Yuletide letter
Dear Yuletide Author,
Before I say anything else (and I’m going to say a lot, it’s just my way), thank you for signing up to write some of my favorite wee fandoms. Every fandom I requested this year is a fandom in which any story, of any shape or size will make me happy. So write the story that grabs you.
I am a sucker for world-building, plot, and fully-formed characters, even in small doses. Now, you can take that and go, but if you would like more clues, what follows is an extended digression on likes, dislikes, and those wee tiny fandoms I've requested.
So, me. Here are some likes and dislikes, but these are more what you'd call guidelines than actual rules.Likes:
I like plot, I like world-building, and I especially love when characters direct the plot, rather than the plot directing them. I like characters who are different at the end of the story than they were at the beginning. I like drama, mortal peril, and characters caring deeply about each other -- but a little can go a long way. I like competence and common sense, but I also like seeing what can make a rational, competent character lose it a little bit, good or bad.
I like characters who have support networks and who go to them for help if they need it or for fun. Hell, I like supporting characters in general -- by which I mean, I love when stories have them! I like supporting characters who appear and interact with the focus characters, who share their POVs of the focus characters with us, and who show us how those focus characters fit into the wider world, etc.
I like stories that think about the characters in a realistic way. For example, Scrapped Princess’ Shannon Cassul -- possibly the biggest badass on his planet -- is actually from a very small town. He’s a bit of a luddite when it comes to picking up on the advanced technology as well as the political machinations of the powerful people he’s caught up in. Of course, he doesn’t talk that much, so who would notice? :)
On the other hand, I deeply, deeply love fantasy and sci-fi world building, so ‘realistic’ doesn’t apply to every part of the story! I am a sucker for a well-done cliché -- or a cliché turned on its head.
Dislikes:
I dislike destiny/predestination (except when thwarted), crippling embarrassment, yentas, schmoop, crackfic, and the slash trope where female characters behave like slash fangirls. I also tend to scroll through sex scenes. They’re just not really my thing.
Fandoms:
THE BOOKS OF THE RAKSURA
Prompts:
[ONE] Tell any of the juicy stories alluded to in canon but never told - Azure and Stone. Indigo and Cloud. Stone’s children, Stone’s travels. Pearl and Rain. Malachite and Dusk. Malachite vs. Onyx.
[TWO] Slightly different AU -one of those AU fics where everything changes but your favorite characters gets together anyway. Like Moon grows up like a real consort or Jade has plenty of consorts to choose from.
[THREE] Court politics! Gender politics! World building! How are courts governed? Who's rich, who's poor? What does powerful mean in a Raksuran court? How do all the artisanal goods really get produced? INTRIGUE. OR CRAZY SCARY GIANT PREDATOR LIZARDS. BOTH CANON!
[FOUR] Alternate POVs - of the Raksura by other races living in the forests. OR a scene (or missing scene) from the books from the perspective of a character other than Moon.
[FIVE] The history of the court has consequences in the present. Exiled consorts! Cloud’s history in Emerald Twilight! Opal Night! How does any of this effect what happens next?
[SIX] Malachite. Moon. My two very favorites. Just give me something about one of them.
[SEVEN] ANYTHING.
Comments:
Here is a gleeful rec I made for the books, which talks a lot about loving the world-building and culture. I also love all the characters and the big, awkward, sometimes pretty bitchy family they make. They feel like a home.
I would read a story about any character. I don't have a favorite prompt I am secretly hoping you write. Whether you write the story of Indigo and Cloud in which none of our main cast appears or simply retell a canonical scene from another character's POV, I will be equally happy. And there's always prompt seven: ANYTHING.
Some final bits: I like that Pearl is a real person and that she and Moon both clearly hate strangers and diplomacy. (Pearl/Moon AU anyone? Or you know, Pearl/Ember.) I loved Moon + kids + his lioness-style protectiveness. Loved how you could take any combo or subset of the cast and I would be interested in what their personal relationships were like. Loved the details of Raksuran culture - e.g. how Raksuran sexuality is woven into daily life, how different castes contribute to the colony, etc. Loved Jade not having a clue what she’s doing but kicking the shit out of Fell anyway.
OH AND ALSO I LOVED MALACHITE, STONE COLD BADASS. The scariest, coldest, quietest thing in the room, and yet who loves her half-fell children unconditionally and doesn’t bat an eye (or a heart) at what Moon has done to survive. BE STILL MY HEART.
And you know, all the other kids from book 3 were pretty interesting too. Ember, Celadon, Shade, Ivory, Umber, Onyx. I JUST LIIIKE ALL OF THEM. :)
LILO & STITCH
Prompts:
[ONE] I would like to see Lilo grown up, either on Earth or involved in the United Galactic Federation or some combination of both. 21, 30, 45... Student, surfer, sandwich maker, igneous petrologist, space pilot, adventure tourism entrepreneur, whatever you imagine. Gen is good, but romance and OCs are also good.
[TWO] A story about Nani. Or David. Also, don't feel like you're required to make them the "mundane" characters in the background of Lilo's antics. Unless you want to.
[THREE] I would love to see a post-movie story about the Lilo and Stitch characters inspired by another classic genre/cliche - e.g. spy movie, film noir, nature/scientific documentary, treasure hunters, cooking show, space opera, police procedural, mystery, space western, regular western, VOLCANOES, etc etc etc. Bonus if you can incorporate the existence of this star wars-esque civilization that lives out there in the Lilo & Stitch universe. Could also be AU.
Comments:
This was a PANIC PANIC request, because I was literally watching this movie at the time - but, uh, it’s LILO AND STITCH. WHAT NOT TO LOVE? These requests, weirdly, came from the five seconds of my life that I watched H50. I liked to pretend that Kono Kalakaua was Lilo grown up and that her cousin Chin had all these stories about Kono’s creepy dog - like he swears it reads the newspaper. ANYWAY, I don’t want you to write an H50 crossover, but I would like to see something as RIDICULOUS and AWESOME as Lilo being the bad ass on a crime-fighting team when she grows up.
Also, a note on romance with grown-up Lilo, if you go there:
1) I am totally okay with OCs ("original characters" a.k.a. not canon) in this fandom and with those OCs playing a major part in the story.
2) I am a-okay with adult!Lilo deciding she wants a non-human alien as her romantic partner. Platonic, erotic. Casual or forever. Odd alien customs, unexpected practical obstacles of physical compatibility... Written to be light-hearted or in an exploring-human-sexuality kind of way. I would go there with you if that’s what you want.
3) Not a request, but it seemed like something that might come up: “Oh jeez, Lilo has tension with a tentacle monster. WHAT WILL MY RECIPIENT THINK?” Your recipient thinks, “Sure!” as long as that tentacle monster is an interesting character with a personality!
4) Under an R rating, please. I am that odd person who wants to read about the tentacle monster’s hopes and dreams and witty banter, not the sex.
5) Don’t really put in a tentacle monster. I know you can think of something better. That was just an example, smart ass. *eyes you*
6) If you go down the cross-species road, I would prefer it did NOT include the nasty unhappy bits - like how alienating and isolating it would be to attempt to be accepted on Earth. Right? Not fun! Use holograms and lie to the uninitiated!
7) Also, I would prefer Lilo and Stitch as siblings, not romantic partners. And. Hmm. Is Stitch asexual? Is he going to get any bigger? Is he going to seek treatment like a human with a hormone or development disorder would? Why is this what I find interesting? Why am I still talking about this? Oh my god, just write about spaceships, ok.
…I feel so ridiculous having written all that up. I HOPE IT HELPED.
THE DEATH OF THE NECROMANCER
Prompts:
[MADELINE]: I would like to see her doing her thing - whether acting or living her life of crime. I just love her set up - she's not from a wealthy background (though there is sorcery there), so she's entered the theater while supporting her "starving actress" life by being a conwoman. Very pragmatic, very gritty life on the streets -- but now she's famous! She's Kate Winslet! And she's still life-of-criming it up. That must feel surreal. Glitzy parties, articles about me, boys fawning, oh, just have to break into this safe, 'scuse me. I’m also interested in how she offsets Nicholas - or how she met him and whether she knew what he was at the time. Would also love for the story to focus on her relationship with another of the crime team.
[REYNARD]: Every story needs its swashbuckling badass with a heart of gold, and what can I say, Reynard’s a pretty good one. Tell me a story about his job in the crime team, or about the life of not-crime he takes on between Death of the Necromancer and Tremaine’s trilogy. (Ooh, it would be neat to see Reynard’s POV of the lead up to his cameo in the Ile-Rien trilogy. Resistance networks! Stealing cars!) Give me some swashbuckling and some heart of gold. Romance would be fun too! I would prefer not to see him paired with Nicholas, but anybody else, including OCs is great.
[ARISILDE]: This character breaks my heart, and so does Nicholas’ terrifyingly pragmatic acceptance of Arisilde’s death in the later trilogy. He is powerful and kind but after an awful tragedy, he has this gradual nervous breakdown and history of mental illness. Then he is trapped in a mechanical sorcery ball from which he can’t communicate, and being rescued from it just means dying… pretty much some nightmares of mine all wrapped up! Is there a way to write Ari that isn’t depressing but doesn’t gloss over the truth of his breakdown and illness? A challenge! I guess I’d like to see the rest of the team interacting with Ari. Or you know, we never really get to see Ari open up a can of whoopass on something or someone. I would totally read that too. Or Arisilde and Nicholas at school? Arisilde and Nicholas building the wizard spheres?
[TREMAINE]: a.k.a. possibly my favorite female character of all time. Her super power is on-the-fly decision making. She’s mousy, wearing tweed, isn’t particularly friendly, and is wracked with doubt, but when placed in a situation beyond comprehension, she’s the one who says immediately “Ok, I’m going to go steal that truck.” Would love to see a story set in her trilogy or after that ties back to the Death of the Necromancer crew. Or for her to be a supporting character in a story about one of the other crew - whether it’s pregnant Madeline still involved in a heist, or Ari or Nicholas while Tremaine’s a child, or Reynard getting his 007 on while Tremaine is fighting the war against the Gardier.
Comments:
I would love to see something with Madeline, Reynard, Ari, or Tremaine, but would especially love if Madeline was included in some way no matter which prompt you choose. I enjoy Nicholas, but he’s a little too “expects to be right, is right, and acts smug through all of it”. If he’s around, I would like to see some sign (even if it’s just a sentence) that he doesn’t have it all figured out - though preferably not brought on by someone else who “expects to be right, is right, and acts smug through all of it”.
This is actually the Ile-Rien story I am least familiar with. So you can go crazy - I will not nit-pick canon with you. Also feel free to include elements from any of the other Ile-Rien books.
I CAN’T BELIEVE I DIDN’T PUT THIS PROMPT IN THERE: I fucking loved Element of Fire, if you can bring in those characters? Whether as a cameo, crossover, or just focus on Kade and Thomas in the age of iron? Or just HAVE MORE FAE or call back to HISTORY- I will love you. But. I will also love you if you do anything else.
Also? If none of this works for you? I love AUs. Hey, psst, come here -- Raksura AU. Eh? Eh? Yeeeeah.
RONIN WARRIORS/YOROIDEN SAMURAI TROOPERS
Prompts:
[ONE] Mia is finishing her dissertation. It’s fraught! Any pairing or none.
[TWO] Mystical powers appearing in mundane life. Ghost stories, weird weather, developing abilities (voluntary or not! Convenient or not!), or something much simpler, etc, etc.
[THREE] Mia’s family seems to have either money or history. Either one of these interacts with the boys or their magic.
[FOUR] Netherworld post-show: what’s it like living in (basically) feudal Japan with demons? From the practical challenges of youja government to the quirks of the local book stall. What do they think of the boys? Or Inferno/Kikoutei?
[FIVE] Any alternate universe! Such as: Feudal AU, Ninja AU, Steampunk AU, Samaria AU, Insert-your-favorite-period-or-genre AU, Ryo-the-badass-soccer-player AU, Backpackers-meet-the-supernatural AU, or just Something-is-slightly-different AU, etc... ANYTHING. :D
[SIX] The history of the armor has consequences in the present. Family history! Byakuen! Warlords! Inferno! How were the bearers chosen?!? Someone with competing claims? Etc!
[SEVEN] Life goes on. Teenagers don't stay teenagers. Tell me a story you learned about transitions in life. (...a hopeful story? I hope?)
[EIGHT] ANYTHING.
Comments:
Ryo, Mia, and Rowen are my favorites, but I love them all. Gen, romance, or gen + romance with at least one of those three involved would be perfect (OT3 also great! Note that I don't like Sage/Rowen or Cye/Kento, but everything else is golden.)
This show is my first love, and I'm flexible. I'm interested in friendship and a bit of peril or just a story about everyday things--an excuse for Ryo to stand in a snow drift with a scarf and a betrayed expression, for Rowen to think too much, or for Mia to wander her house in an afghan in the middle of the night, embarrassed to be caught with messy hair. You can run with just that, but in case you'd like more, I have provided prompts. Any of them would be great, but so would something completely different!
I don’t care whether you use the American dub or the original Japanese names. Ignore the OAVs or not (but please don’t use Message as I slept through it).
Here on some notes about why I loved these characters, but I think all I really care about is that Mia be competent but still feminine (and maybe not used to 5 younger brothers!), that Rowen think too much, and Ryo be that physically talented guy who cares too much. And that they value each other and the rest of the team.
Please write your characters rather than breaking your back to fit my vision. I just - every year I try to take this part of notes out and I physically can’t. I just love them too much, and part of my happiness is getting to repost this love letter every year.
Ryo - I saw the cheesy, cheesy dub first. Ryo’s stuck with me as a shy, easy-going sort of guy whose eloquence is all tied up in the physical - but oh man, I bet he moves like a masterwork of literature. (I have involved fantasies about Ryo going to university and getting picked up by dance students who realize he’s amazing.)
He’s not the kind to mastermind a plan--more the sort to go with tumble headlong into the flow--but he’s powerful and skilled, and we know he once chose his friends over the world. Some people suggest that he’s the leader, but it seemed to me more that he was the one that the bad guys wanted and the good guys needed to protect. He’s also, you know, impressively lethal. Er, to youja.
Rowen aka Touma - I’m not sure how to explain what I think of Rowen, except that he probably thinks too much. My favorite part of the show is when he and Ryo are trying to rescue the missing three in the dynasty, and Rowen’s job is basically to keep Ryo from dying or breaking down. Oh how much did I love his initiative and problem solving skills? [---------------------this much-----------------]. Ok also that time he crashes to earth from his space bubble and doesn’t remember it. He’s competent and sensible, but also sort of oblivious and occasionally surprised by things he shouldn’t be ("You’re a man!").
Mia aka Nasuti - This is the character that I probably like more than most people, so I’ll say a little bit extra. I think she knows how to meet society’s expectations for a woman from a wealthy family, to be beautiful, and well-dressed and well-spoken--what can I say, she’s good with languages--but I think that's what it is, a language. Really, what she lives for, she’s an academic, she wants to do research, and she’s got a steel backbone. She’s willing to walk into dimensions of demons and ghosts with no mystical weapon or armor to keep her safe, and then she’ll yell at those demons if that’s the crucial distraction they need. I also like to think she sometimes teases those boys she lives with.
Canon paints her a bit close to a feminine ideal, so I like to see her out of that role and a perhaps a little uncertain about it. One of the possibilities I mentioned in my request was "an excuse for Mia to wander her house in an afghan in the middle of the night, embarrassed to be caught with messy hair," and--yes, that. I mean, I’d love to see her in the final weeks of her masters thesis or her dissertation. Whether she’s at the center of her own story or at the edge of a story about someone else. Or, you know, Mia ends up in a mud fight. Or perhaps circumstances require her to fill a more aggressive, masculine role than she'd like to (whether she actually does it in an aggressive, masculine way is up to you). Do as you will! I’d also like to see her acting, rather than just reacting to what the boys do.
The first time I requested this fandom, I threw Kento into my request just in case you had no idea how to manage a story with Ryo, Rowen, and Mia. I like him; I think he’s the guy I’d put in charge once they grew up. I bet he knows how to delegate. That said, Ryo, Rowen, and Mia are my main three. Though, if you want to write a story about Ryo, Rowen, and Mia, in which one of them is paired romantically with Kento? I would be okay with that. (To be honest, the same goes for Cye or Seiji, with the caveat that the only pairings I don’t like are the ‘too obvious’ ones - Rowen/Sage and Cye/Kento.)
Finally, I know shit all about Japan. I appreciate an attempt at accuracy, but I won't be the one nitpicking you on it. *thumbs up*
That’s all for my requests. I hope you found something in there that helps you. If not, go where your heart takes you. You are writing a story in a wee, tiny fandom of my heart. I already love it. Thank you!
Cheers,
Pen
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comments)
Before I say anything else (and I’m going to say a lot, it’s just my way), thank you for signing up to write some of my favorite wee fandoms. Every fandom I requested this year is a fandom in which any story, of any shape or size will make me happy. So write the story that grabs you.
I am a sucker for world-building, plot, and fully-formed characters, even in small doses. Now, you can take that and go, but if you would like more clues, what follows is an extended digression on likes, dislikes, and those wee tiny fandoms I've requested.
So, me. Here are some likes and dislikes, but these are more what you'd call guidelines than actual rules.Likes:
I like plot, I like world-building, and I especially love when characters direct the plot, rather than the plot directing them. I like characters who are different at the end of the story than they were at the beginning. I like drama, mortal peril, and characters caring deeply about each other -- but a little can go a long way. I like competence and common sense, but I also like seeing what can make a rational, competent character lose it a little bit, good or bad.
I like characters who have support networks and who go to them for help if they need it or for fun. Hell, I like supporting characters in general -- by which I mean, I love when stories have them! I like supporting characters who appear and interact with the focus characters, who share their POVs of the focus characters with us, and who show us how those focus characters fit into the wider world, etc.
I like stories that think about the characters in a realistic way. For example, Scrapped Princess’ Shannon Cassul -- possibly the biggest badass on his planet -- is actually from a very small town. He’s a bit of a luddite when it comes to picking up on the advanced technology as well as the political machinations of the powerful people he’s caught up in. Of course, he doesn’t talk that much, so who would notice? :)
On the other hand, I deeply, deeply love fantasy and sci-fi world building, so ‘realistic’ doesn’t apply to every part of the story! I am a sucker for a well-done cliché -- or a cliché turned on its head.
Dislikes:
I dislike destiny/predestination (except when thwarted), crippling embarrassment, yentas, schmoop, crackfic, and the slash trope where female characters behave like slash fangirls. I also tend to scroll through sex scenes. They’re just not really my thing.
Fandoms:
THE BOOKS OF THE RAKSURA
Prompts:
[ONE] Tell any of the juicy stories alluded to in canon but never told - Azure and Stone. Indigo and Cloud. Stone’s children, Stone’s travels. Pearl and Rain. Malachite and Dusk. Malachite vs. Onyx.
[TWO] Slightly different AU -one of those AU fics where everything changes but your favorite characters gets together anyway. Like Moon grows up like a real consort or Jade has plenty of consorts to choose from.
[THREE] Court politics! Gender politics! World building! How are courts governed? Who's rich, who's poor? What does powerful mean in a Raksuran court? How do all the artisanal goods really get produced? INTRIGUE. OR CRAZY SCARY GIANT PREDATOR LIZARDS. BOTH CANON!
[FOUR] Alternate POVs - of the Raksura by other races living in the forests. OR a scene (or missing scene) from the books from the perspective of a character other than Moon.
[FIVE] The history of the court has consequences in the present. Exiled consorts! Cloud’s history in Emerald Twilight! Opal Night! How does any of this effect what happens next?
[SIX] Malachite. Moon. My two very favorites. Just give me something about one of them.
[SEVEN] ANYTHING.
Comments:
Here is a gleeful rec I made for the books, which talks a lot about loving the world-building and culture. I also love all the characters and the big, awkward, sometimes pretty bitchy family they make. They feel like a home.
I would read a story about any character. I don't have a favorite prompt I am secretly hoping you write. Whether you write the story of Indigo and Cloud in which none of our main cast appears or simply retell a canonical scene from another character's POV, I will be equally happy. And there's always prompt seven: ANYTHING.
Some final bits: I like that Pearl is a real person and that she and Moon both clearly hate strangers and diplomacy. (Pearl/Moon AU anyone? Or you know, Pearl/Ember.) I loved Moon + kids + his lioness-style protectiveness. Loved how you could take any combo or subset of the cast and I would be interested in what their personal relationships were like. Loved the details of Raksuran culture - e.g. how Raksuran sexuality is woven into daily life, how different castes contribute to the colony, etc. Loved Jade not having a clue what she’s doing but kicking the shit out of Fell anyway.
OH AND ALSO I LOVED MALACHITE, STONE COLD BADASS. The scariest, coldest, quietest thing in the room, and yet who loves her half-fell children unconditionally and doesn’t bat an eye (or a heart) at what Moon has done to survive. BE STILL MY HEART.
And you know, all the other kids from book 3 were pretty interesting too. Ember, Celadon, Shade, Ivory, Umber, Onyx. I JUST LIIIKE ALL OF THEM. :)
LILO & STITCH
Prompts:
[ONE] I would like to see Lilo grown up, either on Earth or involved in the United Galactic Federation or some combination of both. 21, 30, 45... Student, surfer, sandwich maker, igneous petrologist, space pilot, adventure tourism entrepreneur, whatever you imagine. Gen is good, but romance and OCs are also good.
[TWO] A story about Nani. Or David. Also, don't feel like you're required to make them the "mundane" characters in the background of Lilo's antics. Unless you want to.
[THREE] I would love to see a post-movie story about the Lilo and Stitch characters inspired by another classic genre/cliche - e.g. spy movie, film noir, nature/scientific documentary, treasure hunters, cooking show, space opera, police procedural, mystery, space western, regular western, VOLCANOES, etc etc etc. Bonus if you can incorporate the existence of this star wars-esque civilization that lives out there in the Lilo & Stitch universe. Could also be AU.
Comments:
This was a PANIC PANIC request, because I was literally watching this movie at the time - but, uh, it’s LILO AND STITCH. WHAT NOT TO LOVE? These requests, weirdly, came from the five seconds of my life that I watched H50. I liked to pretend that Kono Kalakaua was Lilo grown up and that her cousin Chin had all these stories about Kono’s creepy dog - like he swears it reads the newspaper. ANYWAY, I don’t want you to write an H50 crossover, but I would like to see something as RIDICULOUS and AWESOME as Lilo being the bad ass on a crime-fighting team when she grows up.
Also, a note on romance with grown-up Lilo, if you go there:
1) I am totally okay with OCs ("original characters" a.k.a. not canon) in this fandom and with those OCs playing a major part in the story.
2) I am a-okay with adult!Lilo deciding she wants a non-human alien as her romantic partner. Platonic, erotic. Casual or forever. Odd alien customs, unexpected practical obstacles of physical compatibility... Written to be light-hearted or in an exploring-human-sexuality kind of way. I would go there with you if that’s what you want.
3) Not a request, but it seemed like something that might come up: “Oh jeez, Lilo has tension with a tentacle monster. WHAT WILL MY RECIPIENT THINK?” Your recipient thinks, “Sure!” as long as that tentacle monster is an interesting character with a personality!
4) Under an R rating, please. I am that odd person who wants to read about the tentacle monster’s hopes and dreams and witty banter, not the sex.
5) Don’t really put in a tentacle monster. I know you can think of something better. That was just an example, smart ass. *eyes you*
6) If you go down the cross-species road, I would prefer it did NOT include the nasty unhappy bits - like how alienating and isolating it would be to attempt to be accepted on Earth. Right? Not fun! Use holograms and lie to the uninitiated!
7) Also, I would prefer Lilo and Stitch as siblings, not romantic partners. And. Hmm. Is Stitch asexual? Is he going to get any bigger? Is he going to seek treatment like a human with a hormone or development disorder would? Why is this what I find interesting? Why am I still talking about this? Oh my god, just write about spaceships, ok.
…I feel so ridiculous having written all that up. I HOPE IT HELPED.
THE DEATH OF THE NECROMANCER
Prompts:
[MADELINE]: I would like to see her doing her thing - whether acting or living her life of crime. I just love her set up - she's not from a wealthy background (though there is sorcery there), so she's entered the theater while supporting her "starving actress" life by being a conwoman. Very pragmatic, very gritty life on the streets -- but now she's famous! She's Kate Winslet! And she's still life-of-criming it up. That must feel surreal. Glitzy parties, articles about me, boys fawning, oh, just have to break into this safe, 'scuse me. I’m also interested in how she offsets Nicholas - or how she met him and whether she knew what he was at the time. Would also love for the story to focus on her relationship with another of the crime team.
[REYNARD]: Every story needs its swashbuckling badass with a heart of gold, and what can I say, Reynard’s a pretty good one. Tell me a story about his job in the crime team, or about the life of not-crime he takes on between Death of the Necromancer and Tremaine’s trilogy. (Ooh, it would be neat to see Reynard’s POV of the lead up to his cameo in the Ile-Rien trilogy. Resistance networks! Stealing cars!) Give me some swashbuckling and some heart of gold. Romance would be fun too! I would prefer not to see him paired with Nicholas, but anybody else, including OCs is great.
[ARISILDE]: This character breaks my heart, and so does Nicholas’ terrifyingly pragmatic acceptance of Arisilde’s death in the later trilogy. He is powerful and kind but after an awful tragedy, he has this gradual nervous breakdown and history of mental illness. Then he is trapped in a mechanical sorcery ball from which he can’t communicate, and being rescued from it just means dying… pretty much some nightmares of mine all wrapped up! Is there a way to write Ari that isn’t depressing but doesn’t gloss over the truth of his breakdown and illness? A challenge! I guess I’d like to see the rest of the team interacting with Ari. Or you know, we never really get to see Ari open up a can of whoopass on something or someone. I would totally read that too. Or Arisilde and Nicholas at school? Arisilde and Nicholas building the wizard spheres?
[TREMAINE]: a.k.a. possibly my favorite female character of all time. Her super power is on-the-fly decision making. She’s mousy, wearing tweed, isn’t particularly friendly, and is wracked with doubt, but when placed in a situation beyond comprehension, she’s the one who says immediately “Ok, I’m going to go steal that truck.” Would love to see a story set in her trilogy or after that ties back to the Death of the Necromancer crew. Or for her to be a supporting character in a story about one of the other crew - whether it’s pregnant Madeline still involved in a heist, or Ari or Nicholas while Tremaine’s a child, or Reynard getting his 007 on while Tremaine is fighting the war against the Gardier.
Comments:
I would love to see something with Madeline, Reynard, Ari, or Tremaine, but would especially love if Madeline was included in some way no matter which prompt you choose. I enjoy Nicholas, but he’s a little too “expects to be right, is right, and acts smug through all of it”. If he’s around, I would like to see some sign (even if it’s just a sentence) that he doesn’t have it all figured out - though preferably not brought on by someone else who “expects to be right, is right, and acts smug through all of it”.
This is actually the Ile-Rien story I am least familiar with. So you can go crazy - I will not nit-pick canon with you. Also feel free to include elements from any of the other Ile-Rien books.
I CAN’T BELIEVE I DIDN’T PUT THIS PROMPT IN THERE: I fucking loved Element of Fire, if you can bring in those characters? Whether as a cameo, crossover, or just focus on Kade and Thomas in the age of iron? Or just HAVE MORE FAE or call back to HISTORY- I will love you. But. I will also love you if you do anything else.
Also? If none of this works for you? I love AUs. Hey, psst, come here -- Raksura AU. Eh? Eh? Yeeeeah.
RONIN WARRIORS/YOROIDEN SAMURAI TROOPERS
Prompts:
[ONE] Mia is finishing her dissertation. It’s fraught! Any pairing or none.
[TWO] Mystical powers appearing in mundane life. Ghost stories, weird weather, developing abilities (voluntary or not! Convenient or not!), or something much simpler, etc, etc.
[THREE] Mia’s family seems to have either money or history. Either one of these interacts with the boys or their magic.
[FOUR] Netherworld post-show: what’s it like living in (basically) feudal Japan with demons? From the practical challenges of youja government to the quirks of the local book stall. What do they think of the boys? Or Inferno/Kikoutei?
[FIVE] Any alternate universe! Such as: Feudal AU, Ninja AU, Steampunk AU, Samaria AU, Insert-your-favorite-period-or-genre AU, Ryo-the-badass-soccer-player AU, Backpackers-meet-the-supernatural AU, or just Something-is-slightly-different AU, etc... ANYTHING. :D
[SIX] The history of the armor has consequences in the present. Family history! Byakuen! Warlords! Inferno! How were the bearers chosen?!? Someone with competing claims? Etc!
[SEVEN] Life goes on. Teenagers don't stay teenagers. Tell me a story you learned about transitions in life. (...a hopeful story? I hope?)
[EIGHT] ANYTHING.
Comments:
Ryo, Mia, and Rowen are my favorites, but I love them all. Gen, romance, or gen + romance with at least one of those three involved would be perfect (OT3 also great! Note that I don't like Sage/Rowen or Cye/Kento, but everything else is golden.)
This show is my first love, and I'm flexible. I'm interested in friendship and a bit of peril or just a story about everyday things--an excuse for Ryo to stand in a snow drift with a scarf and a betrayed expression, for Rowen to think too much, or for Mia to wander her house in an afghan in the middle of the night, embarrassed to be caught with messy hair. You can run with just that, but in case you'd like more, I have provided prompts. Any of them would be great, but so would something completely different!
I don’t care whether you use the American dub or the original Japanese names. Ignore the OAVs or not (but please don’t use Message as I slept through it).
Here on some notes about why I loved these characters, but I think all I really care about is that Mia be competent but still feminine (and maybe not used to 5 younger brothers!), that Rowen think too much, and Ryo be that physically talented guy who cares too much. And that they value each other and the rest of the team.
Please write your characters rather than breaking your back to fit my vision. I just - every year I try to take this part of notes out and I physically can’t. I just love them too much, and part of my happiness is getting to repost this love letter every year.
Ryo - I saw the cheesy, cheesy dub first. Ryo’s stuck with me as a shy, easy-going sort of guy whose eloquence is all tied up in the physical - but oh man, I bet he moves like a masterwork of literature. (I have involved fantasies about Ryo going to university and getting picked up by dance students who realize he’s amazing.)
He’s not the kind to mastermind a plan--more the sort to go with tumble headlong into the flow--but he’s powerful and skilled, and we know he once chose his friends over the world. Some people suggest that he’s the leader, but it seemed to me more that he was the one that the bad guys wanted and the good guys needed to protect. He’s also, you know, impressively lethal. Er, to youja.
Rowen aka Touma - I’m not sure how to explain what I think of Rowen, except that he probably thinks too much. My favorite part of the show is when he and Ryo are trying to rescue the missing three in the dynasty, and Rowen’s job is basically to keep Ryo from dying or breaking down. Oh how much did I love his initiative and problem solving skills? [---------------------this much-----------------]. Ok also that time he crashes to earth from his space bubble and doesn’t remember it. He’s competent and sensible, but also sort of oblivious and occasionally surprised by things he shouldn’t be ("You’re a man!").
Mia aka Nasuti - This is the character that I probably like more than most people, so I’ll say a little bit extra. I think she knows how to meet society’s expectations for a woman from a wealthy family, to be beautiful, and well-dressed and well-spoken--what can I say, she’s good with languages--but I think that's what it is, a language. Really, what she lives for, she’s an academic, she wants to do research, and she’s got a steel backbone. She’s willing to walk into dimensions of demons and ghosts with no mystical weapon or armor to keep her safe, and then she’ll yell at those demons if that’s the crucial distraction they need. I also like to think she sometimes teases those boys she lives with.
Canon paints her a bit close to a feminine ideal, so I like to see her out of that role and a perhaps a little uncertain about it. One of the possibilities I mentioned in my request was "an excuse for Mia to wander her house in an afghan in the middle of the night, embarrassed to be caught with messy hair," and--yes, that. I mean, I’d love to see her in the final weeks of her masters thesis or her dissertation. Whether she’s at the center of her own story or at the edge of a story about someone else. Or, you know, Mia ends up in a mud fight. Or perhaps circumstances require her to fill a more aggressive, masculine role than she'd like to (whether she actually does it in an aggressive, masculine way is up to you). Do as you will! I’d also like to see her acting, rather than just reacting to what the boys do.
The first time I requested this fandom, I threw Kento into my request just in case you had no idea how to manage a story with Ryo, Rowen, and Mia. I like him; I think he’s the guy I’d put in charge once they grew up. I bet he knows how to delegate. That said, Ryo, Rowen, and Mia are my main three. Though, if you want to write a story about Ryo, Rowen, and Mia, in which one of them is paired romantically with Kento? I would be okay with that. (To be honest, the same goes for Cye or Seiji, with the caveat that the only pairings I don’t like are the ‘too obvious’ ones - Rowen/Sage and Cye/Kento.)
Finally, I know shit all about Japan. I appreciate an attempt at accuracy, but I won't be the one nitpicking you on it. *thumbs up*
That’s all for my requests. I hope you found something in there that helps you. If not, go where your heart takes you. You are writing a story in a wee, tiny fandom of my heart. I already love it. Thank you!
Cheers,
Pen
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