Wesley
(8) P&P/The Secret Garden fusion -- a terrible fever strikes Pemberley, killing everyone but little Fitzwilliam Darcy. He's sent to live with his reclusive aunt.
-- Darcy is Mary, Anne is Colin. Fitzwilliam can be Dickon. :D
(9) P&P/the Fire-Rose -- when Fire-Elementalist Elizabeth, defending the countryside from the depredations of an evil Master of Water, discovers that Darcy is an Elemental Master, she's sure he's the culprit.
-- The Reveal -- Darcy is a Master of Air and trying to track down the evildoer. (Extra points: it's not Wickham.)
(10) P&P as a fairy tale
-- other than Cinderella
-- other than Beauty and the Beast
-- as Fairer-than-a-Fairy, 'cause I like that one
(11) Darcy and Elizabeth fight crime!
-- in their original time period, and
-- they meet over a dead body when she’s barely fifteen and he’s twenty-one and begin their career from there. Probably get married along the way. Maybe his father is murdered?
(12) Georgiana was supposed to join the Netherfield party once Darcy had vetted the neighbourhood, and
-- this is how she knows that Wickham showed up; Darcy had to tell her, and
-- Wickham doesn’t show up and Georgiana comes instead.
(13) P&P/MP crossover; Fitzwilliam falls in love with Mary and Henry with Georgiana (largely due to her similarity to Fanny)
-- Mary/Fitzwilliam works out, even though she and Elizabeth loathe each other for years (largely due to their similarity to each other)
-- potential variation: they (M/F) have an open relationship of sorts; Mary (and maybe Fitzwilliam? idk) has sexual relationships with other men, but he knows about it and doesn’t mind; they remain utterly devoted to each other and she’s devastated when he dies. Their relationship makes no sense whatsoever to the Darcys, but they accept it by not thinking about it (EVER) and kind of take her in after Fitzwilliam’s death (Waterloo?) while she gets her shit together. Elizabeth and Mary pretty much reconcile and emerge from the whole thing is mutually uncomprehending but close friends.
-- Henry/Georgiana doesn’t work, because Georgiana doesn’t actually like bad boys. She fell for the choirboy, not the bad boy. THANK YOU PLEASE CAN THIS PLOT DIE.
(14) LIA!fic -- Elizabeth and Darcy are transported into the modern real world
-- there are several Janeites who end up in Regencylandia, each of which at least approximates the kind of Austen fan that actually exists:
-- Gloria Benedict, casual, fanon-y (but basically reasonable) fan
-- Peter Card, snotty but thoughtful acafan
-- Lucy Card, Peter’s sister, a younger fan converted by one of the new movies, but actually likes the books better; spastic but intelligent
-- Fredrika something, an eccentric and deeply patriotic Swedish fan
-- they’re horrified that Darcy and Elizabeth don’t match up to their expectations; Darcy is a blond tenor, Elizabeth is average-sized and “too pretty”; they’re lost in Austen, not P&P, and by the time they get back a number of years have passed and D&E have had all sorts of crazy adventures and fallen in love on the way and gotten married, and they missed it.
-- on D&E’s side of things, the portals that brought them originally stuck them in an AU future (maybe?), then took them to the Janeite-y RL, and then it opens up again and they run through, only to find themselves in another universe; they end up as INTERDIMENSIONAL VAGABONDS for years. Their first jump lands them in the TARDIS, after several months of hair-raising adventures the portal opens again and they leap to Star Trek to various historical periods to Narnia and so on until they land back in the “future” and just stick it out, and
-- Darcy and Elizabeth stay because they have a child who, once the portals are repaired, must remain in its native reality, or
-- They go home and it’s exactly like it was before they left -- except they’re wearing their wedding rings
(15) Every single character lives happily ever after
-- (until they die, for some -- e.g., Lydia’s HEA comes after Wickham’s death, and Charlotte’s after Collins’, and Mr Bennet’s after Mrs Bennet’s)
(16) How controlling!Mr Bennet would actually work out
-- not a lot of extended drama. They just get married with the Gardiners’ help. Jane and Bingley marry shortly thereafter.
(17) Kitty fic
-- she is not secretly brilliant or strong-willed or whatever; she grows as a person and ends up happily married to a local clergyman. He has the living intended for Wickham. XD
-- maybe she and Georgiana get along but aren’t BFFs?
(18) Darcy tells Georgiana about Wickham’s perfidy
-- per canon, I mean
(19) Darcy and Bingley meet at school
-- Bingley is being bullied and Darcy takes him under his wing?
-- how this feeds into their later relationship
-- not not NOT Darcy/Bingley ever at all
(20) Elizabeth and Darcy die young!
-- I don’t even know. Their kids end up...somewhere.
(21) P&P sequel about Darcy and Elizabeth being awesome
-- they use their powers -- his insight into character, her empathy and charm, and their mutual charisma and eloquence, for good instead of evil!
-- They become actually really good matchmakers; or,
-- They become politicians. Progressive, reforming politicians! Elizabeth is a proper 1790-ish Whig(gish) hostess, Darcy is an MP.
(22) Lady Catherine doesn’t come to Hertfordshire, and
-- Darcy and Elizabeth pine after each other. (C'mon, the pining is canon.) Bingley is oblivious, Jane confused, and Mr Bennet suspicious. Elizabeth finally gets up the nerve to be ~encouraging~ or whatever at a party and they have a happyfluffy … something. Or maybe Jane and Bingley end up shipping them like whoa and, once Elizabeth admits to Jane that she doesn’t hate Darcy any more and kindoflikeshimabit, they’re like SUPER [ADORABLE] MATCHMAKERS.
-- Darcy and Elizabeth think this is hilarious. And enjoyable. <3
(23) Darcy and Fitzwilliam are BFFs.
-- No, that’s it. (Also, canon.) They just have this epic bromance, starting when … Darcy is born, basically. It’s like The Fox and hte Hound only without the ‘bred to kill each other’ part, and
-- Fitzwilliam dies in the war. See above for the rest of this plot, or
-- They live to a comfortable old age.
(24) reformed!Tom/Fanny
-- I don't know how it would work, but it could be interesting to see her with somebody who is charming and lively without being completely immoral.
(25) Mr Darcy (late) had an affair with Mrs Woodhouse
-- … which resulted in Emma, hence the gap between her and Isabella, and
-- Darcy and/or Emma discover this, somehow. (Emma would be funnier, I think.)
-- hilarity ensues!
(26) P&P: the play
-- exactly what it says on the tin. well, maybe a bit more cracky than canon. or focused on the Darcy-Bingley-Georgiana-etc side of things?
(27) magical AU P&P
-- Darcy is a powerful empath, Elizabeth is some kind of plant controller, Jane is also an empath (making her largely immune to Darcy’s powers, hence his misjudgment), Bingley’s an ex-Barbarian (hee!), Georgiana is a necromancer, and Wickham is a vampire (I wrote maybe five drabbles in this ‘verse? But never the story itself)
-- alternately: Darcy is a telepath, Elizabeth is an empath, Charlotte is a diviner (because she knows all); there’s some kind of dastardly plot that involves kidnapping Bingley, idek
(28) Unhappy families
-- The stories of Mrs Bennet and Lady Anne Darcy; do not whitewash Mrs Bennet but no demonizing either; Lady Anne should not be the perfect Madonna mother figure, but very much Lady Catherine’s sister and genuinely less amiable than her husband, without being horrifically evil. Focus on them and not their husbands. Or children!
(29) General Tilney/Lady Catherine
-- because why not?
(30) modern American genderswap
-- Elizabeth = Eliezer “Jack” Benedict, Darcy = Narcissa Fitzwilliam, Janine = Janine Gardiner, Narcissa’s cousin
-- the entire ‘verse of the two shorts I wrote
(31) Such Precious Remains -- an AU of SC
-- extension of the fragment of the same name: Lady Catherine adopts Elizabeth, so only Jane is kidnapped by the Bennets
-- (wow, SC sounds weird without context. okay, with context too.)
(32) Mr Darcy marries after his wife’s death.
-- The late Mr Darcy, that is. Our Darcy is about thirteen or fourteen and the stepson from hell.
-- he does eventually come around and he and the stepmother are good influences on each other. They stick together when his father dies and THIS DOES AFFECT THE PLOT ACTUALLY.
(33) Darcy and Elizabeth’s daughter marries somebody for family/political reasons
-- Darcy and Elizabeth don’t pressure her into it; mostly, she pressures herself. (And by “she” I mean lots and lots of factors lead to her thinking that she needs to do it, not that it’s ALL HER FAULT), and
-- the husband is very powerful, and an ally in Parliament and friendly with her father and dude she’d be a marchioness in charge of lots and lots of things but ... basically it’s The Semi-attached Couple in P&Pland. Except the happy ending comes about by him dying and not by her coming around or whatever. So more like One Fault.
(34) Epistolary P&P
-- yup - just imagining what the letter version might have looked like. First Impressions for realz.
(35) Ten Facts About Fitzwilliam Darcy
-- for real this time
-- maybe some other characters, too, because I like Ten Facts fic (and going by AO3, other people do too? idk)
(36) MP's theoretical prev-gen marriages take place: Miss Ward (canon Mrs Norris) becomes the manager of a poor household with lots of children, Miss Frances (canon Mrs Price) marries Sir Thomas, and Miss Maria (canon Lady Bertram) ends up with Mr Norris.
-- alt!Mrs Price and alt!Mrs Norris are both better off for it, as are the people within their influence
(37) MP's theoretical marriages take place: Edmund marries Mary and within a short time from that, Henry marries Fanny
-- per the narrator's argument, Edmund/Mary actually turns out all right. Henry/Fanny is more difficult.
(38) S&S alt!pairings
-- there's no inexplicable Robert/Lucy marriage; Edward dutifully marries Lucy, and/or
-- per the narrator's remarks, Mrs Smith makes Willoughby's inheritance contingent upon marrying Marianne; he cheerfully agrees, and/or
-- Elinor and Brandon commiserate over their shared misfortunes and end up falling into love. Or affectionate respect or something, or
-- Willoughby falls in love with Elinor in the first place, or
-- Brandon falls in love with Mrs Dashwood, or
-- Brandon and Eliza successfully elope!
(39) Wickham succeeds in eloping with Georgiana
-- no drunken inept Darcy, mkay? Also, Wickham is an asshole, not a Complete Monster
(40) Wickham isn't a jerk
-- I know, icky character departure, and it's been done at least twice, but for some reason it still interests me.
(41) AU of FI: only Darcy is genderswapped
-- not Darcy/Elizabeth, because actually considering orientation is half the fun of narrow-target genderswaps, and Elizabeth is consistently attracted to men and only men (sexually, anyway), or
-- eh, Darcy/Elizabeth anyway, creatively reinterpret or something, and/or
-- Darcy/Elizabeth and Elizabeth is still straight, and/or
-- Catherine is ace, and/or
-- Charlotte/Catherine! and/or
-- Charlotte/Catherine/Elizabeth OT3, just because, and/or
-- mix and match 'em all: aromantic!gay!Charlotte, biromantic!straight!Elizabeth, demiromantic!ace!Catherine
(42) AU of FI: same genders, alternate pairings
-- Catherine/Charlotte nevertheless, and
-- extra points for aromantic!Charlotte and demi!Catherine, or
-- OT3: mix and match aromantic!Charlotte, heteroromantic!Henry, and demiromantic!Catherine (Charlotte<->Catherine<->Henry, I imagine)
(42) Henry Crawford does provide a home for his sister at Everingham.
-- epic crossover potential! (esp convenient for Darcy/unreformed!Mary above, but anything really)
(43) Bingley doesn't take Darcy's advice about Jane.
(44) Bingley is already married when he rents Netherfield, to one of the girls he's been in love with before.
-- He and Jane do not fall in love, or
-- ...they do? I don't know, I don't like it very much
(45) Bingley does break his ankle in the first dance.
-- probably no insult
(46) Colonel Forster falls for Lydia instead of Harriet what's-her-name.
(47) Mrs Bennet encourages Mr Collins towards Mary, not Elizabeth.
(48) Elizabeth is Lady Catherine's daughter.
-- I'm not sure where this came from. No kidnappings or mistaken identity or anything, just ... yeah. IDEK.
(49) Elizabeth is Bingley's sister.
-- Again, no, not kidnapped from the hedgerows, and
-- She gets on reasonably well with all her siblings, and
-- extra points/lulz if she's closest to Caroline, and
-- she doesn't instantly become BFFs with Jane, though she (probably) likes her, and
-- she might even be *gasp* a little bit snobbish, though she should still be recognisable, and
-- Georgiana doesn't instantly worship the ground she walks on, and
-- to sum up, avoid the Black Hole Sue
(50) Georgiana and Darcy's birth order is switched
-- This should have significant effects on their personalities, but not transform them completely, and
-- maybe not Darcy/Elizabeth? or maybe it is. But I think the focus should be on Georgiana.
(51) Bingley marries Georgiana, and the three of them are very happy.
-- Not a OT3. Just ... you know.
-- Maybe some of the P&P plot happened, or maybe he happened to take a house somewhere else and never met Jane and actually fell in love with Georgiana in a normal way. And...life happens.
(52) ATLA + P&P fusion (P&P plot/characters in ATLA setting)
-- Don’t even think about making them white. No, really, and
-- it doesn’t take place in the series’ timeline; it’s either well afterwards or well before, with a different Avatar and stuff (maybe Kyoshi, just for the awesome -- or Yangchen!), and
-- None of the main characters is the Avatar and they don’t have anything to do with him/her, and
-- Darcy is a waterbender, presumably from the North. Elizabeth is either an earthbender or a firebender. (I think it’s easier to imagine the Bennets generally coming from the Earth Kingdom, but Mrs Bennet could be some Fire Nation girl he married, and while Elizabeth and Lydia are benders like him, they're very much ... Fire Nation-y.)
-- or, ATLA + SW fusion!
-- Chosen One = Avatar gone horribly wrong.
-- Padmé is the leader of a Water tribe; the majority of the Jedi, including Obi-Wan, are airbenders, though they train any benders; and Anakin, naturally, comes from the Fire Nation. Luke and Leia are massively overpowered firebenders, as is Palpatine (lightning!).
-- Or it’s a more balanced fusion, with the space opera elements and the ATLA setting. Still don’t make them white.
-- or, ATLA + anything. Seriously, I can’t think of anything that can’t benefit from ATLA.
(53) YW + P&P
-- also in the historical period!
-- Wickham is not, not not the Lone One
(54) Lady Susan in narrative form
-- without changing anybody's personalities!
(55) Darcy is a member of the League of the Scarlet Pimpernel!
-- Hey, going by the original composition it's even the right period. Hilariously, I think this could be less cracky than most serious fic in the fandom, including mine.
Anyway! I don't know about you all, but when I'm working on something (or, as in this case, two somethings), I always have to fight off the temptation to just wander off and start working on one or two other things. Since I have two au_bigbangs going, this is Not Acceptable, and instead I've started jotting down my ideas for another day. And by "my ideas," I mean "ideas I'd like to see written by anybody, as long as it's halfway decent."
So all of this is to say that I'm not laying claim to any of these ideas or anything, it's just -- if anybody has ever wondered why I never finish anything, it's because I'm lazy and undisciplined my brain is a strange place.
A Few Stories I Am Not Writing At The Moment, and Have Not Previously Written Any Substantial Part Of, But Would Really Like To See Written By Someone Someday, And That Someone Will Probably Be Me: Mostly Austen Edition
(ETA: "and" means the idea follows from the previous thingy, either as a potential addition to the premise, or a requirement; "or" means that it's an alternative to what came before; "and/or" means it could follow from the previous thing, or could be entirely unrelated to everything except the basic premise.)
(1) P&P takes place in the Potterverse (c. 1790s)
-- Fitzwilliam = Black, Darcy = Lestrange, de Bourgh = Rosier (for Rosings), and
-- Wickham is a Muggleborn; his godfather sent him to Hogwarts, and
-- Darcy and Charlotte were in the same year
-- Gryffindors: Elizabeth, Lydia, Lady Catherine, Wickham, maybe others. Not Mrs Bennet, Darcy, Georgiana, Charlotte, or Mrs Gardiner.
(2) After Hunsford, Darcy and Elizabeth go their separate ways, marry other people, are happy, and perhaps even happen across one another (as amicably as might be expected)
-- Elizabeth’s husband is a young protégé of her uncle’s. He makes a fortune in trade, and/or
-- Elizabeth and her husband die comparatively young and their adolescent daughters discover Darcy’s letter. They decide to return it to him. Hilarity and/or tragedy ensues, and
-- One of the girls ends up marrying Darcy’s nephew. Who is named Darcy (Georgiana’s maiden name, obvs). Extra points if the daughter is Elizabeth, so it could actually be Darcy/Elizabeth, and/or
-- Darcy marries some nice sister of a friend’s or something, or
-- Darcy marries Emma Woodhouse, or
-- Darcy marries Emma and Elizabeth marries Mr Knightley. Awkwardtiemz! or
-- Darcy marries Emma and Mr Knightley marries Jane Fairfax, or
-- Darcy marries Emma and Mr Knightley marries someone else, or
-- Darcy marries Emma and Mr Knightley doesn’t marry at all. :( or
-- Darcy marries Mary Crawford, and
-- She's already been through the Mansfield fiasco, or
-- She hasn't gone to Mansfield yet.
(3) Darcy marries Eleanor Tilney.
-- He’s a younger son (given the gap between him and G, there were probably stillborn children anyway-- just say there was one before him in canon and he survived here); in fact, make it better and assume he’s the younger son who’s actually in NA, and
-- Some time after NA, Catherine dies (look, I’m sorry) and after awhile Henry ends up remarrying -- Elizabeth Bennet. It’s still about Darcy and Elizabeth’s relationship … as siblings! or
-- Darcy has his original position; it’s AU for both books. He marries Eleanor after the whole Hertfordshire thing, or
-- Darcy marries Eleanor after Hunsford. The siblings-in-law thing becomes very very awkward, but not ~hopeless tragic romance~.
(4) Zombies! Only less … whatever than P&P&Z, and
-- Emma (per
hl!) takes over as a leader against the zombies. So does Darcy. They take over the world/band together/get married, in whatever order seems most appropriate, or
-- Darcy and Elizabeth fight off zombies!
(5) Persuasion in ancient Rome
-- Anne is a patrician lady and Wentworth is a general. Sort of Marius/Julia-y, with less crazy.
(6) P&P/Bones
-- Special Agent Bennet and Dr Darcy Fitzwilliam; the other P&P characters could probably fill the slots too. (Jane as Angela would be awesome.) and
-- genderswap! Darcy is a girl, Bennet is a guy.
(7) P&P/ST
-- Captain Elizabeth Bennet; Darcy is the science officer, and/or
-- they’re both members of Bingley’s ship until they get transferred away; eventually Elizabeth gets transferred to the Pemberley, or
-- they’re both captains on different ships, and/or
-- Lydia is Wesley
(8) P&P/The Secret Garden fusion -- a terrible fever strikes Pemberley, killing everyone but little Fitzwilliam Darcy. He's sent to live with his reclusive aunt.
-- Darcy is Mary, Anne is Colin. Fitzwilliam can be Dickon. :D
(9) P&P/the Fire-Rose -- when Fire-Elementalist Elizabeth, defending the countryside from the depredations of an evil Master of Water, discovers that Darcy is an Elemental Master, she's sure he's the culprit.
-- The Reveal -- Darcy is a Master of Air and trying to track down the evildoer. (Extra points: it's not Wickham.)
(10) P&P as a fairy tale
-- other than Cinderella
-- other than Beauty and the Beast
-- as Fairer-than-a-Fairy, 'cause I like that one
(11) Darcy and Elizabeth fight crime!
-- in their original time period, and
-- they meet over a dead body when she’s barely fifteen and he’s twenty-one and begin their career from there. Probably get married along the way. Maybe his father is murdered?
(12) Georgiana was supposed to join the Netherfield party once Darcy had vetted the neighbourhood, and
-- this is how she knows that Wickham showed up; Darcy had to tell her, and
-- Wickham doesn’t show up and Georgiana comes instead.
(13) P&P/MP crossover; Fitzwilliam falls in love with Mary and Henry with Georgiana (largely due to her similarity to Fanny)
-- Mary/Fitzwilliam works out, even though she and Elizabeth loathe each other for years (largely due to their similarity to each other)
-- potential variation: they (M/F) have an open relationship of sorts; Mary (and maybe Fitzwilliam? idk) has sexual relationships with other men, but he knows about it and doesn’t mind; they remain utterly devoted to each other and she’s devastated when he dies. Their relationship makes no sense whatsoever to the Darcys, but they accept it by not thinking about it (EVER) and kind of take her in after Fitzwilliam’s death (Waterloo?) while she gets her shit together. Elizabeth and Mary pretty much reconcile and emerge from the whole thing is mutually uncomprehending but close friends.
-- Henry/Georgiana doesn’t work, because Georgiana doesn’t actually like bad boys. She fell for the choirboy, not the bad boy. THANK YOU PLEASE CAN THIS PLOT DIE.
(14) LIA!fic -- Elizabeth and Darcy are transported into the modern real world
-- there are several Janeites who end up in Regencylandia, each of which at least approximates the kind of Austen fan that actually exists:
-- Gloria Benedict, casual, fanon-y (but basically reasonable) fan
-- Peter Card, snotty but thoughtful acafan
-- Lucy Card, Peter’s sister, a younger fan converted by one of the new movies, but actually likes the books better; spastic but intelligent
-- Fredrika something, an eccentric and deeply patriotic Swedish fan
-- they’re horrified that Darcy and Elizabeth don’t match up to their expectations; Darcy is a blond tenor, Elizabeth is average-sized and “too pretty”; they’re lost in Austen, not P&P, and by the time they get back a number of years have passed and D&E have had all sorts of crazy adventures and fallen in love on the way and gotten married, and they missed it.
-- on D&E’s side of things, the portals that brought them originally stuck them in an AU future (maybe?), then took them to the Janeite-y RL, and then it opens up again and they run through, only to find themselves in another universe; they end up as INTERDIMENSIONAL VAGABONDS for years. Their first jump lands them in the TARDIS, after several months of hair-raising adventures the portal opens again and they leap to Star Trek to various historical periods to Narnia and so on until they land back in the “future” and just stick it out, and
-- Darcy and Elizabeth stay because they have a child who, once the portals are repaired, must remain in its native reality, or
-- They go home and it’s exactly like it was before they left -- except they’re wearing their wedding rings
(15) Every single character lives happily ever after
-- (until they die, for some -- e.g., Lydia’s HEA comes after Wickham’s death, and Charlotte’s after Collins’, and Mr Bennet’s after Mrs Bennet’s)
(16) How controlling!Mr Bennet would actually work out
-- not a lot of extended drama. They just get married with the Gardiners’ help. Jane and Bingley marry shortly thereafter.
(17) Kitty fic
-- she is not secretly brilliant or strong-willed or whatever; she grows as a person and ends up happily married to a local clergyman. He has the living intended for Wickham. XD
-- maybe she and Georgiana get along but aren’t BFFs?
(18) Darcy tells Georgiana about Wickham’s perfidy
-- per canon, I mean
(19) Darcy and Bingley meet at school
-- Bingley is being bullied and Darcy takes him under his wing?
-- how this feeds into their later relationship
-- not not NOT Darcy/Bingley ever at all
(20) Elizabeth and Darcy die young!
-- I don’t even know. Their kids end up...somewhere.
(21) P&P sequel about Darcy and Elizabeth being awesome
-- they use their powers -- his insight into character, her empathy and charm, and their mutual charisma and eloquence, for good instead of evil!
-- They become actually really good matchmakers; or,
-- They become politicians. Progressive, reforming politicians! Elizabeth is a proper 1790-ish Whig(gish) hostess, Darcy is an MP.
(22) Lady Catherine doesn’t come to Hertfordshire, and
-- Darcy and Elizabeth pine after each other. (C'mon, the pining is canon.) Bingley is oblivious, Jane confused, and Mr Bennet suspicious. Elizabeth finally gets up the nerve to be ~encouraging~ or whatever at a party and they have a happyfluffy … something. Or maybe Jane and Bingley end up shipping them like whoa and, once Elizabeth admits to Jane that she doesn’t hate Darcy any more and kindoflikeshimabit, they’re like SUPER [ADORABLE] MATCHMAKERS.
-- Darcy and Elizabeth think this is hilarious. And enjoyable. <3
(23) Darcy and Fitzwilliam are BFFs.
-- No, that’s it. (Also, canon.) They just have this epic bromance, starting when … Darcy is born, basically. It’s like The Fox and hte Hound only without the ‘bred to kill each other’ part, and
-- Fitzwilliam dies in the war. See above for the rest of this plot, or
-- They live to a comfortable old age.
(24) reformed!Tom/Fanny
-- I don't know how it would work, but it could be interesting to see her with somebody who is charming and lively without being completely immoral.
(25) Mr Darcy (late) had an affair with Mrs Woodhouse
-- … which resulted in Emma, hence the gap between her and Isabella, and
-- Darcy and/or Emma discover this, somehow. (Emma would be funnier, I think.)
-- hilarity ensues!
(26) P&P: the play
-- exactly what it says on the tin. well, maybe a bit more cracky than canon. or focused on the Darcy-Bingley-Georgiana-etc side of things?
(27) magical AU P&P
-- Darcy is a powerful empath, Elizabeth is some kind of plant controller, Jane is also an empath (making her largely immune to Darcy’s powers, hence his misjudgment), Bingley’s an ex-Barbarian (hee!), Georgiana is a necromancer, and Wickham is a vampire (I wrote maybe five drabbles in this ‘verse? But never the story itself)
-- alternately: Darcy is a telepath, Elizabeth is an empath, Charlotte is a diviner (because she knows all); there’s some kind of dastardly plot that involves kidnapping Bingley, idek
(28) Unhappy families
-- The stories of Mrs Bennet and Lady Anne Darcy; do not whitewash Mrs Bennet but no demonizing either; Lady Anne should not be the perfect Madonna mother figure, but very much Lady Catherine’s sister and genuinely less amiable than her husband, without being horrifically evil. Focus on them and not their husbands. Or children!
(29) General Tilney/Lady Catherine
-- because why not?
(30) modern American genderswap
-- Elizabeth = Eliezer “Jack” Benedict, Darcy = Narcissa Fitzwilliam, Janine = Janine Gardiner, Narcissa’s cousin
-- the entire ‘verse of the two shorts I wrote
(31) Such Precious Remains -- an AU of SC
-- extension of the fragment of the same name: Lady Catherine adopts Elizabeth, so only Jane is kidnapped by the Bennets
-- (wow, SC sounds weird without context. okay, with context too.)
(32) Mr Darcy marries after his wife’s death.
-- The late Mr Darcy, that is. Our Darcy is about thirteen or fourteen and the stepson from hell.
-- he does eventually come around and he and the stepmother are good influences on each other. They stick together when his father dies and THIS DOES AFFECT THE PLOT ACTUALLY.
(33) Darcy and Elizabeth’s daughter marries somebody for family/political reasons
-- Darcy and Elizabeth don’t pressure her into it; mostly, she pressures herself. (And by “she” I mean lots and lots of factors lead to her thinking that she needs to do it, not that it’s ALL HER FAULT), and
-- the husband is very powerful, and an ally in Parliament and friendly with her father and dude she’d be a marchioness in charge of lots and lots of things but ... basically it’s The Semi-attached Couple in P&Pland. Except the happy ending comes about by him dying and not by her coming around or whatever. So more like One Fault.
(34) Epistolary P&P
-- yup - just imagining what the letter version might have looked like. First Impressions for realz.
(35) Ten Facts About Fitzwilliam Darcy
-- for real this time
-- maybe some other characters, too, because I like Ten Facts fic (and going by AO3, other people do too? idk)
(36) MP's theoretical prev-gen marriages take place: Miss Ward (canon Mrs Norris) becomes the manager of a poor household with lots of children, Miss Frances (canon Mrs Price) marries Sir Thomas, and Miss Maria (canon Lady Bertram) ends up with Mr Norris.
-- alt!Mrs Price and alt!Mrs Norris are both better off for it, as are the people within their influence
(37) MP's theoretical marriages take place: Edmund marries Mary and within a short time from that, Henry marries Fanny
-- per the narrator's argument, Edmund/Mary actually turns out all right. Henry/Fanny is more difficult.
(38) S&S alt!pairings
-- there's no inexplicable Robert/Lucy marriage; Edward dutifully marries Lucy, and/or
-- per the narrator's remarks, Mrs Smith makes Willoughby's inheritance contingent upon marrying Marianne; he cheerfully agrees, and/or
-- Elinor and Brandon commiserate over their shared misfortunes and end up falling into love. Or affectionate respect or something, or
-- Willoughby falls in love with Elinor in the first place, or
-- Brandon falls in love with Mrs Dashwood, or
-- Brandon and Eliza successfully elope!
(39) Wickham succeeds in eloping with Georgiana
-- no drunken inept Darcy, mkay? Also, Wickham is an asshole, not a Complete Monster
(40) Wickham isn't a jerk
-- I know, icky character departure, and it's been done at least twice, but for some reason it still interests me.
(41) AU of FI: only Darcy is genderswapped
-- not Darcy/Elizabeth, because actually considering orientation is half the fun of narrow-target genderswaps, and Elizabeth is consistently attracted to men and only men (sexually, anyway), or
-- eh, Darcy/Elizabeth anyway, creatively reinterpret or something, and/or
-- Darcy/Elizabeth and Elizabeth is still straight, and/or
-- Catherine is ace, and/or
-- Charlotte/Catherine! and/or
-- Charlotte/Catherine/Elizabeth OT3, just because, and/or
-- mix and match 'em all: aromantic!gay!Charlotte, biromantic!straight!Elizabeth, demiromantic!ace!Catherine
(42) AU of FI: same genders, alternate pairings
-- Catherine/Charlotte nevertheless, and
-- extra points for aromantic!Charlotte and demi!Catherine, or
-- OT3: mix and match aromantic!Charlotte, heteroromantic!Henry, and demiromantic!Catherine (Charlotte<->Catherine<->Henry, I imagine)
(42) Henry Crawford does provide a home for his sister at Everingham.
-- epic crossover potential! (esp convenient for Darcy/unreformed!Mary above, but anything really)
(43) Bingley doesn't take Darcy's advice about Jane.
(44) Bingley is already married when he rents Netherfield, to one of the girls he's been in love with before.
-- He and Jane do not fall in love, or
-- ...they do? I don't know, I don't like it very much
(45) Bingley does break his ankle in the first dance.
-- probably no insult
(46) Colonel Forster falls for Lydia instead of Harriet what's-her-name.
(47) Mrs Bennet encourages Mr Collins towards Mary, not Elizabeth.
(48) Elizabeth is Lady Catherine's daughter.
-- I'm not sure where this came from. No kidnappings or mistaken identity or anything, just ... yeah. IDEK.
(49) Elizabeth is Bingley's sister.
-- Again, no, not kidnapped from the hedgerows, and
-- She gets on reasonably well with all her siblings, and
-- extra points/lulz if she's closest to Caroline, and
-- she doesn't instantly become BFFs with Jane, though she (probably) likes her, and
-- she might even be *gasp* a little bit snobbish, though she should still be recognisable, and
-- Georgiana doesn't instantly worship the ground she walks on, and
-- to sum up, avoid the Black Hole Sue
(50) Georgiana and Darcy's birth order is switched
-- This should have significant effects on their personalities, but not transform them completely, and
-- maybe not Darcy/Elizabeth? or maybe it is. But I think the focus should be on Georgiana.
(51) Bingley marries Georgiana, and the three of them are very happy.
-- Not a OT3. Just ... you know.
-- Maybe some of the P&P plot happened, or maybe he happened to take a house somewhere else and never met Jane and actually fell in love with Georgiana in a normal way. And...life happens.
(52) ATLA + P&P fusion (P&P plot/characters in ATLA setting)
-- Don’t even think about making them white. No, really, and
-- it doesn’t take place in the series’ timeline; it’s either well afterwards or well before, with a different Avatar and stuff (maybe Kyoshi, just for the awesome -- or Yangchen!), and
-- None of the main characters is the Avatar and they don’t have anything to do with him/her, and
-- Darcy is a waterbender, presumably from the North. Elizabeth is either an earthbender or a firebender. (I think it’s easier to imagine the Bennets generally coming from the Earth Kingdom, but Mrs Bennet could be some Fire Nation girl he married, and while Elizabeth and Lydia are benders like him, they're very much ... Fire Nation-y.)
-- or, ATLA + SW fusion!
-- Chosen One = Avatar gone horribly wrong.
-- Padmé is the leader of a Water tribe; the majority of the Jedi, including Obi-Wan, are airbenders, though they train any benders; and Anakin, naturally, comes from the Fire Nation. Luke and Leia are massively overpowered firebenders, as is Palpatine (lightning!).
-- Or it’s a more balanced fusion, with the space opera elements and the ATLA setting. Still don’t make them white.
-- or, ATLA + anything. Seriously, I can’t think of anything that can’t benefit from ATLA.
(53) YW + P&P
-- also in the historical period!
-- Wickham is not, not not the Lone One
(54) Lady Susan in narrative form
-- without changing anybody's personalities!
(55) Darcy is a member of the League of the Scarlet Pimpernel!
-- Hey, going by the original composition it's even the right period. Hilariously, I think this could be less cracky than most serious fic in the fandom, including mine.